The Washington times., 1908-07-16
PoStpones Hearing of
Brightwood Complaint
Until September.
OFFICIALS DISLIKE
NOMINAL SALARIES
Having Given Services, Are Not
Disposed TO Evade Letter
of the Law.


in the matter of street car transpOrta-
ton have been set for a hearing in
September. The hearing was to have
been held today. and the members
of the District Electric Railway
Commission assembled to conduct
it. The Brightwood people. how
ever. telephOned a request that the
hearing be postponed.
Gen. John NJ. Wilson, the chairman OF
The commission, is TO leave Washington
this week for a vacation, and will not
return until about September Z. For
this reason no public hearings VIII be
held until after that date.
The fact developed today that the
question Of the legal status OF the
traction board is further complicated
by an inclination on the part Of the
members to resent the present talk OF
their being paid nominal salary. The
Interstate Commerce Commission al
ready has placed itself on record as de-
Gliding that the appointment Of the sub
commission was legal.
Salaries Proposed.
The members of the Interstate Com
merce Commission are inclined to be-
Heve, however, that by a mere tech
nicality Il may be wise to place the
members Of the District Electric Rail
way Commission on salaries. The law
states that no gratuit0us services shah
be accepted by the Government me
point Of view held in some quarters,
ithat the appointment Of the subcom-
mission was itself illegal, is now gen
orally regarded as untenable.
There is likely to be some FEELING
between the traction board and the
Interstate Commerce Commission IL the
members of the former are given n
salary 10 overcome the supposed tech
nicality of the law. In the beginning
they cheerfuIly consented to give their
services free to work which they fore
saw would be arduous- They contri-
buted their services in spirit of
adding TO the public welfare. and have
therefore remained silent since their
act was followed by the protests Of
railway officials and certain members
Of Congress
IF they offer me any % cents per day,
I'll resign said one Of the members OF
the subcommission today. "It would be
only an evasion Of the law, anyway"
Settlement In Full.
The matter of salary probably will re-
main unsettled for the summer, or until
the regular meetings Of the Interstate
Commerce Commission are resumed.
During The interim the meetings OF the
Traction board, as already stated. viii
be omitted
That considerable discussion will be
needed to settle the matter Is believed
or all sides. In the first place. there IS
the legality OF paying Commissioner
West, while he draws a salary as a
District Commissioner is to be settled.
General Wilson, too, draws pay now as
a retired army officer
Mr. Smith IS the only member Of the
subcommission who does not now re-
Ceive nay from the Government And
still another phase of the situation IS
whether the members Of the traction
board would accept a salary, OF an
other salary, as the case might be
They have not said they would, al
though they nave indicated that the
subject of a nominal figure is distaste-
ful in the extreme
Members Indignant.
TIE members were not seeking money.
and Il is pointed out that they wero
hardly in need Of extra work when
they assumed their new positions. One
of thin is an overworked member Of
the Board Of District Commissioners.
another is q busy merchant with htrlC
time TO spare. and the third is re-
tired brigadier general Of the United
States army. who has been in public
service for more than fifty years. None
of than cares TO have his name used
in the matter, but that the three feel
keeuly on the subject Of their being
Il
EFFORTS on behalf Of the municipality IS
a fact
II. c. Eddy, the executive officer of
the Traction Board. is dividing his
time for a few days between his du-
ties as superintendent Of the electrical
department of the District and those
as executive of the subcommission.
Today he received three more let
tiers from citizens who are not salts
fed with the present operation of the
street railways
One of these was from Willis L,
Moore, head OF the Weather Bureau,
and now acting as Secretary Of Agri-
culture. He criticised the present
service between Washington and
Rockville as inadequate, without suf-
ficient cars and proper schedules.
Complaints Received.
Archibald Hopkins wrote in protest
of what he considers 20 be the grind
ing noise made by the Connecticut
avenue cars and also the Georgetown
cars as they pass the curves and
switches in Dupont circle.
s. W. Briggs, chairman Of the COM
nitteo on transportation of the Be
thesda Citizens Association, wrote TO
the Interstate Commerce Commission
relative TO the service on the Rockville
This letter was referred to the traction
board
Mr.. Eddy is TO make a careful. expert
examination OF all complaints and sug-
gestions. Wherever possible, he VIII
take up the subjects touched upon with
the railroad corporations themselves
Matters which cannot thus be settled
Will come up for public hearings aftei
cool weather has set in.