The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1900-05-21

stopping there. and these soldiers have
since left the country. Eighth, Republic
of Hawaii VS.. Geo Miller; Miller was
charged with stealing a mandolin on or
about the first day of March last. The
owner missed the mandolin, which he
says was worth about So in the early
part of January; it was found in the de
PENDANTS possession about the 1st of
March; the only connecting link is one
Vincent, who is serving a term on the
reef for larceny; Vincent had the same
| opportunity as the defendant had TO steal
| the mandolin; Mr.. KAPPA who looked
| the matter up, told me that he believed
| that Vincent was the actual thief; Vim
cent said Miller stole the mandolin, and
! Miller said that Vincent stole it and sold
| 1t TO him for 50, and the conduct of Mil
! Ter in the matter tended to show that his
statement was the true one; l fail to see
| how any honest jury possessed of com
mon Intelligence could convict on such
| testimony as this Ninth Republic of
Hawaii VS.. All Nee: the defendant was
! charged with stealing $35; the. case was
| a strong one it was Impossible to try ii
| at the last term of court on account of
| the witnesses being in quarantine; they
are now supposed to be somewhere on
| the Island of Hawaii; we We're not able
to find them and get them here at this
| sound discretion, declined to give us 8
continuance for that purpose and dis
, missed the case.
The only cases nolle pressed about
which, upon a full investigation of all
| be, in my Judgment, reasonable differ
ence of opinion, are the cases of the Re
public of Hawaii VS.. Philip Keech and
N. Hill, and Republic of Hawaii VS.. F. j.
McGettigan. Keech and Hill We're charg-
, ed with stealing $S5 in gold, a clock hand
mirror, comb and nail file, and McGetti-
gan was charged with receiving the stol-
en- property knowing it to have been
stolen. The only evidence of the loss of
the money was that of the complaining
witness. a registered prostitute. 1t was
not traced to the possession of the de-
PENDANTS, and during the five hours from
1:30 to $50, on the afternoon that the
complaining witness left her house. it
might easily have been taken by other
persons. The defendants went to the
house of the complaining witness on the
day in question and took the clock hand
mirror comb and nail file. They went
to the Orpheum in the evening, bought
package of beer and other things and
were then arrested. Their statement was
that they took the clock etc, as a joke
and We're going back to the house of the
complaining witness that evening with
the beer, etc, to make a night of it. The
captain of the Iroquois told me that these
men had always proved themselves
among the best in his command, that he
never before had occasion to find fault
with them, and that he knew one of
them from boyhood, having come from
the same town, and that this man from
childhood up had always sustained Il
srotless character for honesty, that from
what he knew of the men, he believed
that their statement in regard to taking
the clock a joke was true; also that
the Iroquois was about to leave Honolu-
lu, and, if the cases We're tried the men
would be left behind. The money might
or might not have been stolen by these
defendants. The only evidence of its
loss was the prostitutes statement hut
Captain Pond, while protesting his he
lief that the men were innocent, insisted
that they should make up the same To
the woman if they We're released, which
was accordingly done. I believed, under
all the circumstances of the case, that
the men might be innocent of intent TO
steal even the clock, and, whether they
were or not, that a jury would acquit
them. After a conference with Mir
Cooper and with our assistant, Mr.. Cath
cart, and with Judge Wilcox himself, and
with Marshal Brown and at the MAJ
shals request, l decided to nolle pros the
cases, believing in view of the grave
doubt which l entertained of their guilt
ana my expectation that they would be
acquitted, that l was not justified in tax
ing them from their ship and leaving
position of these Iroquois cases was final
~ left to Marshal Brown and to me- and
II censure is to be attached to anyone il
should rest upon us and not upon the At
tOrney General.
This completes your list of cases noIIe
pressed.
The foregoing is a brief statement of
my reasons for nolle pressing them.
About all there is in a public office. TO
my way of thinking, is the satisfaction
WElcn comes from consciousness of a
faithful and honest discharge of duty. A
I nuoIlG once is a public trust and pub
nc officer Is public servant He should
not complain of fair criticism. however
nostlle, but he has a right to demand
IHdI ne snail not be traduced unheard