The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1868-08-01

On our first page will be found "A continuation
Of the lave raised at the late session Of the leg
stature. The allowing are the titles Of thoee
printed to-day:
AE act 90 establish a Hawaiian Bard o Health.
An act . AMEND Sections a.. as AID as Il the Civil Code.
An at nr The psotert~a 81 E- ard property against eSpIo-
'ivs sgbsttne,s cher thaln GuHpewdeE
Az act 20 tr1nstrr The sap,rvt,tpn q the polio. AMI eScrutive
osiSerSot The law from this Drp-rtHeu, u the IutrnOr q that
An act 90 autlprfze tn levy of Light due
snsSt 10 preytie Sc the aTp intment q a dsPuiy Marshal.
An act u authoEEr the commissioners q Gown Lanls %
hin, istInd q Maui
/An aet 10 promote immigration
= The law authorizing the appointment Of a Ha-
waiiIn Board of Health, to examine the quaIif-
c%ations of native physicians, will undoubtedly re-
suit in good, IL It's provisions can be judicinusly
carried out The object Of the law is to provide
a class of native physicians, who shall be under
the control of the government and responsible for
their acts The board Is appointed by the King.
Those natives who desire To practice, after exam
inatIOn by this board, arc 10 be licensed by the
Minister Of the Interior, paying therefor an an
Dsal fee OF ten dollars.
/ The truth is, our whole sanitary system for the
past ten years has been Il gross Encouragement,
10 which the native race has been the unfortunate
victim. Formerly the American missionaries and
other Intelligent foreigners, not pretending to be
physicians, kept and sold medicines, not for
profit, but simply to provide the common people
in the rural districts with the ordinary means Of
cure When in 1859, q law, evidently inspired
by mistaken zeal, was passed forbidding every
person to sell medicines or t. practice for Jay vino
had M license to practice rs a physician. it put
an end tn the system which had been in vogue for
thirty years, and at oncc deprived the people Of
all medical assistance, except in the larger settle
ments. IL tabued all mo.licInc sales, without pro-
tiding for those who needed them. The eonss-
tuenee v~s sbes tho old race Of native doctors or
hGhHnGs who had become virtually extinct, sud-
denly came into notice. The dying natives mast
have some attendance. An unwisc law had stig-
matizcd rs n crime the service OF those who had
been kindly disposed to them. without making
provision for the de-titGtDn produced, and the
native instinct drove them by necessity. back to
their old Kahunas. Tire census Is every year tell
ing the result.
Two years ago the native members Of the Leg
stature stroye hard to obtain some provision for
tie medical education of natives, but the jcal-
ousics and prejudices OF the ministerial party
were 50 strong that their well-intcnded efforts
were defeated. This year, fortunately, His Maj
esty took an interest IN tine matter, and n bill was
passed, not to educate but to license outright the
best natives that can be found for the work. This
was a step beyond what WIS asked or even thought
of ut the previous session, and will result finally
in government making permanent provision for
the medical education OF such rs choose 10 devote
their lives to this profession.
The idea which some entertain that native Ha-
waiians are incapable OF acquiring such n knowl-
edge of medicine and surgery as will qualify them
to practice successfully and with benefit to the
people is quite ungrounded. Native Hawa;ians
are capable of becoming as good physicians, as
they are surveyors, ministers, or judges. They
can never become 80 skillful Us their more educated
foreign brethren, but they can obtain all the
knowledge necessary for practical service. And
in the study and practice OF medicine they ought 10
be encouraged, and there should to be at least
twenty young natives now in training for this
purpose~
the Gazette it will be observed that the old
Board Of Health have appointed DIR. David l..
Lee, who lately arrived from japan, to be n tray
cling physician of the Beard, with Il salary of
$500. The necessity of some such officer has
long been felt, but the ~propriety of appointing to
such Il peculiar service, an entire stranger, what
ever may be his qualifications, is very doubtful.
The service Is one tlat requires, more than does
any other in the kingdom, an intimate AnotoGedge
Of the HarGIGa language, combined with long ac-
quaintance with their habits of life and customs.
Strangers may be well qualified for some public
duties, but totally unified for others. And we
think that the majority ofthe friends of Hawaiians
a. well as HawaIians themselves will view this
appointment as a very iudsereet ono, to use the
mildest word that can be- applied toit. Moreover
it sets aside others long resident here, possessed Of
the fullest requisite qualifications, and ignores
their claims altogether This action orthc Board,
however, Is part aud parcel of thc dccrcpit sanitary
system which has too long disgraced our govern
ment but it will doubtless continue 80 long as
men control it, management who are unqualified
for the service imposed on them.
The law transferring the custody Of the public
stamp from the government printing Office TO that
of the Minister Of the Interior will result in clos
ing n big leak in the ship of state. In times past
government has lost thousands and tens of thou
sands of dollars unIer the old system. 1t Is we'll
known that the monies received from this source
were considered the pcrquisites Of the printers, and
generally divided among them. We called atten-
ton to it more than once, but rather than take
advice, Ministers permitted the leak to continue
for years. Even ut this late day the public treas
ury will be the gamer by the transfer. By read
ing the law, II will be seen what legal and other
forms are required TO be stamped TO be valid.
Another law on our first page forbids the stor-
in- Of more than one case Of naPhtha or benzolc,
and more than ten c,ses Of kerosene or c~Oal-oil, IN
any store. dwelling or other place than that pro-
vidcd by the government, under a penalty of rot