THE OMAIIA SUNDAY BEE: FEBnTTATlY 7. 1909.
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NEWS OF THE BUSY H0B3E BUILDERS
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Letting the Contract for Building
Arthur O. OlanMB, ArohlUoK
The Man Who Knows
RELIES UPON
AfUr having obtained a complete net of
plana and pacifications, the next thins of
importance to the prospective homcbullder
la to have his home properly built for
him by a food contractor. It la, of courao,
beat to have the architect superintend
the construction of the home. Contractor
are not architects; they have not born In
them that aenae of proportion and color
called artiatlo talent upon which depends
ao much the proper appearance of the
home, and will aometlmea overlook Im
portant matters affecting the looka or sta
bility of a home, or both, when It would cost
them no more to have made It the better
way. Then,, too, workmen will often make
tniatakea not Intended by their employers
which would not meet the artistic require
ments of the architect, but would be passed
off aa "Just aa good" by the contractor.
These and other reasons make it advis
able to retain the architect's services after
the plans are made. It is a fact, however,
that very few homea coating, less than
$5,000 have a trained superintendent to over
see the work. In such cases It becomes
doubly Important that a competent and
thoroughly reliable contractor be given
the contract for the home or building.
The architect can best advise a home
builder on this subject, by indicating who
is trustworthy and who Is not. Contrac
tors as a whole are honest, capable men,
who intend to do the best kind of work In
the best manner known to the trade. It la
upon the kind of work they do that de
pends their reputation, good or bad, and
they are often unjustly accused of trying
to "skin the Job" by Ill-tempered or unrea
sonable people, when their motives were
of the best. There are, however, black
sheep In every fold. Probably the most ex
asperating man that one can attempt to do
business with Is the dishonest contractor.
Borne of his poor work la apparent while
It Is being done, but by far the greater
portion of It doea not show itself until a
year or more after the home Is complete.
It is not until the plastering falls down,
the doors go to pieces, the plumbing leaks,
THE BEE'S PLAN OFFER
Through a special arrangement with
Mr. Clausen The Omaha Bee Is able
to offer Ita readers the complete plans,
details and specifications or the home
Illustrated on this page without
change for HO. Mr. Clausen Is the
author of a well illustrated book,
"Home Building Plans and Prob
lems,' 'containing, besides many de
signs for modern homes and exten
sive articles on home building, over
130 designs for entrances, fireplaces,
picturesque groupa of windows, stair
ways, kitchen and pantry arrange
ments, etc. Special price to readers
of The Bee 50 cents. Send all orders
to Arthur. C. Clausen, architect. Stu
dio, 1013 Lumber Exchange, Minne
apolis, Mtan.
the heating plant falls to work, the cellar
floor crumbles -or tho finish rubs off the
wood that the owner realises that he has
been "buncoed" and wishes he had let his
contract to the man whose bid was t-W
higher and save the additional expenditure
of this aroount afterwards, to say nothing
of the annoyance. To not let the contract
to the lowest bidder is, of course, not fair
or Just. The owner should, therefore, be
sure and Invite to submit flgurea only men
to whom he would let the contract. Be
cause a contractor haa a reputation for
doing work cheap docs not necessarily rec
ommend lilm. for It often happens that the
man who does work cheap does cheap or
Inferior work, which Is the most expensive
kind In the long run. -
It in best to let the contracts for the gen
eral construction, the plumbing, heating and
electric lighting separately. If all the work
la let to the general contrsctor he will In
variably let the. last three items te sub
contractors, whom he will In turn obtain
competitive figures from and charge the
owner 10 per cent for acting aa middle man.
When the owner obtains his own bids on
heathig, lighting and plumbing he haa the
opportunity of selecting his own subcon
tractors and saves the 10 per cent profit
which the Renoral contractor gets for tak
ing care of this part of the work. When It
comes to writing up the contract it Is bf-st
to have an attorney attend to It, since this
is essentially an attorney's work.. The blank
form of contract which some architects
carry on hand covers the average home or
building pretty well, but each contract va
ries to some extent in Its requirements. and
even when a blank form Is used it Is best
to have an attorney fill it out. It is then
done right. Architects have .to know the
rudiments of a great many trades and pro
fessions, but they are not lawyers and
cannot be expected to know any more about
the technical pitfalls of the law than a
lawyer does about the strength of building
materials.
Some people make the mistake of thinking
that a specification Is the building form of
contract. It Is not. The specification sim
ply Indicates the kind Of workmanship, the
kind and quality of materials and other
itema which cannot be conveniently shown
or specified upon the working drawings.
