The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1889-11-12

ment they slapped the Honolulu |
branch of the Reform party in the |
face just after it had put an anti
Chinese plank in its platform; nor
did the change take place up to
within two months ago, when a last
appeal was being made to them to
call an extra session and was made
in vain; an appeal which had but
fairly died out of the air when the
planters assembled to vote that that
should be done on the Chinese ques-
ton, which they had just deliber-
ately declined to do for the second
time. So far as men can Judge by
appearances, the change of base
among the planters on the labor
question took place when the Min
istry came out as they did in their
reply to the petitioners for an extra
session. The planters had to do
something under the circumstances;
they were not in position to fight
the Ministry just then; the elections
we're at hand, and they therefore
concluded to occupy the sand lots on
the Chinese question with the crowd
until some more convenient season
made it safe to move off again. Con
sidering the past, men are afraid,
and have right to be afraid, that
the planter does not mean business
on the Chinese question, except to
get in more of them when he can,
and many are therefore looking des-
perately around for something else
beside the regular ticket to vote for
Now on the other hand, what can
one expect by joining in with the
natives. It looks as if such course
meant simply jump from the frying
pan into the fire. The dominant
sentiment of the native party IS re-
presented by Wilcox and Co. and In
the native press by Bush. Wilcox
has Just come out Of an unsuccess
full attempt to restore the old consul
tuition and thus to deprive the whites
of their newly acquired vote alto
gether, and with Chinese means ano
guns has attempted to force thu
Arglo-Saxon back under an absolute
monarchy and native rule; that il
what has made him popular with thu
native party. Bush devotes larg'
part of his paper to calling all tn
whites who aided or took part on tn
Goth of June, traitors, scoundrel
and other names, and those who de
Tended the government July Both,
set of murderers who will shortly b.
Maid back II. their own coin. Tn
native party is hand and glove IL
with the Chinese who are going t.
back it up TO-: all they are WORT
} this election. The success of tn
native party means the success O
the Chinese. The natives ais
plan to break down the pro
perty qualification for elector
of mobiles, which would leav
foreigners and Portuguese in ever
district in the country but one O
two, in hopeless minority, consti
} tuting as they do but thirty-six pc
} cent of all the voters in the King
dom. The ideas of natives as elias
on the Chinese question are about a
intelligent as their views on tn
segregation of lepers has been. TIL
} whole trend of native politics i
pushing them irresistibly into on
, issue, and that is whether or not W
shall go back into native govern
ment, and no coalition with tn
whites or mutual understanding
J.. with them to the contrary will pre-
vent that issue from coloring an
ruling every vote that the nativ
party secures in the coming Legisls
J trlre. AS white men, we are not &c
ing to apologize to the native part
for the part we took on the Both G
June, nor for our defense of const
: tutional government on the Both c
, July. While we admit that til
planter has stepped in and wake
off with most of the results so fa
still we are not done with him ye
but we propose to fight it out wit
him, not by dropping back agar
but by going forward still further
and any step by which we secur
apparent support from the native
at the cost of prostituting our cor
victions as Anglo-Saxons, will surel
{ lead to utter grief for us.
Enough has been said to indicat
that the middle class of the country
whose stronghold lies in Honolulu
seems to stand, so far as the plante
and native parties are concerned
betwixt the devil and the deep sea
The only hope is that they will re
main precisely in that position dul
ing and after the elections. If tn
Ministry will agree to do the same
something may yet be accomplishe
even though the middle class outsid
of Honolulu is nowhere on election
day. Honolulu ELECToR.