The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1909-08-09
would be gradual in development.

would be gradual in development.
"The study here must be extremely
intensive; that is, it must involve
minute consideration of the value and
potency of sources of water supply
that are small in capacity. Every source
is important and each of many small
sources must add its share to the ag
gregate amount utilized. All of this
comes down to consideration of the
character and variation of the waters
running off from typical drainage
areas. There is vast amount of diff
ference in the run-off from an area that
is fiat and porous and one that is steep
and bare. An equal difference is pre-
scented in the run-off from these two
areas and another that is steep and
well forested. The fundamental prob
lem is to determine what may be call
ed the habits of streams of this kind.
Therefore photographic investigation
means more than a mere measurement
of the water and a recording of results.
Such results are only the means to
greater and more important end.
$50 much for fundamentals. | have
found that, while in certain places
stream-fow records of value have been
kept, they include as rule only nor
NAL and low4water periods. | can find
no data which will give a clue to the
amount of flood or freshet water. Weirs
that have been established have been
submerged during freshets, and read
ings taken from them at such times are
entirely without value. Nevertheless,
it is apparent that freshet water has
an enormous value.
ga flood usually causes a large
amount of physical damage, the most
! important of which is the erosion of
valuable soil and the consequent de-
| mutation of agricultural lands. The
| damage to structures of various kinds
is also disproportionate. But, after all,
the greatest loss arising from floods,
and one which is not often appreei-
ated, is the waste of the water, which,
| if it could be recovered, could be put
| to uses many times more valuable than
| that represented by the physical dam
/ age caused by the freshets.
"Therefore, the ultimate solution of
the water problems here must be based
upon conservation. In this many serious
| difficulties are to be encountered. Sew
| eral extremely practical difficulties
| have been pointed out to me by we'll
| informed persons whom | have inter
| viewed. Many others have appeared
| in nv examination of conditions. But,
after all, difficulties are measured by
| the final utility of what is accomplish
| ed by overcoming them. If, in the es-
| Establishment of reservoir systems, high
| costs are incurred and the objects ac-
! complished are of only nominal value,
! the difficulties must be considered pro
hibitive. But, if by great expenditure
| of money, water can be stored, the use
| of which viii yield suitable returns on
! the investment, such difficulties are in
! a degree no more important than the
/ trifiing ones that are overcome under
| ordinary conditions on the mainland.
| ''In this Territory the object of con
| servation is worthy of enormous ex-
penditure The people here can afford
| to pay for reservoir systems of compare
/ lively enormous cost This Is well
| illustrated bv the conditions on certain
| plantations which now maintain expen-
| sive pumping plants. To an engineer
accustomed to practise on the mainland
! the raising of water to a height of
| 500 feet for the irrigation Of lands
| freak of engineering. But the reason
| is that the returns on lands so irrigat-
| ed on the mainland would not Justify
| the expenditure. Here they constantly
! iustifv such expenditure and become an
/ enormous item of plantation mainte-
nance Nevertheless. such plantations
are profitable. If, therefore, land here
| is Of sufficient fertility to produce
values that viii over-top the enormous
! costs of maintenance, it is apparent
! that what has been considered prohibit
/ tive expenditure for reservoir systems
must in reality be wise and business
| like investments.
"Of course. all this is promised on
controlling conditions. 1t does not mean
necessarily that every stream should b.