The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1902-01-04
MI CALL FOR POLITICAL
PARTIES IN THESE ISLANDS
No National issues Here-.--What the
AngIo-Saxon is Confronted
With.---SeIf-RuIe.

| this doctrine with any FAVOR. 1HtS ciilII
and with much force, that such unio
for local purposes is dangerous an
alarming weakening of party allegiance
and if they temporarily submit TO it,
is because the voters have lost thei
heads. The reformers are, however, in
, creasing rapidly. The institution of civi
service is one of their strongest allies
The habit of following the party ma
chimes is iron clad. 1t is only by ham
mering for half century that its rivet
have been broken by the best thought o
the country.
An unbiased looker-on here. sharing
the views OF the President and of these
later day men who are old in ex.
perience would. if he addressed the
Americans of this Territory. say:
After all your affairs are purely local
You have no power in the National
councils You Will remain a Territory
for an indefinite period. Your supreme
object should be to secure good local
government. If Greater New York
with its three millions of people, has at
last suspended or tried to suspend party
allegiance in its own affairs, you with
your ten thousand less men of Teu-
! tonic blood and your one hundred and
| forty thousand Aliens are in infinitely
greater need of avoiding distractions
among yourselves from party differences.
| What is your condition, after all?
/ Does il not occur to you that on strictly
party lines, there may be more demo-
Gratis than republicans here? Have you
ever polled the Teutonic voters on these
lines?
There are special reasons for covering
up party lines here which do not exist
on the mainland According to the GEN.
sus of 1896, there are more British and
German males here. by five hundred
than there are Americans. These men
you sOrely need as co-operators in estab-
fishing good government. What do the
British and Germans know about repub-
licanism or democracy? No more than
you the Americans, know or care about
the differences between Conservatives
and Liberals in England. What do the
Germans know or care about the Amer
lean parties? No more than you know
and care about the differences between
the Agrarians and Socialists of Ger
many. All of these men, however. do
care for good government, because it
touches their interests. You confuse
them with meaningless terms when you
take them off clear and definite basis
of action. You need and must have their
aid and comfort, for you are only a for
lorn hope overmatched in numbers by
an alien population. What do the Portu-
gueSe know about the merits of the great
parties? If they were all educated men
they might choose for themselves. But
a new class of Latins are growing up,
native born American citizens, who can
understand in some measure what good
government means, if ii is not involved
with gold standards and tariff pro-
lection There are besides these, many
native born Asiatics who will soon out
number you in votes, and to them party
issues will be meaningless for a genera
ton. AS they are thrifty they can under
stand the meaning of good government
without joining either of the great par
ties for direction.
they have, neither by inheritance or ed
ucat:on, any serious knowledge of, the |
real nature of the political parties; it is !
only Anglo-SaXons who can comprehend |
their merits. Moreover, it is absurd 20 !
expect that they should. The native ele- |
ment will act generally on racial lines. !
just as the negro acts in the Southern +
States. 1t will be republican or demo- |
rrat according to the humor of the hour
always as unstable as water and always
4 standing menace to good government
until a new party, which puts aside ma
tional issues and holds the best men OF
the Territory faces it squarely and fol-
ows the example of the Anglo Saxon as
L is clearly indicated in his relations
with races which lie across his pathway.
You may ask, should not all of these
mixed races be now educated in Amerf-
AN partisanShip? Certainly. and in due
line. But the duty of the present hour
s not to encourage the confusion of
but to weld together those
who can understand the value or goo
OcaI self rule. You must take things as
you find them, and refuse to apply a rule
If action here because it works well in
mother place under different conditions.
Only an insignificant part of the Terri
orial population understand what self
government means; but the majority OF !
he people Of the mainland do know
what it really is. To apply the same rule
o both bodies is political as well as
mistake. even an abSurd.ty.
You may urge that the republican par
Y should be solid in Washington; that
$. advise and dictate. if possible, who
he ofice-holdcrs should be. Some recent
appointments indicate the doubtful value
II such solidity. Does it not occur to
-ou that a good government party.
Presenting a solid front to the National
Executive. may he more powerful than
my party Claim2 Do YOU not see that
ecently, the Chambers of Commerce of
he mainland have put aside partsan-H'n
nd demand of Congress the reformpt ,t
# the Consular service? y few year
ince Congress would have laughed at
uch an insult to the party leaders
'oday these commercial bodies are lis
ened to. because to the members OF
hcsc bodies the politicians must appeal
or campaign money. solid good gov
Inment party. in this Territory how
men, persistently working on the broad
st lines among all classes is, perhaps
he safest and wisest plan for shaping
ur political duties. Such a party, con
picuous here and making itself manifest |
n Washington, will always have the
ar Of the Executive before any partisan
hip claims
The foregoing are the words which,
elieve, an impartial onlooker would use
he addressed us.
l believe that the ignorance of nine 4,
enths Of the people of this Territory of
ne nature of American institutions is
. dernoralizing 10 good government that
be trend of events within n few years =
ill be the withdrawal Of the elective I
.anchise by Congress. and the direct i,
ale of the people by appointment from
Washington But this will be done only
trough men who are residents " the
err;tory, and Il good government par
may be all powerful i'm designating the
len. To some extent. the people %