The Maui news. [volume] (Wailuku, Maui, H.I.) 1900-current, 1920-04-16
TIME FOR THE WORM TO TURN
The inevitable has happened.

The inevitable has happened.
The overworked single unit plant Of the Island Electric Company
has at last broken down, The community is without light and such
10 em, as rs a afa ao To GHTns s mg ga G{a%gn n IN Wo"' ,o % 9oty" to- the co1l
muniy and not to the electric company.
The question is-what is to be done about it?
For years the people of Waikiki and Kahului have submitted to
treatment at the hands Of the local monopoly that has been nothing
to the standard of voltage, with resultant dim lights and tagging motors.
During the past two o three years this has been growing worse Is the
And the price Of current has been eNtortionate, particularly when
the quality OF the service. is considered. The Naul consumers pay
Honolulu. y '"" ~ 'S' NSN'
No relief can be hoped for from the public utilities commission.
This conclusion is based upon past performance. 1t has repeatedly
made investigations such as it has been engaged in for the past Q months.
franchise. 1t has even gone SO far as to threaten disentnnchisGment
to produce the books, of the company within 50 days And after all
this nothing happened. Listen to the following taken from the report
OF the investigation just referred to and published in October, 1910:
THE commission finds upon review of the evidence, examination
of the auditors report, and by inspection of the utility
q. That the bookkeeping and auditing of this service corporation
is lacking in detail, is unsysematc and inefficient,
;o,tt ~a That r@b its 50 eG GnsrnisiGn work york is is, rapidly $a!.r dePreeating through
g. That there has been added an additional unit in the way Of
a l2o brake horsepower Diesel engine which will increase the efficiency
of the plant to some extent.
Fifty percent of the plant before the installation Of the Diesel
engine had but a scrap value with no money available for rehabilitation.
et5 PCS 81 .oS T1Io BUSINESS sS"Si "a and nddSS io'4 ny 5 areSIdnst 4, ma te ep@ Gdnp,n INC
Mr.. Robert Z. Bond, has taken up his residence in Berkeley, California,
and the Public Utilities Commission has been unable to obtain from
Ltd. We are satisfied that more or less advantage has been taken Of the
public. and that this utility has not complied with the provisions of its
"An amendment of the C9mrany's franchise was secured through
the territorial legislature, 1915, and ratified by Congress N April e,
1916, extending the service to the Makawao district. 1t appears that
this franchise was obtained principally for the purpose of enabling the
utility to raise capital, and a movement, we understand, is on foot to
dispose of the institution to a San Francisco syndicate.
"The Public Utilities Commission condemns the policy OF this
Company, and it will be notified that unless it complies with all Of
the provisions contained i'll chapter SO of the Revised Laws of the Ter
rtory of Hawaii, 1915, that the necessary procedure for disfranchse-
ment VIII be instituted"
1t is time to call for a showdown. Certa' the community,
which is footing the bills and er ae al IS treatment, has a
right to first consideration matter and y legal bubbles or
pickering should be -" ~ aside until the abuse IS remedied.
The first ~ . consider is how to get a dependable service at
a reasonable -. If there is TO be a lOnpdraVO Omt OntrOVerS LET
it come later.
IT, public has a right to demand that the bondhoders take i'm
mediate steps to fOreclose the mortgage securing the bonds. 1t should
be justified in organizing a new company, offering the owners of the
sand Electric a fair price for their property, for immediate acceptance,
I'd if such offer be refused to proceed at once with the building of a
system. We believe that the Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar Co.,
n has a surplus of electric power, would be willing to sell current
wholesale to such a company solely in order to help this community.
We have had about 8 years of diny-daly ineficienCy that never
IT'S anywhere. And the community has growIed and complained, but
Ccepted it all. Isn't tit about time that we really did something?