The Hartford herald. [volume] (Hartford, Ky.) 1875-1926, 1915-01-13
MAS1ERlY HAND
Of BEN JOHNSON
Seen I'm Administrative
Circles
Of the CITY OF WASHINGTON
nOW He Broke Up Game OF
Graft Going On For
Many Years.
hr,. ~ ,,asryArE nm DnnR
or the CITY OF WASHINGTON
ExtWRTs IN BEHAhF OF POOR
(By Savoyard.) =

Washington, jan. 81 wish
had the industry TO cram" for a
letter. Some months ago ! saw Ben
johnson, of Kentucky. and he told
me q heap of things about the Dis
trict OF Columbia, a part OF politi-
cal and geographical America in
which all our people have more or
less interest. patrioticalIy and pc
cuniarily. Mr.. Johnson loaded me
down with documents which | In
tended to read and try to digest.
They are on my desk now, unread,
but reckon I know enough of what
they contain to write a reasonably
Intelligent paper about them, so
here goes.
This here town thinks IL has ex-
haiisted eulogy when 1t says of a
member or Senator, He is friend
Of the District" To be friend of
the district 1t was necessary to fetch
and carry for certain rich men OF
the city of Washington. who COM
posed as greedy ring as ever
cursed Cincinnati, or other like
towns. For years the national cap
ital has been run i'll the interest OF
these gentry. Perhaps in the en-
tire Union there could not be found
o town whose public service corpo-
rations had drank more water. In
deed. the statement Is made that a
certain street railroad corporation
is capitalized at nearly million
dollars a mile. There never was be-
fore anywhere in our land such a
saLurnalia of heightened corruption
as afflicted Washington. d. c., the
ten years before Ben Johnson got to
be chairman of the District Commit
tee Of the House of Representatives.
In the rich northwest section,
where dwell the rich taX-dodgers
from the States. the assessment Of
real property was ridiculously low.
Ia the other and poorer sections the
assessment was Oppressively high.
For instance, q certain estate. con-
tanning some thirty acres. was as
sessed at sum that would not pay
hall the cost of fence that enclos-
I'D il, whereas in the northeast,
where poor folk live. the assessment
Of real estate was pretty nearly the
PAP value of the property.
Anacostia, q suburb. had holes in
lensely populated streets that would
hide salt barrel. A certain mil
lionaire bought a woods in the
northwest, and a sycophantic dis
trict commission built streets
through it-all vacant lots-that
Fifth avenue would not have been
ashamed of, as rank q piece of high
toned graft 3s your mind ever con-
templated. All the rights were for
the rich. All the duties were i'm
posed on the poor. Read the CORES
pondence between the editor of the
organ of the Washington Gas Light
Company and Ben J0hnson's prede-
ccssor az chairman Of the District
Committee.
Nobody will ever write such let
ter a. that to Ben Johnson. When
he became a member of the District
Committee Johnson set about "a
study of district affairs A very
,bic lawyer. a thoroughly honest
man. a business man and a man of
affairs. Ben Johnson refused to be
caioled BY the pundits in the pay OF
the grafters. and they soon dfscov-
cred Go the public that he could not
be intimidated by them.
Aud then they began a warfare