The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1870-06-18

then all goes.
This statute is not. as one member has repre-
scented it, a leaky house which we must occupy
till a new one is built. Rather is it like a tree
that fills my whole mail garden, and bears no
fruit. Before a new one can grow, the OLD tree
must be cut down and dug up by the roots, that
l may plant the new one in the pit where the OLD
one grew. There is no compromise. 1he I'M
prisonment clause must go, and L shall vote lor
no bill that contains it.
Let US now consider the central idea of the whole-the I'M
constitutionaIty of the present law. For l hold that all the
rubbish of AUTHORITIES and p~recedents, and eXpe iency, and
personalities. are of little moment compared with TINS, me man
point of attack. l must allude TO the expression thai lei from
that if this law was unconstitutional, the Constitution was not
such a holy instrument but that II could be amenaed' Is
he boned he had not thought of the question, so as 10 reflect
what part of the Constitution it was that might be amended.
IL : ne aea III . % a ngh .i5erty!" Now Of all men, q representa-
~ - h naoDIa should be the last man 10 yield one iOta Of the
full richness Of right contained and guaranteed in that docu-
ment. ! shall not make any such charge, but l ASK candldly-
does not a man BY so doing lay himself open 20 me charge OF
disloyaty to the People-a disloyaliy equal, II IL exists, 70 us
loyalty to the so ~ GIs g,mol II e sHe Dpe 1bsn is is the h v sqy9 eSise e noe
of a people. at any tate, their growth and prosperity, put IN
This suggestion that the Constitution might be amended.
Now when in the earlier part Of this debate ! once inter ds
out of no wish to cast discredii on that faithful servant OF this
was reacbed~when all depended on the correct rendering of
the word - inaienable, not merely "hiki ole ke lalceia,'
"hoopaaiikiniiG aku." And / thank a kind Providence that
has brought the English language 10 these shores and made il
the legal Ianguage OF the country. For il is a language Of lib
erty, born and developed amid struggles tor night and for priv
Old England. Not only that, but it has taken to itself the pre-
vfem we .p get these terms g inalienabie " and !" liberty" Now
though it may seem a slight TO the Hawaiian to have the
privilege, and a gift Of which he will yet see the value.
1t mas not ye, in the course Of this debate been defined what
is the distinguishing feature Of slavery. A man is not a slave
because he has no wages The slave has wages-his food
even have his wife and children, and yet be a slave. A man is
a slave when his toiH is subordinated to The will OF another
is enforced by the power of the government. II is this element
Of the ioiH which cannot be legally given away in any contract.
lift is, then there is temporary slavery. Because there are
differences, very great differences in the two conditions of
slavery and contract servitude-thatd does not prove that in the
essential point the two are not alike. You can not urge, as has
For now listen TO the words of John Stuart Mill (On Liberty, p.
1897: d" The principle of freedom cannot require that he should
demands uncontrolled freed In OF action i'm ali thar concerns RE
agents themselves, requires that those who have become bound
10 one another, i'll things which Concern no third party, should
be able to release one another fir m the engagement, and even
without such voluntary release there are perhaps no contracts
or engagements, except those that relate to money or moneys
liberty whatever of retractation."
some other specific job, he does not give up his freedom, but
when he agrees to serve another man he does, unless he pos
cases 10 wife or children. which may cause unforeseen changes.
His wife may be sick, and his master may forbid his attending
The cases of seamen and soldiers are urged as instances, and
that contract labor is no worse. In the matter OF seamen, they
are separated while on ~shipboard from the civil power, and
But I mari the difference. Your iaborers are bound TO Tom
Dick and Harry,-your seanen to a responsible captain, and
ships for not more than Two years. He may return his advance
s m go f , ~ am , nS iSf #, rs + by r m m~l II rs a sn5 tia q !
diers,-here | remark, that such is the confusion of ideas on all
these subjects, that both seamena and soldiers in this country
think that they are held under the Master and Servants law. A
captain came to me and said, II you pass that bin, th.n how
good deal the same-now a soldier is held by his oath to serve
his own government or King. lfhe serves others for money, or
enlists in a cause he does not feel to be his own, then l say he
Would You. however, lave all laborers on land in the position
of seamen? All know who have been at sea, and ! have seen
for myself, thai a sailors life 5 a dogs life. The system, unless
most carefully guarded, necessarily tends that way.
