The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1894-06-15

Delegate Baldwin moved reference
to the Committee on Legislature. He
/ did not wish to see it placed so high
as to shut out valuable and intelligent
voters. The question was of great i'm
pOrtauce, and should be considered
carefully.
Councillor Brown did not see any
necessity for reference to committee.
He favored passage exactly a. it was.
| IL should not he forgotten that before
1857 no one had any vote for Mob es at
all. There was no ground for COM
plaint, as long as the ballot for the
lower House was almost unr, stricted.
/ This article was an incentive Ia every
: citizen to make himself of his own eX-
ertlons, competent to vote for Sena-
tors. II it was too high, let il come
up in regular course by amendment to
the Constitution, and be reduced in
that manner.
Councillor Ena agreed with the last
speaker, except that he did not favor
any chang. from the Constitution of
1857 Let the income be 500, as there.
Minister Damon favored the motion
of Delegate Kslua TO fix the property
qualification at $1,000, and income at
$500. Wheus a man earned $50 a
month, and could earn it consecutive
ly, that man had intelligence enough
to vote for a Senator. Such men are
thinking and reading men. To place
il above $500 was to discourage effort.
He was opposed TO several features of
this Constitution, aud this was one
OF them. Five hundred dollars would
be better than $500. To place it above
the latter amount was ruling out the
middle class-the small owners and
the intelligent mechanics. This class
was the bone and sinew of this Re-
public, and should not be ruled out.
Councillor Emmeluth favored max
ing wide distinction between real
and personal property. He favored
giving the builder of homes every OPP
porluuity. $500 real property quail
ficatiOn and $4,000 personal was what
he favored, and 5000 year income.
Delegate Ables read the second sec
tion of the Constitution, which states
that the Government was for the
benefit of all. He favored making the
rest of the Constitution in accordance
with that. He believed in placing the
incOme-limitatiOn at $500 That would
be safe. The burden of proof would be
on the voter to show that he earne
$500 year The prope ty qualitica-
tiOn might be fixed at $1,000.
Delegate Robertson favored placing
the qualifications at su h "A figure as
TO insure to the dominant party the
control Of the Senate. In the COnsti-
tuition of 1887, however, the property
qualification was too high. He fa-
vored Kslua's motion to fix it at
$1,000. They did not believe in placing
either Limitation bit higher than
necessary. e did not think it wise
to cut down the electorate for Senators
too low. II $500 income were required
it would probably cut that electorate
down to about 1000 persons, or only
about one fourteenth of the total elec-
torate. He therefore favored $500 in
come.
Councillor Emmeluth moved to
make the property qualification $1,000
for real property above all incum-
brances, aud $4,000 personality.
Delegate Iosepa favored passing the |
article as il stood He did not want |
TO run any risk of the royalists getting |
possession. He should not jeopardiZe |
what thev had gained by relaxing too |
The paramount influence of |
the ignorant was what had made the |
revolution of 1887 necessary. Tnat !
danger should not be incurred again.
Minister Smith said there was no |
one matter in the entire Constitution |
of more Importance than that now
under discussion. What all wanted |
was stable government-One more |
stable than there had been in the past, |
and Que better suited to the needs of |
the country. The Constitution of 1857 |
had failed TO secure such government. |
No right-thinking person desired to |
deprive any intelligent man of his |
vote but an ideal Republic could not |
be established here. In Victoria |
voters of the upper House had to be
owners of freehold worth $50 year.
That excluded large number of Brit
ish subjects. He was glad the matter
had been so extensively discussed,
and he would now move reference to |
the Committee on Legislature, to re-
port later. |
Before this motion was put, the |
committee took recess until l:30P.M.