The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1895-04-26

Just after the Mckinley bill, putting
all sugars on the free list, made the
Reciprocity Treaty of no more advan-
tage to Hawaii. He wrote then of the
laborers: Portuguese get the best
wages, heretofore about 81 per day;
Chinese and Hawaiians nearly the
same; japanese about SIG per month;
this, besides house rent and water,
and often a small lot to cultivate, and
medical care. But wages must now
go down from one-third to one-half. /"
OF the Portuguese laborers he says:
"The Portuguese are the most hopeful
of all the foreign labor element in the
islands. They make homes every
where, are thrifty; their children go
to the public schools and are improv-
ing and hopeful"
One word as to the Inconsistency"
with which Mr.. Shearman charges
the missionaries and their children in
varying estimates of the native Ha-
waiians.
In the first place the action of the
American Board in withdrawing the
mission was not taken with the ad-
vice, but against the protest of most
of the missionaries, who felt then, as
probably everybody feels now, that
the native Christians, while in truth
wonderfully advanced in many ways,
and by no means hypocrites, were far
from strong enough to be left to them
selves. The event has proved the
wisdom of those on the field. AS
General Armstrong says: at was
the blunder of the Gospel campaign
was made at least a generation too
soon. Habits can't be reversed like
steam engine; character is the work
of generations. The Hawaiians are
not fit yet for full responsibility.
There are q goodly number whose
heads are clear and hearts right; all
are kindly and we'll meaning; but the
majority are liable to be misled by
infiammatory appeals and lying
demagogues. There has been
decrease of morals and increase of
wealth in the country. The Legisla
ture under Kalakaua repealed the pro-
tives, and intemperance increased
frightfully. Great numbers broke up
their homes and moved to Honolulu,
where they easily pick up q living,
get free liquor, and die rapidly
And so this kindly, winsome, brave
race that once so eagerly grasped the
Gospel, is steadily sinking, and gossip
blames the missionaries for it ALL"
"To call the missionaries
work failure is absurd. 1t is not
failure. 1t is grand success, though
not perfect one. II no missionaries
had gone to the Islands, the natives
would have been very soon swept
away by vice. AS it was tens of thous-
ands haYe lived in the light and died
in the faith, true disciples according
to their strength, if not victors
In thirty years the missionaries
had given the natives a written Ian
guage, the Bible, books and newspa-
pers, knowledge of reading and writ.
ing to nearly every man, woman and
child; schools, homes, civilized gov
ernment, and the Christian religion.
They had received into church MEM
bership in all $4,000 souls (Of whom
10000 had died and 5000 had been eX-
communicated. The distance between
the peoples condition and the era of
heather temples, human sacrifices,
universal crime, oppression and dark
ness, was a progress unparalleled in
the history of missions, but in matter
of fact, the nation was still far from
Christian civilization The
tried to make Puritans
out of Hawaiians; they did not sue
ceed; but they laid the foundations of
and created a moral force
which, terribly opposed, not so much
by heather as by men from ChristiOn
countries, asserted and sustained the
worship of God, and the ascendancy
Of order, justice and humanity"