Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1917-11-10
Former Territorial Senator in
Paper Before Social Science
Club Points Out Reasons for
Adding Power to City Gov.
eminent

Albert F. Judd.)
1t is difficult to turn our thoughts
away from the war. We read about
the war, we talk about the war, the
effect of the war upon the nation and
this Territory. Great preparations
are under way SO that America may
do her share in the fight for the de
tense of democracy. Men are at the
front. Men are in training. The ma
ton is cutting out duplication OF Ell
fort. Waste is being eliminated, and
food and materials conserved. Ell
cheney in business and politics is more
than ever necessary. -..@.
What OF Honolulu? Our city, Homo
lulu. On a former occasion five years
ago, attempted to outline the his
tory of county government in Hawaii
and to suggest the reasons for much oil
our apathy in municipal affairs. My
conclusion was the proposition that
the cure for inefficieney in govern
ment is government with more respon
sibility. restate the proposition, for
it remains true today.
City Shows Substantial Progress
Since 1912, we of Honolulu have
made progress in the art Of self-gov'
eminent. The city and county IS
much closer to the people than it
! was five years ago. Compare for a
moment the personnel Of the Board
of Supervisors, seven in number, with
the twelve Representatives elected in
November of last year by the same
voters. The comparison is tremen-
dously in favor of the supervisors, and
we cannot avoid the belief that the
reason for the superiority is that the
city and county is coming to be con-
sidered by the voter a nearer and
more intimate thing than the Terri
tory, and that the voter now is more
solicitous that his community affairs
shall be in the charge of good men.
The Frontage-taX laws, so called,
have had their influence, for through
their means the voter in certain sec
tions of the city has personally and
financially participated in public i'm
proyements and thus has been forcibly
educated in the art of government. +
Much Talk of Charter Revision :.....:
There has been much talk about the
necessity of charter revision. Many
committees OF many organizations
have spent hours together on the sub.
ject. The Legislature of 1915 created
a charter convention, but we still have
our old charter. 1.-THE King of France
and 10000 men marched up the hill
and down again" The average voter
is beyildered. He has tried to follow,
the discussion to find the trend of.
opinion. To him meaningless:
wrangle over the internal organizes
ton of the municipality is alone ap.
parent. * - III
"Those who have the best interests
of the people at heart have tried to
make it impossible for the political
machines to do politics, and the aver
age voter is not entirely dissatisfied
that nothing has been accomplished,
He knows how the present charter
works and would rather have it left
alone. s
One Trouble With Revision Efforts
So much painstaking and unselfish
effort has been given to this subject
of charter revision that must con-
TESS my hesitation in suggesting that
this effort has not analysed correctly
our municipal troubles, or rather, that
to solve our problem different point
of attack must be chosen. Almost all
the discussion has been over the in.
ternal composition of the city govern.
ment, on the assumption that the city
incorporate had all the powers Of a
really truly" city. This is false as.
sumption. The emphasis has not been
put upon the question as to whether
the city as municipality irrespective
of its internal organization has the
requisite power to give us what we
want from it. This is what should be
our first thought in our preparation
for a new charter. 1t is true that
taxation by the city has been spoken
of, but the discussion in this regard
has mainly been had from the stand.
point of how that would affect the
offices of the city.
1917 Report overlooks One
Important Point
The report of the joint committee OF
the Chamber of Commerce, CONNER.
cial Club, Ad Club and Rotary Club.
on the matter Of a new charter for the
City and County .of Honolulu, dated
February Goth, 1917, 1.-THE chairman OF
the committee was w. f. Frearl, ad-
mirably sets forth the. charter situa.
ton before the conXening of the 1917
Legislature, and gives a digest of the
history. of the movement for the new
charter, and a summary of the three
plans. /, the Convention charter; 2,
the Achi charter, and 3, the Municipal
Research Club charter. But in the
twenty-five pages of that report, the
subject / am urging tonight is dis.
missed with a comment. twenty-one
lines in length.
My thesis is that the powers and
duties of the municipality need ouI
first and immediate attention. When
they have Strengthened out We may
find that some of our other troubles
have been solved.
What Frear Committee Said
What the Frear Committee said is
as follows: !
"In the opinion Of your committee,
much might be said for further ex-
tension of the powers and duties OF
these County, governments and es.
.pecially if these governments should
he changed so that full responsibility
could be definitely and clearly fixed
Only the matter of taxation, however,