. General News J §flje to b
^_ WASHINGTON, T). C., SUNDAY MORNING, JULY 25, 1937. ♦ K PAGE B—1 *
STRIKING PAINTERS
SEE HOPE FOR PACT
3 R ONS
tabor Department May Fix
p Wages and Hours and
Settle Dispute.
CONTRACTOR OFFICIAL
MAY AGREE TO PARLEY
Third Possibility Is That Labor
Board May Act Soon on
Complaint.
Leaders of union painters conduct
ing a strike against Federal projects
here let through the Procurement Di
vision of the Treasury Department
last night were pinning their hopes
for favorable settlement on three pos
•ible developments.
First was the possibility of a ruling
by the Labor Department on wages
and hours demanded on public con
tracts. The department ruled last
week in the District school labor dis
pute on the wage issue, but did not
specify as to hours per day.
Second was the prospect that rep
resentatives of the firm of William
Wilson At Sons of Atlanta, which
holds three of the disputed Federal
painting contracts, would consent to
come here for conferences on Tues
day with Howard T. Colvin, concilia
tion officer of the Labor Department,
and representatives of the union. Col
vin has requested the company to
•end a spokesman here.
Third was the possibility of speedy
and favorable action by the regional
office of the National Labor Rela
tions Board on the union's complaint
of discrimination against union paint
ers by the Wilson firm.
•*t for the Labor Department ruling
on wages and hours, since it acted
promptly on request in connection
With the strike-bound District projects.
In that ruling, it was specified that
contractors must pay predetermined
wages for earh classification of work
and not be allowed to evade this requi
site ;s,v assigning laborers to do skilled
worV and paying them only laborers'
1 wages.
The pointers, however, are desirous
of having a ruling which would de
fine the hours to be worked daily, one
of their complaints against the Wil
aon firm and that of Coones <$s Raptis
of New York, which has another dis
puted Government contract, being that
these firms require men to work more
than the aeven hours daily set for
union painters.
Obstructing the chances of getting
*ueh a ruling has been the unwilling
ness of the Procurement Division to
* ask it. The Bacon-Davis public con
tract* act specifies that such request*
be made by the contracting officer, in
this instance the Procurement Division.
DECISION ON A. A. A.
HAILED BY OFFICIALS
Circuit Court Ruling Upholding
Validity Seen “Heart
ening.”
®S th« Associated Press.
Farm administration officials hailed
yesterday a* 'heartening" the decision
of the United States Circuit Court of
Appeals in San Francisco upholding
constitutionality of the amended agri
cultural adjustment act.
They expressed the hope, powever,
that the case, brought into court by
the Edwards Fruit Co., Colton, Calif.,
would be carried to the Supreme Court
ao it could rule on the points involved.
The California company contended
the law, even as amended in 1935,
Illegally delegated legislative power to
the Secretary of Agriculture and vio
lated the "due process" clause of the
Constitution. Justice William Den
man of the Circuit Court held that
act "is within the Federal police power
and not contrary to the fifth (consti
tutional) amendment.” t
Administration officials said they
would proceed with present marketing
agreements and control programs as
they have during previous legal dis
putes.
INTERIOR BUILDING
VISTA TO BE IMPROVED
Area South of Building Will Be
Beautified With
Lawns.
Improvement of the area bounded
by Eighteenth and C streets and Vir
ginia avenue, South of the new In
terior Building, will be launched Mon
day. officials of the National Capital
Parks announced yesterday.
The area will be beautified with a
lawn. Top soiling and a water sup
ply will be installed. A temporary
building which housed Army units
was torn down recently and a con
tractor has been grading the land.
The Temple Wrecking Co., which
la doing the work of grading the area
bounded by Constitution and Virginia
avenues and Nineteenth street, im
mediately south of the other park
triangle, is expected to complete that
Job shortly. The old Research Build
ing has been torn down from the lat
ter area. The contractor is to re
ceive 50 cents for the job, being per
mitted to take over the salvaged ma
terials from the building. When the
Constitution Avenue triangle is va
cated, the park authorities will in
stall a water supply, place top soil and
establish a lawn area.
HELIUM BILL 0. K.’D
The Senate Military Committee yes
terday approved a bill permitting sale
©f helium gas for use in foreign pas
•enger-carrying airships.
