The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1903-02-04
NEW ARMORY
IS NEEDED
Col. Jones Wants
an Appropria-
ton for It.
The Report of National
Guard Made to
Dole.
The Drill Shed May Soon Be Taken
by United States Army for
a StOrehouse.

Col. j. w. Jones, commander of th'
Hawaiian National Guard, has sent il
his report to Governor Dole recon-
mending an appropriation of $4,000 fol
an armory in Honolulu, and smaller
amounts for Wailuku and HiIo.
Aside from this there is a recon-
mendation by the commanding officer
for an appropriation of s27,SSO for the
ordinary expenses of the Nationa
Guard.
An armory building for Honolulu has
been agitated for some time. and year
ago there was talk of private subscrip-
ton being raised for that purpose.
There is much need of a new armory
as the old drill shed itself not of much
good may be taken by the United States
Army at any moment.
The report shows that the National
Guard has about $50, 600 worth of mill
tary property which cannot be properly
cared for because of the condition of
the drill shed. In his report Col. Jones
says:
THE work and interior economy of
the regiment has been greatly hampered
by reason of being housed under four
different roofs in Honolulu instead of
one, and the work attending the care
trusted to it's keeping thereby greatly
increased. All of this property has not
been as well cared for as it should have
been; this, however, is not through any
neglect on the part of the officers hav-
ing it in charge, but by reason of the
fact that the drill shed, in which a por-
ton of it is kept, is neither dust nor
weather proof, the roof leaking badly
and being sadly in need of repairs.
1.-The dust in dry weather and rain
in wet weather blows into the drill shed
and into the company rooms through
the ventilating spaces near the roof, and
the roof is defective and leaks badly,
it being impossible to stop the leaking
putting an entire new roof on
the building. The United States au-
horities desire that the building be con-
lemned and torn down, on the ground |
hat it is unfit for any purpose but the |
storage of articles practical |
Y unaffected by the weather although |
hey have a temporary use for and
greatly desire to get the drill shed at
he present time to house carts and
in, that they are not now able
o properly care for, and the regiment
S only allowed to continue in the use
f the drill shed until such time as other
quarters may be provided or until such
ime as the shed or the space occupied
y it is arbitrarily taken. The regi-
dispossessed at any time The
egiment has several times been called
pom to relinquish the use of the drill
he'd for short periods, the last time be-
lg in March, 1902.
IF there were no question about the
etention of the drill shed in the possess
on of the regiment, it would cost
cry considerable sum to put it in a
roper condition and re?roof it. AS
now is the rain and dust settles on
lie guns and other property making it
to keep such property in .
bod condition. Even though a new
'of were put on the drill shed and the
spaces made weather proof,
e building being an iron one, the
DISTURB in the atmosphere would con-
nse and run down and damage the
ms. New arms have recently been
ceived from the United States Cow
and, in spite of the fact that
e utmost care is exercised under the
listing conditions and the pieces kept
I'll creased while in the racks. thew
e beginning to show the effects of
ing kept under the conditions herein
forth, and unless something is done
remedy those conditions the arms
II soon become more or less defective
q mt for nothing but drill purposes.
d become total loss to the Terri
y and the United States Govern =
mt"