Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-08-25
ALLEY ELIMINATION
DEBATED IN HOUSE
Representative Mann Claims
Measure SEXES Property
Without Recompense.

Consideration of the alley elimina-
ton bill in the House yesterday began
late in the afternoon and arrived at
nothing except an hour of general de-
bate between Representatives Mann of
Illinois and Johnson of Kentucky. Rep
resentative Mann opposed the bill, not
in principle. but because he claimed it
seizes private property without recon-
pense. A vote will be taken on the
measure on a later District day. The
House is considering the bill which the
Senate passed in the form of an
amendment to the original alley bill.
iIf the House passes the measure it
will become a law.
Mr.. Mann's Objections.
In objecting to the bill yesterday
Representative Mann said, in part: :.
! What is the proposition? 1t is that
an alley must be thirty feet wide be-
fore any dwelling can be placed upon
it or any one live in house upon the
alley. That is the general proposition.
There are good many alleys less than
thirty feet wide which are used for
dwellings in the city of Washington
and good many other cities. 1t used
to be and still is a not unusual prac-
tice in the city from which I come for
a man to buy not very expensive lot
and build building upon the rear of
the lot, on the alley, because he did
not have the means to build a perma-
nent home. In the course of time, as
he accumulated a little more money or
credit, he built home on the front
of the lot. Now, this bill proposes
practically to seize all of the alley
property in the District of Columbia, to
abolish all the dwellings upon alleys in
the District of Columbia to forbid the
erection of any dwelling hereafter upon
any alley in the District of Columbia
When l say alley. it includes every
thing up to the width Of thirty feet. in
Guiding courts. private passageways or
any other form of highway. The origi-
nal bill. introduced by the gentleman
from Kentucky CMr Johnson) at the re-
quest of the Commissioners of the Dis
trict of Columbia, made provision for the
payment of the damages. and provided
that the District Commissioners might
order the closing as a dwelling place
ages was made by the owners of the
property there, then the District Com
missioners should bring in all of the
owners of the property in the square,
and a jury should be appointed who
should assess the damages and the bene-
fits, the purpose being to provide a
method by which the damages to those
owners whose property was practically
taken away from them should be as
certained, and to assess the benefits to
other property arising from the closing
of the alley as a dwelling place.
Bill Defended by Mr.. johnson.
In his reply, Chairman johnson said
IN part:
This bill, which has passed the Sen
ate and which We have made a sub
stitute for the House bill. is based upon
the police power. The bill is all based
upon the police power. and therefore we
have reached the conclusion, in report
ing it out, that the bill is constitu-
tionally good. If there were any ques-
ton ir the mind of anybody on this
| floor as to whether the bill is conSti-
| tutionally good, 1 entertain not the
slightest doubt that the constitutional
question would be raised by the prop
erty holders who seek to continue their
| investment in this miserable class OF
property, which brings a rental higher
| in per cent than any other property in
! the District of Columbia. So the effect
| of the difference between the present
| law and that which is contemplated by
| the substitute for House bill, which is the
Senate bill, is to do away with these
! alley buildings for residential purposes
| at an earlier date than under the act
\ of 1892, which l have just read.
| Ihere Is no desire to destroy this
/ property. and there is nothing in this
| bill which will warrant the belief thai
! this property is to be affected i'll any
way other than for residential purposes
/ There have been. and I guess there viii
! continue to be, objections to the House
! bill upon the ground that it seeks Il
| sell nuisance to the United State.
| government 1t is commended that else
! where in the country these nuisance.
\ are condemned under the police power
l fl1n 70
to be used in any lawful way the,
| choose to use it except as a residence
it being commended and maintained tina
| a residence in these places cannot b,
| lawfully used: that nobody except un
| lawful characters will go into thes,
| places; that unlawful characters seel
these places because they are free from
| police regulation