The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1876-05-27

the opinion q the judges q the supreme AouFt' y
referring 70 what be considers their erroneous opinion
about the Ministers having recommended His Msyos-
tv 10 ratify or proclaim the Reciprocity ircaiy with.
| cut submitting e. 10 this Assembly. when you have
the Reciprocity treaty under consideration you vii
be able 10 form 4 beuer opinion a. 10 whether you
.hould rely on the Judgment 81 the Hoo Noble OF
CO that o. the judges Of the Supreme Court.
His ExoeIeney Gov. Kapesa said
Mr. Chairman The till DOW under consideration
i one q that class Of bills which bsve repeatedly
been brought forward Ia former sessions q TIE Leg
~islsture. with the intent to repeal a certain provision
Of the Civil Code. I am unable 10 conjecture what
great good Is to result from The proposed legislation,
bot anticipate the effect would be 10 the ether direc-
ton. The law restricting the trade, which IL Is now
sought 10 repeal. was snse'ed under the Constitution
Of 1852. in the reign Of King Kauikssouli Of happy
memory; IL was enacted after careful consideration
by the chiefs and the viSest men Of the nation,
thoughtful and anxious for the best interests Of the
race. Il has been the law Of the land during i've
successive reigns; aud DOW the question may be
asked, What evil has resulted from this Law during
the many years In which il has been in force. that IL
is 80 earnestly sought 10 be repealed Who has
been damaged by its operation l ask you Repre-
s~entsrives Of the people. and you Mobiles. 10 point N
you can. 10 any evil effects from this law.
We are here assembled 10 legislate for the good Of
the whole people; TO provide laws which shall secure
the welfare. the prosperity and the protection Of all,
and we should act With extreme care.
I, has been urged by the friends Of the bill. that
the law as il stands is restrictive Of the rights Of
Hawaiians; that in the matter q privilege, IL puts
them beneath the foreigner, and even the lowest
Of other nationalities who come here have more Ito
erty than the natives Of the soil These Arguments
are but puerile. Does any one believe that by re-
moving the restrictions on liquor any possible benefit
will result TO the Hawaiiansl l say most emphatic
ally no And IL the truth shall be Acknowledged,
every one in this Assembly will say the same. l
state 4 well known and undisputed fact, when | say
that the use Of intoxicating drinks is an unmixed
evil, often disastrous in It's consequences. VIII yOu
expect good to result from giving more facilities TO
evil2
In regard to the degradation Of the Hawaiian 10
being deprived Of the privilege of drinking rum like
other people, let me say that although | drink NY
self, l have never really felt that il was anything to
be proud Of; or that a place where liquor was sold
was a respectable place 20 be seen in. On the con-
trary, the grog shop, with its sickening fumes Of
alcohol, is a far less desirable or respectable place for
q Hawaiian 10 be in than the clean stable where one
Of the speakers for the bill informs US be was COM
PEELED to 60 secretly aud drink the tabued liquor.
Look at the consequences Of liquor drinking in in-
stances which almost every one can bring to mind,
and then tell me where Is the respectabiliIy Of the
practice, or where the coveted honor and dignity
that the law deprives us Of Let any young man
acquire the habit, and see how soon his tendencies
are all downward
Something has been said to the effect that no such
restrictive law exists ia other countries There is
however the Maine law, which Is entirely prohibi-
tive, and is declared to be q great blessing TO that
state. But We cannot. in the matter Of the use Of
liquor, compare'our race with those Of Europe and
America, where for centuries the people have been
accustomed TO the use Of vine. beer and spirits.
And. even there, the total abstinence societies are
active, and constantly increasing in numbers and
influence. Are the Tshitians or the MAoris Of New
Zealand any better of than HaWaiians because Of
their freedom TO buy liquori On the contrary il is
the fact that socially, pecuniarily, and in all that
pertains TO civilization. they are much the interiors
OF the Hawaiians. Aud / maintain that this is owing
to our superior laws. imperfectly as they are some
times pYeCufed Kul fakp off this raafrictinn and
what will become Of law and order You would
have TO largely increase the appropriation for police,
and for the suppression of oienses Private distilla-
ton, which now by extreme exertion we keep within
bounds, would be rife all over the land. We speak
with regret of our public debt; repeal this law aud
our necessities will soon become such that we shall
be more in debt than ever, both privately and pub
licly.
Every member Of this Assembly will agree with
me that the great objects that interest US here
objects which we consider as paramount In impor-
tance-are the education Of the rising generation
and the preservation and increase Of the nation.
What can be imagined more totally Of an opposite
character to these than the proposition to give the
people free rum Is this what you wish TO put be-
fore your children-the liberty to destroy them
selves1 | entreat you TO pause and consider well
before you vote on this subject. For the peace aud
happiness Of our race, in the name Of Christianity
and of law and order, / appeal 10 your own con-
sciences,-vote for the right
The Bon. Godfrey Rhodes said
MT. Cnairman FROM Whatever point OF view,
whether from reason, religion, expediency or legal
ity, l consider this law (the Attn chapter Of the Penal
Code) equally vicious and untenable, and answera-
BILE for the decrease Of the Hawaiian race more than
any other law or cause. with one exception that |
know or There is no occasion for me 10 notice the
religious objection as that has already been well
done by more than one Of the members Of the house;
but looking at 1t from what might be called the rea-
sonable point of view every argument that suggests
itself to my mind is for a repeal or modification of
the law. 1t Is proclaimed 10 be a dead letter; scarce
ly q newspaper appears that does not speak Of the
drunkenness amongst the people. On holidays,
when there are many people in the streets. IL is no.
torious that there is much more drunkenness than az
other times; in fact that the natives can get what
ever they want, and although now aud then some
unfortunate is taken and heavily fined, the law IL
Systematically set at naugbt. Il Is said that okole-
hao can be bought on any part Of the islands az 6fv
on this island, Kauai. and Mainland then as 10
the working Of this law, / would relate q story OF a
case to which / was q witness. A native man who
had been in my employ, was arrested on the charge
of selling spirits without q license and hned 1us hun
dTsd dollars; a poor but good and industrious crea-
ture, who earned bis FIVE dollars a week, but beyond
that l suppose scarcely owned five hundred cents.
He said TO me az the time that this law was murder
(pepehi kanaka). fully agreed with him. He APP
pealed. / applied on his account 70 the Attorney
General, but met with no favorable reply. I was
afterwards notified from the Police Court that il he
would plead guilty TO the charge q modification Of
the sentence would be made. He did 80, and vas
fined by the police magistrate one hundred dollars,
or two hundred days imprisonment as an alternative.
Had he gone to prison, what would have become Of
his wife! Why his home would have been broken
up, and she would have gone on the streets. He
had friends who paid his fine which be is now work
ing out and paying by weekly installments. Had be
been fined five dollars or something near that sum,
he would in my opinion have been properly and
sufficiently punished; but Eve hundred or even one
hundred dollars fine inflicted on such a person for
such an offence, even if he had committed itbefore,
was something f~rightful.
This 10 the working Of that Law; and I find by re-
ferring to the report Of the Minister Of Finance that
more than S49 900 or 1-22d part Of The whole rev.
enue is thus wrung from the sweat and suHeripgs Of
the people. 1t was proved by the testimony az ne
one witness against him-also a native and proceed
ted for the Same offence that he had received
cents for furnishing the spirit, which he
told his employer was for a Chinamau. Why shoah
such q law. followed by such results, remain on tEs