Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1919-07-12
NATIONAL CAPITAL BEGINS
RETURN TO NORMAL BUT 1T
NEVER WILL BE SAME AGAIN
A bolishment of Half Dozen Special Bureaus
SPeeded Up But City Remains Crowded and
Rents Continue High.

the IDEA OF sitting IN CHAIR IN a
dentists Office so he engaged a den
fist to fit up an office in the mil
lionaire's home The dentists bill
was $4,000.
In the days when rush" was the
slogan of the government, the ac-
tivities of the various departments
expanded in leaps and bounds al
most overnight. The government
needed additional Office space so
it grabbed every suitable and I'M
suitable building it could get hold
OF in the city. Now the business of
the departments is contracting to
almost normal again, and the gov
eminent is yacating these rented
buildings. Also, many light wood
en- structures which were stuck up
promiscuously all over the city by
the government, greatly detracting
from the beauty of the capital, are
empty and it is understood that
some of these improvised buildings
are to be RACED before the end of
summer.
Rooming conditions in the city
are almost as bad today as they
were year ago. Every hotel and
Tooming house in the city is over
crowded and it is a rare thing to
see a moving van on the street.
Landlords are beginning to wear a
broad smile because the Salisbury
act, which prevented them boosting
rents out of all proportions during
the war is sooL to be rescinded.
With the lifting of this restriction,
rents will be increased according
to the whims and fancies of the
property owners, to some of whom
the sky will be the limit.
While the tenant was protected
by the Salisbury act, the profteer-
ing proclivities of the rooming
house proprietor was not curtailed
to any great extent and today, in
stead of being satisfied with war
prices, the tendency of these pro-
prietors is to mulch every penny
possible from the war workers. One
story is related of seven young
ladies engaged in government work
living in an attic room, each pay
ing SIS a month The total rev.
enue, from the room was more than
enough to pay the rent for the
rooming house. The girls took
turns sleeping in the favorite bed
nearest the window. Numerous
cases of that sort have been re-
ported.
Once again public buildings are
open to sightseers. While the war
was in progress, sightseers were
not allowed in any of the govern
ment buildings, admission being by
pass only. Today hundreds of Wis
itors are being shown about the
capital and the old rubberneck
buses, which almost went out of
fashion during the war, are again
doing a highly profitable business.
Tourists parties throng the cor
brief time in the balcony of the
house or senate listening to debates
on the league of nations and other
topics.
Uniforms are not so plentiful
here these days. Now it is posi-
BILE for a buck private to walk along
F street, Washington's Fifth ave
nue., with his girl and devote some
attention to her animated CONVEX
sation instead of having to devote
his entire time to saluting superior
officers who formerly thronged
that thoroughfare. In fact, it is
rare thing to see. much saluting of
any sort going on here just It pres
ent. The tendency on the part of
both officers and enlisted men
seems to be to avoid saluting a.
much as possible. There was a
bill recently introduced in congress
to do away with saluting when off
duty, but this action on the part
of officers and enlisted men became
noticeable after the signing of the
armistice.
Withal Washington is not ex-
pected to pre-war conditions. Ger
tain agencies of government have
developed that did not formerly ex-
list but which will become perman-
ent. There are such ventures as
operating the railroads and enforc-
ing prohibition that will permanent
ly enlarge the government machine.
Thousands OF those people from all
over the country who came to
Washington for war work have
formed ties which will cause them
to locate permanently here or, in
the case of people of wealth, to
maintain homes here which they
occupy for a part of the year. 1t is
not improbable that the national
capital will find that the war has
given it a permanent population
increased by a hundred thousand