Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-05-04
WHAT A CONGRESSMAN SEES
By J. Hampton Moore
Weekly Letter Touching the Washington Doings OF Person
dliteS Familiar o PhiLndeLphidnS
Washington, MAY 4.

UtttOS FUHltilUT I
Washington, May 4.
PHILADELPHIA undertook to do
L the patriotic thing in offering to
pay the salaries of policemen, firemen
and others who enlisted in the army
or navy. It was the proper thing to
do and was typical of the Philadel.
phia spirit. But a ruling just made
by General Crowder, provost marshal,
i'm the case Of II Philadelphia police.
man, makes it appear that those
states or municipalities that were not
so generously inclined have something
of. an advantage in the matter of the
draft.
The Philadelphia policeman, a Nine.
teenth warder. by the way, having a
wife and four children and blind
mother all dependent upon him, has
been put in Glass Of the draft rather
| than in one of the deferred classes,
and is made subject to immediate call
/ for army service, because, notwith-
standing his numerous dependents,
| the obligation of the city to pay his
salary is held to remove the question
Of dependency.
! General Crowder 80 rules In this
/ case, calling attention 20 the fact that
( New York has "A law similar TO that
/ in Philadelphia, which applies TO state
/ as well as municipal officers. He,
! therefore, returns the case to the local
and district boards as Is the rule in
/ all other cases.
Moral: If you are willing to pay the
soldiers dependants in Philadelphia
or New York, you may expect TO lose
their municipal services as well as
their pay to the Government; but II
i'm Oklahoma, for instance, you fail TO
provide for the soldiers dependents,
he may be relieved rom war service
, ecause Of the ,cpendunts. Seems un-
equal, doesn't it?
/ CHARLES A. PORTER, JR, has
~ been in Washington several times
recently in connection with the desire
of the army officials at Little Silver
y. j.. TO have trolley road, which
Mr.. Porter controls. extended to the
camp. The builder of that road was
Charles 4. Porter, as well known as
a political leader in his day as Nc
Nlchol was in his. Indeed, 1t is within
easy recollection Of men living wher
James r. McNichol ward leader, sup
planting the late John Mundell in con
troll Of the Republican politics Of the
Tenth Ward, sat I'm the Office OF
Charles 4. Porter. chairman of the Re-
publican city Committee, waiting his
turn to bc heard. The elder Porter
happily married and successful as &
contractor, ran the whole gamut oi
political criticism and abuse, bu
passed away lamentcd by host o
friends, just as McNichol did Th'
younger Porter, who much resembles
his father in figure and poise, wat
the pride of the family in the. earlie
days and apparently has justified tn,
expectations of those who predicted
for him useful life. Indeed, few
young men have progressed so stead
ily in a solid business way as Charlie
A. Porter, Jr. lie must have done 81
to become a director md then "a vic,
president of the Union League.
WTHILE the necessities Of the Gov
w ernment are great, much Of ou
good material is evidently going t.
waste. Perhaps it cannot be helped
but plenty of men and much materia
are yet availably for war purposes. TIL,
Government has taken over men lik
Schwab. of Pennsylvania; Baruch, o
New York; Ryan, of Montana, an
other so-called captains of industr,
and finance, but it has not takel
them all.
, The services of Charles j. Harral
| formerly president of the Midval
; Steel Works, were recently offered t
the President for any job-to borroN
, Mr.. Harrah's epigram matte style
anything from bottle washer up I
n the assembling of materials for tn
construction of fleet" Assistan
/, Director Joseph T.. IIasskarl c
! Wharves, Docks and Ferries, of Phila
q delphia, an experienced engineer; ha
repeated the tender of his service
originally made at the outbreak G
! hostilities. Everett II. Brown, woole
= manufacturer and expert in textiles
has also been seeking a chance 4
serve. None of these has been CClled
: The Brown family, however, is fairl
, we'll represented by Millard d. Brown
son of ex-Sheriff Wilson II. Brown
who made fine record in the NatiOna
. Guard and who is now serving a
; colonel Of the 1ccth Infantry at Cam
| Hancock Augusta, Ga. Colonel Brow
, where he resided, and at the Mani
facturers' Club.
is well remembered i'm Germantown
3 THE Philadelphia Elks, Lodge No.
r l. did the handsome thing in tender
ing to the Government for hospita
purposes the use Of the Elks' hom'
I 1920 Arch street. The tender was r'
q ferred to the Secretary Of War and tn
E Secretary of the Navy, and read o
the floor OF the House, where it re
e ceived applause. Philadelphia Lodg
d is the oldest I'm Elkdom and was mad
nationally popular some years as