The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1906-11-27

! WHAT CAN BE
4 DONE TO SAVE
/ ISLE OF LANAI:


communication protesting against any
sale of $4,000 acres. Directing to what
they said was monopoly and av lola
ton of Section So of the Organic Act
which specifies that no corporation in
Hawaii may own in fee more than 1000
acres. They wound up by holding out
the hope that perhaps before the leases
expired Congress would appropriate to
irrigate Lanai and make Of It a garden
spot.
Director Jared G. Smith Of the U. S.
Agricultural Experiment Station in this
Territory wrote that he thought Lanai
capable of improvement and that it
should be saved for the people rather
than sold to a corporation, reminding
the Governor that Gn theory every
American owned in fee one-eighty-
miliionth of American public land. He
showed how millions of acres Of arid
land in the west had been made to
blossom as the rose. He was skeptical
of any $4,000 acres blowing away to
sea; such process would be a matter of
ages upon ages. He protested against
the transfer of public land in lots more
than enough for one family.
Mr.. Pratt announced that the Ter
ritory now derived an income of $1,000
year from Lanai leases. The very
best that could be expected would be
$4,000.
Mr.. Barker from Kalihi arose to tell
the Governor he was "out Of order" for
himself reading the letters he had
read. He said a great many things
and wanted to talk out of turn, the
Governor finally finding it necessary to
ask him to conduct himself with deco
rum or else absquatulate-skid al
though the Governor did not use such
language Barker said he paid his
taxes and he wanted the Governor to
pay his; he also wished to be sure the
folks on Lanai had paid their taxes; if
they had they should be left alone.
Forester Hosmer corroborated what
Pratt had said. He thought the great
danger to Lanai was goats. These
beasts chewed up the embryo forests
and the loss of forest meant the loss OF
water The forest had receded very
appreciably in the last two years. I'm
less the goats were stopped in their
work of depreciation the last bit of
forest would be chewed off of Lanai.
Hosmer favored putting Lanai into the
hands of one man or corporation. Such
an arrangement would be better for
Lanai than mixed ownership, for one
control would advance the Islands in
terests.
Mr.. Gay said that there We're about
100 Hawaiians on Lanai. counting men
, women and children. When he could
he employed the men and housed an(
supplied them with food There wa!
not always work for all and some haC
t left. The island was good only 70
ranchng. If anything could be mad
= out of prickly pears there might b.
= something in Lanai outside of the cat
tie business. Last year he lost 1000
I sheep through lack of water. Once h.
t had been willing to give 100000 int
, the purchase of Lanai. The offer wa
!. not taken and he could not expect t.
:. again interest the same investors.
L. L. McCandless thought that it wa
! no way to go about building up al
American or any other community b.
y turning over $4,000 acres Of land to on
= man or corporation. Why not cut u
. the land into small ranches and let in
; dividuals have an opportunity. Rookie
. Teller might, with 800, 900 900 buy Ga
9 hu and turn us all out. Why SHOULD
Lanai be sold to ne man any NOR
than Oahu as far as the principle In
l. volved was concerned If Lanai wer
S given to one man the island would b
t depopulated, just as Oahu would b
s depopulated if one man bought this isl
+ and and ordered us, rs he would hav
a right, to get off the island. Mr.. Nc
10 Candless said he had been invited t
visit Lanai but did not feel like goin
e and accepting hospitality when he wa
t bound by principle to oppose the ide
{ of the island being handed over t
e one man. Under any conditions, sal
). Mr.. McCandless, the forests on Lana
a should be preserved. Pratt said ther
e were about 1000 acres of forest.
h w. o. Smith had occasion to visi
r Lanai not very long ago to levy o
y some goats. Looking for the goats h
+ learned much of the country. H
o thought If McCandless went there h
would change his views. Some one in
T. telligent head should control the islam
e if anything was ever to come of II
y Kidwell's valuation, thought Smith
e was excessive, about $4,000 was neare
i right. Some land up there WASH
d worth ten cents per acre
l. Eben Low thought it well to hold o
# to Lanai until the expiration of tn
i leases. If the land was auctioned
5, was not right to make the upset pric
such that it would choke off all chan
;. ces of the buyer having any money lief
n ,,.ftt v.I,icb m i'm prova his holdings
q would pay the government better
s. let a good man have a holding TO
5 nothing,
H. E. Cooper said he was Mr. Cay
e legal adviser. He had carefully inspect
: ed Lanai It was good only for rancf
: He it was who offered McCandless a
: opportunity to see the island at Nj
d McCandless' expense or otherwise. Ga