Evening star., 1924-05-03
Fire Hazard and Working
Conditions Are Emphasized
Before Body.
$5O,0OO,OOO REQUESTED
FOR NEW STRUCTURES
Expenditure Would Be Limited to
$1o,000,o0o a Year-Action
Urged at Once.

| INe QcplOrdDIe cOHuillOHS uHueT
which many of the employees of the
government are forced to work in the
| District of Columbia, and the fire
hazards faced by priceless records of
the government, arising out of made
quate and improper housing for vari-
| Gus agencies of the government, are
| emphasized in a favorable report sub
mitted to the Senate today by the
committee on public buildings and
grounds on the bill authorizing the
expenditure of s50.0o0,000 for build
/ ing program in Washington.
| The report was made by Senator
| Keyes of New Hampshire on behalf OF
| the committee, and the bill has been
! placed on the Senate calendar. Every
effort will be made by it's supporters
| to get favorable action upon it at the
present session of Congress. Senator
Keyes, Chairman Fernald of the COM
mittee and others believe that the sit
uation here arising out of the need Of
more government buildings in Wash
! ington requires heroic treatment.
| President Coolidge in his annual mes
sage to Congress urged the enactment
! of such legislation, and the public
buildings commission, headed by SEN
ator Smoot of Utah, made a strong re-
port on the matter to both Senate and
House.
New Buildings Proposed.
The bill as reported to the Senate
provides for the expenditure of not
more than s10.000,000 in any fiscal
yoar The buildings particularly rec
commended include those for the bu-
reau of internal revenue, the Depart
ment Of Justice, the general account
ing Office, the Department of Agri-
culture. national archives building,
the general supply committee and
independent office buildings to house
the alien property custodian, the bu-
reau of efficiency, Civil Service Com
mission, Federal Power Commission
| Federal Trade Commission, Commits
| sion of Fine Arts, International
boundary Commission. international
JOINT Commission, United States
| Tariff Commission and other miscel.
| laneous units.
Report BY Keyes.
| In his report, Senator Keyes said:
The committee believes the adop-
tion of this bill will lead to a well
ordered and dignified housing of the
| governments various departments
| bureaus and independent establish
ments in the District Of Columbia.
The necessity for the adoption of a
| building program has long been
I iecognized by all who are familiar
with conditions under which many of
the government activities carry on
| their work. Unless early action be
taken by Congress to relieve the
present situation, it is only a question
or time. and very short time at
| that. until the government will find
itself in an impossible situation. due
to the rapid deterioration of the So
called temporary war buildings.
! There are now in existence twelve
area from $4,000 square feet to 100000
/ square feet. They are veritable fire
| traps of the fiimsiest wooden con-
struction and present a constant and
most dangerous fire hazard. Several
of them are literally crowded to the
roof with priceless and irreplaceable
records. the destruction of which
would mean staggering loss to the
| government. That there have been
| no serious fires in these structures to
date is due entirely to elaborate pre-.
cautions taken by the officials in
charge of them.
Life Limit Near.
| Aside from the fire menace, there
is the undeniable fact that they car
last but short time longer and only
then by the annual expenditure OF
considerable money for their repair
In fact, only few months ago one OF
these buildings, Treasury Annex No
2, 14th and B streets, became so di
lapidated that the advisability OF
abandoning it altogether was con.
sidered. Fortunately, however fund:
were available with which 1t could
be temporarily repaired, and for the
time being a serious situation wa.
averted, serious, for the reason thai
a portion Of the bureau Of interna
| revenue occupying the building haC
no funds for rental, there was M
other government space to which 4
could be transferred, and even If Il
had had funds no privately owned
space could be found for it's use
Aside from these facts. there /.
no valid reason why the business Of
the United States government should
be transacted in buildings which ar,
In appearance, comfort and conven.
fence no better than wooden barns
| TN addition to the practical con.
siderations of fire hazard, mainte
nance cost and disability of these tenn
porary buildings. there is the hu
| manitarian consideration Of the work
ing conditions of the government EN-
ployes. Many protests have beer
made to the public buildings com
mittee and to the public building
commission concerning the deplorabl
conditions under which employe
must work in these temporary build
ings. In the summer they are in
tensely hot and in the winter 1t Il
difficult to keep them warm. 1t is fsl
by your committee that the govern
ment is obligated to give it's employe
in the government workshop here il
Washington reasonably decent, if no
comfortable, working quarters.
THE government is a tenant in it
Capital city to the extent of 1878,
307.52 annually. Numbers of thes
buildings are poorly adapted to gov
ernmental uses and are so widel.
scattered over various sections of tn
city as to make the transaction of bust
ness exceedingly cumbersome. Econo
my and good business administrator
demand that all activities of the gov
ernment be housed in public build
ings, located with due regard to tn
rapid and efficient transaction Of tn
public business. It is confidently be
lieved that the buildings provided 70
in this bill will make It possible 70
| 70 aI q