Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1874-05-16
THE DISTRICT INVESTIGATION.
Proceedings Of Ii. Joint Cs,srsisu, Committee.

q
Conclusion Yesterday Preeeediuxs.
Senator Edmunds was before the Joint Special
Committee Investigating District Affairs YES
terdsy with reference 20 the damage done 20
his property on Massachusetts, avenue by rea-
son Of the heavy cut made there.
SENATOR EDNUNDs' STATEMENT
lie made q statement In reference q his pur-
chase OF the property, and then went on TO saw
purchased the property upon the truthful
menis and other thinss touchins The sahSscS ~,
the little place that wss % build had slreafy
been provided for and paid, AMI that left nv
mouse wnleh built something like eight or ten
feet above the street and about hgtv feet back
from the street, on account of the whole rroD
erty In the angle there having been disposed on
~ ti, having es,.dlns line run witch 6sgan At
body could build, 80 / was oompslled 10 Inns
about nfty feet back from the street - n thea
sSod, the Sidewalk and everything nnishei,
which was, OF course, n very material conSiA,
GRAFTON In reference 10 the price which patt
After the Roard OF Public Works cane TO be
established, and the subject OF the improving
the streets in Washington WAS brought forward,
heard that II Was proposed % make some FUR
Their cutting between 18th, 18th ami 10th streets
and Massachusetts, avenue. l made inq airy ~
10 the extent Of that cutting, and what the ne
cessity for IL WAS. csunot now remember 81
what persons connected with the BOard % Pub
lac Works | made inquiry, but from sbms ut
them, and WAS told IN the beginning tha- the
most that they thought OF Was 90 take Oh some
thing like tree feet, and IL va from the higg-
est crtst OF the hill, which wss. perhaps. tEp
hundred feet west OF nv house, and about as
way. Ierhaps, between i4lh and 18th street,. tor
the purpose OF diminishing the ascent trom tas
west little. making MIR. COrcorau's Ilatsa
Home, II that Il the name OF AZ, a little more
consIicuOus from l4th street aud the circls-a
matter about which Mir. Corcorau had before
spoken 20 me In respect 60 having n LITTLE
shaving taken OF from the hill west OF me- 40
10 which had replied that while had not tue
least objections myselt-as, OF course, n did nor
affect me NJ all-that I would not sign any ne
ttiOn or consent 70 any such thing unless all
the others aSsented, because 1 dad not
want 20 be the instrument OF doing
them an injustice 20 the west when there
wss no public necessity tor Il, but m after OF
me re taste; and that leads me % remember that
IL was certainly before the Board OF Public
Works came into power that this was nrst
spoken OF. Then made these Inquiries OF tue
board, and wss told that three or tour feet was
the most that the street would be cut; an that
was the object OF IT. / made the same rem ark
then that had before made TO Mr.. Corcoran
himself, that while It did not affect me At alt,
and l did not care anything about tt. vet 4
would not be a party to any wrong upOn the
other gentlemen who owned property west of
me; that did not see any ground for IL; that
would not be the means of subjectIng these pcO-
pie west of me 10 very serious damage by -
great cut as that upon = mere question OF
taste. The natural surface OF the land slopes
IRON 10th street 60 the west until IL comes out
20 Mr.. Wilson's and Mr.. MoTsell's house, aud
slopes more rapidly DOWN. ard 90 the west again,
and the slope OF the street, fixed by the Origt-
nal city people, and upon which thought, har-
monies with that undulstion of the natural
surface Of the ground, whereas the cut do WI
ward, a. II n now, from llth TO 18th streets,
makes the street pitch one way, and the slope
upOn which the houses have been built the
other WAY, which Of course H. In viOatiOn of
every mans sense OF what H. proper in point OF
tsste-in fact, makes a man feel a. III he n al
cross-cut saw upon his leg To look al IL.
