Evening star., 1949-07-15

father, J. David Stern, former o
| becomes chairman of the Boare
members, business and profession
al men between the ages OF 81 and
'35. Forty per cent of the men,
bers answered the poll.
Lloyd N. Cutler, representing
the Washington Home Rule Com
mittee, urged immediate passage
of bill patterned after the
Kefauver bill. He said his group
found such a plan "a realistic
and workable means of presently
providing a measure of home rule
for the District
Pay Taxes Here.
"Our members include people
in the legal and medical profess
sions, businessmen. Federal en-
ployes and housewives" he said
1--WE have representation on the
Board of Trade and the District
Bar Association. Most of us own
our own homes. A number of us
were born here. We pay taxes
here. We would like to have a
say as to how our municipal gov
ernment is run.
I'VE believe the right Of local
self government is a basic right
of our American democracy
which must be open to all citi-
zens."
Statement Rebuts Foes.
Mr.. Cutler filed with the COM
mittee an extended statement in
which the group rebutted argu-
ments from home-rule foes on
numerous issues. Among these
were arguments that the Kefauver
bill did not provide true home rule
that Washington should not have
self-government because it is the
Federal City. that home rule would
not relieve Congress Of its District
burden and that the dual voting
section was illegal or improper.
Chairman Mcmillan asked Mr.
Cutler if he thought the Beard oi
Trade poll was a good bar ofneter''
of the District sentiment. The
witness replied:
That vote consisted of 19/100th!
Of l per cent of the people in the
District who would have the pow
er to vote. - .tt
"TheI7only two city-wide poll.
ever held here" he continued
Showed overwhelming favor fol
home rule. The first poll brought
out 80 per cent of the potential
voting population.
Another witness. Thomas S
Settle, secretary of the Nationa
Capital Park and Planning Com
mission, urged the committee te
consider changes in provisions re-
lating to the commission, zoning
and some other services, but die
not discuss home rule as such.
Mr.. Peterson's plea for inde-
pendence Of the library board
here was in the nature of a pro-
test against the plan contained
in the Kefauver bill to abolish the
Board Of Library Trustees and
place the libraries in a city de-
partment under a director.
Mr.. Peterson quoted numerous
students of library operation in
support of the plea to keep the
library system in its present inde-
pendent status, instead of bracket
ing 1t into one Of the departments
under a city manager.
If there is to be a reorganized
city government. he said, library
officials recommend that the Board
of Library Trustees be appointed
by the head of the city govern
ment. They now are named by
the District commissioners.
Reading from a statement pre-
pared by President Atwood of the
Board of Trustees, he said:
Library boards in general are
part of an American tradition
Public libraries throughout the
United States are administered by
boards. This type of organization
is by far the most prevalent. Many
more libraries in cities of popula.
ton of 10000 or more are con.
trolled by boards than are not.
Other Authorities Cited.
A published report by DR.. Carle'
ton B. Joeckel, the subcommittee
was told, showed that in 1895
only 13 cities out of 80 of the
larger cities did not put the oper.
alton of their libraries in the
hands of boards.
The current issue of a eli.
brary Quarterly" Mr.. Peterson
said, reveals that a survey by the
University of Chicago in the fal
of 1947 showed that 1875 cities Of
so 900 population or more (no1
including New York City or Chi.
cago) had 206 city libraries. O1
60: