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

l. Public discussion, OF the lively and thorough
tlv 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 a 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 view to discredting 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 1t is not spirit of carping
criticism, but a spirit of serious suggestion
along lines for improvement.
| 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-
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 done its
part. That very statement is proof of the cor
rectness of one important feature of the COM
.mittee's report that of divided, overlapping
and conflicting authority !,
The joint report and the statistical reports
upon which they are based have brought the
whole matter of tax collections on Oahu sharply
to the front Questions Of fact and questions of
opinion are up for discussion. It will do mol
good for anybody simply to attempt to dismiss
the reports as balderdash. Inthese reports GER
tain definite statements are made which in the
final analysis charge a tremendous amount of
loss upon 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 tol
just as much publicity; and the public, which
is 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 longl
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
stion of the Chamber of Commerce and the AdI
Club to do something about it,
8 On another page today the Star Bulletin pub
fishes in full the report of the AID Club commit
tee and the report of III. 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 thel
system 2 and are worth keeping for reference
during the discussion of plans for an improve
@ment. 5... s-4~sfz :.
BY cable and wireless war news travels fast
these days. Hardly had the report come that
the little cruiser Nurnberg had escaped from
the Falkland Islands battle when another re