Evening star., 1953-05-23
Peace Cross Z
Flood Decision
Due Today
House Committee
Hears Pleas by
BeuII, Small

the work under way were Rep
resentative Small and Senator
Beall, Maryland Republicans.
They and spokesmen for the
Washington Suburban Sanitary
Commission have stressed that
the recurring Northwest Branch
floods are a national as well as
a local menace and that the
United States should share in
the correction.
Senator Beall, Mr.. Small and
Harry Shaw, chief engineer of
the sanitary commission, ap-
PEAKED for the fund yesterday at
a hearing before the Army Civil
Functions Subcommittee Of the
Senate Appropriations Commit
tee.
They made the point that
Maryland already has put up
$4,250,000 to begin construction
along plans perfected by the
Army Engineers. Senator Beall
stressed that the United States
should accept its share of re-
sponsibiiity.
He and Mr.. Small said work
cannot proceed without a token
Federal appropriation. State and
county authorities cannot go
ahead independently because the
tidewaters of the AnacoStia
River are under Federal control,
they said.
This was a reStatement of
arguments represented May 13
to the House Subcommittee on
the civil functions bill, released
today.
At that time Mr.. Small said
Army Engineers already have
planned the first two phases of
the three-phase control project.
He asked that the million dollars
deleted from the engineers
budget be restored to enable
| WOrk TO Degln.
Technical Clearance.
The Maryland Representative
explained that Federal funds in
any amount technically would
allow the Army Engineers to at
least go ahead and spend our
money"
He said the Maryland Legis-
lature had authorized the Prince
Georges County Commissioners,
the State Roads Commission and
the Washington Suburban Sani-
tary Commission to use $3.50, 900
on the project.
This would be supplemented,
Mr.. Small said, by SIS million
from the Road Commission and
a similar sum authorized by the
Prince Georges Commissioners.
The speaker said continual
flooding of the area blocks the
most important northern and
easterly approaches to the Capt.
tol, including Route l to Balti-
more and Route so to Annapolis.
Mr.. Small declared that an
atomic attack on Washington
might knock out the Virginia
bridges. If this should occur
during one of the periodic floods
on the Anacostia River, he said,
II do not like to even think of
what would happen"
Damage in Millions.
Flooding conditions along the
Anacostia have become pro-
gressively worse since Colonial
days, it was said, with the re-
suit that millions of dollars have
been lost in recent years in prop
erty damage, delay in interstate
highway traffic, and delays i'm
posed on Federal employees going
to and from work in Washington.
Something must be done
promptly" Mr.. Small continued.
unless positive action is taken
by this session of Congress, the
local authorities will have to re-
sort to some plan of partial re-
lief, as they do not have the
money to do a permanent job"
Such a locol alternative, Mr.
Small said. eventually would
prove wasteful in that it would
afford only partial relief and the
work would contribute little, II
any thing, to a permanent So
luton.
20 Days of Flood.
L. S. (Ted) Ray, a member Of
the sanitary commission told the
Representatives:
There are hundreds of peo-
pie living in the affected area
whose homes are flooded every
time we have a slight rain; even
a small rain floods that area.
There were 20 days in 1852 in
which highways near the Peace
Cross were blocked.
"The rain water drains into
the Northwest Branch, and the
water piles up in this area; the
river fills up and meanders in
almost every direction. It is
filled with debris, and also we
have tides in this area. The en-
gineers for both the Government
and the commission have felt
that it must be dredged and
Strengthened.
1--WE are fearful, because the
people are so put out that some
temporary expedient will be
adopted that would be more or
less useless and probably would
have to be torn out very short
ly with the waste Of money"