Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-11-15
r EQ U EST INDOR SED

A large number of residents and prop
| erty owners of Congress Heights have
| united in an appeal to the Secretary of the
| Interior protesting against the division OF
st. Elizabeth Asylum. Extracts from a re-
port Of a Senate committee and from let
tiers of DR.. Godding, former superintendent,
urging that land in Wilson Park be Sc
cured, in which the present superintendent
concurs according to extracts given from
communications by him, are given and the
petition then recites:
Offers Of Land in Exchange.
1--WE have ascertaned from officers of the
Interior Department that the owners of the
land which is so essential to the govern
ment have offered to exchange it upon
terms which, we think, are most liberal to
the government. They offer seventy acres
of the Wilson Park, all of which is shaded
with large oak trees, adjoining the present
buildings of the asylum, for eighty
acres Of the government land, devoid OF
shade.
TT seems to us that the government gets
by far the best of the bargain. The own
ers of Wilson Park also proposed, If this
was not acceptable to the government, they
would submit the exchange of land to dis
| interested persons We also learn that II
| the exchange Of land is not made and the
| buildings are erected upon the east side a
| tunnel must be constructed under Nichols
avenue, the cost of which and the costs
and other expenses which the government
must in that event sustain would in a few
| years be much greater than the value of all
| the lands in question and very many times
| greater than any possible difference in
views as to the value Of the lands proposed
| to be exchanged.
| There is another and more important
view of this matter. The beautiful Wilson
! park, with its shade of oak trees, which
represent the growth Of a century. is es-
| sential for recreation ground for the I'M
| fortunate insane, very many Of whom lost
! their reason in the service OF their country
| as soldiers in Cuba and the Philippine Is
! lands. And expert physicians assert that
| the privacy, rest and quiet which the in
sane would enjoy by walking in the shade
Of this park would do much to restore rea-
! son, while, on the other hand. If they are
| on the east side where they have no shade
| or privacy, the tendency would be to in
| tensify their insanity.
| 1--WE therefore respectfully petition the
honorable Secretary of the Interior to make
the exchange Of the land as heretofore
| urged in this petition. First the exchange
would prevent irreparabie injury to many
| citizens Of Congress Heights. Second, 1t
| would be great pecunfary benefit to the
government. Third, 1t is essential to the
best care and well-being of many insane
| persons, great number Of whom lost their
| reason as soldiers in their countrys ser
| vice. Fourth, Chairman Cannon of the ap-
| preparations committee of the House and
! Chairman Allison OF the same committee
of the Senate made earnest appeals to their
! respective bodies to avert the necessity of
a division of the asylum buildings by ac-
quiring the adjoining land, which can now
| be secured upon an equitable basis"
J About seventy signatures are appended to
| the petition. - 'ii---'-
Inducements Of the Petition.
These opinions have been expressed
| ]. J. Darlington, attorney: II earnestly
concur in the request of the petition, be-
lieving that the proposed division of the
| asylum should certainly not be carried
OUT
Commissioner John w. Ross: 1T seems to
be advisable to have all of the grounds in
| tended for the use of the patients of ST.
| El1zabeth's on the west side Of Nichols
avenue"
E. s. Parker, president Metropolitan
| Bank: The proposition of the owners to
leave the matter of exchange of land, as
shown in the within petition, to disinterest-
ed parties seems to be fair one'
A A Wilson. former United States mar
shall: THE proposition cited III the above
petition to exchange land with the United
states government, consider a sacrifice on
the part of the owners of the land for the
protection Of Congress Heights"