Evening star., 1939-07-16
Vhot Kind of Creatures Are Woshingtonions?
The Discussion Begun by the dion ch Telegram Continued
In the Belief That Facts Will Correct False Impressions

cate the contention Of the Telegram
and of the Encyclopedia concerning
the intent Of the Constitution
makers:
"Since the purpose of the inde-
pendent status Of the District Is
that those connected with the
workings of the government
should be free from politics, the
citizens do not have the right to
vote in municipal or federal mat
ters"-National Encyclopedia.
"The Constitution provided for
taking the District out of politics
by letting it be governed by the
Nation itself"-Adrian Telegram.
National Representation for the
District as ably urged by David
Lawrence would definitely put
the District into politics and that
is exactly what the trainers of
the Constitution wanted to avoid
when they gave Congress ex-
elusive power to govern it,
Adrian Telegram.
Only Ones Not Excluded.
But Federal Office holders are the
ONLY Washingt0nians who are not
excluded from politics, i.e., from par
ticipation in the election Of the Ma
tional legislature which makes laws
for them, imposes taxes upon them,
and sends them to war. These
Washingtonians, who have legal resi-
dence in the home state, can retain
voting right at home, unaffected by
District residence. If the forefathers
and Congress intended to exclude
them from politics, they failed.
But the forefathers had no such
intent.
The only way to preserve the orig
inal allen" status of Washington
was to keep the District as nearly
uninhabited as at the beginning
Our forefathers did not expect this
paralysis of growth. George Wash
ington predicted that the city Of
the Nation a century hence, If the
country kept united. would be,
though not as large as London, yet
of a magnitude inferior to few others
in Europe" 1t is unbelievable that
he thought that this great city
which his imagination pictured
would be peopled by aliens politically
and less than aliens judicially. He
could not have imagined that the
great National Capital, rivaling Lon
don in population, would not be an
American city.
The transaction at the birth of
the city was not the permanent sale
of an American birthright for spe-
cial capital privileges, including ma
tional maintenance and development.
If the Nation had carried out its
century-old pledges to the Capital,
the surrender of the American birth
right of national representation
would not equitably have been
viewed as perpetual. But the Ma
ton violated its obligation and in
1878 only in part recognized and
reassumed it. Today the United
States should fulfill its obligation of
Capital maintenance and upbuild-
ing to the extent that equity de-
mands, and should also grant ma
tional representation to the people
of the District if prerequisite con-
ditions of quantity and quality of
population are now fairly met here
Intent Of Framers.
In the Federalist the forefathers
explained and defended the Consti-
tuition which they had framed, a
Constitution which Gladstone de-
clared 'is, so far as I can see. the
most wonderful work ever struck of
at a given time by the brain and
purpose Of man."
In the Federalist, Madison, con-
spicuous among the trainers of the
Constitution, stated the intent Of
the forefathers concerning the peo-
pie of the Ten Miles Square. as ex-
pressed in the Constitution.
Instead of being out of politics,
that is. out of representation in the
bodies that governed them, they were
to have "of course" a municipal
legislature, elected by them, and
their future rights as American citi-
zens were to be protected by the
States ceding the Ten Miles Square
in the wording of the cession. In
deed they had municipal legislatures
until Congress set up the so-called
territorial legislature in 1871 and
until Congress by temporary COM
mission in 1874 and by permanent
commission in 1878 substituted COM
mission government by Presidential
appointment for elected municipal
legislature, coupling this action with
recognition Of its neglect of it's obli-
CATION for over 10 years in Capital
upbuilding and with its pledge of
future participation in Capital up
building to the extent of one-half
payment of the expenditures for that
upbuilding which it approved
The people of the Capital have
never had. since occupation by Ma
ton as seat of government in 1900,
any participation in national elec-
tions. i.e, elections of Congress and
Of President, though such represen-
tation by Constitutional amendment
was proposed in 1900 and Congress
reluctantly and apologetically post
poned such grant until the District
should obtain a population emitting
it to such representation.
Fundamental Americanism.
In a debate in the House Decem-
ber, 1900, Representative Smile said =:
mot a man in the District would
be represented in the Government
whereas every man who contributed
to the support of government ought
to be represented in it; otherwise his
natural rights were subverted and
he was left not citizen but a slave