The Hawaiian gazette., 1900-07-27
COLOR LINE IN JURY.
Authorities Say the Best Men Were
Selected and Natives Not
Available.


on the list OF the Grand Jury as print
"a in the Advertiser OF Monday seem
90 have aroused the ire OF some OF tn,
prominent Hawaiians. They aileg,
that they have been treated very un
fairly.
The following self explanatory lettei
was received by the Advert SIR las
I evening and statement was curec
| from Henry Smith. clerk of the Judi
ciary Department relating to the meth.
cd followed In drawing the Grand Jury
The two communications follow:
! Editor Advertiser: 1t is not without
interest that 1 read and noted the lists
of Jurors CGrand and 1riaD as pub
lished in your issue of Monday, the 23rd
inst, they being the first oues drawn
under the new order of things. Since
we Hawaiians have been Americanized
although against our wish-we have
submitted ourselves to the inevitable
and have accepted our defeat with good
grace and now we have occasion to
brush up our memory and call to mind
the strong arguments used in favor of
annexation. Perhaps ii is unnecessary
for me to repeat those arguments at
present, they being varied and COM
pllcated, but you will allow me to call
your attention to your recent charges
against the natives for drawing the
color line. a charge that you have yet
to prove its verify. But in referring to
the said jury lists, especially to that of
the Grand" will you dare deny the
fact that a color line has been drawn?
IF SO, will you be kind enough to ex-
plain what the drawing of a color line
is? Perhaps you viii admit (and don't
see how you can get out of it, that that
muchly-feared line has really been
drawn, but lay the blame of It at the
door Of the Clerk of the Judiciary De-
partment, who is a lawaiian, and who
is responsible for the drawing up of
the lists. In that connection, it will be
of great interest o have the lists drawn
and submitted by the said clerk to the
c. j. for his approval placed at pub ic
exhibition, which might reveal how the
color line" has been drawn across the
names of HawaIlans. I'm only guess
ing. Mr. Editor. and perhaps I'm mis-
taken; but 1t looks very funny that not
Il single Hawaiian could be found ca =.
pable enough to serve as grand jur-
or. Pehaps because we are only new
ly-made Americans it is thought in
advisable for us to serve as grand"
Jurors; and that because we do not
yet understand American politics we
shall have to wait until we do know.
put iioW are We " hUOW IL SuCn COlOT
line" Is drawn-across our names? 1t
Is significant that you would acuse us
for doing what your own people are
very anxious to do themselves. How
ever, you are only keeping up with the
teachings of your missionary" party
which apparently is that what is
sauce for the goose Is not for the gan
der"-that it Is all right for the haoles
to draw the color line" but II Is very
wrong and sinful for the Hawaiians to
do so. Now, sir. Editor if that is what
you call American politics, you are well
come to it and keep It to yourself-we
will have none of it. Thanking you for
the space.
S. MEHEULA.
Here is what Henry Smith, the Clerk
of the Judiciary Department, has to
say concerning the method of drawing
jurles:
Hitherto the system of drawing juries
was as follows: By law lists of fifty
names of foreigners and fifty names of
Hawaiians were prepared in March and
September in each year. Every three
months these names are deposited in
one receptacle for foreigners and an
other for Hawaiians, and a panel of
twenty-four names drawn from the
fifty names each term. The drawing
ence of a/circuit judge. and the sum
mons issued to the Marshal to make
service upon the persons drawn from
each box or receptacle. The drawing
was always by lot and the names put
on pieces of paper, stirred in the box
and then drawn
In sthe case of jury summons for the
coming August term, Judge Humphreys
signed an order directing the High
Sheriff to draw and summon twenty
four jurors and another set of twenty
four names for trial Jurors. leaving the
matter of drawing to the High Sheriff.
Whether the High Sheriff selected them
offhandedly or by lot, 1 do not know.
Please ask him how he made up his
list.
Deputy Sheriff Chillingworth said
last evening that he was sorry that
the Hawaiians of the city We're dis
satisfied with the grand jury and be- |
lieved a color line had been drawn. |
In selecting the names of the members |
Of the grand jury Marshal Brown and |
tried to select the best men possible. |
We intended to include in the list an |
equal number of Hawaiians and for
Aigners, and We went over long list |
Dt prominent Hawaiians, endeavoring |
10 ind some of them who could be |
eligible. But In all cases we found that |
he men who were qualified by their
NhoWleuBe OF EnSlish were in govern
nent employ, or were members OF the
oar or were otherwise barred from sit
Ing on the jury. Some that would have
)een eligible were out of the city, 9TH
rs were i'll and in the whole list we
'ould find none eligible. All that were
placed on the list were substantial
'itizens, and such men as Mark p.
Robinson and r. w. Holt are on the list
10 1t cannot be said that we used any
lndue discrimination" :