Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1945-02-27
Foreman Won't Rae
Home Occupied by
Stricken Mother

Workmen were busy with pick and
bar today tearing down a row OF old
brick houses to make room for a
Government building on the east
side of Second street between D and
E streets NV, but they were keep
ing away from two of the houses
in obedience to an unusual order
from the foreman, M. T. Shipp.
IF I see any of you men on one
of those houses with kids in it I
am going to shoot you" the stocky.
53-year- old Mr.. Ship said in top
sergeant fashion.
| Except for the presence of Mr.
Shipp the situation was similar to
/ that of many wartime evictions of
properties taken over for Govern
ment buildings in Washington. The
tenants difficulty was not a matter
of poverty. James Spiridopoulos, a
fruit dealer at No. 425. had pur-
chased house since he was noti-
fled on Christmas that he would
have to be- out in February. But
he had to give the present occu-
pants another 30 days before he
could evict them. Mrs. Leila Steph-
ems. who ran rooming house at
No. 4l9, in which her daughter and
four grandchildren live, did the
same thing and was having the
same difficulty
Goes Into Action.
When Mr.. Shipp walked into No.
400 and found 23-year-old Mrs.
James Ennis, lying stricken on
day bed in the kitchen while her
three little children played on the
floor, he went into action. He tele-
phoned all the newspapers.
These buildings are coming down
for an RFC temporary he said.
There's still ground in Washing
ton to put tempos on without put
ting sick mothers and children into
the streets"
Mrs. Ennis husband was wounded
in both legs January Is in Belgium.
He is'in hospital in England. Mrs.
Ennis gets Sl20 month from the
Government. She has been paying
S3l month rent for the basement
for three years. Her father-in law,
who works in grocery warehouse,
has been sharing her quarters. Two
days ago Mrs. Ennis had a swelling
of the throat which has not COM
pletely gone down. If she feels better
tomorrow she will take her children
to her parents home in Fredericks-
burg, Va.
But" she said, y don't like Fred
ericksburg"
Mr. Ship said the company for
which he works faces a penalty of
$3.50 day if the houses are not all
cleared away in 30 days. but that
makes no difference" Kids mean
more than penalties, he added
Razed Big Apartment House.
Mr.. Shipp is demolition expert
He exploded the dynamite that
brought down the tall apartment
house on the site now occupied by
the War Department Building at
TWenty-First street and New York
Avenue NV. 1t crumpled beauti-
fully as newspaper photographers
took pictures.
He believes that the press can
clear up most unsatisfactory situa-
tons. The other day he sent all
the editors a letter he had written
Brig. Gen. Frank T. Hines, veterans
administrator. He wrote as a vet
eran and related that he had fin
ished one contract at Fort Washing
ton wrecking buildings so it could
be converted into a Veterans Ad-
ministration institution but had
been unable to continue because
German prisoners of war gangs were
substituted for his labor crew He
has not yet received an answer.
Mr.. Shipp, despite his age, is an
overseas veteran of this war as well
as the last. His service came about
in this way as he tells it: The day
after Pearl Harbor his younger son
brought home papers for his parents
signature. The older son already
was in the Army.
Aren't you going to sign them?"
Mr.. Shipp asked his wife across the
ulllIlGl CdUlt dG Cllt1I 1lOllle DIT IfIo
Sixteenth street North, Arlington,
Va. She said she was not.
Helped Build Railroad.
Then I'm going to enlist said
Mr.. Shipp. There's not room in
this family for two men with
war on"
He joined the Army engineers and
went to Persia as a technical SER
geant to help build the railroad
across the mountains between the
Red and Caspian Seas He was gone
two years.
The reason I got out was that
my wife almost had nervous
breakdown when the boy had to co."
he said He's with the Bird Marines
on Two Jima now It's a funny
thing but she's been all right since
I came home"
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