The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1886-07-29
SANDWICH ISLANDS.
Brief Political History of Hawaiian Mon
archy-An Ancient Nation.


archy-An Ancient Nation.
Gaetano, Spanish navigator, first
saw these islands in 1912, but it can not
be said that anything was known Of
them by Europeans until they were vis-
tied by Captain Cook in 1778. This dis
coverer gave the group the name of the
Sandwich Islands, after Lord Sandwich,
then Chief Lord of the Admiralty, but
the inhabitants have always called them
Hawaiian Islands, from Hawaii, the
name of the largest island. There are
ten islands in the group, only four of
which are large enough to be of any
real Importance. Hawaii has an area of
4,040 square miles, and is twice as large
as all the others together. When first
discovered each of the islands had a
king. Though the origin of the Hawaiian
race is still a matter of dispute
the weight of the evidence, however,
classing them with the Malay tribes
there is no doubt that they are ma
ton of considerable antiquity. The
genealogy of the Kings on the island of
Hawaii; which has been kept from time
immemorial by native chroniclers, has
list of over seventy Kings. In 1871,
on the death of the reigning King,
Kalanio Ku, his nephew. Kamehameha,
young man of much spirit and ability,
became head chief of the western part
of the island. In self-defense he waged
war, first with the other chiefs of his
island, and then with the Kings
If the other islands, and at last
brought the whole group under
his control, and announced him.
self King of all the islands in 1909.
In the following year he wrote to
George Ill, expressing his desire to
acknowledge the King of England as
his sovereign, and to place the islands
under British protection, plan to which
King George readily consented. Kane
hameha l. abolished the taboo system
and human sacrifices, organized an
army and navy, and under him the in
habitants made great advances in civil
ization. Most of his ideas of enlight-
enment we're learned from the ex-
plorer Vancouver, who, while sur
veying the west coast of British
America, spent several winters at Ha-
waii. In 1919, Kamehameha ]. died,
and was succeeded by his eldest son,
Lihalio, who, on assuming the royal
power, adopted his fathers name as a
title, and became known as Kane
hameha IL Succeeding Kings of his
family have all taken the same title.
Kamehameha II. visited England with
his Queen, and both died there in July,
1924. He was succeeded by his brother,
who, however, did not assume the royal
power until 1888, the kingdom being in
the meantime under the regency of
Queen Kaahumanu, the dowager of
Kamehameha L Under Kamehameha
Ill, in 1910, the people were granted a
written constitution, recognizing the
three grand divisions of King, Legisla-
ture and Judges, and in his reign the
Christian religion became the estab-
lished national religion of the islands.
Great Britain, France and the United
States acknowledged the independence
of his government and treaties were
made with these and other powers. On his
death in 1854, he was succeeded by his
nephew and adopted son as Kane
hameha ". After a brief but very
useful reign, for he was man of talent
and public spirit, this ruler died
in 1868, ana the royal power
passed to his rother, Kamehameha V.
This King changed the constitution,
making it more absolute, and the
change, after considerable opposition,
was adopted by the people. At his
death in 1872, the line of Kamehameha
]. became extinct. William Lunalilo,
one of an old family of powerful chiefs,
was elected by the legislature to sue
ceed him. Upon Lunalilo's death in
February, 1874, David Kalakaua, the
present ruler, was elected in the same
manner. The executive power in the
Hawaiian kingdom belongs to the King
and Privy Council, the latter made up
of four Governors of the principal
islands, and four responsible Ministers.
The legislative power resides in the King
and the Parliament, the latter being
composed of fourteen mobiles and twenty.
eight Representatives. These two classes
discuss and vote together. The judi.
ciary power is in Supreme Court, with
Chief Justice and two other Judges,
and inferior courts. Suffrage had been
universal until the constitution of Ka.
mehameha L, which imposed both an
educational and a property qualification.
-ChicUQ0 Inter- Ocean,