The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1882-07-12

! A VERY important bill was discussed il
the House last Thursday II is entitled
An Act to Reconstruct the Board of I'm
migration" Itwas presented to the House
by the Hon. }. Kapena, but whose Is the
authorship of the bill we have been unable
to learn. The bill provides that the Blu
reau shall consist of five members chosen
and appointed by the King. one Of whom
shall by him be appointed president and
all shall serve without pay. The next
section defines the powers of the Board
| il is to have entire control in matters re
lsting to immigration; it Is to bring suff
cient number Of persons Of foreign birth
10 supply the demand for laborers and
servants; il is TO make such regulations
as may be deemed expedient touching
the contracts to be made between en-
ployer and employed. as well, as the
terms and conditions upon which the said
imported persons are 10 be assigned after
their arrival IN the Kingdom Section
provides that all moneys appropriated by
the Legislature for the objects contem-
plated in the act shall he paid ont Of the
Public Treasury upon the order of the
President Section 6 is most important.
It reads, The said Beard shall possess the
powers and privileges Of a corporation TO
carry out the purposes Of this Act Sec
ton allows the Board to make rules and
regulations which shall. if approved. he
embodied in the ordinancesiof the King
in Council, whatever that may mean; and
Section 9 says that such ordinances shall
specify the penalties for the violation of
the same and shall have the force Of the
law Should this act pass, We shall have
an irresponsible body created. something
like the celebrated Council Of Ten in
Venice. BY the breath OF the Sovereign
set of men viii be put in power. and we
have no guarantee that they viii be men
who viii understand the questions which
viii be put before them or viii be in sym
pathy with those who are employers of
labor. This irresponsible council Of five
is TO pass rules and regulations as il
pleases, and these regulations are to have
the force of the law, Truly this Is hand
ing over the employers of labor to the
mercies Of five despots. Is this to be con
sidered country which Is to be ruled
constitutionally as ether monarchies are.
or is it to be a despotism ike Russial
The powers granted by this bill are enor-
nous. Consider for moment that ihe
Ninth Section authorizes the Board to
make penalties for violating its ordinances.
without any definition as to what the penal
ties may be: they might be fines or i'm
prisonment, or even the death penalty
itself That it would be unlikely to he
carried to extremes is no argument No
irresponsible Board should he allowed to
make what penalties it pleases. No Board,
unless It is specially provided for by pro
cess Of law, should be allowed TO restrain
the liberty Of the subject II this kind Of
Legislation is to be allowed. We had better
knock away the symbols Of constitutional
monarchy and ado,t the Russian system
with It's arbihzriness. its corruption and
the inevitable Nihilism which is the ont
growth Of misused power
We presume the object is 20 protect the
laborer. but the employer needs some con
sidsration too and 4 three croteheiy men