Whether a contractor should be put under
bonds to complete his work In a satisfactory
manner depends largely upon his reputa
tion and financial standing. Remember, If
he does not pay his bills for materials or
labor you will have to do so, for in the
eyes of the law he Is your agent. The
house Is on your land and he has merely
made a convenient arrangement to act as
your agent and build It for you. If you
Intend to require your contractor to fur
nish a bond you should so Inform htm be
fore he bids or else stand the expense your
toe Mil Prkr .
And is justified in his confidence. Years of acquaintance with
Omaha's business and professional men and the requirements
of their work, makes it passible for us to select wisely. Come
once and you will come again. BE WITH THE MAJORITY
We furnish WITHOUT CHARGE to employer or employe
t
Stenographers, Bookkeepers, Clerks,
Bill Clerks, Typists, Penmen.
Use 1Mb lepartmenf IFrsely
THE SMITH PREMIER EMPLOYMENT DEPARTMENT,
I. C. DUFFY in Charge.
PHONES-Douglas 1254; Independent A22S4.
self. A bond for two-thlrcs tiie amount of
the contract it sufficient-',, The proper con
struction and artistic appearance of a home
does not depend so much upon the proper
writing of a contract or the furnishing ot
a bond as It does upon the proper prepara
tion of the plans and specifications and the
selection of a reliable contractor.
Bryan's Specialty.
William Jennings, Bryan has a habit,
when speaking, of addressing his argu
ments to some one man In his aduienca.
In this way, he claims, he can concentrate
his thoughts much better. Of course, he
does it In a manner Indirect enough not to
be embarrassing to the victim.
Once during on of his campaigns he ad
dressed himself most particularly to an old
farmer, who, he observed, followed all he
said with marked at ton t Ion. Bryan was
much pleased. After tho speech was ovr
the candidate sought out thst old farmer.
"What was it that struck you most par
ticularly about my speaking?" he asked.
"Wal," began the farmer, and paused
seemingly embarrassed. But Bryan urged
him to explain, so at last he cleared his
throat and remarked: ' ,
"Mr. Bryan, you're the only speaker I
ever heard whose whole set, of back teeth
I could see while he was speakln'." New
York Times.
TIMELY REAL ESTATE GOSSIP
Farmers Will Farm and Live in City,
Says J. H. Oiborne.
LAND RUSH ON IN THE WEST
Almost Every Omaha Firm Has
Favorite Tract Jfow Being Opeaed
for a New Period of Intense
Development.
Big Increase in Building for January
Is tho Ideal material for
Fences, Gates, Tree Boxes.
Window and Skylight
Guards. Fiowor Trellises
and all purposes common
to woven wire.
It Is Dettcr and Cheaper.
Write for circulars.
norihvosforn
Expanded Hotal Go.
04 Van Duren St, Chicago
Scarcely anything could be more satis
factory than the statistics ot building oper
ations In this country for the month of
January. They show a remarkable condition
of activity and this Is notably true of the
large cities, the places which hsve a defi
nite position In the affairs of the world.
During the month Just closed permits wert
taken out In forty-three of the leading
cities, according to official reports to Con
struction News, for the construction of
6.K95 buildings. Involving a total estimated
coat of IM.m.W. against 5,655 buildings and
$17,963,643 for thq same month a year ago,
an Increase of 1,340 buildings and $18,630,202,
or 104 per cent. The list of cities and the
totals, with comparisons, is aa follows:
19U9.
-January-
XT . No' Bides.
New York, Inc.uding
Maniiaitan and lionx.... 263
Chicago 6
Brooklyn tit
Ban Francisco
Philadelphia 733
8 1. Louis 47a
Detroit 194
Denver 2.X4
Ixts Angeles , 4x3
Newark 17a
Atlanta S20
Buffalo 178
Cincinnati 2J9
Portland 179
Minneapolis 19:1
St. Paul ltii
OMAHA 104
Milwaukee U'6
Memphis , Itjo
Birmingham 107
New Orleans ,
Rochester K13
Spokane lnl
Dallaa 151
Indianapolis 131
Worcester 82
Pateraon 87
Toledo 60
San Joae
Grand Rapids 66
l.lnooln IX
Terre Haute 87
Mobile a
Stockton, Cul
Des Moines 20
South bend lii
Davenport 4
Cedar ltaplds SI
Baltimore 217
Harrtab'irg, Pa 12
PllUlmrg, Pa 1S
Pueblo 14
Fort Worth 84
Tacoma
Totals 6,tfW
Estimated
1906.
