The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1897-06-25
is COMPLICATED
Japanese Affair Has Two
Additions.
Sake Import Duty and Per
Centage of Laborers in
Hawaii.

Washington dispatches to the erect /
that the Japanese Government has
presented, through Minister Shima- |
mura, two additional claims against |
the Hawaiian Government, and in con- |
sequence, the difficulties between the /
two Governments are more complicat- /
ed Minister Shimamura was seen by
a representative of the Advertiser yes
terday and questioned regarding them. |
''It is quite true that two additional
claims have been presented by me on
behalf of the japanese Government to
the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ha-
wall, but it was some time ago. l pre-
sumo the delay of the Government in
answering my communication of June
4th may be caused, to some extent, by
the attention necessary to solve the
three questions and answer them at
one time. The filing of the two addi-
tional claims for consideration by this
Government at this time should not be
considered as a plan to harrass 1t.
Such is not the case. AS l have told
| YOU on several previous visits, Japan
wants only justice, and these affairs
NAV be settled as well now as at any
| other time.
.'For a long time my Government has
considered it Disseminated against I'M
| Justly in the matter of the percentage
| of JaDanese laborers permitted to come
here during the year. The rule, you
| understand, is that to Sc Chinese Ia
| brorers landing in Hawaii but 80 Jap
anese may come. My Government does
not feel that under the treaty existing
| between the two Governments, any
specific number or percentage should
| be named That is one of the add
| tional matters which the Hawaiian
| Government is now considering. The
other is the prohibitive duty to be i'm
posed on sake after July 1st next. The
circumstances connected with this in
! creased duty are peculiar: The last
legislature passed a bill admitting
wines. made of grapes, free OF duty, anu
| Immediately afterward increased the
duty on sake from Is cents TO 81 per
gallon. As sake is the only wine or us
kind coming to this country, 1T has
nothing to compete with in the line OF
Hawaiian products, consequently the
discrimination is all the greater A
deputation of Japanese merchants
waited on President Dole yesterday anu
presented a memorial asking that the
\
| original amount. He has promised 10
| give the matter his careful consldera-
| tion. and I suppose he will.
CAS- TO the annexation news, DO not
| know what to think. 1t comes so sud-
| den and unexpectedly to every one
that it would be hard to account for 1t.
\ The general impression, I am told, Is
that it is a combination between the
Sugar Trust and the United states
Senate. Many of those who decline 10
vote for a continuance of the Rec1pro-
citv Treaty are willing to cast their
vote for annexation, and rather than
the islands should suffer, President Nc
| KfnIev decided to submit treaty an
inexing the country. Everything at this
end Dresume. is a mere guess, and
! will continue so until more definite
news is received by the next steamer.
One thing is certain: 1t will not AFFECT
Japan. We have never had desire 10
| annex the territory. The place is TOO
far distant from home and too eXpen-
sive to govern A little while ago we
took over Formosa, and we nave had
more or less trouble since then. VINO
ever takes Hawaii must necessarily
| enend q vast amount of money in fortl-
fving it. and in the maintenance OF
military post. and the expense will be
| known only after the territory is &C
ouired. This would be the case, wheth-
OF. Great Britain, the United States or
! anv other country would annex the
Islands.
q do not see where Japanese immI-
grants could be affected by the United
States annexing this country. we
have a new treaty with the united
States, to go into effect in two years,
that is almost identical with the one
we now have with Hawaii. In the case
| of China, it would be different, unless
| Congress should see fit to pass one law
! for this part of the country and an
| other for the mainland. To me, the
exclusion act now in force would OBJ
tain here directly the treaty was ratl-
fed. If it was not so, the planters IN
Louisiana would object. With the
prospect of the abrogation of the treaty
something would have to be done fol-
the planters interests in Hawaii. The
price of labor is as low as it can be
had. and if the planters were obliged &c
pay a duty on their sugar, the profits
would be small-too small to warrant
! any large investment of money in the
industry
Replying to a question regarding e
| dispatch in California papers of June
2 10th. relating TO additional instructions
being sent to Minister Shimamura, the
latter said:
4 81 received further instructions yes
terday. and while they are quite salts
: factory to me, am not at liberty tc
| state their nature. I am patiently
Z waiting a reply from Minister of For
J eign Affairs Cooper, and until 1t ar
rives. I can only say that the situation
is practically the same. OF course, If the
e annexation. rumor is correct, and the
? Hawaiian Senate ratifies the treaty, my
s part of the negotiations, should they
] remain unfinished at that time, will be
0 transferred to the Japanese Minister
at Washington"