Evening star., 1931-12-15
report of the Mapes Com
mittee and of the minority views
of Preventative Frear of Wis
aane;y fo1lou In mart

-HE report Of the Mapes Com
mittee and of the minority views
of REPRESENTATIVE Frear OF WIS
conSin follow, in part:
Soon after its appointment, be-
ptnning December 8, 1890, and ending
December 20. 1890, the committee helo
public hearings, at which representa-,
fives cf various civic organizations ana
nublic officials of the District Of Colum-
bia and others who desired to do so
appeared before the cormittee and pre-
sented their views as to what they re-
spectivelv considered to be a solution
of the problem of the fiscal relations
between the United states and the DIS
trict Of Columbia.
For the purpose of aiding the ccm-
nnittee in its work 1t engaged the serv-
ices Of George Lord of Detroit, who has
had many ye9r5' experience in tax re-
search work anI who enjoys national
reputation in the fiel1 of taxation
- A ouestiOnnaire was prepared
and sent to cities in the United states
Of comparable size with the District OF
Columbia ranging in population from
252,9el to 900,429, asking for detailed
information concerning the taxeti-n of
the various forms Of taxable property
within their respective jurisdiction
History Of Fiscal Relations.
The governmental set-up of the Dis
trict of CClun bia Is unlike that OF any
other city in the United States and, SO
far as this committee knows. it is un-
like that Of any other in the world
The constitutional provision requiring
Congress "to exercise legislation in all
cases Whatsoever over such District
as may become the
seat of the Government of the Unite !
States" has led, starting almost from
the beginning. t. constant controversy
both as 70 tie form Of the government
of the District and as to how the eX-
penses of the District government
should be met, what proportion of them
if any. should be borne by the Fe5eral
Government ana what proprrt OF
them should be borne by the people and
the privately owned property within the
District.
AS stated by Bryan in his History
Of the National Capital The decade
that care to an end in the early thir-
ties was marked BY an
almost continuous agitation for a
change in the government" III Bryan
1907.
intensity has continued down to the
present time
From time to time. as different phases
of the controversy have become acute,
committees Of Congress have been ap-
pointed to investigate ana report upon
them. The reports of these various
committees have. each in its turn, had
a tendency to quiet the agitation for a
time, but only for time.
Comparative Taxes Studied.
There is little that can be said about
the relationship between the Federal
and District governments that has not
already been said by one or another OF
these various committees. In
undertaking the task assigned 1t. how
ever, the committee did feel that no
thorough and satisfactory study had
ever been made of the comparative tax
burden of the people within the District
with those who live in other cities of
comparable size and advantages, and
that such a study should be made In
order to determine what would be a
fair and Just tax for the people of the
District to pay. 1t therefore sets out
to make such study.
Up to the time of the adoption OF
the present form of government for the
any uniform or consistent policy as far
as making contributions by the Federal
Government to the expenses of the gov
eminent Of the City of Washington or
of the District of Columbia is concerned
Since 1871 the City of Wash
ington and the District Of Columbia
have been one and the same, or, to be
entirely accurate, since that date there
has been no such legal entity as the
City of Washington. There has been
only the District Of Columbia. The
Federal Government never contributed
to the expenses of any of the other
governmental units in the District ex-
cept the City of Washington, and never
adopted any uniform or consistent pol
icy Of making contributions to the City
Of washington until the adoption of the
present form Of government for the
District In 1878. Some years it con-
tributed literally. some years sparingly
and some years not at all.
TIE Poland report. subritted to the
House from the Committee on the Judi
ciary in 1874 referring to the question
whether some accurately Geflned basis
OF expenditure cannot be prescribed and
maintained by law" declared: There
never has been since the location Of the
Capital at this place anv consistency,
OF these expenditures
Southard Report Quoted.
The government of the City of Wash
ingtcn, and later the District of Co.
1umbia, has never been very successful
in the management of its finances when
left to its own devices. As early as
February 2, 1885, the Southard report
declared
The city is involved in pecuniary OBJ
legations from which it is utterly impos
siblc that it can be relieved by any
means within its own CONTROL or by any
exertions which it may make, unaded
j.. by congressional legislation"
= On June Is, 1874, the Allison report
stated
The testimony discoses that the
4: District treasury is practically exhaust
; er in all its departments"
Referring to the territorial form of
government with a delegate in Con-
gress, which had been in effect for
three years. the same report declared:
"Your committee have unanimously
arrived at the conclusion that the
existing form Of government Of the
District is failure"
In this connection. and in view of
the present agitation of some of the
people OF the DISTRICT Tor the ballot,
it may not be out of place to call at
tention to the experiences Of the Dis
trict when the people in IL exercised
the right to vote.
Here follow excerpts from Wash
tngton-A Not Too Serious History
by George Rothwell Brown, describing
the riots Of 1857 and of 1922
AS stated in the Southard report of
1835-"The design of the Constitution
and its founders was to create a res
idence for the Government where they
should be regulated and governed by
them without the interference Of par
tial interests In the States, which
I should have absolute and unlimited con-
troll, which should be regulated and gov
erned by them without the interference
of partial interests In the States, which
should be built up and sustained by
their authority and resources, not de-
RaA II IL. ,,-1l1 Nf