Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-01-10

! cleauings per week, using white Wings
increase of area cleaned per year, TWO
wasbinps per week with squeegees or
\ dushers from nothing 10 E'''"'"'
square yards.
Lighting the City.
.rwo wears ago the unreasonableness
became apparent of advertising for bids
| for street lighting. We presented to Con-
| eress an argument To the effect that III
was logical and right to impose upon
local public utilities engaged in furnish
ing electricity and gas the duty OF hght-
/ ing the city at reasonable rates. In re-
snonse the requisite legislation was en-
| acted. Today but S'1l.Wo per annum ~
required to care for the eNlsilhs ST.
lights of the city, as against an app
priation of S413,Np three years ago III
! The meantime there have been the nor
NAL extensions of lighting as the 'ity nds
grown, while simultaneously there has
been effected a marked Improvement ~
| the character of the lighting on most Vi
! the principal streets and thoroushfares.
Cost of Water Service.
Congress. very justly | think. having
brought our water supply from Great
Falls into the city without expense 10
the District requires that from the rev
enues of the water department shall 10
borne all of the expenses OF Distribution
including operation, maintenance and exc
tension.
AT the rates prevailing before July l.
1872, the revenues were not sunicleiit -"
all purposes. \ general meterlns OF inc
services was needed in order TO prevent
waste and make remote the day when
a new aqueduct would he needed SUI
/ ficient funds could not ne spared Tor
metering Many large settled areas Will
! in the District were unproNided WIFI
water TO the detriment of health ana
public. sa fety Sufficient funds could not
| be spared for this essential. purpose. nor
vet i'm order to make requirements Wntle
the same were required in certain olntr
horizons of the District. July !, l9l2,
we solved the problem of obtaining funds
by raising the rates from three To TOUR
! cents per 100 cubic feet This action az
the commissioners was exceedingly I'M
| nopuIar as we knew il would be- but
nothing this board of commissioners mas
done has been more certainly IN lhc
public interest. and even the new rates
are below the rates of other cities, ana
below cost if interest upon investments
were to be considered.
The District Debt.
What has happened To the debt al tlie
District of Columbia in recent years
makes "A showing that must be very sat
isfactory to the gentlemen of THIS conf
mittee and to all who appreciates the
soundness of the theory that debt is a
burden while on the other hand Tree
dom from non productive interest charges
brings with ii the opportunity Tor great
progress i'm material things.
1.-THE following table shows the dept OF
the District of Columbia as existing or
estimated at the dates indicated In each
ca Sc the debt is equal to the foatlng debt
due the United States by the District
l,.aIf of hp ad a
ter being owed by the United states ana
the District in equal parts. For the put-
poses of this comparison no account Is
taken of the indebtedness recently ih-
posed upon the District in CONNECTION
with the adjustment of its accounts VITA
the Government Hospital for the Insane
and the assumption Is made that the ap-
propria ton act will carry, as usual. about
81 aJ0,o0U less than the commissioners
estimates:
l9sEl June 3o)... .S',"f'Hp.f,
1910. .....-'--....-.'-. S"-o'..e..,,
1911 NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. i.l6a,u25.ol
1911
1913 ~,
1914 NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. ''.i3',h-o""
lin the same period the Indebtedness of
the United States on District account.
represented by it's liability for one-half
of the bonded debt. will have been re-
duced from $5.05i.oG' to -, i9962o.
The floating debt of the District, except
for the item relating Ia care OF the M
sane, will he extinguished.
Il cannot close this brief review or
District matters without expressing the
hope that Congress may yet see fit 10
aaopt as part of constructive District
policy some program for the ACCOMPLISH
ment of the public works that es-
sential to the creation of suitable Ma
tionaI Capital. The people away from
here are contributing one-half To our
local expenditures on no other theory, il
seems to me, than that thus only can the
capital features be brought to early conn
pleton and thereafter properly main.
taned"