The measure, considered at exten
sive hearings after the destruction of
the hydrogen-inflated German dirigi
' ble Hindenburg, also provides for a
Government monopoly of the rare
helium gas.
<
I
Life Is Just One Merry Whirl in Ferris Wheel for Flickertails
"Whoops. my dear,” says this Flickertail as he
takes a backward somersault on the miniature
ferris wheel at the Zoo, where these little fellows
entertain thousands of Washingtonians with their
odd aiitics. .
“Hey, wait for me.” says a belated pas
senger as he tries to hop aboard. The ani
mals are Richardson ground squirrels, called
Flickertails because of the way they dart
into holes.
Time out for lunch. Three of the little fellows climb
out to eat, but the one inside the wheel refuses to rest
for a second as he whirls round and round. The speed
of the squirrels was difficult to catch with the camera.
Old Sleepy Eyes gives the rest of
the family a free spin, turning the
wheels with his tiny forepaws.—Star
Staff Photos by Elwood Baker.
Body Expected to Clear Its
Calendar of Last Four
Local Measures.
The House tomorrow, on what may
be the final District day of the cur
rent session of Congress, is expected
to clear its calendar of all pending
local legislation.
There are only four District bills
on the calendar, headed by the one
sponsored bv Representative Kennedy,
Democrat, of Maryland, authorizing
the Commissioners to borrow Federal
funds to tide the municipal govern
ment over its prospective period of in
solvency between August 1 and Octo
ber 1.
Important among the others bills
are those to regulate adoption pro- ;
readings and changing certain fea
■ tures of the liquor control act. The !
fourth measure, which has been on
the calendar for nearly two months. |
provides for licensing and control of
barbers.
Chairman Palmisano of the Dis
trict Committe plans to call tip the
loan authorization bill, although the
tax- measure which passed the Senate
Friday contains a provision giving
the Commissioners the privilega of
borrowing Federal funds.
Deadlock Feared.
Palmisano fears the tax bill may
be deadlocked in conference, and to
prevent the District from being
financially embarrassed In such an
event he thinks the loan authoriza
tion should be approved. The House
has twice rpfused at the current ses
sion to authorize the Commissioners
to borrow Federal money, but Palmi
sano is confident, now the Kennedy
bill wall be passed. He said he had
held a series of conferences with
House leaders and “oiled the machin
ery" for speedy approval of the meas
ure.
xjic uni hj uineuu me liquor control
act has three features.
1. It will permit the sale of hard
liquor by the drink over bona fide
lunch counters where only beer and
light wines are now allowed to be
served.
Will End Liquor Tax low.
2. It will vest in the District Court
rather than the Commissioners au
thority to review decisions of the Alco
holic Beverage Control Board.
3. It will prevent shipment into the
District of large quantities of tax-free
liquor by allowing consumers the privi
lege of importing only 1 gallon a month
for personal consumption. Liquor now
shipped into Washington direct to the
consumer escapes the State tax at the
point of origin as well as the local tax,
and there is no limit on the quantity.
The adoption bill is designed to
eliminate the present quick adoption
procedures and to prevent adoptions
without proper investigation.
If Congress remains in session until
August 15, the District may have an
other day in the House, but Palmisano
is skeptical in view' of the fact there
may be a last-minute rush for ad
journment and local legislation side
tracked. For that reason he is
anxious for the House to wipe its cal
endar clear of local bills tomorrow.
MRS. GARNER’S ABSENCE
AUGURS SESSION’S END
By the Associated Press.
Vice President Garner finished yes
terday his busiest week of the session
without the assistance of his wife
secretary.
Mrs. Garner remained in Texas
when the Vice President returned
Monday to take a hand in the court
bill battle. She has managed ris of
fice for more than 30 years.
Congressional oldsters interpreted
her absence as meaning Just one
thing—that Congress soon will ad
journ.
Work on Naval Project
Scheduled to Start
Within Month.
The Navy Department yesterday as
signed Comdr. Lewis Barton Combs,
Civil Engineer Corps, to supervise the
construction of the new ship model
testing basin at Carderock. Md.
Naval officials sPill hate under con
sideration the recently opened bids,
but Secretary Swanson is expected
to make an award within the next
month.
Comdr. Combs has just reported
for duty in Washington and has tem
porarily set up headquarters at the
Bureau of Yards and Docks, Navy De
partment. He is living at 5511 Broad
Branch road. The commander re
cently has been on duty as public
works officer of the base and the dis
trict at the Sixteenth Naval District
at the Cavite. P. I. Navy Yard.
