The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1907-12-16
GOVERNOR FREAR'S CHIEF
ADDRESS AT MUSKOGEE

ly large enough to meet the present
demands of commerce. At times 1t mas
| been over-crowded, causing much eX-
pense in demurrage. The pressure has
| been partially relieved from time to
| time by practically enlaTglng the har-
! Dor through the cutting of deep slips
| into the shores at great cost; through
| displacement of smaller and slower
sailing vessels by larger and swlfter
steam vessels; through substitution OF
fuel oil for coal, thus in large measure
doing away with the necessity of coal
carving vessels; through the intro
duction of improved freight handling
machinery for rapid loading and IN
loading, and through the increased use
of other ports in Hawaii. But such
relief has been neutralized in part by
the fact that the Federal government
has been obliged to take over, for
naval, military, lighthouse, immigration
and quarantine purposes, large por-
tions of the frontage, as shown by
the parts colored purple on the map.
That is one of the important immi-
grafton ports of the United States.
1t is also the buffer-outpost of the
Western States against the plague, the
cholera and other infectious diseases
of the Orient.
PEARL HARBOR MEETS NEEDS.
Pearl Harbor, on the other hand, on
ly six miles distant from Honolulu,
meets every need. Exhibiting color
ed map of island of Oahu, showing
Pearl Harbor, its relation to- Honolulu
harbor and to the remainder of the
island; also Leilehua and other mill
tary and naval reservations.1 1t COW
ers about ten square miles, sixty times
the area of Honolulu harbor, sufficient
to float all the navies of the world.
Over a large part of this area its
water is from thirty to one hundred
and thirty feet in depth. It's shores
are thirty miles in length. 1t is COM
pletely landlocked and therefore pro-
teeted absolutely both from storms and
from direct attack by hostile vessels.
In the rear are mountain ranges many
miles in width, and from two to four
thousand feet in height, with their
opposite sides precipitous, and cut only
by narrow and easily defended passes.
This [pointing to mapl tract colored
red is a military reservation of lSerly
$4,000 acres of high land about ten
miles from the haTb6r. This red line
sk1rting the shores of the harbor is
railroad. The bar has been prac-
tically removed, as indicated here.
Exhibiting large colored map of
Pearl Harbor.l These portions Lpoint-
ing to map] are intended for for
tifications and perhaps military posts,-
these for cross-fre and these for rak-
ing-fre, and these for naval station,
perhaps 1000 acres in all; the coal sta
tions and wharves for handling Goa.
are planned to be at this point; the
barracks, here; the magazines and
wharves for handling ammunition, upon
this island; the hospitals, upon this
promontory, the machine shops here,
surrounding the drydocks, which will
be in these hOllOws,-an these parts
seemingly designed by nature for these
very purposes and protected from at
tack by the four miles of land and
shallow water between them and the
deep sea. On this island, opposite the
proposed naval station, the United
States has strip 200 feet wide, and
about three-quarters of a mile long, the
object of which is to insure complete
control of this entire basin. What is
especially required at the present time
as deepening, and particularly the
Strengthening of the channel. [Exhi-
biting colored map showing present and
proposed channel.] The part colored
blue represents a depth of sixty feet
and over. At present a vessel must at
various points turn on curve of only
500 feet radius. These projecting
points must be cut off so as to make
the curves of 1000 feet radius in order
to enable, the largest vessels to enter
in safety. Excavations aggregating
100000 cubic yards will be required
for this, but it IS thought that they
can be made at an expenses not ex-
eeeding the Hawaiian custom receipts
for six months, say $750,000. or
small fraction of the cost of single
battleship. The work will be doubly
effective because the material to be
removed is needed upon the adjacent
reservations for Notifications. Indeed,
the entire work. not only of opening
the harbor but also of constructing
the drydocks, Notifications and naval
stations would probably cost not more
than one or two battleships, while it
would be as effective defensively and
Extensively as many such ships
The work should be undertaken i'm
mediately. Present needs call for it,
future. needs make it necessary to be
gin now in order to be prepared when
not to be prepared may prove to be
costly. Drydocks are needed at once;
naval base and place of refuge may
be needed at any moment, however,
much we may hope otherwise There
has already been too long delay. If
beginning is made now the work viii
hardly be finished before the compile
ton of the Panama Canal.
OF NATIONAL CONCERN.
This is not a matter of mere local
| interest, nor of value mainly to Ha-
wall; it is prominently matter of
| national concern. Hawaii, it is true,
as the territory most directly affect
ed, is deeply interested party, but
it is equally true that the benefits to
be derived by her from the proposed
action would be for the most part
merely incidental to those that would
accrue to the nation at large. The es-
Establishment of a naval station and con-