Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-07-23
District Civic Bodies Will For
maIIy Present Commission
ers to Business Men.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4,
IN DOWNTOWN HOTEL
Joint Committee of Five Members of
Each Organization Will Ar
range the Details.

! Members of the new board of Com
missioners of the District Of Columbia
will be formally introduced to the busi-
ness men Of Washington at a mann
moth reception to be rendered them
Saturday, October 4. under the joint
auspices of the Chamber Of Commerce,
Board of Trade and Retail Merchants
Association.
| Plans for the event being arranged
in their honor were communicated to
the Commissioners this afternoon by a
subcommittee representing the three
organizations, consisting of ]. Henry
Small and E. c. Graham, for the Board
of Trade: D. J. Callahan. for the Cham
ber of Commerce, and Isaac Cans, for
the Retail Merchants Association.
The reception. which will be attended
, only by the members of the three busi-
ness mems organizations, will be held in
| one Of the large downtown hotels A
! joint committee. consisting of five repre-
| sentatives of each organization will ar
| range the details.
The committee Consists of ]. Henry
Small. E. c. Graham, w. H. Singleton,
Board of Trade; D. J. Callahan. Chaplin
| Brown. ]. ]. Kaufman, Ralph W.. Lee
and Charles ]. Bell, Chamber OF Com
| merce, and Ross p. Andrews, Isaac Cans,
NJ. A. Leese and two others to be named,
Retail Merchants Association.
Conference at White House.
The first conference Of the new board
Of Commissioners with President Wilson
| may be held tomorrow or Friday. Presi
dent Newman called at the White House
this morning and conferred with Secre-
tary Tumulty relative to arranging an
engagement with the chief executive.
AS Engineer Commissioner Harding ex-
poets to leave the city Friday for a
months vacation, effort will be made to
arrange for a meeting between the local
government heads and the President be-
fore that time.
Aside from the fact that it is generally
understood the alley problem will be
discussed. no intimatfon has been given
as to what prospective policies Of the
at the White House conference. 1t is
expected, however, that the situation
respecting the needs of the: District of
Columbia will be thoroughly canvassed
at this and subsequent conferences to be
arranged and that the result will be the
institution of reforms designed to estab-
lish in the National Capital a model
municipal government.
A Encouragement of the present appor-
tionment of departments whereby the
Commissioners are given special jurisdic-
tiOn over particular offices is anticipated
as one of the early acts of the new board.
For the present the scheme Of division
maintained by their predecessors in office
is being followed. but this likely will be
changed within the next week or two.
Department Heads Call.
AS successor to Gen. Johnston, Commits
sioner Siddons has special Jurisdiction
over the police, fire and health depart
ments and the Office of the superintendent
OF weights, measures and markets.
Heads of these departments have
| formally paid their respects to their
new chief, the same being true of the
officials in charge of the Offices. such
as those of the collector of taxes. au-
ditor and assessor, which come under
the control Of Commissioner Newman.
Headed by Maj. Sylvester, the in
spectors and captains of the police de-
partment this morning called at the
office Of Commissioner Siddons and
We're presented by Secretary Ralph
J Pratt.
| George S. Watson. chief clerk of the
fire department. and a delegation of
officials of that department also
called on Commissioner Siddons.
| Although their duties in office did not
begin actively until Monday. the Com
missioners have put in a strenuous
week so far. 1t was nearly o'clock
last night before President Newman
| left his desk, while his colleague on
the board was so busy that he forgot
| about lunch until o'clock, when he
hurriedly sought a nearby lunchroom.
Many Applicants for Places.
The Commissioners have been kept
busy receiving numerous friends, while
the list Of applicants for positions is
one of the largest that ever greeted an
incoming board. There has been q con-
siderable amount of routine business
that required the official sanction of the
commissioners, and, altogether. the
successors to Mr.. Rudolph and Gen.
Johnston have been kept busy from
the moment they entered the Municipal
building Monday morning.
no decision has been reached as to
| whether the board will hold regular
| daily sessions. 1t Is assured, however,
| tnat there will be frequent informal
sessions. and it is believed that the
line OF demarkatiOn between the groups
| OF departments which come under the
| respective Jurisdiction of the Commits
sioners will be less distinctly drawn
! than mas been the case in previous ad-
F. ministrati tions
| From present indications harmony
and cooperation will mark the con-
duct OF the affairs of the District Of
Columbia under the new regime Com
| mlssioners Newman and Siddons have
been warm friends for several years,
while. already, there are numerous evil
dences to the effect that the most
| cordial relations will exist between the
civilian members of the board and Col
Harding.
| The Commissioners have taken no
| actlon with respect to filling a vacancy
which Will occur in the personnel of the
Districts cadet representatives at the
United States Military Academy.
Military Academy Vacancy.
Cadet E. r. Covell Of the District will
be graduated from the institution next
June. and the law req,seeey that the ap-
pointment Of a successor be as nearly q
year In advance of the date of admission
| os practicable
! The list Of applicants for appointment
on file at the Municipal building includes
Leon Dessez. Burnett R. Olmsted.
Humphrey Sydeham. George Vaughn
Seibold. Walker Gibson White, William
Mccormick Paxton, J. M. Mckinney and
| Nevins ID. Young.
| II Is probable that the Commissioners
Will request the civil service commits
| sion to conduct an examination, the
n nj