Staff to Be Chosen.
When the contractor has been
chosen, Comdr. Combs and his staff
will move to Carderock to begin work
on the job. Under the Navy'* plans
and specifications, the contractor
must erect % building for the chief
naval officer and his assistants. Comdr.
Combs said yesterday he will build
up his forces as they are needed.
The Navy Department has closed
the deal for 95 acres of land for $61,
400 for the Carderock development.
The bids for the basin will be sent
by Comdr. Combs and his associates
to the chiefs of the Bureau of Yards
and Docks and of the Bureau of Con
struction and Repair for their final
recommendations, before going to the
Secretary of the Navy for final action.
To Assemble Technical Force.
At Carderock. which is located near
the Cabin John Bridge, Comdr. Combs
will build up his inspection force to
watch closely the work of the ton
tractor, as well as assembling a tech
nical force that will keep an eye on the
nmoroc e nf
Congress, in making money avail
able for the Naval Testing Basin, has
ruled out the Construction of a wind
tunnel. But provisions will be made
for testing models of aircraft and
surface and subsurface vessels at
Carderock. The naval testing basin
at the Washington Navy Yard, which
has been in commission since early
in the century, has long been consid
ered obsolete, and the launching of
the Carderock project Is deemed a
victory for the Navy.
WOMEN VOTERS HAIL
SECTION 213 REPEAL
Lifting of Marriage Persons Ban
Seen as Gain for Federal
Merit System.
The National League of Women
Voters yesterday praised Congress for
repealing the so-called married per
sons clause of the economy act of
1832.
In a statement from league head
quarters, Miss Marguerite Wells,
president, said:
"The decisive action of the Senate
in voting unanimously to repeal Sec
tion 213 of the economy act, following
quickly on the heels of similar action
by the House, eliminates a barrier
of five years’ standing to the applica
tion of the merit principle in Gov
ernment employment.”
This action not only wipes off the
statute books a policy of discrimina
tion in connection with Government
employment, the statement said, but
also allows the reinstatement on elig
ible lists of persons discharged under
its provisions.
-«- »
Tourists Increase in England.
Foreign visitors to England in May,
the coronation month, totaled 34,332.
an increase of 14,129 over May, 1936
’Hoppers From Nebraska
The Star Receives 2.5-Inch Insects From
Infested Area.
These giants of the grasshopper world are natives of
Nebraska. They arrived yesterday in the news room of The
Star. —star Staff Photo.
I ‘ :
WITH the help of the mail- ]
man. four grasshoppers,
distance jumpers by na- ,
l turp, took an extraordi- I
i narily long leap last week from West
ern Nebraska, which plopped them
yesterday into the news room of The
Star.
The inserts are more remarkable
for their size than for their 1.800
mile travels. One of the scourges
of the Western farmer measures 2.125
inches from stem to stem. Another
stretches a good 2.5 inches along a
j ruler of unimpeachable accuracy.
"They aren't fuilly grown yet." was
the laconic remark of H. M. Bixby,
a Nebraska reader of The Star, who
sent the specimens eastward.
These Brobdingnags of the insect
world camp parrel post in a flat box
wrapped in brown paper on which
i was penned the warning to the mert
I in gray: "Fragile."
The shorter of the two which were i
_
measured, a brown, brooding bug. is j
a Melanophus spretus. one of millions |
whose voraeious appetite denudes :
mile after mile of cultivated fields in j
the Central Northwest.
The biggest jumper, a lively green
investigator of what might lie where i
the next leap will take him. is the
noisy katydid, an operatic hopper in
love with the music he makes by rub
bing a row of peglike joints on his
femur against the hardened veins of
the lorewing.
The brown hopper, short-homed, is
related to the locusts of Biblical fame
who lunched off Egypt until the land
of the Pharoahs was bare as a nudist
colony.
When breeding conditions are fav
orable. the brown fellows multiply
until their flving numbers blot out
the sun. They are not quite that bad
in the United States. The advance of
civilization has limited their breeding
centers to Northern Idaho.
R. A. SHIFT TO SAVE I
$40,000 ANNUALLY
Resettlement Begins Vacating
McLean Mansion—Goes to
Barr Building.
The Resettlement Administration,
which yesterday began vacating its
offices in the old McLean mansion.
