The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1900-08-14
HAWAIIAN AIAERiCANlSM.

One of the most amusing and at the
same time disgusting assumptions of
a newly arrived job-chaser in these
Islands Is that there were no Ameri-
cans here before him. In his mind he
Is the pioneer of the race in Hawaii,
the first bearer of the flag, the whole
thing in patriotism and eligibility for
Office. The rest of the population does
not count; they are a hybrid people,
unacquainted with true AmericanIsm,
to be justly condemned, as the tax
paying majority. to bear the cost of
such instruction as the job-chaser may
see fit, in the leisure hours of office
holding, to impart to them. Naturally,
like the Roman soldier astray among
the Dacians of the frontier, this pio-
neer American feels his oats.
We are at liberty to predict, how
ever. that when the annals of Ameri-
can progress I'm Hawaii come to be
written, the job-chaser will cut a very
small figure beside three elements in
the population, long resident here,
which he presumes 20 flout.
One is the missionary who left all
that was dear to him and came to Ha-
wall to plant American ideas of re-
sumably savage land and he did a vast
constructive work; he changed the
character of the populations; gave it
American laws and American civiliza-
ton; erected government which pass
ed under American influences and
finally made annexation possible.
Another is the trader, the CONNER
cial American, who built up a shipping
business for Hawaii and, by means of
his plantations and the reciprocity
treaty he got from the United States,
made Hawaii a desirable American
commonwealth. His part in the great
work was as creative as that of the
missionary.
The third class includes the whole
white American population which, in
the various revolutions, bore arms for
the American idea. These are men,
missionary, trader, unclassified citizen,
who were always ready to risk life and
property for American principles; men
who finally crushed the monarchy,
raised the Stars and Stripes. and prof
fered the sovereignty of these Islands
to the United States. Their American
ism was proved In the stress of 1877. Of
1889. of 1898 and 1S95-times when the
job-chasers of the Mainland generally
kept their distance or IL not, came here
to intrigue with the Royalists.
1t comes with bad grace from men
who are here, eating the fruits Of the
vigorous and aggressive Americanism
of the patriots whom they found on
the soil, to claim for themselves the ex-
elusive American birthmark. Still IL
Is a spectacle the people Of Hawaii
have long endured. The Ashfords,
though Canadians, were something of
that type; Julien d. Hayne was a
shining example Of 1t; and who will
ever forget those stalwart and uncom-
promising Americans, Blount and Will
lis, who came here to restore the
Queen? One gets all sorts of Ameri-
cans In a bunch but the nearer they re-
semble the old-style Island American
the better Americans they are. There
are no patriots so faithful as those who
have been long from home. The blood
always runs more warmly in the ex-
remities than 1t does about the heart;
and In the old times the national holi-
days were celebrated with more vim
and enthusiasm here than they were in
Boston itself. How the gorge rises
therefore when some Sinking, self
sufficient, Dragging and fag-waving
fresh blood" American arrives on the
beach and shouts: Stand aside there,
Make yourself scarcei Here's an Am
erican at last to show you how to run
things In the American way"