Evening star., 1915-01-13
District and Nation.

Yesterday the Senate voted emphat-
icalIy against the johnson amendment
to the appropriation bill abrogating
the haIf-and-half principle of the or
Sanic act, rejecting it by 46 to 20 after
n debate which more fully than has
been the case in several years reached
the actual issues and involved consid-
Grafton of the real conditions in the
District of Columbia. This action fully
justifies the faith of the District in
the fairness of the Senate in dealing
with the capital municipality.
1t is apparent that the Senate will
adopt an amendment to the bill pro-
viding for the organization Of joint
commission to consider the whole ques-
tion of the relations between the Dis
trict and the federal government. more
than one such amendment having been
presented. The District welcomes the
prospect of a full, fair inquiry into
this matter 1t is concerned only as
to the scope of the commissions powers
of inquiry and as to its makeup. II
the investigating body is fairly COM
posed and sufficiently authorised as to
range of inquiry, it will clear the way
for a much more satisfactory condltion
The amendment should be so framed
that the inquiry will be neither per-
secution nor a prosecution, but judi
cial investigation by a commission 10
revise, if necessary, the local consul
tuition. This commission should De- IN
short, the same sort of body as the
committee that worked out the present
financial system and form or govern
1nent for the District.
The District should have fair play and q
square deal in the makeup Of this proposed
commission. In the selection OF its MEM
bers the real character of the commission
should be borne in mind, so that It Will
not be prejudiced in advance OF its IN
quiry against the existing system or
in favor of a radical departure there
from. 1t should be recognized that the
organic act and the tax system whlch
has been developed under it cover not
only the financial but the political and
representative end of the problem OF
maintaining a federal municipality that
the relations between the nation and the
District are both political and fiscal.
Under the act of 1878 the nation took
to itself the full exercise of the power OF
exclusive legislation prescribed by the
Constitution, doing away with all forms
of the indirect exercise Of representative
government in the District. The safe
guard to the District in this legisla-
tion of 1878 was that it coupled with
full federal control over local affairs
an equal federal contribution to the
Districts maintenance fund. thus Civ
ing the nation an equal interest in the
fund which it was exclusively to con-
troll. Obligation goes with power, and
il the nations obligation is lessened
it's power or control should in equity
be correspondingly diminished.
Any revision of the Districts constitu-
ton which will alter the financial rela-
ton between the District and the general
government will inevitably involve con-
sideration of other relations and the de-
gree of control which the nation should
exercise with regard to District affairs.
The powers of the commission should be
broad enough to enable it to consider
both ends of the problem II the COM
mission is thus empowered and is proper
ly constituted it is all that the District
could desire.