Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-10-17

L
| Upon the whole. I will beg leave
to tell the House what is really my
| opinion. 1t is that the stamp act be
! repealed absolutely. totally and I'm
/ medfatelN That the reason Tor the
| repeal be assigned because 1T was
| founded on an erroneous principle
| At the same time let the sovereign
| authority of this country over the
colonies be asserted in as strong
| terms as can be devised and be maze
ton whatever. That we may bind
| their. trade, confine their manufac-
lures, and exercise every power what
ever, except that of taking ihelI
| money out of their pockets without
! their consent"
vol. 4, page 297.
Discuss "Exclusive Legislation"
'The contemporaneous CONSTRUCT
ton of the exclusive legislation pro-
vision of the Constitution, continued
for over seventy years. demonstrates
that it was not held to deprive the
Inhabitants of the District of their
right to be represented in any body
them.
Prior. to the cession Of the terri
tory comprising the original federal
district. the inhabitants were taxed
by their respective states and by
several municipal corporations there
tofore created by the states. The town
of Alexandria had been such a cor
poration for many years. George
town was incorporated in 1883. That
part of the coded Maryland territory
which lay outside of Georgetown was
within the jurisdiction of "A body com
posed of justices of the peace called
the levy court. whose principal
function was to construct and keep in
repair roads and bridges and to take
charge of paupers. A similar body
exercised practically the same juris-
diction in that part of the territory
Of Alexandria.
"Al these bodies had the usual
taxing powers and all continued to
exercise them after the cession.
by the act approved February Il.
1901 e Stats. L., 103), Congress for
mally assumed jurisdiction over the
District. That act continued in force
the law of Virginia and Maryland,
respectively. 1t expressly provided
that nothing in the act should i'm
any wise alter, impeach or impair the
rights granted by or derived from
the acts of Incorporation of Alexan-
dria and Georgetown or of any other
body corporate within said District
except so far as relates to the judi
cial powers of the corporations of
Georgetown and Alexandria.
by an act approved May 3. 1902 G.
| Stat, 1887. Congress incorporated the
City of Washington, giving it the
usual municipal powers, including
expressly the power TO lay and col
lect taxes
THE powers of the levy court and
of the corresponding body in Alex
andria. county were defined and con-
tinued by several acts of Congress.
Ar.t
act May 3. 1902 O. Stat. 1889; act
July I. 1872 C. Stat. I'D.
From this time till 1876. when the
Virginia part of the District was Civ
en- back to that state. and as to the
remainder of the District till 1871,
through these several municipal cor
porations continued to tax them
selves Changes were made from time
to time in the charters of these bodies
but their taxing powers 1T is believed
remained till. they were all abolished
by the act of February 81, 1871 DC
Stat, ,119).
That act created a municipal cor
poration called the District of Co
lnmbia, comprising the entire Dis
tHct 1t provided a legislature COM
posed of an assembly to be elected by
the people, council to disappointed
by the President, and a governor. al
SO to be appointed by the President.
In addition, it created board of
public works, to be appointed by the
President. The legislature was au-
thorized to raise money by taAatioh
to meet necessary appropriations.
This form of government contin-
ued till it, in turn, was abolished by
the act of June 20. 1874 OF Stat, !lb),
which provided for board OF three
Commissioners. to which board was
given certain executive authority.
Section of the act levied tax on
the real estate in the District for the
support of it's government.
"Section 5 of the act provided for
select joint committee to prepare
suitable form of government for the
| District of Columbia and report the
same to the two houses on the first
day of the next session. The joint
committee was further instructed to
submit at the same time statement
Of the proper proportion or the eA-
penses of the District government e:f
which should be borne by the Dis
trict and the United States, respec-
lively. - s.
Congress Unable to Agree.
For the next four years the tenn
porary form of government of the
district provided by the act of 1874
continued in existence because Con-
gress was unable to agree to the plan
! proposed by the joint select committee
l
! submitted by other committees. The
F.; principal cause of the delay grew out
! of the question of suffrag
! members favoring it, others Opposing
| it. Finally, the act OF June II, 1873,
was passed (18 Stats. 1929. 1t is en-
| titled AN act providing permanent
| form of government for the District
! of Columbia 1t continued the gov
eminent by three Commissioners to be
| appointed by the President and author
! lied the Commissioners to apply the
! taxes and other revenues to the pay
] ment of it's expenses. section OF
:! the act provided that one-half OF the
appropriation for District expenses
!, Including interest on the bonded debt
/ should be paid by the United states
and the other one-half out of District
! taxes The act fixed the rate of tax
alton at $3.50 fp the hundred on boti
real and personal property. 1t gave
| the inhabitants of the District no
representation in their government
and no voice or vote as to their tax
alton. 1t directed that two. of the
| three Commissioners before their ap-
pointment should have been actual
| residents of the District for three
years, claiming residence nowhere else
by section 4 it was required. that
/ all taxes collected should be paid into
the Treasury of the United states to
| be disbursed with money appropriated
by. Congress for the expenses of the
District. Other statutes relating to
this last mentioned provision are re-
ferred to by the controller of the
| Treasury in his opinion from which we
have quoted on page Al of our original
brief.
| ut was of this act that this court
said in Eckloff VS.. United States, 49,
~. S., $40:
""The court below (Supreme Court
lot the District) placed its decision or
what we conceive to be the true
Significance on the act of 1878. AS
}.o;d IN, fbot court II is RI he reoard or