The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1871-07-15

LQlS ocean OF Sdnu, iiiihh PS'"
fresh our sight. and soon reaching GAIA. we pass
through the gates, replaced since the strong man
of old went up to the hill from which we are now
looking down on to the valley of Sharon.
The lecturer spoke of the journey across the
desert to Jerusalem. as an epitome of our journey
through life to the eternal city above. He was
listened to with marked interest and attention
throughout. and all felt that they had enjoyed a
literary feast.
The editors over in Oregon are famous for their
disposition to quarrel with one another, and bore
their readers often with whole columns of personality.
The Daily Oregon Herald and the Daily Oregon
Bulletin, both published in Portland, have recently
had a duel with pens. which would not interest us at
all were it not that one of the combatants has brought
into the contest a bit of Hawaiian History, more or
less inaccurate, but nevertheless amusing to hear at
this date. 1t appears that a correspondent of the
Herald stated that he was informed on good author
ity. that some years ago Mr.. O'Meara, (the editor of
the Bulletin, } g Voluntarily renowned his American
citizenship and swore allegiance to a foreign poten-
tate" On the day following, the Bulletin emphat-
ically denied that 8 he had ever renowned or in any
manner lost his American citizenship Whereupon
the Herald produces a copy, (Which had been pro-
cured from Honolulu) duly certified by the clerk of
the Interior Department, of the oath of allegiance to
Kamehameha III, subscribed and sworn to by Mr..
James O'Meara, on the 18th day of November, 1854.
The Herald is jubilant over this, which it evidently
considers a perfect crusher for the Bulletin, and
INDUCES in no little amount of sarcasm, suggests
that Mr.. O'Meara left San Francisco for these Islands
at a time when the Vigilance Committee persuaded
so many to leave their country for their country's
good, and concludes thus
I" Henceiorth, to be consistent. Mr.. O'Meara
should not only procure from Col. McCraken.
Hawaiian Consul at this port. his beautiful ensign
OF the Kanaka Kingdom. which he should hoist
over his Office. but he also should write all his
editorials in the expressive language of the Kanaka
tongue, in which case there would not be the uni
versal objection TO style which there is now. while
they would still be fully as intelligent to our citi-
Zens, and quite as widely read. The vexed ques-
ton. " Have we a Kanaka among u.s." may now be
considered fully settled"
Does the Bulletin man feel utterly 8 squelched -
oy this onslaught of &c official documents and cut
ting satire ? Not much. He merely takes a day in
which to get his wind, and then comes out with a
two-column article in small type, in reply, headed
" Suppose we turn the tables" He says he is the
James O'Meara referred to, and furthermore that he
is, and ever Shall be, s. rather proud of that act of
Hawaiian denization.' He thus very ingeniously
puts the case:
- In the first place it may be well to state that
nearly The whole of the business population of the
Hawaiian Islands. but of Honolulu particularly. is
composed oil foreigners. OF whom the greater pro-
portion are Anericans-chiefly from the New Eng
land States-whose principal traffic is connected
with the whale fisheries. and the sugar and coffee
trade of the various Islands. In order to afford
for these residents a means whereby they can hold
"a quasi citizenship there. the Government years
ago instituted what Is called q denizenship.n by
which American citizens or the subjects of any
foreign Government can hold this quasi citizenship
without affecting or in any manner impairing their
rights or obligations of citizenship or subject con-
dition in their native country. The 'denizen - is
not invested with powers of complete citizenship,
but he is by his denizenship possessed of certain
privileges which are very essential in the main
tenance of property and other important rights.
One who asks naturalization must renounce his
allegiance to his native land. and become a subject
of the King. The deniZen " makes no snch re-
nunciation, but merely declares his purpose to do
just that which every resident of the Islands has. to
do while there, that is to support the Constitution
and laws; and. as we have stated. he in no way
loses his citizenship in his own land"
1t is certainly news to us that those who take the
oath of allegiance to the King of these Islands &c are
not invested with powers of complete citizenship"
But Mr.. O'Meara tells US he came to the Islands
as a secret negotiator of annexation, and mysteri-
ously intimates that his taking out denization
as he terms the oath of allegiance, was a
measure somehow connected with the scheme. In
the following. however correct he may be in other
respects, he antedates the Crimean war some three
years:
.Our business in the Hawaiian Islands in 1854
55 was in connection with the negotiation of a
treaty OF annexation between the Government of
the United States and the Hawaiian Kingdom. 1t
during the Administration of President Pierce,
when William L.. Marcy was Secretary of State.
and David L. Gregg, a distinguished citizen OF
Illinois. was United States Commissioner to the
Islands. We labored with Mr.. Gregg 10
the work of negotiation. The British Consul
General at the Islands. Gen. William Miller, and
the French Consul General, NJ. Perrin, were bit
terly opposed to the enneXation. AT that time the
war was raging, and the antagonism of
the English and French residents of the Islands
materially intensified from the fact that the
Americans generally sympathized with the Rus
slams. A reference to our journal of the events of
that day enables us to present the following facts
In the Kings Prlvy Council there were. in favor
of annexation-Jobn Young (Keona Anal a native
chief. Premier and Minister of the Interior; 4:
Willie. a Scotch gentleman. Minister of Foreign
Relations Elisha Allen, an American. Minister of
Rev. r. Armstrong. an American, Minis
ter of Public Instruction William l.. Lee, an
Chief-Justiee OF supreme Court Judge
an American. Associate Justice ; and A.
B. Bates. an American, Law Adviser to the Crown.
Opposed to annexation, of the Privy Council,
Prince Lot (now king). brother of Prince
Alexander. then the heir apparent to the throne ;
Kekuaonoa, the father of Princes Lot and Alex
and Governor of Oahu Lot Pakee, the
native chief of the Kingdom and Cham
Derlain and John III, native chief and an Associate
Justice. We had a majority of the Council. but
he anti-annexationists were energetic. u~ntiring,
md in one or two instances Inscriptions. in their
forts to defeat the measure. The old King favored
O. eut declined openly to give his adhesion to the
until Prince Alexander. whom he had
slec as his successor. would give his assent
ms lander purposely absented himself with
- son ,dential friend and adviser, Mr.. Nelson. of
-ork, in the mountains of Hawaii, hunting
ala CATTLE"
Further along in his narrative, he notes the arrival
ere in November, 1854, of Chris. Lilly, a notorious
libuster and prize fighter, with a few comrades of
Ike prOclivities describes the alarm that ensued
mong the chiefs and people the request of the
addressed to Capt. Dornin, of the U. S.
hip Portsmouth, then lying in the harbor of Homo
to the effect that the forces of the U. s. assist