Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1948-10-30
Board Seeks Aid
.0fCity Heads in
Recreation Fight
Also Asks to Be Heard
By Clark Before He
Rules on Fairgrounds
By Colt HendIey, Jr.

A conference with the District
Commissioners Is next on the
agenda of the Board of Recrea-
ton in its fight to prevent the
Interior Departments National
Park Service from taking control
Of 81 recreational areas now
under District jurisdiction.
After that, the combined forces of
The Commissioners and the Recrea-
lion Board will present the matter
10 Attorney General Clark.
Meeting yesterday in special ses-
sion, the Recreation Board called
upon the Commissioners to give full
support ito protect the Districts in
vestment and authority on play
grounds assigned to their control by
the National Park and Planning
Commission. The board also re-
quested MI. Clark to allow it
to be heard before he rules on the
question.
Walter L. Fowler, District budget
ofiicer and the Commissioners rep
resentative on the Recreation
Board, told other board members:
Don't worry about the Commits.
sloners. They are fully interested in
the matter. They are going to do
everything in their power to see
that we are protected
Mr.. Fowler, like other members of
the Recreation Board, serves with
out pay.
Wender Wants Solid Front.
Harry S. Wender, president of the
Recreation Board, said the confer
ence with the Commissioners will be
the next step in the fight.
He said the meeting will be mat
ter of presenting a solid front" in
for taking up the mat
ter with the Attorney General. He
hopes to have Maj. Gen. U. S.
Grant, III, chairman of the Ma
tional Park and Planning Commits
sion, at the conference, he added.
1t was the planning commission
that purchased the disputed land,
representing about two-thirds of the
operated by the Recre-
alton Board, and assigned it to the
Commissioners for playground pur-
poses.
Gen. Grants stand is the same as
that of the Recreation Board. He
said the National Park Service has
no control over the Fairgrounds,
since they we're purchased in &C
cordance with the Capper -Cramton
Act and turned over to the Commits
sioners.
Information Seen Withheld.
Mr.. Wender accused the National
Park Service of mot giving us the
courtesy of any information on the
matter" The park service is repre-
sented on the board by Irving C.
Root, director of National Capital
Parks.
Mr.. Wender said the first he knew
about ruling by the Interior De-
partment's solicitor that the. Ma
sfonal Park Service controlled the
~ areas was when he read 1t in the
newspapers. He pointed out that
he Recreation Board met in open
session. with an Interior Depart
nent representative on it. The In
error Department, however, never
old the board anything about what
t was doing, he added.
The whole matter came up when
A. E. Demaray, associate director
OF the National Park Service, asked
Department Solicitor Mas
tin G. White who controls the areas.
Mr.. White, in August, held that the
Interior Department controls the
land Thereby reversing an earlier
opinion OF previous solicitor), could
enter into agreements with the
Recreation Department for its use
and could refuse use of the land if
an agreement could not be reached.
Now Before Clark.
The matter was sent to the At.
torney General for an opinion,
where it now rests.
Mr.. Wender has charged that the
whole fight to gain control over
the land is involved with the segre-
CATION issue, which lis being used
as a political football" by the In
terror Department.
AT the meeting yesterday, Harry
T. Thompson, assistant superintend-
ent OF National Capital Parks (who
was representing the absent Mr..
Root, declared segregation is not
back OF the inquiry" He said the
Interior Department wants to know
where it stands as to control of the
lands.
Mr.. Wender then read a section
from Mr.. Whites opinion which
said that Mr.. Demaray has in
quired whether the National Park
Service can decline to enter into
agreements with the Recreation
Board unless the board will
agree to inclusion In each agree
ment of provision guaranteeing to
members of all races, without dis
tlnctlon, equal use q"
Grant Opinion Backed.
The board adopted a recommen.
datlon fully supporting" and reaf-
the position taken by Gen.
Grant in his opinion outlining the
authority for the planning commits
sion to purchase the land in cues.
ton and assign it to the Commits
sioners
Mr.. Thompson and Mrs. Alice C.
Hunter, colored board member,
voted against this recommendation.
Mr.. Thompson noted in favor of the
board enlisting the support of the
commissioners as proper stand"
Tor the board to take in the matter
and also agreed that the board
should be heard by the Attorney
General before a final decision is