Evening star., 1902-08-28
RACE ISSUE IN HAWAII
WILCOX AND HIS PARTY HAVE
FORCED I4s 1PPEARANcE,
q u.
Whites Of Both Parties and Native
Boilers From Clone Rule"
aantl win Fuse.
Special The Evening Star.

HONOLULU, T. H. August 13, 1902
As far as the present political campaign
in Hawaii has gone 1t appears that the
race issue is more than ever the real line
of division. and 1t begins to seem that this
Is to be the future alignment In Hawaii
the whites against the natives It is the
choice of the natives under the leadership
of Delegate to Congress r. W. Wilcox All
through the last campaign and ever since
the whites, both the missionary element and
to a large extent the other element, have
tried to keep this issue down, but the home
rule element, led by Wilcox. has begun a
campaign based on nothing else than race
feeling. and If this campaign is successful
the idea prevails in some quarters that the
best thing the whites can do Is to accept
the issue. make a race division and give the
natives all the fight they want along that
line.
In Honolulu the government offices are
full of native HaWaiians, placed there by
Governor Dole and his appotntees. All over
the islands they are In Offices Of every kind
under the government. Yet the home rule
orator. like Congressional Delegate Wilcox.
Is able to tour the islands with speeches
that are nothing but efforts to fan race
prejudice and by doing so to win applause
from large audiences Of natives.
This line of race distinction, always evil
dent in the last campaign to the politician,
Is beginning to be more apparent In this
campaign than it was in the last. Congress
sional Delegate Wilcox Is more bold in his
addresses along the lines of race prejudice
than he was before. If there was any
have been, that he was elected to Congress
purely in the character of royalist, there
is no reason why such doubt should exist
IL he is elected again.
Wilcox has among his advisers and lieu
tenants several Hawaiians who are edu-
Gated men, graduates Of the leading Ameri-
can colleges. They are not less bigoted on
the race issue than the rank and file. It
seems that color Will tell. Wilcox will win
this time the election to Congress. and his
party will gain control of the Hawaiian
legislature simply on the issue Of race dis
tinction, or the victory will not be gained
at all.
Under these conditions the republi-
can and democratic parties are preparing
the Wilcox party, are not unlikely to go in
with them. This defines the issue as "any-
thing to beat WILCOX on every hand. The
outlook at present Is that the republicans
and democrats and bolting home rulers
will all nominate a republican for Con-
gress. and a mixed ticket for the legislature
will be named, each party's representation
being based on the partys voting strength.
Such fusion would make defeat of vii
cox and his anti-white crowd certain, II
anything like the same voting strength as
was shown last time remains to the demo-
cratic and republican parties.
A somewhat unique figure in Hawaiian
politics is Mrs. r. W. Wilcox, Princess
Theresa as she is called, who was with
her husband in Washington for part of
the last sessions. In Honolulu Mrs. Will
cox Is sometimes called the ''delegatess"
and she is known q quite active cam
paigner Some months ago she started a
paper, in which home rule principles were
warmly advocated, but 1t was suspended
until a week ago, when it made its reap
pearance. and began again the propaganda
of race prejudice.
"If the present line of political contest
keeps up said one prominent white cit
izen to the writer of these lines there is
nothing for it but the whites must acknowi-
edge that the line of political division is a
race line, and make 1t such. If the natives
going to insist on a race issue let the
whites admit 1T and fight the issue. At
present the white parties are wooing the
natives. They are helping them. placing
them in government positions and in every
way trying to bury race prejudices. But
If they have to meet an insistence upon a
race line from the Hawaiians they can do
SO, and can down them, and il 1t comes to
that they will do So.
This represents the attitude of consid-
cradle element 1t seems that events are
shaping themselves toward that end. and
that 1t Is to be whites against Hawaiians
for some time in Hawaii. The present
campaign will tell, for one defeat set Ties the
home rulers.