Hawaii Holomua, Volume II, Number 18, 22 Ianuali 1894 — HAWAII'S OESPOTS. [ARTICLE]

HAWAII'S OESPOTS.

A PETTY OUGARCHY BACKED BY UNCLE SAM. No Annexation. No Hepnblic. To the E litor bf tho Hkeald: I notice in tbe Eastern desp «tches published here tbat tiio “ jingo' papers are howiiug about “the restoratioa of the Qaeeu' iu Hawaii aud asking how the United States, a repuhlie, eau favor a monarehy. Well, the Uaited States “being i a republrc” wdiose principle is to let people g >veru themselves ; canuot surely be-so idiotic as to crara a repoblic down the tliroats of people who don t want it. Stil! less an oIigarehy, such as the so called “ provisional gov i ernment” —an oligarcby, the raost despotic aud raost uurepub- [ lieau forra of government. The people of Hawaii don’t waut a republic; that is the ' plain and indisputable truth. ; The revolutionists whoni Mr. Stevens, our Mimster, and the ! troops and guns of our ship. the Boston, put into power, don't want a repnblic. They cry out for annexation; they loudly assert that popular governraent is hateful to them, and tbey es tablished a petty oligirchy, ; whioh under the protection of United States ship and guus raade haste to pass sedition and later no —bail acts, to coerce raeu aud intiraidate any opposition to their schemes. The great mass of the Hawaiian people, white as well as native, don’t want a republic. They cliug to the system of goverument founded by the ruission ary fathers —the constitutional raonarehv—whieh for fifty years gave peaee, libērty and justiee to tbem. Why shonld they not prefor the independent nationalih’ and lawful, orderly and eheap free governnaent uuder whieh they and tbeir fathers lived happily so raany yeai*s? The systera of govermnent created by tho early missionaries, and whieh a handful of sugar planters, adventurers and speculators has tried to break down and destroy., was oue of the best aml freest in the world. Edacation has been so general under it that almost all the native people ean rea«l and write. Peaee and or«Ier were so secure that a lady conld ri«ie safely over all the islands alone. Taxes were low —a ten per cent. duty ou all imports except liquors i au«l opium, whieh bore high rates; a low real-estate tax, whieli was evadcd by nobody except some sugar plauters, and a direct tax upon all men of voting age of $2 for schools, §2 for roads and $1 poll tax —a device whieh deserves the attention of raany of our owu States. The poople, white as well as native, are bj* long custora, and by its raerits, strongl3 r attached to the monaKchy uader whieh for tifty years they and their fathers have lived happily, free and safe. Why shonld we of the Unite<l States use our great and irresistible power to forca ujion 1 them a system of goverument i thej do not want? Wo eall our- ' [ seives a jusfe and iipright naiioii. I Cau we justfy do tbat. ? W e of the United States, by ! t ie act of onr Minister, Mr. \ Stevens, upset the Hawaiian governraent. It was a verv I gr<?at wrong whieh Mr. Stevens did. He stiruulated, fostered, ! encoaraged and with United | States arms and guns protected I j a haadfnl of coaspiiators whose act was as clearly an act of fillibusterism or piracy as ever was coramitted. Tbe men most | largely concerned in this act! were for the most part not even citizens of the State, bat aliens. I Ihe man who read Ihe filibnster-! ing proelamation onder the aud in the face of the troops of the I i Uniteil States had not livod mneh | more tha » eight months iu tfae 1 isl:inds, and w»s. in fact, a citizen of Califoraia. Of his hand-1 ful— twenty-eight or thirtv~of j companionsnot half were eiliaem». !

