The New York herald., 1921-10-01
MOVING DAY finds
I Army Of HOMELESS
100000 Odd Leaving Old
Flats Are Unable to Get
Into New Ones. :.
VAN SCARCITY ACUTE
Household Goods Piled in
Street Prey to Elements
and Thieves.
STOREHOUSES JAMMED
Sixty Per Cent. Fewer Movers
This Year Than Last, but
Misery Is Greater.
STOREHOUSES JAMMED


must shift their household effects from
the old fiat to the new. The distress
began yesterday and by evening up
ward of 100000 families or individuals
were somewhere between tears and
profanity. Certain conditions made
Moving Day, 1921, more intolerable
than ever before.
prominent among these conditions
was the scarcity of moving vans, and
IT was no uncommon sight yesterday
to see a small mountain Of furniture
piled upon a sidewalk while the owner
secured the neighborhood for any sort
of vehicle to move his goods. Others
were in an even worse plight due to
the new rent law which cuts two ways,
specifically protecting tenants from
eviction and automatically barring new
tenants who had rented under the as
sumption that they could take pos
session on the landlords say so.
In these cases, which were innumer-
able the moving van people reported,
vans would discharge loads Of furniture,
Of would be ready to discharge them,
WAicn tiic OWHcF WOutu QlSCOVeT Ht
couldn't get into the apartment he had
rented because the old tenant had re-
fused to get out. And there was no way
TO put the tenant out because the law
gave him the right to go to court and
to fight for a year and a month IL
necessary. The only thing left to do by
the luckless movers was to find cellar
Or a loft in which the furniture could be
stored.
Calls Conditions Horrible.
II have been in the business for thir-
ty-five years." said Charles S. Morris,
president OF the Van Owners Associa-
ton of Greater New York, land / have
never seen anything like the conditions
we faced to-day. They are horrible
and when l say horrible / mean moth
ing less. The confusion and congestion
are unspeakable Hundreds of instances
have been reported to me of movers who
were unable to get into apartments they
had rented and had nowhere to go with
their furniture. There were more men
swearing and more women weeping yes
terday as l noted on my rounds. than
have seen in many day.
'The trouble is largely due to the fact
that the real estate people are allowed
to concentrate all moving operations
into q period Of twenty-four hours-this
In a community of 100000 people. It's
unthinkable. Out in Chicago the real
estate people have allowed two dates in
the spring and three in the fall. and that
prevents such congestion and confusion
az we suffer from here right now. In
I'll the moving job is spread out more
thinly there will always be misery.
'Thcre are not enough vans to go
around. We are forced to do all our
business in few days. and for months
we do practically nothing. We can't
keep enough vans to meet the inflated
demand. It's a shame to see what's go
ing on-beautiful. valuable furniture
carted around town in dirty, fiy-by-
night trucks and drays and broken or
battered by careless, irresponsible
handlers or piled upon a sidewalk
somewhere and left at the mercy of the
elements. How much stuff will be
stolen the Lord only knows. but it VIII
run into thousands of dollars worth
And the whole trouble Is due to jam
ming all moving into a day or two, an
impossible job for such great city,"
Rain Adds to Misery.
To add to the troubles of the NOV
ers along came the storm yesterday
afternoon, and the heavy downfall
caught unprotected many loads of fur
niture that we're being carted In poorly
equipped trucks and wagons.
The conditions referred to by Mr.
Morris obtain despite the fact that
fewer families are moving this year
than In previous years, and because of
the peculiar problems presented by the
new rent law and the general mixup in
the relations between landlords and
tenants and they are intensified by the
always existing lack of sufficient vans
to handle time-fimfted moving. There
are 2.10o vans owned by members of
the Van Owners Association, and IL Is
estimated that altogether there are
only about $500 vans properly equip
ped for the business.
Hundreds OF families gave up the
problem entirely several days ago, real
izing that they we're up against an inn
possible situation, put their household
effects in storage and went to live at
hotels until the situation straightened
out. The storage warehouses reported
yesterday that they haven't a square
foot of space left. and that the demand
Tor room had never been so great.
The lacE OF new apartments was of
course. one OF the main causes of the
congestion According to an investiga-
tion made by the Real Estate Record aud
Guide only about 10000 new apartments
VIII be ready to-day for occupancy
while 100000 are needed. This lack pre-
ventcu people from getting their NOV
ing operations started early in Septcm-
Der. or, at any rate. in ample time to
secure vans and go at the Job coolly and
systematically Everybody had to move
at once ir confusion confounded. with
the result that this week end. for thou
sands of people. will have been the most
uncomfortable In their lives.
Because of the improved understand
Ing OF the protection given by the new
rent law along with the published ad
vice of Samuel Untermyer TO demand a
show down from the landlords, and the
activities of the Mayors Committee on
Rent Profiteering In counselling thou
sands TO take the landlord to court and
demand jury trial In cases of unrea-
sonablc rent increase, the total volume
of moving was less than In previous
years. about 60 per cent, II was esti-
mated, but the conditions previously
referred q made the pinch OF congestion
worse than ever. 1t was estimated that
$4,000 families. at least. have refused
10 pay increased rent and to move out
without taking the matter to the courts.
II do not think there will be great
exodus to-morrow--grcat in comparso !
with previous years. mean" said
Junius r. Wilson, chief counsel for the
Mayors committee Thousands OF
CASES are pending before the courts
cIrc@dy. Many tenants intend TO hold