Evening star., 1925-01-12
Member of the Associated Press
a Housing, Price Fixing Problem

the proposed new rentals-fxing law
WIFI develop. the facts upon. which
wise and fair legislation by Congress
may be based. Few legislative prop
us1ti6ns affecting more vitality the
physical Wen being, the personal, prop
.erty and. constitutional rights of the
:Washingtonian have been considered
by the Districts legislature. within a
decade. -
There is,a housing problem and also
a price-fxing problem to be solved.
The recent housing census BY the
police, coupled with other, pertinent
Inflammation on the same subject
which. has been collected, will make it
clear whether the wartime conditions
OF housing shortage remain or have
been bettered or have grown worse.
The ascertained relation OF people to
he housed to the suitable housing ac.
commodation available for their use
VIII help to. suggest the most effective
femedy for the disclosed evil.
{ If a serious housing shortage, ere.
ating the utilized opportunity to ex-
tort excessive rents, is discovered, how
will Congress correct this evil condi-
uon?
% Something may be gained by
such legislation or by such Austen
tion from legislation as will encour
age maximum of the $4,000 real es-
tate owners Of the district to rent
houses or, r,rooms that are rentable and
to build small houses for cheap rental
on 'unimproved land or vacant lots.
~ Something may be gained by active
COOPERATION of the Government in
helping, to remedy the housing short
age which it created when it brought
to the Capital, over 100000 war
workers to assist in winning the war.
1t recognized this obligation and un-
-dertook to build dofmitories and room
ing hotels to help to house Govern
,ment employees, a war project checked
by the. armistice. Secretary Hoover
makes the apt suggestion that If Con.
sTses viii pass the bill which provides
for the official housing in Government
owned buildings of the departments
now in rented quarters the Govern
rnent will release for dwelling use sew.
eral large privately owned apartment
structures.
90 But II neither, or both, Of these
devices viii Suffice to so swell the
housing supply as to secure through
competition rental charges that are
reasonable, then Congress will, as the
only other alternative, deprive the
owners Of property. rented or to be
rentedt of owners control; and either
through an. equitable rentals.fixing
tribunal or through a hostile punitive
commission compel reasonable rents.
If the conditions are such that the
Government must in peace time COM
mandeer the property of individuals
in order to house suitably and cheaply,
its employees, Congress may be relied
upon to accomplish this seizure with
the absolute minimum of violation of
the equities and OF American rights
guaranteed by the letter or assured
by the spirit of the Constitution.
II these conditions are found to
exist. Congress may decide that the
hfgh-rents evil may be checked by an
equitable price-fixing tribunal, provid-
ing a kind of compulsory arbitration
between landlords and tenants, like
that which Secretary Hoover might
be imagined as organizing to prevent
the Washington householders of
small means, including low-salaried
Government employees. from freezing
in, ruidwinter on account of excessive
and extortionate prices OF coal. Fair
rentals fixing IS classed by some au-
thorities as on the same basis as the
price-fxing Of coal or bread or the
wages OF labor.
:. If. Congress finds some peculiar
efiniinality in Washington property
owners or landlords or bankers on ac-
count of. which the community must
forfeit its claim to the same equitable
consideration that would be bestowed
by its Legislature upon any other
American community, then justifica-
ton for more drastic. punitive legisla-
tion, even in peace time and per-
manently, may be found. In this con-
nection vicious financing through the
pyramiding Of trusts, with resulting
extortionate rents has been attributed
to Washington, with the suggestion
that Washington bankers. through
their control of local financing, could
have prevented this evil Undoubtedly
the joint committee will examine
thoroughly this charge and the reply
Of the Bankers Association that the
trust-pyra4niding evii is imported. not
local, and that this uflsound financ-
ing is not by igthe local banks. All
Washington appeals to Congress for
such necessary action as will segre-
gate, check and punish this evil with
out tnfiieting undeseryed injury upon
the community as a whole.
THE President and Congress in so
shaping rentals legislation as to as
sure fair play and a minimum of un-
avoidable injury to everybody will
ffnd II easier TO protect sympathetical-
Iy the tenant than to do ;even-handed
justice to the landlord. In our COM
n1unity there are so many more Of US
who are tenants than landlords, and
80 small fraction Of those who are
landlords are profiteers, that popular
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