2020 Massachusetts avenue, will effect
a saving of $40,000 yearly by the
move, it was reported.
Notice already has been given the
building owners. Arthur V. Thatcher,
business manager of the resettlement
organization, said. The division housed
in the Massachusetts avenue building
will move to the Barr Building, where
it will take over space left by transfer
of the administrative staff to one of
the new Federal offices.
Rent for the McLean home, which
formerly was the scene of many promi
nent social gatherings, was $20,000 a
year. Thatcher estimated the cast of
elevator service, heating, guards, clean
ing and telephone service to run about
$20,000 more anually. No other agency
has been slated to take over the home,
it was said. The Government's con
tract expires July 31, terminating a
two-year lease.
In the new Post Office Building,
from which the Home Owners’ Loan
Corp. recently moved to its own
new building, the Federal Communi
cations and Interstate Commerce Com
mission are making shifts to apportion
the vacated space between them.
The Social Security Board is moving
from 1709 L street to the Hill Tib
bitts garage, 1114 Vermont avenue.
-———•
Wooden Nickels Sought.
DALLAS, Tex., July 24 UP):—“Don’t
take any wooden nickels,” is sage
advice, but the Chamber of Com
merce will take one if it can find one.
A letter over the signature of Mrs.
Madeline Tutcher, Brooklyn, N. V.,
said: ”1 saw in the paper that you
have some wooden money circulating
in Dallas.” and asked for samples.
The chamber began a search.
COUGHLIN CHURCH
AWAITS PILGRIMS
Baltimore Archdiocese Catholic*
to Attend ‘'Maryland Day-’
at Royal Oak.
A pilgrimage of Catholics from
the archdiocese of Baltimore to the
Shrine of the Little Flower, parish
chureh of Rev. Charles E. Coughlin,
Royal Oak, Mich., will take place in
the middle of August, it was an
nounced yesterday.
A special train of the Baltimore
and Ohio Railroad is to carry the
pilgrims westward so they will be in
Royal Oak for Sunday, August 15.
which Father Coughlin has desig
nated ‘ Maryland day.”
The priest will offer a high mass
for the members of the party from
this archdiocese. August 15 is also
the Feast of the Assumption of the
Blessed Virgin Mary, patroness of the
archdiocese.
The special rate for the round trip
is *12. The manager of the pilgrim
age is Peter F. Rydzynski, 627 South
Streeper street, Baltimore.
HOUSE UNIT WILL HOLD
DISTRICT BILL HEARING
Measures Affecting Members of
Police and Fire Departments
to Be Considered.
A special subcommittee of the
House District Committee, headed by
Representative Jenckes, Democrat, of
Indiana, will hold a hearing at 10
a.m. Wednesday on bills affecting
members of the District Police and
Fire Departments.
One of the measures is designed to
establish a 5-day work week in the
Fire Department. Another would
amend the existing police and fire
men's retirement act.
Serving on the subcommittee with
Mrs. Jenckes are Representatives
Wood, Democrat, of Indiana, and
Bates, Republican, of Massachusetts.
lEM. SUFFRAGE
IFFORT IS PLANNED
rtass Meeting Called for
rhursday—Kennedy Drafts
Bill Furthering Aim.
The surging interest in getting a
lote for the District brought dis
losure yesterday of another organized
■ffort afoot to bring pressure on Con
tress to grant at least a measure of
■nfranehisement to Washington citi
:ens.
The Citizens' Committee for Pro
gressive Action, whose watchword is
Progress Through Suffrage.” an- (
rounced that it has called a mass |
neeting for Thursday at 8:30 p.m. I
n the Sylvan Theater by the Monu
ment. This announcement follows
lard on two other recent moves to
irovide the Capital with some
lutonomy:
1. Organization of the District of
Columbia Suffrage Association, in
:erested first, in local suffrage as a
arelude to bringing national repre
sentation in Congress for the District.
Kennedy Drafts Bill.
2. Drafting of a bill by Represen
tative Kennedy of Maryland, member
of the District Committee, to give
the District government greater power
in controlling municipal affairs.
Speakers at the Sylvan Theater
meeting will include Representatives
Reuben Wood of Missouri, member of
the District Committee, and Henry
George Teigan of Minnesota, and
Charles Franklin, Conduit Roads Citi
zens' Association delegate to the Fed
eration of Citizens' Associations. .
