Evening star., 1939-10-01
To Americanize Washington
In Order at Special Session.

The vital issues pending before
this extraordinary session of Con-
gress are of the greatest impor-
tance to every individual Amer
lcan and every American COM
munity. This is no more true as
applied to the people out in the
United States than it is to those
Americans whose home is in
Washington, D. c.
There is, however, a very i'm
portant difference due to the fact
that these people of the District
OF Columbia have no part, like
other Americans, in these i'm
portant deliberations, nor vote,
through representatives. in the
final decisions reached. AS the
poet puts it:
Theirs not to reason why.
Theirs but to do and die"
And very likely to both do and
die"
Back in April, 1917. when war
preparedness" was the watchword
of the Nation. Theodore w. Noyes
delivered a forceful address and
earnest plea before the Washing
ton Board of Trade. His subject
was. "Americanize the Capital as
Wise Measure of War Pre-
paredness.
In ringing words and with an
array of facts, he showed how the
people of the Capital had meas
ured up to every obligation as cit
liens of the Nation. but were de-
MED the right to participate in
the councils of that Nation
ITO Americanize the political
aliens of the District of Colum-
bia," he said "is to do justice and
to relieve the Nation of reproach
and acknowledgements which,
like the motion to adjourn, are
always in order" And he con-
tinued, mot only in a general but
in special sense is this Ameri-
canizing process peculiarly oppor-
tune, in that it reflects the very
thought. and spirit of the times
and is an integral part of the
legislation which springs natu-
rally from the patriotic impulse
toward true preparedness"
Recent history and the present
war in Europe disclose nations
blotted out and their people de-
prived of all participation in the
governments under which they
must live. OF course, the people
of the District of Columbia have
not been the sufferers from bonn
bardment or invasion or herded
In concentration camps nor the
victims of blood purge. But they
are as far removed from having a
part in deciding the issues before
the special session of Congress as
are residents of Poland or other
despoiled nations.
Joint resolutions are pending
before Senate and House of Rep
resentatives to amend the Consti-
tuition of the United States so as
to empower Congress to Ameri-
canize these Washingtonians. The
most recently drafted of these
is the Summers resolution (H. j.
Res. 25D which is the result of
an intensive study of the ques-
ton by Representative Hatton
w. Summers, Democrat, of Texas,
chairman of the House Commit
tee on the Judiciary.
The resolution is pending be-
fore that committee, and it is be-
lieved that if it had not been for
the serious illness of Representa-
tive Summers there would have
been some action on the pro-
posal. The Summers resolution is
short and simple in form. It
makes no attempt to write q
statute into the Constitution.
It gives Congress the power to
provide the people of the Dis
trict with representation in the
Congress and among the electors
of President and Vice President
no greater than that of the peo-
pie of the States. It further en-
powers Congress to delegate to
such government as Congress
may establish in the District all
or any of the power Of Congress
over said District. Under the
Summers amendment District
people would be given the same
rights before the courts of the
United States as possessed by
the citizens of a State.
1t is further provided that
all legislation enacted under the
amendment shall be subject to
amendment and repeal except
that no such amendment or re.
peal shall Affect the ONCE Of