The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1906-09-27

1t is understood that an effort is t
be made by the American-HawaiiaI
Steamship Company to ship as man!
sailors at the Hawaiian ports as pos
sible for crews on all their vessel.
Icalling at the islands, their experience
shipped at different times from her,
having been most satisfactory. Here
tofore it has been their custom to shir
their crews at San Francisco for the
round trip, but this will be discontin-
ued If they are successful in gettins
enough Hawaiian sailors to man their
ships.
The wage paid by the company to
| their sailors is the prevailing one paid
| to all sailing from the Coast and ac-
| cording to a recently adopted policy
of the company the paying off will be
| done at this end. During the recent
visit of the S. S. Nevadan, twelve ma
tive sailors were paid off by the local
| Shipping Commissioner. the men draw
| ing $3.50 each for the round trip.
These men shipped from here on the
understanding that they were to re-
cefve no advance money at the Coast,
stipulation made for the mutual
benefit of the men and the company
II the American-Hawaiian company
succeeds in their plan it will be great
ly to the benefit of Honolulu, the
wages of the men coming here. in
stead of being spent principally in San
Francisco while it will also open up
a field of employment for many of the
native sailors. So far the natives who
have shipped on these steamers have
proved themselves good sailors and
thoroughly satisfactory, while they
themselves profess to be equally well
satisfied at the treatment they have
received in the way of wages and
board and the work they are called
upon to perform.
MOVEMENTS OF THE WISCONSIN,
Private advices received by the Ca
zette company from Yokohama brought
the information that the u S. Battle
ship Wisconsin will not be due here
before the first of next week, sailing
from that port on the goth. 1t had
been confidently expected that the bat
tleship would arrive here yesterday or
today, it being stated, in fact, that
she had approached within eighty
miles of the island on Saturday last
and reported by wireless, holding off
for some unknown reason. The infor-t
nation that such d wireless report had
been received at the Naval Station was
given out by the Quarantine officials
and accepted without question. Just /
where the mistake occurred has not |
yet been explained.
The Wisconsin sailed from Chefoo on |
September 3, arriving at Kobe on the |
18th, From that date her movements /
have been unknown to Admiral Very,
who stated yesterday that he had re-
ceived no official notice that the bat
tleship was to call here at all on her,
way to the Coast. although there was
mail awaiting her at the station.
MARINE INSURANCE RATES IN
CREASED.
In a recent issue of Fairplay Lon-
dom appeared a communication from
the growing tendency to a reduction
Of rates of premium for annual insur-
ance on vessels, and stated that he
considered the rates far too low and
to the risks assumed by
the underwriters, and that companies
could not make fair return on the
capital invested. In commenting on
this the editor of Fairplay considered
that the main trouble lay in the in
adequacy of the rates for cargo in
Surance.
Undoubtedly both are right, at least
would be if the criticisms were made
IN connection with the situation OBJ
tanning in this part of the world. The
insistent demands of shipowners and
shippers aided by active competition
among underwriters, has reduced in
rates to such a point that in
some lines they appear to be ridicu-
lous.
A few years ago first-elass passen-'
ger steamers on this coast were paying
from to 10 per cent. while the iden-
teal steamers are now paying about
per cent, Notwithstanding the in
crease in age. The best transpacific
liners were paying per cent, while
now the rate is "a per cent, that be-
ng the rate at which the steamer Man.
ohuria was insured. The same with
largo insurance. A few years ago the
-ate to Portland or Puget Sound was
q per cent, while now IA per cent
S common and as low as LIS per cent
lot unknown on certain classes of
ana IOr large
Some of the underwriters are now,
quoting the same rate for insurance to
,ither Yokohama, Hongkong and Ma
lila. Notwithstanding the fact that
most shipments to Manila go there
and at rates about half {
what the Yokohama rate alone was
hort time ago.
In addition to this the liabilities as {
umed by the underwriters have grad
tally been increased, so that the un- .
lerwriter is not only getting less in
ONE for the same volume of business, :
'ut he is assuming additional risks. i
The recent disaster in San Francisco >
las apparently drawn the attention Of =,
both fire and marine, to a
he fallacy of attempting to do an s
business on 3 comparatively ,
mall capital and at inadequate rates.
'he result Of this is that marine in
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