Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-04-23
NAMING THE STREETS
Citizens of Columbia Heights Want an I'm
proved System.
Facts Laid Before Congregational Com.
mfttees Today-Other District
Matters in Congress.

Il a.
| and Gilbert M. Hustled, had a conference
today with the Senate and House commit
tees on the District of Columbia concerning
the draft of a bill recently adopted by the
| Association, for reforming the nomencla-
| ture Of the streets, roads, &C., of the Dis
trict.
The bill gives the Commissioners full
power, under certain restrictions, to perfect
| the present anomalous system of nomen-
| clature OF the minor streets, alleys, courts,
| places and roads Of the District. Repeti-
| ton In names is prohibited, and streets
reads, &C., bearing Objectionable names,
| or names lacking in euphony, are to be
| given new and appropriate appellations
| New streets and avenues hereafter to he
| opened are also to be named by the Com
| missioners; and at the crossings of country
| roads shall be placed signboards bearing
| their names, with the distance from the
| capitol in each case. In the naming of
the thoroughfares, the Commissioners are
| restricted to the names of distinguished
| americans; but the names of living per-
| sons cannot be used.
| accompanying the bill is a tabular state
| ment giving In detail the repetitions in
| names in the existing system which con-
tains some interesting statistics 1t is
| SHOWN mat more than an eighth of the
thousand names comprised In the nomen-
| repeated once at least, while In many in
stances three, and often as many as
SIX, repetit1ons of the same name occur
For instance the name of Brown" is
| represented by two streets. two allows
| three courts and one road. There are four
central avenues. Two streets and as
man! many alleys are called Congress-" end
| there are three Howard avenues. Four
| alleys bear the CHEEKY appeiIation of
| Pheasant" while two others are bowel
aoMn up.oer the gluttonous name of Pig.
no mrs' bardeiLs' famous party, at which
| poor PickWtck was so picturesquely dis
cuSsed by the designing hostess and her
lauy Tiehds, is brought to mind by the
SS0 &c. Wv cognomen Tea" which is borne
py nVe alleys. -Four streets are honored by
| me name OF Madison" while the names
| Of School," Warren PARK and
washington" are represented by three
| streets each, each also having one or more
alley, place court to its credit
1t Is also shown that the same thorough
rare Is ofte'. known by two or more names
ms embarrassing condition exists in the
suburbs where the streets pass through
| several subdivisions, and which Is particu-
larry prevalent in the section north of the
| city. Roanoke street Columbia Heights is
cittd rs an example. The continuation Of
| TINS street to the eastward, between the line
OF llth street extended (Which is the diyid-
ing line between the subdivisions of Column
bia Heights and Todd & Brown and Bright
| WOOL avenue, is known as Irving street
| while the western end college Hill subdi
| Vislon) between 14th and 18th streets. is
called Euclid place
Inc vulgar and ridiculous names found
among the minor streets and alleys are
pointed out, such Zigzag, Hog. Tincup.
cabbage, Fighting, Swinghammer, Pig, Cow,
! Goat. Chinch and Louise
Our present system of street nomencla-
| lure certainly needs reforming, and II is
| hoped that the Commissioners will be
| granted the power given by the proposed
| OIL, and that they will exercise such power
at an early day by giving US a credltable
| system.
| The Probate of Wills.
| Senator Gallinger today, for Senator Nc
MILAN, introduced a bill relating to the
probate Of wills In the District of Columbia
| IL provides that no caveat or other proceed
| ing impeaching the validity of auy paner
| writing hereafter admitted to probate in the
| District as last will or testament. either
as TO real or personal property, shall be
| deemed valid or shall be entertained by any
court OF law or equity unless 1t shall be
| nied IN the court Of competition within sly
calendar months after the will Shall have
| been admitted to probate. In every ca 60
where any infant or lunatic NAV he intarl
| ested In the probate of any will the court
| peIore proceeding to the probate shall in
auuiion 70 the notices required by law ap-
point some fit and disnterested pers6n
guardian ad Item to appear for and answer
| IN Dehalt or such infant or lunatic
| ~ ne Dill is accompanied by letter from
mr.; Man Mon Ashford, president of the Real
Estate title insurance Company, who sub
| mitted the draft to Senator Mcmillan. In
| tniS ne points out that in the matter Of
wills the people of the District are gov
| eiheu by the old antiquated laws of Mary
| land, passed before the cession of the Dis
trlct of Columbia, under which no time
limit Is fixed for assailing the validity of
| a Will For over seventy years Mr. Asb
\ ford continues, the local record presents
| but one or two instances of contests over
wills after they had been admitted to pro-
| bate out In late years 1t has become the
custom TO make such contests long after
| the probate, Notwithstanding the fact that
| all requirements of the law preliminary TO
me admission to probate have been fully
| compled with. He cites a notable case 10
| illustrate the need of reformatory Iepisla
ton, and adds: 1T seems to me that in no
| civilized community should such a state of
lnlmgs De permitted to exist, and that espe-
cialiy Tor the repoSe and security of land
| titles, some system should be established
| whereby parties should be held to strict
| dlngence In asserting and enforcing their
rights. If they have any, or forever hold
| their peace"
| The Party Wall BILL
The bill extending the party wall regula-
lions now In force in the city to cover the
entire District which was yesterday recon-
| mended to the Senate District committee
| by the District Commissioners was this
morning introduced by Senator Mcmillan,
and, on his motion, it was given immediate
consideration and passed. Senator Sher-
man asked question regarding the pur-
pose and scope of the BILL which was salts
| factorily answered by Mr. Mcmillan, and
| the bill was allowed to go through As
| stated In The Star yesterday, the Commits
| sioners, in their letter to the chairman
| suggested that inasmuch as the session is
! drawing to close and the chances of an
| independent bill passing are not good. 1T
| might be well to attach this proposition to
a bill that has already passed the House
[ and is likely to pass the Senate as we'll and
| they proposed the bill to regulate the bust
less OF storage in the District as good
medium for such purpose. The expedieut
| OF attaching riders of an inconsis tent
| nature upon bills that seem liable to be-
! come laws is a privilege that is invoked by
| committee as last resort in exceptional
| ca ses, and 1t was decided that the partv
wall bill was not a matter of sufficient ur-
| gency to warrant its attachment to any
| other measure. The bill having passed The
| Senate now goes to the House
| The Gas Bill Reported.
Senator Mcmillan today reported the bill
reducing the price of gas in the District to
the Senate with favorable recommendation
| and it WAS MIA ced IN tho o,lapdor