The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1897-05-22
THE COUNCIL OF STATE.

The action of the Council of State
yesterday, should satisfy any one that
we have capable and thoroughly con-
scientious men in that body.
Under the Constitution the Council
is empowered to appropriate public
money upon the request of the EXecu-
tive Council. when. during the time
intervening between the sessions of
the Legislature, the emergencies of
war invasion, rebellion, pestilence, or
other great public necessity shall
arise"
Yesterday the Executive summoned
the Council of State and asked for an
appropriation of $4,000 to cover eX-
penses of the Board of Health for
quarantining the 6s2 Japanese immi-
grants who had arrived by the Kinai
Maru on April 10.
As to the necessity of the quaran
tine, there is no controversy. On the
action of the Board of Health in the
matter there is no controversy. The
people had to be kept in quarantine;
they could not be let loose upon the
community.
In appropriating money, the last
Legislature had set aside $4,000 for
the expenses of the Board of Health.
This. during the sixteen months that
had passed. had been well nigh ex-
hausted, there being only $4,000 left
for the ensuing eight months. When
the Kinai Maru was here a bottomry
bond had been taken upon her and
she had been allowed to go; but, as
far as can be learned. the bond is not
due yet. AS to the bond itself, there
seems to be doubt in many minds
whether it is worth the paper it is
written upon; but that has nothing to
do with the consideration of the mat
ter by the Council of State; that is a
matter which will have to be explain
ed to the next Legislature. One is
10th to believe that the Government
would let a ship go upon a worth
poX had broken ont among the pas
sengers in quarantine and that this
would entail heavy expense, the full
amount of which could not be fully
estimated.
1t is under these circumstances that
the Executive went to the Council of
State and asked them to appropriate
the sum of $4,000.
The Council of State had at once
to consider whether this was a case
of emergency, and. if so, what kind of
emergency. The Executive consider
ed it an emergency of pestilence. This
it certainly was not 1t was in no
form a pestilence among our people,
and the Executive evidently forgot
that not so very long ago the Judiciary
had given its opinion that the people
from the Japanese ship could not be
considered as having landed here. The
Executive might have. with almost as
much justice, based their claim upon
it being an emergency of invasion. For
at the time we were certainly being
invaded by hordes of japanese.
The members of the Council of
State at once decided that it was not
matter of emergency, within the
II Gaming of the constitutional provis-
ion, and refused to grant the money
asked for. Councillor p. c. Jones put
the matter very clearly. He said that
in spite of the arguments used he did
not consider that the matter was of
sufficient Importance to call the Coun-
il was never contemplated by the Con-
stitution that the Government would
run TO the Council in cases of minor
difficulty which might be otherwise
arranged, And then he drew the diff
ference between his duty as Council
Tor and his duty as a private citizen.
AS a Councillor he would not vote
public funds in matter which he
felt the Constitution did not contem-
plate that the body he belonged to
should take action. As a private citi-
zen he and others would be willing to
advance the money without interest
to the Government and take chances
of being repaid by a vote of the next
Legislature.
1t is this careful looking after the
duties of high office which makes it
valuable. A body of men who were
less imbued with a strict sense of
duty might have voted this money and
established dangerous precedent.
There is no doubt in the minds of the
citizens of this State that the Council