The Hawaiian gazette., 1911-02-14
VISITOR HEARS
. NEWS FROM HOME
C. S. Douglas Learns That Com
pany Gets MiIIion-DoIlar
DrydOCk Subsidy.

@. S. Douglas, formerly mayor of
Vancouver and prominent business
man Of Honolulu g northern neighbor,
who now forms one of the Vancouver
colony enjoying things Hawaiian, with
headquarters at the Moana Hotel, re-
ceived a cable during the week that
his company had completed arrange
ments with the Canadian government
to construct 62O-foot drydocli on Van
couver Bay.
A million-dollar subsidy goes to the
company, which is the Imperial Car,
shipbuilding and Drydock Company, to
be paid in annual instruments of $42,-
900 for twenty-five years 1t will be
eighty-fve feet wide and will handle
the largest vessels now plying on the
Pacific receiving vessels Of $4,000 tons
displacement.
1t is 10 be built on the north shore
of Vancouver harbor and the company
is not only preparing to construct ship
building yards in conjunction, but has
laid out a townsite and its operations
will bring a thriving settlement into
building.
Canadian Naval Policy.
The substituting of this drydock is in
line with the new policy which the
Canadian government has just adopted
and which includes, besides the sub
sidizing of ship yards and drydocks,
the construction of a Canadian fleet of
war
"Vancouver is becoming more and
more an industrial eenter,'' said Mr..
Douglas, yesterday. "The old pursuits
are being abandoned for industrial de-
velopment and Vancouver will be a
great factor in the industrial worldo
The company in question, Of which
Mr.. Douglas is vice president and treas
urer, also holds patents on a new steel
sleeping car which claims precedence in
corifort and convenience over the Pull
man ear and will probably enter into
competition with that great American
monopoly. These cars have, besides
vastly improved berth facilities, win
dows for upper and lower berths and
every other convenience which long ex-
perience in passenger transportation
has shown possible.
o0AA0NOb III 0oAAAAAAopAOAAs
As the former executive of a. city
which has voted to adopt the commits
sion form Of municipal government, Mr..
Douglas is very much interested in the
plans which Honolulu is formulating to
that same effect.
While his statements were not enthu-
siastically in favor of the commission,
they were decidedly enthusiastic when
compared TO his disapproval of the
ward system which is the existing form
in Vancouver at present.
"There has never been any graft or
corruption in Vancouver" explained
Mr. Douglas. HThe matter was pre-
sented to the people in a plebiscite and
they voted to adopt the commission
form of government. Progressiveness
was the only motive of the decision and
It was along progressive lines that it
was adopted The legislature has not
yet acted on it and as il is for them to
amend the charter, it may be possible
that they will not reach the matter
this session.
Likes Hawaii.
''I was in Mexico last year." he
added, Hbut Mexico has nothing COM
pared to Hawaii 1t is the easiest thing
in the world for us to step aboard a
vessel at Vancouver and come to Ha-
wall Vancouver is becoming more and
more prosperous every year and its peo-
pie are travelling There is going to
be lot of traffic yearly between the