The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1890-07-19
THE OPIUM REPORT.
HoKEY-PoKE

u
siens-The Evidence Not Read-No
Guilt Fastened on Anyone.
Following is the report OF the Opium
Committee read in the Legislative AS
sembly yesterday afternoon:
Hon. j. S. WALKER, President OF the
Legislative Assembly-Sir: The special
committee appointed under the follow
ing resolution:
Whereas the public press of this city
has lately teemed with charges OF al
legged thefts OF opium from the custody Of
the police and custom officials of the
kingdom, and especially from the Police
Station and Custom House of Honolulu,
therefore,
Resolved, That select committee OF
five members of the House be appointed
with instructions to investigate tho
roughly all facts connected with the
seizure, custody, sale, export and ac-
counting for all opium which during the
last two years has come into possession
of the police or custom officials Of Homo
lulu, to report from time to time the facts
| found by them, and to report such re-
| Communications by bill or otherwise. as to
such committee shall seem proper"
Beg leave to report as follows: The
| first place visited was the Custom House,
where considerable evidence was taken,
and the care and custody of the opium
| investigated, and here it seems right to
condemn the loose manner in which
opium is and has been taken care of by
The customs officials, it having been kept
in room which is accessible to any and
all employees and at all times.
We had our attention particularly
directed to the facts concerning two lots
OF opium which we will call respectively
the Kahului and F. T. opium. The first
or Kahului lot, consisting of 298 tins was
seized at Kahului in June, 1889, and sent
| to the Marshal, who kept it at the Sta
ton House for nearly year, and then
sent it to the Custom House. From the
evidence presented to the committee, we
are of the opinion that the opium was
packed in nor'-west boxes and sent to
and duly received by the Police Depart
ment by which it was kept, and that
thereafter, at the request OF the Custom
! House officials, boxes were on or about
the first day of April, 1890, sent down to
the Custom House.
From the evidence adduced, which is
very conflicting, it is difficult for this
| committee to say whether the boxes sent
to the Custom House from the Station
House were the same as received from
| Kahului The evidence of the Marshal
his subordinates and others establish
the fact that one of the boxes was leak
ing opium and was stamped on the out
side at the time of the transfer and that
they were the same as sent from Kahu.
lui and had address mark on to j. II
Soper, Marshal" but that the boxes now
at the Custom House were not the same
which were sent from the Station House
They were delivered by the Marshal to
MIR. Turrill, representing the Custom
House, in a baggage wagon, driven by a
young Portuguese boy, who was accom-
panied by Mr.. Turrill and Capt. Hop
kins of the Police Department 30 the
Custom House, where Mr.. Turrill disap
peared, leaving Capt. Hopkins to de-
liver them. Capt. Hopkins asked the
custom officials to sign receipt, already
written out by the Marshal, for the
boxes of opium, which the Custom House
officials refused to give; and afterwards a
receipt was given for the boxes said tC
contain opium"
The evidence at the Custom House is
to the effect that the boxes delivered
there were redwood, had no address
mark, and that one was leaking anC
stained on the outside, that they were
taken upstairs to the CollectorGenerars
office who seeing that one OF the boxes was
leaking ordered them moved into the SO
called opium room. The opium room where
the leaking box was set down shows the
marks of opium on the floor One OF the
native employees testified that when the
leaking box was placed there, that there
was no opium on the floor.
On the 10th of May the so-called Ka-
hului opium boxes were opened anC
found to contain bricks and straw. The
Marshal O.. IL. Soper) being notified
went down to the Custom House and
upon examining them, informed the
Customs officials that those 1.-TWO red
wood) boxes were not the ones SEM
down from the Station House. Goul
committee examined the boxes and alsC
had them taken to pieces. They were
new and had no stains of opium except
one which showed only an impression
from the outside none having leaked
through, evidently the box had been SCI
down in place where opium had been
leaking from its container. This discov
cry led the Custom House officials tc
further investigations, and accordingly
| Otl tilc SAINT VI VIC DSAb uuN tiiC
opium was examined. The +. T opium
was seized in thirty boxes of tea on the
I'd April, 1890, from the S. S. Oceanic
and taken the same day to the Custom
House, unpacked on the Sd and left in
the opium room. There were twenty
seven tins found in this box of tea, bu
only one tin at the time of our examina.
ton contained opium. and strange to say
that was the one opened on the whar
on the day OF the seizure, the balance o.
the tins contained earth and straw. The
solder on them was quite new, anC
showed but very little appearance OF rus
or age.
a singular fact was brought to light
and that was that three certain tins o
opium belonging to the Board OF Health
that were sent down TO the Custom
House at the same time as the kahulu
lot, were upon examination by this com
mittee found to contain exactly the same
straw and earth as the +. T. lot.
Your committee had the earth anal
1 nj I'd % IL