The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1870-08-06
THE PACIFIC
Commercial A0bertisfr.
SATURDAY. AUGUST 6.
The Laws of 1870.

Probably the law whose operation will be the
soonest and most widely felt is the Divorce Law
the social catastrophes which come under It's
scope having become aiarmingly frequent during
the past few years. The new law provides in
the first place that drunkenness and extreme
cruelty may furnish ground for divorce. 1t goes
ON however to render divorce much harder to
obtain by the following enactments: That no
divorces shall be granted in Chambers, every
application being now required to be made in
open court at the regular sessions; that in
all cases other testimony even than the admission
ofthe guilty party is required and that the decree
for divorce is not to take effect until the expiration
of six months. As it were supplementary to
this Act is another one forbidding the marriage
of the divorced party within one year from the
date of the decree.
As relating to the same general subject may be
mentioned the repeal of the law requiring the
naturalization of foreigners before contracting
legal marriage with Hawaiian wives.
Relating to educational matters, there have
been passed the following laws: An Act pro-
viding for elections by the parents of the several
school districts of one member of the Local
School Board, the other two members being the
school agent and another appOintee of the Govern
ment. By this Local School Board the teachers
Of the district schools are to be chosen, subject
to revision however by the Board of Education.
Another Act prescribing that independent schools
shall, in order that the scholars attending them
may be recognized as attending school, teach at
least one hundred and eighty days in a year, and
at least three hours in each day, and that the
teacher shall have received a certificate from an
examining board appointed for that purpose;
moreover that if the teacher does not teach his
hundred and eighty days he shall lose his
certificate. Any person, however, who is re-
nowned (see Hawaiian version) as q teacher,
may freely transcend the requirements of this
law. An Act forbidding children from frequent
ing any kind of salOOns-and sugar mills at
night, passed as above, will meet a growing mis-
chief in Honolulu and elsewhere.
An Act relating to reformatory schools makes
more definite arrangements with respect to the
present school, and provides for the establishment
of others in other parts of the islands if found
necessary. Judging from the history of the one
already in operation, however utcful that may be
at present, the indefinite multiplication of reform
schools would be rather an expensive measure.
1t was expected that the Standing Committee
Ou dAdllOH dppOluICu w IhC pICNIOuS Legislature
would bring in something stunning in the way of
remodeling the system. AS it was, however, they
brought in only a very sensible enactment, which
was adopted by the House, compelling all dogs to
wear tags as an evidence of having paid their
poll tax, and a suggestion on the subject of the
horse tax, which was speedily thrown overheard,
the present 75-cent tax on all horses, young
and old, being finally adopted. An increase in the
property tax, however, was quietly made during
the session, and it now stands at one half of one
per cent. The Custom House was not meddled
with by our legislators, except to regulate the
matter of Custom House guards the duties, and
the free list remaining the same as heretofore.
\ slight change was made in the law relating
to coasters, annulling the requirement heretofore
existing that the captains should understand
navigation and be provided with instruments;
other changes were contemplated but through
lack of vigorous management fell through. A
new enactment eompels the captains of schooners
to take leprous persons to Honolulu when so
by the Board of Health, and when on
their regular route.
The practice of personating others falsely in
deeds, procuring licenses, &c., having
become more or less common, and no law appear
ing on the statute book applicable to such cases,
an Act has been passed making it a highly
punishable offense. There has also been hereto
q strange lack of power in the Courts to
enforce the removal Of nuisances even when
declared to be such, parties frequently paying the
fine imposed and permitting the nuisance to
remain. This difficulty has been removed by
The length of time required to make possession
of land or of boundaries equivalent to a valid
at law has heretofore been a matter of
or custom alone. The term of twenty
years is now fixed by law, and any party holding
undisputed possession of any real estate for that
OF time thereafter becomes legally entitled
TO it.
Another bill regulating rights of property is
he wild-cattle bill, which provides that all wild
attic, horses, goats, sheep, and swine, the same
llso being unmarked or unbranded, shall be the
property of the owners of the land upon which
hey are found running. 1t is difficult to see
ust what the results of that law will be. By its
,assage the King and the Government apparently
up their right to the wild cattle of Hawaii.
How it will be with young animals that get
STRAY before the age of branding, remains to 10
cen, or with goats, which might be difficult to
mark in an unmistakable manner.
The birds have received special favors from the
legislature since no birds or progeny of birds i'm
orted from abroad, of any kind, are. to be shot or
AIKEN anywhere on the islands, unless they shall
been proved public nuisances, and no carrying
f firearms of any kind-provided however it is for
porting purpOses-is allowed anywhere in the
district of Kona, Oahu, that is to say within six
lilies of Honolulu. :
Several laws pertaining to the practice in courts
re of more interest to those especially concerned
ban to the public at large. The most important =
f these is the ha6eas corpus Act, defining the 2
lanner of issuing the writ of ha6eas corpus. the Q
in which the writ is not sa be granted, and :
,e whole process pertaining thereto. 1t was a :
Iaxr "a oocaa of tba 800 oc kb.. =