The Independent. [volume] (Honolulu, H.I.) 1895-1905, 1902-08-04
Duties Of Citizenship
n. G. PaCheCO's Eloquent Ap-
peal 10 Portuguese TO Be-
come American Citiz ms,

meeting OF the Portuguese Political
Club on Friday evening last, was as
follows.
"Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen. L
must say that am proud to stand here
this evening and address this gather
ing, composed, as it is. of the flower Of
the Portuguese colony, but perhaps |
should call this intelligent audience
the budding flowers of our colony, be-
cause as / look around me this eve
ming l only see, with few exceptions,
the younger generation represented.
The old men are satisfied to sit back
to criticise, encourage or abuse us and
to form the tail end of the procession.
"In this age of the survival of the
| fittest the young men are giving the
| old men hard race in the struggle.
for living, in business, in politics,
and might add, also, love, but it is
unnecessary, because at the game of
hearts the old men have no show at
all with us young fellows; they have
to take back seat
Gentlemen, we have organized our
selves into a political club, having for
our objects the promotion of our po-
young men of the Portuguese colony,
possessing the necessary qualfica-
tions, to become naturalized Ameri-
can citizens, so that they may assert
their rights and have voice in the
political affairs of this Territory.
The question of renouncing our coun-
try in order that we may be able to
exercise the privileges of American
citizenship and assume it's RESPONSE
bilities, is naturally an important one.
Having been taught by our fathers the
traditions of our country-traditions
of which we all feel proud-there is
very naturally doubt in the minds of
some young men as to whether they
should renounce their mother country
and swear allegiance to another. To
those who entertain this doubt, | will
put the question: How many of you
intend to return to Portugal some day
to pass the rest of your days and enjoy
the money you are making in America
today? | am quite sure there is not
; one in this audience of the younger
generation who has that intention
because you all know that the condi
tons to be met with there would soon
compel you to return to America.
1--WE all love the traditions of oul
country. We are proud of its past, we
love 1t for what it is to us, and we hope
much for it's future. AS the American
citizen feels his patriotic blood tingle il
q his veins while reading the early pages
3 of his country's history, SO our hearts
throb as we remember the gloriou.
, history of our own country. Is there
one in this audience whose patriotic
soul is so dead as not to feel his heart
swell with pride as he recalls the Isl
day of December, 1910? On that mem
orable day our forefathers threw of
the Spanish yoke of misrule and CD
1 preston and restored to us our indie
pendence, Gentlemen, it is not my in
tention to refer here to the incident.
and causes that led up to tat heroic
struggle against the naughty Spaniard
because it is matter of histor,
r and engraved on the hearts of all 10y
al and patriotic Portuguese.
q Suffice 1t to say that it was com
Is paratiyely only handful of on
II countrymen who undertook the stuper
10 dous task of wrestling their indepent
10 ence from the powerful Spanish of tha
[. day. Those heroes were fired by tn