Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-03-23

With three thousand human lives in
hourly danger Of being crushed or burned
out, the United States Senate plays with
the proposition to erect a new Government
Printing Office as boys play at foot
ball. 1t would hardly be possible to speak
too strongly Of the unftness of the present
structure; that story has been told in Con-
gress and in the public prints, and must
be known to every intelligent member OF
the national legislature. Senator Vest. who
has frequently uttered warnings that should
have received immediate attention, said to
the Senate yesterday: I'VE have been
warned by a terrible disaster in an INSULT
Client building. occupied and owned by the
government in different part Of the city,
that a recurrence Of such a disaster must
be avoided 1t Is Of the essence of this dis
cussion that we should as soon as possible
provide accommodations for the people In
the Public Printing Office. who are today
suffering not only discomfort, but who are
threatened with actual danger II
Senators want to take the responsibility In
the face Of the recommendations OF the
Public Printer, in the face OF our past ex-
perience of keeping $500 or 5000 employees
In a dangerous and insufficient building
when We can give them relief under the Dill
of the committee inside of six months, let
them do it." To these apparently IN
needed utterances were added the words OF
Senator Henderson, who for a long time
mast has done his utmost to bring about the
appropriation OF money sufficient to put up
n suitable building For the last ten
years" said he, ''the danger to the occu-
pants of the Public Printing Office building
has been very great. The Committee on
Printing, having in charge to some degree
that great office. have repeatedly visited
the building. They have recognized the
presence Of great danger. with probable loss
of life They have done what they could to
put the building in safer condition. 1t has
been propped up and supported and
strengthened so that the great weight upon
its floors might be maintained without
crushing the life and limb OF those who are
employed in the building. These, however,
have been but temporary makeshifts, and
the building is, in my opinion, more DAN
gerous than Fords Theater was even after
the excavation was under way, which at
last brought 1t tumbling about the heads OF
those who were in 1t. The Committee on
Printing have always recognized this dan
ger In report after report from the Public
Printer he has cried aloud for relief cor
those who were under his care"
1t Is difficult to understand how, with
warnings such as these ringing in their
ears, men who were sent here to legislate
broadly and wisely in the public interest
should cavfl over the superiority OF this site
or that-whichever they may happen to feel
most interested IN. The great majority Of
those most Immediately concerned are PROB
ably careless as to the location Of the pro-
posed new building; what they want Is
action which will speedily remove them
from the lettering shell In which they are
now practically compelled to labor. Senator
German made public some wholesome
truths yesterday afternoon when he called
attention to the ''unseemly struggle Of
every man who has a lot for sale in the
District, who has been pressing Congress
and preventing favorable action upon a
measure Of this importance simply because
his interests were not subserved, each strik-
ing at the other, and all uniting to prevent
this relief which ought to come speedily,
without regard to the desire Of any man,
no matter how high or how low he may be,
who wants to make money out of the trans
action" Few bills have resulted in a more
active lobby than that which has endeav-
ored to control Congress IN this matter Of
the Government Printing Office, and not
frequently have congressional attorneys
been more successful in delaying conclu-
sion Let there be immediate definite ac-
ton Of some sort, so that a conference
committee may have speedy opportunity to
adjust any differences that may exist be-
tween the two Houses. and in view of The
urgent necessity of the erection of a new
structure let there be prompt acquiescence
In the decision of the conference commit
tee Human life is not to be imperiled
while real estate SPECTATORS wrangle.