The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1892-11-23

THE United States wants to acquire
that franchise" j. e., the right To use
Pearl Harbor.
! cannot pretend TO an ex-MInister's
knowledge OF such matters, but do not
think the United States want Pearl Har-
Dor very much. Why, else, have they
not availed themselves Il the privilege
81 granted them in 81 OF dredging the
bar? And what on earth-or sea-do
the United States want with naval sta
ton here, anyway?
Nations, like individuals, are free to
indulge in Iuxuries, however, and il
Uncle Sam would rather overhaul his
fine new navy here than at honeywell
and good. | can understand his keeping
a coal pile in Honolulu, but | do not see
who would he benefited by his moving
il 20 Pearl HarbOr beyond the vendor or
lessor OF the pile site, and possibly the
railway company.
But, if We grant the desire Of acquisi-
ton, Mr.. Thurston is eminently sound
in his statement OF the proposition as TO
the granting of the franchise il need not
cede one inch OF territory or one lota OF
automatically. | would go
further, and ask why cannot the property
owners down there themselves make
deal with the United States Government.
dredge the bar and build drydOck?
The enterprise that built the Oahu Rail
way and propose to carry it round the ISL
and is equal to that, | should think.
''The Crash in Sugar" My reading
Of Mr.. Davies remarks in this connection
was that there had been no fall III the
price OF sugar generally, although our
sugar had suffered from the Mckinley
Bill. He might have been more careful
i. L I
would ask Mr.. Thurston what guarantee
he proposes to get that a Free Trade
Treaty would turn ont any better than
the Reciprocity Treaty has done?
Would we not still be at the mercy OF the
exigencies of American politics? Is it
not the prerogative OF Congress to abro-
gate treaties? And is it not an axiom
in diplomacy that treaties are made to
be broken?
Mr.. Thurston says we have got much
for little from the United States. How,
by the remission of two cents a pound
duty on sugar? If that be the answer,
let me ask how much Hawaiian sugar
there was to pay duty on In San Fran
cisco before the Treaty went into effect?
Who has benefited since then by the
vast increase in the volume OF our trade
with the States-We alone. We, or some
OF us are said to be "tlat on our backs, 4"
| financially. Where are all the dividends
| that were paid on sugar stocks prior to
| 1890? All invested In Davies "Univer-
| sal Bazaar?' surely not As matter
of fact the Treaty was a treaty OF reel
procity in fact as we'll as in name until
| Mr.. Mckinley knocked the bottom out OF
it. We, as the smaller and poorer COM
munity felt its benefits more and We're
not ungrateful.
| quite agree with with Mr.. Thurston-
while regretting the language he uses
as to the flimsiness of Mr.. Davies objec-
tons TO granting the franchise to the
United States, the likelihood OF whose
going to war is very remote indeed.
Great Britain is the only power with
whose interests the foreign policy of the
| States is likely to clash, and those two
| discarded war as q means OF arbitration
| between them some time ago.
Mr.. Thurston says there is no politics,
patriotism nor sentiment connected with
his proposition; if that is SO, and if, as |
contend, it would be unwise to trust to
| Congress for our commercial existence,
would suggest his offering the franchise
to one of the European powers. 1t is
probably of more value to Great Britain
| than to any of the others, and John Bull
| is right in the naval station business, be-
| lieves in free trade, and wants cable
| from Vancouver to Australia, but l do
not think that either he or Uncle Sam
would care to guarantee, on MIR. Thurs
toms terms, the interest on the Hawaiian
national debt after the exhibition Of Ha-
waiian legislation that has been going on
for the past six months. Six months to
do six weeks work in, four cabinets in
that time, and the end not yet
1t seems to me that we had better set
about putting our house in order before
going into the market with Pearl Harbol
our sovereign rights reserved.
As was to be expected a crash OF 40 pei
cent. in the price of our staple product ha,
made big difference to most OF us, but
| believe we can still make ends meet by
reducing our expenses and improving oul
methods which is being done.
The Hawaiian sugar industry is safe
enough in fair field without favor, bu
the field ceases to be fair when 1t IS han
dicapped by such set of political condi
,, tons as l have indicated above, starin!
capital in the face.
II | might presume to advise Mr.
| Thurston, it would be to devote some o
[ his unflagging energy to devising som
means of doing our nece 7sary government
work on business principles rather thar
: by political methods.
His expression of good fellowship, IN
der certain circumstances, with the dew
r has been quoted so often that | mus
apologize for referring to it, but both hi
!, opponents and associates in politics en-
o dorse it, if not by their words by thei
E conduct; forgetting, it would seem, tina
this is Gods world and NOT the devil:
y Whom do they select to assistin the gov
: eminent? Not the men they believ
I best qualified to do so, but the men VIII
S they think will "pull'' the most votes
I with the inevitable result that the be:
men are more and more refusing to hay
ANYTHING TO do with it. This may
rank political heresy, and | may be r
ferred TO other countries where simili
systems obtain. There is room for thel
in other countries for a long time yet; n
for ever. There will not be room he