The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1899-03-16

was a tacit agreement that no more
vessels should be put under the Ha-
waiian flag after annexation. But as
Congress has failed to extend the ship
ping laws it does not appear clear that
this tacit agreement should any long
err be needed.
There are five ships, the Euterpe,
Falls of Clyde, Star of Russia Star of
France, Star of Bengal, one bark, the
Willscott, and two schooners, the Con-
cord and Blanche and Ella, which all
have registers applied for. In the case
of the Star of Bengal which came in
to port yesterday afternoon, there was
quite a complication, owing to the fact
that, though she had a temporary
register granted by the Hawaiian con-
sui general in San Francisco, the Ha-
waiian government refused to recog-
nize it. Consequently when the cap
tain applied to the collector general
to appoint a board of survey on his
cargo, which was in semi-combustion,
application was refused, and he could
go to no consul, as his flag was Hawa-
iian. The matter has been arranged
by the captain filing a stipulation that
the act of the collector general in APP
pointing a survey is not to be con-
strued into a recognition of the regis
ter; but the incident is a very curious
one, and calls up strange possibilities.
In the first place as to the position of
the government towards its consul gen.
eral in San Francisco. 1t is plain that
the consul general granted the provi-
sional registers and that the owners of
vessels have received them in good
faith. The government repudiates it's
consuls action and says he has not
obeyed his orders. When the China
registration case was up, during the
session of the legislature, Minister
Cooper, then minister of foreign af-
fairs, informed a committee of the
house that orders, forbidding consuls
from issuing registers had been sent
to all in the service. Now the tempo
rary registers of several of the vessels
now applying for full register, are long
after that event.
If the consul general at San Fran
cisco has, as the government claims,
fatty disobeyed his orders, why is he
retained? 1t is plainly the govern
ments own fault if they retain a man
who refuses to obey, and the govern
ment should abide by the official acts
of it's officer if it fails to remove him.
Certainly ship owners are not informed
that temporary registers are no longer
to be granted.
Now consider another side of the
question. There is an Hawaiian consul
at Hongkong. Whether his position is
now strictly legal or not need not be
argued, the Hawaiian government re-
CARDS him as legal. Suppose the Star
of Bengal had gone into Hongkong in
the same condition as she entered Hon.
olulu harbor yesterday. Being under
the Hawaiian flag she would have I'M
doubtedly been granted the request,
and thus the register would have been
recognized. Now would the Hawaiian
government have repudiated it's So
called consul in Hongkong, as it has re-
pudiated the acts of it's consul general
in San Francisco?
The fact is the ship owner does not
know where he stands and the sooner
his case is settled the better it will be-
/ There has been bungling and a botch
somewhere, and the trouble is that in
| our peculiar conditions, no one can
be made responsible for the mistake.
work heapihg up for admiralty law
yers.