The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1875-04-03

To the Editor Of the Pacific Commercial advertiser g.:
1 notice the following paragraph in q leader in your
issue Of March 9th.
"What would foreign parents think Of having i'm
moral literature circulating freely in the schools to
which they send their sons and daughtersl But
that is just what is being done in the Hawaiian
Schools, . " and with the knoWl-
edge. it must be added, Of the Inspector General Of
Schools and Of the Board Of Education"
The only 81 immoral literature - which can posi-
bly, circulate freely in the Hawaiian Schools >
must come from the printing establishments Of the
Harraifan GGsele. and PACIFIC COMMERCIAL AD-
VERIIsER. But, no periodical published by either Of
these establishments forms any part Of the curricu-
lum Of study in any Of the Government Schools;
consequently. if the immoral literature" emAna-
ting from these establisHments is q read with aTidity
by teachers and Pupih,'' it can only be read out Of
school hours, or surrspitiiiOusIy in school hours; and
not only Without "the knowledge Of the Inspector
General Of Schools and Of the Board Of Education, 2
bat contrary to the express regulations which gOyerA
the schools.
By giving this statement the benefit Of the same
Publicity which you have given to the paragraph
quoted above, you will Oblige|
Yours respectfully, u. R. HIrcHCocK,
inspector General Of Schools.
We cheerfully accord the Inspector General of
Schools the insertion of his letter as above, but
claim our right to make a few brief comments
thereon.
The fact that no periodical in Hawaiian is
issued from this Office, blunts, so far as we are
concerned, the edge Of the otherwise whitening
sarcasm of the Inspector General, that the 3 only
immoral literature which can possibly 'eircu-
late freely in the Hawaiian Schools must come
from " the printing establishment of the Gazette
or that Of this paper.
We never asserted that the KuokOG newspaper
formed amy part of the curriculum of study in
any of the Government Schools lit would be
nothing less than criminal to make it such-but
what we did say was that that sheet with its
worse than silly fables, circulates freely and is
read with ayidity by teachers and pupils. And
we added, that the Inspector General of Schools
and the Board of Education were, las may be
said of almost every body else) fully cOgnizant of
that fact. The thought which naturally led to a
particular mention OF the Board and its executive
officer in this connection, was that they, If any
body, are the legal cOnservators Of the morals Of
the rising generation, and that, outside of any
considerations Of red tape, 1t is their province by
the spirit OF the law as censOrs 10 see 70 IL that
no immoral literature be published here that
..can possibly" be circulated in the schools or
among the scholars, whether in or out of school
hours. The Inspector General is,-as the neees-
stiles of his position require, thoroughly ac-
quainted with the hawaiian language, either as
written or spoken, and none should know better
than himself, Of he deems it his duty to read
the native newspaPers) that our charges in regard
to the Ku0ksa arc true. And what other official
under the Government could more appropriately
take the initiative in bringing the matter before
the Courts than the Inspector General of Schools?
Section ! of Chapter &c OF the Penal Code reads
as follows:
The importing, printing, publishing, selling, offer
ing for sale, putting into circulation, distributing,
lending, exhibiting publicly, or introducing into any
family, school or place Of education, any obscene
picture, or pamphlet. sheet or other thing containing
obscene language, obscene prints, figures, descriptions
or representations, manifesly tending TO the corrup-
ton Of the morals Of youth, or Of morals generally;
or buying, procuring, receiving or having in poses
sion, any such picture, book, pamphlet, sheet or
other thing, with intent TO sell, circulate, distribute,
lend, or exhibit the same, or TO introduce the same
into any family, school or place Of education, is q
common nuisance.