Evening star., 1921-05-14
PLAYGROUND NEED
..2BEFORE SENATORS
Capper Committee Given
Graphic Description-Build-
-
ers Deny Collision.

- A graphic description Of the lack of
adequate playground facilities a the
Adams School, K street between 1Ith
and 18th northwest, was given the
Capper committee investigating school
needs yesterday afternoon by Jerry {.
South, speaking for the Parent
Teachers Association of that school
-Four hundred pupils attend this
school" said Mr.. South. and the
school yard for the boys and girls
combined is not as large as this com
mittee room. The children are forced
to play in the streets. Why some OF
them have not been killed by auto
mobiles before this do not know.
Il read in a newspaper recently that
the government was going to pul!d
Fairgrounds at the workhouSe at OC-
roquan. with tennis courts and per
Maps a golf course. Il seems to me
perhaps you could give the school
children Fairgrounds if you can pro
tide them for prisoners. Give these
children a chance: do not coop them
up or they may have a fair chance or
.5ecominG criminals later on
Water Ankle Deep.
Mr.. South said that the yard OF the
Adams School is paved with bricks
which have sunk so low that the
water after an ordinary shower is
nkle deep over most of il. He said
dioning the school. four or five city
:1ts. which should be purchased for
playground. Ii has been included in
ne million dollar program fcc
he schools submitted by the board Of
'lucation.
Evan H Tucker. president of the
ortheast Washington Citizens As
rciation. also addressed the commit
'.e in the interests of more PLAY
rounds for the school children. He
id that the Peabody School. q
''veIve-room building. with more than
40 pupils. has no playground what
yer. and that the children are forced
-, play in the street. which IS roped
II during the recesses.
\ number of building contractors
Dpeared before the committee yes
''rday and denied there was any col
f-ssion among contractors here to keep
- the cost of building. Harry Ward
an. the first witness. emphatically
|aried that he had ever seen any
=. illusion to fix prices in Washing
Mr. Wardman told the committee
at. in his opinion. more school
tiIdings were needed badly in the
strict.
senator Capper asked Mr.. Wardman
- the building situation was getting
""tter here.
Situation No Better.
NO. it isn't" replied MIR. Ward
- an MT. W dl sdIt Atint hhN
'aulsbury act and the Ball rent act
I'D never particularly bothered him:
nat he realized prOfiteering had been
Ding on. and that some restrictions
ere needed to safeguard the public.
T-e said, however. that speculative
uilding in Washington was a diff
lit proDosition nowadays. because of
re lack of facilities for financing
,ildng operations. He said that he.
imself had a very mu"h smaller
uilding program for the present year
IAN in the last year He urged that
me financial organization be Gre
ed in Washington to take care OF
ns-time loans on buildings. par
,ularIv second mortgages. He said
at during six years he had lost
" $40 on second mortgage loans
,de where people were buying
mes and making small payments
r them
Charles E Wire. another build
- gave much the same testimony
Mr. Wardman. He told the com
ittee, however. that he had con-
lived the idea more than year ago
at he could beat the lumber mar
It here bv buying tract of tim
'ar in Virginia. erecting his own saw
III and shipping il here. He said
wat he bought a tract of 600 acres
nd had cut the timber off it. The
-,mber cost him delivered on the
ob here, he said. about s51 per thou
md, in March and April. 1920. Th"
-evailing price for lumber was S5S
$50 per thousand. This meant
saving of from Sc to SIS per thou
nd. which was not enough to make
;e plant pay, Mr.. Wire said and he
Did it.