The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1905-02-17
DYING FAR
FROM HOME
Pathetic Plight of Ra.
mon Hernandez, a
Porto Rican.

Ramon Hernandez, poor, sick and
friendless, is dying of consumption al
the police station. Were it not for the
kindness of the High Sheriff and his
deputy he might be dying on the streets.
The laws of the Territory do not per
NIT the police to keep sick persons in
the jail when no charge stands against
them. But when Hernandez was pick
ed up in the gutter, too weak and sick
TO walk, they considered humanity
above the law and took him in. Yes
terday the officers made an attempt to
get the sick man into the Home for In
curables, but the reply came back that
the place was full. DR.. Sinclair said
that Hernandez had been an inmate
and had stolen sugar from the other
patients, even going into the swill-
barrel when he could find no sugar else
where. At any rate. there was no
room in the place for Hernandez. The
Queens Hospital could not take the
case the Lunalilo Home is for Hawaii
ans only. Philanthropists had provid-
ed for the natives, there were places for
the sick who had the price, but place
for poor Ramon Hernandez. He might
die in the gutter.
A PATHETIC STORY.
Ramon Hernandez is of medium
height and has a frank but pinched
face Last night he dragged himself
YEARLY from his hard pallet in a dark
cell and tottered across the cold floor
to the door. AS he told his story he
leaned heavily against the wall for he
was too weak to stand alone. MY
name is Ramon Hernandez; 1 twenty
two year Old he said in his broken
English. 81 have much bad cough in
here (tapping his chestl. 1t SO bad
I no can stand. 1 been sick for one
year and a half. l cough six or seven
months bad. 1 no can walk vera good.
See" Then he rolled up his shirt-sleeve
and showed his arm. It was a sicken-
ing sight The flesh was wasted away
so that a man might put his thumb and
finger around the upper arm and they
would meet with room to spare His
legs were mere bone with a covering
of skin. The pictures of Indian famine
victims are nothing beside this man.
81 was born in Lares, Porto Rico,
Hernandez continued, and he tried hard
TO keep back the tears when he thought
of his loved ones far away, while he
was dying, alone in a strange land. Il
came over here and work at Puunene.
Then I get sick. Bye and bye I go to
hospital at Kaimuki. I stay two
months. Then doctor say I steal sugar;
he say he going to put me in calaboose.
I no steal sugar. I never go to swill-
bucket. no can walk good; I too sick;
but I go away from hospital. [ very
sick now; all gone in here Indicating
his lungs). I go back to hospital. I
make no trouble; [ never make trou-
BILE [ very sick" Then at the dep
uty's word he tottered to his bed, lean |
ing on the wall for support, and lay
down.
Deputy Sheriff Rawlins was much !
stirred up over the affair. This is no |
place TO keep a sick man. he said, |
especially one who has tuberculosis |
and diabetes as he has. There are other |
we'll men in the jail and we must safe |
guard them. 1t is not right to put "a |
consumptiye in the last stages of the |
disease in a close. cell with well men. |
Then we have no right to keep him
when he has committed no crime. We |
cannot send him to Oahu prison, for |
there is no charge against him. Any
way the hospitals are continually tell
ing US to send our INDECENT sick to the
prison. We have no room for the man
except in a cell with we'll men and we
have no right to put him there. The
only thing we can do is to turn him
out in the street to die. Perhaps if we
did some one would wake up and do
something"