The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1881-07-27

The broad party lines which are so de-
fined in the United States, in England, in
France and elsewhere, find little or no
counterpart here. One of the great diff
culties that Ministry after Ministry has
had to contend with here, has been the
lack of having a party at its back. The
moment three or four men join together
at the request of the King, and form a
Cabinet, that moment every mans hand
seems to be against them.
A political party is by no means small
clique which, for interested and selfish
motives, support a Ministry because they
hope to get something for it. 1t is COM
bination which throws its weight politically
into the scale of those men who will carry
out certain broad and definite lines of
policy; combination which sinks minor
differences for the sake of accomplishing
few great ends; combination which
keeps itself well in hand, concentrates its
force upon one object instead of expend-
ing its strength on a mass OF matters OF
minor importance. 1t is cooperation,
which answers SO well in many mercantile
undertakings, carried into politics.
There are certainly several points upon
which both Hawaiians and many foreign
ers would agree The first of these points
is the question of nationality. The in
tegrity of Hawaii nei is a watchword
which will call together the best-th linking
native and foreigner alike. 1t should be
the watchword of a national party. The
interests of the good native and the good
foreigner are not so widely separated
both want to see the law well admins
tered; both wish the Government of the
country to be carried on in an able and
vigorou manner; neither want an excess
i've or exorbitant taxation; neither wish to
see the public funds squandered or frit-
tered away; the material progress of the
country is to the interest of both races;
the dignity of the country, too, small
though the country may be, is matter
which both can agree in sustaining. How
much there is'which is noble and good
that the two races do agree upon, and how
much that is the reverse do they disagree
upon.
The national party should be the reform
party also. There are many things which
need the pruning knife; many things
which Ministers see, but which, for lack of
outside support, they find it beyond their
power to cope with. 1t is needless to par
ticularize, but there are many much
needed reforms which will occur to any
man who thinks at all upon political mat
ters. Here again the native and the for
eigner can meet hand in hand. We have
indicated but two points this week, the
integrity of the nation, and reform. If a
few men will only give them thought and
then agree to act unitedly in order to gain
those two points, the nucleus of party
viii have been formed which viii be- in
fnitely stronger and. immeasurably supe-
rior to any small cliques or followings
which are pledged by self-interest to this
or that politician. Indeed, the two could
never be compared: one organization
would be seeking the good of the country,
the other would be pushing forward an
individual, irrespective of the good of the
country; the foundations of the one would
be on rock, of the other on spit of
sand.