The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1860-08-09
THE PACIFIC
Commercial Advertiser.
THrRSDAY AEGEST @

the oil 70 reduce post-ofce charges on newspapers
aud pamphlets, reported in favor Of 81 indefinite post
pcnemeut Of the sane
Mr. Bishop 1ayored the reduction Of postage On
large packages % newspaper and also On books. He
thought that the revenue 70 De derived from postage
On tnls species u literature would oe quite a. U1cn
with = reduction u the postage ra's-, S. L i were
kept as at present He proposed 70 reIuce the pos;-
age from 2 cent. 70 Il cents
Nr. Gregg inquired whether this hai arisen from
= complaint from the public. No; il Comes from
some persDns vino are IN the practice " importing
newspapers here for sale. AMI this proposed amend
meni would bened; those parties only. By Increasing
their profits, and would Lot benefit the public u the
slightest. He read a list % the parties who are news
paper agents here. viz N=ssrs. Castle & Cooke. Rev.
Mr. Damon, Mr. ". II. johnson, the Board T Eiucs-
zion, H VI Whitney- We're the oil passed, u would
simply b making = present. % rnese parties u, II the
aggregate. SIS o. II this were allowed to these
parties, would II not Be equally Just % allow meT-
chants the same privileges IL regard 70 dutes on
gods. But there 1as a difference between this and
the subject Cf repeating the transit dues and the draw
back dues He favored the indefinite F0s;pouement
% ;hi. I'LL.
Governor kekuaua.a favored the report o. the
majority.
Nr. wyllie sr.t,d that II knorledre was power.
according % the alags-knO1ieize, IN our peculiar
position, was civilization, and would lead 70 wealth.
Upon this general principle he had ever been opposed
to taxes On knowledge ard newspapers, pamphlets
and books were the means Of disseminating knowledge.
Now II 4 reduction ia the postage on newspapers,
pamphlets and books should Increase the number OF
reltsrs, the result musr benefit the genera! Inie.li-
geHce u the country. Many Of the natives were now
soie 70 read newspapers and pamphlets in English.
IL was only la-t night that he learnt from the Kings
Chief Justice, that even IN the Catholic College ~
kOOlau. there was Al English class for young Hawaii
ans who we're learning the English language with
great zeal, and that the Priests who taught IN that
useful seminary we're taking great pains 10 teach that
language.
The bill. after another speech from Mr.. Bishop and
one from Mr.. Armstrong. in IT, favor, was indefinitely
postponed, 10y 1 vote Of 6 10 A.
. The above J. a varv ane-si1.1 rsr,r- az what
transPired in the discussion Of the bill amending
the present postal rates. The forcible and lengthy
argument advanced by Messrs. Bishop and Arm
strong, which ought to have had weight, are al
most wholly omitted. Such a report, however,
is all that could be expected from a house which
the Ministers rule with a tyrant's sway. and
whose reports are only allowed 10 appear in its
own organ, and even these are condemned univer-
sally as mere - garbled statements"
The bill as it passed the Lower House, made
the postal rates on foreign newspapers and peri
Odicals, az follows
On foreign newspapers. In single wrappers. 2 cents each.
On do IA gaekagss containing 5 Or more pa
On pamphlets, from foreign countries. Scents each
Books, per mail, J cent per ounce.
The object of the bill was, and the result Of ii
would have been, TO facilitate the increase of
foreign papers and periodicals and books, by re-
ducing the postage rate 10 "A reasonable figure,
considering that the government Is at 80 little
outlay for freight in Its foreign mail service. IL
embodies substantially the same principles ~ are
adopted in the British and American p~Jst-Offce
regulations. The present postal tax on foreign
coming OF going. i 4 very heavy
one, amounting to from 90 to 30 per cent. On he
cost Of the paper Or magazine. For instance, the
New York Tribune costs S2a year. in New York.
The Hawaiian postage on the paper for that time
Is 81 Ola tax OF revenue Of over so per cent.
50 with nearly all the papers and magazines or
books ordered from the United States, and receiy-
ed by mail. Where q person has only one or two
papers, this charge is submitted 10 without COM
plant; but where Z large number Of papers are
it amounts 10 a heavy tax.
Few persons are aware Of the large number Of
foreign newspapers which pass through the post
office The total is probably not less than 10000
per annum, being an average of 1000 per month.
OF $500 per each semi-monthly mail. The late
Mr. jackson reported the number in 1858, as
200 a year for the two preceding years. and
there has probably been a considerable increase
since that time. In 1850, when the p~ost-ofice
established, one bag, containing . hundred
ana perhaps twice that number Of papers,
5 T 1-l-N~N $40 s"~ --1A-
received.
The increase in the periodical business has been
equally remarkable. 1t was in the year 1852
hat the publisher of this Journal was solicited
'y FIVE gentlemen. all, we believe, now residents
IF Honolulu, to order for them that number Of
;opies of the New York Herald. This was the
OF the newspaper business in Honolulu.
that small beginning, it has increased
.r.nI5T- III --u- - IN nnu
900 periodicals are supplied annually by him
% subscribers throughout the islands. About
'Re-fhird of these papers ana magazines are sup
lied at or near the actual cost. and some few
below the cost. These periodicals come out
n large bundles, and are here distributed to sub
cribers. Considering the distance our mail mat
er has to come, & 900 miles from New York and
1000 miles from London.) and the length of 1
line 1t requires to obtain replies to any new or {
the islands now possess remarkable facilities
or obtaining Its foreign news, unequaled by the
nail facilities of Australia, Chinese ports. or any
'ther ports Of the Pacific, beyond the American
cast. As will readily be seen. the postage bills l
been steadily increasing with the number of !
apers received. till it has become a heavy tax on c
he only periodical agency here, amounting-in- e
luding English, American and Hawaiian post /
ges, 10 over 81 900 a year-the Hawaiian post I
&c alone being a tax, as we said before, of fty
er cent on papers and thirty per cent. on maya t
ines. Was it unreasonable, then, that a reduc- /
ion Of that tax should be asked, simply to one Y
at its present rate, CT % per cent. on the t
Ome cost Of the article taxed. when it is well /
nown that the papers on Which the tax is T
svied are only merchandise, which if passed
Trough the custom-house would pay 10 per cent. q
uty, the rate which other merchants paw on l
merchandise? e
The publisher of this paper was not the only q
ne interested, as Will be seen by the above o
sport. We will give only one instance Of the