Hawaii Holomua, Volume I, Number 44, 8 Nowemapa 1893 — TOPICS OF THE DAY. [ARTICLE]

TOPICS OF THE DAY.

i . TLc comfort «-hieh tbe rumexationist> have derived from the onlinan*, cvery day diploraatic cont;uaed in Minister AVillis’ lettors of credentials, aud s e* eh is r. »onrce of some merrimeht and soine sur|>rise. We underslood all along since Junrair\ the 17th tlmt the ohject of tbo revolution on that day, was tc get Hawaii joined as a niemhei of the .1 nited States. \\e tbooght that the reasou for the exi>u nee of the P. Cī. was to gain the same ohject, and thal “closer uniun with the United States’ was its mission here. Aud we I*elieved thut the oigauization of the annexation clnb, the dLgplay of American bunting iu the «{reets, the ssndingof Comraissioners. professors, envo s and secretaries was for the purpose of deceiving tho people of the l T nited States into tho belief that Hawaii and the Hnwaiian iiation were ready and williug to scrrendor their iudej>endence and bo deprived of self government. Aud now after all their sehemes have been frustrated and their hoj>es fiually stamj>ed ont and Miuister AViIlis’ very presenee liero has put the seal of the rnited States ou their defeat, these men, siug out triumphantly, “ we are saved,” and the Star goes into hysterics and fat type. Aud \sliat does this artificial outhusiasm j>rove? Simj>ly that all thoso patriotic {') disiuterestod (!) unselfish (!) men who iuduced a disgraced Amorican Minister J. L. Stevens and an irreponsible naval othoer to put them by display of force and by the misuse of Uie United States name into j>ower only wauted to get thore, beoause they hated to be “outs” and were longing to be“ins. - ’ They in their ignoraneo of dij>lomatic langu»ge and usages believe or pretend to believe that Minister Willis’ credentials assure them of j>ermanency as a government and assist thera in Hawaii of a right to self-govern-mcnt. History should have taught them that the will of a j>eoj>le alwuys clt'm*ately carries the day, aud so made them bottle up their enthusiasm L>r some other occasion. That closer union with the United States wa» not tbe truo oause for tho revolution us has been stateii heretofore ean be seen from the haj>piness among the aunexatioui*ts on the day that they finallv learuod that the Uniteil States will not anncx us. It was government j>aj> and bootlle. they were after, aml wo aro sure tbey have made the most o( their br>ef opjK>rtonity. The resolution whieh was inInnlueiMl at a meeting of the lk>arvl of Health for the purj>ose of j>reveutiug sale of fish outside the puhlie market looks very

mueh iike a job. M e don t be- ! lieve tboogh tbat the Board of HeaUh has snfficient j>ower to i make such an onler nnless a law to 5 that etfect l>e passeīl. Nothing wus said about the object of thls remakable step, bnt we supjK>se that sanitary reasons will be given as the cau?e for putting a nomber of j>eople liviug in the j >nburbs to great inconvenience. Fish is a wholesome food when I it is fresh. But we cannot >ee why j>eopIe cannot as well judge of the good quality at their kitchen-door as they ean at the market. I'eople of ordinary means who keep no horses and carriages, finds it a great convenienee to occasionally fish brought to their door uud sokl as eheap as at the raarket. If the absurd stej> is reallv taken, it will mean that many households will be deprived of a variety of food and forced to eat nothing, but meat —of the j>oor quality often sold iu Houolulu or thev will uave to live on f r o z e n fi s h w h i e h t h o Board of Heallh is kind enough to otfer as a substitute for fresb fish. What guarantee has the Board that fhe frozen fish imported here is of sound and good quaiities? AVe doubt very mueh that auy of the fish brotight down here oa iee in the steamers is ever as fresh aud wholesome as the' tish e a u g h t in tbe night and peddled arouud early iu k the raorning. The whole busiuess looks like a job and a very “sf;ll-fish one at that. It is surprising why the organ of the Aunexation Club shonld oj>jx)se the taking of a plebiscite in Hawaii. TLe club we learn claims that on its Register apj>ear the names of lx>na jide raembers to the araouut of 6,596 or about 63 per cent. of the votes cast at the last general election. Of course when the club raakes sncb a statemont it is for the purposo of impressing upon people abroad, the alleged uuiversal popularity of aunexatiou among all the votors of the country. An analysis of the fignres of the clnb compared with the registered voters does not bear out the statemeut made. bnt proves that there is something rotten in the figures somewhero or in tho club. Classed as to uationality tho club elaims according .to its statemeut to present tho following: American 1.449: Hawaiiau 1,671: Portoguese ‘2.386: German 420; British 351: \orwegiau 72: Unclassified 247. As registered voters (at the last general e!ection) we find the following: Amenoan 637: Hawaiian 9,554: Portuguese 2.091; Genuau 382: amkso on. Now we would like to know where the club has got its members from? The number of foreign residents in Hawaii is steadilv decreasing and it wookl therefore be interesting to know how the c]ub has sncceeded in scrapiug up 1449 Aiuerican memberswhen there only are 637 voters of that nationality. The totel amouni of Americans according to the last eeusus was 1.928, and in that figure are include«.l all men, women and children. AVe ean hardly believe that th4club wouKl have the gail to elaim that every Ajuerican is a member of it, and that botb women aud children have been registered.

Bat whatever the club shōuKi elaim in that regard its 1.449 Americans cannot be voters. Indications are that every tran•sient traveller. eveiy tourist, even - sailor. or anv other bini of passage has been labeied Americaus, and registere«l and represented to be residents and voters cf H a w & i i. The figures are fratidnlent and the method is characteristic of the annexation schemers and plotters who have attempted to settie the destiuy aud policy of Hawaii throngh the eommon methods of ward-politicians and sand-lotters. That they have utterlv fuiled is as satisfactory as it was iuevitable. The Circnit Conrt is working its weary way through the un usuallv loug calendar. It is worthv of notice and comraent that tbere are not less than 40 ases against people charged either with selling li<iuor, gambiing or otfenses against the opium law. There must certainly be something radicully wrong. Of course we believe tbat everv man shonld have all possible facilities to be fried bv a jury, but it is both waste of time and of ’money to trv before juries the petty sale of a bottle of swipes or the possession of eho fa tickets. If the government had desired to show itself an impovemeut on fonner regiraos it should have oecupied its time by chauging and regulating nll the licenselaws and the illicit transactions now tlourisliiug all over the country wouhl ‘ soon be abated if not stamped out. But the oant and hvpocrisy whieh are the leading features of tho Eeform P&rty will eonlinue to prevent wise and beneficial legislation at least as long as raatters of state and of church aro hopelesslv tangled up and raixed to gether. .