Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1913-03-31
ROOTS, ROAsTs and RABID REPRESENTATIVES.

The special house committee which last Sat,
urday rendered a report on market gardening
conditions in the territory displays considerable
more zeal than Judgment and considerably more
ability to write down sarcasms than to offer con.
structiye suggestions.
superintendent of Marketing Starrett is criti.l
cized in such severe terms and in such an OBJ
yiously unfair way that one would think the
committee members were engaged solely to con.
denim him instead of to investigate conditions id
AN impartial, intelligent way and to. offer help
full suggestions 1t is well recognized, of course,
that small farming in this territory is not sub.
stantially established on any territory wide,
scale, and that market gardening is as yet hardly,
Extensive enough to attract attention: 1t needs
mo Investigating committee to discover this
patent fact 1t is true, also, that the encourage.
ment Of mall-farlning through the establishment,
Of the marketing department has not met with
tall the success that the. Legislature Of 1911 per-
Ihaps expected in the passage of Acts l23 and,
LIS Where the committee has erred is in hold
ling superintendent Starrett responsible for com
Editions and situation over which he has no con.
Ifrol --~e
The committee started out on authority of
House Resolution go, requesting Information as
|fo why the superintendent has charged and Isl
|charrine a commission for handling produce
sent by the farmers to market through his office
The superintendent was quite able to justify the
charging Of this fee, for it Is expressly author
lied in Act 123 Of the Session Laws Of 1911,
HE act creating tie department Of immigration,
labor and statistics and the subdivision Of mar
letting. Apparently disappointed in not finding
IIr Sfarrett at fault here, the committee then
|roceeied to look into the conduct Of his work
Ind ct the conclusion of what is stated to be al
.fnll conference came to the decision that the
&uperintendent is ignorant Of the duties of his
Iffice and has not developed small-farming inl
Me territory as he should have done
The committee was also instructed to look
INTO the matter Of interisland transportation OF
/roduce and IN particular to investigate COM
|aints Of the cessation of the Inter Island Steam
Navigation Company's service between Maui
8 orts and Hilo. Accordingly, the honorable gen.
|emen of the Investigating body conferred, they
eport, with President Kennedy of the mter-Isl-
.nd company, with the following result, as quot
from tlSafr statement:
eOur interview with the president of the In
MHlSl8nQ steam NaylSalA10h SOtlpstn1 was bsii
81 Of results. He would not give any assurance
"a resumption of facilities for freight trans
1ortation between Maui and Hilo, and vice YER
.-would not even undertake that one of his
ssels should make periodical calls in the event
nat forty head of cattle per trip were Offered.
Tour committee consider that the attitude of
Md company in this regard is reprehensible and
.essly lacking in due regard for the public
Ieeds and convenience
AS d result of the conference with Superin
kndent Starrett and President Kennedy, the
kmmittee recommends an act abolishing the of
Ice Of market superintendent, complaining of
Ie expenses of running the office and the al
he'd fact that il is not making good"
The Star Bulletin does not say that Superin
!. hdent Starrett has built up a great small-farm
81 industry in the territory, hut it does say that
Is kind of condemnation handed out wholesale
the committee is unjust and absurd 1t is alb
I,,d. for instance, to hold Starrett to blame for
L difficulty of developing inter-island traffic
lproduce when the committee exposes its own
- bbility to get satisfactory results from the In
E-Island! sskak Ses ss
Hinder Mr.. Starrett the marketing of produce
Ire has begun to reach something like substan-
klity, and definite encouragement has been Civ
Island growers. This in the face OF just such
kficnlties as the committee reports, When an