Notes

Unburdened. Walter P. Chrysler, nominally President and Chairman of the Board, has been protean in his Chrysler Corporation and Chrysler Sales Corporation. Last week he shunted some of his work to able, active W. Ledyard Mitchell, made him Vice President and General Manager of Operations of the three plants in Detroit and the ones in New Castle, Ind., and Dayton, Ohio.

"Bread Trust" Done. In Baltimore last week the $2,000,000,000 Ward Food Products Corp., although willing to fight the Government dissolution suit under the anti-trust laws (TIME, Feb. 22), consented to surrender its charter and sever all relations that might savor of monopoly. Provided this be done, the prosecution was withdrawn.

Sakses Out. In 1842 Adam Gimbel started a store in Vincennes, Ind. In 1867 Andrew Saks opened one in Washington, D. C. Both grew vast and branched out. In 1923 Gimbel's descendants bought from Saks' relatives their Manhattan store (TIME, Dec. 14). So next April 30 those relatives, Isadore, Joseph I. and William A., will withdraw from their Manhattan activities.

U. S. Selfridges. Harry Gordon Selfridge Jr., handsome son of U. S.-born and trained Harry Gordon Selfridge and persistently a U. S. citizen, last week on arrival in Manhattan for a brief business inspection, enunciated a new principle of selling in his father's enormous London emporium: Salespersons will address customers by name; will maintain good will.

Big Buildings. The world's hugest buildings are:

Building........................City...............Cubic Feet

Equitable.......................Manhattan.........24,000,000 General Motors..................Detroit...........20,411,000 Union Trust.....................Cleveland.........20,000,000 Railway Exchange................St. Louis.........18,898,000 Illinois Merchants..............Chicago...........17,850,000 Continental & Commercial Bank...Chicago...........17,000,000 Woolworth.......................Manhattan.........13,200,000 Straus..........................Chicago...........10,000,000

Last week the Thompson-Starrett Co. (Louis J. Horowitz, President), stupendous builders, announced in dignified newspaper advertisements that they had built all but two* of the foregoing.

Other buildings now under Thompson-Starret construction:

In Chicago, Palmer House (to be the world's largest hotel--2,268 rooms). In Manhattan, the Paramount and Evening Post buildings. In Newark, the monumental Prudential Life and the Industrial Exposition buildings. In Philadelphia, Gimbel Brothers.

The Thompson-Starrett sign has black letters, an orange field.

Floridian Brisbane. Arthur Brisbane, longtime press syndicating touter for California opportunities, had announced last week his purchase of 10,000 Florida undeveloped acres at $80 each. Two years ago he made a two-day automobile inspection tour of the land with S. Davies Warfield, President of the Seaboard Airline Railroad, and decided to buy as a development demonstration.

Largest. The vastness and intricacies of Manhattan realty values reflected themselves again last week in the merger of the New York Title & Mortgage Co. with the United States Title Guaranty Co., with combined capitalization of approximately $30,000,000. Naturally this becomes the largest corporation of its kind in the world; will function for Manhattan, the other boroughs, and certain contiguous counties.

Life Values. Last week Ellsworth Milton Statler (Hotels Statler at Buffalo, Cleveland, Detroit and St. Louis, and Hotel Pennsylvania in Manhattan) was vexed. Last November his private yacht Miramar disappeared with all eleven hands in stormy weather off the Florida east coast, and Mr. Statler immediately prepared, quietly and after suitable investigations, to provide for the families of the lost crew. His intentions doubtless were unknown to the inheritors of at least four of the eleven, for last week they sued him for $700,000--$250,000 for Martin Strandberg, chef; $200,000 for Arthur Swanson, chief engineer; $150,000 for Benjamin Hawes, chief steward; $100,000 for Frank J. Guile, assistant engineer.

Murders. "The economic loss to the nation [from the 12,000 murders in the U. S. in 1925] was very serious." Thus Frederick L. Hoffman, consulting statistician to the Prudential Life Insurance Co. of America, last week; and further: "The evidence [after comparing the U. S. murder rate of 11.1 per 100,000 for 1925 with the 10.8 rate for 1924] extending over a long period of years is quite conclusive that the normal American rate is now approximately twice as high as the corresponding rate for Italy, often referred to as the 'classic land of murder.'"

Jacksonville ranked highest in rate last year--72.3 per 100,000 (58.8 in 1924); Memphis next with 59 (69.7 in 1924); immediately in lower line came Birmingham, Savannah and New Orleans. All these are Southern cities. In number of homicides Chicago topped the list--563 (509 in 1924; rate 18.8 against 17.5). Manhattan came next--374, a decrease from the 387 of 1924 (rate remaining stationary). Third was Detroit--243.

No murders occurred in Newton, Haverhill, Holyoke and Salem, Mass., and Manchester, N. H.

*Railway Exchange and Illinois Merchants.