Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1898-08-03
Not Americans Here Till the Flag
Goes Up.
Annexation Was Blalne'S Prediction Extracts
From Interview Given In
New York.

man Robert r. Hit, one of the
American Commissioners. Mr..
Hit stated that James G. Blaine,
when first Secretary of State, had
said the members of the House
had better be making up heir
minds as to the government of
Hawaii because it would be Am
erican territory some day.
Mr., Hit told me that aside from
the political and strategic value of
the islands on account of their
position, he thought fuss entire
ly out of proportion to their i'm
portance hsd been made about
them.
"Why, think" he said, "they
are no bigger than many Con
gressional district and they do
not contain population much
more than half that of an average
congressional district. OF course,
their prosperity will increase as
soon as the American flag is
planted over them, giving abso-
lutte assurance of stability, with
out possibility of any attempt to
restore the ridiculous, rotten little
monarchy, or of foreign occupa-
ton. In that respect they are
going to offer better opportunity
for investment under stable GER
tain government and the property
of the men who now live there
will increase in value.
"Since war began an American
cruiser has been lying in Homo
lulu harbor. Our ships went to
the capital of those islands on the
way to Manila and coaled as
though they had right there.
And you must remember that the
law which makes a nation respon-
sible for damage inflicted on an
other nation through aid given to
its enemy is largely of our own
making.
when the treaty Of 1871 was
negotiated at Washington it was
the United States which proposed
that a nation giving aid to one
belligerent should be held res.
ponsible for any damage inflicted
on the property of the other bel
ligerent by that means. Out OF
that grew the Alabama claims, for
which we received 100000.
England hesitated at this provi-
sion, but we insisted on it as inter-
national law, and it was agreed to
and we invited other nations to
join us in it. All that apprehen-
sion by business men in Hawaii
disappeared with annexation.
flames G. Blaine gave notice
to the world that if Hawaii was
threatened it would be American
lied. But we have never under
taken, while it remained distinc,
sovereignty, to preserve it from
claims for damages arising from
its acts. BY assuming the right tc
use, not Pearl Harbor-which was
coded to US long time ago - but
the harbor of Honolulu, we placed
Hawaii in a position to be thu
subject of claim for heavy dam
ages at the hand of Spain wher
this war should be over"
Mr.. Hit intimsted that Pear
Harbor would now undoubtedl.
be fortified. Speaking of the Chi
nese problem:
81 trust not insoluble," he said
"My understanding is that mos
of the Cinnamon and Japanese ar
there under contract, and that the
will steadily tend to 60 back t
their homes when the contract eS
pires. They cannot become cit
zens,of course, because OF the laws
They have not the right to vote
The annexation resolution forbid
further Chinese immigration. Th
statistics for ten years past sho'
the departures of returning Chi
nese and Japanese is about hal
as large as the arrivals, and no.
the arrivals will cease.
81 think the Chinese labo
question is not giving the peopl
of the United States as much cor
Germ as formerly.
"The Chinese question give les
concern to the Chinese Govern
ment at the time we were first e1
ercised about it than most of q
thought.