Evening star., 1934-05-19
BY IRVING LASH.

BY IRVING LASH.
Alva Belmont House, headquarters
Of the National Woman'S Party, is
older than the City of Washington.
The historic red brick dwelling at
l44 B street northeast was erected in
l772 by the third Lord Baltimore for
his daughter. Twelve years later
Washington was selected as the site
for the Capital.
1t was in the Alva Belmont House
that the only resistance was offered
the British when they invaded the
Capital in 1912.
Robert Sewall whose ancestors were
prominent in the early annals of
Maryland acquired the property in
1899. One of Sewall's forebearers,
Henry Sewall was secretary of the
provincial government of Maryland.
His widow became the second wife of
the third Lord Baltimore.
Troops Marched on Capital.
The British routed the American
troops at the Battle Of Bladensburg
on August "a, 1914, and then marched
on to capture the National Capital.
Retreating from Bladensburg, a
party of American soldiers entered
the Sewall home and from the house
fired on Gen. Robert Ross. British
commander, as he stopped near the
System and Federal Savings and
Loan Associations by supervision in
this direction. Home Owners Loan
Corporation is now Immediately un-
dertaking the biggest construction
loan program ever undertaken in this
country, involving, we hope, $780,
100000 in order to give the cor
poration better security and to pro-
vide happier homes for its borrowers
and at the same time to put a lot
of people to work. These jobs will ex-
tend from very small advances for re-
pairs all the way through to the sub
stantial reconstruction of old homes.
We have a very splendid opportunity
not only to render substantial serv-
ice to these home owners which
should be substantial proportion of
the 700, 900 homes to be financed, but
we also have an opportunity to DEM
onstrate to mortgage lenders and to
home owners that it is wise to do
this kind of work right.
If the architects and the building
trades in the United States will CO.
operate, we can get a result, the in
fluence of which will extend through
out the field of mortgage lending.
This is not like a better homes cam
paign which will give few dozen
demonstrations. but it is a better
homes campaign that will give hun
dreds of thousands of demonstra-
tions. If it is well done, others will
follow a good example.
Let me illustrate with the legal
department Of Home Owners Loan
Corporation. The inclination OF most
of our managers in the first instance
was to commercialize the legal work
done in mortgage lending by employ
ing lawyers at the lowest possible
wage at the expense of the corpora
ton and closing these loans in the
Offices of the corporation. In the first
place this plan would be astounding
ly expensive to the corporation in
salaries, rents, stenographic hire and
other such expense, and in the second
place it would take several years to
build legal organization in our own
offices adequate to the task. BY the
greatest difficulty we are finally in
ducing the State managers and State
counsel to employ the legal and title
facilities available in the territory
where the property is located on a
professional basis to do this work in
the usual way, and we are closing
about 5000 loans a day with very lit
tie expense upon the corporation and
at a very reasonable expense to the
home owner.
Architects Necessary.
eve are confronted with the same
identical situation in reference to our
modernization program. Our mana
gers are inclined to organize an elabo-
rate department in our offices and to
employ architects and others at the
lowest possible wage and to do the
planning, designing and supervision
of this 5000, 100000 worth of work
from our Offices on CONNER
cial basis. Such course if the mat
ter is fully and fairly considered, in
my judgment, cannot be justified. We
cannot any more properly dispense
with the service of architects than
we can properly dispense with the
services of contractors, and in proper
cases, subcontractors.
1T is necessary, of course, for the
corporation to employ adequate archi-
tectural advice in washington and in
its branch Offices for supervision as
it has employed more or less adequate