The Honolulu republican. [volume] (Honolulu, T.H.) 1900-1902, 1901-03-16
SHOULD BE RECONSTRUCTED.

SHOULD BE REcoNSIDERED.
The first act of the Senate upon the
assembling of that body today should
be to reconsider the resolution pre-
scented by Senator Brown and adopted
by the Senate yesterday providing for
the printing of the transactions of the
Senate as reported by the stenograph-
er and abolishing the printing of the
journal as prepared by the clerk. In
voting for Mr.. Browns resolution the
majority of the Senate permitted
themselves to be tricked as cleverly as
ever a majority of any body was trick
ed by the minority. The object Of
Senators Brown and Carter is to have
stenographic report of the entire
transactions of the Senate printed and
certified to as the official record of the
proceedings in order that they may
subsequently be able to show that the
proceedings were not conducted in the
English language as the Clerks jour
nal shows.
The Organic Act says that each
house shall keep journal. A journal
of the house does not mean a steno-
graphic. report of each and every
speech and every minute transaction
of the Senate. 1t means simply a
record of the proceedings. Such record
must be kept by the Clerk and not by
the stenographer. Clerk Caypless is
quite competent to keep the journal
of the Senate and anything else is
superfuous and out of place.
Furthermore than that the printing
of a stenographic report of the trans
actions of the Senate will involve the
spending of several thousands of dol
lars to no good purpose. The indie
pendent Senators cannot afford to
place themselves in the position of be-
ing responsible for the heaviest ex-
penditures ever incurred by any Sen
ate assembled in Hawaii. or course
if the minority can prevail upon the
extravaganza II will be just what they
want. II would afford them a good
campaign cry for 1902 to be able to
say to the voters: why you indie
pendent Senators spent more money
for the Senate than was ever done be-
fore in the history of Hawaii" The
purpose of the minority is well ex-
emplified by this action and should be
the final means of opening the eyes of
the majority TO the studied determin-
alton of their opponents to cause as
much clashing of the Senate proceed
action of business as possible-with the
sole view of blocking legislation and
holding the Home Rule element up to
ridicule. Do the majority members
of the Senate wish TO place themselves
in this position?
No other State or Territory Of the
United States keeps stenographic
report of its transactions. much less
does ii have such a report printed.
Not even the great and wealthy State
of New York. or the State of Califor-
MIA, prints anything more than the
journal kept by the clerk of the SEN
ate Congress alone. of all the legis- |
lauve bodies in America. provides for |
n stenograpmc report of all the trans |
actions including the speeches on the |
floor and that practice in Congress
only dates. back little more than a |
generation. For the little Territory of |
Hawaii to proceed to such an act of
extravaganza is ridiculous. II is worse /
than ridiculous, il is harmful TO the
Territory in that it sets US before the
people of the worla as being vain and /
foolish aud undertaking an extrava-
gance that no old and rich State
was ever guilty OF.
Reconsider your action of yesterday
Messrs- Senators and set yourselves
right before the people and before the
taxpayers of Hawaii. The only record
Of your proceedings that you want or
should try TO keep is the journal as
kept by the clerk. IL that does not
suit the minority and they want steno-
graphic reports OF their repeated
let them pay for them out
af .taeir own pockets. Don't saddle