New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1919-11-10

vanced 81 IA ton, or 8 cents, base, Pitts
burgh. while cement prices are gener-
ally reported to be In upward tendency,
probably effective In this market
around the Arst Of the year. Al a
matter Of fact conditions In that de-
partment warrant q price advance even
now.
The alternative Of using concrete In
wolves the use Of lumber for forms. and
there Is new price scheduie showing
higher levels than even those now rul-
ing that Is promised for this month
Price advances in lumber affects WIN
dow sash. doors, rafters, flooring, roof
ing. etc. Alternatives of these COM
modities rest In the metal market,
which already shows signs of stitfening
for period, sufficient to cover clear
ance Of back orders and the rapidly in
creasing demand for building purposes
The only commodity upon which All
active construction market for this city
rests. there Tore. is brick-common
brick, that only few years ago sold
sale. dock, New York. or about $25 a
thousand, laid in a wall Even at SIS
thousand, dock. and $45 thousand
laid in wall. the market is so fam
lshed to-day that a sale was reported
in Staten Island at $40 a thousand,
wholesale, with only one cargo avail
able here on Saturday.
Production No Greater
One fact stood out prominently, that
10 more brick arrived at the West
Fifty~second Street wholesale docks
with the market at $18 than arrived
when the market was at Sl4, Sis or SIG.
Leading brick manufacturers met up
the river on Friday to discuss the
problem as it was beginning to present
itself to them. 1t was shown that the
majority Of the manufacturers who can
do So believed that they were best con-
serving the interests Of the New York
consumers by utilizing ell the
premium paid men they can still retain
at the yards in the manufacture of
brick. rather than In loading what bricx
they have for shipment into this mar
yet. Brick can even be shipped by rail
in winter, 1t was argued, but they can
net be made On the open yard after
winter sets in. The consensus of the
meeting seemed to be that the right
possible while there was chance to do
so. Any day might see the end Of the
Hudson brick making season, already
protracted long beyond the furthest
brick making day the Hudson annals
have yet shown, according to manu-
fec+r~ers
Under this plan, it was pointed out,
if weather conditions favored it would
De possible to make brick for some time
OF nd t>rfo ~.
closed large fotillas of brick barges
could be rushed down the river to be
covered at local docks, pending pur-
chase, and thus perhaps to break the
high prices fostered by present dearth
of this important building commodity.
There are some purchasers in New
York who have been conspicuously out
Of the market for the last month, in
ticipstion Of just This contingency, so
as to offset the advantage that Haver-
straw manufacturers might have by rea-
son OF their plants being usually access
sible to New York all winter, If demand
proved sufficiently great to require the
extra exertlon.
The Hudson River district, according
to the most authentic count, will close
the year with barely 100000. 900 COM
mon brick. left from season that pro-
duccd only a little more than half the
i.200.000,000 of q normal year. This
may be further curtailed If the coal
strike is long continued, as soft coal is
solely depended upon nowadays for tenn
pering and burning
The result Of this low quantity pro-
duction is that the entire New York
hui ding program for this winter is
likely to rest in the hands of Il few
Haverstraw district brick manufacture
ers, who viii have TIE responsi bility
of smeeting the biggest winter demand
for common brick the district has
known in recent years with the small
est quantity Of basis building materials
the Hudson River brick industry has
ever recorded 1t is unlikely that any
thing Ike the supply needed will be
brought here by rail. Such added ex-
modify under existing conditions around
$50 a thousand laid IN a wall. Such
price would be prohibitive, even for
the biggest building interest.
More Active Building
In the mean time the building con-
struction movement is gaining momen-
tum. There is II fair quantity of cost
plus construction work being awarded
nearly all work to proceed at once, but
sub-contractors are "picky." The lure
Of the big job has given place to the
job where time is not the first factor.
Conditions of supply of materials and
temper o labor are not conducive to
speedy construction work to- day, and
the result Of this tendency probably
will be that anything like general re-
lief from the housing shortage cannot
be expected next year. The extreme
conservatives among the building in
terests sd that under present condi-
tons there can be no hope for q change
until the fall of 1921