The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1869-02-20
rCOmmuuicated.1

Mn. EDITOR Living as / do in the ~backwoods
where mails reach us only occasionally,-owing to
our distance from the Post 0ffice,-it was only lately
that in perusing the p. c. -4drertiSer of January =,
I came across q piece headed % Independent Thoughts
on Annexation and signed 10 HqpOlulu." Now
" Honolulu is not the only one who has 'inde-
pendent thoughts on this subject. So when 1
reached the paragraph in which he speaks of foreign
ers on the Islands, other than Americans. as resisting
the infliction Of the enormous American war tax,
and asks whether it is to be thrust on this ignorant
people, to " reveal itself like Samson's shorn hair
l came to the conclusion that the independents"
was in the popularity of his train of ideas, and per-
haps also the . independent source from whence
they were derived. To the best of my knowledge and
belief there never has been any resistance made by
any one on these Islands, native or foreign, to any
taxes imposed by Government, and it does not seem
that any will resist, or have cause or reason TO resist,
any taxes likely to be imposed in case of annexation
to any foreign government.
Probably however, Honolulu is q person of
large property, which would be a sufficient reason for
talking in an alarmed and general manner of 60 enor-
nous American war-taxes,' as it is evident that for
such large property holders taxes would be heavily
increased by any such move as annexation. But for
the common natives of the country, the mass of the
people, l take the liberty of asserting that annexation
would be a financial benefit to them. 1 say financial,
as l am only writing of the money view of the ques-
ton at present, and not of the effects that such a
move might have upon the moral and social life ofthe
people. In the United States, taxes are levied prin-
cipally upon property, and upon incomes, upon the
latter there being n tax of 3 per cent. on all in excess
of $1,000. Nearly all State taxes are levied upon
property, and are of course in a nearly direct ratio to
the amount which it costs to sustain the State Gov
o,~,an T1,o,a -, oleo N ,lI +a- - Co15fnrp;o
where taxes are as heavy as anywhere in the United
States, the poll-tax is two dollars. That is to say, a
working man in that State, unless he owns property,
has to pay but - of direct taxes during the year,
and may be earning his three dollars q day steadily
all the time. Here n laborer has So to pay at the
least which, Mt the rate of wages on the plantations,
of IS. per month, is over 5 per cent. of his earnings.
In the United States they do not tax a mans wages
or his income, except upon the excess of what it costs
him to live comfortably. Here, a man with $4,000
income need not pay any more taxes than the poorest
laborer in the Hawaiian Kingdom.
But sir, it amuses me to see men whose taxes
would be quadrupled by n change, pat the poor ma
tive on the back, and tell him that this change
which would in all probability ameliorate his condi-
ton, and at any rate not make it any worse-would
be sure death to him, thus hiding his own fears under
n well simulated air of aloha to his fellow country
man of darker shade, and persuading the kanaka to
put trust in him, if he wishes to be saved from untold
horrors.
The foreign population of the islands, and in fact
all, either native or foreign, who are in the enjoyment
of what is commonly called a support,-say an in
come of SIOOO,-and those who hold any amount of
property, are in fact the lightest taxed people in the
world, while the peasantry, the labOrers, the bone
and sinew of the nation, are enormously taxed and
l happen to know that there are influential men,
holding high position, who agree with me in this re-
spect perfectly. Still it is only the same as in nearly
every monarchical government the many are taxed
for the benefit of the few and 1t is hard to say
whether the evil will ever be remedied under the
existing form Of government. There are many evils
which can only be remedied by a popular form of
government, one emanating from the people, and it
does not seem likely that such an one will ever come
TO bless this nation, until in the course of human
events the glorious old stars and stripes wave over us.
The whole subject Of annexation is one which is
deeply interesting to all lovers of the Hawaiian race,
not as a question for sugar planters, but as a serious
issue, which presses itself more and more upon us
every day, and will not much longer be put off.
Heretofore l have not seen any but the vaguest kind
of hints as TO how it would affect the natives fnan-
cially, such as were put forth by Honolulu" but
in future / shall hope to see some one take hold and
ventilate the subject in a much better manner than
it can be done by a BAcKwooDsMAN.