Hawaii holomua = Progress. [volume] (Honolulu) 1893-1895, 1894-05-18
The Chinese Demand.

Uueasiness and PRAYER meetings
the order Of the day And why
Bee use the Chinese merchants
Of Honolulu have shown their
hands and have proved that they
are fully aware Of their rights
and cannot be beaten into submis-
sion 10y the small organetters who
pour forth the anthem Of the p. q.
The following petition or demqnd
was sent into the Councils by the
leading Chinese merchants:
To THE President AND TUE Exc
CUTIyE AND ADVISORY COUNCILS
OF THE provisional GOVERN
MINT or THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS:
We, the undersigned most res
pectfully request your permission
to present to Your Excellencies
and the Honorable Councillors
the following statement and petit
ton, and ask of you to give it
most careful consideration.
While the right of petition is
denied by you to no one, We are
in this instance, constrained to
address you directly instead OF
through the customary diplomatic
channels, inasmuch as our COM
mercial agents possess, in the
absence of treaty between China
and Hawaii, insufficient diploma
tic authority to call your attention
to the matters we most respect
fully desire to present to you.
We wish to be fair and frank
and prefer in the first place to
invite your assistance In the
interests of the adopted country
of many of us, rather than to
communicate with His Excellency
His Imperial Majesty's Repre-
sentative at Washington, before
so doing.
We are also induced to take
this informal manner of approach
ing you, as a result of the recent
election conclusively show that a
Constitutional Convention will
shortly be held to remodel the
Constitution and the form of the
Hawaiian Government.
We also fully appreciate the
fact that until a definite form of
government is established for the
Hawaiian Islands, it will be i'm
practicable for the President OF
the Provisional Government to
enter into direct diplomatic cor
respondence with the Imperial
Chinese Government.
We feel assured that your
honorable Councils will not con-
trovert the statement that the
Chinese possess very large and
important vested interests in this
country, and that they may Justly
claim to be considered among
the heaviest payers of taxes,
duties and other contributions in
comparison with the people OF
all other nations. 1t is not deemed
advisable to cucumber this petit
tion with statistics to prove this
assertion.
1t is known to YOU that the
Chinese merchants and planters
hsye always been firm supporters
of the constitutional governments
Of Hawaii. Our societies have
endeavored. aud are endeavoring
TO support our sick and poor, and
b. send out of the country the
criminals and Migrants without
cost to the government. If the
government Will only strengthen
our hands so that we can appeal
TO our Minister at Washington
and through him to the Imperial
authorities, we can and will dc
nuch more.
While we are thoroughly con
versant with the fact that nc
treaty exists between Hawaii aud
China, we are also fully aware
that. in the past. negotiations for
treaty have been under consid.
Grafton by the representative
Ministers of both countries and
have failed.
1t is our opinion that if, when
the Constitutional Convention
meets, it viii not regard the Chi
nese residing in the Hawaiian
Islands as a prescribed race. bat
viii accord them the privileges
due to them by their influence
standing and wealth, that u treaty
of reciprocal benefit to Hawaii
and China might result.
We, who have made these
islands our home for many years,
have incrs ased the value of your
lands from nominal prices to. high
ones. say rom So to $3.50 an acre.
thus incr easing the revenue OF
the country; have inter married
with Hawliians, who have given
Us children born In this land
educated in your own schools and
inter-married with your own race.
Many of Us have become nat
uralized citizens of this country,