Evening star., 1922-03-03
Report on Urgent Immediate
Need for Safe Archives
Sent Commission.
AVAILABLE PUBLIC LAND
HELD TO BE UNSUITABLE
Site at 18th and C Streets Shown
to Be Only Practical One and q
Good Investment.

III tne tlnOer DO4 DullQluSs Wucrc
| invaluable records of the government,
| in many cases non-replacable. ara
stored, are pointed out with ether
| salient features in a report on the
| archives buildings from Lieut. Col
| c. o. Sheriff., superintendent of pub
lie buildings and grounds. to Sena-
| tor Reed Smoot, chairman of the pub
lie buildings commission. it was
learned today.
The report summarizes the steps
| taken thus far TO assure the govern
! ment Of a storage place for its
records. 1t also takes into consid-
GRAFTON the argument of opponents of
| the archives building plan for place
| ment of the building on land already
| owned by the United States govern
ment, rather than in the square
and streets. as is planned in reports
| TO this time. Il disposes OF the ar
! gument by listing the thirty parcels
of government land in Washington
and checking them off individually
as to their non-suitability.
Real Firetraps.
| The emphatic part Of the report.
however. is that Of the fire hazard ex-
listing today. For instance, 1t shows
that the files of the income tax unit.
including more than 100000 conf
Dental returns Of income, with 30,-
100000 related letters, and hundreds
of thousands of valuable maps and
! special reports, are packed and jam
med into annex No. 1. Then there are
| several hundred thousand returns and
| related papers in courses of audit
| which are being temporarily kept in
characterized as a fragile wooden
building erected during the war.
in which the risk Of fire Is con-
! stantly imminent. In the possibility
of a fire there. the report continues,
hunGreSs Of miliions Of doIiars q reV
enue, would be quickly destroyed ano
the work of the government would be
irreparably interrupted. -
The report does not overlook the
| fact that serious 1re in any OF
the typically hazardous buildings in
which the records of the United
States government are stored in
| Washington would easily be able TO
cause a loss running into hundreds
of millions of dollars, whereas the
1
erection of the building would be
| such a few million dollars ae to
make the latter figure look like a
| pea beside a pumpkin. In relative
i comparison.
Other Valuable Records.
| 1t is not only in the income tax
! unit that the hazard to records exists,
according to the report. There are
! 10, irh rarnYdQ N
other activities of the government are
| stored where the risk assumes
similar proportion. The general &C.
counting office, under the controller
| general, is one of these.
A bad case of congestion and ineffi-
cient operation is to be found here. the
report states-not criticising the con-
i duct of the Office, but the conditions
which create congestion and mem,
cheney which are beyond the control
of the officials. This office is forced to
! occupy, in whole or in part, fifteen
| separate buildings. A paradox exists
| in the fact that the savings contem-
plated by the law creating the general
accounting Office are effectively block
ed solely because of the inadeQuacy OF
| government-owne buildings in which
| to bring about a concentration OF the
activities. There, also. are claims
amounting to hundreds of millions of
dollars, which are in constant danger
| of the fire hazard.
| The recent fire in the Treasury
| building is recalled in the report to
bear silent but effective testimony as
! to the need for the archives building.
| This fire was caused by the impossi-
/ bility to obtain funds for the con-
| struction of the new buildings neces-
sary to allow the government depart
ments to function properly. according
to authorities on the subject.
Reasons for Site.
Stepping aside from the fire men
| ace for a while, the report goes into
detail as to the reasons for selecting
the square mentioned above in the
vicinity Of 18th and B streets for the
archives building. Since November,
1918, this site las been under con-
sideration. To take care Of any pos
sible arguments arising from the
| fact that the government owns plen-
ty of land in the District OF Column
be of use for the archives building
i the report goes Systematically TO
work to show why this is not the
fact.
ture to look into. it says. TIE plans
! for the departmental buildings con-
template their erection in the i'm
mediate vicinity Of II e White House
and of Lafayette Square. with the
18th street plot from Pennsyiyania
avenue to b street open for possibili-
| ties.
It is In this latter place that the
plans cali for the purchase OF land-
at about a cost OF $fs6.000 Tor tne
square above NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
| the archives building would be erect-
ed The initial cost for the purcsease
| of the land and the erection o. the
first portion of the building would be
slightly less than $2.000.000. In this
building, as safe as is humanity pos
sibIe from fire and its perils, could be
stored records OF the government val
ned at fifty and one hundred times
/ this figure and considered a cheap
valuation at this price. As 10 why 1t
cannot be erected on other sites
owned by the government here the
report groups the reasons in the fol-
lowing style:
potomac Park is unsuited because of
its new soil" founHations and be-
cause the erection Of a building OF
tke warehouse type would break up
the park system already elaborately
Eplanned. Besides II Is q good distance
from the center Of governmental ace
The park south of the white HOUSE
lis an integrl part Of the park sZe:
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