The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1888-06-16
A TIMELY CHECK.

cises it to the annoyance of persons
a long way his interiors in this re-
gard. Occasionally he deals sum-
marily with trivial cases brought be-
fore him, and sends the parties
home about their business. 1t
would be we'll if he did q little more
of this shorthand work.
But the Judge is remarkably
patient man, and listens by the
hour with all the attention and COM
posure imaginable to the liliputian
quibblings of amateur lawyers and
the contradictory testimony of per-
jured witnesses. Such patience
would astonish q London Police Ma
gistrate, who is in the habit of cut
ting short all time-wasting of this
character, and heavily tining for con-
tempt of court those who obstruc-
lively object.
Judge Dayton had before him yes
terday six or seven Celestials, ,charg-
ed with disturbing the quiet of the
night. His sense was equal to the
occasion and he discharged them.
The policeman or policemen who ar
rested them deserved the same treat
ment.
These Cinnamon, we understand,
we're amusing themselves by play
ing on those eXecrable instruments
which the white man denominates
"Chinese fiddles," at compare
lively early hour of the evening,
somewhere in or near the classical
quarters known as Cape Horn, when
the "baton and star" gentlemen
seized and dragged them off to the
Station House, because they were
"disturbing the quiet of the night"
The men were allowed their liberty
on the payment of ten dollars apiece
bail, for their appearance next day.
When they came before the Judge
he felt it his duty to discharge
them, because the circumstances
did not verify the charge.
Let anyone who knows the neigh
borhood where the arrests were
made, fancy any number of Chinese
fiddles "disturbing the quiet of the
night" between the hours of eight
and ten in the evening! Why, Chi
nese fiddles, taro-patch fiddles, and
all other mentionable and unmen-
tionable harmless discords consti-
tute the normal condition of that
neighborhood, every evening, be-
tween the hours named, and no one
living there could possibly be dis
turbed or annoyed by such causes,
unless resolved to be so from sheer
maliciousness. The same thing, OF
course, in any decent neighborhood
would be a vastly different matter
To construe the rasping of half
dozen ante-deluvian instruments, il
neighborhood where every ear has
been trained from infancy to regart
it as enchanting music, and at al
hour when nobody ever dreams o
sleep, into q disturbance of th,
: quiet of the night, requires strait
, on the Imagination of which we sup
posed the Honolulu police were ut
terly incapable.
Judge Dayton deserves the thank
of parliament and the public fo
1 having put check on the propen
i sites of the police. These "star'
gentlemen are very necessary an
n useful, and we entertain for ther
: the utmost respect and considers
ton; but without some WholeSom
u check, it looks very possible tha
" they might become terrible nuis
/ ance, destructive of harmony an
: goodwill between themselves an
n the respectable, law-abiding public
l. Left to follow their own powerfl
e will they might ere long arrest an
/ incarcerate John f. Smith for wri
u ing poetry, two-thirds of the tall1in
u portion of the Legislature for was
l. ing their eloquence on the contamil
u ated air of Alilolani Hale, the BUl
% LETIN for numbering the Queen
's English, and the Advertiser" fl
giving "too much mush." EithC
+ Of these possibilities would amour
u to public misfortune and all
u them together national calamit,
Let us thank the common-sen,
y Judge for interposing a time
J. check land at least warding off for Il
IS present a contingency or continge
y cies, which, according to the prese
ie tendency, may ultimately con