The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1900-03-24
THE CABINET
Interesting Letter from
Mr.. HartWelI.
The Scope Of the Court Of Claims
Election Cases Have the
Right Of Way.


Smith. Young. Damon and Cooper |
President Dole read a short letter from /
Secretary OF State Hay and Minister
Mott-Smith read the following letter |
from Mr. Hartwell:
Washington, d. c., March 10, 1900.
Honorable +. A. Mott-Smith,
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Etc.
Honolulu, n. l.
Dear Sir: / have your letteTs-one Of
the 18th and two OF the 10th ultimO-
with enclosures.
am sorry to learn by telegram from
Alexander & Baldwin TO W. .. Smith
this morning OF five more cases of
plague in Honolulu. This is distressing
and yet these things, perhaps, are to
be expected for some time yet.
In re the claims. / have inferred that
the intention was not TO exclude claim
ants from bringing actions if they
thought fit, in the regular course. That
is a matter which is optional with
them, nor is the Court of Claims au-
thorized to enforce payment, l should
say. All that they are authorized TO
| do, apparently is to make awards upon
the evidence before them, leaving the
so. TO appropriate money for payment
OF such awards. That is the way II
looks TO me.
Upon receipt of your letters of the
2Oth ultimo, with notice of the apprO-
priation made by the Council of State,
Act /, / called upon the Secretary Of
State upon the 9Th inst, and informed
him OF the uncertainty which appeared
to exist in the mind of some persons in
Honolulu of the Presidents intention
concerning the old Legislature. and
asked him If he would not send a dis
patch to Mr.. Dole by the America Maru
OF the 9TH inst: / was informed the
same day by the Secretary's private
secretary that the dispatch had been
sent and / enclose his letter.
/ felt confident that you would all be
pleased to get immediate approval of
Act /. as conveyed by that dispatch.
In all these matters about appropria-
tions and about the President having
the right, IL he wished, under the New
lands Resolution to Tatify the Legisla-
ture and give It power TO act, 1t must
be borne in mind that the President
neither wishes to declare explicitly that
he has not such powers, nor on the
other hand, does he wish to exercise
them and have them called into ques-
ton unnecessarily. That, l believe, is
about the position, and yet you remem-
Der my writing to you that the Pres
ident was about to send a message to
Congress asking for an emergency bill
to be passed which Attorney General
Griggs actually drew, authorizing Ha-
waiian Legislature-the old one, l UNI
derstood, although did not see the bill.
For all / can say, il may have been
authorizing the Council of State to act
as a Legislature. Attorney General
Griggs desired also,-and | presume 1t
| is a good political course.-to avoid
taking any unnecessary action on any
Hawaiian matters pending the enact
ment of the Hawaiian BILL and each oil
the kilograms, the first authorizing, as
you remember, appropriations TO eradl'
B cate the plague and intended to include
I the filtration plant, the second telegram
\ authorizing five commissioners to b'
appointed to assess damages for TIT
4 burning of Chinatown, and the third
2 of last Tuesday, expressing the Pres
ident's views against calling the ole
LEGISLATURE and his expectation that tn
? Council OF State would do what wa
: requisite for appropriations until tn
hill should take effect-these wer
: prepared to meet the conditions abOv
; mentioned and l wrote them all.
; On the Sth inst, upon receipt OF lilo
q nolulu newspapers of the 2lst ultimC
4 containing a notice by the Speaker Q
& the House, calling It together, / Gale
& upon the Secretary OF State and tol
z him what | had seen, asking hi
& whether he thought II was best TO sen
z by the Vancouver steamer leaving IN
"a n. 81. 60 NJ in
s forming him positively that the Pres
r ident did not consider that there wa
y now any Hawaiian Legislature or thu
> his further continuing officers in ofnC
y included or was meant to include II
Q LEGISLATURE. after their term OF ot1'
- had expired.
- Mr.. Hay said: II do not like this pei
g ging away with kilograms. The la
n telegram conclusively implied all tina
s. Don't you think so?'
Il I said Eyes" and after telegraph
II TO Rithet & Co., at Victoria and lear
X ing from them that the steamer sail
3 AT seven last evening. / sent Mr.. do
3 A telegram containing the purport
3 what Mr.. Hay had said.
hone that all will go well until Z
Hill Is passed. The Secretary OF sta
was apparently gratified to learn tn
q the Senate had passed the amendme
. which / proposed to Mr.. Cullom, a
q, thorizing President Mckinley to dire
the expenditure OF public funds In h
= wall until the first meeting OF the Leg
lature in Hawaii. There Is delay abe
q bringing up the bill in the Hou
q Election cases have the right or "
& and Mr.. Knox has not yet been able
8 get a time fixed for the Hawaiian D
4 He may not succeed, I am told. in hi
ing a set before April Sd. This Is
3 disappointment to me. although
4 not know from anything have learr
- from yourself or from Mr.. Dole, u
y the delay will cause any special 9
q fculty. II Is possible that you ma
. written TO me concerning the length
Q time-thlrty or sixty days, when
o. think the bill would properly take