Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-01-15

Those who profess to be the special friends
Of the District Commissioners have not justified
their claims to be considered as such by at
tempting to suppress the investigation into the
real estate purchases. Unless the disclosure OF
something in the conduct of some one of the
Commissioners more damaging than has been
publicly charged and admitted is threatened
by the proposed inquiry, an investigation
should be welcomed by them since its re-
suits can only show that. so far the
Commissioners are concerned, there is no
ground of suspicion for wrong-doing be-
yond that which may be involved in
following the precedent of an injudicious and
unbusiness-like method in purchasing real
estate. BY resisting the inquiry the particular
friends of the Commissioners have fed sus-
picion. and the action of the House in provid-
ing for the examination is in one aspect a
kindness TO the Commissioners, assuming that
no facts will be disclosed which have not al
ready been in general terms charged and adj
mitted The weakness of the reasons urged
against the investigation have been in striking
contrast to the vigor of the effort to suppressit
Nothing could be more untrue, pitiful and
absurd than the insinuation made on the floor
of the House that the movement for
directly or indirectly, of liquor dealears who
have been refused licenses. The Commissioners
may have reason to bless the House for over
ruling their professed friends who, by sugges-
ting contemplate and irrelevant untruths,
urged inaction, and gave the impression that it
would be more considerable of their welfare to
leave them under a cloud. So far as facts have
developed up to this time the inquiry is solely
So la, Dt IS 4Io ,ott oxp 1f
the national government, and judgment is to
be passed upon a method, and not upon any
charge of criminality against the Commission
ers. The latter admit that agents, mid
dlemen, have been employed in the pur-
chase of sites for public buildings. and that
payment of money to them by the District for
their services would be illegal. The in
quiry will doubtless ascertain to a certainty
whether the profits of this agent or middle
man can fairly be viewed. on the theory
of the Commissioners, as compensation de-
rived from the re1dOr by the intermediary"
or whether they are paid by the District.
Doubtless careful consideration will be given
TO the Commissioners theory that the District,
which employs this agent for the avowed pur-
pose of cutting down the profits of the seller, is
paid for this service by the latter. though he
does not agree to do so. is not aware that he is
doing so. and has received no benefit for which
he should pay, and though the amount of
compensation which he is supposed to
pay is not fixed by him, but by
the Commissioners, in the shape of the
difference between what he receives and
what the District pays, without consultation
with him. If it is decided that without
shadow of doubt these agents have, in fact,
drawn their compensation from the appropria-
tiOn for District public building sites, and the
Commissioners statement that such payments
would be illegal, is accepted as correctly pre-
senting the law, then the inquiry will nat
urally tend to discover how many thousands of
dollars i'll the numerous purchases of recent
years have been thus illegally paid from thu
District appropriations, and to ascertain
whether the amounts thus paid cannot be re-
covered, for the benefit Of District taxpayers.
including the national government correc-
tion of the method, in making future pur-
chases, may also be expected TO follow. These
public benefits which an investigation promises
are quite independent of any question whether
the Commissioners or any one of them acted
worse than foolishly in the matter of the pur-
chases.