The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1896-04-02
VOTER Is IN EARNEST.
WRITES STRONGLY ON THE oUEs
TON OF CITIZENSHIP.
Duties - The License system -- "Poor
Man" 80 Some Figures - Cigar
cites.

Honolulu, II. l., April 2.
STAR NEWSPAPER: The work
now being done by the Legislature,
if it is to be Of permanent char.
acter, should have about it the ele.
ments Of justice and equity, which
will appeal to the body polite, in a
manner calculated to make the gov
erning power strong and the carry
ing out of laws easy of accomplish.
ment. In this connection l con-
slider it not only a privilege but a
duty, which as a voter, l owe to my
fellow citizens in this Island Re-
public, to raise objection to some
proposed legislation.
Citizenship. Viewed in the light
of recent actions Of the Legislature
in re licenses, one would imagine
that the only obligations conferred
by citizenship in this Republic rest
on the governed, and up to the
present time these can be summon
ed up in three points. First, to be
taxed and licensed on an equality
with aliens; second, to vote for the
men your party puts up and third,
to trot out with your little gun and
do duty on the street corners as
Citizens Guards or in the more dis
ciplined service Of the N G. H. =,
while your family at home is terror
lied over what is going to happen.
For what1 For the upholding of a
Government that permits every
avenue open to you to be blocked
by some alien, who having been
to do service for your
neighbor, is turned loose OH your
path for you to take care of after the
"other fellow" has done with him.
God forbid that this Government
make such fatal error at this time.
1t would be suicidal. Let the Le-
gislature proceed on just lines in
licenses and, ignoring the
alien element, consider only what
will be to the best mutual interests
of their celebrates and thus really
give "the poor man" we hear SO
much about a chance to make an
honest living, which is all that he
is asking for. Let us see how this
would be worked out in the matter
Of licenses. BARRIERS general
license, including one chair, $40,
and for each additional chair IS.
license IS, including sale
of two twelve-quart cans of milk
daily, and for every can in excess
IS cents year, and so on through
the whole category conserving the
interests of all instead of building
up monopolies by excessive fees.
Harmonizing with this idea is
the proposition to tax general store
licenses on per centage of sales in
excess Of a certain amount. The
license fees due from eifisens having
thus been established on an equit-
able basis as regards community in
terests, make general law requir-
ing all aliens to pay certain per-
centage in excess ofsuch rates for the
privilege OF trading in this commun-
ity. know a white trader doing bust
ness in this city who recently said:
ITO HI with the Government;
what have l got to do with it, All
/ want is chance to do business. "
And he does it and lives three
of his time in swell style
(abroad) while he bleeds this COM
for the means Of doing so.
If you make the tax in his special
line FIVE times what it is today I'M
der the present system he would
still be on par with the man who
is roofing to make ends meet for
himself and family in our over
licensed community and the conse-
quent expense Of living here. One
other feature of the license legisla-
ton is the almost total lack of dis
cussion on matters vital to the best
interests Of the community. This
was called to mind by the licensing
Of the sale of cigarettes, the use Of
which is paralizing to the constitu-
ton OF old and young alike, In some
this evil is being
at least as regards the
young, by filming every person UNI
der a certain age found with them
in possession. We have need of
something of this kind here.
VOTER,