Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1908-03-07
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FROM rtiE NEwSMAN,S NOTES

chance that Congress, in its work OF
Codifying the criminal statutes of the
United States, may leave out the Ed
munds Act. see also that this has
caused great alarm among the minis.
ters of Honolulu and that they are
lighting tooth and toe-nail to have
the statute kept on the books with
out modification, the Ministerial AS
ISOLATION having sent Congress a me-
mortal urging that the law be kept
intact.
The ministers are, of course, hon
est in their belief, but believe that
Hawaii would be much better OFF II
they were to lose the fight. Despite
the theory back of the enforcement
of the law, 1t looks as II more harm
is done to morals, regulations and
character, with little compensating
good. by the enforcement of this
meddlesome statute, than by any
moral laxity which may exist in the
Territory. Virtue by legal enact
ment must be en- unsatisfactory kind
of virtue at the best, and in this in
stance the only apparent effect of the
law, aside from providing a handy
bludgeon for people with grudge, is
to keep hidden acts which are appar-
emily not lessened in prevalence.
II the Edmunds Act were fairly en-
forced, there might be that much to
say in its favor. But the Federal Of
f1cials say themselves that they en-
force the act only when complaint is
made by some outside party. That is
TO say, they never act unless some
man or woman who wants to get
even with someone else, or who has
some other axe to grind, "sics EN-
on"
There are occasionally instances
where. perhaps, since we have no
Territorial law which provides for
the punishment of men who desert
their families, an arrest and punish
ment under the Edmunds Act might
seem to be justified, though 1t is
doubtful If any real good ever comes
cure the punishment of particular
Oifense.
But even in cases where there
might seem to be shadow of an ex-
cuse for the enforcement of this law,
there is no assurance that the Of
fender will be punished. An in
stance of this kind occurred recently,
when a well-known man of Honolulu
left his wife and several children,
broke up the home of friend, and
after being the cause of a. divorce in
hit family, was arrested upon COM
plant of living in open defiance OF
The law with his friends" former
wife. Yet this case was dropped. -
without trial or hearing of any sort,
msrsls because the arrested man
taup,u-d to have influential friends
who nu-hei the matter up and had
The case dismissed
Thi5 is no isolated instance. The
anne kind of thing has happened be-
tore and will happen again. The law
rs not fairly enforced. 1t is even
doubtful II such a law can be fairly
enforced. And, II 1t can, the lesson
Of tattllng, perjury, back-biting,
which II teaches the very people
whom those who favor its enforce
ment want TO reach, does infinitely
more harm than the evil which 1t Is
supposed to correct.
II anyone has any doubt as to the
evil effects of the law, visit to High
Sheriff Henry's hosiery over on the
reef ought to convince him. The
sight of comedy Hawaiian women in
Jail, women who will henceforth
have to bear the stigma of the Jail
bird, women who are doing time be-
cause they happened to be caught in
the commission of an offense which,
whatever its moral effect, is only in
accordance with the demands of ma
ture and which II the law against II
were fairly enforced would land a
good many other people on the reef
the sight of these women incarcer-
ated along with burglars, murderers
filthy Porto Ricans, habby, pasty-
faced Korean counterfeiters, moral
degenerates of all kinds, is not calcu.
lated to make the thinking man be.
lieve that any real good can come OF
the enforcement of this Act.
..... + + +
Just because a baby out in the Ma
kiki district took notion the Other
evening to practice his singing lesson
the Makiki fire engine was called ou
by an alarm turned in by excited
neiGhbors, who thought someone was
yelling fire. There nearly was fire
too, for the remarks Of the fire lad
dies when they discovered what tn,
trouble was nearly blistered the pain
off the building.
When | picked up the paper in tn,
morning and read what 1t was tina
had called out the department the pre-
vious evening, was considerably sur
prised. Not that any one of a dozer
babies in that district cant vol lout