The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1902-08-18
A PATH OF pitfalls.

A PATH OF PlTIFALD.
Col Iaukea writes a letter to one OF
the evening papers on city and county
government, from which this extract Is
made:
You will pardon me however, Tor
saving in reply that L nave no HShl
with the Morning Terror, as YOU
term it, The Advertiser represents
a very influential element, ana 1ur tlei-
more constitutes an essential FACTOR III
the roIiticaI party to which l. belong.
: am not ashamed TO say either tnat
think the business community IN oppos-
ing the municipal government meas VI
does so conscientiously DelleVlhS tnd1
i would be for the best Ihat the III
novation will be fraught with some
doneer must be admitted My conten-
ton is, however, that it is the least eViI
of the two. 1 mean by this, that IL
would he better for the business inter-
ests to suffer some inconvenience
which can only be temporary than 10
continue 70 keep the Hawaiian voters
at arms length. The feeling OF resen a,,
ment for loss of hearth and nome
still fingers in the Hawaiian's breast.
To keep saying to him thou shah not
have thy full measure" which after All
was the price paid for his heritage
seems to me a dangerous experiment
We are dealing with Americans now
and not Hawaiian subjects. Under
American institutions the people gen
orally win in the long run.
Inconvenience" from higher taxa
ton incurred for no better purpose
than to soothe resentment and to give
part of the community chance TO hold
more offices and handle more approprl-
ations, cannot justly be called tempo
rary." 1t must last as long as the sys-
tenn of government lasts which causes
il AS for Hawaiian resentment or any
other kind, nobody wants to incur 1t;
but this paper believes. that, if the tax
PAYERS are compelled, by the votes OF
taxpayers, to pay three sets OF OF
ficials for doing the work OF one ana
then have things maladministered in
the usual Home Rule way, there VIII
be aroused a species of resentment
strong enough to secure some basic
changes in the organic law. We only
need to remind Col. Iaukea of Delegate
FIynn's warning that if things do not
go smoothly in Hawaii Congress which
gave may take away. and after that
provide US with a colonial government
like those projected for Porto Rico and
the Philippines. And this is not the
only possibility in point.
The Home Rule theory of city and
government is entirely one of
spoils; but at best all the ambitious
ones cannot hold office and the major
ity, lacking that relief, would have to
depend for a livelihood upon the pros
perity of the taXpaying and business
classes Now the point we wish to
make is that if the property
and employing classes are crippled by
higher taxes, the Hawaiians will be the
first to suffer acutely. Unlike some
other elements in the body-politic they
are a peculiarly dependant race. If
times are hard they cannot go away
as can the other people here; and there
are but few lines of work in which they
are proficient. We have the word of
Col. Iaukea in his recent letter to the
Advertiser that they are growing poor
er as it is. If that is so, when pros
perity has only begun to decline, what
will become of them if business conf
dence shall be destroyed by higher taxes
and bad government? Do not think
that we overrate the effect of either
condition. 1t is the experience of every
mainlander that as taxes go up less
money is spent on landed improve
ments and fewer loans can be had; and
when there is any question about the
character of local administration add
ed, capital at once withdraws like tur-
tie into it's shell, and outsiders-those
who have no sheJls-have to take
Whatever comes. Wages go down
and jobs are fewer. What food, shell
ter and money the average Hawaiian
gets is due to the prosperity of the
whites. Cut that prosperity twenty
five per cent and the resources of the
native Hawaiian decrease 10 per cent.
Can he stand it2 Can he be sure of
getting an office So as to meet the
strain?
AS this paper has said before, there
will come d system of city and county
government in time; but it is equally
true that the longer we put off the
time, the better for the livelihood of
the masses.
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