Year: 1878




that somebody does not drown himself,
while these melancholy self-murders are
oftenest committed by men once pros
porous whose affairs have fallen into dis
order, and who have been overtaken by
poverty and debt, occasionally the news
reports tell us of man who has put an end
to his life in the midst Of prosperity, or, at
any rate, while promising career lay open
before him. prompted to the act not by
want or debt or crime, but by perverse
shutting his eyes to the opportunities
within his reach.


The city of New York has undoubtedly
career of prosperity before it far greater
than any it has enjoyed. We undertook to
point out few weeks ago the reasons which
lead us, in common with many shrewd and
far-sighted citizens, to believe that the city,
contrary to the opinion of some croakers. is
not only in a good condition now. but has
before it revival of solid prosperity which
cannot be much longer delayed. Well estab-
lished statistics show that our city has now
more than three times the foreign commerce
Of Philadelphia. Baltimore and Boston to-
gether, and that our exports and imports
more nearly balance each other than those
of the other cities, which gives an i'm
portant advantage to ships using our
port, because they are more certain OF
freight both ways. while it also enables the
railroads terminating here to carry freight
more economically. 1t is further advan-
tage that rents and prices here are once
more down to reasonable rates, while the
completion of the elevated railroad
system and of the Harlem River
improvement will open new region to
commerce and residence, and make the
whole island for the first time available.
Moreover, New York, by the great improve
ment which has been made in number Of
easily accessible seaside resorts and by the
increase in it's own metropolitan attrac-
tions, has now become one of the most
popular summer resorts of the country, a
fact which will some day be seen to have
an important beneficial effect upon it's well
fare.


Why, then, should we trouble ourselves
to discuss the question, How New York
may commit suicide? Because with all our
advantages it is possible that we shall
ignorantly or perversely consent to q
policy which would make them all of little
avail. That the city has grown at all dur
ing the last twenty years is wonder; but
unless we take care and thought, unless
the people of New York act in q sensible
way, they cannot hope to see it have for the
future any but feeble and rickety growth.
New York has long been the commercial
metropolis of the Union, and no doubt it
will for many years remain SO. even under
the most disadvsntageous circumstances.
But it has now attained such dimensions
that in order to make healthtul growth
it needs to become the commercial metropo-
lis not of merely our own forty-eight mill
ions Of people, but of at least the two
American continents. If in the next ten
years it does not attain this position shrewd
and wise men will see that on the
whole it has lost ground. AS the
entrepot and depot for imports into the
Union, New York has a constantly increas-
ing number of rivals. Not only do the
other seaports, Boston, Philadelphia, Balti-
more, Charleston, Savannah, New Orleans
strive for their share, but wherever in the
interior there is custom house the goods
which formerly were stored and sold in
New York are now transported in bonded
cars, and there and not, here they
are stored and distributed. Nothing
is more certain than that as q mere
distributing centre for the imports of
this country alone New York will lose rather
than gain. The modern commercial system
aims to dispense more and more with mid
dlemen, and this rigorous exclusion works
disastrously even to the best established and
most wealthy of our old firms, who see men
without capital. often men form erly their
own clerks, taking business away from them,
and in perfectly legitimate way, because
it requires no capital to order goods from
the producing centres abroad, and they are
freely sent on the security of bills Of lad
ing. We must expect, therefore, that, 80
far al the mere commerce Of .the United
States is concerned. New York will have
to divide it with constantly in
creasing number Of rivals in the interior
and if we nre SO foolish as to depend only
on our old system we shall be some day
simply city at the wrong end of rail-
road. Owners of warehouses need not ex-
pect to see such revival of demand for
them as would make them valuable proper
ties until New York has taken the next step
and has become what it ought to be-tho
distributing depot for at least North and
South America and ih part for the whole
world.


That is what makes the greatness of Lon
don. That city would fall into decay and
ruin If it depended for its gains merely on
the business of the island Of Great Britain.
1t is because its immense bonded ware
houses nre filed with the nrod ncts of nll