The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1894-02-28


son that real estate in Brooklyn three
miles from the bridge and in an excel
lent neighborhood gives q very fair
standard of comparison.
On that basis am positive that rents
i'll all the northeast section of Washing
ton are one-third lower than in Brook
lyn. In fact, l was offered very good
brick house of nine roons-English base
ment-in what seemed to me o pretty
and peaceful neighborhood for $3.50 per
month, tenant to pay his own water
rates. Dozens of eight room houses can
be had for $3S and some really nice six
room houses for $50. On the other hand,
i'll the northwest quarter of the city rent
seems phenomenally high. In the vicin-
ity of Dupont circle, for instance, one
pays $50 month for plain house and
500 more for the style of the neighbor-
hood.
Moving to Baltimore.
There has indeed been decided fall in
rents in middle class dwellings, but the
fall in Baltimore has been greater still
80 much greater that some department
clerks have moved their families there
and find 1t much cheaper to room alone
i'll Washington and go and come of Sat
urdays and Mondays. These are humble
details, it is truo, and do not glorify lit
erature, but just at present there are sew
eral million people in the United States
very much interested in Just such fig
ures. was allowed in one office to look
over very curious compilation Of rates
and found, with surprise, that real es-
tate has fiuctuated in Washington rather
more than in any other eastern city. To
give the reasons in full would be to write
history Of the city.
washington was put here by accident
in the first place-or rather by log roll
ing. 1t is an old story, but will bear re-
telling. Hamilton wanted the state
debts assumed, and the southern mem
bers wanted the capital on the Potomac.
so Jefferson agreed to bring over two or
three southern men to assumption if
Hamilton would bring two or three
northern members to consent to the re.
moval Of the capital southwark. 1t was
the hrst legislative bargain in our his
tory and was honestly carried out. The
state debts were assumed, and the capi
tai was sprawled over the soft mud of
the Potomac flats. 1t was the intention.
however, that the city should be bull,
east of the capitol. The boom there in
real estate drove the first settlers west
ward. and the east waited 70 years for
another boom.
Toward the close of the war of 1912
suburban property here was lower than
good farm lands are now. Only few
years later it was phenomenally high and
so continued till the pauic of 1919 pros-
trated Washington and every other city.
There was another boom in due time.
and prices in 1887 had reached very near
ly the highest point before the war. The
regular crash followed, and for the next
20 years Washington was derisively spo.
ken of as "a city of mud and magnificent
distances.
A Fall In Prices.
The war boom was phenomenal. of
course. Washington was suddenly over
whelmed by the great northern invasion.
and prices went clear out of sight, as
everybody knows 1t is not SO generally
known, however, that they fell with a
truly dull and sckening thud, and that
great many who had invested rashly
came to grief. OF course there must
have been some fall anyhow, for prices
generally declined over 30 per cent in the
year 1865. But when the natural dc.
cline resulting from peace and contrac-
ton had ceased another decline set in.
caused by the capital movers.
Captain Reavis of St. Louis and all
along there is almost forgotten now. but
there was time when his name WA.
spoken among Washington real estate
owners with the mingled feeling o,
hatred and dread which the name OF
Richard Cpur dc Lion aroused among
the Saracens. The captain really did
come very near to making his movement
success, so near that real estate in
indianapolis ut one time actually tool, :,
rise in the confidence that the capitol
would be moved there. Several places
i'll Illinois and Missouri felt the thrill,
and at one time it was definitely nro.
posed to take the old Mormon town of
Nauvoo for the site Of the future capital.
Senator o. p. Morton declared his be.
lief that if the matter were put to n non.
ular vote the capital would be moved to
some site near the Mississippi river by
an overwhelming majority And while
things were i'll this condition Boss Shep.
hard appeared upon the scene. The act
which his friends got through congress
and the work which he did here settled
the question of removal adversely for all
time. Then Washington real estate en-
tered on its last great rise which has
been continued until quite recently. No
body here snecrs at Boss Sheppard now
In truth, he stands fair chance of being
canonized as Washington city's patron
SAINT. j. II. BEADLE.