The Hawaiian gazette., 1870-03-09

WHEN adverting, in our last issue, to
Judge Hoffman's charge to the jury, in
the great sugar case, we remarked: eve
do not intend to enter into any discussion
about the matter;'' and this sentence we
now reiterate. In that issue, we merely
attempted TO show that it did not appear
from the Judges charge, that he regarded
those who had planned and carried out
the idea of darkening grocery" sugars
by charcoal, as having done an act which
entitled them, or those who may have
thought with them, to any particularly
invidious notoriety" To the quotations
from the Charge" on this point, we take
the liberty of adding the following ex-
tract. which was omitted in our last:
.. The circumstance that the owner of these goods
believed that he might lawfully put charcoal into
them. and lawfully withhold the knowledge of that
fact from the Cusiomhouse authorities, and that he
thereby and within the meaning of the law, degrad
ed the sugars and lowered their color and converted
them from sugar above No. - to sugar below No.
y 10 color and that he might lawfully enter them
a. Of the lower grade though he honestly believed
al this. such erroneous belief and mistaken con
Efrucilnu OF the law Afford INN no excuse, the
goods are subject to forfeiture"
Now, the circumstance that one be-
heved he was doing right, and believed
so on reflection, and that other good men
believed so too, has, in all countries and at
all times, been held to exempt men from
an imputation of moral turpitude, however
II might still leave them liable to all the
penalties of the law.
Passing from this point-which all our
fellow citizens viii think sufficiently made
out, except those who delight to look at
the tranactions of their fellow men in the
darkest light, and perhaps some who may
fancy they have a pecuniary interest in
the result,-we beg to advert to the fol-
lowing remark of the Judge, in his charge:
swhai. then, was the motive Of Congress in
adopting the standard of colorl II is plain gentle
men, that except far as protection is concerned
color could only be nationally adopted as indicative
Of value,-uoi invariably indicating it, but as
generally doing 50, and as affording, upon the whole,
the best, most convenient, and most appreciable
tcsi Of the value and quality of the article That II
II IN this case has been established by the wit.
nes; for. though they state that color is not the
sideratious Of great importance be borne in mind
yci they all admit that color Is a very important
circumstance 10 be regarded in determining the
value or quality OF sugar. IL has been shown that
sugar IN its pure state is coOrless, and 1t would
10 follow that the degree depth of a color
which particular article of raw sugar possesses
must vary with the amount of impurities il con-
taus: and the amount of Impurities contained must
have very important effect the value of the
mass"
And We hope, though bearing in
mind the wide difference in position, be-
tween an humble newspaper man, in the
middle of the Pacific Ocean, and the en-
inent Judge who delivered the charge. to
point out some matters worthy of consid-
Grafton.
Now, it is undoubtedly true, to some
extent, that the color of sugar does de-
termine It's value in the market. There
are two kinds of value: the intrinsic value
of the article itself. and its general mer-
charitable value. The first, or intrinsic
value, is determined by the relative GUAM
tity Of cane sugar, Gas it is called and
grape sugar; and the second, or mer-
charitable valne, is what it can be sold for
over the counter. In the last case, color
becomes an important consideration in
the value In the first case, color is of no
consideration whatever Now. anyone
who viii look at a sample of the sugar
mixed with carbon, viii see that it is re-
moved entirely from the class of grocery
sugar; that ii could not be sold over the
counter at all-its value in this respect is
destroyed. utterly. 1t has been reduced
70 refinery grade-ft, alone. for the Re
fners. Then, it is not wonderful that
intelligent men should think that if it was