The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1915-11-30
LETTER STIRS UP
SOME BIG P|LIKIA
ON TANNING isle
\ ~ 2a5t
When Manager Fits Wrote
About Gable Superintendent's
IS Wife Storm Broke
'5EYsfIF 4TTTT7 akFa, t..
OWNING COMPANY HAD 1t@
TO DEP0RT HEAD MAN
Mess Of DlsCord Thus Stirred Up
Practically Involves British
Government

A story has come out Of the South
Seas which shows that life on an Is
land is not always the pleasure IL Il
supposed to be by certain romantic
folk who have visions of blissful
eSistance with little to do but live
and enjoy life and bother not with
the morrow.
The resignation of Manager Fits
Of the Armstrong Company, which
owns Tanning, received passing men.
tion' in the papers when the fact OF
his leaving there became known, but
no reason was assigned for his with
drawal, II seems that it was forced
resignation or rather a dismissal that
caused Fit 5 departure. ...
? According to The Advertiser 3 in.
forTnant relations between the cable
company, which Is controlled by the
British government, and the Tanning
Island company were not of the pleas.
ATTEST and that FOR some time the thir.
ty, acres controlled BY the cable com.
Pany were tabu to dwellers on other
portions Of; the island. Reprisals were
made on the cable concern and its en-.
ploves were not allowed to cross a
certain dead line which was the bonn.
dairy of the property. cNo trespaa.
sing signs were put up all along the
boundary which could be read from
roth sides of the line and for long
time relations between the dwellcrs
This all came about, it is said, because
the government, when it tried to buy
the land. it wanted for it's cable sta
zion, was asked what it considered
an -exorbitant price for the property,
and then condemned and took it, warn
ing trespassers to keep off.
For time after Fits went to live
on Tanning this was the condition Of
affairs, but later the rule was not OBJ
served and there was generally a cor.
diality developed between the folk Of
the different sections and social Wis,
its were wade to and fro. Pitts, 1t
is said. became frequent caller at
the house Of one Of the cable employees
and WIS soon on intimate terms Of
Friendship with others of the cable
staff. A woman caller at the house
of Fits friend one day borrowed o
took from the mistress of the fousn
and it seems that in the book there
was letter from Fits to the owner
of the book which spoke in most un-
COMPILING ntary terms of the wife of
the cable superintendent, who was al
so the royal commissioner.
AS soon as the contents of the let
ter became known throughout the set
the cable superintendent start
cd things. First he marooned Fits
on his portion of the island and the
dead line" again was established.
Then there were other things doing
and the cable was kept hot between
London and Tanning in an endeavor
to enlist the government in the pro.
position of having Fits recalled. 1t
finally came to a pass when the cable
superintendent demanded the dismis.
sal of Fits or his own release from
the position as superintendent, as the
island has become too small in HIS
opinion for both of them.
The cable steamer Iris was sent
to Tanning to take the two men
to Suva and on the. way Fits was
persona non grata to the ships officers
AVID was forced to take his meals in
his room and flock by himself At
Suva Fits boarded the Niagara and
passed through here on his way to the
and London.