The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1907-01-03
NO FIGHT
WITH SUGAR
The Governor Explains
Public Land
Policy.

''It is not the policy of the Govern.
ment to strangle the sugar industry
Governor Carter enunciated the fore,
going doctrine yesterday while casual
ly talking about some recent sales OF
land which had been adversely criti-
cized.
Replying to questions the Governor
stated that all of the remnants Of land
sold to the Waianae Company were
remnants above that line, including
cane lands, which would be available
for settlement.
mo. the plantation has got nothing
it did not re before" the Governor
SAID. Then he added the disclaimer of
purpose to injury the sugar industry
where already established, which is
quoted above.
The alternative of selling the Waia-
nae lands, Governor Carter pointed
out, was the necessity of setting the
lease thereof up at auction every five
years. AS a result of that alternative.
if it had been taken, the development
of the plantation would be brought to
a standstill
AT the same time, there was no as
surance of any such early settlement
OF the lands as would be a compensa
tion for crippling the established plant
ing enterprise. No applications for
homesteads on those lands had been
received.
There is no use in pressing the OPEN
ing of lands ahead of the demand" the
Governor said. 1T would only mean
that the public lands would fall into
the hands of spectators
He instanced the sale of the Ofowalu
lands as being in similar circumstances
TO that of the Waianae lands. Those
who found fault with these transac-
tions could never have fully understood
the conditions. AS they lay and in
their relation to the water problem the
lands in question were not in demand
for settlement.
There was another case in point, on
the Island Of Hawaii, where a planta-
tion had offered land for settlement but
no desiring settlers had made them.
selves known.
Reverting to the Waianae matter, |
the Governor stated that reservation
bad been made for village and it was
the Governments desire to have a vii |
lage of independent owners arise there. |
Instead of putting the lands up for a |
lease of five years, with the necessity |
OF repeating the operation at the end |
OF the term, it was deemed better to
with to pay interest on the Territorial |
debt.
Governor Carter, in the course of /
expressed a feeling of |
in the belief that the De-
partment of Public Lands was making |
good progress in the opening of lands
for settlement. This was in accord
ance with his expressed desire for prac-
tical results when he resumed the du-
ties of office after his absence on ac-
count of illness. Yet, as already shown,
he did not see the wisdom of rushing
ahead of the game. In other words, If
he public lands were indiscriminately
without the safeguards
hat would prevent them from falling
nto the hands of speculators instead
# bona fide settlers, a succeeding ad-
would have neither pub
ic domain nor anything tangible in its
place
The Governor stated, as a matter of
particular interest, that in a report of
he Land Commissioner of the United
states, a borrowed copy of which he
lad just been perusing, there were sug-
.estions of Federal land policy which
we're identical with principles of the
and settlement regulations that had
or some time been in operation in Ha-
vail. 1t was a matter of gratiflcatlon
o him that Hawaii should thus be
ound leading the way for the nation
\ practical measures of land settle~
1ent.
In connection with this subject, Land
Pratt is quoted as want
lg an increase of appropriation for the
urvey department, for next period, 10
nable 1t to make surveys or ianos
nder expiring leases a year before the
espective terms expire. The appropri-
ton for expenses of field parties ana
flee work for the current period, Is
5000. An increase OF this amount 10
{. 900 is wanted for next period. BY {
nabling surveys to be made year In '
dvance. through the additional means,
is represented that the land depart
lent viii be in a position to deal [
with lands whenever they be- h
)me available for settlement Z