The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1904-12-09

physicians, not their sworn testimony,
and the unfortunate was sent away to
a hell upon earth to spend the rest of
his life at hard labor. In this con-
nectiOn he said it was notorious that
the Board of Health physicians were
always recruited from among the
youngest and most inexperienced sur
geons and yet it was on their say-so
that people were put away for a life
time without the chance of defence or
appeal Doctors might disagree and
very often did disagree. They often
make mistakes as do other men, yet
one of these mistakes would condemn
a fellow being to life Imprisonment I'M
der conditions too horrible to be rea-
lized.
Ashford appealed to the 14th Amend
ment to the Constitution of the United
States as a support and he though that
the whole matter of the laws regarding
leprosy in Hawaii might properly be
taken up by the Grand Jury.
Attorney General Andrews asserted
the right of any Board of Health to
immense powers which are both legal
such by the most eminent legal author
tiles. From a whole truck load of law
books he quoted precedent after pre-
cedent in which the rights of state and
federal officers and boards to restrain
persons suspected of having contagious
diseases, or having even been exposed
to contagion, was fully established.
'Leprosy" said the Attorney General
has been one of the scourges of the
world since Biblical times, perhaps be-
fore that. The dread disease made its
appearance here and indeed it is still
prevalent. The strictest methods are
necessary in order to cope with the
spread of this terrible curse and the
operations Of the Board of Health must
be both stringent and summary.
"TO say that the labor done by the
patients at the settlement makes Sc
gregation penal servitude is absurd.
What labor is done is paid for by the
Territory and only sufficient is per-
formed to keep the persons in as good
health as is possible under their un-
happy circumstances. They are i'm no
sense i'm penal servitude. They have
property rights are protected, they vote
at the polls and they have courts at
which they may get justice. This is
entirely different from being taken and
rushed off to some gloomy prison. That
it is a hardship on the unfortunates to
be thus unable to mix with their fellow
men freely is not for a moment denied
but the health of the people is the SUI
preme law"
Continuing the Attorney General said
that it was as absurd to suggest that
each leper should be tried by jury be-
fore being segregated as it would be
to try a smallpox or plague patient.
IF counsers argument holds i'm one
case it surely does i'm another" he said
I'VE might have a man with a bad case
of smallpox saying that the doctors
and everyone else was mistaken. He
would insist on appearing i'm court
here, get the usual adjournments and
all the time mix up with the rest of
the people. The same way with pla-
que patients and that would make a
nice state of affairs"
Matters such as that of leprosy he
doSSl lSu must ny IHeH very NATURE
be left i'm the hands of certain persons
with wide discretion and large power.
The United States would never inter-
fere with the police powers of states
or territories nor would it ever be held
that proper segregation of person suf-
fering from infectious or contagious
diseases, was a breach of the 14th
Amendment.
Judge Dole asked for briefs to be
submitted by Monday. In the mean
time Mrs. Kaipu will remain i'm the
detention station.