The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1883-11-21

WHEN. on the last day of the last session
of the last Legislature. the then Ministry
perpetrated the most discreditable action
| they had as yet attempted, and rushed
! through its final stages the Act depriving
the Bench Of Judges Of their power of APP
| proving or rejecting Governors, that is,
Crown nominees for district justices, be
You'd doubt the first Monday of January,
| 1884, was present to the prophetic vision
of our far-seeing Premier. Not content
with the voting power of the military and
| police forces, by this master stroke of con
stitutional policy, they have made depend
ants of the "Chairmen of the Board of In
spectors to conduct the election, and decide
on the qualifications of voters in each dis
trict," add to these the crowd of deputy
sheriffs, road supervisors, tax assessors
and collectors, all wholly or in great de
gree dependent ON their salaries, which
again are dependent on the Interpretation
of "good behavior by the governors, it
may be seen at once what an uphill battle
an Independent candidate has to fight
From what the Premier has already told
of his idea Of the functions of the Crown
in its bearing on the internal politics of
the country, there can be little doubt of
the uses to which the influence of all these
various functionaries will be put on the
occasion of the coming election. There
are however, able and disinterested men
bold enough to face the odds against them,
and carry the warfare into the enemies
camp. Those who wish well to the eoun-
try,.wish well to such men, and ought to
render all the assistance in their power to
the candidature of men, whose known
character in professional or mercantile life
authorizes the expectation of an able and
upright conception of the duties and re-
sponsibilities of a representative.
The time has come when the greediness.
self seeking, and puerilities of recent leg
islators may be looked upon as things Of
the past, things that by no possibility
may be enacted. The time has come
when the votes of a House of Representa-
tives should no longer call forth the pity
ing sigh of friends or the contemptuous
sheer of critics, at home and abroad. 1t
Is time that the records of the Legislature
shall no longer exhibit such entries as
have latterly degraded the character of
the Assembly, when we may no longer
read that on such day the Legislative
Assembly voted to each member so many
postage stamps and so many sheets of pa
per with envelopes to match, when they
voted to each member photograph of the
statue, when a vote was proposed that each
member be supplied with suit of clothes
to attend at funeral, or when they can
supply themselves by vote with hack car
Tlages TO go and see somebody's new well. |
Nor is it only this puerility and petty
wastefulness which should be extingaished. |
The graver complaint lies beyond and be |
hind, or it ought to be better said it lies |
higher upl Who are they, exuberant in |
their love for the Hawaiian, overwhelmed |
with patriotism land place hunting) who |
have countenanced and even encouraged |
these follies, that in return their schemes |
Of extravaganza and shoddy pomposity |
might be carried, who systematically threw |
out sprat that they might hook cod. |
who had no objection TO Legislators pro
riding themselves with packet of station
NY or a new coat apiece, if in return the
votes were secured for a few score
thousands Of dollars for useless " armed
iorce.s for useless purchase of ordnance.
or useless = foreign Missions for useless
md worse than useless extravagancies Mt
home and abroad, indeed as to the latter.
he Foreign Minister treats this kingdom
IS quack does his patent medicine, and
kinks that by dint of reckless outlay in
advertisements, he may pick up something
h the long run, and as to decoration hunt
ng, it may be admitted that his policy is
lot without success.
What is wanted for the good of this
ouutry is firm and compact body of real
representatives.. who shall prick shis in
ated bladder of advertising quackery and
brow the collapsed remains under foot
here are good hopes that candidates may
ONE forward and stand before the con
atuencies on the plain platform of ability
nd integrity. Men who have built up or
arled on great mercantile houses in the
lty; or who have conducted great indus 6
nal undertakings in the producing dis !