The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1904-12-28

| terms on the islands outside of Oahu,
| it being the expectation that as the
county act then passed would go into
force on the LIST day of January, 1904,
the additional work of representing the
Territory at these added terms would
not fall upon the Attorney Generals Of
nee, but upon the new county attorneys
The immediate result however. was TIC
increase the work of this department
Between the last of September. 1903,
and the Both of June, 1904, there have
been thirteen circuit terms held, AT
which 1856 criminal cases have been
tried and disposed of, resulting in 13i
convictions and IS acquittals: and to
| this should be added the work of the
various grand juries and the prosecu-
/ ton of offenders charged with rnisde-
meanors.
In addition to this jury work the At
torney Generals Office has argued in
Is cases in the Supreme Court. 10 of
which have been decided in favor of the
| Territory, and has tried 81 civil cases
| for the Territory
| Mr. Dole in his report for the period
ending December 81, 1902, recites that
| IN two and one-half years he had rem
dered 341 legal opinions to the depart
ments. Since February j, 1903, and up
to June 80, 1904. the Attorney Gener-
ais office has rendered 439 opinions to
the various departments and to the
Legislature, of which 2S7 were rendered
within the period covered by this re-
port. In addition thereto, within the
last year the Attorney Generals Office
has had 654 oral consultations with
heads of departments and has drawn
for i, II.
leases and other legal papers. In adj
d1tlon to these ma tters the Attorney
Generals office for the first time in
many years has, at the request of the
Treasurer handled suits for delinquent
taxes on the Island of Oahu
While the Federal Judiciary Depart
ment is thus treated by United States
District Attorney Breckonst:
During the early part of the year the
local officers of the United States Dis
trict Attorneys Department became
convinced of the existence within the
Territory of some kind of an organi-
cation whose operations were resulting
in the Importation of women from Ja-
pan for the purpose of prostitution, and
in many instances in the holding of
them to condition of slavery within
the Territory. Systematic and persist
ent work finally resulted in the I'M
earthing of everything connected with
this organization. Ample evidence was
secured, showing the methods employ
ed by the organization, and the names
and addresses of the members, about
IS in number. During the year all of
the members were indicted, and about
two-thirds of them convicted and pun
ished, their sentences ranging from four
to eighteen months. The prosecution
in these cases was not directed so
much toward the suppression of prosti-
tuition as against the importation of
women into the United States for the
purpose of prostitution, and the hold
ing of women to slavery.
A kindred class OF cases handled dur
ing the year related to the sale by male
japanese of their wives to other Japan
ese. Many instances were unearthed
in which japanese husbands had, by
written bill of sale, made direct trans
eers of their wives In almost every
case discovered indeed, there was dis
covered also a written bill of sale, the
document being nearly always couched
in legal phraseoIogy, resembling quite
~ 4
cnattels in use in the United States.
In both classes of cases above re- |
ferred to the sentences inflicted We're
lenient. Their prosecu- |
ton among the japanese was treated |
by the department as more or less edu- |
cational in its nature. In nearly all |
of the cases it appeared that the prac-
tees INDUCED in by the japanese were |
not considered by them as particularly |,
criminal in their nature. Most of the !
came into court and frank |
ly admitted all the facts, stating, how |
ever, that they were not aware of the
existence of any law i'll the United |
States making these practices unlaw-
full.
The prosecutions have had in my
judgment, a most beneficial effect. Sew
eral of the Japanese newspapers pub |
lished in Honolulu have contained full
accounts of the pro ceedings, and the
entire japanese population have by this |
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