The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1881-04-02
THE CASE OF POLUA.

The Committee on Pardons of the Privy
Council, consisting of the Judges of the
Supreme Court, assisted on this occasion by
Messrs. BISHOP, KAAI, and KAPENA, met on
Wednesday, Both ult., at the office of the Chief
Justice, to hear the statements of those who
recently petitioned the Princess Regent on be-
half of the prisoner PoLUA, convicted of the
murder of a young woman, and condemned to
death. The text of the petition was published
in the ADVERTISER last week. The citations
issued to the petitioners, ran as follows, I'M
der date, 2Sth ult. A committee having been
appointed to consider and report upon the
petition in favor of POLKA, under sentence Of
death, with power to send for persons and
papers, You are hereby cited to appear before
said committee at the Office, etc, etc, (signed
CHAs. C. HARRIS, Chairman of the Committee. y
The issue of these citations, together with the
sharp catechizing administered by members of
the Privy Council to individuals who had signed
the petition, as to their motives for SO doing,
caused considerable excitement in town, and
there was quite a full attendance of petitioners
at the appointed hour. Fortunately for them
selves and the committee, all who signed the
petition were not summoned or did not appear.
As it was, the proceedings extended over more
than three hours, Taken as a whole, they were
d decidedly dull and proliX they were relieved
however now and then by an Outburst of strong
feeling, various irrelevant criticisms and occa-
sional judicial bon mOtS. His Excellency the
Attorney General dd interim, watched the
case, with him Mr.. E. Preston and the Deputy
Acknowledgement Mr.. j. NJ. Davidson was pres
ent, representing some of the petitioners who
desired to be heard by counsel.
The Rev. Father Larkin, was first called and
informed by the Chairman, that the Committee
were met to consider the petition and would be
glad to hear what the petitioners had to advance,
especially with reference to the following pas
sage in it. viz. . we feel assured that there are
mitigating circumstances to be brought forward,
now better understood than at the time of trial.
Mr.. Davidson, then informed the Committee
that he had been requested to appear for a num-
Der of the petitioners, and said that if a con-
tinuance were granted, he would confer with
these parties and prepare a statement of the
grounds on which the Application TOR reprleve
was based.
The Chairman said, that the object the Com
mittee had in view, was to ascertain the facts
known to the petitioners, and he did not see how
Mr.. Davidson could appear in the matter, unless
as counsel for the prisoner. The persons
cited to appear were not accused of anything,
thew were only asked to state facts. The Com
mittee would be glad of the learned counsel's
assistance in any way in which it could be
rendered.
The Rev. Father Larkin said that he had heard
the authorities had not avaiIed themselves at the
time of the trial. of any professional assistance,
in the way of medical witnesses to ascertain the
sanity or otherwise of the accused. Even the
medical man who sewed Polua's throat up, after
his attempted suicide, was not called on the
trial. A conversation ensued between the
Rev. gentleman and members of committee as to
the custom which the former believed to exist
elsewhere of making such medical examinations
in all cases of indictment for capital offences,
and the question was then put, What reason
have you to think him (Polua) insane ?' Father
Larkin said he Judged him to be insane from the
account or the affair that he had heard from Mr..
Spencer, Jr, who had the man at one time in
his employ. During his statement of the facts
as he had heard them, he was interrupted by a
sharp series of questions in the nature of a cross
examination, during the course of which much
irrelevant matter was introduced and Father
Larkin exclaimed that others had been blamed
but he was ready to take on himself all response
bility for getting up the petition, and vehement
" denounced those who he said had been intimi-
dating petitioners for an act dictated by the
highest Christian duty. Finally after having.
in reply to a remark made by Mr.. Justice Nc
Gully, he expressed his opinion that the officials
were to blame for no suggestion of the probable
insanity of POlua having been made at the trial.
Father Larkin declared that he had been mex
pressibly shocked that men should have gone
about saying to the petitioners ''Why have You
signed this as if the man were a beast of the
Hel "AOSS oOLhS uduStu OF OInerW1Se was OF no
account to any one. The intelligence of those
who signed the petition had been outraged. He
would have done all he had done in any case in
which he should have heard that a medical man
was willing to give a certificate that the prisoner
was insane.
DR.. f. Cooke Webb was next called and stated
that he believed the man to be insane although
he had not seen him. He would not like to go
into a statement of the grounds of his belief as
an expert before the committee. His impression
had been formed as soon IS he heard the parti-
culars of the case. He did not think it was
necessary to see a man in order to conclude as to
his sanity. The witness evidently did not con-
slider the occasion one ON which he was called
upon to furnish a professional opinion pro on
pu6Lico.
JIM Lawlor signed petition because he was