The Hawaiian gazette., 1910-06-10

that property, and the ability Of The
company 10 add TO tie fleet from Dino
to time, has not been Through itH freight
or passenger earning capacity, but is
due to the policy inaugurated many
years ago, to carry its own Insurance
on its vessels, and as result every
dollar which would have been paid to
outside insurance companies, has been
saved and used by the company in i'm.
proving its fleet Of steamers. To be
sure, ~ the company had not been for.
tunate in the small percentage Of losses
incurred during the years this policy
has been in vogue, il would not have
been possible to have built such
steamer as the Mauna Kea out Of its
insurance savings, but owing to the
marked ability of the officers and men
employed on its vessels, tho company
has had the good fortune to make the
showing just spoken of and the travel.
/ ing public has been benefited thereby.
I Before taking final vote on the
/ proposition now under consideration, |
would urge upon each and every mem.
Der of the Merchants Association of
Honolulu, to give careful consideration
to all the facts which have endeavor.
ed to lay before you, and il after thor
oughly digesting these facts you wish
to do something that will be benefit
to this community, / am sure you can
not fail to vote against the proposal to
extend the jurisdiction of the interstate
commerce law to water transportation
in Hawaii.
Gentlemen, I thank you for your at
tention.
At the conclusion of McLean's nd.
dress Mr.. Van Valkenburg. stated that
Thurstou had in advance met Nc
Lean s propositions, and he did not
consider it necessary to answer them
| again. G. II. Olson, as proxy for Claus
| Spreckels & Co., addressed the meet
ing.
Mr.. Olson said that the regulation
law was not framed for steamship com.
panies. He contradicted Thurston Is
statement that it would allow the
steamship company to aid in the develop.
mont of lands occupied by small pro.
ducers. He said that under the terms
Of the act the steamship company would
not be able to aid small farmers by Civ.
ing special rates for special products
such as cotton, etc.
Mr.. Thurston challenged this state
ment, saying that the act absolutely
allowed such special rating.
Answering the proposition that the
Inter Island company, if not placed un.
der the authority of a national law
such as the interstate law, might find
itself being regulated by local boards
of supervisors or a legislature, Mr.
Olson said that the powers of local
| authorities would not extend beyond
the three-mile limit. He declared that
the action proposed was a mistaken ef.
| fort to apply railroad regulations to
water transportation business, and that
the regulations would not fit.
Macfarlane intimated that the prop.
osition was Undetermined" and had
been brought up by the railroad com.
pany. He thought that the matter was
ga personal one between two rival cor
porations" and disapproved bringing it
before the association. He did not see
why the interstate regulations should
apply to steamers here as long as they
did not apply elsewhere to water trans.
portation.
In reply, Mr.. Thurston emphatically
repeated that none of the railroad in
forests here had started the agitation
for the application of the interstate
regulations to steamship business here.
He also referred to those opposing his
attitude as his lifelong friends and said
that it was personally painful task for
him to oppose them, but that'he believed
the principle involved was of vital i'm.
portanee.
Mr.. Mclean added final word, and
then the vote was taken. Secretary
Berndt counted, among the sixty-seven
present, thirty-four for the report and
three against it, the vote being by
raising of hands. This left thirty not
voting, and placed the association on
record as opposed to the application Of
American interstate commerce regula.
tions to the interisland steamship bust.
ness here.