cerned about a calculated risk, that we may wind up, in another 2 months of operation, to find we are no longer in business. Mr. BUSBEY. Can we have a copy of that audit? Mr. SNADER. I can leave with the committee the one copy I have. Mr. BUSBEY. It seems to me it might be of value to the committee to have a copy of the audit and copies of the letters exchanged between Mr. Snader and Mr. Coar. Mr. GARY. Shall we request the Clerk of the House to furnish to the clerk of this committee a copy of the GAO audit? Mr. BUSBEY. And copies of the letters exchanged. Mr. HORAN. We will do that. STRUCTURAL CHANGES Mr. BUSBEY. Does the GAO audit show the cost structural changes made by the Architect of the Capitol? Mr. COAR. No. Mr. BUSBEY. That cost has been considerable. Mr. COAR. Yes. There were appropriated last year some funds jointly for the facilities in the Old House Office Building plus carry out lunch stands and things of that kind. Mr. Bow. That information probably could be obtained from the Architect of the Capitol. (The information may be found on p. 108.) Mr. HORAN. Thank you, gentlemen. TUESDAY, JUNE 2, 1953. OFFICE OF THE DOORKEEPER WITNESSES HON. OAKLEY HUNTER, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS, FROM THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA TOM KENNAMER, DOORKEEPER, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CAPITOL PAGE SCHOOL Mr. HORAN. We have with us this morning Mr. Tom Kennamer, doorkeeper of the House, and our colleague, Allan Hunter, of California. Mr. Kennamer, please tell us something about this Page School matter, and then I believe Mr. Hunter would like to make a statement. NEED FOR SCIENCE INSTRUCTOR Mr. KENNAMER. Mr. Chairman, I have discussed this matter with Miss Ruth H. McRay, principal of the Page School. She tells me that the provision for a science instructor is very important to the curricula of the Page School. I think there is a board that operates through the National Educational Association, which makes surveys of various schools as to the credit of the school, and with reference to the standing of the graduate students from the schools and their accreditment for college. Mr. HORAN. Would this affect the accredited standing of the Page School? Mr. KENNAMER. It certainly does, yes. Mr. HORAN. And in order to clear this up, we would have to increase the budget some $5,500. Mr. KENNAMER. That is correct. She states that they need a science teacher in the school CURRICULUM RATING Mr. HORAN. I notice from the letter, and without objection we will make it a part of the record because it outlines the problem very well, the statement that the school was rated inferior in curriculum in April 1949. I assume it has not been corrected since. Mr. KENNAMER. And they are coming back, Mr. Chairman, so Miss McRay informs me, and that the previous rating has been improved since 1949. Mr. HORAN. The suggestion is that it should meet the educational requirements comparable to other Washington high schools. Mr. KENNAMER. That is correct. Mr. HORAN. The item, according to her, is estimated at $5,500. PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, Mr. Toм KENNAMER, Doorkeeper, House of Representatives, United States Capitol, Washington, D. C. DEAR MR. KENNAMER: In response to your request for information concerning the science department at the Capitol Page School I am submitting these facts to support the definite need for adequate instruction in this field. I have reviewed the budget estimates for our school from 1947, when the Board of Education of the District of Columbia assumed control of the school until the present time. It was noted from these figures that until 1950 provision for 6 teachers was carried in the estimates, but in 1950 1 salary was dropped from the budget since this salary had not been used to provide the needed teacher. This error can be substantiated by reading the report of the Middle States Committee which evaluated the instruction and facilities of the school in April 1949. The school was rated inferior in curriculum at that time. This committee will reevaluate Capitol Page School in March 1954 and unless this very apparent lack in subject offerings is corrected before this examination by the addition of a regular sequence of courses in science the school will be penalized by receiving another inferior rating. I have studied the enrollment figures of the school and I am amazed to find that we are instructing the greatest number of boys in the history of the school. In fact, the school is one-third larger than it was when six teachers' salaries were provided. As you know, our rigid time schedule makes it impossible to keep the pages after class for remedial work. Our entire instructional