The Portland daily press., 1894-01-11
claration which no human being could
misunder.tan or misreport."
THE STORY OF A FIAsco.

The news from Honolulu settles one
thing beyond all question, and that is
that the Presidents scheme for Fighting
the great wrong" by restoring the Kama
ka queen has failed ANONYMOUSLY and
completely. Self-suffiient and pig-head-
ed as Cleveland is he will undertake
nothing more in this direction unless he
gets the consent of Congress to Use force,
and that is impossible. The record of
the administration IN this business IS
now complete, and very pitiable record
it is too. Who conceived the project OF
setting up the Queen, whether Cleve-
land or Gresham, is matter of dispute,
but after it was born they both nursed
it assiduously, Gresham probably be-
cause it gratified his spite against the
Harrison administration, and Cleveland
because it was fiattering to his self-sufi-
cheney. Probably these two potentates
would have been perfectly satisfied to
go ahead with their programme without
any investigation of the facts, the
Astounding conceit of the President
effacing from his mind every suspicion
that policy that he had determined
upon could be other than correct. But as
a slight concession to the noise and
clamor" that might be raised against
evolving policy entirely from their
inner consciousness it was thought adj
visable to send out special commits
sioner to go through the form of making
an investigation. So Blount was sent.
oftpr IL bod ~ info hand
that the thing wanted was not all i'm
partial ascertainment of the facts, but
an ex parte investigation that would
furnish some sort of pretext for the
policy determined upon before he had
set his foot on the deck of the vessel
which was to convey him to his destina-
ion. Blount brought back what he was
sent to get and handed it over to the
President. But the latter then :" had a
session of Congress ON his hands" and it
was deemed advisable to keep dark lest
Congress and the people should find out
what was meditated and ask some i'm
pertinent questions. So BIount's report
was tucked away until after Congress
had adjourned and Willis was out of
reach of the noise and clamorn of the
people. Everything had moved nicely
up to this point. Blount had done just
as he had been told, and his report was
everything that could be desired Willis
was on the sea beyond recall, and new
Admiral was on his way to Honolulu,
who was not 1mbued with any sympathy
vita the provisional government. 1t
seems to have never occurred 30 the adj
ministration that there could be any
hitch in the proceedings after this.
Cleveland appears to have Thought that
theQueen and the members of the Pro-
visional government would tumble all
over themselves in their haste to do his
bidding. But Willis struck a snag
about as soon as he had set foot upon the
island. Instead Of the weak government.
which Blount had reported he found a
ministry well entrenched and backed by
determined men, who were willing to
fight if necessary. The Queen, too, was
disobliging and refused to promise to
curb her appetite for gore. In despair
Willis sent home for further instructions.
The instructions sent him were practl-
cally to hurry up. Willis then developed
new zeal, and did hurry up with ven
geance. The Queen was interviewed
again, and her consent to Cleveland's
conditions obtained. The Provisional
government was called on, and the de-
mand of the President made known to
them, with the result that everybody
knows. Err Ell
This is a brief history of the admins
tration's attempt at Queen restoring in 4
Hawaii. The great Cleveland under
took to bluff the weak little government
of Hawaii into submission to his will
and ingloriously failed. He has made
himself and his country the laughing
stock of the whole world, and greatly
weakened our influence in the Sand
witch Islands. 1t is said now that he is
going to suggest protectorate for Hawaii
and make the eagle scream, in the hope
that that sort of u performance may
cover up his present discontinue; and
it is alleged that Turpie's resolutions
were introduced into the Senate with
this end in view. The "policy of infamy"
is to be succeeded by policy of spread
eagleism. 1t will be a change for the
better at least.