The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1885-04-01


THEKE i something insidious IN the rec
ommendation Of the Airer.issT that the
drainage Of Honolulu should be made to so
on simultaneously with the increased water
supply. or in other words that the latter
b. deferred until ways and means are
available for the former undertaking.
Ii Is quite true that the city Is in need
OF both water and drainage. but the I'M
provement Of the water supply must take
precedence
First II Is the more pressing necessity,
and money has been voted for the purpose
by two successive Legislatures During
the siacnstion Of such works as these, con
sequent on the incumbency of the various
Ministers who have held office in the In
terior and Finance departments for the
last three years. until few days ago little
had been done towards improving the water
supply. but litterinc the roadside with
costly piping. Now however. plan has
been adopted which will keep the lower
NuuRnu reservoir supplied, and release the
numerous households dependent on it,
from the frequently increasing periods Of
absolute water famine After prolonged
CESSATION a scheme for charging the
storage Of water has been indicated and
tenders called for. The proposed plan
appears practical and iudicious, and might
be carried ont if honestly intended The
bids for the whole or specified portions Of
the work were to be in the Interior Office
by the 18th February, now fully month
past. As many as eight or nine bids have
been lodged with the Minister of Interior
from contractors in this country, but the
work was also advertised IN San Francisco,
for what reason does not clearly appear.
No award has hitherto been made known,
and meanwhile some scores of our ablest
mechanics have left the country. The re
cent building works Of Messrs. Campbell,
and IRWIN X Co. being completed, and no
further prospect Of continuous work offer
ing, the men have necessarily taken them
selves and their abilities 10 a more prom
isin- market. II does not seem clear why
San Francisco was invited TO compete, I'M
til II was proved that Honolulu mechanics
or Honolulu capital were insufficient.
The loss Of hundred or hundred and
fifty mechanics Is a very serious loss to
this country, and the delay oocasioned by
waiting for foreign bids Is another serious
los. We need the additional storage as
speedily as possible.
Meanwhile with regard to both storage
Of water and sanitation of the city, iE'erira
measures might be easily and advantage
ously adopted Water has even been
brought from the kRpena pool and stored
in the old reservoir with positive advan-
tuce. not only to the consumers but to
those who VIII undertake TO construct the
new reservoirs, hut this by no means solves
the problem.
With regard TO the removal Of decaying
animal and vegetable refuse great ad-
vance might be made by the establishment
OF scientifically constructed furnace or
crematoTium where everything readily COM
bustible should be-dsy by day consumed.
this might be done at small expense com
pared 10 the benefit to be gained
To thoroughly drain Honolulu would be
an enormously difficult, costly and time
consuming undertaking The whole city
and Its suburbs are so little above the sea
level, that drainage by mere grayitation is
impracticable. The rise and fall of tide in
the harbor is so slight, that the tides sup
ply no scour, and If the drainage of the
city could convey the sewage into the har
bor-ihere If would remain-till il was
gradually silted up Indeed this process is
now going on. The deposit of the Nun
anu stream and the street cutters require
constant dredging!
How then about treating the whole sew
age of the city and suburbs. nothing but
an enormous system of pumping engines
could deal with 1t, and to render this effect
i've or even practicable. large supply of
water must be provided beforehand. Here
we are, with households frequently de
prived Of water for merely domestic pur-
poses with lack of water whenever fire
occurs in the wooden-built shingle-roofed
town, how then can we carry, for it must
be carried, and carried by water, the sewage
of 1900 people TO a safe distance, with an
almost tideless harbor?
The idea put forward by the organ that
additional water supply must produce sd
diuonal Embellishments is absurd. The
water is the prime necessity.
But, over and above all this lies the dis
trust which Is dominant with all sections
of the people as TO the honesty of that
which Is here called the Government. In
other countries corrupt or incapable
official Is dismissed by public opinion,
here, an incorTupt and capable official will
probably be dismissed for those very quail
ifcations.
The city cannot be drained without a
large expenditure of money, the money
would have to be raised by loan, and no
body viii lend to this Government.
For additional water supply and storage.
money has been literally voted, let US see
the fruits of this money before We are
asked for more.
We dread this Government even when
offering boon.