Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1915-04-03
HAWAII COUNTY
BILL ADVANCED
follower HOUSE
Senate Adopts Measure to
Change Big Islands Govern
ment After Stormy Session

After an hours warm debate. in
which three of the Big Island SOlons
fought strenuously against its passage,
Senator D. f. Metzgers S. B. 4S, pro-
posing reorganization Of Hawaii
countys government, successfully
went through final reading in the up
per house late yesterday afternoon. 1t
now goes to the house of represen-
tatives. where it is certain to encOun-
ter a stormy opposition.
The final vote on the bill in the
senate stood II to 4. Senators Baker,
Desha and Makekau Of Hawaii and
Senator Mikaele of Kauai voting
against it.
Rice injected an amending clause
requiring a plebiscite of the Hawaii
county voters, to be held before Au-
gust / next, ascertaining whether the
majority Of the electorate favor the
new scheme. If they do not, the act
would not go into effect If they do
it would become effective July l, 1917.
After the bill had passed the senate
the interesting discovery was made
that no provision had been included
for paying the expense of the plebis-
cite and unless this oversight is rem
edied in the lower house the act will
be non-effective, even if it passes the
house and is approved by the governor.
Rev. S. L. Desha, R. H. Makekau
and Baker in turn attacked the bill
oratorically yesterday afternoon, the
first two speaking at some length in
the Hawaiian language. There was a
rumor just before the debate began
that Desha intended attempting a fill
buster, talking the measure to death,
but if he did have any such design
he evidently learned of the effective
though seldom-used gag-rule provided
by the senate to prevent such efforts.
The president can make use at any
time of a little standing rule which
says that no member shall speak for
more than 10 minutes at one time.
No attempt was made to limit his
speech and he spoke only about 20
minutes, Including the time taken by
the interpreter to translate his argu-
ment fnto3 English. Makekau's talk
was slightly shorter and Baker was.
quite brief, speaking entirely in Eng
,lish. 1t was IN the midst of Desha's
speech, when he expressed the convic-
ton that not more than 600 of the
1000 voters on the Big Island would
favor the measure, that Rice interrupt
ed with his amendment suggesting a
plebiscite, This somewhat took the
wind out Of Desha's sails, but he and
his colleagues did not weaken for an
instant in their opposition to the bill.
Rice said the plebiscite was the only
feature that would induce him to favor
the bill. he did not think a radical
change of government such as this
proposed should be foisted upon the
people of any county unless the ma.
jority were perfectly willing to give it
a trial. If they proved by vote that
they were willing to try it, then let.
them have it, he said. Metzger Sec
onded the. amendment.
Defending the bill Senator Metzger
spoke very briefly but in the course
of his remarks struck straight from
the shoulder at what he said was the
real source of the opposition. The at
tempt is being made, he asserted, to
convince the people that the bill is
detrimental to their interest, that 1t
Is u0SlSuSu W give Tie COuIfOi vi ll0IT,
affairs into the hands of few men.
A study of the measure would show
exactly the contrary to be it's intent.
The county of Hawaii is getting to
be run by a few office-holders now,
said Metzger, and this is what the
bill is designed to check The sheriff's
office was blamed as being the root
of the trouble. That office can ally
itself with any one other office and
control the county. That is
the office that fears this bill, he aver
red, and the protests which have come
to the legislature against it bear the
earmarks of the county sheriff and
police department.
Until we get some of these pres
ent administrative officers out of poll
tics l don't believe we can have bet
ter government in Hawaii county,
said the senator