The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1898-11-24
GOVERNMENT
FOR HAWAII
1t Will Be Territorial in
Form.
BILL HAS BEEN COMPLETED
COMMISSIONERS CONSIDER SOME
OF THE MINOR DETAILS.
Franchises Will Not Be Extended to
Chinese or Japanese, and the
Contract Labor System Is
to Be Abolished.
BILL HAS BEEN COMPLETED
COMMISSIONERS CONSIDER SOME
OF THE MINOR DETAILS.
Special Dispatch to The Call.

WASHINGTON, Nov. 23.-The COM
mission appointed by the President to
recommend a form of government for
the Hawaiian Islands as a part Of the
United States met in Senator Cullom s
committee room at the Capitol to-day
for the first time since leaving Honolu-
lu, Senators Cullom and Morgan, Rep
resentative Hit and Judge F'rear being
present.
The meeting was devoted to discuss
ing details of the bill and the report
which the commission will present to
Congress, which had not been fully de-
cided upon at the last meeting. The
legislation which will be recommended
by the commission will be included in
a bill, which to all intents and purposes
will be an enabling act and very much
like the bills providing for the admis-
sion of new States into the Union, eX-
cept in the one important detail that it
provides for the admission of Terri
tory and not a State.
The bill has been completed, but
probably will be amended somewhat IN
detail The report has not been COM
pleted, but the commission has decided
upon it's important features. One of
these is a recommendation that the sys-
tenn of importing laborers under con-
tract shall be discontinued. The COM
missioners have concluded that as the
system is contrary to the laws applying
to this country as a whole, it would not
be wise to continue it even temporarily
in Hawaii. It is understood that ma
iority at least of the members of the
commission do not accept the theory
that Americans and Europeans cannot
do manual labor in the islands
The commission will recommend a
regular territorial form of government,
with a Governor, a delegate in Con-
gress and a Legislature. The LeglSla-
ture will be elected by the qualified Vot-
ers of the islands, but there will be
property and educational qualifications
imposed upon those who vote for men,
hers of the upper house of the LegiSla-
ture. The franchise will not be extend
ed to the japanese or Chinese in the
islands. but the Portuguese who be-
come citizens will not be excluded under
the restrictions imposed
Judge Frear, one of the Hawaiian
Commissioners, and also a member of
the Supreme Court of Hawaii, said this
afternoon in answer to question as to
the solution of the coolie labor problem
in Hawaii
Under the present law cool1e labor
can be imported. Our people, If left to
their own choice. would prefer to con-
tinue this system, but we will not hest
tate to give 1t UP If required. We real
lie that the stability of the Govern
ment will be so largely increased under
annexation that we could afford to
amend our labor laws and sacrifice
cheap labor. AS a matter of fact, our
planters are now starting in to make
serious attempt to introduce white Ia
borers Some have already been
brought in from California, and it is
believed the experiment will succeed.
The notion seems to prevail in some
quarters that white men cannot work
in the tropics. 1t must be remembered
however, that there are differences in
tropical countries. Hawaii really is on
the edge of the tropics. Furthermore,
the islands are tempered by a cool
ocean current which reduces the tenn
perature 10 degrees below that of other
in the same latitude. A great
of the best coffee lands are
located in very temperate zone"