Evening star., 1934-04-22
Misinf0rnati0n on the District
Spread in Debate on Supply Bill
Many Statements Reflecting on Local
Community Sho,on to Be Either
Misleading or Erroneous.

If they register, vote in the States.
Other estimates, including some that
are obviously unreasonable, carry the
, figure of possible potential voters in
the States up to 10000.
Then comes this statement: "The
original water conduit that partly fur
nishes water to this city was built and
is owned by the United States. 1t
was paid for by this Government"
That is true, but the District has
invested more money in both water
supply and distribution systems than
the Federal Government, maintains
both systems without a penny of
help from the Federal Government
and, in addition, furnishes the Fed
eral Government, a large consumer,
with its water, free.
Wrong Inference From History.
On top of that statement, came
another:
In 1871 the Congress gave the
people of the District of Columbia the
right to vote and conditions became
SO rotten-in fact, unparalleled in the
history of this Nation-that in 1873
what few good people of Washington
were left came and begged Congress
TO take them back"
That charge is, of course, not new.
1t has been made before in connec-
ton with the efforts of Washing
tonians, assisted by friends and sym
pathizerS in Congress. to obtain a
constitutional amendment comforting
upon Congress the right to permit
representation of the District in the
House and Senate and the electoral
college. The financial ruination
threatened by the so-called territorial
government of 187l-1874 was in no.
wise a demonstration of the inability
of the people TO govern themselves,
but showed conclusively the incom-
potency of the particular form Of
government which was set up for
them.
Municipal government had
been replaced by the so-called terri
torial government. the real power of
which was vested in the Board of
Public Works. The Board of Public
Works was appointed by the Presi-
dent. as were the Governor and the
members of the upper branch of
the territorial Legislature. The
Lower House was composed of elected
members whose power was slight and
practically negligible, and there was
an elected, non-voting delegate sent
to the House. This arrangement was
not and never can be considered as
an experiment in government
And though its failure has usually
been viewed as complete and unquah-
fed, it apparently required just such
a total failure to convince Congress
Of the SponsibilitieS equitably to be
borne toward the District, and which
were written into the organic act of
1878
Work of Utilities Commission.
Next, in connection with the efforts
to restore 43 per cent reduction in
budget estimates for the personnel OF
the Public Utilities Commission. this
statement was made: The Public
Utilities Commission has not made
any of the utilities of the District of
Columbia do anything We are paying
the highest telephone rates in the
United States"
Records of the commission, however,
show that since the Warld War rate
reductions have been effected in the
District which have brought savings
totaling more than S1l,O000 900; that
the cost of electric service alone is
the lowest of any municipality in the
country, and the cost of gas is nearly
80 per cent less per thousand cubic
feet on the average bill than in % of
the largest cities in the country More
over. the records show that the COM
mission has been forced to fight the
utility corporations in the courts in
virtually every case growing out of its
efforts to reduce rates. and even now
is engaged in litigation with the tele-
phone company over rates.
Finally. point of order is raised
against an amendment to appropriate
$4,000 for an engineering survey
preparatory to replacement of Chain
Bridge, and this statement is made:
The law does not provide for build
ing bridges for the use of Maryland
and Virginia. The Chain Bridge is
not a bridge within the District of
Columbia"
The fact is, however, that the entire
bridge. with the exception of an abut-
ment on the south bank of the Poto-
mac is in the District, and has been
maintained regularly out of District
funds