The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1903-02-05
SMITH HAS
BEGUN WORK
He Talks of His
Mission to
Press.
The Case of This
Territory Is
Presented.
Will Be Better Undertaking or
Mainland of Matter
at Issue.

The San Francisco Call has hao
talk with Mr.. w. o. Smith, who went
TO the Coast on the Hongkong Maru,
hound on a mission to present at Wash
ington the protests of the local com
mercial bodies against the proposed ac-
ton of Congress in reference TO the
decentralization of the leper settlement
and the immediate turning over OF the
public lands of the Territory to the
nation. In interviewing Mr.. Smith, the
Call says:
William owen Smith, who represents
rho commercial bodies of the Territory
of Hawaii. arrived yesterday on the
Hongkong Maru and is en- route 10
Washington He is going to the nation
al capital to vigorously protest against
tbe recommendations of the Senate
Committee on Hawaiian Affairs on the
questions of establishing Federal land
laws in the Territory and the PROPOSE
ton of making the leprosy settlement
at Molokai a general leper settlement
for the whole country. Regarding these
questions he said:
"At the Islands it is deemed that the
Federal land laws are not suited to the
conditions that exist there. There are
hut a very few sections of the Islands
where the law could be made applicable
at all and in those cases there Would
be very little demand for land under
the Federal land laws excepting Tor the
purpose of speculation.
'srhere was a well defined land sys-
tenn under the monarchy for more than
a hundred years, and about 1S4S new
and carefully considered system was
adopted. This was known as the great
mahele." Homestead laws were adopt
ed later. and finally in 1895, general
land act was enacted relating to the
remaining public lands.
This was largely based on the New
Zealand system, which system WORKED
admirably in New Zealand ana unoei
circumstances more akin to those tha'
exist in Hawaii than any other system
| with which the government is famlllar
'Under the act Of 1895 the acquisition
of land for homestead purposes is made
| easy and inexpensive and the opportun'
i.y for speculation is very small. The
system is not perfect one, and doubt
| less could be improved. But the area
/ Of public lands remaining suitable To-
| bomesteaders is limited and under al
the circumstances it would seem to b'
extremely unwise to wholly disregard
! the experience of the past and adopt al
entirely new system.
1.-THE subject of leprosy is one of yer!
/ grave Importance and deep interest t
the people of the Islands, and especial
Iy to the native Hawaiians. There ar
i now about nine hundred inmates
| the settlement of Molokai. OF thes
less than ten are white persons, abou
thirty are Asiatics, perhaps a dozen o
other nationalities, and the balanc
native Hawaiians. Under the circum
stances it would be most unwise t
Introduce from abroad strangers int
this settlement.
They would be undoubtedly a disturb
ing element and mar the peace an
harmony of this unique communit!
} Moreover, to compel people from var
I Gus parts of the mainland, men, We
/ men, boys, and girls, to go from 2,OC
I to 5000 miles to what would be FOL
eign country, would be grieVou
= wrong. Unaccustomed to the languag
y habits and traditions of the strang
I land they never would be happy an
i they would simply be sentenced to
: living death.
: AT the Molokai settlement the pr
y tients are cared for and their wan
: provided for by the government. Co
| tages are provided and home life
o encouraged as far as practical. The
Il are several institutions at the settl
! ment for the care of the young ar
helpless. One, a home for girls know
as the Bishop Home was endowed |
Charles r. Bishop. Another for DO!
was endowed by H. p. Baldwin. II
girls are cared for by the Francisco
10 Order, of Syracuse, New York, and Il
o boys by Catholic brothers, under Il
u management of an American, veters
? of the Civil War. The whole plan HI
been worked out with great care al
consideration and is admirably adapt'
to the circumstances of the case. :
If alterations or charges should be MAJ
d in the settlement
nnNT0AEIa NIO E/TNT