Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-08-04
DOUGHERTY TAKES
OATH AS CITY HEAD
BEFORE BIG THRONG
New Commissioner Pledges
Entire Time and Energy
in Service to City.
INAUGURAL CEREMONIES
MARKED BY SIMPLICITY
Official Will Make Policies After
He Has Had Chance to Study
Departments.

Pledging his entire time and efforts
to forwarding the best interests OF the
National Capital, Proctor l.. Dough
crty took the oath of Office at noon
today as District Commissioner.
The inaugural ceremonies were held
in the board-room of the District
Building, which was jammed with Of
ficials of the District government,
civic and business leaders and friends
and admirers of the new Commits
sioner.
Numerous floral tributes were
banked high around the rostrum on
which Mr.. Dougherty, in a deep
voice. solemnly swore to the oath of
office.
Greeted With Applause.
Accompanied by Commissioners
Cuno IL. Rudolph and Lieut.. Col. j.
Franklin Bell, the new Commissioner
walked into the board room for the
inaugural ceremonies shortly before
noon. Applause greeted him, and
he smiled in acknowledgment.
AS chairman of the board of Com
missioners, Mr.. Rudolph formerly in
troduced Mr.. Dougherty and Daniel f.
Garges, secretary to the board of
Commissioners, proceeded Immediately
to induct him into office. Commits
sioner Bell then pinned on his coat
gold badge, the emblem of office sur
rendered yesterday by Frederick A.
Fenning. In presenting the badge Of
Office, Commissioner Bell congratu-
lated the departments over which Mr..
Dougherty will have supervision. and
the people of the District, and pre-
dicted that Mr.. Dougherty would be
the best Commissioner the District
ever had.
Mr.. Dougherty then took his second
oath, that of member of the Public
Utilities Commission, which was ad-
ministered by Charles G. Coffin. as
sistant clerk of the District Supreme
Court.
Zihlman Pays Respects.
! Before Mr.. Dougherty made his in
1 augural address Representative Fred
:; erick \. Zihlman, chairman of the
/ House District committee, stepped to
! the platform and publicly extended his
/ congratulations to the new Commits.
| sioner, and emphasized that his du-
| ties as District Commissioner would
| confront him with many important
| activities in view Of the stupendous
buIlulHS program Ol lue eNSIdi NON-
/ ernment, as we'll as numerous pro-
| posed municipal improvements.
! AS soon as Commissioner Dough-
| erty stepped down from the rostrum
/ of the boardroom, after delivering his
] inaugural address, a battery of Il
| newspaper photographers made nu-
/ merous photographs of him, posing
/ with his colleagues. A reception fol-
| lowed in the smoke-flled room.
In his brief address Commissioner
/ Dougherty paid an emphatic tribute
|! to the civic organizations of the Dis
| trict, which he described as the real
voice of the people at the present
! time"
Grateful for Honor.
| He said: "This is. indeed. a great
! honor that has come to me. and one
/ l sought not. but l have always had
| the feeling that it is the duty of every
/ citizen called upon for service, either
! to the State or Nation. that he should
/ contribute for the time being all of his
| strength to the performance of those
! duties. One hundred and twenty-six
| years ago the National Capital was
| moved from Philadelphia to this city.
| which was then but a barren waste,
/ with Alexandria a small village on the
! south and Georgetown on the west.
/ Following that has come the great
| structural performances that have re-
! suited in the beautiful Washington
| which we have today.
| 1--WE have large Federal program
| to be carried out. as we'll as District
| program, and We must plan the best
! legislation to meet the needs of the
| people who reside here in the District.
! not only through the cooperation OF
/ ali re in thtA nf
| lumbia, but all the organizations.
81 think a city is best governed
| where the larger number of citizens
] have some share, in the government of
| that city. Especially will that be true
| i'm this government, because we resi-
| dents of Washington have no legal
connection with the affairs of the
! city,
every fortunately we have here cit
| iZenS' organizations, dividing the city
/ up in many sectionS-some 4S, / be-
| lieve, and it is through these organiza-
| tions that you can best do your most
| effective work by becoming member
| of your own local body.
Praises Civic Bodies.
your local organizations elect the
| best representatives to the Federation
| of Citizens Association, which meets
! I6E0 tIilo DOclio TWIN
| throughout the Winter and threshes
| out by friendly argument the extern
| sive problems brought before 1t. l
! am fortunate in being a member of the
| Citizens Advisory Council, body of
| nine men who have given of their
! strength TO consider the municipal
| problems. This advisory council was
| organized at the suggestion of one of
| the District Commissioners, and has
/ been functioning only about year
| and q half, but even that short time
i has been long enough for it to receive
| the commendation of both of the chair
| men of the District committees of the
House and Senate of the United States.
| There are here number of business
| organizations such as the Board of
| Trade, the Chamber of Commerce and
| Merchants and Manufacturers As
\ sociation-all desirous of forwarding
/ the best interests of this Washington
/ that we love so well.
| .'Mr. Commissioners, in accepting
| this great trust, pledge to you my
/ entire time to the District of Colum-
| bia in forwarding all it's best interests,
| and IL at the end of my term of office
1 you will proclaim me as generously as
/ you have at the present time. will
/, so out of this office extremely happy"
! Commissioner Rudolph. in introduc-
/ ing the new Commissioner, said: THE
l President has discharged the difficult