The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1911-07-28
ENGINEER FROM
OUTSIDE WANTED
COMMISSION DnofDEs 10 sRND TO
WASHINGTON ron A ROAD
EXPERT.
(Mail Correspondence Of The Advor.
tissrl

(Mail Correspondence OF The Adver
tissr.)
mIo, July 2i.-with but one mega.
tive vote, the belt road commission Of
Hawaii yesterday determined to send
to Washington for a road expert from
the federal department Of agriculture,
at n salary Of $500 a month and
travelling expenses. The negative vote
was that Of Chairman james Lewis, Of
the board Of supervisors, who repre-
SCENTS that body on the commission, he
leading the party that desired to see
County Engineer Southworth put in
charge of all the work, including both
that carried on by the commission un-
der special act Of the legislature and
by the county. Among the numerous
residents and business men Of Hilo who
expressed themselves at the meeting
the prevailing sentiment carried com
pTment to Engineer Southworth and
backed it up by desire to see as many
good road experts in Hawaii as there
was possible to get.
In the morning previous to the pub
lie meeting which definitely settled this
pohnt, the commission met and organ.
lined. Commissioner Horner, nominal
ed by Hind, was unanimously elected
chairman, and Lewis accepted the secre-
taryship. The resolution to hold all
meetings public and advertise as many
as possible was also arrived at.
In opening the public meeting in the
afternoon, Marston Campbell said that
the first thing to be considered, was
the manner in which the approval Of
the bond issue had been attained. The
,, secretary Of the interior at Washing
!. ton had wanted to know very paTticu-
larly, before he passed on the matter,
how and by whom the loan money
would be expended. He had also ask
ed how the board of commissioners was
appointed and who were the commits
sioners. Wisdom must be exercised in
the matter of the expenditure of the
money, as otherwise the approval would
not be granted when it came to the
floating of the rest of the bond Issue,
as only a portion thereof had been 49,
sued at present.
}, Question of Expenditure
|
One a1estion to consider was wheth-
er this money should be spent for re-
construction of roads, for repairs or
for new roads. The community was
interested in seeing good roads in gem
! eral. Repairs would not, in Camp
/ balls Judgment, be a proper expsldi-
!, ture. but, for instance, he believed that
the reconstruction Of the road between
: Hilo and Hakalau could not be called
{ repair work--it was reconstruction,
|, and therefore proper.
The definition of the belt road Goa
stituted another question. The money
should not be scattered all over the
3 island. The work must be concentrated
, and the entire amount to be used did
! not amount to more than third of the
: sum which Campbell had estimated was
necessary to make a good road com
a pletely around the island. He want
, cd to impress ON his hearers tho i'm
4 portant point that the people here were
not the final judges; the commission
!, was subject to criticism outside the Isl
ands. As a member of the commission
Campbell would work along these lines
Carter was the first to breach thu
. question of the engineer, doing so i'm
!, mediately after Campbell had spoken
= and remarking that he wanted to TAX
4 the bull by the horns. Personally, n
!, thought, it would be well to employ al
: expert, and he had therefore taken
. on himself to write on his own respon
a sibility to the good roads department
n of the department of agriculture a
|. Washington, asking if any such en-
n o,,,oa,- xyara available
a Case Of Engineer.
This was an important matter, AM
4 the very best advice was needed TO
IS the laying out of permanent roads. Car
D. ter had some time ago suggested thu
10 plan to Horner and Hind, and from tn
h remarks which they had made at tn
n time. he believed that they agreed wit
g. him. The good roads department s1I
n Piled engineers, or recommended suet
d when it was requested SO to do. Tn
men they recommended had made spler
did records.
Personally, Carter did not know tn
present county engineer, and there wa
nothing personal in his attitude, as b
n had never even eonversed with hin
y but he did not think that his experience
II had been sufficient for the big wor
at hand. Furthermore, there wa
enough work for the cOanty enginee
4 to do outside of the commission wofi
Politics should be kept out entirei,
70 and political considerations, which wei
70 those which had been urged mos
IS strongly on Carter, should be pr
at aside.
~ Later, in answering Mr.. Carter, Nj
solthworth took the floor and said this
. many remarks had been made with r
gard to the county engineer. Mr.. Ca
o. ter had said that he was not aequain
O. al with him and that he was not cal
able of handling the large work whie
m ~, .,,,,,,issiop had IN hand The count