period must be confined to 45 minutes and the boys need much individual attention. Sizes of classes at the present time are running above normal and with the increased enrollment the time for individual attention is difficult. Another fact to be considered in the justification of the science salary is that the median I. Q. at the Capitol Page School is above the average for the city. Because of this fact many of these young men will continue their education in either medicine or engineering and we should offer them an adequate secondary school preparation to fit them for the colleges of their choice. Provision should be made for an education comparable to the other Washington high schools. At the present time one teacher, a mathematics specialist, is dividing her time between the teaching of mathematics and science. This is an unfair and inadequate division of time in both departments. A total increase in the budget of the school would not exceed $5,500 for the additional teacher. Very truly vours, RUTH H. MCRAE, Principal. Mr. HORAN. We are glad to have our colleague from California, Mr. Oakley Hunter, with us. NEED FOR SCIENCE INSTRUCTOR Mr. HUNTER. Mr. Chairman, it is a pleasure to have the opportunity to testify before this subcommittee. I want to comment just briefly concerning the hiring of a science teacher for the Capitol Page School. I believe we Members of Congress become so deeply involved in national and international problems that we sometimes overlook things that are under our very feet. This matter was called to my attention by the principal of the page school. I was particularly interested, because one of the boys who attends the school is my appointee. It is obvious that the instruction which is given in science is inferior to that which is being given in the more advanced high schools throughout the country, including those in the District of Columbiz. And when we have such a fine bunch of young men as we do here as Capitol pages, I believe it is our responsibility to see that they receive the proper education, particularly in the field of science, because a great number of them may go on to study engineering and medicine and other specialized fields, which require science in high school. As I understand, Mr. Kennamer states the exact amount required would be $5,500. Mr. HORAN. At least a very nominal sum. Mr. HUNTER. Physics is the only science course taught and that by a teacher who also teaches mathamatics. There is no course in chemistry, which means that if a boy needs chemistry, he must go to night school or summer school. I believe that is all I have to say, Mr. Chairman. Mr. HORAN. We want to thank you for coming before the committee. We hope that all Members of Congress will show an interest. in the proper running of our business here on the Hill. We have enough worries without handicapping ourselves up here, particularly when it is within the limits of the subcommittee's jurisdiction to correct the situation. Thank you very much, Mr. Hunter. Mr. HUNTER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. STATEMENT ON OPERATION OF DOORKEEPER'S OFFICE Mr. HORAN. Mr. Kennamer, do you have a general statement? Mr. KENNAMER. I have one statement to make with reference to my department. I am satisfied with the way things are running. We have tried to increase the service and bring it up to a par anyway. I would like to make a statement with reference to the amount of service we are giving down there, and I presume the committee would be interested in knowing this, and that is with reference to the fact that the doormen are classed as messengers. We have on the roll at this time 30, and I am conferring with the House Administration Committee to try to increase that number to 40. We actually need 40 doormen. We ran a count on the number of visitors passing through the gallery for 1 week, and we found that during the week of May 11 there were 20,272 visitors that visited the gallery in the House, or an average of 3,378 people per day. Mr. BUSBEY. Where did you get those figures? Mr. KENNAMER. We ran a check, Mr. Busbey, with the doorman who had a count of each person who came out of the doorway, and also with the guide service. Mr. HORAN. Sixteen are listed as messengers. Mr. KENNAMER. That is correct. Mr. HORAN. And 14 are listed as messengers on the soldier's roll. I understand that grew out of the War Between the States. Mr. KENNAMER. During the Civil War. We are working out a proposition with the House Administration now that will rectify that, and also to change the title, so as to at least distinguish their service in line with what they are doing. Mr. HORAN. Is there anything further you would like to bring to the attention of the