The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1919-02-24
WHY BUILDING rs SLACK.


What is holding back building and construc-
ton work throughout the country2
More than five hundred opinions ON this
question have been received in the last two
weeks by the information and education serv-
ice of the United States department OF labor.
Many building authorities blame congress,
others charge the financial interests OF the
country with responsibility. In the central
west, freight rates are said to be exerhng an IN
furious influence In the main, high costs OF
materials are held to be the chief obstacle
Don't expect private capital to build merely
for the sake of furnishing jobs for workmen,
writes an architect from Buffalo That is the
obligation of the government, be 1t local, state
or national Let public works be started at
once for the benefit of the public The cost will
be high and the public will have to pay the
price, but the public will reap the benefit IN the
reduction of unemployment, the absorption OF
the products of many industries and the use OF
many works of which there is great need. =
From Passaic, N. j., comes the following
statement: 81 am greatly hindered In progress
of this work by not being able to procure loans
by way of mortgage, in large amounts, say, In
the neighborhood of one hundred and fifty
thousand dollars. The banking institutions
and mortgage companies are making only small
loans around here and, even where there IS
ample security, will not consider investing a
large amount of money in one place"
Labor conditions and demands are held to
be unfavorable to immediate building opera
tons by many An architect writing from
Lincoln, Nebr, makes the following statement,
typical of the complaints along this line: ''Con-
struction work in these parts is now and has
been impeded not little, due to the unreason-
able demands of labor not only for exorbltant
wages but more by the fact that certain very
undesirable trade rules are being enforced by
labor organizations, which run up the cost OF
doing work enormously
i Many of the contractors and builders in the
central west assert freight rates are the chief
trouble. Typical of these arguments is the fol
lowing from Greenville, Ohio: eve have no
complaint to make in the matter of securing
credits, building materials, and labor 1t Is
true that wages are quite high and yet not pro-
Ehibitive The greatest detriment to our indus
| try through the central west is prohlblt1ve
freight rates on sand and gravel. 1t is not only
threatening to destroy our industry, but at the
same time it is impeding highway construction
and other building projects which demand a
high grade of these basic materials.
Lack of cooperation on the part of financial
interests seems to be the outstanding obstacle
lin New York.
The department of labor is seeking lnforma-
ton as to what can be expected in material
prices for the next five years While the lnves-
Itigation lacks completeness at this time, no
definite conclusions may be stated. Many emil
lnent building and material authorities, how
ever, insist that no marked decrease IN ma
terial prices may be expected for the next five
years. They assert with some p0sltlveness that
pre-war prices on building materials will not
be re-estabished for several years, if ever.
These assert that persons who delay building
in the hope of marked reductions in building
costs probably will be disappointed and will
have denied themselves the use of needed prop
ertv and the revenues which would be derived
therefrom.
Building, being basic industry, will stimu-
late general business and is, therefore, vital to
continued financial prosperity The national
economic loss resulting from the idleness of
thousands of men cannot be permitted and its
injurious effects escaped.
According to report, the republicans OF
Portugal would like to annex that country to
the United States In the event that annex
,--l,% Il