Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-08-01
MAY CHANGE THE PLAN
Proposed Use Of Post Office
Department Annex.
MORE ROOM FOR CLERKS
Another Building May Be Provided
for Repair Shop.
APPROPRIATION NOT MADE
Arguments That Will Be Submitted
to Congressional Committees at
the Coming Session.
APPROPRIATION NOT MADE

OHcc department mas made necessary an
entire change of the view recently taken by
officers of the government concerning the
use to which building to be erected to the
south of the present structure will be put.
The recent session of Congress failed to APP
propriate for this building, about 81 GOO, 0G0
being required for a suitable annex, which
1t has been expected would be devoted
largely to the use of the supply depart
ment and for mail bag and lock repair
shop. 1t is likely that had the necessary
money been appropriated for this purpose
the construction of the building would have
been for the purposes indicated. But now
the growth of the department makes more
apparent than ever the fact that all the
available space that can be secured In a
building on the square south of the present
structure will be needed for the supply de-
partment. for the clerical force now out
side of the building. and for that which is
crowded in Inadequate quarters within the
present structure
The failure of Congress to appropriate
for the post Office annex partly, at
least, the result of the difficulty that was
experienced by the government in obtain
ing possession of the land, the acquisition
of which was authorized a year previously
Various delays occurred, so that it was
not until late in the session that Congress
could be assured that the governments pos
SeSSiOH WAS SECURE III every respect men,
along with a good many other projects.
the proposition to appropriate a million of
dollars for the new building was side
tracked, and will come up in the next ses-
sion.
Objection to Original Plan.
Many officials interested in the proper de-
velopment of the Post Office Department
declare that 1t was probably fortunate
circumstance that prevented the appropria-
ton of the money in the recent session of
Congress. Many of them now regard the
proposition to place the railway repair shop
just across the street from the post office
building Is a serious mistake. In the first
place there is no reason, they declare.
why that shop should be alongside the Office
building as the matter of dust and dirt
which is incident to the cleaning of the
mail bags is one that cannot be wholly
controlled, and the shop might prove to be
a serious nuisance, especially in the sum
mer time, when all windows thrown
open and when II is difficult matter to
make the building comfortable under ordi-
nary circumstances. Then, too, they de-
clare, there is no reason why the shop
should not be constructed alongside rail-
road tracks in an economical building.
where there will be an abundance of light
and air, and where a little dust flying oc-
casionally would not cause trouble.
Room Needed for Clerks.
posed building would be needed for other
branches of the service located in this city
is believed TO be fully demonstrated There
ar, 400 or 500 employees of the department
now housed In the Busch building corner
of sth and e streets. in which place there
are also a large number of records that
should be moved to a fireproof building
owned by the government. Then there is
the supply department, located in the old
rink building street
7th streets. The supply department it is
said, should have the first floor of the pro-
posed addition to the department building
as the necessity for receiving and sending
off supplies would require the entire first
floor of that structure IL the work is to be
done economically. With the present en-
ployes of the Busch building housed in the
upper floors of the annex there would not
be much room left, and yet there is daily
evidence that the department building Itself
is so crowded that many of the clerks there
should be moved out in order to increase
the floor space that could be allotted to
those who remain. 1t is stated that at this
time the greater part of the clerks of the
department have on an average but sixty or
seventy square feet of floor space, an av
erage of about eight feet square for the
clerk, his desk and other belongings This
results in having the desks of clerks side
by side in very large number of the
rooms and in having them located in the
balconies of the inner court on several of
the floors.
In the winter especially this crowding
results in making the problem of ven
tilation extremely difficult, although the
building is well ventilated, even if 1t is
defective in so many other respects Two
or three hundred clerks could be moved
out of the present Post Office Depart
ment building into the proposed annex
to the great advantage of the entire
force, and that. 1t is declared, would not
be possible If the mail bag repair shop
is to be located in-~the annex, as origi-
nally proposed.
Probable Recommendations
No plans have yet been made or au-
thorized for the proposed department an
mex but by the time Congress assemblies
1t is likely that the department officials
will have some interesting suggestions
to make TO the appropriations committees
concerning their needs. and the commit
tees may be inclined to accept recon-
mendation that the proposed building be
completed for the departments clerical
needs, together with those of the supply
department, and that mail bag and lock
repair shop be provided for on some
other site, where the bags may be re-
ceiyed from the railroads and shipped
away again with minimum of cost for
rte.