Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1913-09-20
Editor Honolulu Star-BuIletin,

Editor Honolulu Star-Bulletin,
What step has Honolulu made
looking toward preparedness for
handling the business that will surely
be hers as soon as the big ditch across
Panama is opened to the water traffic
|of the world? From all appearances,
Honolulu is going to be showed un-
der" in more ways than one. Are the
people of this. city mindful of the fact
that the big canal will be opened for
traffic in a few short months, and
that vessels from nearly every nation
that processes to do any maritime bus
mess, will be sending ships through
the short cut to the Pacific, loaded
with the goods manufactured In the
factories of Europe to the oriental
countries, and they will return via
the same routes laden with the prod
|ucts of the Far East. All of these
ships, or. it is safe to say the major
ity of them, will stop at Honolulu
that Isl they will stop here for all
kinds of supplies, including water, II
they can get q berth at the Wharyes.
But will they?
It Is a serious thing. the laying out
of long voyage of ship. through
thousands upon thousands Of miles,
making calculations with certainty
that at this port supplies can be OBJ
tanned, and at that port other needed
supplies can be purchased, and still
further on at another port further
ships stores may be taken on. And
dc the ships that depend on these
supply stations for the replenishing
of their depleted stores ever have to
turn away to seek other ports for
their supplies? Not If the supply
ports know their business and they
generally do.
Honolulu is soon to become the
greatest ship-supply port in the
world, being a crossroads in every
sense of the word, il she so wills it,
and again we ask, "Will she?"
Cities all over the world are spend
ing thousands, and even millions, of
dollars In preparation for sending
ships through the Panama Canal, and
Honolulu has but to get ready to re-
ceive these ships and reap the harvest
of dollars that will absolutely flow
into her Golfers from these ships and
their needs, but Honolulu must do
something to warrant this prospect
I've rich estate She must not think
that she can sit idly by and wait for
the ships to come to port and dump
their money over the side and in re-
turn receive-yes, receive what? What
have we made for supply
ing, say, twenty ships at one time O.
But we will talk about that later.
There Is something Of much more
and importance to be talked
over first. We must catch our GUS
toner before we can sell him any
thing. The first move toward pre-
paredness is to make it possible for
three or more ships to enter our har-
Dor, and all of them be accommo-
dated with place to tie up to at
the same time Conditions are going
to far exceed those when everything
gets into swing, and il we cannot ham
ale the business that comes our way,
or if we cannot furnish the supplies
that are called for, ships win. soon
learn not only to not figure on Homo
lulu as port where they can get
supplies, but viii give the port. the
go by, If it is possible for them to
reach their destinations without stop
ping here. But it is not the wish of
any person in these islands that such |
! state of affairs obtain. Hawaii wants
every snip to stop here on her way
TO and from the orient; In fact, Ho-
nofulu should create such port that
L viii be almost compulsory for ships
10 stop here, and the first move along
his line is to prepare the local har-
sor for such a future
: While 1t is true that the Honolulu
larbor is limited in territory, still
here might be use made of what
here is CT the space along the water
'ront that is today bowling Wild
,fnesss or a blamed sight worse
Right in the very heart of the city
is a desert spot It ex-
ends from the Alakea wharf to the i
md of the Oceanic wharf From (
what the writer can learn there have
,een surveys made. plans have been
'ketched and all that sort of thing