The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-04-16
WHY OFFICIAL SALARIES
IN HAWAII SHOULD GO UP
Strong Argument by George B. Mcclellan on
the Question of Higher Pay for Some
of Our Public Servants.

following is Mr.. McClellan's argu-
menI before The House GomEI'tter on
Territories regarding an increase in
the salaries of various officials here:
| Mr.. Chairman and gentlemen Of the
committee, / desire to speak in refer
ence to H. r. 1854, in regard to salaries
| of officials and judges in Hawaii. Very
soon after the organic act became eff
fective in Hawaii it was seen from the
operation of the law that there Woulo
be some difficulty, on account of the in
adequacy of the salaries, in securing
and retaining the services of the class
of men we desired to have occupy some
| of the offices in the Territory. This has
been particularly the case in reference
| to the judges, not that we have not
had strong men on the bench contin-
uously, but there has been difficulty in
some cases in keeping them because the
salaries were so inadequate they could
not afford to retain places on the bench.
This bill provides for. amendment to
section go, increasing the salaries of the
governor and secretary of the Territory,
| the justices of the supeme court, the
| judges of circuit court, the Federal
| judge. and the United States marshal.
l would like to take up first the ques-
ton of the salary of the governor of the
Territory.
| think most of the members of the
committee must appreciate the fact
! that the governor of Hawaii occupies
a very different position from that of
the governors of the other Territories,
due to the international location of Ha-
wall and the number of foreign diplo-
mats and representatives frequently
passing through the Territory, requir-
ing a certain amount of state functions
and entertainments, which of course is
not called for in the case of the other
Territories. This has been proven to
be a rather formidable matter.
l have it on the authority of some
business men that Governor Carter has
expended somewhere between $4,000
and 5000 a year of his own money in
addition to his salary during the time
he occupied the governorship. This
was not spent to provide an elaborate
system of local entertaining, but much
of it went for the entertainment of
foreign visitors and Government off,
Gals going and coming through Homo
lulu.
l remember that when the Japanese
prince came over to this country the
Secretary of State cabled to the gov
ernor and asked that the prince be en-
tertained in a manner befftting his high
station. Governor Carter proceeded to
do it entirely out of his own pocket.
because no fund was provided by the
Federal Government and the Federal
Government never reimbursed the gov-
ernor of the Territory for the expen-
diture. And this is by no means an
isolated case. Extending these courte-
sizes is an International matter and not
a Territorial matter. Members of Con-
gress, consular officials, and army and
navy officers are frequent visitors at
Honolulu, and this all entails on the
governor considerable duty OF enter
tanning. So much for that phase of il.
So far as the question of salaries Is
concerned I think it is pretty well un-
derstood that the scale of living in Ha-
wall is very high. A bookkeeper in
mercantile house would receive $4,000
a year, and sometimes more than that.
That, / think, is a fair index of what
the cost of living is. A man living
there must have servants to an extent
not required in this country, and the
whole cost of living for rental and other
litemS makes the expense high; so that
salaries on the mainland are manifestly
not fair criterion for those of Hawaii.
The fact is recognized in case of the
military and naval officers in Hawaii
and the Philippines. They are given
special allowance, and very justly so.
Now, / wish to call attention to the
fact that this matter of salary has been
a subject of recommendation by former
Governors Dole and Carter, the first
two governors of the Territory, so that
it does not come as new proposition
at the present time.
I would like to call attention to the
salaries paid to the governors of Porto
Rico and the Philippines. The governor
of Porto Rico, who, l think it is fair to
say, does not have any more important
duties than does the governor of Ha-
wall and who has far less of this In
ternational entertaining to do, receives
dition has a governors house and es-
adjustment paid by the Government.
His salary is equivalent to 2,000 per
year. In the case of the governor of
the Philippines, he receives a salary of
S20.500 per year, but he has much en-
ertaining to do.
Mr.. Brick. What do you think the
salary of the governor Of Hawaii ought
to be?
Mr. Mcclellan. That question leads
me to emphasize the fact that this bill
is really not one for an increase of