Evening star., 1947-12-22
RoyL. Huff, Welfare Chief, Dies
After 7O-Yeor Service to District

f0Tmer FTiSOn neoo
| Had Been Center in
Many Controversies
! Ray L. HUFF, director of the Dis
trict Department of Public Welfare
since 1913, died yesterday at his
home at 1924 Westover drive s. E.
ending 10 stormy years of District
service. He was 50 years old.
Mr.. Huff suffered from coronary
thrombosis, which had kept him
from his Municipal Center desk
fsince Thanksgiving.
He also had been confined to his
home by illness from April to July.
When he returned to work, his
doctors told him to work half time,
but he insisted on putting in full
days work
Hard work and disappointments
characterized his career of city
service.
Came Here in 1887.
He first came into the District
service as general superintendent of
penal institutions in 1887, succeed
ing Capt. M. M. Barnard.
At a special meeting today, the
District Commissioners ordered the
flag over the Municipal Center low
cred to half staff until after Mr..
Huff's funeral and sent a letter of
condolences to Mrs. Huff.
The Board of Public Welfare,
which was scheduled to meet this
afternoon, postponed its meeting
until next Monday at pm.
Raymond F. Clapp, principal as
sistant to the welfare director, has
been acting director.
Obtain Appropriations.
Notably successful in getting the
appropriations he needed to build
up the penal institutions at Lorton,
Va, Mr.. Huff became widely known
as a prison administrator.
He resigned in June, 1910, to ac-
cept appointment as warden of the
Mcneil Island Federal Penitentiary
in Puget Sound, Washington State,
but was taken i'll in Kentucky while
en- route to his new position.
He returned here for treatment
at Mount Alto Hospital and the
Commissioners reappointed him as
head of District penal institutions a
month later.
Less than a year later, Mr.. HUFF
became the central figure in tug
of-war between the Board of Pub
lie Welfare and the Commissioners.
The board, then headed by Fred
erick w. McReynolds, wanted Mr..
Huff to succeed Robert E. Bondy as
public welfare director.
Center Of Dispute.
The Commissioners wanted the
post to go to Paul Edwards, then
District WPA administrator. Un-
der the law, the. selection had to
be made by the Commissioners on
the nomination of the board.
Mr.. Huff's nomination was re-
iected by the Commissioners and
the board promptly renewed his
nomination. A protracted battle
finally was brought to halt with
the appointment of Conrad Van
Hyning, . compromise candidate.
Less than two years later. however,
Mr.. Van Hyning resigned. This time,
the Commissioners and the Board
of Public Welfare promptly agreed
on Mr.. Huff as successor to the well
fare post.
Remained rs Jail Head.
Meanwhile, Mr.. Huff continued as
director of penal institutions, hold
ing two jobs but drawing one pay
check.
In April, 1914, Controller General
Lindsay c. Warren, in a letter to
the Commissioners, charged that
Mr.. HUH was paying less rent for
his house at Lorton than the Dis
trict spent to heat it, and bought
334 pounds of ham through the
commissary there for his own use.
Detailed replies were made by Mr.
Huff to each of the controller gen.
erals complaints and the Commits
sioners explained that he had been
permitted to carry on as penal di-
rector because of the diff1culty of
finding a qualified man to succeed
him.
Gill Is Given Job.
Out of that controversy came
the appointment of Howard Gill as
penal director Mr.. HUFF and Mr..
Gill differed over Mr. Gill's admin
istrative practices. A struggle be-
tween them ended when Mr.. Gill
was fired after the April, 1916,
District jail break.
The Jail break, however, had other
repercussions. Mr.. Huff saw the
penal institutions with which he
had so long been identified removed
from the Board of Public Welfare
and placed in separate Depart
ment of Corrections.
That was only one of several dis
appointments that dogged his last
years. He fought with District
Auditor A. r. Pilkerton and even
some members Of his own staff to
establish a central business ONCE
to handle finances for all welfare
institutions. He succeeded in get
ting nucleus established but
finally saw even that turned down
by a House Appropriations SUBJ
committee in the 1913 budget.
Children's Center Was Aim.
He also failed to see the accomp-
lishment of his dream of children s
center at Laurel, Md, at which most
of the institutions for children
would be centralized. Some funds