The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1874-09-05
Constructing Civil Government.

The following passage in the Rev. Mr.. Sturges'
letter from Micronesia, published in the Missionary
Herald for August, illustrates the gradual and nee
essary outgrowth of civil institutions from the inhu-
enee of the Gospel and the Christian Missionary
I" Want of authority and of Ownership greatly
binders our work in reconstructiug here. Everybody
eolcns and everything Is done, IN general, but moth
ing in particular. Wives, children, lands, property,
belong to everybody and to nobody. In this state Of
things, there is and can be but little desire to improve
or acquire. Our church organizations Eelp, but
outside of these there are evils we cannot reach,
without civil government. At this our people are
making some efforts. 1t will be recollected that on
the death of our good chief Ejekaia, the Christian
party elected one of their district chiefs to preside
over the whole. This election was sanctioned by the
king of the tribe, who has left our party to manage
its own affairs. Thus We have more than half the
population and territory Of the tribe free to work
and legislate for themselves. Our chief, rather
noted for ineficiency, even among our imbecile
rulers, is so kind hearted that punishment is his
{ strange work Everybody was complaining that
he would punish no one, though many were needing
ii. [ acted, in one or two instances, the part Of
. high sheriff, to have individuals brought to justice.
"Some time ago, one of our deacons, a district
chief, complained to the high chief that he did not
attend TO an aggravated case Of adultery just then
troubling us. The head chief replied by directing
the deacon to go and bring up the %culprits. He
refused, on the ground that such work did not belong
to his Office. l heard Of it, and saw the difficulty,
and advised our people to elect SHERIFF., one for
"a - Ah ~ SUN Ahic ~ NAhb dhh u bo ~ u
set of men as the island affords, only a part Of them
church-members. These Immediately came to me for
work. | sent them to their head chief and he came
back with them to me, asking what they were to do.
1 saw the fix l had put myself in, by proposing exc
cutioners of laws without laws to execute, or even
lawmakers. So I proposed that they elect from each
district men who should assist their chief in making
laws. This pleased them, and they elected their best
men, seven in number, who meet with a GLASS Of high
chiefs, a kind of 'nobles.' and this constitutes their
legislature. They have passed a few laws; among
others, one giving a homestead to every man, on
condition that he build a house on it,-and he can
own but one. This law is the most radical Of any
they need. as it strikes at the root Of the great evil
here,-a kind of socialism, quite destructive to all
our efforts to fla them as to place or property. OF
course land-holders feel this change, as their greed
has been to get all the lands; but so far they have
yielded to the law,-giving up their places when
they held more than one. Ii these beginnings at
legislation result in something to advance civil rule
we shall be glad; IF they result in nothing. we may
try it again. A beginning must be made sometime