Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-11-26
LOCAL INSTITUTIONS
Their Transfer Recommended
by Secretary Of Interior.
DISTRICT OFFICIALS
DO NOT AGREE WITH HIM ON
THIS POINT.
Why It is Thought the Commissioners
Should Have Supervision
Over Them.

mend that the supervision given the board
| Of charities over the Government Hospital
for the Insane, Freedmen's Hospital and
| the Washington Hospital for Foundiings be
| transferred to the Secretary of the Interior
| in the interests of obtaining better admins
| tration.
"As to Freedmens Hospital, it should be
| provided for wholly at the expense of the
government and the District relieved of the
payment of one-half of the expenses Of the
| institution, as no wreauired by law.
'"The Washington. Gas Light Company,
| the Columbia Railroad Company, the
| Georgetown and Washington Railway COM
| pany and the other railroad companies. the
report recommends. should be no longer
required to report to the Secretary of the
Interior, but to the Comm. ssioners of the
District.
District officials Views.
While the Commissioners declined today
! to comment upon the proposed recommends
| ton of the Secretary of the Interior that
| the entire control of the Government Hos
pital for the Insane, the Freedmens Hos
pital and the Washington Hospital for
Foundings be transferred from the board
! of charities to the Interior Department yet
| it is understood that the Commissioners read
| the report of this recommendation with a
| great deal of interest. From the position
| maintained in the past by tie Commission
ers with reference to all the public charities
| and institutions in the District. it is conf
IDENTIFY believed that the Commissioners viii
not entirely agree with the recommended
lions of the Secretary of the Interior when
| the matter is brought before the committee
| Of Congress.
| that the Commissioners will agree to the
| Secretary's recommendation that the local
| railway companies be required to report to
| the Commissioners instead of to the Interior
| Department. They may also agree to pac-
| ing the Government Hospital for the Insane
| entirely under the supervision of the Sec
| rotary of the Interior. but with reference to
| the Freedmen's Hospital and the Washing
| ton Hospital for Foundlings, it is believed
| that the District authorities will not read
/ lily assent to transferring the entire super
vision of those two institutions to the In
terror Department and to surrendering their
| limited supervision over those institutions
through the powers conferred upon the
| board of charities.
| have recommended to Congress that uni
form supervision and control of all purely
| local public charities-those institutions
supported in whole or in part by appropria-
lions of Congres@should be placed under
the Commissioners and the board of chart
| ties. This recommendation has been re-
peated this year in the Commissioners esti-
mates to Congress. 1t is believed that the
lack of uniform control and organization
| of public charities and institutions has re-
suited in unsatisfactory conditions, and
| these conditions, it is thought, should be
| remedied. The division of authority over
| these institutions, it is stated. has caused
considerable trouble in the past, and the
| Commissioners believe that the District au-
thorities should be given control over them.
Number of Local Institutions.
There are twenty-eight public semi
public institutions in the District which are
| supported wholly or partially by appropria-
| lions from Congress. These as follows:
Washington Asylum Reform School for
Eoys, Reform School for Girls, Freedman's
Hospital and Asylum, Columbia Hospital
for Women, Garfield Memorial Hospital,
Providence Hospital Children's Hospital,
National Homeopathic Hospital Emergency
Hospital, Eastern Dispensary, Women's
Clinic, Washington Home for Incurabes.
Board of Childrens Guardians. Industrial
Home School, National Association for the
Relief of Destitute Colored Women and
Children, Newsboys and Children's Aid So
ciety, Washington Hospital for Foundlings,
St. AIMS Infant Asylum, German orphan
Asylum, Municipal Lodging House. Tempo
rary Home for eN-Union Soldiers and Sail
orS, Wemen's Christian Associa ton Young
Women's Christian Home Hope and Help
Mission. Government Hospital for the In
sane, Women'S DiSpensary, Aid Association
for the Blind.
While ST. Elizabeths Asylum is regarded
as a national institution. harboring patients
from all over the country, yet many District
residents are also confined there under con-
tract, and it is believed that since so many
District people are cared for in this asylum
the District authorities ought to exercise
at least the authority to visit that institu--
ton to look after the proper care of District
people.
Freedmen's Hospital also harbors resi-
dents of the various states of the union,
but the District furnishes large number
of the inmates of this institution and be-
sides. contributes one-half to its mainte-
nance and one-half to the cost Of the build
ings provided for the institution This hos
pital is considered as within the meapipo
of the term purely local public charity''
and 1t is believed that the Commissioners
should have supervision over it's affairs
It is also pointed out that the Washing
ton Hospital for Foundlngs is strictly a
local charity. since it harbors District resi-
dents almost exclusively. 1t is predicted
that the Commissioners will strongly urge
before the committees of Congress that
the control of this institution be placed
under the Commissioners and taken away
from any federal department.
The removal of Freedmens Hospital from
the limited supervision now exercised over
1t by the Commissioners it is believed
would. interfere considerably with the sys-
tenn of local charities. The argument is
advanced that Freedmen's is a national in
stitution, and therefore should not be under
local supervision to any extent. BY the
same logic, 1t Is pointed out, the reform
school for boys and the reform school for
girls. harboring District residents almost
exclusively, might be placed. under the
absolute control of a federal department,
at all desirable advantageous
A Probable Effort.
There is a strong belief in District of
ficial circles that the Commissioners, citi-
zens prominently identified with charity
work, and others. intend to make united
and vigorous effort at the next session of
Congress to have the local public charities
and institutions of similar nature, which
are supported wholly or in part by the pub
lie. placed under the control of the Com-
missioners and the board of public chari-
ties. There has been considerable agitation
Ding the past few years on this subject
lind within the past twelve months certain
Incidents have arisen In several of the in
stitutions which have quickened the activ-
I ity OF those. interested in charity work to
have the control of these institutions placed
under one head, SO that the system OF local
charities may be unified and organized more
satisfactorily than at present
II was stated at the District building to-
/ day that the Secretary OF the Intarfor first
recommended the transferring of the con-
troll of st. Elixabeth's. F'reedman's Hospital
and the Washington Foundlings' Hospital,
to the Interior Department. In 1402 IN that
year bill was introduced providing for