Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-04-10
The Districts Constitution.

During the debate in the House yester-
day on the street extension blu Repre-
sentative Payne arose to put this remark
and question to the member in charge OF
the measure:
This law Is spoken of as something
sacred and binding, having the force OF a
contract. one paper said that II was the
constitution of the District OF COLUMBIA
Does the committe regard the act as SO
sacred that it can not be amended by Con-
gress at any time under the circum-
stances?
1t was The Star that said that the organic
act was virtually the constitution of the
District. 1t repeats it's declaration. 1t re-
pests also that the organic act, while sub
jec,t to amendment at any time by Congress-
can not with moral right be changed by
iudirection. although Congress has from
time to time done that very thing, espe-
Gladly in this matter of street extensions.
But the fact that Congress has lodged its
responsibility by multiplying the organic act
with respect to certain objects of legisla-
ton does not purge II of the charge of vio-
latng the spirit of the partnership agree
ment between the federal government and
the District
There Is something sacred and binding
about the organic act. Notwithstanding the
lapses of Congress. 1t has the force of a
contract. 1t established in 1878 the condi-
tons under which Congress was to per-
form its duty as the possessor of Eek
elusive Jurisdiction over The District For
years 1t was enforced I'm that spirit. For
years Congress recognized that 1t applied
equally to all the forms of municipal ex-
penditure and need For years 1t was
binding contract under which the capital
recovered from Of tu,a
lions and began to assume shape as the
federal city which It's founders contem-
plated.
Then suddenly the organic act was
squinted at by some members of Congress,
and It was discovered that for certain pur-
poses the contract was valid and that for
others 1t was not Wherever 1t bound the
District 1t was sound, and wherever it held
the government It was unsound whenever
II pleased Congress so to consider it, 1t
was discovered that a street must be paved
and maintained by both partners equally
but beyond a certain limitation on the
outer edges of the capital-District, it must
be created solely at the expense OF one of
the partners-and that one helpless 1t was
discovered that there was a marked though
10 many minds mysterious difference in
the apportionment of financial responsible
tty for cost between -schoolhouse erectad
H. the suburbs and the street provided to
give access to that school: that there was
similar difference between the fire engine
company and the street provided to furnish
1t with highway for action: that there
was difference between paying the DO
Hceman who patroied the outlying area
and for the street ON which he walked:
that there was similar difference between
the sewer built for the health of the COM
munlty and the street under which 1t was
constructed.
These differences are what cause the
organic act to be regarded by some mem
bers of Congress as something altogether
sacred and binding on the side of its Dis
trict application and negligible and worth
less on the side of the federal obligation.
in short the organic act is today a very
complex affair a quaint instance of ing
handled partnership. In view of certain
modern deviatIons from the original pur-
pose and spirit of that bargain 1t is no
wonder that the republican floor leader
mas 10 rise for information