The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1870-10-29

pm" w 49,
her arrival, of person aboard. how much later news
the community, including the Franco portion, had of
the war raging in Europe, and were surprised to
learn that at the date of leaving. about 81 days ago,
it was only up to the 3lst of July last, only two
weeks after the declaration of hostilities. We also
asked what the impression was among the French
officials in regard to results, &C., and we're answered
that they were under the blissful idea that long be-
fore this the Germans were chGIced up and nothing
left, Nap, like the first of that name, being in Berlin
6 unter den linden, - issuing DEGREES as did 6 mon
oncle.' We reminded ourselves of the Salc, where
ignorance is bliss, etc." The inhabitants of Paris
were cajoled fol a couple Of days into a similar state
of things but Franco Tahitians will probably much
longer enjoy the delusive enchantment, than their
compatriots of Paris. Rejecting upon this, we were
carried back TO those halcyon days when We, of
Hawaii mel, enjoyed the privilege OF waiting six
months for our news from the great outside world /;
but, as they say in the modern classics, nous dpons
change tout celia. And strange to say, that we heard
an old resident, and a Teuton at that, some months
ago (of course before war broke out,) say, he never
had been so contented and happy as when he waited
for news via the Horn remarking that this frequent
excitement at the arrival of fresh news by steamers
was too great q strain upon his nervous system.
Lucky we are not all alike. We learned also, that
beef was worth 16 cents per pound on the hoot.
What a paradise for our graziers, having large focks,
if they could only transport a few hundreds, obtain
land on the neighboring Island of Morea, which is
better adapted for cattle than Tahiti, let them run
for a while, and sell to the hungry Gauls, and to the
natives, if they have acquired the taste for beef. 1t
does seem a pity that so luxuriant a group as the
Society Islands could not be made more of.
FIJI-By the arrival of the English bark Alma,
we have q few items from this extensive group Of
islands in the southern Pacific. Since the exploring
expedition under Commodore Wilkes, and in the his
tory of which, much space is bestowed upon Fiji. we
own that they have always been to us a subject of a
great deal of interest. The large number of islands,
the inexhaustible fertility of their soil, and the here
t~ofore, if not now, peculiar savage character of the
people, contributed to this interest, in connection
with the little known of them, previous to Wilkes
voyage. About two years since q series OF articles,
graphically describing them, by a gentleman who
had resided there some time, now an old resident at
these islands, was matter of very entertaining read
ing for several weeks to the Honolulu public. We
now learn that a considerable advancement has since
been made at FIJI. Foreigners, mostly English and
Americans, have largely increased, and Levuka, the
principal place of foreign residence, is a town nearly
as large as Honolulu, with numerous shops, hotels,
bowling alleys, saloons, &c.,-very much such q
place, we fancy, as Honolulu was thirty years ago.
The trade is principally with Auckland and Sydney,
and the exchange from FIJI is cocoanut oil, cotton,
(of an excellent quality, biche lie mer, and, perhaps,
other productions. The Wesleyan missionaries have
done good work there, and the present King, Tha-
kombau, is also O convert to the Christian faith.
The natives are so christiaEized as TO make it safe to
visit the various islands of the Archipelago, with the
exception of one mountain district, where a mission
ary was lately killed. The King lives at Rewa, fifteen
miles distant from Levuka, and permits foreigners to
make their own regulations for their solf government,
but not to interfere with natives. There is an OPEN
ing for the genus lawyer-that specimen of zoology
not being yet introduced, and as His Majesty is de-
sirous of having a code of laws framed for his king
is the /" Ricord - that is t. fetch up
there. Is there none among US that we might spare.
to enlighten and litigate His Fijan Majesty's sub
jects! Differences among foreigners are often re-
ferred to the American and English COnsuls, whose
influence is salutary. The former has acquired an
island all to himself, appropriated to cotton culture.
In fact, foreigners are acquiring lands, adapted to
all different agricultural purposes very extensively.
The sugar cane is unrivalled. AS the Anna Is to re-
turn there, what a chance to go and make your
fortune. Now is the time. We confess that were we
ten years younger, we would willingly take our
chance of being baked and m~ungied, and add to our
real estate. -
THE CooLIE HABEAs CORPUS CAsE.-Late on Sat-
urday afternoon, this writ was taken out, at the
instance of q resident celestial, for the benefit of a
nonresident celestial, on board the San Salvador
ship .Macao. The writ was upon the master of the
ship, and was not served till Sunday forenoon. Now,
as everybody knows, the writ Of hG6eGs corpus is a
mighty big writ, and is not to be withheld, when
demanded in a proper cause, and, at the same time,
ought not to issue under every frivolous pretense. 1t
is a summary remedy for illegal restraint of every
kind, whether by a Magistrates order, by an exc
cutive officer, or by a party, not connected with the
law at all. In the present instance, it was to bring
up the body of one of the coolies on board of the
above named vessel We could not learn from the
petition, as read in Court, at the hearing on Monday
forenoon, what the specific reasons assigned were.
But we had been informed that the writ was only
granted, after numerous affidavits were filed. 1t
was O fzzle, however, for it turned out they had got
the wrong pig by the ear, if, in reality, there ever
was any pig at all and, on the discovery of the
same, the petition was dismissed. 80 that the noun
tain in labor brought forth a mus, and the philan-
thropic parties interested adjudged to pay the cost.
The case appeared to excite interest, as we noticed
several dignitaries of the land in Court. The party
who amused us most, however, was the alleged
injured party himself, the innocent fulcrum of the
whole modus operdndi. There he sat, understand
ing a heap of what was being said and done in his
behalf, and wondering, no doubt, why he Of all his
companions should be selected for such august
rresence-probably thinking, if he thought any
thing, that he had never been before aware of the
extent of his grievances, like the client who never
knew how much he had suffered till he heard his
lawyer make his plea before the jury. No one,
certainly, objects to a coolie Chinaman enjoying the
high prerogative writ, as much as any other barba-
rian, by whom it may be invoked in a proper cause.
But we do not believe in groundlessly annoying these
passing ships who touch here to refresh their cargoes
and spend money amongst us, which they cannot
help doing when they enter our port, conveniently
udlt 6o ~ 70 III thSh hOhS 'OJo6 NNtO $3.50
ocean for it may be that in view of the premises
they might prefer to go somewhat out of their way
to avoid us and our philanthrophists, and thus ex-
pending their money elsewhere We cannot, If we
would, break up the ngfarious trade by such isolated
cases. That the trade is often subject to abuses, no
one doubts, and it would be remarkable If it were
not. No such accusation can be laid to the Hawaiian
system. If it be, that coolies are brought within
our jurisdiction, who are abused on board, it strikes
us the remedy is somewhat different from that of the
writ Of habeas corpus. Wilberforce did not break
up the slave trade by writs of ha6eas corpus, but by
bold and persevering denunciations of the entire
HYDRA in the imperial parliament. And when we
shall have abandoned our share in the coolie trade,
and can exert the same influence with the nations
that he did, perhaps our benevolent efforts may be
crowned with like success.
The preliminaries of a marriage between Princess
Louisa, the fourth daughter of Queen Victoria,
and the Marquis OF Lorne, the eldest son of the
Duke of Argyle, have been arranged with the con-
cant of tho 0uaan IL IL considered that tho nneai-