Evening star., 1929-01-04

its landscape, its buildings and its his
tory as few others have known it.
when in 1910 President Taft ap-
pointed the first members of the
national Commission of Fine Arts, Mr..
Moore, together with Daniel H. Burn
ham and Frederick Law Olmsted, rep
resented the continuing influence of
the Mcmillan Commission of nine years
before. Five years after the creation
of the National Commission on Fine
Arts, Mr.. Moore became its chairman
and has now served in that capacity
for nearly IA years.
During these years of service there
has been constant succession OF nights
to prevent violations to the Mcmillan
plan, which revived the original concep-
ton of LEnfant. The wings of the
Agricultural Building, which are now
being Joined with the central structure,
conform to the new axis set up to
remedy the old error of location OF the
Washington Monument. but 1t was only
after Surmounting continued and de-
termined opposition that the plan was
preserved. The location and design of
the Lincoln Memorial forming the river
end of the axis from the Capitol on
the line of the Washington Monument
were only achieved after much dissen-
sion and difference of opinion. The re-
moval of the Botanic Garden from the
Mall approach to the Capitol has only
been authorized in recent years.
For nearly 20 years, the National
Commission of Fine Arts, composed OF
leading architects, sculptors and paint
ers- has protected the Federal City from
monstrosities in design of monuments
,.I IS1 l@,,il fFNn a
pending in Congress becomes a law, the
commission will be charged with Civ
ing official advice concerning the de-
sign of private buildings. which face
important public buildings and grounds.
And now in the important under
takinRs 10 make the Federal City and
It's environs worthy OF the Nation, a
third Michigan man has come into
prominence-thc Hon. Louis c. Cram
ton, member Of Congress from Michi-
gan and member Of the important
appropriations committee OF the House
OF Representatives.
Mr. Cramion has bccn following the
Capitals problems With interest He
has attended, important meetings of
oitlgenA io dNrths them. In the last
eefsiun N inHrcas, he introduced a
resolution oh protects the Great
Fails from ~ action of the Federal
Power CuL sion until Congress has
the opportunity ~ study the whole
situation and report upon a. And now
Mt Cramtnu has introduced into Con-
gress a bill for the acquisition. cstab-
lishment and development of the George
Washington Memorial Parkway along the
Potomac from Mount Vernon and Fort
Washington to Great Falls. and tn pro-
vide for the acquisition of lands in the
District OF Columbia and the States of
Maryland and Virginia requisite To the
comprehensive park, parkway and play
ground system OF the National Capital.
when the bill was presented on De-
cember II to the American Civic ASSo-
cations Washington Committee of One
Hundred on the Federal City. 1t was
hailed as the crowning proposal to put
into execution the outstanding plans
which had developed from the McMil-
Ian Commission of 1901, from the Ma
tional Commission of Fine Arts, Gre
ated in 1910, and from the National
Capital Park and Planning Commis-
sion, set up in 1926.
THE District of Columbia is fortu-
nate that all current expenses are on the
'pay-as-you-g basis. But when 1t is
necessary to make large capital eX-
penditures of money for permanent i'm
proVements, in order to prevent de-
Struction of the land and secure favor
able prices, it is entirely sound to adopt
some plan for credit. Ordinarily bonds
are used for such municipal expendi-
ture, involving not only repayment OF