Tbe Aiiaex.ttiou clnb wl»icb w u-> i later foruietl is intd© np larget% of alien», and Urge!v also of }>>or fe!low> opposed tto anuexation. : who wore force»l to “sigu the j roH“ nnder threat of losing tb® ir firai!ies bread aad battev in a < country whtre new eiuploymeut is to j It is a fact confesse<l by the j filibnsters that they «ould not j have dared their atterapt had s they not knowu themselves to be | ] }>r cted by United St ites troops s : .;id guas, stationed beforeband j for that pnrpose comra mdiug tae Pnlaee ainl the governnient baildii>g. while tliey were a mile frora the Uaited Statos Legition and niany sqaares away fr >ni Auieiiean property, wh.eh, moreover, j was uot threateued by any one. It was tho Uuited States Minister and the United States troops und artillery whieh overtuined the go.reruiueDt, Uo not our naliouai houor ’and g<>od faith r: eompel us to undo this act of grave wxoug aud injustice to a weaker nation' Are we uot bouud. xiot to that natiou alone, | but to our own honor and good fame, to reraedy this wrong, doue bv a faithless Minister of ours. Tbe United States troops and gnns were landed by Mr. Stevens j orders tlie afteruoon before the revolution, and when, by universal testimony, the town was eu t tirely quiet. They were stationed bv Mr. Stevens’ orders, not where ! thev eoukl protect American life aud property, but where tbey ; eomm mded the Palaee andpublic . buildiugs. On this point of Mr. Stevens’ action I qnote here from a letter before mo frora a verv prominent uud respected citizen of Houolulu; “I and some frieuds were : standing on the side-walk. corner of Beretauia and Alakea streets, ; wheu all at onee rodo up an olhcer of the United States ship Boston and asked to speak to Mr. Girtard, of Iiwin & Co., who was with us. After a short eonversation Mr. Girt’ird returned to | i us and said: — “What do you think thev ! j % ! want? The use of Mus?c Hall as | qnarters for the Uuited States forces. I have refused.” 1 “In ten rainutes the oflicer . • retnrned with a written request ! fnim Mr. Steveus himsel£ for the j use of the Music Hall. whieh commande.l the Palaeo and Gov- > ernment Building. Giflard again I refnsed. Later on Mr. Stevens, ulso in writiug, asked the nse of Aiioa Hall closo by, and it was i granted.” Here is an affidavit of O. A. Percy Gardiuer, whieh shows how confidoutly the rovolntionaries counted ou Mr. Stevens’ ; armed support: — Hawaiian Islands, Oahu, ss:— Gardiner, beiug duly sworn on oath, deposes and say: Several days prior to the re- ; volution, I was at Mr. L. A. Thurston’s house, and at his request did get a list of all men ; to be depended apon in the cause of annexation; also their arms | and the amount of ammunition in stock. Mr. Thurston told rae that as I had worked 30 well if I j woukl help them the day of the revolution I would rece*ive $100 and also $ō a day till the affair was settled, and I shoukl then receive a governraent appointment. He promised me the position of engineer on the O. T. dredge, whieh I and Mr. Duff built. 1 went and saw Mr. Thnrston Uie day before the re1 volution and said this; “Mr. Thurston, I am a married »miin. and suppose I was shot i duiing the revolution what ?*-anld | heeome of my family? Would I they be allowed compensation?” ’ He replied:—“There will not be a shot fired. Tbe United Btates troops are landed and they will maintain peaee and will quush any uprisiDg among the opposition.” | . ®, ut » said, “tLis is hardly Hesaid:—“All is fair in war We all mastered at ditferent places, I was told ii meet at ; I Klemrae’s house on Fort street * known as the Grand Honse, and I f was tfcer ® snpp!ied with a revolver ; 1 and fifty rounds of ammuui- ! : tion £or eaeh. At the tap of a bell we marcued from there tothe armory on Beretania street, i where all these sub were to be assembled. Onr div- i xsxon were told to march to the I Government buildingand take it. | I said to the man who gave this comraaūd:~‘Do yoa thiuk ! * a , m . a f°°l—twenty-eight meu to take that haiMine^” a ,Tre.dy vacat- ( eu. Bcsidcs tho Uuiuxl gtatcs

troops are iu Arion Hall and evervthing is «rranged. ’ OA- Peko* Gabdinhl Snbscribed and sworn tobdo fe me • Notary Pablic. First Jndicial Circuit I reraark bcre tbat Mr. Stevens failed to report to his snpenor, the Secretary of State, an> 0 these facts. whieh would have shown to Secretary Foster aud President Harrison his great share in the revolntiou as its fomentor and protector.” Chas. Nordhoff.