Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-02-12
DISTRICT DAY
/ IN THE HOUSE
Many Bills of Local Interest
Passed.
Mr.. MORRELL'S CRITICISM
Says the Present Government is Elk.
travagant.
THE WHIPPING POST DEBATE
Members Offer Many Amendments
and Suggestions to Mr.. Adams
Measure.
THE WHIPPING POST DEBATE

| Inc nrst Dill called up by Mr.. Babc0ck
was that introduced by Representative
| Hayes of California, to restore the nams
of California avenue to that portion of T
| street which formerly bore that name.
| The bill as amended, restoring the name
| of California street instead OF California
| avenue, was passed without discussion.
| The Senate resolution extending the
! time for completing the construction of
| the Highway bridge across the Potomac,
with amendment limiting the time to
December Is, 1906, instead of February.
| 1907, was next passed.
There was some little discussion Of the
pharmacy bill. which was next called up.
Representative Campbell of Kansas. who
| has charge of this measure, was unavoid-
ably absent from the House and Repre-
sentative Tayler of Ohio explained the pro-
visions of the measure. He called atten-
| ton to the police statistics showing the
| rapid growth of the cocaine and other drug
| habits among the lower classes of the pop
| ulation of the city and pointed out the va
| rous provisions in the measure which make
| for a better regulation Of the pharmacy
| and drug business.
Mr. Fitzgerald's objection.
| Representative Fitzgerald of New York
| said he had only one objection to the bill.
| and that was that 1t provided that il d.
| rected certain officials of the city govern
ment to enforce the measure Mr.. Fitz-
gerald believed that the police department
should enforce it without specific direction.
and he feared that in the future these Of
! ficials mentioned in the bill would come TO
| Cong1e ess asking for an appropriation to
aid in enforcing the law. Mr.. Gaines of
| Tennessee spoke in favor of the measure.
| saying that Congress by its specific di-
| recton that the law be enforced would
| probably secure efficient prosecution of
those violating it's provisions.
| Representative Champ Clark of Missouri
| wanted to know how ii was that nobody
| seemed able to offer amendment to the
| bill. He said he did not believe that the
| District of Columbia Commissioners had
| any right to bring IN a bill and then rear
! back on Its postern Joints and forbid any
amendments to be offered. Mr.. Babcock
| replied that he did not understand the sit
uation to be that described by Mr.. Clark,
| and that anybody was privileged to offer
| an amendment If they desired, He said
he had merely appealed to the gentleman
| from New York, Mr. Fitzgerald, not to Of
fer an amendment which, in his opinion,
would at least impair the efficiency of the
measure.
After a strong argument by Mr.. Sims
| of Tennessee in favor of the pharmacy
bill, which he said the result of ten
| years work by pharmacists and others in
terested in Washington the Fitzgerald
| amendment to strike out the provision in
| the bill Objectionable TO him was defe18red
| and the bill was passed.
The bin favorably reported from the Dis
trict of Columbia committee requiring banks
and trust companies in the District of CO.
| lumbia to report to the controller of the
currency was then taken up and ex-
| planned by Representative Kline of Penn
sylvania. Representative Shackleford op-
posed the passage of the measure, saying
| that in his judgment ii was merely a left
handed way of giving legal existence to
some institutions that did not have 1t at
present. Various branch banks or corpo-
rations organized in other jurisdictions had
come here and were doing business without
any particular status, so far as the Dis
trict was concerned. He did not believe
manner.
Without further objection the bill was
passed.
District Government Criticised
Representative Morrell of Pennsylvania a
member of the District committee, was
recognized for ten minutes, and he pro-
ceeded to vigorously criticise the executive
administration of the District of Columbia.
Mr. Morrell said he had been busy for a
year or two preparing statistics of various
cities to show that the form of government
of the District of Columbia was very ex-
pensive luxury. He selected from a number
of. cities, Washington, St. Louis, Boston,
Baltimore, Buffalo, Pittsburg and Newark,
n. j., for comparative purposes. He said
that from a table prepared by him II could
be seen that the population of st. Louis,
Boston, Baltimore. Buffalo and Pittsburg
exceeds the population of Washington from
u to 106 per cent, Newark, y. j.. being the
only city having less population and val
ua ton than Washington. The assessed VAL
uations of property, both real and per-
sonal, in St. Louis, Baltimore, Boston. Buf-
falo and Pittsburg exceed the valuation in
Washington at from to Io2 per cent. The
valuation or Newark is less than three
quarters of that of Washington.
Mr. Morrell thought that the gross ex-
penditures of the various cities were an un-
safe basis for critical comparison he
Thought however that Il was little singu-
lar that Buffalo with 81 per cent moro
population and per cent more properly
should -expand 80 per cent less for all pur-
poses.
Pittsburg, with a greater population and
9S per cent more property, should expend
only per cent more for all purposes.
Newark with but 80 per cent OF the prop
erty of Washington, has but total ex-
nenditure of GO per cent of that of WASH
tngton
TT is also worthy of note that Buffalo,
city of 81 per cent more population and b
per cent more property, expends for al
the ordinary purposes of city government
80 per cent less, and also that Pittsburg,
with 10 per cent more population, 9S per
cent more property, should expeno only
per cent more than Washington for the
purposes of civil government Boston, with
twice the population and more than five
times the property, and one or the best
governed cities In the United States, ex-
pends only three and one-half times as
much as Washington.
Baltimore with nearly twice The popu-
lation more than twice the property. ard
the victims of Cne of the greatest fires IN
the worlds history. expends but "a per
cent more than Washington. $2.331. .GS6 OF
which being expenditure resulting from the
fire. Deducting this fire expenditure, tho
percentage for ordinary expense for Baiti-
more in 1904 was but 8 per cent more than
that of Washington. st. Louis. double in