The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1910-07-01
WHY INsL
RATES 4
Asphyxlation Of the -->
nance, and POO.l on che make.
System. Nito people


The FIRE insurance companies doing
business in Hawaii took in in premiums
during the period of from 1908 to 1909
inclusive total Of $s,997 s92.s6.
They paid out in losses during the
same period the sum of s530,sA7.54.
In other words, the amount of pre-
miums collected exceeded the amount
of losses paid out by 2,467,O45.ss,
Tho amount of losses, therefore, is
less than seventeen per cent of the
amount collected in premiums.
In other words, the Ere insurance
companies have in seven years laid by
nearly two and half millions Of dol.
lars to reimburse themselves fol the
losses they will sustain when the ex.
peCted great fire of Honolulu occurs.
The building of Chinese tonements
and other forms Of fretraps goes ON
steadily.
And the building ordinance which
would put stop to the building of fire.
traps and which would, therefore, re.
duco insurance rates, still slumbe1s
sweetly in committee of the board of
supervisors.
The Supervisors don't care. Few Of
them live where great FIRE destroying
the business section of the city would
directly affect them. Only one of them
has any downtown business, beyond su.
pervising. The one exception is the one
who is wroth because of the asphyxia-
ton of the building ordinance. Per-
haps the others are thinking of the
Chinese vote.
The statement was made long time
ago by the board of underwriters that
whenever the water pressure in the
downtown mains should reach pres
sure of eighty pounds, and when the
Nuuanu dam should be finished, fire in
surance rates would be reduced"
THAI however, was before the in
auguration of the era of the building
of Chinese fretraps
Nuuanu dam has been completed and
will be formally accepted by the super
intendent of public works today. But
the water pressure in the downtown
mains has not reached eighty pounds.
Nor will it reach anything like that for
long time to come. There. is water
in plenty, but the pipes will not stand
the pressure. The jumbled, antedilu
Wan, obsolete and worn-out system of
mains would, according to Superintend
emit Marston Campbell, fly all to pieces
should a pressure of eighty pounds be
!. put on it. "In several parts Of the
downtown district" said Mr.. Campbell
yesterday, 81 dare not put on a pres
sure of more than thirty five pounds"
System Inadequate.
The only way to provide Honolulu
with an adequate water system, Mr..
Campbell says, is to spend about half
million dollars in installing a new
system of mains. AS conditions are
at present, the mains are, on the whole
entirely too small and contain all kinds
, and sizes of pipe. Here will be an
} 1s-inch main and running into it will
be 12,inch pipe. This in turn ex-
, pands little further on into an 49,
, inch main again. And so it is all over
the city. Along King street is only
! an 8-inch main where there should be
an 1s-inch pipe. The same condition
. prevails on Alakea street.
The department is being crowded to
supply pipe for the rapidly building
Kaimuki district. new 100000.
gallon reservoir is being constructed in
that district, but within one year, Mr..
Campbell says, it will not be large
enough and another 5000, 000.gallon res.
ervoir viii have to be constructed.
Within comparatively short time 1t
viii be necessary to lay about fifteen
miles of pipe in Kaimuki.
Manoa is also building up 80 rapidly
that the works department is having
difficulty keeping pace with the cree
ton of houses in that district All
over town the same condition prevails
to a greater or less extent.
Honolulu Is water system is antiquat.
ed. 1t was planned for city much
smaller than che Honolulu of today and
infinitely smaller than the Honolulu Of
tomorrow. The city is growing more
rapidly than ever before in its history.
But the department of public works
has not the money to install an ade-
quate water system.
The only way to get the money is
by a bond issue. The legislature at
the next regular session will be asked
to approve of a 100000 bond issue,
the money tolbe used to install through.
out the city new and adequate water
system There is water in plenty, but
the pipes win not carry it.
And firetraps still go up
And the building ordinance still
slumbers sweetly in the bosom of a
somnolent committee of the board Of
supervisors
And insurance rates still remain high.
And there 3 an election next Novem