The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1941-05-14
ON THE
CAPITALS CUFF
By HENRY ION

| WASHINGTON. = OPP - Decen
housing for new workers in defense
industries is still over the horizon ant
invisible to the naked eye according
to the testimony of experts.
Prospects of Improvement are con
tanned in indications that defense
housing officials may gradually be
coming to the realization that New
Deal housing officials do know some
thing about the problem and should
be consulted.
Prospects for improvement, at the
same time, are lessened by indications
that defense housing officials are still.
kow-towing to private real estate in
terests in the hope that they will pro-
vide the needed housing - which
means fair rents as well as habita BILE
houses.
The experts whose testimony is be-
ing carefully studied here by those
interested in housing instead of prof
Bauer, one of the authors of the U. S.
housing act and longtime top official
of the U. S. housing authority, and
DR.. Edith Elmer Wood, the grand
mother of public housing in this coun-
try.
In an article in the April 20 issue of
"Agenda", published by the California
Housing & Planning Assn, Miss Bau-
Ell charges that delay has resulted
from the decision of congress and the
armed forces to sidetrack the existing
housing agencies.
This decision, she writes, was made
partly because the army and navy
have a mistrust for the New Deal or
reform agencies, partly because the
real estate lobby and its friends on
the hill (capitol were more con-
cerned to kill off the public housing
ing done efficiently Cor at ALL, partly
because the Public Buildings Admin
istration has considerable strength
with congress, having handed out non
controversial post offices for years
and years, partly because in the early
stages it was easy to mistake hard
boiled attitude for a guarantee of
speed and efficiency.
But mainly because the admins
tration itself did not take a firmly
logical stand at the outset and thus
left the field open for endless finag-
ling"
Miss Bauers charges are docu-
mented in the same issue of the mag
azine with description of what hap
pened in San Diego, Calf, and Val
Iejo, Calf, where post office builders
undertook the job of providing houses
for thousands of additional defense
workers.
More serious and more blistering is
he attack made by Dr. Wood in an
article in the April issue of The Archi-
ectural Forum, highly authoritative
magazine in the field of housing.
She charges defense housing Off
Gals with six specific failures. They
ire:
1. Failure to synchronize home
building with plant building.
2. Failure to profit by the lesson
If 1917-191S.
3. Failure to realize that private en-
erprise is still unwilling to build de-
ense housing.
4. Failure to grasp the principle
hat risks too great to be incurred by
rivate enterprise are too great to be
on individual working men.
5. Failure to see the futility of try
ng to curb overcrowding and sky
rents after the evils have
ecome established
6. Failure to control the inflational
piral of rent increase before it starts. !
She pointed out that while indus
rialists figure out each foot Of plant
pace needed for factories producing
ertain articles they do not figure on {
ousing for transplanted workers at l
IL. e
mo one would transport tens of f
of horses from one place to /
mother without knowing that good
-ables were built and ready for them
ut men had been expected somehow t
, shift for themselves" she quotes C
world war housing official as say il
lg. v
Charles F. Palmer, defense housing
she charges, agrees with [
lie idea of favoring conservation of
9TH "the bill of rights and the real n
state board = but the real estate n
,ard certainly" h
Amendments of the Natl Housing !,
ct permitting federal insurance of n
ortgages on houses built to rent as
ell as owner built, DR.. Wood says,
zone of the most cynical bits of :
gislation ever penned. 1t takes all =
e risk out of speculation for the -
eculative builder. 1t insures the =
reful banker against loss in lending %
oney to the speculative builder. The -
SIX is then divided between Uncle i
IN and the working man. :,
What are we arming to defend any -
w?" she asks. 1.-THE America of IL
Jorge Washington and Abraham Lin =.
In? Or the America of George F. AZ
bbitt?"
EGITHIN pR0nIIcERE M ps