Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1916-11-14
FIELDS REPORT
AGAIN TAKEN Up
BY Commission
Utilities Board Resumes Hear
inq on Inter Island Affairs
This Afternoon
CHAIRMAN FORBES SAYS
SESSION NOT SECRET
At Monday Hearing Parts of
Auditors Report Are Not
Given to Public


Of ". Gooding Field. the special audi.
tor for the board in connection with
its investigation Of the Inter-lsland
Steamship COMPANY
At Mondays hearing the report
came up and objection 10 the intro.
duction of parts Of or to the making
public of such parts was made by
counsel for the company. There fol
lowed a recess" an executive SEES
sion or a 'secret" session as it was
termed by some but at which Charles
K. Forbes says that any one could
nave been present, and when the regu-
lar session was resumed certain pages
were "deleted' or not admitted and
these Field mentioned in his testimony
during the afternoon without being
permitted TO go into the text OF such
portions of his report
Executive Session or Conference?
Regardless OF the fact that the law
specifically states, "All hearings cen
Quoted by the commission shall be
open to the public" the public utilities
commission, in its investigation of the
lnter-lsland Steam Navigation Com
nany's rates Monday afternoon, held
an executive" session to consider evi.
dence In the form of a report by TIE
commissions specially employed All
ditor, II. Gooding Field, on the finan.
clal status and methods OF the Inter
Island. As a result certain portions Of
the report were not disclosed by the
commissioners, although later the re-
port, in part at least, was considered
In the testimony taken.
As stated by the Star Bulletin Mon
day, the executive session was the re
suit of a protest from L. ]. Warren,
attorney for the Inter-Island, in which
he said that certain matters in the
report should not be made public n
II was outside the scope of the investi.
cation. Chairman Charles r. Forbes
suggested that half hour recess he
taken to talk over the report infor-
mally with the Inter-Island officials.
commissioners Garden and GignouX
agreed, and with j. L. Mclean, ~ T.
Gedge of the company and Warren
and Paul Bartlett of counsel, ad
journed to another room
The half hour up the meeting re-
turned to the regular room and the
hearing automatically became public
again. and Field continued the reading
of his report, skipping the pages
which had been expunged during the
session in the other room.
Again Becomes Open
The hearing then revolved around
the protest Of the commissioners that
the lnter-lsland had wiped out its de.
probation reserve fdnd of 1892, 020.70
and charged it to the surplus account
This the commissioners said the com
pany had no right to do as the dc.
probation should be represented by
actual cash. The company main.
tanned. however, that it had the right
TO let other assets represent the de
probation as it is on the company's
ships.
Refers to Deieted Pages
Seeing that the meeting was in a
tangle, Forbes asked IF the amount
wiped off the depreciation fund was
not credited to surplus, where did
it go?"
Field answered: That is the whole |
question and you will find the answer
in the deleted pages of this report" |
II was evident that Field did not think |
highly of the executive" session or |
The rest of Fields report showed |
that the Inter-Island had issued carl |
tai stock amounting to $4,000 on |
account of the Wilder Steamship Com
pany purchase and at the same tine |
declared a stock dividend OF $150,000, |
bringing its capitalization up to
p 100000. Field also set the valua-
ton of the companys property and |
equipment at S1,423, ISL 16, to which ne |
added $lS2, 034.09 for fixtures.
Taking up the company's deprecia, |
tion fund, Field pointed out that on
December 81, 1912. this account was
started with 100000 and to this add |
tions were made covering the three |
previous years and also up to Decem.
Der 81, 1915, when, according to his |
report, the balance of S432. 0207o was
closed out.
Seen by a representative of the
this morning. Forbes
made the following statement:
A recess Of about 10 minutes was |
taken with the counsels of the Inter
Island and the counsel for the com
claimants present At this recess a
request was made by the Inter-Island |
Company that the Public Utility Com
mission not make public such data as
we had relative to their non-utility
business. The chairman replied that
he commission would consider when |
reviewing the testimony and going
over the auditors report, the proper
course 20 pursue.
The hearings of the Public Utili- |
les Commission have been public. No
1ne has been excluded and all public
documents subject to review"
Forbes also said that this particu-
ar recess was not star chamber
session" but open to all The attor.
ley, for the Inter-Island stated that
certain parts of Fields report were
| did not question his
at the time because TO do
10 would have been snap judgment.
tut before the next hearing on the
nter-Island rates is held | shall de
,ide ana give my decision at that
ime, ne said