Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-06-04
Mr.. WILLIAMS CRITICISM
Thinks Too Much Money Spent on
Bath Arrangements for Solons.
INTIMATEs THERE IS GRAFT"
Proposition to Appropriate $500
for Leasing Warehouse to Store
Public Documents Fought.


priation bill in the Senate yesterday
afternoon centered around the opposi
ton of numerous senator's to the rent
ing of buildings In Washington for gov
eminent use and the advocacy of the
provision OF sufficient government build
ings in which to house the various de-
partments. bureaus. commissions and
other Offices 1t led to criticism of the
use to which senators themselves had
put the new Senate office building
That phase of the discussion began
when the Senate took up an amend
ment proposing an appropriation of
$500 for the rent of a warehouse for
the storage Of public documents OF the
Senate. Senator Williams led the oppo-
sition fight. asking If the two-million-
five-hundred- thousand-d dollar building
erected for senator's offices did not pro-
vide room for the storage Of public
documents.
II am opposed to that amendment on
the ground that it has a tendency to
delay and postpone the building of a
public archives building. which shall
be fireproof and where government doc
uments and archives of every sort shall
be stored" he added. Il think this has
the effect OF inclining people to delay
still further about the building. which
we ought to have.
Thinks It Looks Suspicious.
I'm addition to that I want to say a
few words generally about renting build
ings in Washington. There is more or
less Of something suspicious about II.
remember when we built the Agriculture
Department building. We were going to
get rid Of an immense amount of annual
rental paid by the government in the
city OF Washington when We did it. The
forestry service, l believe, and several
other bureaus of the Agriculture Depart
ment are still renting premises down.
town.
Earlier than that we built the new Post
Office building, and the old Post Office
building was given up to the Interior De-
partment. right opposite the old Patent
Office building. and in spite Of that the
interior Department is still renting build
1ngS everywhere. The Judiciary Depart
ment Is renting them.
Il think there ought to be a commits
sion of senators and representatives ap-
pointed at some time-I will not offer 1t
now on this bill, OF course-for the pur-
pose of inquiring into the various con-
tracts of rental by the government in
the city of Washington, to find out not
only what departments and what bureaus
have rented the premises. but what par
ticular f1esh-and-blood man. representing
tract. and how the rentals that are paid
by the government compare with similar
rentals OF equal accommodations rented
by other people.
Says Rumors Are Afoat.
Il do not know that there is anything
wrong, but do know that rumors are
af1oat all the time about it, and that it
is common talk that the government pays
very much more for what it rents in
the city OF Washington than other peo-
pie have paid for the same premises who
had them previously"
Senator Warren, in reply, remarked
that the Maltby building was purchased
to avoid renting and. in his opinion, 1t
was not fortunate purchase. 1t Is still
being used. he said. and therefore Con-
gress must still appropriate money for
its maintenance.
I'VE paid something like two and half
millions of dollars for offices for ninety
two men," replied Mr.. Williams. 1T is
an enormous building. covering a whole
square, capacious, and the rooms are
numerous: and now to have to confess
that in spite of that expenditure the Sem
ate is compelled to find for agencies
rooms elsewhere seems to be rather HUI
initiating. And that is especially the
case when one takes into account the
manner in which a part of the Senate
ONCE building is now occupied.
Senators Took All the Room.
Senator Warren explained that it was
the intention to store the documents in
the first floor of the office building. But
one senator after another asked for two,
three or four rooms; and consequently
the space in the first floor has been taken
up with senators offices.
Notwithstanding, INTERCEPTED Senator
Williams, 1.-The fact that we have the
most magnificent office building in the
world-Nenice in all her wealth and Rome
in all her glory never had anything APP
preaching livery large and with every
convenience, we are still compelled to use
the Maltby building for something. We
have never been able to sell it and put
the money in the Treasury and get rid
of it in some way other
Senator Williams then turned his criti-
cism to the equipment Of the new office
building. literally charging the Senate
with grating"
About half of one floor of the office
building he remarked, is filled with
utterly useless bath arrangements.
There is not senator here who wants
the public to believe that he does the
washing of his person at public expense.
1t seems TO be absurd and foolish. There
is not a senator here who saves SO a
year out of all Of that. Big graft Is
wicked, little graft is stupid. 1t merely
gives the demagogues. it merely gives the
muckrakers-"
IAN excuse to rake" suggested Senator
Smith of Georgia
Excuse to Rake.