The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1901-07-19
THE BILLS.


Acting Governor approved and was
heartily in sympathy with, but which
was Illegal. The veto was sustained in
both houses, and thus proved a victory
for the governor. who was supported
by a majority formed of Republicans
and Home Rulers.
The amount of knowledge displayed
as to what items were to be vetoed was
perfectly wonderful. 1t was decided
that the pension to the ex-Queen was
certain to be vetoed Why such an
idea should have got about one cannot
understand. That the eX-Queen should
nave a pension was plank in the Re-
publican as it was in the Home Rule
platform, 1t was not entirely Home
Rule measure. Moreover it was
measure which everyone knew had met
with certain amount of favor in Con-
gress. There could be no reason for
such an item to be vetoed, and yet
there We're people both inside and out
'ue Of the Legislature who fully be-
lieved such course of action.
That there We're many foolish and
unnecessary items in the appropria-
ton bills goes without saying, but the
responsibility for these lies with the
Legislature, not with the Governor. So
now, the responsibility for passing or
not passing the items in the loan act,
rests with the Legislature and not with
the Governor 1t was not the Cover
tn 10 r,1iGt al yaC
of the Legislature, it was his business.
however to correct an illegality, and
he did it. 1t was curious to see a man
who is for ever talking about the legal
aspect of matters, opposing the COVER
nor's veto and supporting an illegality.
1t showed the spirit of the gentleman.
With him it was evidently not a ques-
ton of legality or illegalty at all. 1t
was simply that the Governor had
exercised his right to veto. That was
enough. Like the Irishman who landed
at Castle Garden and discovered that
there was government. "Begorra,
I'm agin it," shouted the eccentric
member from the Fifth and though he
made much noise and one of his char
acteristic TRADES, ne found himself in
an insignificant minority. Personal
dislike does not win friends.
This is practically the end of the
great Legislative campaign of 1901. 1t
came in like a lion and it has gone out
like a lamb. When one looks back and
thinks how little has been accomplish
ed and how much there was really to
do, one is astonished at the waste of
time. When the laws passed during the
one hundred and twenty days are
bound up they will make very thin
pamphlet indeed.
The first sixty days were spent in
wrangling and in batting the executive
resulting in an abortive effort to Dust
the Governor. The only important
measures passed were the income tax
bill, which came from the Republican
side of the House, a bill altering the
method of drawing grand juries which
came from the First Circuit Court, a
bill dealing with the Supreme Court
and-a bill to reduce the tax upon lady
dogs, OF course there were few minor
bills. That was. the result of the first
sixty days.
The second sixty days started out
with the announcement that economy
was to be the order of the day The
Governors estimates were denounced
as extravagant and there was a gen
eral slashing of salaries all along the
line. But pretty soon attention was
called to the fact that Home Rule sym !
pathizers were being slashed as well
as the wicked Republicans. Then there
had to be revision, and the appropria-
tion bill was overhauled on personal
basis. over this there was an immense
amount of wire pulling and veering ana |
hauling. Finally it dawned upon the |
Legislators that the time was getting
very short and that unless they hurried |
up it was possible that the old appro-
priation bill would have to go into
This caused a hurrying up and in the
shuttle the Legislators forgot items
which they certainly. wanted to put in
The bills as they stand, with the
one exception mentioned above, were
approved by Acting Governor Cooper
and they are now law. After ALL with
some unnecessary additions and omis-
sions these bills assimilate to the Gov
ernor's original estimates. So again
the Legislature spent sixty days in
and brought out a result
which might have been settled in
thirty, giving ample time for revision
and consideration.
The record is by no means a salts
factory one. In neither session has the
Legislature as a body brought out
power of leadership or of statesman
ship. 1t has developed Grass and eyre
gious folly in the persons of some of it's
members and has wrecked not a few
OF course there We're some
parties who had no regulations to
wreck, and they very thoroughly show
ed that that was the case. Time has
been wasted, money has been wasted