The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1902-01-07
MANAGER Low TEsTIFIES BE-
FORE ESTEE.
Many Wrangles Between the Lawyers.
Interesting Testimony About Homo
lulu Plantation This Morning.

The attorneys for the Honolulu Plan
/ tation Company this morning placed
! Manager Low on the stand, to testify
as to the value of the property being
| condemned for the Pearl Harbor naval
station. The case drags very slowly,
| objections following one another very
fast, so that the testimony is Of much
| less volume than the legal arguments.
Judge Estee is following strictly the
rule of law he laid down in the for
mer case, on which an appeal is being
! taken, Under this rule all testimony
as to what the land might be expect
| ed to produce is disallowed. The de-
! fendants in both cases have sought con-
stantly to prove by expert evidence and
| comparison with similar lands, what
! the land under dispute will produce in
sugar cane, but in such case the evil
| dence has been ruled out, and the rec
Ords are full of exceptions on the point.
! Manager Low gave something of a
surprise this morning by testifying
I that he had seen cane growing on the
/ land. The defense seemed to be about
/ to get in the much desired testimony
| after Low had stated that he had seen
and studied cane on the land. In an
/ swer to question by Silliman he stat
;. ed that he was able to say what the
I land would produce, but Dunno inter-
! posed with an objection
! THE Supreme Court of the United
! States has ruled that the amount of
! production cannot be proved in such a
case as this" said Judge Estee, be
cause it depends upon the manner of
| cultivation, the climatic conditions and
other things"
! Silliman remarked that he was not
aware of any such Supreme Court deci-
sion, and noted an exception to the rul-
ing.
! Manager Low stated that the Homo
lulu plantation had leased the land 31a
years ago. The company had cleared
the land that was good for sugar cane,
/ plowed 26O acres with a double steam
/ plow, cleared 1853 acres of rocks and
I had laid pipe lines, sunk a well and
| erected two stores and buildings for
i laborers, quarters for mules etc.
What is the value of the clearing?"
asked Silliman.
1T was $50 an acre" said the man
1 Lager. There were $40 acres cleared
i at $50 an acre"
i Dunno made an objection and the
i testimony as 10 the Ndlue Ol the clear
i ing was stricken out
Low explained the tax returns which
had been introduced in evidence stating
that they had nothing to do with the
value of the land.
i Under cross-eXaminatiOn he stated
that he was manager of the plantation
| and a large owner, receiving a salary
4 of $4,000 a year, and had a deep per-
I sonal interest in the result of the suit
l Did you take any part in the prepar-
alton Of the case?" asked Dunno.
y Yes, 1 took part. l educated Mr..
Silliman in the sugar business, and he
\ educated me in the law" said the wit
ness
4 Have you ever seen a crop of cane
i growing on the land in question:"
That depends upon what you call
a crop. have seen sugar growing on
4 one acre, and studied it,"
i This answer was followed by wran-
gle about whether the cane was a
j crop and efforts by Dunno to get a
i categorical answer to the question
4 The answer as given was finally ac-
l cepted.
i Dunno next wanted to know if there
was not a clause in the Honolulu Plan
i tatiOn company's contract with the
/, railroad company, by which freight
rates were to be reduced 80 cents a
ton, if Pearl Harbor was opened. He
d finally found that there was clause
to the effect that rates should be re-
arranged, when the harbor was open
ed.
! The manager testified that Honolulu
Plantation had 4,4OO acres in cane, and
that the land in dispute was part of
the plantations acreage of over 5000
acres that the value of the defendants
interest in the land condemned was
$4,000 and that the company was pre-
-, pairing to plant cane on the land.
Dunno introduced a paper, in Lows
! handwriting, which stated that there
We're 342 acres of cane land in the con-
demned tract, and 3l5 acres that could
not be cultivated. Silliman objected
that the paper was of no value, as no
claim had ever been made that there
were more than 342 acres of cane land
} in the tract. The paper was allowed
4 to go in.
] Objections began to be thick again
1 when Silliman took the witness for re-
direct examination, Judge Estee al
3 most uniformly ruling in favor of the
d plaintiffs objection sustained" was
said so many times that once the judge
said It when no objection had been
} made and the court stopped and ASH
\ ed if Dunno had any objection. He
had many, and the line Of examination
had to be changed.
After some testimony about the mill
4 had been got into the record, Silliman
Il asked a general question as to the effect
J, on the plantation of condemnation of
?, the lands involved i'm the suit.
/. Manager Low stated that it would
/ leave dead capital i'm the mill and 9TH
D. er improvements which had been made
with a view to a plantation including
the 342 acres condemned, it would af-
! feet the reservoirs, the railroad sys-
l tnnn Of tha nIantn finn stRnm nlnMa.