The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1902-01-14

Co.,. of tine most Important matters
for the Territory Too consider is the
wilcox leper BILL AS long as it was
Congressman Kahns leper bin it was
not nearly so dangerous as it is now
under it's present fatherhood. For the
danger lies i'm the fact that the Dele
gate from Hawaii has himself propos-
ed a bin which ne should have fought
tooth and nail BY whom he may have
been hypnodsed, and under what cir
Cumstances he should be so hypnotised
of course we at present do not know
but we shall learn i'm time The prob
ability is that Wilcox dreams of some
advantage from Kahn, and the prob
able result viii be that Wilcox will be
cast aside as a sucked orange.
It is an old superstition both in Eu-
rope and Asia that evil spirits cannot
enter d house unless they are invited
TO enter This forms the burden of
legend upon legend. There is always
some foolish person, or some person
pulled up with pride who admits the
evil spirit and then the trouble begins.
The legends of medieval Europe and
of ancient India seem to be on the
point Of being realized here The evil
spirit of a national Iazaretto has been
lowering around us but had no means
OF reaching us because we kept our
Island doors shut. But the inevitable
marplot of the legend has turned up in
the person of Delegate Robert Wilcox
and all our precautions have gone for
naught
In this matter there should be a
strong expression Of feeling from those
who are most likely to suffer. The Ha-
waiian lepers are most assuredIy going
10 suffer. They will be experimental
upon and worried and have fallacious
hopes put before them, and in general
be made pretty miserable. The pres
enCe of alien lepers from other states
and territories will certainly not add
10 their happiness. At present, how
ever, the Hawaiians, have been told by
their Delegate that the move is a good
one, and that they may look forward
TO being cured. They do not know, and
probably Delegate Wilcox does not
know, that the British Government in
India has had a reward of S1OO 600 ready
for years for any one who will supply
a cure for leprosy, and no cure has
been found, though hundreds of at
tempts have been made, and at times
success looked possible, only to be fol-
lowed by the dismalness of failure and
reaction.
The people who are most likely to
suffer by this being made a national
lazaretto are the hotel proprietors and
the retailers. At least they will be the
people who will feel the pinch first
These depend very largely for their
profits upon the tourist trade. The
moment these Islands become nation
al lazaretto the tourist trade, which is
now being so carefully built up, will
betake itself elsewhere. and those who
have fitted up rooms and prepared fine
dining halls and parlors, furnished
sumptuously, will find the rooms I'M
tenanted, and the spacious dining halls
and reception rooms empty so much
valuable capital will have been locked
mp, and will not be able to be unlocked.
The retail trader who has got in an
attractive stock of goods will find his
merchandise deteriorating on his hands.
1t will not be saIeable to the class for
which he had prepared, because that
class will have given the Islands the
go by
1t will be no good protesting after
the event This is the favorite method
of our rather dilatory community.
When the thing is done we begin to
howl but the howl should come before
the thing is done. Protest after pro-
test and argument after argument
should go forward to Washington. We
have friends in both Houses who can
be appealed to, and who can be shown
what injury will be dealt to us if the
bill passes. No stone should be left UNI
turned to prevent the consummation of
this terrible bill
The question has many sides, hui
manitarian, political, commercial fin
ancial, hygienic all of which have in
turn been argued in these columns. But
whatever side is taken up only one con-
clusiOn can be reached by a fair and
clear stated argument and that is that
the passage of the bill and its becom-
ing law, will be one Of the greatest, if
not the greatest wrongs that could be
perpetrated upon the Territory. And to
think that the blow has been dealt by
a hand which should have protected
us.