Estimated
Per Cent-
Cost. No. Bldga. Cost. Gain. Loss.
$10,441.8(10 134 $ 4,908,075 112
8.227.700 476 2.57U.UW J20
8.S.67 2tW l.iWUhS 171
1,996.310 ... 1,;9;,968 42
1.677.025 678 IU4.510 75
1,1?4.21 -1 I" 971 40
7 liO 193 H4
694. , a i.j . ,..!. , lul
646.0O7 4U7 . 49.104 38
620,090 113 . aJ3.t98 66
Wo.799 2 261, WT 125
653.000 127 243,000 127
432,730 231 B16.1M7 ... 16
431. 410 294 626.645 ... 31
377,840 204 225.006 60
2H5.B76 ii6 197.184 . 48
277, 5o0 79 1H8.7W 47
2 641 60 12S. 330 96
220.D71 ISO in2,:'10 116
220.C90 63,178 248
2I6.5A9 ... 195,564 10
2IK.9K4 69 140.100 64
275.10 132 164.653 ' 149 ,.
rirf.Nii K9 1118.793 88
l.7tt 172 134.697 19
142.5K3 30 20,630 691
1U.8S3 43 71.146 I 67
110.127 53 SK.850 24
107.161 -2 43.050 148
98.341) 34 82.126 2
6t,&00 3i 60.4UO 10
56.475 30 2W.9IO ... 84
3S.SA0 21.96 75
2X.940 ... 13,K7 J.
' 27.475 13 18,50 50
21 370 20 13,928 U
Hi") II 18.976 ... 41
86. (W 11 34..'50, 151
370.30 1HS 213,344 73 , ..
24,iii5 n 10,020 14i ..
6US.994 7 7 275.42; 121
40,075 10 8,525 370
47,5f9 37 38.077 24
193.955 ... 242,800 ... JO
$36,592,846 hJM $17,962,643 104
All thst has been said heretofore about
bright prospects for this year In the build
ing Industry and more, too, hss com to
pais. A good story does not require close
analysis. Out of the forty-three cities only
five show decreases, at points so remote
from each other that they have little bear
ing upon the situation. Chicago leads the
advance In the list of big ettles with the
henomnal total ct fsTM fot the
mont i, I'jal.mt 32.570.050 for the same month
a year ago, an Increase of 120 per cent,
while New Tork City has sn Increase of 11)
per cent. Brooklyn 171, Philadelphia 76. St.
Louis 40. Milwaukee 96. Detroit 144, Pitta
burg 121. Los Angeles 3. Atlanta 136, Buf
falo 127, Denver 101. Omaha 47 and the rest,
to ,the number of thirty-nine, rivaling each
other In attempt to show the biggest gains,
while la only Cva war (here daoreasM
City life for the farmer seems to be the
tendency of the times, according to J. H.
Osborne of the Oeborne-Haneen company,
who has Just returned from the west, where
the company haa large tracts of land.
"Towna axe growing In the new country at
such a rate that it appears the farmers will
not live on their lands, but in the towns,
and hasten from the towns In the morning
by motor cars or with fast horses,'' said
Mr. Osborne. "Seriously, there are more
farmers living In towns and cities and yet
pusulng their work on large tracts of land
than anyhe would Imagine. In gome lo
calities lterurban cars will take farmers
to their work and return them to the towns
In the evening. The old farm house, far
from neighbors, is slready a thing of the
past. The government In opening irrigated
tracts haa made provision for towns every
five miles. Thus no farm will be more than
two and a half miles from the town. The
tendncy will be to smaller farms, but the
farming will be Intensive. Why farmers
choose to live in town Is a matter of mys
tery to people who live In the cities and
want to get to the country, but even In
western Nebraska there are any numbwr of
farmers who handle large tracts of land
and live In the town of from 600 to 1,500,
having all the advantages . of the schools,
churahes and social life of such towns snd
at tha sama time making farming their
business. They are Just aa near their places
of business at that aa the average buainess
man of Omaha."
The Payne Inveatment company Is open
ing large tracts of land in the North Plate
viiiiov and aurvavlns; several townsltes. A
large party made the trip during the week
and hundreds of new settlers are going Into
the country. One of the towns which the
company ts to Buna is -K.eysione. pimai
after tha park west of Benson, which the
company, wltn D. v. enoies. naa own ut
veloplng for the last two years. Soma of
the lands In the west whloh the company
is opening are a part of the William Paxton
estate, some of them being subdivisions of
the famous Paxton ranch.
