Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-04
Despotic Power Over District.

tuition which gives Congress exclusive
legislative authority over the District
of Columbia.
Despotic Power Over District.
The power granted to Congress over
the District" he said, lis more absolute
and despotic than any crowned head of
Europe has over his subjects, and this
power is unlimited. The language
says in all cases whatsoever and the
severity of this power is defined by the
very language of this section as the
same military power which the gov
eminent has in forts, 'arSenalS and
dock yards
This provision of the Constitution"
he continued, was drafted by some of
those who had fought in the revolu-
ton against the principles of taxation
without representation in the legisla-
tive bodies passing their laws. The
war of the revolution did not close I'M
til November, 1893, and the constitu-
tional convention was held in Septem
Der. 17S7-less than four years after
the close of that war Many of the
trainers of that provision of the Con-
stitution still bore the scars and
wounds received in its bloody battles,
and the memories of lost ones was
wildly imprinted upon their hearts;
and yet, with these facts staring them
in the face, they proceeded to draft
this provision of the Constitution, by
which a territory ten miles square was
laid off as the seat of government, and
was capable, at that time, of holding
all of the citizens of the United States,
and in which the vicious principles of
taxation without representation should
prevail to as great an extent as 1t pre-
vailed in the colonies before the revo-
luton.
THE reason for giving Congress this
arbitrary power was that during the
years CT the revolution the Continental
Congress had no fixed home or perma
nent place to hold its deliberations. 1T
had been driven from Philadelphia to
New York, to Trenton, to York, to An
napolis, to Baltimore and one or more
other towns. and finally 1t was threat
ened by mob violence. by soldiers who
were clamoring for their pay, when the
Treasury was empty. The purpose of
having the District ten t10) miles
square was that. by placing the Capitol
building the Presidents mansion and
executive departments in the center
and patrolling the borders, they would
be free from attack and destruction by
the enemy or a domestic mob, it never
having been considered, or even
thought, at that time that a cannon
or gun would ever be invented that
could shoot a distance of five 90.
miles.
More Population Than Colonies.
IF the District of Columbia had at
the time of the framing of the Consti-
tuition the number of inhabitants it has
today, the idea of not giving them rep
resentation in Congress would never
have occurred to the members of the
constitutional convention
This District today has almost twice
the avers ge number of inha bitan ts of
the colonies prior to the revolution
The average number of inha bitant in
1863. at the close of the French and In
other words. there were then only
about 100000 nhabitants-both white
and colorcd-in all the thirteen colo
mics. If the District of Columbia had
been organized at the time it would
have been the most important body
polite of them ALL and would have
been entitled to full representation in
the very Congress created to levy its
taxes
The error that had been committed
by the trainers of the Constitution be
came apparent to many members Of
Congress Immediately upon the moving
of the capital to the District of CO.
lumbia in the year 1901 This is shown
by the debates in Congress.
Leaves Hope Behind
Acting upon this provision of the
Constitution and the authority of Con-
gress given pursuant thereto. George
Washington. aided by the surveyors,
Mai Pierre Charles L'Enfant and An
drew Ellicott, proceeded to lay off
city of magnificent distances. capa BILE
Of holding several million of inha BIZ
tants, and invited the citizens of the
various states to come there and make
their abode The city has, as we all
know, become beautifled and is an at
tractive place to live. but those who
have been allured here by the attractive
ness of their surroundings do not real
ize until too late that they have aban-
doned one of the most sacred rights to
which a free-born American citizen is
entitled to, and that the right to vote
The allurments of the National Capt.
tai, as a whole, remind me of the nur-
sery rhyme that we learned in our
cfiidhod:
viii you walk into my parlor:'
Said the spider 10 the fly.
It's the prettiest little parlor
That you did spy.
.IIa ,,-I,o the District ,f