Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-05-13
ASCAP|TAL BUILDERS
Argentina and Brazil Far Sur
pass United States.
CAPITALS ARE FOSTERED
Financially and Industrially With
Affectionate Pride.
LIGHT TAXES AND FRANCHISE
National Treatment of Buenos Aires
and Rio Contrasted With That
of Washington.
CAPITALS ARE FosTERED
LIGHT TAXES AND FRANCHISE

of Washington.
BY THEODORE w. MOVES.
Editorial Correspondence OF The star.
Argentina and Brazil not only set an OK
ample to the United States in capital
building. hut also in adequate and I'M
grudging capital maintenance
These nations in relation to their cap
itals have been the liberal and cheerful
contributors to municipalities in many re-
spects self-soverning. fully represented in
the national government and theoretically
advanced by the nation in commercial
and industrial prosperity. in wealth and
taxable resources.
AS Americans we are with reason proud
OF what the nation has done in the up
building and equitable maintenance of
the National Capital within the last forty
years, and especially within the last fif-
teen years. AS Washingtonians we re-
gard with grateful appreciation the pa
triotic and philosophical labors Of the
faithful among our constitutional legisia-
tors. who in unselfish devotion to a task
at times apparently thankl.ss have raised
the nations ward from the gutter Of uni
versal CerSion and contempt to the pin
honor, and who have made of Washing
ton not merely the City Beautiful. bit the
City Healthful. the City Intellectual and,
comparatively speaking. the City Good.
Since 1878 the nation. faithfully adherinS
with few exceptions 10 the implied COM
pact Of the organic act and wisely liberal
in developing on artistic as Well as utiita-
rian lines the national public building
equipment of the nations city. has made
a record in capital building and mainte-
ma ~ VI mr. IN
ashamed.
In view. however of the corresponding
achievements of other nations, like Ar
gentina and Brazil. we have no right to
be arrogant in our pride as capital build
ers. either in the line OF creation, or Of
maintenance and development.
In prior letter | have written of the
vast and intelligent expenditures made
by Argentina and Brazil in creating the
wonderful capitals Buenos Ares and Rio
The same lesson is taught by the record
of these nations in adequate capital
maintenance.
Lessons in Capital Maintenance.
The attitude Of the national government
toward Buenos Aires and Rio respective
ly has been such as to reduce to an abb
solute minimum the CAPITALS need Of and
appeal for financial cooperation By the
government. nevertheless q maximum of
rendered.
a Argentina and Brazil have in every
conceivable way increased the ability of
their capitals To raise lax money. The
United States has, ON the other hand.
habitually reduced the tax-raising carac-
fly of Washington. The South American
cities are great and rich in taxable re-
sources. and their wealth and commercial
and industrial prosperity have been as
vigorously promoted by the nation as by
their own enterprise. Washington is and
has been always poor in taxable re-
sources. and has been crippled CONNER
cially and industrially by deliberate ma
tional policy.
In The interest Of Baltimore Richmond.
philadelphia and other neiehbor!nG COM
mercial cities Congress has. hlStorlraiiN :.
discouraged WASHINGTON s commercial ana
industrial growth. 1t has deprived the
Washingtonian of the means of self-S'ip-
port found in the local Industries that de-
velop in the ordinary American city. II
has concentrated the great local indus
tries. corresponding to the factories. mills
and manufacturing plants of other cities,
in the hands of the government. and then
by the apportioi!ncnt-of-ott law shuts
out from the classified service in these
great national-local industries all who
claim Washington as a residence, inciud-
ing the growing youth of the city. Thus
c ,ngress denies the capital great indus
tries of its own: 1t shuts out NaSin
tonians from the national-locai industries:
il drives OUT from the city the growing
youth that they may find elsewhere the
means of self-support.
90 Argentina and Brazil have taken
from their capitals only that degree of
control which is absolutely essential TO
protect the national interest; here the
nation reserves TO itself exclusive and
despotic control The South American
capitals are in important respects self
governing with distinct municipal GOV
ernment and full representation in ma
tional government. Nltit us the nation IS
In absolute control of the capital in every
particular. with exclusive legislative. ex-
ecutive and judicial power, and the cap
ital is not self-governinS in any respect
whatever, and not in the smallest degree
represented in the national government.
Here the municipality does not even tax
itself in forms that il prefers, and does
not expend its tax money for the pur-
poses which please il. Tie nation decides
how much money shall be eNactcd in
taxes and in what manner II snail be
raised and expended.
80 Under these conditions the national
appropriations for captal maintenance in
Argentina and Brazil are pubicsnirited
and patriotic donations which may rea-
sonably vary in amount at the pleasure
Of the donor In their financial relations
with the nation the South American CAPT
tails are the principals. and the nations
are liberal and voluntary contributors.
In the northern republic all the power
and the primary responsibility are with
Congress representing the nation. which
is Enthusiastically the principal and Wash
ington is the incidental contributor-tile
compulsory contributor of an amount fixed
not by it. but by Congress.
Thus the South American nations have
made their capitals rich and able to pay
heavy taxes. have permitted them in large
measure to control their own taxation.
and then have, in addition, contributed
handsomely to their maintenance. With
us the capital has for many Years been
denied any control of its taxes, and has
been kept impecunious and with a mini
mum of ability to pay taxes by the con-
sistent policy of the nation, which for
the first seventy-tlve years OF the city 5
life openly shirked its own equitable
financial obligations to WASHINGTON.
Little in capital maintenance has been
equttably expected from the South Amer
lean governments: they have given much.
Much has been equitahly expected from
since what 1t has paid has been. under
the conditions of capital creation and
development, not a donation, but the
honest meeting of a just obligation.
Argentina and It's Capital.
Let us examine what Argentina has.
under these conditions, done for Bueno:
Aires. comparing Argentinas voluntary
contribution to its capital with the duty
payments Of the United States on the Ma
tional Capital count. The South Amer
lean facts and figures are taken almost
entirely from the bulletins and other pub
Hcations of the Pan-American Union Gun
ill recently the Bureau of American Re
publics) which under the capable man