Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-01-09
RESOLUTION PASSED
To Give Pension Building
for Inaugural Ball.
ACRIMONIOUS DEBATE
DISTRICT CRITICISED IN COMMIT
TEE OF THE WHOLE.
Many Representatives Go on Record as
Many Representatives Go on Record as
Voting for This Use of Build
ing for Last Time.

appropriations, reported the pension appro-
priation bill At the same time Mr.. Under
wood (Ala.) submitted the views of the
minority in reference to 1t.
The House then went into committee of
the whole for the consideration of meas
ures relating to the District of Columbia
Mr.. Currier On. W in the chair.
Pension Office Resolution.
BY a vote Of "a to 80 the House, in COM
mittee of the whole voted to favorably re-
port to the House the Senate joint resolu-
ton authorizing the use of the pension Of
flee for the inaugural ball. But the fierce
contest that was waged in committee con-
t1nued when the committee arose, and every
step of the resolutions progress toward pas
sage was fought by the opponents of the
pension office idea. The resolution was fire.
quently In danger even while In committee
of the whole House. and division was found
necessary before 1t was possible to an
nounce that a favorable report was author
lied
The most spirited opposition to the reso-
luton developed during the discussion
which, to the surprise Of those in its sup
port began soon as the matter was
brought up. During the acrimonious debate
the citizens of the District were severely
scored by Representative Cowherd of Mis-
souri,, a member of the District of Columbia
committee, and others, for their lack OF
energy, their lack of civic pride, and their
ability to break, time and again, formal
promises made to Congress.
Never Again.
From the strong sentiment shown in the
House today it appears very improbable
that the use of the pension office will ever
again be authorized for the inaugural ball.
Many members of the House formally went
on record as declaring that never again
would they vote for a resolution desig-
mating the pension Office as dance hall.
Many others who did not make formal dec
1aration spoke in the same vein.
Immediately after Representative Samuel
w Smith of Michigan, who had charge Of
the resolution on the floor in the absence Of
Representative Morrell of Pennsylvania,
brought up the subject Representative Call
Of Massachusetts inquired as to what
means had been taken to protect the audi
ence at the ball from the danger Of fire.
He called attention to the language used by
the Secretary of the Interior. who, in his
report to Congress, mentioned that four
years ago during the inaugural period four
fires had occurred in the pension office.
He said he had been a visitor to that
ball and had thought at the time that the
flimSy decorations, the temporary wood
work and the bunting and flags with the
electric wires and lights of all kinds made
the danger of fire very imminent. He re-
ferred to the Iroquois theater fire and said
he would hate to see in Washington on
an occasion such as the Inauguration of a
President repetition in whole or in part
of that awful catastrophe
In answer to his questions, Representa-
tive Smith said that the valuable records
of the building which, of course, could not
be replaced in event of loss. would be prop
erly stored and cared for.
Representative Lands of Indiana face
tiously inquired if fire usually burned
up or down. He had heard, he said, that
the records were to be stored on the third
,Iara hot ar tl,n a
men of the inaugural committee believed
that fire which might originate on the
second floor would chase itself down into
the basement.
Representative Campbell of Kansas said
it was his opinion that the records would
be properly taken care of, but Mr.. Call
in the course of his further remarks said
he considered the resolution an extremely
vicious piece of legislation.
Representative Cowherd, in a spirited adj
dress said that he would not oppose the use
of the pension office at this time; that he
realized that it was the best available place
for the ball, but he wanted to serve notice
thai he would not again vote for such a
resolution. He said that he was largely in
fuenced in voting for the resolution at this
time because he did not think that objec-
lions to the use of the pension office, or. in
fact any obstacle thrown in the way of the
inaugural committee, would come well from
the democratic side of the chamber.
He realized that the danger to the records
of the pension office was great, but he
thought that every proper precaution would
be taken, and his personal objection to the
resolution was not on this score. He called
attention to the fact that four years ago
the members Of the inaugural committee
had refused to repair damages incurred to
public property during the inaugural cere-
monies. and had repudiated the idea of per-
sonal responsibility. He reiterated his
statement that never again would he vote
for any resolution or bill authorizing the
use of any public building by private par
ties.
Continuing, he scored the citizens of the
District without mercy, for broken prom
ises, for pledges unfulfiled. and for what
he termed an absolute lack of civic pride
and energy.
If the citizens of the District possessed
these desirable qualities of civic pride and
energy they would long ago have put up a
building which would not only serve the
purpose in furnishing place for the inau-
gural ball, but would pay for itself as a
convention hall to attract delegations and
associations and societies to Washington
from all over the country.
He made this statement, he said, be-
cause the District inaugural committee had
promised. time and again, in endeavoring
to secure the consent of Congress to the
use of the pension Office, to construct with
In the ensuing four years a structure for
the one specific purpose, but they never did
1t, he said, and each time would come back
to Congress smilingly and suavey and say
that they had no building in which to hold
a ball and would Congress be good and
kind enough to let them have the pension
building lust once more"
Representative Call wanted to know If
Representative Cowherd, because of his
southern chivalry and lack of desire to
throw obstacles in the way of the Inaugural
ton of republican President. repudiated
the idea of personal responsibility. Mr..
Cowherd said that while he had spoken Of
that, 1t did not entirely influence his vote,
and he believed that so far as fire, accI-
dents. and the loss of records were con-
cerned, there WAS not a great deal to fear
Representative John Wesley Gaines of
Tennessee was another member of the
House who asserted that he would never
again vote for inaugural resolution
granting the use of public building He
did so on this occasion. he said, largely for
the reasons advanced by Mr.. Cowherd But
after this he was through. Mr.. Gaines said
he was a good southern man and he, too
did not wish to be discourteous to the Presi-
dent, and on this particular occasion he
agreed there was 70 other place suitable
for holding the ball.
Vote to Favorably Report.
After some more acrimonious discussion
of the subject the committee of the whole
voted to favorabiy report the resolution to
the House. The opponents of the resolu-
A.