The Hawaiian gazette., 1909-01-01
FERN IS READY
To STAND FIRE
Continued From Page one.)


the work Of the county and the law
makes II the duty of the Supervisors to
appropriate funds FIR the work.
am preparing the lists of the com.
mittees of the board and will announce
them on Monday, with the chairmen,
This also is part of my duty, have
done now what the law requires. If
there is TO be any blocking of the pub.
lie business it will be through the work
of the Supervisors Politically have
made fair appointments, nominating
many of the heads of departments put
there originally by Republicans. The
distribution of offices has been an equit.
able one, I believe"
e.. No Criticism of Ones Named.
There is very little, if any, criticism
of the men named for the various Jobs,
the criticism being practically altogeth.
er over the manner of the appointments.
According to the offices filed by the
Mayor-elect, claim many, there is no
reason whyhe should not go ahead and
name every employe of the county not
in one of the departments controlled
by an elected chief. If he can name
blacksmiths, for instance, it is thought
that he could as well name shovelers,
teamsters and street sweepers.
Secretary Rhodes on the Appointments.
"Mayor Fern had to take the Mu-
nicipal Act 'as he found it, said
Charles l.. Rhodes, the secretary to
the Mayor, when asked regarding the
announcement of bellicose purposes on
the part of the Republican Supervis.
-ors. "The act is not clear in its Ian
guage, and there is perhaps room for
differences of opinion as to some of its
provisions. But the act has to be
taken as it is. BY section LAG it is
made mandatory that during the month
of December the Mayor.elect shall
make certain appointments. Just what
appointments are intended are to be
determined by study of the whole
act. Mayor Fern believes he has done
this. Objection seems to have been
made because he has made "a long list
of appointments and because they
are mostly Democrats. AS to eacl
one of these, he either had the powe,
10 make the appointment, or he die
not. If he had the power to make
u, lhO IL SOOu IL ne ult
not have the power to make it, it !,
not good, but the question of tn,
power to make it or not to make il
is legal one in which there is NJ
politics unless the Republican Super
visors inject politics into it by threat,
of 'coercing the Mayor such as ar,
reported to have been made.
"Mayor Fern made the appoint
ments that he did, because upon I,
study of the whole Municipal Act, an,
the orders, ordinances, and resolution
of the several Boards of Supervisor
of the County of Oahu, which by sec
ton 142 of the Municipal Act are ex
pressly continued in force, these seem
ed to be the appointments be was re
quired by the act to make. He di,
not pick out these appointments from
| the whole roster of the public servic
Of the county because they were tn
particular positions he was DESTROYS o
filing, but because under the law an,
| the acts of past Boards of Supervisor
| these seemed to be the ones it was hi
duty to make. For it must not be for
gotten that the Municipal Act say
that during December be shall-no
may-but shall make the appoint
ments required, and the appointment
he has made are those that from
study of the whole act he believes h
is required to make.
cit must not be forgotten also tina
section 146 of the Municipal Act ex
pressly provides that all boards, com
missions and officers of the County o
Oahu 'by appointment under exist
ing laws shall hold office no loHge
than the hour of noon on the frs
Monday after the first day of Jan
uary, 1909. This ruthlessly cuts OF
all those serving the county under az
pointment, which furnishes the reasO
why the law in the same section re
quires the Mayor to make appointment
before the first day of January.
| "But assuming for the sake of al
gument that these appointments have t
be confirmed by the Board of Super
visors, which under the law it seem
pretty clear thew do not have to be, tn
only question then for the Supervisor
persons appointed for the positions I
which they are appointed. The fac
that they may be Democrats woul
hardly be considered by the public a
a sufficient reason to refuse to confiri
them provided they are fit persons fo
appointment. Mayor Fern is not seel
ing to exercise any power the law doe
not give him. Threats of coercion
and of compelling him to share his al
pointing power with the Supervisor
is law-defying.
at is stated that the RepublIca
Supervisors are notifying those dl
placed by Mayor Ferns appointment
to stick to their BIS. This is an a
tempt by these Supervisors to appoh
not only list as long as the Mayor
bat one a great deal longer. And
there is one thing clear in the MuniC
pal Act it is that the Board of Supe
vlsors has no direct appointing powe
1t can not even appoint clerks or 9th
assistants for its own body until IL
) authorized to do so by ordinance.
that on whatever ground it may der
the right of the Mayor to make all Il
appointments he has, the Republics
Supervisors can not claim any r ght
direct appointment themselves, thout
that is exactly what they are DOH
when they tell employees or others