The times., 1898-12-07

The report of the commissioners ap-
pointed by the President in pursuance
of a joint resolution to provide for an
nexing the Hawaiian Islands to the
United States, was transmitted to b5th
yesterday. With il was a minority re-
port from the Hon. Sanford B. Dole, dis
senting in certain particulars from the
opinions of the majority, and bill 10
provide a government for the Territory
of Hawaii. The bill was jointly intro
duced in the House by Representative
Hit and in the Senate by Senator Gull
lom. chairman of the commission.
Accompanying the report was Senator
Cullom's letter of transmission and an
elaborate compilation of the penal and
civil laws now in effect in the islands
The whole was laid before the House and
referred TO the Committee on Foreign
Affairs
The report is a complete and interest
ing history of the wor.i of the commits
sion from the time of its organization IN
this city on July 16 until the conclusion
of its labors a few weeks ago. TIE
commissioners met in Honolulu on Au-
gust is, all the members being present.
and thereafter regular daily ses ions
were held in the former palace of the
executive building. Societies as well
as individuals We're given hearings
and the commissioners visited the isl
ands of Hawaii, Maui Oahu and Molo-
10, o,d tho caannrts of popolulu Hilo
and Kalaupapa.
The People of the Island.
An important subject of investigation
the report says, was that OF the adapta-
billty of the several r-ces of people on
the islands for American citizenship and
their ability to sustain the obligations
which attach to the right of suffrage.
The population of the islands is now
10000. divided as follows: Hawai- ans
and mixed blood. 5000: japanese, Is 90;
Chinese. q 600: Portuguese, 200; Amer
leans 4.0OO; British. 2,25o; Germans and
other Europeans, 1000; Polynesians and
miscellaneous. $50.
The native Hawaiians are a kindly. af-
fectionate people. willing 10 associate and
intermarry with European or other races.
and obedient TO law and governmental
authority. Many of the Japanese are con-
tract laborers, but there are some who
have become merchants and mechanics
and who conduct businesses for them
selves
There are about 200 Chinese who have
been naturalized under the law of the
Hawaiian republic. Many of the Chinese
and Japanese on the islands are. or have
been, brought there under permits by that
tion of their terms OF service they are
either returned to their native country or
renew their contracts.
Americans in Control.
The Americans, although in such small
minority. practically dominate the gov
ernmental affairs of the country. and.
with the British and Germans ard Ha-
waiisn-Americans constitute the con-
trolling element In business The Portu-
guese are largely immigrants, with little
to bind them 10 their mother country. and
promise to become good class of people
for the growth of repL--can ideas.
The Islands are pleasant. The climate
would probably be about the same as that
of Cuba We're 1t not modified by the north
east trade winds which prevail for about
nine months of the year. The group num-
bers seven inhabited islands and eleven or
twelve small rocky shoals or reefs with
a total area of 6.140 square miles, Their
extent can best be appreciated from the,
following concise description of them
given in the report:
Hawaii. area 4,210 square miles: Maui.
16O square miles; Oahu. 600 square miles .
Kauai $50 square miles (rich farming and
grazing lands; Molokai. 210 square miles
agricultural and grazing); Lanai. $50
square miles devoted to sheep raising) /:
Niihau. 81 square miles Qeased to sheen
raisers); kahoolawe, 63 square miles F:
Molokini small size: Lehua. small size.
Nihoa, SO acres tabouD, precipItous rock.
400 feet high t244 miles northwest from
Honolulu; Laysan, 2.G0 acres (about).
guano island, low and sandy. 30 feet high
800 miles northwest from Honolulu: ::
Gardeners Island. two inaccessible rocks.
2O0 feet high, about 600 feet long (6ol
miles northwest of Honolulu; Liscansky
Island, 500 acres (abouD. low and sandy
% 10 50 feet high 1920 miles northwest from
Honolulu); Ocean Island 500 acres (about,
low and sandy q, 800 miles northwest from
HonolulU; Necker Island. 400 acres
tabouO, a precipitous rock, 300 feet high
400 miles northwest from Honolulu: Pal
myra Island, a cluster of low islets- about
ten miles in circumference. with lagoon
miles southwest of Honolulu); Kaula,
small, rocky island "a few miles southwest
OF NiihaW; French Frigate Shoal, scat
tered shoals or reefs
Hayvaii's Leper Settlement.
The noted leper settlement, situated on
the north side of the island of Molokai,
was visited by the commissioners There
are now about 1850 lepers in the settle
ment, fed. clothed and cared for by tie
Hawaiian government A few devoted
monks and nuns CT the Franciscan order
have immediate personal care of the leD-
erS.
The peninsula on which the lepers are
maintained contains about 5000 acres OF
land, completely separated from the out
side world by a turbulent ocean on the
north and a range OF impossible noun
tains on The south.
The report gives the following interest
ing description of the island of avail
and the volcanoes:
Hawaii, the largest of the islands and
from which the group taxes its name.
contains nearly 2500,000 acres of land
and has population of nearly 81. 900 Its
principal town is Hilo, situated
on Hilo Bay at the mouth OF
the Wailuku River. Hilo possesses
several churcnes, GOOD motel, and sew
eral business houses. There are three
lofty mountains on the island of Hawaii
viz. Mauna kea, Mauna Loa, and Hual-
alai. The two first are nearly 1869 feet
high and the other $500 Epon Mauna
Loa are two great volcanoes, Kilauea,
upon the side of the mountain at an ele-
vation of 1900 feet, and the other Moku.
aweoweO, at the top, or Ut about l3, SO;
feet elevation. These two great volcanoes
are still alive, but not now In operation