Business property In the neighborhood of
the Burlington and Union stations Is more
In demand than usual and some sharp ad
vanoea In the price of building sites In this
neighborhood are expected. W. J. Connell,
who Just completed the block known as the
Pullman Building." found so much flemetjl
for offices and business houses in the block
that he has decided to double the sl of
the block building Just south of the preset.
block. Other building enterprises are plan
ned in the vicinity.
Hastings Ileyden have bought forty
acres on Tlurty-nlnth street and Curtis ave
nue for $12,000 and it will be, platted, Im
proved and sold In tracts ot halt an acre
and one-acre tracts. The addition will be
known aa "Vernon Heights" and will be
one of the most desirable In northwest
Omaha. Th demand for such property
continues unabated and the buyers will
start an active campaign to dispose of the
entire tract wirhln a short tiro. Thor will
be no leas than fifty homes erected In that
part of th city as a result ot their activity.
Forest HM park, th tract which was
opened a ahort time ago between Pierce and
William streets, In th southern part of th
alt, k row aij ta Md if.ht Ma-
home have been erocted, while contract
have been let for th erection of twelve
niore. The site Was formerly the home of
Herman Kountse and only the old Kountse
residence and the lots on which It stands
remain. These are offered for salo by the
firm having the sale of the property for
$35,000 said to be the greatest bargain In
Omaha f
Omaha real estate dealers are planning
to send a large delegation to the Missouri
River Navigation congress, which mecls'ln
Yankton. B. D In the latter part of May
or early June. The real estate dealers be
lieve the opening of the river means some
thing to them, taking their cue from a few
line attributed tu Whittled which read:
Behind the red a squaw's red canoe, the
stesmcr snorts and raves, and city lots are
staked for sale above old Jndlan gravus."
PRATTLE OF THE YOVNOSTCnS.
Teacher Johnny, can you tell me why
water runs down hill?
Johnny 'Cause it can't walk, I guess.
Johnny Tho camel can go eight days
without water.
Freddy 80 could I if ma would lot me.
Teacher-Leunle, If you wer to take
your father's rasor and leave th steel
blade open out In tha grass overnight,
what would happen?
Learned Lennle I would get as result
oxidation of the steel, or what Is commonly
called rust.
Teacher Quite rlfrht. Now, Willie, If
you would put your mother's diamond,
ring In the fire, what result would you
get ?
Wise WUlle-I'd get a lie-kin'.
"Oct up, Henry." called uut the boy's
father from tho foot of the Htuirway, "or
you'll be late tu school. It's after 7
O'clock."
"Oee!" grumbled the siiirII boy. "it
gets late awful early tlnso days!"
Mother Were you taught to be polite in
school, Tommle?
Tommle Yes, mamma, hut I was taunht
so many things that I can't remember 'em
all.
"Pop. I was the head of my tlatM today."
"That's my brlRht little boy. Here's a
dime for you. Now w.is It hecauMp you
studied harder than uhiihI?"
"Nope; 'twas 'cause tho other filler
stayed home."
A little Swede boy presented himself be
fore the teacher, who axked his name.
"Yotiny Olson," he replied.
"How old sro you?" asked tho teacher.
"Ay not know how old ay bane."
"Well, when were you born?" continued
tha teacher, who nearly fainted at the re
ply. "Ay not born at all; ay got stepmut-ter."
This Interests You
If you do not own your own home.
You know how difficult It is to rent a suitable house In Omaha
at the present time.
Why not stop paying rent and have a home of your own?
This Association was organised to help you own your home as
It haa helped hundreds of others.
Our fundi are loaned to you and are repayable in monthly pay
ments. Our office is located at 8. E. Corner 16th and Dodge Sts., and
our officers will be pleased to explain our plan.
Omaha Loan & Building issn.
S. E. Cor. 16th and Dodge Streets
GEO. W. LOOMS, O. JT. NATTINQER, W. It ADAIR,
Pruident. Scc'y and Treat. AmU Sec'y.
AihIi 11.187,000.00
Reserve 157.000.0)
The power of the future
There is no longer any necessity for inconvenience
and repairs due to frozen tanks and pipes. No matter
how cold it may be, you can have a constant supply
of power 24 hours every day with motors connected
to pur power lines".
No charge for engineering advice. Let us help you.
Omaha Electric Light & Power Co.
Y. M. C. A. BUILDING
Contract Department. Both Phones. 1
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