Hawaii holomua = Progress. [volume] (Honolulu) 1893-1895, 1894-01-22
HAWAII.S DESPOTS.
A PETTY OLIGARCHY
BACKED BY UN-
GLE SAM.
No Annexation. No Re
public.

L notice in the Eastern des-
patches published here that the
lingo papers are bowling
about the restoration of the
Queen in Hawaii and asking
how the United States. a re-
public, can favor a monarchy.
Well, the United States being
a republic" whose principle is
tol let people govern themselves
cannot surely be so idiotic as to
cram republic down the throats
of people who don't want it.
Still less an oligarchy, such as
the so called provisional gov
ernmentr-an oligarchy, the
most despotic and most unrepub-
lican form of government.
The people of Hawaii don't
want republic; that is the
plain and indisputable truth.
The revolutionists whom Mr..
Stevens, our Minister, and the
troops and guns of our ship, the
Boston, put into power, don {
want a republic. They cry out
for annexation; they loudly
assert that popular government
is hateful to them, and they es
tablished petty oligarchy,
which under the protection of
United States ship and guns
made haste to pass sedition and
later no-bail acts, to coerce men
and intimidate any opposition to
their schemes.
The great mass of the Hawai-
ian people, white as we'll as
native, don't want a republic.
They cling to the system of gov
eminent founded by the mission
airy fathers-the constitutional
monarchy-which for fifty years
gave peace, liberty and justice to
them. Why should they not pre-
fer the independent nationality
and lawful, orderly and cheap
free, government under which
they and their fathers lived
happily SO many years? The
system of government created. by
the early missionaries, and which
a handful of sugar planters, adj
venturers and spectators has
tried to break down and destroy,
was one of the best and freest in
the world. Education has been
so general under it that almost
all the native people can read and
write. Peace and order We're so
secure that a lady could ride
safely over all the islands alone.
Taxes were Iowa ten per cent.
duty on all imports except liquors
aud opium, which bore high
rates; low real-estate tax,
which was evaded by nobody ex-
cept some sugar planters, and a
direct tax upon all men of voting
age of 81 for schools, 50 for roads
and 81 poll taxa device which
deserves the attention of many OF
our own States.
The people, white as. well as
native. are by long custom. and
by its merits, strongly attached
to the monarchy under which
for fifty years they and their
fathers have lived happily, free
aud safe. Why should we of the
United States use our great and
irresistible power to force upon
them system Of government
they do not wants We call our
selves a just and upright nation.
Can we Justly do thatl
We of the United States, by
the act of our Minister, Mr..
Stevens, upset the Hawaiian
government. 1t was a very
great wrong which Mr.. Stevens
did. He stimulated, fostered.
encouraged and with United
States arms and guns protected
a handful of conspirators whose
act was as clearly an act of fill
busterism or piracy as ever
was committed. The men most
largely concerned in this act
were for the most part not even
citizens of the State, but aliens.
The man who read the f;I;bns.a
ing proclamation under the guns
and IN the face OF the troops of the