The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1890-09-05
THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY.
Seyenty-frst Day.

Chaplain. Minutes OF the preceding day
read and approved.
Rep. Brown, under suspension of the
rules, presents a petition as follows:
The undersigned respectfully repre-
sents to the Honorable Legislature that
in the report of the Finance Committee. |
presented to the House, consisting of 20 |
pages, 46 pages are taken up with critic
ism of the Interior Department and the |
various bureaus connected Herewith,
and charges OF NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
against the late Minister of the Interior
and several heads OF bureaus, more par
ticularly the Superintendent of Public
Works.
That said committee did not give the
said Superintendent any hearing or OPP
portunity to explain his action, nor did
they, with one exception, ask him any
questions concerning matters III his bu-
reau, nor did they at any time inform
him OF the charges made against him, or
give him an opportunity to defend him.
SELF
The said committee did not at any
time inform your petitioner OF. any
charges against hlm, nor ask from him
any explanation OF any item or transac-
ton in the Interior Department, nor any
bureau connected Herewith, nor give
him any opportunity to defend himself or
explain his action.
That your petitioner hereby charges
that many of the statements made by
said committee are totally incorrect.
Your petitioner hereby claims that it
is not according to Legislative precedent
or practice in Hawaii or any other civil
lied country to condemn man unheard
or to pass judgment upon one accused
without first giving opportunity for de-
Tense
That as your petitioner has been &C
cused and condemned by said committee
without hearing and without opportu-
nifty for defense, he hereby prays that
said report of the Finance Committee
may be referred to an impartial commit
tee to investigate the truth of the charges
made by said Finance Committee, and
before whom your petitioner may have
an opportunity OF being heard and de-
Tending himself and his official actions.
l.. A. THURsToN.
Noble Baldwin moved the petition be
laid on the table to be considered with
the report of the Finance Committee.
Noble Muller moved it be referred
back to the introducer. 1t was a gross
piece of impudence. Two of the Cabinet
members had sneaked out of Honolulu as
soon as they were kicked out of office,
| and gave the committee no chance to
ask them anything.
Rep. Brown asked whether Noble
Muller considered it gross piece of i'm
| pudence in the introducer or the petit
| ton
Noble Muller--In the petitioner.
Rep. Brown would say then, Mr..
President, that he has a perfect right to
| petition this House.
Noble Widemann quoted the &c THUN-
DERER" of this morning as follows
" Ii the House can find anything in this
! report worth considering, we shall never
| be able to admire it's acuteness enough.
| We ourselves must freely confess to an
! inability to discover anything of the
| sort" If the " THUNDERER didn't find
anything in the report, this man has,
| for he comes in and requires an investi-
| CATION. That is covering him up. He
| himself hasn't SO much brass. What
Noble Muller says is true. The gentle
man went off and hid himself ON Maui,
and he certainly has been back long
enough to find out what was in the re-
port. He might have gone to the
'' THUNDERER and ventilated his views.
Yet the " THuNDERER has kept dead
silence. Now, call this petition piece
of great impudence. We don't want to
know his motives. We judge him by his
acts. The report of the Finance Com
mittee contains facts, not political mat
ter, if the statements are not facts; 1T
is very easy to find out. The +" THUN-
DERER is open to him and would gladly
publish double or triple sheet to white
wash him. l move to lay on the table.
| Rep. Richard rose to support the mo-
ton of Noble Baldwin. He did not mean
to reflect on the conduct of the commit
tee, but he thought the petitioner en-
| titled to a fair investigation. He object
ed to the use of such expressions as
+" kicked out of Office" They were not
| kicked out, as matter of fact, and such
language was improper The late Min
lister of the Interior deserved better
treatment than that.
| Rep. Kalua stated that he was in
| favor of Noble Baldwin's motion. Ii the
| Finance Committee had not given heads
of departments the opportunity to be
| heard, it was not fair, and they ought to
have an opportunity. In order to have
fair play, we ought to consider this petit
ton. The petitioner does not speak for
the Cabinet, but simply for himself.
| There are two parties here, and we don't
| want it to go abroad that one party has
been unwilling to grant the other hear
| ing. 1t is only common justice to grant
hearing. thought there was an un-
derstanding that both parties should
work together for tine common good.
Rep. r. W. Wilcox-I didn't agree to
any such thing.
Rep. KaIua-I am not speaking as a
friend of the petitioner, but in the inter-
est of fairness and justice. Some men,
bers regard this as an opportunity to
vent their spleen. My political views are
very different from those OF the late
Ministry, but he has constitutional
right to be heard, and anyone who
moves to lay this petition on the table, to
| crafty his speen, is not doing right. The
| petitioner is no longer Minister, he was
not kicked out, as has been asserted, but
resigned. He has right to be heard.
| There are members of this House who
are not willing that he should be heard.
Suppose Court of Justice should act in
this way and condemn a man without
| being heard. 1t is the part OF wisdom to
| be fair. | do not appear here as an adj
vocate of Mr.. Thurston. | have known
him from boyhood up, but his views and
mine are different, and for that reason |
| tried to get a seat in this House.
wish to have every member OF the