Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1916-03-21
METzGER ANSWERS
LAND CHARGE WITH
VIGOROUS DENIAL
In Comprehensive Statement
Sent to Star-5uIletin From
Oregon He Explains History
OF Deal
SAYS ROW STIRRED UP
FOR PERSONAL REASONS
Declares That Lorrin A. Thurs
ton is Trying to "Snipe'
Governor Pinkham and Him
self

DeIbert e. Metzeer, senator and
we'll known businessman Of the island
Of Hawaii, answers with vigorous
denial the various charges Of fayorit-
ism. and irreouIarity in connection
with the land deal at Waiakea be-
tween the territory and himself.
In a comprehensive statement sent
TO the star.BuIletIn from Baker, Ore
gon. where he 10 now In business as
an engineering contractor, Senator
Metzper discusses the subject In detail
and declares that the charges were
stirred up by Lorrin A. Thurston for
reasons Of personal animosity against
the senator himself and Governor
Pinkham.
Senator Metzger says:
Baker, Ore, March 6, 1916.
Editor Honolulu Star-B Bulletin,
Honolulu. Hawaii.
Sir: Under the caption, Land
Swap Stirs Ire Of Patient People of
Hilo,y the Advertiser on February l6
printed a twocolumn mail Special.
dated Hlio, February IA, that was no
doubt calculated TO just raise the very
old Ned" II purported to be an ex'
pose by "bombshelP' OF Q land deal
at Waiahea between the territory and
myself and was written by the very
able hand of Lorrin A. Thurston. as a
follow-up attack made by him at a
Hilo Board Of Trade meeting on Feb;
.rnary The bombsheil dropped on
the board by Mr. Thurston was one
OF the gas variety. charged with hear.
say accredited to Norman Lyman and
otherwise filled with misstatements
OF fact, insinuations and innuendoes-
and everyone knows that when II
comes to the manufacture of this sort
Of implement borrin A takes off his
hat TO no one IN the land-did moi
have sufficient weight and solid sub
stance to set more than few lines of
indirect mention In the Hil0 papers,
So no doubt suffering extreme piQue
at this and the opportunity being
open To shoot again from coyer at two
enemies at the same time, Governor
Pinkham and myself, II Just had to be
done. and we find the author, after
several days Of deliberative frame-ul
busting" his bomb on the Honolulr
community through the medium of his
own paper. That is a great system:
Owning q newspaper and writing
mail special" bombsheH correspon
dence to II. You can just make It ap
pear that the enemy Is being blown
TO fragments. II is what a few own
ers regard as "the power of the
press.
But. when Mr.. Thurston takes his
pen In hand and sits down to his con
genial task Of writing bombs, he will
make most any of aur "explodees" sit
UP and take notice. The mail spe
cial" was presented in the writer's
happiest vein: II was great pleasur,
and he was just In his best element
but nevertheless he studiously ant
carefully laid out the material in his
compelling item one" item two
style.
Statement Of Facts.
A few years ago ! should have pait
no attention to charges concerning
me that were utterly false. but / know
better now than to pass all OF then
up without protest, so here is briei-
statement of facts covering all essen
tials having to do with my QUAR-,
hand deal with the territory. includinI
a little other history that goes hans
In hand:
I leased the land in question, 9O.3
acres mot lao. as stated in special
from Waiakea Mil Company in Feb
ruary, 1910, for the purpose OF open
ing up a quarry in a part of 1T. ii
order to protect myself from the ex
tortionate rate forced from me by the
Hilo Railroad for hauling from Kapo
no. In this was not entirely success
ful, for under Mr.. Thurston,s skilful
nlanipulations the railroad picked my
bones az the rate of 80 cents per ton
for hauling from there, while at tn.
same time It performed for others 2
substantially similar service for 81
cents and later offered to do the iden
tical same work for others for &C
cents. The land is both pahoehoe
and a-a. the latter being ceysred in
places by rather dense vegetation
About 35 acres of this tract lies mau
ka Of the railroad track.
Opened Up Quarry Site.
spent about $4,000 in prospecting
and in opening up quarry at the
0laa end of this land, and in consery
ing and keeping it open in good work
ing shape, and this is the principal
reason why the quarry is of any par.
ticular~ value, for there is much other
land near by that would make good
Quarries, some even better than this.
it the expenditure necessary to open
them up were made. At the least cal
culation there is $4,000 acres more OF
IcontInued On page sevenl