Evening star., 1928-12-23

On November last a presidential
election took place, and, as far as can
be computed at this writing, ap-
proximately forty million men and
women voted.
But strangely enough. at the very
heart of the Nation, in the District OF
Columbia, where the President, Congress
and executive departments carry on
their duties, all men and women are
disqualified by law from voting because
Of the mere fact of their residence
there. The men and women who live
in washington are compelled, Just as
If they were citizens, to pay Federal
income taxes. They were required to
send their sons to France, just as II
they had been citizens. But neither
the young men nor their parents had
any voice in Congress In deciding upon
the declaration of war, or will have If
another war should occur, unless the
Constitution be amended In other
words, they enjoy exactly the same
status, when 1t comes to voting, as
aliens, minors, criminals and insane.
The District of Columbia is the only
community in the continental United
States whose citizens enjoy no suffrage
and have no form of representative
government whatsoever. There Is no
locally elected body to pass laws, fix
the rates of taxation and determine
how the money shall be spent. It is
unique in that all powers of govern
ment are vested exclusively in the
United States. In all other commune
ties government is split up among the
Federal, State, county, municipal, town
ship, ward or similar divisions. But the
Continental Congress in Philadelphia
had such bitter experience with dis
satisfied soldiers who wanted their back
pay that when the Constitutional Con-
vention met, its members we're deter
mined that Congress should have exclu-
sive control over the new Capital. The
trainers were trying to prevent undue
pressure being put upon Congress, and
out of their provision came disfran-
chisement.
This did not matter In early days.
Few people lived in the District except
Government officials and clerks, who
kept their legal voting residences else
where. But the city now has con-
siderably more than half million
people, and is moving steadily toward
the million mark. The trainers did
not foresee great, rounded metropolitan
CI1bAblCS, Will Ndot PORuAQOAOAAo CtA80BC0
in all manner OF business, educational
and artistic occupations. It Is not a
healthy thing today for the Nation to
have at its very heart such an artificial
and anomalous condition as a great
wholesale disfranchisement of all
classes of men and women.
There are arguments brought up
against suffrage in the District which
should not be dignified by reply. It
is said that people need not live there
if they do not wish to, and If they de-
sire to vote, a legal residence might be
established few miles away in Mary
land or Virginia by purchasing shack
Far more serious is the fear that suf-
frage might attract to the District the
lame ducks of politics-the defeated
Congressmen-to engage in petty po-
litical activities There is the further
fear that the large negro population
about one-fourth of the total--might
hold the balance of power between two
parties Of whites.
But without expressing any opinion
concerning the complex and controver-
sial negro problem as a whole, 1t should
be noted that both these arguments
lose much of their force when 1t is real
lied that the only serious proposal now
pending is that residents of the District
De W YOOC AOA RACoAACAAuAoA
electors, for two Congressmer-to
which their numbers entitle thern-and
possibly for one Senator. This carefully
worked out proposal does not include
municipal suffrage. The present local
government which operates directly
under the President and Congress- gives
general satisfaction. Much of the de-
tail work is done by engineer officers OF
the Army, and is by them efficiently
performed.
It Is not proposed to take away any
of the power which Congress now has
to govern the District. What the Dis
trict seeks is representation in Congress
which it does not now possess, and the
right to vote for presidential electors
It seeks to become part OF the Nation
politically, its present status being that
of an alien. No one suggests that the
suffrage be taken away from Atlantic
| City, N. j., although census figures show
that it has practically the same pro-
portion of negroes as the District has
If all negroes of voting age were
counted out, there would still be more
voters In Washington than in any one
Of seven States Even II all the civil
service employees, who are permitted by
| special laws to maintain voting resi-
dences elsewhere. were counted out
there would still be more voters in the
District than in any one Of eight States
II both negroes and civil service en-
| ployes together were counted out, the
| District would still have more voter:
| than any one of several States. tht
| people Of each of which have two Sena-
| tors, at least one Representative and
the right to vote for President.
AS the Constitution stands. Congress
I has no authority to grant any kind oi
suffrage to residents Of the District