The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-01-09

d. dONOAOAC, JANUARY
the intentions of the whole Island
peoplesin nutshell,
1t was objected that if there was a
city and county of Honolulu that the
things which the city now gets the
Territory to pay for would have TO
come out of the city's pocket, but
Weaver cited the instance of the aims
house of San Francisco, which costs
$50. 900 to maintain and of which the
state of California pays $4,000 on the
theory that tramps congregate in the
city from all oyer the state
w. O. Smith renewed his arguments
of the previous meeting and said he
favored the Weaver proposition but
considered that whatever this commit
tee did the Legislature would be per-
fectly free to do as they liked in the
matter and it was better to find out
what the people of the city desired and
go before the Legislature with propo-
sition backed by the community than
to fail of adoption.
A. V. Gear rather favored the Wea-
yer plan, although he signed the fam
L.
the idea was to prevent the city of Ho-
nolulu being burdened with two sets
of officers to perform essentially the
same duties.
]. II. Boyd favored dropping the
whole matter and leaving it to the Leg
islature to appoint a commission to re-
port at a later date for the purpose
of organizing not only a city govern
f4,,
eminent for all the divisions of the
Territory. He, feared that if the Homo
lulu city charter was passed and the
rest of the Island and the other Islands
We're not divided into counties that the
cost of maintaining the Territorial gov
eminent would fall too heavily on the
city of Honolulu and make taxation
very high. He said as it is, Honolulu
has the best of it. Kolauloa for in
stance pays $4,000 in taxes and gets
less than $4,000 expended in her bor-
ders.
A. V. Gear said that the plan was To
simply adopt the present laws of the
Territory and apply them to the city.
He said that Hawaii had already some
of the best municipal legislation in the
world; that it had been copied after
Glasgow, which was one of the best or
ganized and best conducted cities in
the world. He said, however, that if
counties We're not to be erected at this
Legislature on the other Islands he
would favor a city of Honolulu of the
smallest possible size. He said the ne
cessity for city government lay in the
fact that city government was repre-
sentative and direct from the people.
It was found that Honolulu could
under the Organic Act only vote bonds
for about 100000 and the Territory
$500 600 to 100000 per year with total
bonded Indebtedness not to exceed
So, COG, 900.
w. c. Roe was in favor of action i'm
mediately and the institution of a mu-
lnicipal government at the earliest pos
sible date.
After another running parliamentary
fight, j. G. Pratt. who wrote. the report
of the majority of the committee on
draft and who was entitled under par
1iamentary law to close the debate
succeeded in getting the floor, but only
on the pending motion, which was. to
recommit the whole matter to the com
mittee on draft with instructions to
confer with. the Independent charter
committee and report next Friday
evening. He was shut off by the OBJ
lection of ]. L. Kaulukou at the ex-
piration of Cten minutes, but was
promptly given all the time he wanted
by vote Sofsht,1es committee.
He made very able argument and
brought out some new points. He said
that the Federal government paid for
the cost of the Territorial government
in the way of Governor, Secretary,
Legislature, Courts, etc. and that if
county governments were established
in all the Islands. the form could be
easily modelled after the present Ter
ritorial government with only neces-
sary changes and would consequently
give government with which the peo-
pie would easily become familiar He
declared that the people of Hawaii
would demand county government. and
possibly four counties might be made
! of the big Island. He said the divi-
sion of the Territorial government
property, which was very valuable
and which would be very hard to divide
between the city of Honolulu and the
county of Oahu, could be very easily
divided between the Territory and the
city and county of Honolulu as COM
| pi iSiIS Lie "llOie ISldHu. CnOuRnI
that himself. living on Pacific Heights,
might not get city lights for a good
/ long time any more than would Waia-
/ lua, yet he would get benefits which
he was willing as a property holder to
pay for and that the property all over
the Island would be benefited by in
proportion to, its value
| His able argument was of no avail
however, and for the fourth time the
committee voted against city to cover
the entire Island and incidentaily
against having conference with the
independent charter committee at this
stage of the proceedings, as the Repub-
Ilicans were not yet decided what they
wanted themselves and could not there
fore go into conference intelligently-