The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1900-01-19

I =
new station was finished yesterday
evening.
Board Of Health Meeting.
At 9 o'clock yesterday afternoon the
following members of the Board were
present: President Wood. in the chair;
George w Smith, F. NJ. Hatch, DR.. Day
and DR.. Emerson. Attorney General
Cooper was not present, assigning as
reason that he was too tired to be
there at that time.
The first business transacted was the
reading of the report of the special san
itary committee with relation to the
Kewalo district. This report more
than ever demonstrated the crying need
for the early erection of a garbage
crematory. The report, which Is given
below, was accepted by the Board upon
motion and ordered published for the
benefit of the community:
C. b. Wood, NJ. D., President of Board
of Health.
Slr:-Your committee appointed to
| investigate and report on the sanitary
condition of the Kewalo district and to
recommend such sanitary improve
ments as, in their opinion, may be
| needed, would report as follows:
The district examined Is included be-
tween Punchbowl, Queen. South, King
| Sheridan streets and the ocean, and
contains about 367 acres.
A considerable portion of this dis
trict is about level with the ocean at
high tide and much of it is covered
| with water during the wet season.
In places basins have been excavat
ed, making ponds, the eXcavated mate
rial being used to raise the surface Of
the surrounding land. Many of these
ponds have no outlet and water fouled
by household use and overlooking
privies, drains into them besides being
convenient place to throw rubbish Of
every description, making a condition
that is fruitful source of disease.
In other places The reIuse from the
city, composed of vegetable matter
mixed with household waste, has been
used as filling. There are spots where
such filling is floating upon hidden
water which. to the observer, looks
soha but Is not safe to walk upon
Holes dug through this material re.
veal decaying mass, through which
highly colored Shiny water Is ooZing
and the gases produced by the process
of decomposition Is very much in
evidence. The presence of large swarns
of flies at the place where the Govern
ment is now depositing and burnine
the city refuse would seem to indicate
that considerable decaying animal ant
vegetable matter has not been destroy
ed and is in process of decomposition
The channel of the stream that has
| its source near the intersection
| South and King streets and the con
meeting branches are in an inSanitary
condition.
Privies and the surrounding ground
soon become very foul as vaults cannot
| be dug, but few inches below the sur
| face and as the ground is not porous,
there are frequent overflows. In some
| places privies are placed over water,
but from such places II Is impossible
for any floating substance to reach the
ocean. Near South street there Is a
modified form of earth closet In use.
| There are several partially graded
streets on some of which. today it is
impossible to pass on dry ground and
elevated sidewalks are built along the
sides of the street.
Many of the streets are but alleys
seemingly laid out without any regard
to existing streets or future extension
of existing streets.
This insanitary condition is confined
largely to the INN ,diate vicinity OF
buildings, and along water courses that
are near them.
This district Is near the center OF the
city and IL allowed to remain in Its
present condition will always be class
ed as cheap lana and II half as densely
populated as chinatown" 1t will be
come much Lore unhealthy spot thar
that place and a constant source o.
danger to the good health of the whole
city.
Iue problem is t" raise the surface
OF this district above ground waite
level, to provide outlets for the numer
| o springs and surface water includ
| in; that which comes from above Kins
street, to grade streets so water will
not stand upon them, to provide some
way for disposng of household vast
ard refuse other than depositing II up
on this land and TO dispose OF sewerag
and water fouled by household use I'M
| til such time as sewers can be con-
structed and put in operation.
For the solving OF these problems We
would make the following recommen-
dations:
First-All ponds partially filled with
rubbish or the waters OF which have
| become foul from vegetable or animal
matter, should. after proper dislnfec-
ton, be filled with clean earth.
| Second-No building should be erect
ed or allowed to remain on land where
the ground water Is within two feet OF
the surface.
Ground water can be varied with ref
erence to the surface OF the ground in
| I,,H na and nv filling
The first way is usually the cheapest
but in the present case would require
pumping which would make It imprac-
ticable. The second way may be salts
factorily carried out by three methods,
Firstly taking the material from the
ocean. Secondly eXcayating basins,
and making ponds and using the exz
cavated material 70 I'LL adjoining land,