The Hawaiian gazette., 1895-09-20
VOICE FROM kauai EXPLAINS.
Why People Of the Other Islands
Are So Careful.
Honolulu People should be Guaranteed
as Long rs Belgic Passengers.
Not Well Equipped.

Mr.. EDIToR:-In your issue of the
10th instant you have an editorial
ceDsuripg people of the island of Ha-
wall for their efforts in trying to keep
away the cholera, and say that "The
Board of Health has had the other
islands under consideration as care
fully as it had the island of Oahu"
and sis in better position to judge
of the best course to take than those
in the remote districts" and that for
the people OF Hawaii "to suspect for
a moment that their friends in Homo
lulu would allow them to be put in
jeopardy, is in the nature of an in
suit" and that all the above applies
equally to the people of Kauai and
Maui.
Now l arise to make a few remarks
in defense of the people of Kauai and
the "other islands," If the Board of
Health of Honolulu requires passen-
gers from an infected port of Japan to
be quarantined until eighteen days
have elapsed from the time of their
departure from said infected port be-
fore they are set at liberty in Homo
lulu, why should we people on the
other islands be denied the same pro-
lection in regard to passengers arTiv-
iBg from cholera-beridden Honolulu?
Again, if the Board of Health will
give passengers and steamers clean
bill of health after only five days
quarantine and allow them to leave
Tor the other islands, why did they
keep the Belgic passengers so long in
quarantine when she arrived with a
clean bill of health?
And, anyway, il the Board of Health
is so all-wise, how did they come TO
allow the cholera 10 Honolulu at all =?
You've got it there, Notwithstanding
the precautions they took, and which
precautions you, Mr. Editor, and some
others in Honolulu, seem to wish to
deny to us. 1t seems to me ii is the
province of the Board of Health to
encourage land compeD people to take
sanitary precautions rather than to
discourage them, and little over
Zealousness should be excused and
overlooked rather than condemned.
1t is the unanimous sentiment on
this island that we should have as
strong or even more stringent quaran-
tine protection than is demanded by
all civilized foreign countries. You
took the usual precautions, and you
have the disease. II we were all civil
lied and intelligent, the usual restric-
tons would, perhaps, do; but, with
ignorant natives among us, more is
necessary, as you in Honolulu know
to your cost. And the great majority
of plantation population consists of
ignorant natives, Chinese and Japan
csc, with only one doctor in the dis
trict.
You iDsinuate or intimate that the
wisdom of Honolulu should be all
sufficient for Us of the other islands.
Now, we in Kauai believe that the
Board of Health, if left alone, has no
to our helping them keep
this disease away from this island, but
we also believe that pressure has been
brought to bear on them by the mer-
chants, agents and steamship COM
panies of Honolulu, who don't want
business to come to a standstill. Self
is the first law Of nature,
and we intend to help the Board of
Health keep the cholera away from US.
If the people OF Honolulu have such
an immense interest in our welfare
we can assure them that we have a
still greater interest in it. You got
the scourge in spite of your wisdom
and your precautions; now, don't
blame US if we try to avoid the same
fate.
OF course, strict quarantine is a
but we are the sufferers
aud, if we can stand it, we think the
people can. And when we
of the other islands can't stand it any
longer, and want to ease up on it
little, we will let you know. In con-
/ would say that Kauai peo-
pie have sympathy and admiration
for the Board of Health in this their
time of pilikia, and hope they will be
able to speedily stamp out the dread
disease.
Yours truly,
ALOHA alma.
Lihue, Kauai, Sept. ID, 1895.