Carl Gerber, Washington business
man, is temporary chairman of the
Citizens’ Committee, which plans to
enlist the organized aid of business
groups, citizens' associations, political
parties and the unemployed to further
its aim.
Drive Planned.
After the Thursday meeting, the
committee expects to extend invita
tions to these groups to participate in
a council which would draw up spe
cific plans for booming the suffrage
cause.
The committee has already deter
mined to stir the support of voting
citizens in the *8 States through a
campaign of enlightenment on the
lack of thkfranchise in Washington.
The comn#tee will seek both local
enfranchisement and national repre
sentation.
Chairs and music will be provided at
the Sylvan Theater.
-•
Wanted—Cure for a Cure.
BLUEFIIELD, W. Va., July 24 i/Pi.—
Bam B. Freeman found a sure cure
for the bugs and insects In his gar
den—now he wants a cure for the
cure.
Terrapins he turned loose ate the
bugs, but then destroyed his tomato
plants.
Smoking Ice Box
Mystery is Quickly
Solved by Firemen
When smoke pours out of an
ice box that's news, too.
Imagine the surprise of Ken
neth Birgseld last night when
his refrigerator acted like a
chimney.
Smoke filled his apartment at
1401 Fairmont street and fire
men came clanging up the street.
“What's so hot "around here?”
asked a hoseman.
”It seems to be the Ice box,”
replied Birgseld.
The firemen disconnected the
electric motor which keeps the
refrigerator temperature low and
departed. The smoke went out
the window and Birgseld stopped
choking.
Wagner Low-Rent and Slum
Clearing Plan Specific
ally Mentions City.
The District of Columbia is ^speci
fically included, along with the State*
in the new Wagner housing bill for
Federal co-operation with local com
munities in the rebuilding of slum
areas and development of low-rent
housing projects, an examination of
the measure yesterdav disclosed. As
reported from committee, the bill pro
vides that the definition of the word
"State" shall include Washington,
D C
The measure contemplates loans*to
public housing agencies or to limited
Pfofit housing organizations. The
District already has a public housing
agency—the Alley Dwelling Authority
—created by Congress to rebuild the
inhabited alleys of the National Cap
ital.
Senator Capper, Republican, of Kan
sas, former chairman of the District
Committee and sponsor of the local al
ley-improvement law, said yesterday
he wanted the District go receive the
same benefits as all other cities under
the new’ Federal housing plan, and
announced he would study the Wagner
measure as reported to see how It
might prove of assistance to the local
program.
Meanwhile. Senator Walsh, Demo
crat. of Massachusetts pointed out that
the bill in its present form would make
possible slum clearance throughout
the country at a rapid rate.
rTV- ~ T _ 1_ __ » •
! adoption Friday of an amendment
: by Walsh made it "in fact a slum
j clearance bill.” he said.
The amendment provides that con
! struction for low-income families
must be coupled with elimination or
renovation of an equal number of
unsafe or insanitary dwellings.
Administration leaders have made
plans for Senate consideration of the
measure after action on the wage and
hour bill.
-A——•
MAN’S INTERNAL ORGANS
ARE FOUND REVERSED
Autopsy Reveals One of Rarest
Phenomena In Medical
Annals.
The case of a man whose Internal
organs were reversed—one of the rar
est in District medical annals—was
revealed following an autopsy Fri
day at Gallinger Hospital.
The dead man was Grant Hibkins.
70, of 1007 Third street southwest, who
died, apparently from heart disease,
at Gallinger early yesterday.
An autopsy performed by a George
Washington University surgeon showed
the heart, stomach and spleen were
on the right side of the body, while
the liver and appendix were on the
left.
Holding that such a phenomenon
does not occur once in more than
10.000 autopsies, hospital authorities
said X-ray photographs of the Internal
organs will be preserved for medical
study.
CIVIL SERVICE TO FILL
JOBS AT ST. ELIZABETH’S
The Civil Service Commission will
receive applications through Wednes
day for the position of attendant at
St. Elizabeth's Hospital. The en
trance salary is $1,260 minus the
statutory 3'2 per cent retirement de
duction.
The ages are 18 to 35 for all but
those persons having veterans' pref
erence. They may be employed with
out regard to this limit.
Applications may be obtained from
the manager of the fourth civil service
district, 916 G street.
