Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1872-05-14
THE DISTRICT GOVERNMENT UHpIcaIeD.
Reports Of the Investigating Committee.
Views Of the Majority and Minority

In the House OF r Representatives yesterday af-
ternoOn, the committee on the District of Co
iumbia submitted their report upon the recent
investigation, which was ordered TO be printe, a
and recommitted.
THE MAJORITY EEPoFr
sets out BY giving the memorial referred 20 the
committee, together with other petitions and
letters representing the views of sundry citizens
OF the District which were referred to the COM
mittee, all of which have had fun and patient
consideration. They say: "The investigation
was pursued diligently, extending over a period
OF more than ninety DAYS. more than two nun
large amount OF documentary evidence and
records. Both the memorialists and respond
eDts were represented by counsel, and the hear
ing was public and open to ali the people OF the
District. A large proportion of the evidence
offered by the memoriaists was by them eemed
applicable TO the charges in the memorial.
There was. however. an attempt made to show
that the Board OF Public Works had i'm their
official capacity acted cOrruptly. and been in
nuenced by motives or pei sonai gain. This was,
however, abandoned at the close of the investi-
gatiCn, the counsel stating that no such claim is
now made by them. Tie committee on this
point are unanimously of the opinion that the
evidence showed there was not the least foun-
datiOn Tor such charge.
The first charge in the memorial against the
Board Of Public Works is in the following Ian
guage: - The thiIty-seventh section of the ACT
Of February 81, ISL, has been violated in sew
erai particulars; the Board of i ublic Works has
Usurped authority to make improvements not
authorized by law not 'intrusted to their
charge by the Legislative Assembly or Con-
gress.'" By the organic act establishing a
government for the District of Columbia the
Board of Public Works is made an important
oepaItment q The government They are to DO
appoinItd by the President and paid by the United
are 10 make all negotiations which they shall deem
necessary Tor keeping in repair the streets
which may be intrusted 70 their charge by 't the
legislative Assembly or Congress ~ They are also
OF str eets, avenues, alleys sewers, roads
The only imitstion upon their powers in this b.,
hall is theproyision of the organic act THAT they
shall have power bind the District for the pay
apIIopriations made by law, and not until such an.
Preparations have been made"
beer violated aud that the Board have made e oa
tracts Tor Improvements not in pursuance Of appr0
made by the legislative a sstmbly.
d xh at se Called 4: hs
a.t Ii authorized an issue of bonds to the amount
money In the same act the pstricr 10 .ase
oprsted the hole sum of four millions for the
in ssc Of
,hr r and IepaE Of sewers bridges aud
atcordins to the provisions Of the oreabic sdt and
as FULLY as may be practicable ard consistent with
OF improvements submitted to I'D ses,siyrp pm IN
The % ard OF Pubic Works Of said District in its
ON rhe liih OF August, 1871, he Legislative As.
semhly PASSED an act authorizing The Governor of
TO the amount OF S!10Dt0, which sum shall be ex.
PENDED and dishursed for the improy ement and re.
air OF the streets. alleys aud roads in the
District. ard for the constr uctiou and repairs Of
sewers, bridges, aud other public works therein
tiOn limitation whatever, except in the obect
and purpose for which the money was to b, ex
The Second section of the four million at contains
a limitation, which. standing alone, would seem to
Boa than the language Of the first sction, bu. II
can not be supposed that the Legislature INTENDED
or to make i, The a se must iseeSn
stIued together ard all It's language have given to IL
mus, be rejected. We thirk the quiiifyins %oTs
n the fret section must lie held to apply to and
The Board Of Public Works did make contracts
ior s,ne impI1yemenis not specified in the plan
estimate Of tie werk Did thy therein Vi ' iste
pIcIIiation made i. l. not Claimed Int thst tb p
additional in proyements made which were no:
were spec fled and were but an extension and en-.
larsenent Of The plan before the Legislature The
tmrntee are satisfied that the legislature did not
intend TO limit the au' horty the Board in king
Impr.v ements 10 strict and LITERAL following Of the
prepared, ard it seemed to be Understood tina: to
oeht sN,elt !, was ineomPete, and the Legislature
guide 10 the kid and character of the improve
mems men TO- DC made with The money appropriated,
tSn eaio IN the four mi,ion act ii is difficult
9TH
VIE the five hundred thousand dollar appropriatan
FOR inPrOy sasnts without any restriction what.
@ sssT ~ d Is saGf f to cover all expendi,nres
spseih.. D., Tue ,pI an O. improvements which hal
# has a fras tkss BY hs Of the
avs pat. % the District L'gislature, very
board, sothas they really were allowed to expsni
ne money Tor ic,Rovemtnts according to thsir
!ccs, " made and It does aspear that th SeIs i,y
ture intended to confer the pox,r upon the BIard
t. tApgne mercy upon snch improvements as thy
Mhs,htr they iudged wisely or not, it cannot b,
said that the Board violated the Law ia making con
tracts and sxpendituIes for improvements with
the Legislature had left to their Jud gme at and dis
Tempt t. dec De how limited and speeiae the Ler a
istiye Assembly msy make their appropriations
psnd spen isir wa vews Of Their necsssity s T
propritiJ many if not all the members Of the eom
much what hey did In ,h tb
above quoted 1t is enough for the sent rur
th, n " hic b had been violsted. "''"
Con press, even il the Board had expended m jney
tion therefor BY the District Legislature whea the
nSs ,S t Ss9Pd5 and bsn:neia
make 20 eonPisint thereof.
- :.e money va; eIbenasd for an imsftfer pm
pose or corIupty misapplisd, an sppea to Congress
are appointed ulder the authority Of the Generai
GUySrIment: but when nothing Of this kind l.
cair ed TO exist il would seem properly to rest with
the District Legislature to plain that their ap
PREPARATIONS bad been Gisresarded.
me COMMITTEES may, as properly here as upon any
" the paTc u;ar charges, that lille in all these
IT prov emeLts they Ind great cause Of commenda
lion for ;he energy and lberaly and generous de-
sire to improve ard beaufy the national capital on
the part " all departments Of the District govern
mtnI they also md the ordinary a usual errors
sIter caut upon the establishn,e of q new system
% government. There was experience upon the
part many and there was the lack of careful aud
cool LEGISLATION.
In The anxiety TO redeem the city frem the charge
of being behind Va its streets and other public nsti
tuions Of other cities Of the country the new au
thorty becsme some hat int cated with the spirit
IL improvement The committee disposed to
think that more work of improyeme was under
taken at once than was wise, though the delays
caused ty the injunction and the suspension of
work by the unusually early winter, make il i'm pos
sibe TO LAY whether all begun could have been com
piet' il these drawb'cEs had no. existed The re-
broken up condition througa the winter doubtless
caused much Of the dissffection among citizens
The committee q also pre- pared to believe that all
the istrIct authorities at the outset were NOT su
GENTLY mindful of the small extent Of their Official
Jur sdiction, ard the slender constituency upon
" hich all the public burdens to and that
therefore sufcit Mt not taken have rigid
economy prevail in every de partmest, and no unne
cesssry drafts made upon Their small treasury.
This il was doubtless magn Ly the fact that
az! governmental work And gov eTmental ea penditure
which had been carried on before their eyes lad
been uHon Q scale 30 much greater than the re-
Of the District would Justify and the error
not in not keeping this difference sufficiently in
mind These errors were such ~ time aud exps-