The Washington times., 1904-05-22
LNarYIand'S Youngest Mayor
Is Erecuti0e of Glen Echo
IS Scarcely Twenty-Five
Years Old, He InheritS
Taste for Politics.
He Tells The Sunday
Times What He Hopes
to Do for the Town.

TOHN A. GARRETT. mayor of Glen
Echo, is the youngest mayor in the
- State of Maryland, being scarcely
twenty-five years of age. He was oorn
at Great Falls. Montgomery county,
Md. and at the age of ten years became
a pupil Of Trinity Parochial School in
Georgetown. There he won the free
scholarship to Georgetown University
in 1897, and spent the next few years
at that institution.
Mr.. Garrett has been for ten years
an alter boy at Trinity Catholic Church,
and says he will continue to be an
altar boy until barred by age and
beard" He is the eldest son of the late
Howard A. Garrett. and makes his home
with his mother, in a coy, brown cot
tage not two minutes walk from the
station of the electric car line.
AS deputy clerk to the county COM
missioners he spends his days in Rock
vile. but nights and Sundays he is TO
be found in the little suburban settle
ment where he spends part OF his
leisure in attending to the duties Of
mayor.
A Political Family.
Mr.. Garrett comes Of a political fam
fly. his grandfather having been John
Walter Carroll. a Montgomery county
commissioner, and his father a close
friend Of Senator German: and his early
election to the office Of mayor may be
merely a foretaste Of a political career of
some Importance later on.
The fact that although Democrat
and Catholic, he is mayor Of a town
in which the majority Of the people are
Republicans and Protestants, seems to
indicate some sort of political faculty.
and this impression is confirmed by his
personality. He has the air Of a young
man who understands affairs, but is not
given 10 making mucn fuss about any
/ thing, and who. when he has a piece
of work to do. goes and does II in the
shortest way and looks about for some
thing else. That is the sort OF man
! who gets on in modern politics; the old
fashioned, oratorical type has rather
run to seed
Began at Nineteen.
The young mayor began his career as
an oficeholder at the age Of nineteen,
when he was made chairman of the
| board of school trustees, and at the
same time was appointed deputy cierk
I to the county commissioners
Glen Echo never had a school until a
few years ago, but it now has A very
6ood one. The town council consists
o. William II. Roach. Jacob J. Decker,
| Guy F. Jenkins. and Thomas A. Weav-
er, all men Of intelligence and export
ebce, with families of their own. and
considerably older than the mayor, who
says Of them:
THE council is efficient. even If
can't say much for myself I think
W. ought TO be able 10 do a great deal
for the town in course OF time"
You haven't a village improvement:
society. have your" inquired the re-
porter.
Not officially. but the whole town is
sort Of village Improvement society
| When 1 came here as a little fellow, We
had no school or postofice. and the
place was just like a big. vacant lot
| Last year four or five Of us got to-
gethor and made some calculations. We
found that by becoming incorporated
we could get Il per cent Of our taxes
! RENTED for town expenses. and secure
probably a good many other things
which we hadn't so far been able tC
get We figured that under that ar
fangement the income of the towr
would be about $500 a year. and you