The morning call., 1893-04-23
PALO ALTO WINS.
At Debate, if Not at the
Track.
INTERCOLLEGIATE oRATORY.
"fiawaii Must Not Be Annexed Is the
Decision, and So Now Blount
May Go Ahead.

The students soon proved that they had
not exhausted all their enthusiasm and col
lege patriotism during tie feld-day contests
in the afternoon. They made the hall ring
with their applause and class yells every
time victory of logic was scored or an
original point brought forward.
Judge w. w. Morrow, Hon. Jackson
Hatch and Samuel Knight acted as judges,
and the meeting was called TO order at S:15
by Louis D. F. Bartlett OF Berkeley.
The subject of the debate was. RE
solved, That the United States Should
Annex Hawaii"
Berkeley argued that it should, while
Stanford contended that it should not.
c. A. Reynolds opened the debate on the
side of the University of California. He
first referred to the time-h0nOred policy of
the United States TO annex no territory eX.
cept that which was absolutely needed to
strengthen us as nation, and that she had
never aud would never depart from that
policy.
The Sandwich Islands contained about
400. 600 Kanakas when the inha bitants were
first counted. In 1874 there were only TO-
COO. aud at the present time there are only
1000. at is only Question OF time, there
fore, when the natives OF the Sandwich
Islands will die ont as race. Wao then
are 10 own this beautiful domain.
"When the Queen OF the islands lent her,
self 10 the influence OF those who were ia.
strumental in accomplishing the moral and
political degradation Of the people, her
reign was a thing of the past.
Daniel Webster in 1872 said that the
United States were more Interested In the
fate of the Hawaiian Islands tkan any
other nation in the world.
the islands are OF special Importance to
the United States for the reason that they
occupy a position midway between two
continents, Of one of which the United
States is the great power That is the rea-
son why all our statesmen have insisted
that Hawaii should never be allowed 10 fall
into the hands of any other nation"
r. l.. Gruwell opened for The negative by
remarking that his opponent lad not shown
that the United States should annex the
Islands, but merely that they might do so
with profit 10 the American nation.
The speaker then bri- fly adverIed to the
action of Minister Stevens during the late
revolution and said that we would first
have to undo the result OF Stevens REGULAR
measures before we have right to annex
the islands.
MI Thurston. who has represented the
Provisional Government and who was in
Washington Offering the islands to the
United States. admitted himself that the
people did not want it, but on the contrary,
feared that they would be robbed.
Now. IL we rely upon the principle that
a provisional Government is one created 10
protect country until permanent Gov
eminent has been organized and has no
right TO dictate its course, how can we
claim chat we are authorized in anneXing
Hawaii merely because its Provisional
Government favOrs the ject?
rs America to declare to the weird that
she has so far fOrSaken her principles as to
rob those poor people Of their dominion?
think not"
Cecil Smith got qaite an ovation. He rep
81 D.
I'VE hear knocking al our gate, Mr..
President" Mr.. Smith declared, land we
must open it,
The gentleman who has last spoken has
harped upon the fact that the islanders are
educated people for the most part They are
Tor tnal very reason better qualified TO be-
come American citizens.
Now II these Islanders do not desire an
neXalion ly the United States why is it that
they do not publicly protest against it? They
are educated, it is claimed. Can it be that
the tropical Incidence which is part of
their temperament incapaeitates them from
expressing theirOw wishes?
There are about 1900 British at the isl
ands and fully 1860 Americans. The
American interest being pTe-eminent, it is
only proper that the United States should
take the islands" Applause.
Mr.. Barnheisel Immediately won the
good will of the audience by remarking
that it was evident from the applause given
the last speaker that those present were in
elined to pity the present one.
Il see my opponents have prepared a
map. / have seen maps in magazine articles.
They prove that the islands are in the
middle of the ocean. We Will admit it ut
once.
I'VE have no excuse for annexing these
Islands. When we bought Louisiana and
the Pacific West we were irresistibly at
tracted by the Greatintrinsic value of these
territories. In the case of the Hawaiian
Islands we have not that excuse.
THE Islands are not needed as a strategic
point, because it is not near our coast We
might as well build an arsenal on the moon.
The latter would have one advantage over
Hawaii-it would occasionally overlook our
affairs.
Judge Cooley of Ann Arbur has said to
his students that this idea OF Hawaii as a
strategic point is survival of the theory
that in times OF peace nations should pre-
pare for war, but that in this enlightened
century it should be. In times of peace
prepare against war"
The speaker ended by remindingthe audi
ence that if we ask other nations to keep
out Of the Eastern Hemisphere, on the
theory Of the Monroe doctrine, it is not fair
to jump in and gobble up stray dominions
ourselves.
Leon NJ. Solomons. who has lately been
awarded the lie Conte fellowship, closed
the debate for the affirmative.
He produced large map on which the
relative position of the Islands and the ad-
joining continents and their chief seaport
towns we're represented.
He maintained that the possession OF the
Islands was absolutely essential as a meas
ure of safety in case of war. Pearl Harbor,
he showed, was an absolutely mpregna BILE
position. and that this cannot be said either
Of San Francisco or any other Pacific Coast
port.
"On this war question" said the speaker,
cit is not so much a question of whether
we shall take the Islands as 1t is whether we
can afford to let other nations have them,
for every one must admit that in case of
war with a European power, the islands
would be seized by that power without
scrupe.
This question of annexation involves a
choice between two evils. We are simply
TO choose the lesser.
at is not usurpation to annex a country
when the intelligent portion of that conn
try are in favor of it; and the reason why
the remainder Of the people don't desire it
is because the royalists promise to take
away all franchises and confer them upon
the native without regard to whether or not
they can read or write.
at is admitted that the average Kanaka
Is as capable of becoming a citizen as the
average American. Their representatives
have performed their functions satisfac-
toriy. They are undoubtedly fitted for
self-goyeTnment as territory Of The United
'On the question of advantage and the
question of right, no serious objection can
be urged. Why, therefore, should we not
take Hawaii now? When we need her we
may not be able TO get her."
Ward Banister of Palo Alto closed for the
negative. He argued the question or our
right TO annex Hawaii. He said that unless
the bulk OF the people want annexation, we
have no right TO take the islands.
THE bulk OF tbs people do not want It.
They are not heard from. and they would
soon elam0r for annexation II they were in
favor Of it. 1t is only the foreigners and
those who have their own selfish Interests
to further who are agitating for annexation"
Mr.. Reynolds replied TO the negative side
in a brief summary Of the arguments brought
forward by all the speakers.
Two propositions he claimed had been
proved by the affirmative, first, that we
needed the islands for commercial purposes;
secondly, that we needed them as a mid
ocean naval station.
"Why. them" he concluded, should we
not take the islands so long as they them
selves desire it?"