40 
Hilo grass without collecting some of its seed upon his boots 
or clothing, and it is therefore inevitable that as long as tramp- 
ers continue to circulate in this region the dispersal of Hilo 
grass will continue. The absence of malicious motive on the 
part of the tramper does not justify him in doing a thing which 
may result in a far-reaching detriment to his entire community. 
Unless this invasion is checked very soon, the grass will spread 
through the susceptible surrounding forest and we will have 
serious trouble (forest denundation) then at the very core of 
the watershed where forest protection demands most emphatically 
that the native ground cover be kept absolutely intact and in a 
healthy condition. 
Hilo grass is now so widespread all along the trail through 
this area and in the zone spreading out from it that it will be a 
huge task to eliminate it entirely. This will have to l)e done, 
however, if the forest is to be saved. Experimentation will have 
to be resorted to until the task is accomplished. Crude oil is said 
to be effective in killing Hilo grass but for the most part the 
grass must be dug out and kept out by shade thrown from plants, 
such as ginger, set out in the infested area. This work will go 
for naught if there is to be continued interference by general 
tramping on the area and by new introductions of Hilo grass 
seed. 
No one will deny the importance of this forest on this area, 
that it is sorely needed for the conservation of water, and that 
it should be protected in the best possible manner. The promul- 
gation of Rule V is, aside from sanitary reasons, the necessary 
first step in this direction. 
Area Included in Rule. 
It is to be regretted that a few people will by this rule be 
deprived of the personal pleasure of visiting some of their fa- 
vorite haunts but it is only reasonable to ask of them this self- 
sacrifice and for them generously to accept the facts for the good 
of the community as a whole. It is only reasonable to ask of 
them, as citizens, to serve the city in this manner for the benefit 
of the water supply which in the very near future will have to 
be greatly augmented to meet increased demands. 
The area to be closed amounts to only 1,480 acres of land 
owned entirely by the Territory. This, added to the prohibited 
area in Nuuanu Valley gives a total of 3,390 acres closed to 
trampers on Oahu. This entire area is only 5 per cent, of the 
total area included in forest reserves on this island and is less 
than .9 per cent, of the total land area of Oahu. Surely, enough 
diversity for routing hikes can be found elsewhere without pene- 
trating our delicate Honolulu watershed and endangering the 
purity and continuance of the city's water supply. 
