Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-03-15
Wanted: A Wise and Just Law.

eases of war rentals prohteer'ng strong
" impels Congress to draSt'" iegisla-
ton to prevent and punish this extor
fion. a just and wise anti-proHteerir,
law will punish the eytortioncrs and
check the extortion without iniicting
nndeserved injury upon any one else.
:. The -profitecring bill, just passed
by the House and now before til" Sen
ate. is neither inst nor wise. Broadly
it prevents the adequate punishment of
real extortioncrs by confusing them
with a multitude of statutory prnfiteers
who are not eatortioners, and by rem
dering odious guilty and innocent alike.
l. Nationally, the House bill is too
narrow in scope since it aims to prevent
war profteering in rentals only here
and nowhere else.
2. Locally, the bill is too broad in
scope. since, instead of segregating and
Furnishing the real profteers, it makes
nominal extortionists of SO many who
have not extorted that fragrant profteers
escape special odium.
3. The bill declares contrary to pub
lie policy and void a multitude of leaS-
ing contracts that hetray no sign of
being contrary to public policy; that are
not shown TO be tainted with extor-
ton or fraud or duress; and that relate
to kinds of real estate whose use is not
desired by Uncle Sam and which have
nothing whatever to do with war rentals
profteering. Each lease represents the
honest agreement of two Washington
mans. in which each party sees an ad
vantage to himself, and which neither
party wishes to disturb. Why should
Uncle Sam void such a contract because
the parties to it have agreed that its
rental rate shall be II per cent greater
than the rate of 1876? Uncle Sam
does not want to use this leased prop
erty. He does not complain that either
party to the contract is war profteer,
extortins from Uncle Sans men and
women.
Yet on the pretext of Furnishing others,
who are double and triple extortioners
the bill impairs the obligation of all
these honest, equitable contracts.
Congress will never assent, when it
stops to think, to legislative PROPOSE
ton SO inequitable and so athorrent.
L. The bill DISCUSSES the fine or pen
atty paid to the government by the
rentals extortioner as az income tax.
Il is obviously not a tax. No revenues
are expected from it, since the only
transaction from which it can arise is
made unlawful, and any such tax pay
rnent must be doubled and paid in ad-
aition as forfeiture to the lessee As a
tax the provision bristles with injus-
tees, inequalities, grossly inequitable
Determinations The only advantage
gained by Disgusting as a tax the pen
atty imposed upon the rentals usury ex-
tortioner was in the possibility that it
gave of Furnishing retroactively the new
misdemeanor in avoidance of the ex post
faeto law prohibition. But since the re-
troaetive feature of the bill has been
dropped the eamoufiage tax provision
eliminated.
5. The government needs intense pro-
ductivity in the supply of looms and
houses to rent in Washington, just as it
needs to check extortionate charges for
such rentals. The House bill, on the pre-
text of preventing certain extortions, in
stead Of stimulating productivity in rent
ing paralyzes it.
g. The House bill aims unnecessary
blows at private rights. Governmental
war Communicating or biIeting or
price fixing should be rigidly limited to
the absolute minimum of interference
with private rights that is compelled by
war necessities. The voiding of leases
and arbitrary rentals fixing should
be confined in application to the
real estate which the government while
at war absolutely needs The govern.
ment will impair the obligation of con.
tracts and Will void contracts as con.
tray to public policy only when it mus!
to meet its own vital necessities and te
win the war.
z. Under the House bill the real estate
rentals of 1856 become the standard
Of measuring and fixing the real estate
rentals of 1918 and thereafter. This
standard of measurement is shifting ani
unreliable, false measure. This yard
stick measures for A thirty inches; for f
twenty inches; for c forty inches; TO,
D twenty-five inches.
8. The bill proposes a plan of univer
tal rentals fixing for the District on al
dnequitable and unsound basis.
War rentals FIXING should apply only
b the real estate involved in the va.
necessities, and the rentals in thes,
eases should be fixed SO as to produce 4:
reasonable net return on the actua
present value of the leased property.
These contentious, criticisms and sug
kestions Of amendment, submitted t.
Tia Senate, are editoria1ty elaborated
A4a6Khere in The Efar