The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1890-09-19

covered WITH rotten IA 10 q depth o
| eight or nine inches.
All OF the rock and IA has to be quar-
! ried from holes in the ground, from three
to eight feet deep. In several places il
| not only had TO be qlarried, but carted
| for quarter of mile. For a number oil
/ miles from two to three, and even -four
| feet OF earth had TO first be removed be.
| fore any suitable rock could be obtained
/ Five and three quarter miles OF the rood
| are through dense forest OF lehua trees,
/ and such dense tropical jungle that a
| man cannot get through it except by the
| aid of heavy cane knife to cut his way.
| Six miles are over rough pahoehoe
which is frozen down so tight that loose
rock the size OF ones fist can scarcely be
found, and every foot OF material TO be
used on this section OF the road will have
to be blasted or carted on. During the
month last past the powder bill alone
for blasting on this pahoehoe has been at
the rate of 81 ,034 mile.
Six miles of the road are through 'the
old T-swamp," which in rainy weather
was in olden times impossible, and the
normal condition of which was mud to
the horses knees. Three miles of the
road through the woods are over an un-
even a flow, which is so rough that the
road has to twist and turn toward every
point OF the compass to secure a grade.
All this has been done in wild. unin-
habited country, where all supplies Of
every kind have to be carted from four
to thirty miles, and where it rains four
or five days out of the seven, and not in
frequently during the whole week. To
say that all this could be done for 81 100
a mile is about as just criticism as to
say that il. could be done for $40 mile.
4th. WHY THE PLAN OF MAKING A PRE-
LIMINARY ROAD WAS CHANGED.
In pursuance with the original plan,
the work was started on the preliminary
road basis. The road to the woods, and
part way through it, was made without
paving, the rotten IA being simply
rounded up OH the natural earth founda-
ton. While good weather lasted this
made an excellent road, but with the
first week of "Hilo weather" the ground
became SO soft and Doggy that wagon
wheels went clear through, and the road
became impossible. | went over the
ground with Mr.. Marlin, and we both
came to the conclusion that no road that
could be built would stand the heavy
rains, unless there was rock bottom,
which involved paving the entire road,
and more than doubling the expense. Ii
the original plan had been followed, a
preliminary road could have been put
nearly, if not quite, through; but the
result would have been that by the time
the upper end was reached the lower
end would have become worthless. |
accordingly instructed Mr.. Marlin to
"build the road thoroughly and get as
far as you can" Although regretting
that more ground could not be covered,
Lwas convinced that this would prove
sound policy in the long run, and expe-
rience has proved it so to be, for the road
has stood the wear of the recent tre-
mendous rains, including a storm in July
OF eighteen inches in twenty-four hours,
so we'll that brake was driven over the
road a month or two ago, from the half
way-house to the Hilo Post Office,
distance of over Is miles in 55 minutes.
9th. HE CHARGE THAT THE "OREDIT
OF THE COUNTRY AND THE APPROVAL OF
FUTURE LEGISLATURE WAS PLEDGED
This charge Is without foundation, and
is an entire misrepresentation of the
facts. l cannot think that such honor
able gentlemen as the members of the
committee would wlfully misrepresent,
and therefore conclude that the same
legal light who led them astray con-
corning their fire lot legal opinion, must
have again deceived them.
The circumstances under which the
Wilder's Steamship Company and others
advanced money to carry on the road
were as follows:
In the latter part of 1888 l received the
following petition from Hilo:
PETITION TO CARRY ON THE ROAD.
To His Excellency L. A. THURsToN,
Minister of the Interior
SIR: We, the undersigned, under
standing that the appropriation for the
Volcano road is about exhausted, and
that unless funds can be obtained for
the continuance of the work, it will
have to remain unfinished until after an
appropriation by the Legislature, caus-
ing a delay OF not less than a year and
probably more, in its completion, and
further understanding that certain pri-
vate parties are willing to advance the
money necessary to continue the work,
trusting to the Legislature to reimburse
them for the money SO advanced, we
would petition Your Excellency that
such measures may be taken as will
secure the advancement of the money
on such terms, and the continuance OF
the work.
For the reasons for so doing, we
would state that it is of great import
ance to this District and to the whole
Island OF Hawaii that good communica-
ton be established between this place
and the Volcano and the other side of
this Island; and that further, to stop
the work now, will entail an additional
great expense in obtaining labor at
another time
This was signed by 195 Hilo people,
among others d. II. Hitchcock, f. S. Ly-
man, q. w. A. Hapai, B. HI. Brown, G..
Moore, d. B. Wahine, HI. Z. Austin, J.
Tucker, G. 4. Richardson, VIM Nailima,
G. Y. Aiona, Nj. g Correa, W. a. Todd,
w. G. Borden, j. Reinhardt. Jr., Chas.
E. Stone, Thomas Mulch, G.. G.. Kenne-
dy, John Scott, Charles Furneaux, J. P.
Sission, John Stupplebeen, Kaailau, A.
NJ. Wilson, a. Ramsay, W. w. Goodale,
VIM. Kinney and others.
| thereupon saw the gentlemen who
afterwards advanced the money, and ex-
planned the situation to them. / told
them plainly that had no authority to
pledge the credit of the Government;
that l could not bind the Legislature to
repay them, and that could paw no in
terest on any money which they might
spend; that if they spent any money on
the road it was entirely at their own
risk and on their own responsibility, and
that they would have to depend abso-
lutely upon the Legislature and the
merit OF the work done to secure repay
ment; that all that could do would be to
recommend to the Legislature to appro-
pirate the money They agreed to ad-
vance the money on this basis, and an