Perth Amboy evening news., 1923-02-03
HASKIN TELLS ABOUT COST
MAINTAINING WHITE HOUSE
Daily Letter by Frederic j. Haskin

WASHINGTON, Feb. SIT Is a
good thing that the people of the
United States do not follow the pre-
cedent insisted upon for the Ameri-
can ambassadors and require the
President to maintain his own living
establishment, lie, the White House.
If we did. nobody but a millionaire
could afford to be president. We pay
the President $4,000 a year, while
the expenses Of running the White
House this next year, according to
the estimates submitted to congress,
will be about $124,00
Nor is this the whole expense incl
dent to the executive mansion. This
sum merely maintains for the Presi-
dent a house and grounds, heats the
house, lights both house and grounds
and STATS the premises with SER
wants. The scale on which the Presl-
dent chooses to live after that is his
own affair. In other words, he pays
his own grocery bill.
Compared with the palaces in
European capitals, or even with the
residences provided for some of the
South American presidents, we seem
to house our chief executive in
ceedingly simple and modest fashion.
Even visitors to Washington, when
they look on the s~himmering Greek
facade of the White House, must
feel that in size and e~laborateness 1t
compares ~unfavorably with the show
places in the residential sections of
their own cities.
The White House, however, is de-
ceptive; it is larger and more elab-
crate than it looks. Few people
realize that the grounds enclosed by
the White House fence comprise an
--zz % .nar1xr I = anrnE or that If
takes about sixty servants to main
tain the establishment.
If there ever should come a presl-
dent of truly J~acksonian simplicity
who would insist upon shovellng the
snow off the White House walks, ne
! would have a weeks work ahead or
him after each blizzard. Their are
11.473 square yards of sidewalk on
the White House grounds. There are
29,759 square yards of roadway 10 De
swept, 1000 linear yards-over hair
a mile-of hedges to be trimmed
and 391 shade trees to shed their
| leaves every autumn. These grounds
| are a show place, observed by thou
| sands of tourists every year. To
sweep the walks and drives, rake h
| leaves, seed and sod the lawn, and
keep the grass trimmed, the govern
ment has to pay out $4,000 a year.
Yearly Coal Bill a Tidy sum
The annual coal bill for n Whlte
! House itself at present prices comes
10 about s4,400 a year. This sum
| provides about 270 tons of furnace
coal and IS tons of stove coal. Moth
! ing hut anthracite is used at the
White House. The government keeps
| the White House cheerful in dark
| and cold weather by providing 50
! cords of chestnut wood per annum TO
be burnt in the open hreplaces. The
! White House gas bill runs at the rate
| of nearly $40 a month.
Cut flowers for the White House
cost the government $4,000 a year
These are produced IN the Whlte
| House greenhouses-sixteen OF them
(which, incidentally, consume about
! 700 tons of coal a year at a cost OF
| $500, In addition, n greenhouse
on the average is rebuilt every year
at a cost Of $4,000. Consequently.
he flowers and plants used In tine
White House actually cost over
$4,000 q year. Great quantities or
these flowers are sent TO Washington
hospitals.
Economy has hit the White House,
as it has the other government eSr
Establishments. Mrs. Harding herself
| mas TAKEN LIiC ACob a. 0SSf
operation costs. The east wing OF
the mansion is used only on state
occasions, and accordingly MRS
Harding has given orders that II is
20 be heated only when absolutely
necessary. During the coming year
the government proposes to spend
$4,000 removing the heating plant
Of the White House altogether ana
hooking up the mansion with the
heating system Of the State, War and
Navy Building next door. the latter
heating plant burns soft coal az
about half the price of anthracite
The reform will also make unneces
sary the services OF the hreman VINO
tends the furnace.
It is also proposed to cut down tne
ice bill by installing a refrigerator
system during the coming year at a
cost OF $4,000.
Extensive Remodcling Planned
The government is getting ready
10 give the White House an exten-
sive remodeling. In 1902 h White
House was reconstructed, and the
whole lower part of the building wa
made hreproof; but a recent inspec'
tion shows that the attic is still a hrt
trap. and that some OF the roo
beams have cracked or pulled looss
from their SHRUBS. h govern