The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1908-05-15
DELEGATE CONGRATULATED.

al
The Acting Governor, on receiving
the foregoing despatch, cabled to Dele
gate j. X. Kalanianaole as follows:
HONOLULU, May Ito Kuhio,
Washington: Congratulations on your
good work. MOTT-SM1TH.'
WASHINGTON, April 2O.-The white
man s outpost in the Pacifici The
greatest naval station in the world. 1t
is now settled that this is what Uncle
Sam will establish at Pearl Harbor, on
Oahu Island, seven miles from Homo
lulu.
He will spend from ten to twelve
million dollars to do it. Once it is ac-
complished the Pacific feet sheltered
there will protect not only Hawaii, but
will become the watchdog of the Pa
cifc Coast, always alert, ever ready for
attack.
a bill has been passed by the House,
and will be passed without opposition
by the Senate, providing for the ex-
penditure Immediately of $650,000 in
the preliminary work, and, before the
next session of Congress, an additional
amount of approximately $2,5O0,O0O.
There are no official figures upon the
probable ultimate cost of the improve
ment but the Taft Board recommended
Notifications to cost $3,5O0,000, and
there is planned a drydock to cost
$2,000,000 more. This, with the esti-
mated cost of dredging the channel and
removing the bar at the harbor mouth,
$2.000,0000, the equipment of machine
shops at a cost of $1,000,000, and the
coal shed, store house and naval yard
construction to cost another million,
brings the amount approximately to
$1O,0OO,00O.
In preparing for this highly import
ant auxiliary to the Pacific fleet, Con-
gress and the House Naval Committee
is going it alone, for the Naval Board
has never made any estimates or recon-
mended the general project, despite the
fact that the land surrounding the har-
Dor, some 600 acres, was purchased by
the United States for this purpose be-
fore the acquisition of the Islands, for
$650,000. Nothing has ever been done
toward improving it to date.
The Importance of Pearl Harbor as
naval strategic point has been urged
upon the government since 1851. Naval
engineers have made voluminous reports
upon it. The first step toward making
it naval base followed Dewey's vic
tory in Manila Bay, when Uncle Sam
purchased the harbor and its surround
ing territory from the Hawaiian gov
ernment.
The harbor is formed by the mouth
Of no ba
shore of Oahu Island. seven miles from
Honolulu. With the exception of the
bay at Honolulu it is the only harbor
for large vessels in all the Islands.
geographically Pearl Harbor is an
ideal naval station site. 1t is a beau
tiful lagoon, three miles long, which
branches out at the inner end into
delta-like harbor with a land frontage
of 80 miles. The water varies from 80
TO go feet in depth. Coral and sand
stone banks rise so straight that a full
rigged man-of-war could anchor along
side without docks. The rise and fall
of the tides in the harbor is scarcely
noticeable.
A sand bar now obstructs the mouth
of the river, and the plan contemplates
Is removal and the dredging of a wide,
deep channel out to sea. For a mile
beyond the sand bar the approach to
the harbOr shows only a depth of 100
feet, condition especially well suited
to marine operations. The experience
of Honolulu, in dredging away a simi-
lar bar, was that after removal it did
not reform.
1t would be utterly impossible for a
hostile fleet to force an entrance to the
harbor, once it was properly fortified.
Two immense cliffs jut upward at the
mouth of the river, and heavy guns
placed here could not only repel any at
tack from the sea, but also defend
Honolulu, whose sea approach lies with
in easy range. Back of Honolulu are
cliffs that would afford excellent loca-
tion for coast defenses, which. coupled
with the Pearl Harbor fortifcations,
would make that city of $4,000 prae-
tically immune from sea attack.
Supplies could be brought to Pearl
Harbor over the Oahu Land and Rail
road COmpany's line, which skirts the
harbor. Fresh water springs and arte-
sian wells on all sides insure an excel