The Board OF Public Works told me that
only the crest of the hill TO the west would be
taken OF, and that they were going to DO the
right thing with the people who owned tue
land there. OF course l saw no objection. n
was nothing which IN any legal sense concerned
me al all. THIS was early in the spring OF 1872,
i believe. Then L went home 20 Vermont,
leaving the thing in that way, being informed
that the only dlstuTbanc OF the existing
order OF things that the Board Of Public
Works would make would be 20 take lust A
shaving of from the crest of this gently unda-
lating beautiful ros, like those stiIl efJ in va
Tious parts of the city, tor some OF other.
did not know anything more about n until 4
came back again IN the fall Of ls12, @ attend
the session of Congress; and when got back,
about the first week In November. 4 found IA AZ
instead OF three or four feet being taken OF the
crest, they had begun at the line OF l4rh street
at a circle, and msde one deep cut. and drawn
a true grade 10 the west clear down 10 I6th
street, which, instead o. not cutting at all ia
front OF my property, or just taking of an inch
or two, had cut down somewhere from 20 ID
feet-I do not know precisely-snd hal left me
that distance up in the air, IN addition 10 the
fixed, and upon which 1 bought there, 40 that
1 was left about IL feet, 1 should say, above the
surface Of the street. And then. instead 81
parking the street, as was talked II, like New
York avenue so a. 10 leave the carriage ways
somewhere lear the sides of the streets. the
parking had teen done on the sides, ana ms
curbstone was removed about - feet from where
II Was before, the cOnSeq nencS OF which wa
that was OF 10 feet higher up I'm the air. an
80 feet or 10 further away from the street
Judge EdmUnds then wrote a letter OF prOtes-
IN f1sa hn.~ lfEh - har. farN
stating that had it not been Tor the horse di
ease, the block in which yOu live would have
been completed; such Was our intention and de-
termination, but Man proposes and God dis
poses" The connections Of gas, water, RuI
sewer shall be made at once, aud are paid Ous
of the general fund" Witness su bsequeutly pre-
sented petition for damsg yes, setting forth that
he thought his property had sustained - JHl
damages. The differences between him aud
the board were eventually settled by the can
collation. Of his asSessme OF SI25 o..
SENATOR BAYARD's STATEMENT.
Senator BayaTd said: The statement made,
Dir. Chairman and gentlemen, 10y Air. EdmnulS
will nect ssarlly shorten mine. So tar a. he has
stated the facts relating to his own property
they are nearly precisely applicable 10 mine. Il
bought THE lot few months after he la
bought his, and built up next TO his, a part be-
ing wall between Us. He has stated the induce
ment TO buy this property. was looking TOR a
convenient and healthtul location Tor NV fam
lily. The elevation Of this property, the slope
ground all around 1.-THE grand slOping IN every
direction from the proposed site OF his and my
house-made il, a. 1 thought, very desirable
property. There was, a. was stated oy Mr.. Ed
munds, everything there IN the way Of cOnve-
nience afforded by the public sewer, gas aud
water. Massachusetts avenue Was nos paved a.
10 its bed, but az / remember IL was gutierrez,
curhed and paved between Massachusetts ave-
nue. and the line OF my property. By a cove
Dant with the vendor OF my lot, who il tne
same as Judge Edmund, Mr. Thomas Is.
Bryan, we bound ourselves not to blild for
ward OF a certain line. which was about fifry
feet away from Massachusetts avenue. SO /
went and built my house In 1871, moved INTO
and occupied il in the winters Of 1871 aud
1S72 and 1888, and i live q ere now
had an intimstiOn that they iutenc ed to park
in some way after the creat on OF the b Dard OF
Public WOf Ks, hicl was som time sub sequent
o my bee minZ the owner OF this property AMI
hui ding my ho1se. 1 was informed that they
int ended 10 improve il and park IL after tue
manner of n street, which thought highly
prejudicisl TO the interest OF the prOpsrty,
throwing little lots, which have not inapprO-
priately been called private grayeysrds, ia
front OF your door, and keeping you back from
the thorOughfaTe Of the street, giving a longer
distance 10 walk In bad weather from the curD-
stone before you reach your house. 1 wrote a
letter of tMrI Shepherd, vice-president OF the
Board Of Public Works. had never seen him
in my life. 4 wrote a letter TO him, telling him
that trusted before anytL ing OF this kind was
done that the plan OF improvement would be
submitted 10 the property-hOlders all along the
street. To that / received an answer that 4