Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1914-12-11
EDITOR
CLEARING THE AIR.

Public discussion, ofthe lively and thorough
.ly earnest sort now being freed, is one of the
very things aimed at by the Chamber of Com
merce and the AID Club in their move to inves-
tigate territorial and municipal finances.
As f. Fl. Paris of the chambers committee
says, the work done by the committees and
their statistician, Mr.. Field, is not probe but
a research. 1t is dispassionate survey of the
question whether Improvement can be made in
the collection of public revenues. In other
words, the investigation was undertaken not
with a view to discrediting or getting the
scalp of any official or department head, but
with view to finding out whether the system
cannot be bettered or changed to advantage
The reports have been drafted and submitted
in the same spirit. It is not spirit of earping
criticism, but a spirit of serious suggestion
along lines for Improvement. 4
Tax Assessor Wilder takes issue with some
of the statements made by the chairman of the
joint committee. He has every right to protest
if the figures are wrong or if the statements
are wrong, and he will be given every. oppor-8
tunity to furnish the right figures and the right
statements There is no disposition to shut
him off without hearing and likewise there
is no disposition to criticise the conduct of his
office until his statement has been heard.
But, as matter of fact, the criticism is di-
.rected not against the tax assessor, but against
a conflicting and inefficient system Of tax col
lection. And, as matter of fact, one of the
statements that the tax collector makes in pro-
test against the committee report on automobile
tax collections is that though his office has done
Its part toward collecting the. auto taxes, the
city and county sheriff s office has not doneits
part That very statement is a proof of the cor
rectness OF one important feature of the com
mittee' s report that of divided, overlapping
and conflicting authority 80 :s1 &,
The joint report and the statistical reports
upon which they are based have brought. the
whole 1natterof tax eollection on Calm sharply
to the front Questions Of fact and questions of
opinion are up for discussion 1t will do no
good for anybody simply to attempt to dismiss
the reports as. balderdash. In these reports Ger
tain definite statements are made which in the
final analysis charge a tremendous amount OF
loss upon q system -or q lack of unified system.
These reports are entitled to the fullest pub
licity; the statements Of the tax assessor or any
other interested public official are entitled to|
Just as much publicity; and the public, which
lis paying the taxes, is entitled to the beneficial
result that is sure to come if the discussion is
carried on along sound lines.
Nor will it do any active good to say that the
present condition has been known for a long,
time; that previous attempts to change it have
failed That is all the more reason for the lively
discussion now and the very evident determine
tion of the Chamber of Commerce and the Ad
Club to do something about it. =
On another page today the Star ulletin pub
fishes IN full the report Of the Ad Club commit
tee and the report of H Gooding Field on auto
mobile registration and taxes. The report Of
the chairman of the Chamber Of Commerce com
mittee was published in full yesterday These
papers set forth fully the criticism against the
system = and are worth keeping for refereneel
during the discussion of plans for an improve
ment.
BY cable and wireless war news travels fast
these days. Hardly had the report come that
the little cruiser Nurnberg had escaped from