subcommittee? Mr. KENNAMER. I am here at the pleasure of the committee, to answer any questions you may have, Mr. Chairman. GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE AUDIT Mr. BUSBEY. Mr. Kennamer, I have not had time to study the audit of the Doorkeeper's office, made by the General Accounting Office, as of January 28, 1953, but in glancing through it I am rather concerned about one part of the report which says: In checking the tonnage reflected by the register against the various contractor's records, it was noted that payment had not been made for 58,109 pounds of wastepaper removed from the baling room during the period August 1 to August 14, 1951. The value of this wastepaper when computed at the contract price of $1.18 per hundredweight aggregates the sum of $687.76. Apparently the paper company-the Kline Paper Stock Co., which held the contract covering the period of February 15 to August 14, 1951, records, that is, the contract records do not show receipt of the paper and the record of the succeeding contractor is also silent in this respect. The owners of each of the firms are willing to make payment if it is established that the paper was actually received by either firm. Unfortunately, copies of receipts which contain the signatures of the drivers who received the paper have been destroyed. Then it goes on in the report and tells of the recommendation that is being made to handle this matter in the future, which is not of my immediate concern, but I want to ask you what was the situation in that period August 1 to August 14, with regard to the missing paper? Mr. KENNAMER. Mr. Busbey, you understand this happened before I was elected Doorkeeper in January of this year. Mr. Miller would be more acquainted with this particular matter than I would. DOORKEEPER RECORDS Mr. BUSBEY. Did Mr. Miller, the former Doorkeeper, turn over his records and books to you? Mr. KENNAMER. No. Mr. BUSBEY. On wastepaper. Mr. KENNAMER. No; I never received records of any nature from Mr. Miller, when I took office. Mr. BUSBEY. You say records of any nature. Are there other records that you think you were entitled to receive from Mr. Miller, aside from the records on wastepaper? Mr. KENNAMER. Well, I was entitled, I presume, to any records which were in the Office of the Doorkeeper, such as payroll records. I have never even had the advantage of knowing who was on my payroll. Mr. BUSBEY. No paper records were ever turned over to you? Mr. BUSBEY. Did you ask Mr. Miller for the records of wastepaper or the payroll records? Mr. KENNAMER. Yes; I did, and he claimed that he never had it, that they were in the folding room. The man at that time was Mr. Stranahan, who was the foreman of the folding room; and in checking over the records I was unable to find anything. He said it was destroyed or missing. Mr. BUSBEY. Did he, to your knowledge, ask the former superintendent of the folding room for the records? Mr. KENNAMER. He did. Mr. BUSBEY. And what was his answer? Mr. KENNAMER. He claimed that he never had them, that this was a case that happened back in 1951, they kept them for a year. Mr. BUSBEY. I think the record will show that I was concerned about this matter in the calendar years 1951 or 1952, and I satisfied myself at that time, after I had called it to the attention of the House Administration Committee and other people around the House of Representatives, that records were being kept on the wastepaper. The payroll I do not know about, but I do know that Mr. Miller did have records of wastepaper, because I saw them in his office. There is no reason, in my opinion, why those records should not be available. YEARBOOKS There is another situation, looking over this audit, of the folding room there are a number of missing books, particularly agricultural yearbooks. In order to make up a previous shortage the gentleman from Massachusetts, Mr. McCormack, the majority leader at the time, introduced a resolution calling for an appropriation-I do not recall the exact amount-but I think it was somewhere in the neighborhood of $110,000 to $115,000 to purchase additional yearbooks from the Government Printing Office to make up the shortage. Now, in looking over this audit of January 28, 1953, I see in the last column, headed "Accumulated difference," there are two subheads of "Short" and "Over," and under the subhead of "Short," I notice as of January 28, 1953, according to this audit, there was short 851 1942 yearbooks; 1,253 1943 to 1947 yearbooks; and 2,108 1948 yearbooks; 3,303 1949's, and 309 under "Diseases of Cattle, 1942." There are other shortages here, but those are the main ones, and the ones I am particularly interested in. Can you give the committee some explanation for that shortage? |