The Dalles times-mountaineer. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1882-1904, 1893-12-23
THE HAWAIIAN QUESTION.

THE HAWAIIAN QUESTION.
The following are some extracts from
the message of President Cleveland on
the Hawaiian subject:
MR.. BLoUNT's REPORT.
The president then refers to the ap-
pointment of Blount and says his report
detailing his actions under instructions
given him and the conclusions derived
from his investigations accompany this
message. "The conclusions do not rest
for their acceptance entirely upon
Blount's honesty and ability as man,
nor upon bis acuman, and impartiality as
an investigator. They are accompanied
by the evidence upon which they are
based and from which 1t seems to me no
other deductions could possibly be
reached than those arrived at by the
commissioner. The report with Its ac>
companyIng proofs, a1d such other evil
dence as is now before congress or here
with submitted, justlfes, In my opinion
the statement that when the president
was led to submit the treaty to tine SEM
ate both the president and the senate
were misled."
STEVENS WAS TOO JEALOUS.
"The annexation project was one zeal
ously promoted by the minister repre- :
senting the United States in that coun-
try. On the 10Th day November, 1892,
nearly two months before the first overt
act tending towards the subversion of
the Hawaiian government, he addressed
leng letter to the secretary OF state in,
which annexation was elaborately ar
gued on moral. political and economical
grounds. To minister OF this temper,
full of zeal for annexation. there seemed
to arise in January, 1898. the precise op
portunity. We were quite prepared for
letter to the state department dated
February 1, 1898, he declares, 1.-The Ha-
waiian pear is now fully ripe, and this is
the. golden hour for the United States to
pluck it As further illustration of
the activity OF the diplomatic representa-
tive, attention IS called to the fact that on
the day the above letter was written, ap-
parentiy unable to longer restrain his ar
dor, he issued proclamation whereby,
in the name of the United Ststes,' he
assumed protection OF the Hawaiian ISL
ands and declared that the said action
was taken pending and subject to nego
tiat,ons at Washington OF course this
ofa protectorate was prompt
ly disayowed by our government, but the
American flag remained over the govern
ment building at Honolulu, and forces
remained on guard until April and after
Blount's ARRIVAL on the scene, when both
were withdrawn"
A DEPARTURE FROM TRADITION.
"When the present administration en-
tered upon its duties the senate had UNI
der consideration tresty providing for |
the annexation of the Hawaiian Islands.
Additional importance is attached to this |
peculiar treaty OF annexation, because it |
departure from unbroken |
American tradition in providing for addI |
tion to our territory of islands of the sea |
more than two thousand miles removed
from our nearest coast. II appears from
documents accompanying the treaty
when submitted to the senate, that the |
ownership of Hawaii was rendered US by |
the provisional government which had
the sanction of neither popular revolu-
ton nor suffrage of the people. Two
other remarkable features of the transac-
lion naturally attracted our attention.
One was the extraordinary haste, not to
say precipitancy, characterizipg- all the
transactions connected with the treaty.
Bet ween the initiation of the scheme OF
he provisional government in Hawaii on
he 18th of January and the submission
% the senate of the treaty of annexation
here was only an interval Of thirty-two
lays, fifteen of when were spent by
Hawaiian commissioners journey to
Washington. In the next place upon the
ace OF the paper submitted with the
reaty it clearly appeare5-that there was
N open and undetermined issue of fact
# the most vital importance. The mes
age of the president accompanyIug the
he monarchy was not in any way pro-
noted by this government T"
WHY THE TREATY WAS WITHDRAWN.
"a protest also accompanied the said
'eaty, signed by the queen and her min. !
tiers, which explicitly stated that she
ielded to the superior force of the
nitei States. whose laiDister bad caused
nited States troops to be landed at Hon
h.
lch provisional government. The truth
falsity of this protest was surely of the
st Importance. l conceived it to be
y duty, therefore, to Withdraw the
eaty from the senate for examination,
I'd meanwhile to cause an accurate. full, |
lpartial IN tcstigstion to be made"
LAwLEss OCCUPATION OF HONOLULU. d
'As 1 apprehend the situation We are s
ought face TO face with the following >n
nditions: The lawful government OF .
await was overthrow without drawing e
werd or firing shot by process, b
cry step OF which it may safely be as. 8
rted was directly traceable to and de- n
nded for its success upon the agency G
the United States government through a
diplomatic and naval representatives tt
1t fer the lawless occupation of Homo p
lu under false pretense by the United
ates forces, and but for Minister Sic
ms recognition of the provisional gov
nment when United States forces were
sole support and constituted the only "
litary strength, the queen and her gov 4
nment would never have yielded to the p
DIVISIONAL government even for time
d for the sole purpose of submitting \,
+ case to the enlightened justice of the :, n
,ited States. Believing, therefore, that -
|, could not under the circumstances y
vor the annexation of these islands o'
fhout justly incurring the imputation a'
acquiring them by upjustiiable meth ~ ~
8, shall now again submit the treaty - u,
annexation to the senate for its con al
eration, and the instructions to Minis
Willis, copy OF which accompanies
IS message. l have directed him to so NO
orm the provisional government But r. r
the present instance our duty does not "
my opinion end with refusing to con- bi
nate this questionable transaction. 1t nj
, been the boast OF our government fa
It it seeks to do justice 20 all things J in