Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-03-12
LOCAL LEGISLATION
Bills Brought Up in the House
Today. E,s
REAL ESTATE CORPORATIONS
Measure After Discussion Was Laid on
Table.
MIR. SIMS AUTOMOBILE BILn
Amendments Were All Voted Down
and Measure Passed as Reported
by the Committee.
REAL ESTATE CORPORATIONS
MIR. SIMS AUTOMOBILE BILn

| This was District day in the House ana
| the board of aldermen struggled with q
number Of measures Of local interest.
| Ihe first bill called up was measure
| framed by the Commissioners which IS de.
| signed to provide for an Increase IN the
maximum penalty for destroying. inuriug.
| dishguring. defacing and so forth. any pub
| lie or private property in the District OF
| Columbia to 500 Instead of $50 as at nres-
| ent with an alternate penalty OF imprIson-
| ment for which there is now no statutory
| provision. and to increase from $40 TO sioo
| the maximum fine for carrying away the
| property of another, with an alternative
| penalty or Imprisonment for which there is
now no authority. After some discussion
OF the measure by Representatives. Crum-
| packer Olcott and VIM. Alden Smith OF
Michigan an amendment was offered pro-
yiding that this dishgurng must be per-
| formed wilfully and with this alteration
| the measure passed
| The House bill to prevent any persons
| outside the Grand Army of the Republic
and other veteran organizations from
| wearing the insignia of such bodies which
| was passed by the House two weeks ago,
| and by the Senate last week with an
| amendment, was agreed to by the House
| TODAY.
Real Estate Corporations.
| A great deal Of discussion followed the
| calling up by Chairman Babcock OF tho
| House committee on the District Of Colun-
| bia of the bill to authorize the incorpora-
| tfon OF real estate corporations I'm the Dis
| trict. This bill. passed by the Senate.
| provides that any three or more persons
who desire to form 4 company for he mr.
pose of carrying on any business Including
| real estate, may take out certificate OF
! incorporation in the regular way. Az
| amended by the House District committee
the measure provided that no company or
ganized for the purpose OF buying selling
| leasing, renting, owning. holding improv-
! Ing or otherwise dealing in real estate shall
be capitalized for more than $500 900 nor
become indebted in any manner for more
| than S2oo,000. Represen tative William Al
| den Smith of Michigan declared IL very
unwise to authorize any real estate cor
poration to organize under a federal char
ter to deal in District real estate Ha
thought the very growth of the city was a
protest against that kind of an organiza-
ion. He called the attention of members OF
the House TO the fact that 1t was originally
intended TO have the Capitol building To-
Gated in the middle of the city and TO have
the first growth of the city toward the east
But, he said, real estate SPECTATORS had
secured control OF practically all the land
east OF the city and held II at such ont
rageous figures that the city had grown
the other way and was still growing the
other way
Representative Olcott OF New yorl, -.
member OF the House District Committed
called attention to the fact that the bfli
under consideration struck out a provi-
sion IN the District code which pre-
vented the incorporation of real estate
concerns He said that at present a farm
corporation organized in another state or
territory of the Union could come to WASH
ington and do business here, buying selling
and holding as much real estate as il
pleased. while citizens Of the District by the
provision of the code were prevented from
doing this very same thing.
Laid on the Table.
IF 1 had my way" said Representative
Smith emphatically. mo local or foreign
corporation should be permitted to do bust
ness in District of Columbia real estate"
The measure was further opposed by Rep
resentative Sullivan of achusetts.
SIMS Of Tennessee and several others. and
defended by Chairman Babcock of the Dis
trict committee, who contended that his
colleagues were making a mountain out of
a molehill At the conclusion of the dis
cussion, which at times grew somewhat
heated, a motion made by Representative
Sims of Tennessee to lay the bill upon the
table was agreed to.
The Automobile Bill.
Mr. Babcock then called up the Sims au-
tomobile bill, and the gentleman from Ten
nessee explained the measure. He said
that the speed limitations provided in his
bill are the same the existing police
regulations with one exception, the COM
mittee having deemed il wise to reduce the
speed OF automobiles in crossing streets
where there are no steam or street rail-
way tracks to eight miles an hour instead
of the existing regulation of twelve miles
this constituting the only change from
the present regulations. Mr.. Sims said
further that upon the recommendation OF
the Commissioners of the District the pro-
visions of the bill made applicable to
horse-d drawn vehicles. The committee had
recognized he said, the necessity of regu-
latlng the use of the public thoroughfares
of this ot.y by law. Under the existing po-
80 Iegulations no puDls hment other than
by fine can be inflicted upon those who
violate the speed regulations and the Com
missioners had informed the COMMITTEES
that during 1898 there were nearly 900 ar
rests for infractions of the automobile regu-
lations of which 246 were prosecutions
based on violations of the speed limit
Mr. Sims said that the committee had
been of the opinion that the punishment OF
offenders by fine only was not sufhcient 10
break up the practice of overspeedng, and
that Imprisonment at the discretion or the
court for the second and third onenses was
absolutely necessary in order TO efectually
check the tendency to overspeedlng rms
<ouiuion of the committee. he said, was con-
Cured in by the District Commissioners.
and 1t was believed that the limitations OF
sneed provided I'm the bin were reasonable
and necessary, and that the punishments
provided. while rot harsh or excessive,
would prove SUFFICIENT TO break up tne
practice of overspeeding OF all KINDS or
vehicles in the District.
Amendments Voted Down.
Al the conclusion of Mr.. Sims remarks
Representative Gillett of Massachusetts.
who confessed that he had belonged to
that unpopular class of automobile own
ers offered an amendment that automo-
biies be permitted TO turn corners at six
miles an hour instead OF four
Chairman Babcock suggested that Repre-
sentative Sims had a. hard time getting to
the Capitol pretty nearly every morning.
owing to the fact that he was compelled TO
dodge so many automobiles and Mr.. Bah
cock asserted that he did not believe that
Mr.. Sims could get out OF the way OF an