»
{Scientists Find Wrong Interpretations of Indian Names for States
Tu set tne record straight, sci
entist* at the Smithsonian
Institution recently turned
their attention to the meanings
of the names of various States in
the Union—States whose names were
originally derived from American In
dian dialects.
When the ethnologists finished their
studies, released to the general pub
lic yesterday, they found some very
misleading interpretations of such
names as Alabama, Arkansas. Ari
sona, Kentucky and the like. All due
to early pioneers’ ignorance of In
dian language.
Take Alabama, for instance. Good
Alabamans claim the meaning of this
Indian name is "here we rest.” That
t
is the translation, too, given in most
dictionaries. Take it from Dr.
John R. Swanton, Smithsonian expert
on the language of the Southern In
dians, this is a haywire translation.
Alabama, the doctor, says, means
"thicket cutters,” or, possibly, "medi
cine gatherers.” The best derivation
suggested, he says, is from the Choctaw
words "alba,” meaning "vegetation,”
and "amo,” meaning "to cut or gather.”
Take the case of Kentucky. Many
of the Colonels, big and little, for
years have believed the name means
"dark and bloody ground.” This is
a libel. Kentucky comes from the
good old Iroquois root word "kenta,”
meaning level. The term "kentayen
ton-ga” would mean “level country."
Simply that a ad nothing more.
•a
\
History textbooks, it is pointed out
in the report of the Smithsonian In
stitution, have been mainly responsible
for circulating a lot of erroneous in
formation on the meanings of State
names.
Ohio, the home of so many Presi
dents, is a term that comes frofn the
Iroquois and is generally translated
as ‘‘beautiful river.” This is the deri
vation generally given in dictionaries,
according to Dr. J. N. B. Hewitt,
another Smithsonian authority. ‘‘The
word ‘beautiful,’ ” he says, "is probably
not to be interpreted in the esthetic
sense. It means rather ‘beautiful for
camping or fishing.' ”
So goes the quest for higher educa
tion among people of the various
A
States, 'in a campaign to enlighten
them on the meanings of their State
names. A summary shows the fol
lowing worth remembering :
Illinois: Prom the Algonquin ‘Tlini"
or “man,” plus the plural termination
“ek.” Thus It means “the people."
Then French explorers shifted the
“ek” to "ois.”
Texas: From an Hasinai word
meaning “friends" or "allies.” It$
original form was probably “techas.”
It came to be used as a form of greet
ing—“hallo, friend," or just “hello.”
Dakota: An Eastern Sioux term
meaning “feeling friendly."
Missouri: An Algonquin phrase
meaning "he of the big canoe.”
In the case of the word Missouri,
Dr. Truman Michelson, expert an
A
Algonquin languages, did the research
work. The earliest spelling he was
able to find, he says, is "missourit.”
By 1887, however, it began to appear
as "Missouri.” French explorers
probably dropped the final “t.”
Wisconsin is a word with which
Dr. Michelson long has wrestled in
vain. The original Indian phrase
must have been greatly distorted, he
says. Nothing that makes sense can
be twisted into anything that even
reaembles Wisconsin.
Minnesota: "Land of the sky-blue
water." is an approximation. "Minne”
is a Siouan word for water. "Sota” is
defined as "clear but not perfectly
blue.”
Oklahoma: "Easiest of all," aays '
Dr. Swanton. “Just the Choctaw and
Chickasaw phrase meaning 'red peo
ple.’ ”
Nebraska: A Delaware Indian term
meaning "on the plain.”
Massachusetts: From the Algon
puin words "masa"—big—and "wad
:hu”—hill.
Connecticut: From the Algonquin
‘quinni-tukq-ut,” or, "On the long
;idal river.”
Only in the case of Mississippi can
the well-known meaning of "big wa
ter" be accepted as correct, the scien
tists say. Most of the other State
names have been corrupted in one
way or another through the years,
Smithsonian authorities claim. They
nope to clear up the entire misunder
itanding when the present aurvey is
:ompleted. •
SLAUGHTER HOUSE
MAY BE SUBJECTED
10 STRICT ROLES
“Nuisance” Code to Impose
Rigid Standards on Pen
ning, Killing.
POULTRY BUTCHERING
PROVISION IS SOUGHT
Conditions in Many Small Stores
Constitute Health Menace,
Officer Says.
