Evening star., 1938-06-10
MEMORIAL SITE
NEAR TIDAL BASIN
FOUGHT |NSENATE
King and Guffey Express
Opposition to Present
Jefferson Plans.
PROTEST ON LOCATION
TAKEN TO WHITE HOUSE
Architect Group Discloses Letter
From Moore Questioning
Designs Suitability.

Several Senators expressed opposi-
ton today'to the proposed Tidal Basin
site for the Thomas Jefferson Memo
rial as the Senate Appropriations Sub
committee met in executive session to
consider the last deficiency supply bill
The House placed in this bill $500, 900
to start the memorial, but the item is
facing controversy in the Senate.
Senators King, Democrat, of Utah
and Guffey, Democrat, of Pennsyl-
vania both made statements to the
subcommittee against the memorial
plans as they now stand AT the same
time, it became known that Senator
Duffy, Democrat, of Wisconsin also is
opposed to the project as it would be
carried out under the House proposal.
The Wisconsin Senator is member of
the subcommittee in charge of the bill.
Meanwhile, formal protest against
construction of the memorial on the
proposed site south. of the Tidal
Basin was to be made to President
Roosevelt today by the National Com
petitions Committee, following pre-
liminary protest to the White House
late yesterday.
At the same time the committee pre-
pared to carry its fight to the Senate
in an effort to block passage of the
100000 item approved by the House
Wednesday.
In case the item is not stricken from
the deficiency appropriation bill, the
Competitions Committee will seek the
adoption of Senate amendment for
bidding expenditure Of any of
the fund for construction of the me-
mortal unless the project is approved
by the Commission of Fine Arts Men,
bers of the commission previously have
objected to the proposed pantheon"
design for the Tidal Basin site
Seeks Competitions in Plans.
The National Competitions Commit
tee. composed of more than so archi-
tects, was created as a result of oppo-
sition on the part of architects
throughout the country to the non
competitive preparation of plans for
the jefferson Memorial. The committee
is seeking to have the designing of
the memorial and of other Federal
buildings and memorials thxcwn open
to free architectural competition.
The committee today made public
excerpts fro ma letter which, it said
was sent by Charles Moore, former
chairman of the Fine Arts Commits
sion. on April 8, to Representative
Boylan, chairman of the Jefferson
Memorial Commission, questioning the
suitability of the proposed memorial
design. The letter. they said, has
never been made public by Mr.. Boylan
and does not appear in the record of
hearings on the memorial project.
The Moore letter, the committee
said, stands as refutation OF a state
ment made by Mr.. Boylan that Mr..
Moore had approved the Jefferson
Memorial plans.
Letter From Moore.
A portion of the letter follows:
THE design for the memorial itself,
however, while conforming to Jeffer-
sonian ideals, raises questions quite
apart from the style in which it is
designed. Fundamental among these
questions is this one: The Lincoln
Memorial, classical building, contains
as its chief feature statue Of one
OF the greatest of American states
men. The site is only second to that
occupied by the Washington Monu-
ment. Is it wise to create on the
south axis second building the pur-
pose of which is akin to that of the
Lincoln Memorial?
will not the two structures, so
nearly alike in purpose and express
sion, come into competition, even into
conflict. one with the other? Would
1t not be better to make the Jefferson
Memorial a distinct creation by an
entirely different feature of the cen
trail feature and the surrounding
lands?
Recalls Roosevelt Commission.
This commission recalls the fact
that under authority of Congress
resolution of February IL, 1926 the
Roosevelt Memorial Commission was
authorized to prepare for presentation
to Congress a plan for the develop
ment of the south axis as the loca-
ton for memorial to Theodore Rocse-
welt.
''Thereupon the Roosevelt Commits
sion instituted a limited competition
among nine well-known architects, who
were assisted by landscape architects
ana sculptors of reputation. The
judges were two architects and one
sculptor.
The competition was won by John
Russell Pope and the award of the jury
was accepted by the trustees of the
Roosevelt Commission on October Is,
1925. There was quiet opposition not
to the design, but to the site for a me-
mortal to one whose place in American
history time has not yet fixed. Even
tually, with the hearty approval Of all
concerned, Analostan Island was pur-
chased as q Theodore Roosevelt Me-
mortal and was accepted by the Gov
ernment as such.
Testimony of Boylan.
I'm how far the results Of this com.
petition influenced the Thomas Jeffer-
son Memorial Commission, its members
best know. The open character of the
design by Mr.. Pope for the Theodore
Roosevelt Memorial more nearly ey-
presses the ideas Of the Commission
of Fine Arts for the treatment Of this
area than does the design submitted by
your commission.
"For the Commission of Fine Arts,
very respectfully yours,
CHARLES MOORE,
Chairman"
The committee pointed out that in
the transcript of the hearing before
. House Appropriations Subcommittee
on May ~, Mr.. Boylan testified that
Mr.. Moore and Frederic A. Delano,
chairman Of the National Capital Park
and Planning Commission, had been
present at practically every neetings