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THE MAUI NEWS, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 1915.
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THE MAUI NEWS
Entered at the Post Office at Wailuku, Maui, Hawaii, as second-class matter.
A Republican raper Published in the Interest of the People
Issued Every Eriday.
MAUI PUBLISHING COMPANY, LIMITED,
Proprietors and Publishers
Subscription Rates, $2.50 ti:r Year in Advance.
WILL J. COOPER,
FRIDAY,
EDITOR AND MANAGER
SEPTEMBER 10, 1915.
A.XOTIIER HOMESTEAD FAILURE?
Arc the Kuiaha homesteads to he added to the list of Hawaii's
homestead failurse? There are persons who believe they are, and cer
tainly from what the homesteaders have to show in tangible results for
their expenditures and three years of effort, this belief may seem well
founded. At the present time perhaps a third of the original settlers
have proved up and have left their lots, "and others are preparing to do
likewise. Already this most promising and attractive of rural commuri
ties in the territory is badly broken up. The regular semi-monthly
church services have been discontinued because there are no longer
people enough to justify holding them. The school attendance has drop
ped by one half.
It is true that the homesteaders who have left have not .old their
lands; but this is probably due to the fact that they could probably not
sell for sufficient to break even. However, it is also doubtless true" that
sentiment- and the hope that the future may hold something better than
the past has held, has a part in this loathness to cut entirely loose and
start all over. The fact that most of the homesteaders in the Kuiaha
tract, pinning their faith to pineapples, have lost heavily, has certainly
warranted discouragement, and with pineapples still a very uncertain
quantity lor the future, and nothing definite to take the place, it is not
to be wondered at if many have been force to leave and hunt more re
munerative work.
But there are still some who have not given up the fight as hopeless,
and who refuse to believe that they shall not ultimately find something
that they can raise at a profit. The soil is undeniably good, the location
could scarcely be improved uin, with good shipping facilities, and now
with a system of very fair roads. A good many things have been grown
on a small scale successfully, though so far no staple crop, for which
a reasonably certain market may be had, has been found. These prob
lems are being vigorously attacked by the federal experiment station and
the Territorial marketing division, and there is certainly reason to be
lieve that ultimately they will be able to demonstrate the feasibility of
small farming in Hawaii. The experiment station has had for the past
year a trained agriculturist on the ground, working along the most prac
tical lines possible, and progress is being made. Especially is this true
in the problem of feeding live stock, which has already been partially
solved. Hog raising is being tried on a small scale, and soon an experi
ment in "baby beef," as the raising of high grade, hand fed beef cattle
is known, is to be tried. Fruit has been planted which holds out promise
tor the future. In fact there are many things that a real farmer should
see most encouraging in Haiku as it is at present. And perhaps this is
the key to the situation there have not been enough real farmers in
the community, and too many amateurs.
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PUBLICITY THE PANACEA.
Not without good reason has Kauai always been held up as a shin
ing example to the other counties in the matter of county government
And not without justification has Kauai taken pride in the fact. The
Garden Island has good roads that probably cost her less for construe-!
turn and maintenance than do those of any other county. She has had
the same county engineer for years. Her supervisors handle the busi-!
ness of the county with apparently a minimum of friction, and the
people of the Island are apparently well satisfied with their stewardship
And novv comes Editor Timmons, of the Garden Island, with an
explanation ot this pleasant phenomenon. It is largely due, he says,
to the policy of publicity which has always been encouraged in mattcTS
of county government. The proceedings of the board of supervisors at
all meetings is published in full-and paid for. Everybody in the county
therefore knows all the details of the county business, all of the time
and understands them. This one thing, Editor Timmons says, is worth
thousands of dollars to the county and the people. It forestalls sus
picion and nullifies any occasion for criticism.
There is much truth in the suggestion. With such a system in prac
tice on Hawaii, it seems scarcely possible that the notorious grafting
and thievery of a few years ago could have occurred. Maui has not
suffered in the same way, but she has not escaped the reproach of some
in l' tg h l0. ,h 3nd cx.l;en1si,vt' lenders in the past, that would have
in all likelihood been avoided had the details of what the supervisors
were doing been known. And the nu n who made the blunders were not
criminals. I hey simply made mistakes. And the people of Maui were in
equal measure responsible for these mistakes as were the men who made
nTnV l M3S, T 1,usl"ess.to 'ave an interest in public affairs, and
to not sit blindly by until mistakes were made which their knowledge
and interest would most certainly have prevented
men who are serving the people as supervisors have a right
to demand the intelligent cooperation of every good citizen, for no gov
ernment by the people can be efficient unless the people are intelligently
alive to what ,s going on. Nor is there a better way to gain this
interest than through the broadest kind of publicity. It isn't sufficient
simply to say that the meetings are 0111. No one has time to spend
from four to six days per month attending meetings. Kauai's idea
of publishing the details of meetings is not new-many towns and
cities on the mainland have long done the same thing but it is an in
novation as far as this territory is concerned, and a mighty good one.
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1. .T,lcI,n?;ws.0"taint,d ia this morning's wireless that the Northern
i June Railroad Company has practically decided to put its splendid
passenger hner "Great Northern" on the San Francisco-Honolulu run,
is the best news that these islands have received in a long time. The
thfp- lu-r I tr?i 'S ,10t nly,ne f the hr'St and fastt'st vessels in
n h ' fT comlay that owns it is one of the most aggressive
" 2 "Tr rn'T i" t ,e L"itcd States. H it really enters the local
trade there is little tloub that Hawaii will be adverised on the mainland
as has never been done betore, especially in the great northwest, where
thousands of persons annually spend the winter months in more con
genial climes. It will be almost criminal if Hawaii does or neglects
to do anything ,n reason that may defeat the plans now on foot
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W hile it wouldn't be the best road on Maui, it would be a com
paratively simple and inexpensive matter to make the trail from Kailua
to Keanae passable to vehicle travel. The grade of the present trail is
good permanent concrete bridges are in place, and the expenditure of a
few thousand dollars would make it as practicable as the present road
from Uaihee to Kahakinoa, which is in constant use and is infinitely
be ter than no road at all. Resides this would be a step towards estab
ish.ng a road connection clear through to liana something that must
be done sooner or later.
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High Sheriff Jarrett and the county supervisors of Hawaii are at
loggerheads over the territorial prisoners working on the volcano road.
I he last word from the U,g Iland is that Jarrett is to be asked to
tafce the men back to Honolulu. Here's another good chance to add I.,
the force needed to build the Ilaleakala road.
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KAHULUI RAILROAD CO'S
Merchandise Department
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DEALERS IN
Lever Handle Stop Cocks,
SIZES, 14" to 212" INCLUSIVE.
Square Head Stop Cocks,
SIZES, " to 2V2" INCLUSIVE,
Check Valves
SIZES, Vs to 3" INCLUSIVE.
Globe Valves,
SIZES, Vsn to 3" INCLUSIVE.
Telephone No. 1062
Kahului, Maui, T. H.
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