Evening star., 1949-04-20

stand or fall mainly on the out
come of a Congressional fight be-
tween advocates Of historic senti-
ment and money saving.
Whether the weakened struc-
ture should be raZed and rebuilt
almost from scratch or whether
its old walls can take the strain
of all-around reconstruction is q
question on which chairlnen Of the
House and Senate Appropriations
Committees sharply differ.
Chairman Cannon OF the House
committee said today that on the
basis of cost estimates and "justi-
fications" submitted by the Budget
Bureau, he believes the White
House should be built all over
again for a probable outlay OF
about s4.725. 900.
The sandstone walls would crack
and crumble II heavy power ma
chinery were used in the general
reconstruction, and in any event
they would have to be reinforced
along with stronger foundations
he said. Use of lighter hand ma
chinery alone would add greatly to
the expense of the project, he
added.
McKeIlar Wants Old Walls.
Chairman McKellar of the Sen
ate committee does not want to
change the old structure, except to
renovate and repair it. He favors
retaining the outer walls and the
same appearance of the building
in a reconstruction job that would
cost about $5, 100000
Some of the architecture in
recent years, as shown by new
buildings in Washington, does not
meet my approval at all" he said
at recent hearings before Senate
subcommittee at which Public
Buildings Administration officials
testified.
Il am not an architect and do
not pretend to be-" he continued,
but I believe I know what
beautiful house is, and I am just
delighted. I want to commend
you for not attempting to change
the appearance of the building to
conform to modern ideas"
Chairman Cannon indicated he
does not want to DESTROY White
House tradition, but neither does
he believe in spending more
money than necessary to make
the White House structurally dur
able and serviceable for years to
come.
I'VE don't want a museum" he
declared. 1--WE have plenty Of
them in Washington now"
Item in Deficiency Bill.
The congressional controversy
centers on an item in the first
deficiency bill. This would pro-
vide $5,400,000 for renovation of
the White House. 1t was put In
the bill by the Senate. The
bill now Is in conference. and
the item is being fought by Mr..
Cannon and fellow conferees from
the House.
Chairman Cannon said the
House committee did not question
Public Buildings Administration
officials. He explained that the
cost data sent by the Budget
Bureau convinced him 1t would
be more practical to tear down
the building and replace it with a
marble, steel and bronze structure.
which would last much longer.
Everybody agrees it would cost
less to start over again" he
remarked.
Testimony of PBA officials be-
fore the Senate committee dis
closed that the walls are cracking
to some extent but that they are
so thick they could be saved by
new underpinnings. 1t was this
testimony that prompted Chair
man Mcclellan to explain he was
delighted to know there is going
to be no change" in the appear
ance of the building.
w. E. Reynolds, commissioner OF
public buildings, was asked how
long the outer walls would last If
they were retained In the renova-
ton. Under certain conditions, he
said, they should last indefinitely.
The outside walls, Mr.. Reynolds
explained, now rest on q spread