The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1886-03-22
THE HAWAIIAN TREATY.
Final Hearing OF the subcommittee
OF the House.
From the San francisco .sChronicle. v

From the San francisco 'sChronicle.
WASHINGTON, March 1st.-The hearing
of the statements regarding the Hawaiian
Reciprocity Treaty was continued this
morning. Congressman Mills and Hiscock
of the subcommittee were present, and
Morrison, Breckenridge of Kentucky and
Mckinley were also in attendance. Ex-
Senator Boutwell,, the attorney for the Ha-
waiian Kingdom, made an argument
against the abrogation of the treaty. He
said that the planters of Louisiana, who
are principally interested, did not desire to
have the treaty abrogated. Even if the
treaty were abrogated, the business of inn
porting and refining sugar on the Pacific
Coast would remain in the hands of the
few people who now control it, and it
would not lessen the price of sugar TO the
consumer in that part of the country.
He claimed that it was unfair to refer to
the effect of the treaty on the Hawaiian
Islands, as that Government had sole and
exclusive control of its own internal affairs.
The reason that sugar was no longer i'm
ported into Portland, Or, is that the mer-
chants there preferred refined sugar. He
claimed that the valuation of sugar inn
ports was incorrect. The value was fixed
by the shippers and it was made much in
excess of the truth in order to obtain
larger advances from the banks. He con-
Guided with description of the political
advantages of the treaty.
H. A. p. Carter, the Hawaiian Minister,
attempted to answer in detail the charges
made in the report of Commissioner
Searles. He confirmed the statement of
ex-senator Boutwell, that the shippers
| overvalued their cargoes. He tried by this
/ way to show that the difference between
our exports and the imports is not so great
as the figures of the Treasury Department
show. He stated that the sugar imported
from the Islands was at low polarization.
He claims that the Hawaiian Islands are
in no way responsible for the monopoly
of the business which Spreckels has, and
| said that the plantations there are now
| contributing to his overthrow by selling
| their sugar to the opposition refinery
| The committee was in hurry to
finish the hearing, and informed Mr. Car
ter that he might add anything he desired
to his statement and it would be printed.
| Carter claimed finally that the freights
should be included in the value of the ex-
! ports from this country.
Congressman King, of Louisiana, spoke
next. He denied the statement made by
ex-senator Boutwell, that the people OF
Louisiana did not wish the treaty abro-
gated. He said that the planters of his
| State desired, above all things, to have the
| treaty annulled. He informed the com
mittee that the representatives of Louisiana
in Congress had introduced in the Senate
and House resolutions to abrogate the
treaty. He said that every one of any in.
tellgence in the country wanted the
treaty abrOgated. He claimed that by
maintaining it Congress was jeopardizing
the interests of the sugar industry in the
United States. After spending untold
millions to free the slaves in the South
this treaty was maintaining a system o.
coolie labor in the Sandwich Islands akin
to slavery.
Commissioner Searles, in the few minute!
that remained, exposed the fallacies of the
| arguments made by Boutwell, and Carte
and established by official reports the cor
rectness of the statements in his report
He stated that freights should not be in
Guided in estimating the value of the ex
ports, as they were not estimated i'll max
ing up the values of the imports. H
brought out the fact that Immediately afte
the Reciprocity Treaty went into effec
Carter started for England, where he pur
chased sugar machinery for the Islands
and that through his influence an agenc,
of a large company that manufacture
sugar machinery in London was estab
lished in Honolulu. He showed that tn
invoices of the shippers of sugar were no
overvalued, but were rather lower than tn
same grade of sugar received from othe
countries Mr.. Searles said that he would
furnish the committee with facts anC
figures which would fully refute the state
ments of Boutwell, and Carter. The sub
| committee will hold no more meetings t,
hear arguments or statements. All tn
proceedings will be printed in the report o
the subcommittee, which is expected in
few days.