Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-01-12
Special Committee Appointed
by Senate to Investigate
Makes It's Report
,i.EPRosY is VERY PREVALENT
The Subject Is Given Special Atten-
tion and Congress Urged to Take
Prompt Aetion-cIaims Of ex.oueen
LiliouakaIani Considered and Recon-
msndation That She Be Paid s5oo,ooo.

washington, Jan. I2.-Ihe senate
8 committee on Porto Rico and the Pa
cific islands met today to receive the
at the close of the las. session of con-
eress to Investigate conditions in the
Hawiian islands. This sub committee
consisted of Senators Mitchell of Ore
gon, Burton of Kansas, Foster of Wash
lngton, Cockrell of Missouri and Black
burn of Kentucky. The last two named
did not visit the islands, but Senator
Blackburn Joined in the recommends
lions, numbering twenty-six. The visit
10 the islands was made last September
and covered twenty-fiv days, during
which time forty-three meetings We're,
hold and 40 witnesses We're interro-.
gated.
The Investigation was general and
covered all questions with which the
government possibly could be con-
cerned, including the laws, local and
federal, and their execution, the pupnc
iaads, labor. the plantations, the mar
bt,rs, taxation. the leprosy settlement,
Queen Liliuokalani's claims and other
subjects. The condition OF affairs IN the
leper settlement on the island OF Molo-
kai excited the liveliest interest.
The committee made quite thorough
inquiry concerning this settlement,
which is under territorial control, with
the result that 1t recommends that the.
management of the colony be trans
ferred to the marine hospital service,
with headquarters IN Washington, and
that general leprosario or retreat for
q all the lepers OF the United States be
established on that island.
81 At the time OF the visit Of the com-
mittee there were S5S leprous patients
In the settlement. The opinion is ex-
pressed that .there are many hundreds
OF other cases of lepross in the terri
tory. In the past year in the Molokaii
settlement there were IA dearns and
sixteen births in the colony. eight of the
children born being illegltimate.
Much diversity of opinion was found
In the territory as to whether the con-
troll OF the settlement should be retained
by the territorial government, tho all
the territorial officers were found to be
favorable to such retention. The COM
mittee takes strong grounds in favor OF
change, and in this connection freely
discusses the conditions with reference
TO morality which prevails. saying:
.sYour committee has been somewhat
surprised to find that under the exist
ing mana gement of The leper settle
,nent lnaIscriminate legitimate and ille-
sitimate cohabitation is permitted IN
the settlement. Marriages are SUFFERED
~ he celebrated between leprous nten
and women, regardless OF their physi-
raj condition. Children are born IN
the settlement of leprous union ana as
q result of ccncubinage, and. strange
"a ii may appear, the leading ofnc1ais
seem to regard allsthis not only as per-
missible, but protest vigorously asaihs.
3. system OF segregation that ~ouie
prevent Il"
Further along the committee says
tbat unrestricted illegitimate associa-
+ tim fs permitted By the authorlties,
and add:
.The only attempt seemingly to abate
~ minimize this evil is by counseling
and earnestly urging marriage on the
mart of lepers, even going SO far in this
direction as to add in facilitating di-
yorces where a leprous man or woman
mas q wife or husband outside of the
settlement. SO that the husband and
wife thus released from the marriage
oblipation might again be married to
lener and inmate of the leper settle
ment."
In connection with its discussion of
the labor question. the committee taxes
up the effort on the part of the business
men Of the islands to secure the re-
!, r1aoyal OF some of the restrictions on
daSjra iS
conceded to be very general, but sena-
tors Mitchell and Foster, representing
a majority Of the subcommittee, take
very positive ground in oppositlon.
Thev say that the conditions are not
different in the islands from what they
are on the mainland, and make the US
ual argument against Chinese adinis-
sion. They contend also that the Chi-
nese do much to introduce ana MAINTAIN
bubonic plague and other contagious
diseases.
Senator Burton takes the opposite
view. He says that neither the natives
nor white men will work in the sugar
fields and he calls attention to the Tree
dom with which Oriental labor was
brought in in the days of the monarchy.
at is.a he says. "a we'll known facs that
the country over there was very pros
nerous when it was Kingdom, anu
continued very prosperous unoef 1he
provisional government and under the
republic. It's period of decline pegan
with annexation and matters have gone
on under annexation from bad to worse
until today the spectre OF nard times Is
found everywhere thruout the ISLANDS.
He says the Chinese are preferaple
to the japanese and he urges that 1t is
unfair discrimination TO allow the lat
ter to come in unrestricted and not to
hermit the former to come in at all he
suggests that Chinese be allowed to
enter to perform agricultural labor and
for no other purpose.
Much space is devoted to discussion
OF the administration of the pubic
lands of the territory, and the commit
tee finds that the policy pursued in Ha-
wall with reference to those lands Is
directly contrary to the policy pursued
in the United States. 1t is remarked