Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-11-04

nled with the Joint select committee In
July. 1915: All the men who took part
law and the preparation Of the brief
Eave their services freely and did their
work thoroughly.
Under the Instructions Of the joint
citisens' committee at its meeting
March 20. 1915. the executive commit
tee kept In mind In all its work its
duty to advocate before the joint Sc
lect committee Of Congress the main
between the United States and the Dis
trict OF Columbia commonly called tho
half-and-half' plan, and present ac-
curately the facts in regard thereto.
Prepares for Oral Hearings.
I'm addition to preparing the brief,
the executive committee, with the as
sistance of the other members of the
Joint citizens committee and others.
prepared for the oral hearings before
the Joint select committee of Congress-
which were held from October 20 to
November 16. 1915. and at which the
executive committee was represented by
its chairman and Messrs. Noyes and
lWorthtngton, who presented and argued
the case, data and exhibits covering
every phase of the history Of the Ma
financial relation to the national gov
ernment and every phase of its assess
ment and taxation, including elaborate
comparisons with other cities drawn
from the United States census bulle-
tins on municipal statistics and other
sources.
For the first time, it is believed, in the
history of Washington all of the essen
In the compilation and in the arrange
ment and publication in convenient
form for the joint select committee Of
this mass of information. the executive
committee had the valuable assistance
of trained experts whom it employed,
and especially Mr.. A. NJ. Fisher, public
accountant and statistican, and Mr.. LIE
Verne Beales of the United States bu-
reau OF the census. Voluntary contri-
buttons from a large number Of citizens
in small amounts were received by the
joint citizens committee, aggregating
in all $8,724.94, which was expended in
obtaining, compiling and printing facts
requisite for the joint select commit
tee of Congress; the expenses including.
besides the service of the experts. clerf-
cal and stenographic work. printing,
office rent and stationery and postage.
No member of the joint citizens COM
mittee received one cent of the money
for himself. but. on the contrary, every
member of the committee gave money
to the fund besides his time. Some OF
them, including the members OF the
as we'll as by day during much Of the
time between the 18th of March and the
18th Of November, 1915.
Details of Committees Work.
l. "The report of the joint select COM
mittee of Congress submitted January
6, 1916, shows that the investment of
time, money and effort in the presen-
tation Of the facts by the joint citizens
| committee before the joint select COM
mittee was we'll worth while. 1t show
ed that the misleading statements in
the so-called Henry George. jr., report
as to assessment and taxation in the
District of Columbia, which had been
the chief factor in bringing about the
determined effort to abolish the half
and-half plan on the ground that 1t
properly assessed and taxed the Dis
trict of Columbia could pay all the ex-
penses of the National Capital without
aid from the national government had
been completely exploded, so that the
Joint select committee accepted the
contentious Of the joint citizens COM
mittee that Washington, compared with
other cities, was paying adequate taxa
ton and should not bear the burden Of