A vast array Of authorities were brought up the other day on
this question. So much was said of the "older missionaries"
that L for one was reminded Of the passage, /" Is Saul also
among the prophetsf But now what is the quotation from
the Rev. J. s. Green, of which so much was said Here it is:
Scarcely any thing seems. TO flourish among US excepting
make a living of it.. The plantation hands are well fed, and
better clothed and housed than their friends and %neighbors who
been sick during the last fifteen months, and of those who have
been sick, fewer have died, because they have been better cared
for. The plantations furnish employment to not a few Of the
people Besides those who are employed by the year, the
month, or the day, many are engaged in teaming, drawing
wood, or blowing the land for another crop. By these means,
not a little money is circulated among the people and this
helps them to obtain comforts for their families"
There is nothing there that 1 can see on the subject of this
~ Er iI oT, Gresiay Oh % nv NJ III IF@nnd 1T fiead az T I:
Excellency, and a man too, by the way, who frequently changes
his opinions. l believe very little goes into the TrsLuEe save
with his approval, and I hold in my hand the Tribune of the
observe, and right gladly too, that a bill to make I'M
lawful the importation of immigrants under labor contracts was
submitted in the Senate on Monday, and referred to the proper
Of San Francisco, Cornelius KoOpmanschap IL Co, proposed
TO introduce Chinese coolies into the South, is the one against
that the system of Slavery which the nation but lately obIiter-
ated al such terrible cosG was begun, something like two and a
half centuries ago, by the apprenticeship of a few score Of
Africans by a Dutch trader who had stolen them, to Virginia
planters who really had 10 need for them. We shall be glad
TO have the Senate spoil any possible historical parallel of this
kind But is Koopmanschap q Co.'S system Of labor-impor-
tation the only one which ought to be regulated? II has been
intmated that some OF the southern states-virginia, South
agents in this city and abroad, are seeking 70 secure European
in migrants on labor contracts having many years to run,
which, we are assured, are simply a system Of apprenticeship.
Such systems, hwowever equitable in theory, have generally
the apprentice. We are not positive as to The truth of this
incline, in fact, to doubt that it is well founded.
present, while the till alluded to its pending and whether the
be true or false, it will not hurt to have the facts
am willing to take that as my text.
this law. | had the honor and the privilege of personal ac-
an NJ wth MIN whose portrait hangs y0nder, and under
answering TO the other. One, 81 Va maj Ike ea 0 kd alma
IA ponO," over your own chair, Mr.. President, and under the
portrait, Fiat justitia, ruat c9lum." Years ago. that hon
Mentioned ne1 "A M sdl on of K soSsi d / N never efV knew MT t DooG mem g m I more m eonl
genial. Long evenings have /, then a youth, listened to their
lay. From what 1 know of that man, l feel that the only rea-
ION why he would not develop The full meaning of the ConSti-
et that the people were not ready for it, and were yet IN lead
would not be on this side OF this question. And the Rev. Sir.
Bond, his friend-who has been spoken Of here as ashamed that
he representative from his district should call the people he has
TO industry, slaves,-when some time since he first had
after thinking the subject over, said to me personally,
You are sound" o fcourse you must take my. word for that,
But why lean so much to authOritiesl Why not judge for
hat has ever perceived this" ~ amount o re Of fp negative agld Hst eTi-
will counterbalance positive evidence. Ten thousand men
ees it, and it is there. This is true in the sphere of ideas as
eli - OF lnings- GallteO saw nat D eartn move FIIest
nd pope and bishop and prince compelled him to deny it, but
e said under his breath, ~ pur 81 muOUO," II dues move.
But if you do respect authorities, how ridiculous TO set up
ur poor show Of Island wisdom and judges, and say that we
o not see what the wisdom and judges OF The country ta' =
oniains the flower of the human race, so TO say, DO see.
Now as to some of the arguments used by speakers On ne
Their side. A grave argument used by the speaker VINO occu-
led nearly the whole day was much after this style IN
$50 soon after the passage Of this law We exported So3o,o<z;
n 1870 we shall export S2,300,0O0. See the unexampied
'crease OF wealth and prosperity. Therefore the law Is hgnL
ct me bring a similar argument. In 1919, the year slavery
in Virginia, so many thOUsGnd dollars in exports
ent out of that country. In 1860, just before the war, so
lany million. see what prosperity. Therefore slavery Is =
ght. Sugar paid all our bills. Cotton paid all theirs. Z
Now MIR. President-I do not say the cases are ahke-btH
ne argument means anything in one case, it certainly does
lie other. i challenge any mar TO show any difference III TIC
gic OF one argument and Of the other.
4 Gu say the native people are better off on the plantations
IAN elsewhere. i grant it. So were the negroes on PlanIa-
ons better of than the free negroes. Is the argument III one
ase more sound than in the other!
This grand argument of material prosperity is a Ialse Gme
here are people that see nothing but dollars and what donaI
ny. As the horses they drive are blind TO the value d money,
are they themselves blind 10 the value Of manhooo ~ !" -
hat is included in the idea Of manhood.
We are told no petitions come in for repeal Dn a PeOPe
ere petition for their kueanasl Sometime the avs t'
nited States with respect 10 seamen will be amended 10 one n