The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1890-07-24
LETTER FROM Mr.. DILLINGHAM;.
Concluded.
HILo AND HAMAKuA RAILROAD.

HILo AND HAMAKuA RAILROAD.
l have gathered statistics from
the thirteen sugar plantations
stretched along the seventy miles of
proposed railway, on the island of
Hawaii, and find the freight availa-
BILE to and from the plantations now
organized and running, exceeds l00,-
600 tons per annum, | suppose to
use very safe figures on this under
taking and so place the freight now
at 10000 tons per annum.
10000 tons at an average of 1925
-S16S, $50.
Passenger traffic per annum a.
250)-S12, $50.
Subsidy, say $500 pei mile per
annum-$3j, 900.
Total-S216, 900.
Estimated Expenses-70 miles
line at say s24, 200 III bonds 81, $780,
600.
Interest on 81 100000 at 8 per
cent per annum-$S4 900.
Running Expenses-S90, 900.
Sinking Fund to meet bonds
SAP 900.
Total-S2lG, 900.
1t is proposed to build this line
with 40 lbs. steel rails. TO use the
best steel bridges of which there
will be about so, to make the line
rs straight as such u line can well
he made. To crock ballast" the
70 ~ % f,l TO ninn
it from the heavy rains. Doubtless
the road will be q good thing for
llilo, and be the making Of that
place commercially, What will it
do for the planting interests along
the line? Ii the freight is handled
in the most economical way, as it
can be after the railway is built,
the Saving on the present cost to
the thirteen plantations would be, l
find, about $50, 900 per aunum, on
the business done now. The rail-
way will make it possible TO i'll
crease very largely the present out
put without necessarily increasing
mill facilities, by bringing cane
from lands now separated from
the mills by impossible gulches
or from lands too far away to be
reached prolitably by ordinary
means of transportation. The gen.
eral business along the coast will BIZ
largely increased if railway facili
ties are provided.
One would suppose from tho
facts, that no time should be lost il
getting a railway that would save Il
The planting interest alone in ter
years, the whole cost of the line es
pecially when the tariff question il
threatening to reduce the price O
sugar to little more than the pre-
sent cost of its production.
AS no proposition has yet beer
made to build railroads between thu
islands it is probable that steamer
will continue to carry freight anC
passengers as heretofore, and whil
larger volume of freight will b.
carried direct to and from Hilo from
foreign ports, yet the stimulus to al
business in Illo and along the lin
of railway will increase rather thar
diminish the traffic for inter-islanC
steamers.
1t was not many years since tina
the promoters of the islam,
Steam Navigation Co., declared tina
inter-island steamers could never b.
made to pay, "they could not com
pete with schooners," they sai'
when the late Hon. S. G.. Wilde
opened up his steam line, but the
soon foundhout their error in judge
ment, and proceeded to form tn
present i. S. n. Co. AS TO til
financial results to say nothing 0
the benefit TO the country derive,
from these interisland steam lines
no word of commentator is needel
from me. They have accomplished
all, and more than was ever elaine,
tor them.
Mr.. Hind would discourage tn
building OF a railway on Hawaii