Harlem

THE RESIDENTS OF HARLEM and the borough of the Bronx will be much pleased to hear the statement made yesterday by Isaac A. Hopper, the contractor for the new bridge across the Harlem River at Third avenue, namely, that the bridge will be opened to the public on the Fourth of July. Although the contract was signed on October 16, 1893, Mr. Hopper was prevented from beginning operations for nearly twelve months afterward on account of not getting possession of the necessary property. Then there was a dispute among the business men of the neighborhood as to whether the southerly approach to the bridge should be from the east or west side of Third avenue, and this caused further delay. The Board of Estimate and Apportionment settled the dispute by deciding in favor of the east side. The original appropriation was $1,500,000 and an additional $500,000 was provided by a bill introduced by Assembly-man Reinhard. The actual sum to be received by the contractor will be $50,000 less than the original appropriation. About $2,500,000 will be paid by the city for land approaches against $4,000,000 claimed by the owners of the property.

THE REV. EDGAR TILTON, pastor of the First Reformed Church of Jamaica, L.I., has accepted a call to the associate pastorate of the First Collegiate Reformed Church of Harlem. The Rev. Dr. Joachim Elmendorf, the present pastor, will preach two sermons a month and has been granted a yearly vacation of four months by the consistory. The new arrangement goes into effect on September 1. Mr. Tilton was formerly pastor of Bethany Chapel, Brooklyn.

THE PEOPLE OF UPPER NEW YORK are particularly proud of the new Harlem speedway, which will be opened to the public for the first time at noon on Saturday, July 2. It is about two miles in length, extending along the west bank of the Harlem River, from One Hundred and Fifty-fifth street to Dykeman street. The use of the speedway is for horsemen and light vehicles, and one of the rules laid down by the Park Board is that pedestrians must not cross the drive under a penalty of $10, subways being provided for this purpose. The speedway was originated during Mayor Gilroy's term of office, but litigation and other causes retarded the progress of the work. And the end is not yet, for it is rumored that the former director of the speedway, Captain C.H. McDonald, a war veteran, who was appointed by ex-Mayor Strong and deposed by Mayor Van Wyck, will appeal to the courts for reinstatement under the civil service rules. Captain McDonald was succeeded by a devoted Tammany brave, John J. Quinn, a livery stable Keeper and known as the "Harlem Giant."

Bronx

THE TRUSTEES of the Baron de Hirsch fund have had plans prepared by Herst & Tallant, architects, 258 Fifth avenue, Manhattan, for a large tenement house to be built on One Hundred and Thirty-eighth street, near Willis avenue the first of the kind to be erected in the borough of the Bronx. The site is 200x100 feet. Each compartment will be amply supplied with light, heat and bath accommodations and will contain four or five rooms. The rents will range from $6 to $12. There will be actually two buildings, connected by an interesting court, and in one of them will be established a branch of the Aguilar Free Library. Ground will be broken on September 1 and the contract calls for the completion of the work twelve months from that date.