The Washington times., 1921-06-30
GIT Y-()NNED.
Lines
|ND0RsE D.
Former Commissioner Newman
Favors condemning Railways
In Interest Of Public.
BY MAI. OLIVER r. NEWMAN,

In Interest of Public.
BY MAI. OLIVER r. NEWMAN,
rernerIy Fr<ssAs.t Beard OF Corn
missaener~, Di.traet Of Coiunnhia.
Some Of the members Of the House
District Committee seem to be
afraid OF public ownership of street
railway lines for Washington. Ex.
preston Of opinion of two or three
members at the meeting of the COM
mittee today indicated apprehension.
Danger Of job-ioadinR. inefficient
and uneconomical m&na9ement, ap-
parently, was in the back Of thcis
minds. ,--,t,. 49, sss.- : A-s.s
CONDITIONS HErsE DIFrERHHr.
Whatever may have happened else
where In this respect need cauae lit
tie or no alarm concerning public
ownership In the District Of Co1um-
bia-conditions here are about AZ diff
ferent from local conditions In other
cities black is different from white.
Let's get this straight in our minds
whsn talking about public ownership
for Washington: The city of WASH
ington is Congress- baby. Congress
Is the supreme boss. Congress Is
right here on the job all the time.
and Congress can watch every nickel
spent and every nickel received un-
der public ownership In the National
Capital.
Congress doesn't need TO work. its
head now about the economic theory
OF public ownership. 1t doesn't need
TO be concerned with what has hap
pened elsewhere-although the rec
ord OF public-owned utilities COM
psres at least favorsbly with those
privately owned
All Congress has ls do 10 TO look
at the immediate street 'rsilwsy prob
lem and determine the best way TO
solve IL Whatever that way Is. In the
opinion of Congress, Congress is
going to keep tabs on resuits. check
them up, hold a club over the heads
of those responsible for resuits-be
they private owners. public utilities
commission or some agency created by
Congress to run the cars under Cow
ernment ownership-and make tsem
perform for the beneft of the public
Talk about public ownership and
operation of street car system 10
the ordinary city, with its city poll
&tSsg hahfttpdi DIX OESfn t16.
slack methods and almost total ab-
sence OF central responsibility is one
thing. Talk about public ownership In
the National. Capital. where Con-
gress itself has sole Jurisdiction.
holds the purse strings and wieids
the power of taxation, is quite an
other thing.
CAPITAL BELONGS TO NATION.
This city belongs 90 the whole
United States, and the master Of It's
destinies Is Congress. Under the
broad powers laid down in the Con-
stitution Congress can do pretty
much anything IL pieases here. II
was intended that Congress should
have that power. 1t wns the pur-
pose OF the founders OF the nation
that the seat of government should
not be In any big city or State
anywhere in the Union, but in
little spot set off by itself, and that
Congress should be the supreme boss
And that's what we hsve-a town
that is exclusively the creature OF
Congress. Congress is boss. But a
boss has responsibility as well as
authority, and in this case Congress
has the responsibility OF solving the
street car problem.
Representative Keller pointed out
yesterday the most significant fact In
the street car situation. The fact that
the only way we can have merger
Is under Government ownership.
II Is perfectly futile to think
merger can be forced by any sort OF
tax or other Legislation. The tend
ency Is likely to be just the other
way to drive the companies further
apart They don't have to merge IL
they don't want to and no amount
OF bill-psssins can make them merge.
On the other hand. Congress can
merge them In short order by con-
demnins them and taking them over
for public uses.
Then we could have what we must
have before the problem is soived---one
system, In which the profitable lines
shall Offset the losses Of the un-
profitable lines.
About that fear OF evils which have