Omaha daily bee., 1899-01-17
BOOZE IN
Regulation of saloons and Licensej
Home Made mud Importcd DrLnks.

writing from Honolulu, U. S. A., says:
Lincenses to sell liquors OF all kinds, sa-
loon licenses. in short, are issued on the pay
ment OF a fee OF 1000 a year In advance.
Saloons must close at 11:40 y. IN. and must
not open before 8 a. m. and. like all other
business houses except restaurants, must
keep closed all day on Sunday. These re-
auirements are observed. There are COM
parltively few communities In the Islands
large enough to make a saloon under these
conditions profitable. There are fourteen in
Honolulu. island Of Oahu; one each in La
haina. Waikiki and Kahului, island of Maui;
three IN Hilo, one In Hamakua and one In
Kohala. island Of Hawaii; twenty-five in all.
The last legislature passed what Is known
as the light wine and beer act, which au-
thorizes the issue OF not to exceed three IL
censes, at $3.50 a year. In each judicial
district, to sell light wines, beers and ales
only six days in the week, between the hours
Of Z a. m. and s p. m.
There are twenty-five judicial districts in
the islands and an exception was made OF
the district which includes Honolulu and
which Is entitled to mine such licenses. These
licenses have all been issued. there being
about three applicants for each. All the
places licensed have not yet been opened.
Al the most. therefore, there are In the
islands not to exceed 1903 places where intox-
icating drinks can be sold. The population
of the islands is about 10, 600, including ma
tive Hawaians. Japanese. Chinese, Portu-
guese, other Europeans and their descend
ants, Americans and their descendants.
Before the advent Of the light wine and
beer saloon the twenty-five full-licensed
saloons were not the only places where liquor
| could be obtained. Every bathing resort
| along the Waikiki beach sold liquid refresh
ments in a semi clandestine manner. In
every plantation village and at every sea-
| coast landing some place could be found
and that without much trouble where beer.
| usually warm, or a drink OF square race.
as gin is colloquially called. could be OBJ
tanned. In addition to all this the Japanese
of whom there are between 10000 and 4o.-
600 in the islands. obtained their national
beverage, saki, through certain Japan
ese importers, who distributed IL 10
their customers in original packages. This
branch Of the trafic was a concession partly
nv way OF compliment to the nation that
was supplyins 90 large a proportion Of the
sugar plantation labor Of the Islands and
partly because when Hawaii was an inde-
pendept but defenselsss sovereignty japan
kept a man-of-war In Honolulu harbor.
Still the native Hawaiian does not always
On thirsty. Even in the Alice in Wonder
land country, where beer costs two bits a
glass and the best cigars b cents apiece
he has always managed to get some snare
of the exhilaration Of intoxication. with
ava pronounced ah-vah). swipes and
okolehao (oh- koh ly-how). the $1,000 natives
who represent the population Of 100000 that
Captain Cook found here when he discovered
the islands 100 years ago, manage 70 lur-
nish their quota of the DRINKS who find thelr
way to the courts.
~ +nese three kinds OF drinks only one
ava, has any legal standing In the country
wa was in use for centuries before the mis-
sionaries came. 1t Is the fermented product
NJ the ava root. The original method o
manufacture was for a family or a compan!
~ friends to sit around a calabash, eacf
chewing a piece Of the root. When mas
ticated sufficiently 1t was thrown into {
calabash and another piece OF the root taker
IN. When q sufficient quantity had thus beer
prepared, water was added and 1t was SCI
aside to ferment. 1t Is said that this prlm'
tive method has been generally superseded
by pounding or grinding the root, but o
this no one who has merely used the manu-
featured product is qualified to speak. Th'
test Of prime quality Is still that one ma.
drink OF 1t to twenty-four hours OF un
consciousness, wake up to seemingly perfec
SODrletY ana WITHOUT SWdllOWlu6 dLiOthc
drop secure a repetition Of the first effect
by merely taking a cold bath. The trad
In ava root Is a licensed monopoly granted
by the government as a means Of revenu
and is now held by Chinese. Anyone ma
purchase ava root from a licensed deale
and manufacture for his own use. So mud
did the missionary spirit concede t
aboriginal habit and custom, and no gov
eminent in late years has thought it neces
sary or polite to interfere with the old ar
rangement.
Swipes postdate the Characterization Of tn
islands. Swipes cause the police NOR
! trouble than all other police court factor
/ put together. If you ask an experience
police court magistrate what the stuff |
made Of he will reply by asking you VIVA
it isn't made Of. In its purest state 1t !
} fermented from taro, rice, bread crust O
anything else that contains starch. Blu
fermentation from such materials is too sloN
a process to meet the emergencies in wh'cI
swipes are called on. The native in his do
! nestle and primitive social life hasn't tn
. forethought to set his taro fermentin
against the time when he will be called o.
to extend hospitality to some chance visitor
or provide a luau for his neighbors VIII
Unexpectedly call. The emergency arise
! and to meet 1t he goes to some Chinama
or renegade Hawaiian who has descended t
, the degradation of avarice and for a quartz
gets a generous bottle Of as vile a com
3 pound as ever wrecked q sound constitution
. or deranged a nervous system. To a basi
I Of fermentel taro has been added kerosene
. cayenne pepper, fusel oil and methylate
I spirits, till an oblivion OF intellect, accom-
a panied by maniacal combativeness, quickl
follows it's use. 1t Is a most disastrou
drink, as many OF the soldiers who stoppe
. here on their way to Manila and accepte
4 the hospitality Of chance native Hawaiia
! acquaintance found to their sorrow. Swipe
, have no legal standing except the inevitabl
4 certainty Of a fine in the police court fol
8 lowing their use. Their manufacture an
sale are strictly prohibited by law.
K There Is not a Hawaiian, native O
y "haole," who does not warm with pride /
u okolehao. 1t is the one Indigenous liquo
= Of which he can be proud. His feeling TO
u 1t is like that Of the Kentuckian for whisky
-. When properly made, and 1t Is only whe
= properly made that 1t is okolehao, 1t Is tn
. purest of intoxicants. and freest from othe
and Ill effects. 1t Is the typical Hawaiia
product, and the one oftenest taken abroa
by travelling islanders as the exenplar G
o the perfection attainable in this paradise {
the Pacific. Awards from the Columbia
. exposition at Chicago and the Paris expo