A ‘‘nuisance'’ code designed to im
pose very rigid standards with respect
to the penning and slaughtering of
live stock in the District of Columbia
was being considered by the Health *
Department yesterday *s a "necessary
precaution," due to the failure of pro
tective legislation aimed at the opera
tion of undesirable industries in
the city.
Dr. Daniel L. Seckinger, assistant
health officer, said he was anxious To
see the adoption of strict ruies. espe
cially for the guidance of the Health
Department, if a large slaughter house
is to be conducted in the Benning
area. He will consult with Dr. George
C. Ruhland when the health officer
returns and also with legal officers
of the municipal government.
His proposal is in line with the sug
gestion of Corporation Counsel El wood
H. Seal that plumbing and sewer reg
ulations should be overhauled as
were the zoning regulations some
months ago.
Dr. Seckinger represented the Health
Department at a conference with Seal
and others last week at which it was
decided to use all legal means avail
able to prevent operation of the pro
posed Adolf Gobel meat packing plant
Even should the Gobel Co abandon
its pians to build in Benning, it was
pointed out that there are half a
dozen firms in Washington that kill a
small number of calves and hogs daily.
Rats. Vermin Breed.
“There should also be included in
the nuisance code a provision regulat
ing poultry killing in the District.••
Dr. Seckinger said yesterday. A rec
ommendation to this effect has been
made by Dr. Reid Ashworth, director
of the Bureau of Food Inspection.
The killing of chickens in the back
rooms of hundreds of small grocery
stores and markets has been a vexa
tious problem for the Health Depart
ment over a long period. Dr. Ash
worth explained that in the last month
or *o at least SO small stores have
discontinued the practice of killing &
poultry, rather than risk trouble with ™
the Health Department.
He was of the opinion that poultry
killing should be confined to centers
in certain industrial or market areas,
and Dr. Seckinger was in accord with
that idea.
"The way the average small store
operates Is to kill their chickens in a
rear room. Dr. Ashworth explained.
“Many of them constitute a menace
to health by the breeding of flies and
vermin. The scalded feathers and
entrails are dumped into garbage cans
that are collected only twice r week.
In one store, where we made the pro
prietor tear out a filthy room in the
rear where the killing was done and
chickens were kept in crates, the
workmen found a swarm of rats under
the floor boards. They killed enough
to fill two bushel baskets and as many
more got awray.-’
Many Co-Operating.
Many of the small dealers are co
operating with the Health Department
by making more sanitary arrange
ments, Dr. Ashworth explained. At
least 50 stores have discontinued
chicken killing, he said, rather than
go to additional expense or face
charges of conducting a public
nuisance.
Th^ 1Q rcrfi lrillivtnr a.t.Uli.U__
where thousands of .xmltry are pre
pared for the markets daily, are un
der constant inspection.
Arrangements are being made at
the Farmers' Market, Dr. Ashworth
explained, to have all poultry killed
and dressed in one establishment.
That arrangement, however, does not
prevail at other markets.
As in the ca.se of poultry establish
ments there are no general regula
tions covering meat-packing houses
or stockyards in the District.
■ Referring to proposed slaughtering
operations In Banning, Dr. Seckinger
said: ‘The report of the surgeon gen
eral dealing with the Gobel plans says
it would be impossible tr preven pol
lution of Piney Run, which flows
through the property. There Is a
District law which prohibits the pol
lution of tributaries of the Potomac
River and it seems to me that the
Health Department should do even
thing possible to guard against pollu
tion.
‘This question of pollution should
be dealt, with adequately in any reg
ulation that is drawn up.”
The Health Department indicated
it was necessary, also, to consider the
Union Stockyards in order to provide
protection against disease-spreading
flies and mosquitoes. Dr. Seckinger
said he believed it would be easier
to control the flies than it would be
to prevent pollution from the pack
ing plant and the stockyards.
CONTINUANCE GRANTED
IN D. C. PAY ACT CASE
Nicholas Corvelli Accused of
Failure to Return Tax.
Bond Is Given.
A continuance of two weeks yester
day was granted Nicholas Corvelli,
proporietor of the Blue Flame Valet
Shop, MO F street, when he was ar
raigned in Police Court for allegedly
violating the District unemployment
compensation act. He was released
under $300 bond.
Corvelli’s case marked the first time
criminal charges under the act have
been pressed by the district attorney's
office. He allegedly failed to pay taxes
under the act for May and June.
s