The Washington times., 1925-08-20
With The
AIibiArtists
We Can't Have Eff
Gent Traffic Control
and Safe Streets
Without Paying
For 1t
Hands Tied by u. S. |

shedding because its shy on
funds.
At the same time we read that
the Budget Bureau tells the Dis.
trict Commissioners to reduce
next years estimate by three mil
lion or so, no matter who sufft re-
thereby or how much.
And that's only a preliminary
bout. After the Budget Bureaus
expert cutters get through with
the Districts welfare. Congress
will take few whacks at it.
It's pretty safe bet that
whatever is added in the form OF
supplemental estimates will be
filcied back in the form If last
minute riders.
Must Pay For Safe Streets
And that doesn't look so good
from a traffic standpoint. You
can't have efficient traffic con.
troll without paying for II.
The District has more register
ed motor vehicles than any one
OF ten States. 1t has two and a
half times as many as the small
est of those States Delaware
and Delaware sthirty.four times
as large as the District, geo
graphically.
washington motor traffic is
eighty-five times ais dense as
DeIaware's, then, and requires
great deal more controI-the
denser the traffic the greater
the chance OF collision, naturally
yet Delaware has at least
three courts where traffic cases
can be heard, and Washington
has one-in room about the
size and equipment Of hen-coop.
Thanks To Congress
That's the result Of having our
budget run by Congress or It's
a part of the result. We have,
for instance, the same bathing
beach facilities enjoyed by tribe
of Hottentots in Central Africa.
Our school building allowance
is so low-down that not a CON
tractor bids within ten thousand
dollars of Its pusilIanimous re-
quirements, and we have streets
within mile of the Capitol that
have been waiting their turn to
be paved for seventy-five years.
And Congress, through its Fed
eraI Budget Bureau tget that
a city's finances controlled by
Federal Bureau-wnat do they
think we are-Indians2l, Congress
says THAT doesn't mean any
more to us than what happens
to a red ant.htIl when a COW
steps on 1t. You've got to hack
off that three million.
Willing To Be Taxed
But" the denizens Of the Dis.
trict plead, through a committee
of property owners were will
ing to be taxed enough to pay
for these necessities. Whatever
part of your share you fall down
these things. washington will
be jungle without them.
Cant help it. Hack off that
three million. =
There's no doubt the District
needs those improvements-it'
ready to tax itself to get them.
Eight people lost their lives this
summer, for instance, due to lack
of bathing beach facilities.
And Congress, with a stubborn
ness that would make a jackass
blush to the ears, refuses to let
us spend our own money to pro-
vide these things.
Doesn't Make Sense. But
Sounds weird, doesn't it, 1t
doesn't make sense. But to Con
gress it's the very cream and
essence of craftsmanship.
The Alibi Column was first to
point out what is now generally
-
bedlam policy of Congress.
Quoting from this column of
December 30, 1924-'It's just as
big a feather in q COngressman's
cap to reduce the total Federal
appropriation by striking
million off the Districts allow.
ance as it would be If that al
lOWance were national expense.
The Federal total is reduced by
one million, and that's all there
is to It,.
1.-THE municipal expenses Of
Washington don't belong in the
national budget They're mis-
leading to the rest of the cOun-
try, and swell total that's already
near busting.
"The total of the Federal ap-
preparation bill can he reduced
much more easily BY leaving
WashingtOn's self betrayed ex.
penses out of the Federal budget
than by cheating the younger
generation of Neutrality-suspicious. out
of their schooling
And that's where we should
begin if we want to avoid this
yearly torment about running ex-
penses. Take Washington
municipal taxes out of the Fed
eral budget