The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1900-01-03
ed DOUBLE TRACK CONTINUES A NEW SUBGPARTNNT
Ninety GUARDS WANTED.
REORGANIZGNG THE CUSTOM
HOUSE FORCES.
Honolulu an Unguarded Port at Many
Points-A Steam Launch and More
Inspectors.

Collector Stackable and Port Survey
or Stratemeyer are working on a plan
for a reorganization of the customs
guard system to meet the necessities
of the large Increase in the amount of
shipping IN Honolulu The present sys-
tenn, which has just been deprived or
all the men loaned by the police depart
ment, is entirely inadequate to properly
guard the water front, and when Uncle
Sam takes hold there will be a lot OF
extra work At present there are twenty
guards, who are compelled to work IN
shifts of ten, six hours each at a time
They alternate every day The work is
too hard for any ordinary man, six
hours off and six hours on day and
night leaving little opportunity FOR
sleep or recreation. There are from
| fifteen to eighteen vessels discharging
all the time, and these are supposed 70
be handled by ten guards, eight dis
charging inspectors and one district in
spector.
The authorities will probably be asked
to furnish ninety guards, to work In
eight hour shifts, thirty at once. Eight
hours out of twenty-four is considered
enough for man to remain on con-
stant guard. Ten discharging inspec-
| tors and twelve boarding and search
| ing inspectors will be asked for, and
| four to do special duty A steam launch
ilOl llle' tuSlOlitS department Is dlSO Ddtl-
| ly needed, and one about sixteen feet in
length will be asked for, to remain alb
! solutely under the control of the de-
partment The salaries of the discharg-
ing and boarding inspectors is estimat-
| ed at 500 per month, that of the guards
at $500
| Few people have any idea of the
| amount of guarding now left to the
small force under Collector General
Stackable AS a matter of fact the port
of Honolulu Is open to all sorts of v:o-
lations of customs laws at many points.
Every night there are vessels in the
| harbor wholly unguarded and there are
wharves at which no men can be put,
owing to the smallness of the force.
I Guards are needed at a dozen points
which must now be left unmatched and
a harbor patrol is also considered a ne
cessity. To cover all these points, it Is
estimated that thirty men are needed
and unless the present plan of working
men every other six hours throughout
the year Is continued, this means ninety
guards.
When the United States government
takes hold of harbor and customs f-
fairs here, the work of the customs de-
partment will be increased in many Ie-
spects and decreased in others One Ioi
the largest additional jobs will be the
Weighing of coal. Duty will have to be
collected on coal, and this will require
a large force of men to discharge Goa
vessels
During the past few days Collector
General Stackable and Stratemeyei
have ben discussing how to get along
with their decreased force. There are
over forty foreign vessels in port ant
ten men at a time are watching them
More than fifteen of the vessels are dis
charging and there are only eight dis
charging inspectors The collector has
found means to put three more guards
on each watch for the present montl
and the department will get along will
these.
The fscal period for which the las
arrangements were made has ended am
the time has arrived for the making o
a new plan for the future. 1t will hav
to take into consideration an almost in
credible increase in the tonnage o
freight arriving here, as well as in TIL
number of passengers and regular mai
steamers.