The Hawaiian gazette., 1912-08-30
NOTICE
On RAPID
TRANSIT
Campbell Gives Company Ten
Days to Commence Laying
BituIithic.
THEN ACTION WILL START
Suit to Cancel Charter viii Be
Observation-Disclosures Says:
go Ahead"
THEN ACTION WILL START

Formal notice will reach the offices
of the Honolulu Rapid Transit Company
this morning warning that corporation
that an action viii be commenced in the
courts to annul its charter if the paw
ing of the company's tracks on King
street with bithulithic or some similar
and equally satisfactory paving ma
terial be not commenced within ten
days.
The notice. prepared in the office of
the attorney general was signed shortly
after noon yesterday by the superin'
tendent of public works and mailed to
the company. 1t is short and to the
point. 1t calls attention to the charter
obligation of the company to keep that
portion of the streets occupied by its
right way in repair and paved in such
way as to conform with the rest of
the street: it calls attention to the fact
that the portion of the right.of way on
King street, between River street and
Nuuanu has not been paved with
bitulithic as has the rest of the street
and it gives the street ear company
Just ten days from today to start work.
If work is not started by that time,
says the notice, immediate steps will be
taken by the superintendent of public
works to have the charter of the COM
pany annulled, on the grounds that it
has failed to live up to its franchise
obligations.
Advertiser Breaks the News.
Superintendent Ballentyne of the
rapid transit company received his first
news of this notice from The Adver-
tiser last night and appeared consider
ably astonished to hear that such a
step had been taken by the territorial
officials. There was no particular
alarm with the establishment, however.
| owe have no particular fear of any
suit going against us" he said, "no
matter whether the threatened action
is to be mandamus proceedings or quo
warranto. As a matter of fact, we in
vited mandamus proceedings some time
ago, being just as anxious as anyone
else, for our own protection, to have an
authoritative ruling from the courts on
this question.
Wanted Ruling Before.
"We wanted to take the matter to
the United States Supreme Court when
it had reached our local supreme court,
but the authorities fought this move
on our part and left the matter just as
it was before the courts touched it.
An Overlooked Clause.
"There is one clause in our charter
which it appears the superintendent of
public works has overlooked, in his
anxiety to prevent us using ohia block
paving-which is the sole object of his
anxiety in this matter, so far as / can
make out-and that is the clause en-
towering him to perform any of the
work we should do and fail in. /
should think he would start in and lay
the bitulithic at our expense, if he is
so anxious to put down that kind of
paving If he is going to be such a
sticlIler for the letter of the law, let
him carry out his part of the law,
''We have just placed an order with
the Hawaiian Development Company
for ohia blocks for King street, which
we win season and have ready to lay
when this proposed lawsuit is over.
/ Without the suit we would have them
in shortly"
"Of course, we will take the matter
to the Supreme Court. How long that
viii take is to be seem"