The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1868-11-28
Masters and Servants.

4 TnE relation of Master and Servant in these
,sislnnds is a fruitful subject of remark, of fire.
.pquent litigation, and annoyance to employers.
1--WE were led into this train of thought upon max
s,ing n visit 10 the Police Court during the week,
Eand finding His Mnesty's Cabinet arrayed in a
hsuit against n sugar planter, in the endeayor to
55render null and void the contracts which the
.planter held under the laws of this kingdom,
Swith three japanese coolies. As to the merits of
sthe case in point We are not prepared to judge,
Eas up to this writing the court has not heard all
i,,the evidence, nor have We heard the planters
history. We have always looked upon the SYSTEM
iof coolie labor as an experiment, with grave
doubts as to it's policy. The question has some
stimes forced itself upon us whether We were not
ssupplying n present want at the expense Of the
Sfuture welfare of the country?
II The reasons for our doubts are many and CO.
Fgcnt, and We propose briefly to cite some of them.
eve are aware that our sugar plantations need
ignore labor, and We have been among those who
Hwere willing TO try the importation of coolies; but
E.as To the policy Of farther Importation, We have
grcasons for believing that it would DO inpolitic.
|; Experience has proved that the coolies brought
There by the government, after n great deal OF
Italk, the sending of a special agent to China
aand the expenditure of the public money to a
considerable amount-have proved to be a poorer
land less manageable set than those brought here
3by private enterprise.
\ The first objection to the introduction of
;Chinese coolies is, that they are utter pagans, re-
fined only in the practice of vices that are new to
Jour comparatively halfcivilizcd Hawaiians. To
scxpose our people 10 the communicating inter-
scoursc of these opium smokers, these slaves to
Elust, these constitutional thieves, disregarders of.
life, seems to be the most dangerous and suicidal
sof policies for government to allow.
4 Then agnin, the difficulty in communicating be-.
tween the master and his servant. |
/: The oriental languages are unattainable by Eu-;
lropcans, and thus arise MISUNDERSTANDING leading
ito results more or less serious, and sOInetimcsI
lending in murder. Look Mt our courts of Justice
large proportion of the cases arising, both,
civil and criminal, but more particularly the lat
2tcr, are those in which the Chinese coolies are
defendants. The judges and the prosecuting Off
Gers OF the crown are compelled to employ a
.Cbinese interpreter, vino says to the witness,-no.
lone knows wbat,-the answer to which is rem
:dered in Hawaiian and again by the regular in
,terpreter into English. No wonder, surely !
SHOULD it be made to appear that justice some-'
times fails. The coolie, not being clearly under,
stood ON his own behalf, perhaps misrepresented,
sby his countryman who interprets for him, leaves
ithe court, s~marting under an adverse decision,
nursing his wrath for some future outbreak. !
] The feeling of insecurity of life and property
Experienced by some of those who keep this class
.of people in large number must be eminently.
unpleasant, wearing upon the mind and body
Were these coolies as n class susceptible of ourF
European teachings of Christianity,-dld they.
sfraternize and assimilate even with the Hawaiianss
lin their simple habits of life and their constanti
struggles towards u better civilization;
and the enlightenment of the age-we might well
come them To these islands as n valuable addition.
to our population, and n means of reviving the;
and dwindling life of the people. But it.
is well known that the contrary is the case. |
/ In a majority of instances they marry HawaiianS
females, simply for the qualification OF the basers
:passions. With them the sacred institution ofS
family is unknown and the birth Of children is re-:
agirded rs a misfortune. Add TO all this the inhu-,
'ence inevitably brought to bear upon their mar
!ried partners and the circle of relatives, the
!demoralizing effect is to drag down the Hawaiian
To the level of the coolie. I
While ON this branch of the subject, we desire tof
'sny. what will be readily understood by our reads
,ers that our previous remarks apply only to the
iclass of low Chinese known as coolies. We baves
among us numbers of Chinese merchants, men off
respectability and standing, fathers OFF
Hawaiian-born families and the best of citizens. \
In any efforts to be made for the supply of la-S
'borers the objection raised against the Chinese
:coolic should be well weighed. Is it not trues
that some of the same objections will apply to-
Japanese coolies or even to the much-talked-ost
South Sea Islanders. 3
Let this government understand that they ares
by nature of their Office, entrusted with the seriouss
duty of guarding and preserving the Hawaiians
race, and for any dereiction in that duty, result-s
ing from ignorance or negligence, the comingss
generation will hold them responsible. e