The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1886-06-21

This i an Act rushed in supplementary 70
an Act which needs no supplement-. Sec
ton gives power TO the Minister OF RI
nance. with the advice and consent Of the
King in Priv Council, 10 appoint any port
[ in the Hawaiian Islands and proper places
/ within the same TO be legal quays, wharves
/ OF landing places for landing and unloading
[ goods. and declare the bounds and extent
! OF such quavs and wharves, and annul any
/ such appointments now made Or hereafter
/ to be made, and declare the same to be no
/ longer a legal port, quay, wharf or landing
( place, or may alter the names, bounds ana
/ limits thereof" This Is despotic power 10
1 put into the hands OF any official 1t Is an
| attempt to place control OF every coastlng
| steamer, schooner, sloOp and whaleboat
| into the grasp of the Minister OF Finance
/ 50 tight that he can choke the life out OF
every single one.
! Mr.. Brown said he reported back the bill
| from the Judiciary Committee. which re-
| commended its passage by the House. As
the law stands foreign vessel with cargo
cannot go from one port TO another along
any coast of the Islands TO land 1t. The
Minister of Finance and the Collector Ge.1-
| eral have been violating the law by giving
a number of permits TO do so. Now this
/ bill provides that the Minister of Finance
shall name the place where they shall land.
| One of the sections provides for license
| to be granted TO coasting vessels for one
year, and if they do not take out the IL
| cense then the law steps in. This Act Is
| supplementary. but yet merely explanatory
! of article 26. It,eXplains more fully how
J an officer shall exercise his duty. This
| law became very necessary because the
| cOntraband trade between the Islands and
/ the Coast was becoming quite large, and
| there was considerable smuggling between
| the islands This Act will touch those en-
| gagged in it, and our trades people must be
| protected. 1t had been doubtful whether
| interisland passengers could be searched by
! the officers when there was any Suspicion
| OF smuggling, but this bill gives that
! power.
! Mr.. Castle said that when the bill was in
troduced he saw it was an important one.
| 1t was referred to the Judiciary Committee
| and he fully expected some explanation
| from that committee. But the only thing
| they had done was to strike out the word
lis" and insert shall be-" He could see
! no special reason for this law. However,
! he would like some explanation. The first
section he thought ought to be changed.
| He hoped the Attorney General would
| speak on the bill.
| His Excelency the Attorney General
said the explanation gwen by Mr.. Brown
| should go far toward recommending the
passage of the bill. He thought Mr.. Dole
| had not had time to study or digest the
| bill, or he would never have made the mo-
ton to indefinitely postpone it The argu-
ment against the bill was confined to GER
tain sections which were explained by
| others, 1t was u notorious fact that i'll no
other country in the world for its size was
there such unblushing and daring SNUG
! Cling going on as in the Hawaiian Islands.
The damage from bringing in yard of
lace or bonnet feathers from foreign coun-
| tries would be very trifing No harm
would be done if the laws were not very
| vigorous in that regard. But there Is
law against the introduction of opium.
| With our exposed seabOard, unless the law
is strenuous, it would be impossible to pre-
vent the traffic of the drug between and on
the Islands. Owing to the typographical
| situation of the Islands, there was no
means to stop this without just such an en-
actment as the one proposed. This law
was not intended to trample upon the
! rights of decent men. 1t was intended to
erect wall around the opium smugglers
which they could not climb over. He was
satisfied the bill was not perfect and that
it would not do away with smuggling en-
tirely; but it was good move. There was
| IL > Mr.
had explained it sufficiently.
Mr.. Castle asked how about the planta-
ton landings.
The Attorney General said if a farmer
had landing which he used for legitimate
purposes, the Minister of Finance would
declare it So This law had mostly to do
with ports of entry. Foreign vessels can
only land at ports of entry. Special per
mits have to be obtained for landing at
other places. The proposition before the
Legislative Assembly is either to prohibit
the smuggling of opium or license it. Ii
Mr.. Dole is in favor of taking off the re-
striction then he will do away with this
bill and indefinitely postpone it. But II he
is not prepared to do this, then he would
ask him to assist in passing the bill. Sec
ton 3, which gives officers the right to
, search at landings, might be Objectionable
at first sight. The law was enacted when
most of the members of this House were
little children, and the way the needs OF
legislation are found out is whether bill
works badly or is insufficient. To show II
was necessary, he would mention case
At the December term he prosecuted a
| Chinaman for Obstructing Custom House
officer and the jury convicted him. The
particulars of the case were as follows
There had been an agreement between the
= Government and Wilder Il Co. that in
stead of using the Custom House at kahu
lui for slowing goods, they should be LEFT
in a warehouse belonging to Wilder & Co
A notorious Chinese opium smugger hao
twelve packages consigned to him, clever
of which were carried off soon after they
were landed, while the other one-a trunl
2 was detained by the officers. He was re
quested TO open it. He offered to go anc
get the key. but instead OF doing so
g brought a crowd of Cinnamon who tool
1 the trunk away by force. There was ne
: need OF stating that this was as gross anC
E fragrant an outrage against the laws OF thu
Kingdom as could be committed. The
I ~ on