Hawaii Holomua, Volume III, Number 185, 10 August 1894 — THE LABOR COMMISSION. [ARTICLE]

THE LABOR COMMISSION.

■ In tbe dehate on th« labor conjiuissiuu hiil ut tLe eonneil n.eeting je«t**rviay, Ministei Da- { mon expresaevi Liiu>eif againnt tbe e '>uccfU contiuuing to act as a • iegiRl-tive i»o<iy, and expressed au opiniouth.it iheeouneil &boa!d c!o»e—escept in case of enserj pency- nn*i Ieave all iegis'.ation to tbeco:ning e;ect».-d legislatire. ■ TLe minister is to coniplimented np-.’ii tbe stanl tnken by bim in tbis matter. It did not meet w ; tb the approTa! of tbe otber ■ meraber» of tbe eouneila. Some | of tbem have very «in.ill ehanee» of being e!ected to the !egi>;iature —if tbere ever is any, anJ tbey ( uatnrally object to relinquisb tbe bru-f aatbority vestod in tbera by Mr. Steveus aml themscIvo<.. Tbev like to make laws and tbev | do make sorae daisy laws. Nearly a year ago the councils decided to avoid ali legislation whieh was not i Hbsolutely neccssaiy, but notbmg conld stop tbe law- | iuakers. Mr. D.»mon has very t oonsistent!y oppose«l legislation ; by tbe cooncils but be bas only I small snpport. Tuo labor comraission for whieh provisious now has been made will p<»ssibly turn ont a great success aud of bencdt to the country, and it may possibly end in a fizzle and pigeon-Loled volumes of statistics, interviews and suggestions. It all depeuds ou who is selccted to do tlie work anel how mueh influence the plantcrs will huve on tbe comruission. As n rule conimissious do little gocd — except baving a geuerally good time, juuketing around a conntry, diuing «nd wining aud gotting a paid secretary to write a report in as general terms as possiblo. We hope tbis conimi.ssion will be an exception frora tbe rule. Tliere is as Mr. W. C. AVikler said work euougb for it to last a year, aud Mr. W. O. Smitb still expects the eommission to report to the next legislature whieh will raeet in Februarv next. What tbe object of tbe committee is and wbat is to be gaiued by spending on it seems uot clear to nnybcdy, not even to tbo iutroducer. If tbe klea is to find out, if tbe oountry ean atlbrd to dispeHse witb eoolio auJ eontract labor,and if tbe plantatious ean pay dividends whieh eraj»loyinga bigbergrade labor tlie eommission bas a very noble object — and will bo a failure. The moUooi all o«r pkiutations is “higb divideuds, eheap labor” aud not ouo of them wouki be willing (o reduce divideuds and increase wages. And tbo planters control tbi» governmeiit both tbe cxecutive, judicial. and logislative brancb. E%-en Mr. Emmelutb will ndmit tbat fact. He knows it from experienoe. Mr. Smitb spoke in tbe bigbest terras about tbe development of the country, and stated tbat we will ueed a great a number of laborei-s dnring tbo uext two years. That labor will be Japanese contract labor, commission or no eommission. and for tbat reason we fenr tliat Mr. Emmelutb's eomiuission will not be an exception, but provo itself an incubator out of whieh will eome wastepaper libeIlod “report.”