Evening star., 1924-11-23
70 remedy a condition that in
vestigation by a commission
Of congressman and public
officials shows is "intolerable

L officials shows is "intoIerable"
''preposterous" and bordering
on criminal neglect-the first impor-
tant measure called up for action in
the Senate, after Congress reassem-
bles on December l, will sbe the ad-
ministration bill authorizing expendi-
ture of s50,000,oo0 to meet urgent
housing needs OF Government depart
ments In the National Capital
President Coolidge has let 1t be
known that he will use his influence
to get this measure passed, that he
Will recommend it particularly in his
message. as he did in his first mes
sage a year ago. Senator Reed Smoot
of Utah, chairman of the Public Build
lngs Commission. is primed TO lead
the fight in the Senate, with Senator
Bert NJ. Fernald of Maine, chairman n
OF the committee on public build
tngs and grounds, staunchly support
ing him.
Tho bill was introduced in the last
session of Congress by Senator Smoot
IN the Senate and by Repr
Richard n. Elliott Of Indiana, acting
chairman of the committee on public
buildings and grounds, In the House.
1t was favorably reported in the
Senate by Senator Henry w. Keyes
Of New Hampshire.
VIII Urge House Action.
In the House action has been de-
1ayed because many members have
been adverse to doing anything about
the public building program in the
Capital before something was done
20 meet the need for Federal build
Ings in many other places through
out the country. The House will be
brought ito see the light" however.
because President Coolidge and Sem
ator Smoot will emphasize that there
1S no place in the country where the
situation is as bad as it is right now
in Annex 2, Fourteenth and streets
northwest, in the shadow of the
Washington Monument and of the
white House, occupied by a unit of
the Internal Revenue. which is the
biggest source of revenue to the
Government. There. priceless records
worth not millions, but billions Of
dollars In actual cash to the Federal
Treasury. are in a tiimsy firetrap. in
constant danger of destruction that
would be not only a national calam-
.ty. but a scanda! as we'll.
Senator Smoot will urge immediate
action authorizing this building pro-
gram, over period Of 10 years, as a
matter Of vital Importance to the
Government. He will remind his COL
leagues that the Public Buildings Com
mission has repeatedly called attention
to the hazardous and uneconomica1 ar
rangemeut of the Government Offices.
il will be emphasized that the Fed
eral Government is now paying about
500, 900 a YEAR for rental of 'priyatel
owned buildings liz Washington, which
are not property adapted for the use to
which they have been put, and that in
addition to this it is costing some $780,
900 a year for maintenance Of these
,tx.l
is really paying out more than s1,000.000
a year that ought to go into new
buildings.
New Bills Pressing.
Among the new buildings. the pressing
need for which is recognized, are for:
The Internal Revenue Bureau. the De-
partment of Justice, the General Ac-
counting Office. two or three for the De-
partment of Agriculture in the imme-
diate vicinity of the administration
building: Archives Building, one each
for Commerce. Labor, the Interstate
Commerce Commission and an inde-
pendent offices building.
The blu when it passes will prob
ably carry only relatively small
amount, some SO, ,0oo 900 or $4,000. 900, to
have plans drawn for the first three or
four Of these buildings and to start
work on two of them.
The public, even in Washington,
does not realize, as the Public Build
ings Commission does, how uneconom-
ical and inefficient as well as a grave
fire peril the present condition is. The
department of Agriculture alone oc-
cupies IS buildings, the Treasury De-
pa rtment So, the superintendent Of
The State, War and Navy Building Ca
maintenance organization), occupies
so buildings: the Genera! Accounting
Office 81, the War Department "A, the
Government Printing Office. the In
ierior Department and the Navy De-
partment occupy buildings each,
the Commerce Department occupies
I, the Departm of Justice 6, the
Civil Service Commission and the
Labor Department occupy 4, and even
some comparatively small units of
the Federal service, such as the Fed
eral Trade Commission, the Inter-
state Commerce Commission. the Post
Office (not including substations),
the Shipping Board, the State Depart
ment and the Veterans Bureau, ac-
cupy buildings each. Some of these
departments and bureaus have their
main offices in monster structures
which they have outgrown.
Besides the million dollars year
that the Government is spending on
rented buildings, Congress will be
shown that other great economies
would result from a comprehensive
program providing adequate housing
for Uncle Sans workshop. Then
each department would be able to