Saturday press. [volume] (Honolulu, H.I.) 1880-1885, 1883-11-24

they are rightcously punished 10y
righteous law. And vet in the face of
all these facts, in spite of my philosophy
and my powers of logic my blood is |
hot within me at sight of these men
with their honest-iooking faces and
their patient, willing department
working like common fclons as do
thieves, iorgcrs and mNtSerc,g.'
Vet neither the gentleman above
quoted, nor the workingmcn, offer any
remedy for the existing deadlock No
one denies that these men signed
away their liberty with full knowledge
of the binding force OF contract
Every German can read And il is
the belief of those of their eountrymcn
who have gwen the subject the most
careful consideration that these Kauai
Germans are unreasonable and i'll
advised.
Knowing what they were to receive
in wages, knowing the conditions of the
labor Necessary to earn those wages,
has II not been unreasonable, unjust,
nay dishoHeSf, for those men to seek to
have their contracts set aside until they
had served them out'
1t is urged hy some that these men
were deceived in the representations
made to them before they left Ger
many II that can be shown the
Saturday Press will add its voice to the
general indignation which must follow
such an exposure.
II must be remembered that Ger
many is not at all anxious to have her
laborers emigrate. Bismark has Just put
forward bill to the effect that no Ger
man may emlgrate "whose obligations
to his creditors, his family or his
country remain unsatisfied." Is it at
all likely that these German laborers
could have come here as contract emf
grants without the tacit consent of their
home government
Right or wrong the contract system
has made the Hawaiian planters. Some
of them insist that they cannot live
without it. Is it not a serious thing to
overturn the labor system of a coun-
try, unless we have something else to
put in its place2 Is it not very like
killing the goose that laid the golden
egg2
" But" say the workingmen, "we
don't object to any one contracting
with his eyes open. What we object
to-all we object to-is labor already
bought and sold. We want free labor
to have the right to contract or not
to contract, to take as low wage as it
will, or secure as high wage as it
may. And we will applaud the action
of the government in spending money
10 bring white laborers here in just as
large numbers as the demand may
justify"
Right here is where the vicious folly
Of half truth comes in These men
do contract But their service is not
more onerous than that of boy who is
bound out " in a New England state,
the apprenticeship" of minors in
Europe, or the enlistment of privates
in any standing army in the world. As
to any man being in actual "slavery"
on these islands, there is not one iota
of truth in the charge And that there
Is not has been proven in court score
OF times.
The workingmen are in favor of
Portuguese. They want them brought
here--as free laborers-in as great
numbers as possible. But they are at
drawn swords with all who favor Chinese
immigration. Yet they do not object
to the Chinese who brings wife and
family and lives decently and lawfully
lin house that cost something to
build and in a way that encourages
industry and fosters trade. 1t is
your unmarried Chinese common
enemy-to whom workingmen chiefly
object.
Fortunately, the worklngmen see Mr..
Gibson's little game very plainly. Mr..
Gibson does not want any more white
immigrants. Eventually they may be-
come voters. He does want lot of
Chinese who will pay taxes, go back to
China after few years, and send here
lot more to I'LL their places, pay more
taxes, and keep out corresponding
number OF free white (fuiurc) voters.
Seeing this so plainly the workingmen
say: We will help the party that helps
us-the party that is pro Portuguese,
anti Chinese and in favor OF free labor
All this is food for thought" The
Palace Party has already been con
sidering it. Its agents have sought a
ioothold in the workingmen's ranks,
have tried to control them, have tried
to break their organization. and are
now trying to buy their friendship
Gentlemen Of the Independent Party
all this IS worth considering.
| There IS, unfortunately, serious
stumbling block to be removed before
the honest men who call themselves
"Workingmen," and the honest men
who call themselves Independents, ("
can cvrDe together and join forces for
the common good, Unfortunately, but
not unnaiuraily, the party OF reform has
been confounded with the so-called
Missionary party"
/ II Is sineularly unfortunate that many
workingncn should hold themselves
aioo( from MisSionarsp Sf.cietx The