Evening star., 1940-12-15
Snow>Removal Funds Laid
To Baxter Smith Report
Became Civic
Worker by
Marriage

1t was not exactly case OF marry
ing the boss daughter, but some
thing akin to it that brought Baxter
Smith into civic work in the District
and the Federation of Citizens As
sociations onesof its ablest delegates.
AS he explained it, we'll. he married
the daughter of David Babp, secre-
tary of the Federation for years and
more years. and you can't hear that
stuff all the time without getting
interested in it."
For three years now he has been
working behind the scenes in the
federation. seldom if ever in the
Flinelight or in the headlines. But
federation leaders, are still loud in
their praise of his report on snow
removal, which they feel may have
had a good deal to do with the fact
that Congress appropriated S97,500
this year for snoW-removal purposes.
While $4,000 of this was to re-
imburse the City Refuse Department
for money spent in snow removal
last year. it was specifically stated
that S37 GOO was to be used for snow
removal equipment and the balance
for other snow-removal purposes
This is believed to be the first fund
earmarked for this work.
Credits Wender.
Il don't know whether that was
the best job I ever did, he drawled
But I certainly worked the hardest
on it. 1t took me three weeks. AS
matter of fact, though, it was
probably Harry Wender who was re-
sponsible for the appropriation get
ting through. He bothered the life
out OF those fellows up there. I just
loaded the gun. Harry fired it."
The 37-year-old North Capitol AS
sociation delegate is stocky blond
with a penchant for yellow-stem
pipe and slow drawl that makes
everything he says seem emphatic.
He was an employe of the now
famous District highway testing
laboratory when Congress ordered
the testing done at the Bureau of
Standards and thus left the District
with a white elephant on its hands
in 1888 He is very much inter-
ested" in getting the laboratory re-
opened
Even if it would save no money
to do so, and I believe it could be
shown that it would" he said, 1.-The
time saved and the service would
make it worth while. At present
District materials take their turn
at the Bureau of Standards with
those of the rest of the country
Tickets to Moving Offenders.
AS chairman of the federation S
Safety Committee, Mr.. Smith feels
this field, which embraces the traffic
problem, is where much work re-
mains to be done. He believes too
many tickets are given to what he
calls static offenders" and not
enough to dynamic offenders"
THE non-moving offenders out
number the moving offenders 10 to
l." he explained. That's because
it is easy for the patrolmen on the
beats to pick up the non-moving
Ul1ClluC1. ouo tiAC otilCl 10 VIC oolA-
gerous type and we need more
motorcycle policemen and patrol cars
to increase the number of arrests of
moving offenders.
AS an assistant highway engineer
with the Public Roads Administra-
ton, Mr.. Smith is interested in
the street and highway development
of the District, including such prof.
ects as the underpasses and the
grade separations.
I'm not sure the Scott Circle
underpass shouldn't be in line with
Massachusetts, avenue" he said, "but
it's too late to do anything about ii
now"
And as a good member of the
North Capitol Association, he would
like to see major engineering op-
Grafton on the intersection of New
York avenue and Florida avenue.
He put in lot of work making
up map of the boundaries of the
various associations of the District
at a time when there were a num-
ber of conflicting claims and juris-
dictions. His father -in-law proudly
has it hanging in his Office, and il
was extensively used by federation
officers in making recommendations
for members of local Draft Boards
Mr.. Smith is a graduate of Nc
Kinley High School and George
Washington University and lives al