Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-10-10
HAWAIIAN IRRIGATION
A Great Enterprise Held up
by Competition.
SHARP CONTROVERSY
ONCE REFERRED TO WASHINGTON
AND AGAIN TO HONOLULU.
Disbarred Attorney Davis Appeals to
the President for Rein ----'
statement
Special Correspondence Of The Evening Star

Special Correspondence Of The Evening Star =
HONOLULU. T. II. September lG. 1903
members of congressional committees
which in the last two sessions have had
hearings on Hawaii's kohala ditch fran.
chise hiils VIII be interested TO hear that tho
"hoie proposition is likely TO go back to tho
national capital. after being referred here
as territorial business. For two years there
nave been many hearings at Washington.
and more than half a dozen Honolulu men
representing different competitors for the
franchise. have gone to Washington To
work for one bill or another.
Inc proposed ditch is a tremendous ,rrIp,
tioh enterprise. 1t is estimated that a hun
ufed million gallons of water per day can
De saved by the ditching which engineers
lave mapped out. This stream from the
Nohala mountains would supplv all the
plantations of kohala district Tho ,a,,,e
Oh such supply in Hawaii where great
pumps are used to bring water tn planta
80 o.a' ~ very great For years engineers
I sdiu that some of the supply in the
Nohala mountains could be saved from nm
hhg INTO the sea, but until several years
ago the matter was never closely gone into
n hundred million gallons a day is only n
part OF the flow into the sea in scores oS
small streams and Waterfalls
A Sharp Competition.
Two years ago Governor Dole ans Mo a.
vtsers took up the franchise ouas,to,, on,
spent some weeks On 1t. There were two
competitors, a company in which Samuel
larker and other Hawaii men were tntar
eSted, and another company headed nv
- Gehr of Hilo. 1t appeared at that Tina
liIdt the TWO companies had come to an
aasieeneht: The governor and his council
formulated a franchise, and all was raadv
Tor signatures when there suddenly car,a y
ruling from Washington to the effect mar
the territorial government had no povar tn
81 an Such FRANCHISE Every one interest
eu hastened to Washington and began
campaign. The two companies bec,roa ri
Ter rivals and are so yet After two yaar.
dt washington and the introduction OF two
UT three DIS without success in Congress n
lul,hS was made reversing the former one
ana declaring it the business of the govern
aeht or Hawaii to grant the franchise
A Public Auction Proposed.
Gov. Dole at once proposed putting ma
privilege up at public auction. The result
ing negotiations developed much bitter
ness ana sensational charges were talked
OF. According to \. c. Gehr. Senator Bur-
ton of Kansas. who visited the Kohala dis
trlct while here. and who is declared to he
a supporter of the Parker interests mada
lhe statement to Senator Foraker that
Gov. Dele and the heads of the Hawaiian
government We're so tied up to the Gehr
that Parker had no chance Gehr
wanted an investigation by the grand Jury
here. He claims that he was nronisad !.
franchise .wo years ago. and that the docu-
nent then about to be signed. should Ia
executed now. just as if the negotiations
mad never been broken off then If the gov
ernor insists. as he has stated he will on
putting the privilege up at auction I;ehr
proposes to go to Washington and Law the
matter before the Interior Department i'm
the form of charges against the actions Of
the Dole government Gehr SAYS he doesn't
1mpugn Dole's integrity but COMPLAINS of
the management of the negotiations, and
says that he is being deprived of important
rights. =
Disbarred Attorney Appeals.
An appeal to the President and to Attor-
ney General Knox, it is stated has been
made by George A. Davis, one of the Homo
lulu attorneys who disbarred by the
supreme court two months ago
AS a result the matter has been referred
back here to United States District Attor-
ney r. w Breckons for Investigation and
report to the Department of Justice. Davis
IS AN attorney of the Supreme Court of the
United States, and 1t is supposed that his
standing there is involved.
The diSbarment proceedings here were
against former Judge A. S. Humphreys. ].
A Magoon and f. f. Thompson, as well
as Davis. and all were account of the
same litigation. Humphreys and Davis
were disbarred. Thompson was suspended
hearings before the supreme court were
highly sensational and brought out many
bitter and insulting personalities directed
to Attorney General Andrews who pressed
the charges.
Temporarily Reinstated.
Davis has moved for a rehearing. and
been temporarily reinstated as an attorney
pending the rehearing. He has flied an
affidavit that he believes that Associate
Justice Perry of the Hawaiian supreme
court Is prejudiced against him. and he
has sent lot of letters to friends in
Washington asking that the matter be
taken up. The motion for a rehearing is to
be heard in Hawaii on October t. In the
meantime it is supposed that the report to
Washington will be sent forward.
There is some speculation here as to the
object of the report to Washington or how
the Department of Justice can take up
the matter. District Attorney Breckons
refuses to state what his instructions are,
or whether he has been asked to report or
not but it is known that he has been ex-
amning the records in the matter, and
Davis has stated that there is an investiga-
ton on.
1t is claimed that the only way I'm which
the matter could be brought before the de-
partment at Washington would be by filing
of charges against the Hawaiian supreme
court, which would bring about official in
quiry into the conduct of the court in the
matter
A week ago Davis filed a libel suit for
81, 600 against the Pacific Commercial Ad-
vertiser. a Honolulu morning paper. He
also asked for injunction to restrain the
paper from further alleged ibelous publf-
cations regarding him. Neither suit was
heard, both being withdrawn by Davis two
a he filed them