Show for Electricity Othman Asks Mr Nor Truman i Please Turn Off Lights I By Frederick C. C Othman Im I'm W A ASH S II I N G T TON 0 N Im I'm not suggesting that President Truman do his reading from the light or o 0 b 4 burning log login f in m tl the f fire i 1 r c e i w 1 place Or ever i i i that he 1 s n Hate a ate t e t the h e t J rn r- r Rf a White House t J 11 with whale-oil whale t 4 lamps As an aghast taxpayer a 1 11 I LJ J Im I'm urging is 3 that he lie patrol Mr Othman the place every night and switch off the electric bulbs he doesn't really need When his coffees coffee's through perking Id I'd appreciate it if hed he'd immediately immediately immediately imme imme- pull the plug What brings up these melancholy melancholy melancholy melan melan- choly pinching penny thoughts is Mr 11 Truman's electric bill As soon as h he moves back into the executive mansion next month the meter in his cellar will start charging him for worth of electricity a year That's a month a week or 79 a day These figures are arc official and in the opinion of a householder who argues with the electric company company company com com- I pany every time his bill runs more than 5 awful The cost of keeping 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue electrified electrified electrified fied gas is extra came up when F. F T. T Gartside the assistant assistant assistant assist assist- ant superintendent of the national national na na- na capital parks applied to the House appropriations committee committee committee com com- for to maintain the White House and its grounds next fiscal year The statesmen in charge of paying the presidential housekeeping bills were amazed Well Vell for one thing said Gartside he had to hire the President an assistant housekeeper housekeeper house house- keeper at a year For the thelast thelast thelast last two years retorted Rep John Phillips R. R Cal CaU the Presidents President's housekeeper has had so little to do she's been on involuntary vacation 16 Hour 16 Hour Day Gartside said yes but now she was going to have a house to keep We uVe have one housekeeper housekeeper housekeeper house house- keeper authorized and we want an assistant because obviously obvious obvious- ly someone must be there at least 16 hours out of the 24 and the only way to get a 24 hour housekeeper is to marry one he added The married gentlemen in charge of the federal purse strings agreed to that all right but what they couldn't understand understand understand under under- stand was how even the housekeepers housekeepers housekeepers house house- keepers working all night in shifts could burn nearly 40 worth of electricity a year Do uDo you mean demanded the flabbergasted Rep Albert Thomas D. D Texas that the electric bill is going to be That is correct replied Gartside The whole place he said is electrified The cellars cellar's jammed with machinery running running running run run- ning air conditioning and no telling what all else Takes a alot alot alot lot of juice On Mild Days The congressmen and I trust that Mr Truman will keep the machinery turned off on mild days And another thing The White House blouse is a historic structure that's got to be maintained maintained maintained main main- properly Gartside said How Flow historic demanded Rep Phillips You h hay have a v e pushed the roof up and have pushed the basement down and have completely remodeled the insides But history is a continuous ous process interrupted the harried Gartside and maybe in or 1000 years a a You mean this is the beginning beginning beginning begin begin- ning of a historic building years from now Rep Phillips Phillips Phil Phil- lips insisted A new era said Gartside I have one final sugg suggestion stion President Truman better make the electric company check his meter maybe its it's running too fast Ii |