Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-04-14
HOUSING { CONDITIONS
MEETING OF COMNITTEE FORMED
IN AID OF POOR.
Promise of Assistance From Gen. Wood
Substitute for Bill for Condemna-
ton of InsanitHy Buildings.

The recently organized committee on i'm
proving the housing conditions of the poor
IN washington hetd its third meeting Sat
uroay afternoon, when the chairman Mr.
.. W. woodward, presided. Others pres
emit were: Charles F. Weller, secretary;
Col. George Truesdelf, Dr.. George NJ.
ROPER, Mrs. HI. B. F.. Macfariand, Mr.
HerbertsaW ellsworth. Mr.. 8. R. Bond,
Bishop Henry Y. Satterlee, Gen. John NJ
wilson, Mr.. B. H. Warner, Mr.. Thomas W.
smith, Mr.. Samuel w. Curriden,. Mr. Cuno
H. Rudolph, Capt Chester Harding u s.
A. Gen George NJ. Sternberg, surgeon
pen, surgeon general OF the navy, retired
Upper.
Secretary Weller read number Of let
ters received by the committee since its
organization. One of the letters came
from Gen. Leonard Wood, governor gen
eral OF Cuba. Gen. Wood accepted an in
Vltatlon TO become a member Of the COM
mlttee, ana notified the chairman that he
would arrive in this city May %. when
he would confer with his associates and
assist them In every way he could.
IN one OF the letters Robert Treat Paine
OF Boston, Mass, congratulated the COM
| mlttee on the material it had secured with
which to go to work. and stated that he
believed they would accomplish some
thing in the right direction. He spoke of
the great good that can be done by the
Improvement of the housing conditions of
the poor and quoted Dr. Gardner, medical
officer of the board Of health of Glas-
| gov, Scotland, as saying that the first
and most important step toward the inn
proVement of it's moral and social stand
Ing was to get rid of existing haunts of
moral and physical degradation:
ROBERT DE Forest, tenement house COM
missioner Of the city of New York, in
| formed the committee by letter that his
department. was ready and willing to give
all the aid and assistance to the Wash
ingtonians they may need. He offered
| to lend the committee the tenement house
exhibit which has been used to awaken
| public interest in New York, Chicago.
Buffalo, Paris and elsewhere. Supt. Ernest
P. Bicknell Of the Chicago bureau of
charities congratulated the committee in
a letter to Chairman Woodward, and in
formed 1t that a similar. committee in his
city. had done great deal Of important
work since Its organization.
Reports Of Inspections Made.
Reports were made by various members
Of the committee Of what they had seen
in personal inspection of many of the
courts. alleys and tenement districts. Mr..
Thomas w. Smith and Mr.. Samuel w.
Curriden spoke Of the situation in the
northeastern section, and Mr.. Cuno H.
Rudolph, Mrs H. B. F. Macfarland and
Mr.. ]. B. T.. Upper told Of what they had
seen In the southwestern section.
Capt. Chester Harding, assistant to the
Engineer Commissioner Of the District
read a substitute for the bill for the con-
demnation of inSanitary buildings, which
was prepared by the District health officer,
DR.. William c. Woodward This bill pro-
vides that the health officer shall be given
certain powers to order the destruction or
Improvement Of certain buildings found to
be unit for human habitation. and 1t was
the general sense Of the committee that
there are a number Of such in the District
The bill was not wholly satisfactory in
its present shape, and the committee de-
cided to appoint delegation to wait upon
the Commissioners and request that hear
ing be given on the bill for the purpose Of
incorporating in 1t several provisions that
have been left out and of changing those
which have been found unsatisfactory. The
delegation will be headed by Mr.. John w.
Foster and will include Gen. Walter Wy
pital service; DR.. George M. Kober and
Prof. Charles P. Neill of the Catholic Uni
versty.
Much interest was manifested in the an
nouncement by Secretary Weller that he
had escorted Senators Mcmillan and CAL
linger of the Senate District committee
through several Of the tenement house dis
tricts, and that they had been surprised
at the condition of things.
On the motion of the members who had
made personal examination of various
houses the committee decided to send a
letter to the District Commissioners in
forming them of the existence of certain
insanitary dwellings which can be I'M
proved by the enforcement of existing
laws of the health department