The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1898-06-22
Senate Committee and Rapid
Transit Act.
ONE OF THE VITAL PROVISIONS
Proposal to Eliminate Right of Emf.
Would XIII the Project.

The directors of the provisional or
temporary organization of the Homo
lulu Rapid Transit Company learned
quite by chance yesterday morning
that a report decidedly inimical to the
proposed corporation and the project
ed public enterprise was about to make
TO the Senate. Attorneys Kinney and
W. r. Castle were hastily summoned
and accompanied to the Executive
Building these members of the direc-
torate: J. II. Fisher, Jas. A. Kennedy,
c. G. Ballentyne, J. a. Gilman, T. +.
Lansing, J. II. SOper and f. J. Low
rey. A hearing was granted by the
Senate committee.
It was learned by those who are
| handling the affairs of the Rapid
Transit Company that the Senate COM
mittee proposed to strike out from the
pending charter all provisions granting
TO the new company any manner OF
right of eminent domain. It had been
decided to remove from the act all
concession permitting condemnation
Of lands for right Of way or other pur-
poses.
The attorneys for the Rapid Transit
Company and members of the Board OF
Directors explained to the Senate COM
mittee at once that should the act be
amended as proposed by the report
that it had best be withdrawn alto
gether, as it would be innocent Of
authority, utility or wOrth-entirely
vaIueIess. The changed act would in
evitably be the signal to abandon alto
gether the earnest effort to give to the
town street railway system worthy
the name. One member of the COM
mite made the claim that the COM
pany would have the right of eminent
domain under the general law pre-
scribing right Of way condemnation
proceedings. 1t was also claimed on
behalf of the report that the Rapid
Transit as proposed was neither a
public nor even a qUasi-public corpora
tiOn. This latter point was not argued
at all. Touching the present general
law on the right Of eminent domain it
was submitted that the same was i'm
perfect and that opinion was held by
! legal authority worthy consideration
that the statute was not inVincible.
For these very reasons the charter of
the Rapid Transit Company had in
Guided extensive, very clear and en-
tirely just provisions concerning eXer-
else CT the right Of eminent domain.
Five different routes in and about
Honolulu have been laid out by the
Rapid Transit Company. 1t was point
ed out on behalf or to sustain the
claim for the right of eminent domain
that the whole enterprise could be
defeated completely by the purchase,
by a hostile party of a ten-fOOt strip
Of land on any one Of the five routes.
All corporations Of this character in
all countries have the right of insti-
tuting and carrying out condemnation
proceedings for right Of way and other
purposes. In the charter of this local
company as first drawn here and as
sought to be amended by the Senate
committee the interests Of private per-
sons are amply protected. One Of the
attorneys made the statement that it
had come about, seemingly, for little
Hawaii to adopt, in it's dealings with
quasi-public corporations stringent
and unheard Of methods Of discourage
ment. The new company is not asking
for any extraordinary privileges or
grants and is willing to pay a fair
price for everything it requires in the
work of supplying the city with elec-
trio cars.
After the general meeting yester- |
day morning there was a stay of pro-
ceedings with the committee report
and Attorneys Kinney and Castle con-
fer~e1 further with Senators to whom
had been referred the act. The COM
pany is willing to enter the field with
the right to condemn for route alone
and will stand on that claim. Refer |
enca was made to the vested rights
of the Tram Company. 1t was shown
that the Rapid Transit people provide
in their charter that while they may
find it necessary to even use a rail
of the Tram, this shall be done, if at |
all without any interference whatever !
in the operation Of the Tram line.
The Rapid Transit act will be before |
the Senate again in a day or two.