Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-12-22
Congress and Mr.. Reynolds.

The representatives of citizens associa-
tons. who on Saturday nominally ap-
proved the Reynolds one-man government
proposition. in fact repudiated it and
trampled upon it. The amendments adopt
ed by them attacked the vital principle
of the Reynolds proposition. On pretense
merely of removing the dogs tail they
made their cut directly behind the ami
mails ears.
Reynolds proposed and the President
has Endorsed as a substitute for three
Commissioners one governor with all the
Commissioners powers. to be appointed
by the President without restriction of
eligibility to three-year residents of the
District The citizens committee assents
10 a single executive, If there is to be
change in the commissionership organiza-
ton, but insists that he shall be elected.
not appointed by the President. and Of
course election by the people of the Dis
trict would bar the carpet-bagger. More
over instead Of centralizing all the Com
missioners' powers in the one-man gov
ernor the memorial distributes the pow
ers of the present board, giving to the
governor only the purely executive powers
of the Commissioners and assigning the
1h'pOiS dht icSlSidtitc anu ScHl-ltktSldllN0
functions of the Commissioners to a coun-
Gil of ten, half elected and half appoint
ed, and giving the Commissioners powers
representatives of Washington before
congressional committees to an elected
territorial delegate. The single governor
would not even have the veto power of
the ordinary executive. and would not be
in any respect in touch with Congress.
the source Of all real power SO far as the
Ten Miles Square is concerned. He would
be the mere mechanical instrument for
executing the projects Of others, an ex-
ecutive in the technical limited sense
1t is. however, only in respect to such
an executive that the arguments favor
ing one-man government are theoretically
irresistible. So far as the Commission
ers exercise legislative or semi-legislative
functions and SO far as they are the
agents representing the District before
the congressional committees the argu-
ment is all in favor of three rather than
one.
The predictions Of The Star concerning
the public opinion Of the Reynolds prop
osition are verified at the outset It's
earpet-bag feature-the proposition of an
imported governor-is found thoroughly
repulsive. The recommendation of a CEN
tralized bureaucratic despotism, cutting
out local representation in the mu-
lic1pal government. is pushed aside by
the proposal of an approximately demo-
cratic form of government in which the
people OF Washington have far more rep
resentation than in the existing govern
ment- 1t is perfectly evident that the
Reynolds proposition If considered by
congress has not particle of chance of
adoption itself, and will simply open up
The whole question of local government
to acrimonious. unsettling and Injurious
but legfslatively resultless controversy.
Cor we all know that nearly every adult
male Washingtonian has concealed about
his person his own cherished plan of
local government. which would lose half
It's merit in his eyes If it was exactly like
that Of any Of his peighbors
This kind Of a Donnybrook Fair free
fight should not be permitted to block
the Districts legislative ways at the
short final session Of this Congress. Let
the whole matter go over to the new
Congress and the Taft administration.