Evening star., 1914-04-08
NEWMAN FAVORS
ABOLITION OF THE
LOCAL SYSTEM

Continued from First Page.)
a large number of members of Congress
| who are consCientiouSly and positively
convinced that it is nothing short OF
public scandal for the United States
to pay one-half of the bills of the
people of the District. On the other
side stand a large number of citizens
| of the District. buttressed by the four
| Washington newspapers, who are just
| convinced that it would be nothing less
| than public scandal for the United
states to pay anything less than one
| half of the Districts bills.
| Why is this half-antf-half arrangement
productive of these two ciementso | he
| lieve that the reason can be found in
the half-and-haf itself BY fixing the
contribution for the District of Columbia
ON this percentage basis. have a sys-
tenn which automatically makes it posi-
| bic aud natural to consider every piece
of legislation and every one of the thou
sands of items in the District appropria-
ton bill upon the basis of how much
| the United States pays and how much
the people of the District pay for that
particular thing instead of upon the
basis of whether that particular thing
/ is itself good or bad.
For instance. as long as the contri-
button of the United States is fixed by
the half-and-half plan. just SO long will
there be members of Congress who will
say: Why should the people of the
| United States pay one-half of the eN-
pense of the schools of the District of
| Columbia? Why should the people of
| the United States pay one-haf of the
| expense for Fairgrounds for the chill
dren of the District of Columbia?" and
| SO on through the scores and scores OF
| services and projects which are distinctly
| municipal in character.
Other View Presented.
Just so long as the contribution of
| the United States is fixed by the half
| and half plan there will also be citizens
of the District who will say: why should
| the people of the District of Columbia
pay one-half of the expense for parks.
wide streets. high-class paving and other
projects and services made necessary by
| the fact that this is national city,?
Just so long will there be citizens who
| will vigorously resent the statements
that the United States should not pay
| for one-haf of the schools, Fairgrounds
and so forth And just SO long will we
have such controversies more or less
acute as We are having now over this
very proposition.
If the half and han makes it natural
and inevitable that members of Congress
criticise- citizens of the District, and If
it likewise makes it inevitable that citi-
zens OF the District criticise members OF
Congress- why not abolish it-remove the
cause of controversy-and by liking the
contribution of the United States upon a
differerft basis make 1t natural and pos
sible for members of Congress and resi-
dents OF, the District to work together
toward a common end?
Would Abolish Present System.
In my opinion the half and half ought
to be abolished, not only because l think
it is the cause of endless controversy, but
because it cannot be justified in equity
from the standpoint of either the United
States or the District of Columbia.
There does not exist any tangible
facts or reaSons-real evidence or in
formation-upon which it can be truth
fully and equitably determined that the
amount of the contribution of the
United States should be so per cent.
Neither are there any such facts, evil
dence or informa ton upon which it
can truthfully and equitably be de-
termined that the amount to be paid
by the District of Columbia should be
80 per cent. Nobody knows what per-
centage would represent exactly that
which the4District should pay and that
which the United States should pay.
During the time I have been Commits
sioner I have spent hours and days try
ing to arrive at a conclusion as to what
/ percentage should be paid by the United
States and what should be paid by the
District of Columbia from the standpoint
of what are national and what are mu-
nicipal expenditures in the District gov
ernment With the assistance of heads
of departments long in the District serv
ice. l have taken particular appropria
ton bill and have tried to set down in
separate columns the amounts of the ap-
preparation which ought to be paid by
the United States for national reasons
and the amounts that ought to be paid
hy- he otrio for ia,y mol
but | have found that it is utterly i'm
possible to make that separation.
In the projects and services of the
District government. almost without
exception. the national element and the
municipal element are so interlocked,
interviewer and overlapping that the
expenditure cannot be separated into
national and municipal parts.
That being true-and | know that it
is-don't you see how impossible it be-
comes to maintain successfully that the
division of expense should be half and
half?
Not justified in Equity, He Says.
While l have given as another reason
flor abolishing the half-and-half the fact
that it is the cause of the present con-
troversy. that reason is really secondary
to that which I have just outlined, or
rather it is a consequence. The fact that
| the half-and-half cannot be justified in
equity from the standpoint of either the
District or the United States must in
evitably produce just such situation as
We have today. The half-and- half is
economically unsound. 1t is not based
| upon justice and truth, and therefore
| such things as we try to do in justice
and truth on that foundation, naturally,
| will not stand.
Another evidence of the fact that our
| trouble is the half -and-hal has been re-
vealed to me by dozens of members of
Congress / have never yet talked to a
member of Congress who advocated plac-
| ing the whole cost of the District govern
ment upon the people of the District.
Every one of them has stated that the
government ought to make provision in
some form and upon some basis for d
contribution to the support of the District
government. but almost without excep-
ton. they have objected to the half-and-
| half because it does not admit of any
tangible explanation in justice and equity
| for its existence.
| The manner in which the existence of
| the half -and-half has placed all Dis
| trict affairs on a basis of who pays
| the bill'' and has practically made i'm
| possible the consideration of the mer-
| its of aOy District question is illus