The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1909-11-16
PRIESTLY TRIO
ON THE ROUNDS
CONSUL KNOWS THEM NOT
Turkish Collectors Solicit Funds.
Mayor Fern Sponsor
for Them.

A trio of orthodox Turkish priests,
as their description was designated on
the manifest of the Pacific Mail steam
ship on which they arrived here re-
Gently, are making the rounds of the
residence districts soliciting subscrip-
tions to an "orphans hospital and
home" in vaguely limited at section
of western Asia, presumed to be some
where in Chaldea The original letter
which they allege was given them by
the head of their order, is written in
Turkish or some other Asian language
not readable or understandable by any
of the people to whom they show it.
Below this Turkish script, however,
is a typewritten version of what pur.
ports to be translation, the signer's
named being spelled out in type. The
alleged translation sets forth that the
priests belong to the order and arc
representatives. of church IN Chaldea
and that the church is poor and the
people there are greatly in need of an
orphan IS hospital, and the aims of peo-
pie are solicited that the hospital may
be built
In addition to this letter the priest
will also hand over a letter signed by
j j. Fern, mayor of Honolulu, address.
ed to "whom it may concern,n and
bearing the impression seal of the City
and County of Honolulu, setting forth
that the priests are what they represent
themselves to be and are commended to
the people of Honolulu.
At the mayors office it is stated that
one of the priests has a letter from
the British consul of the place from
which they started on their alleged mis-
sion and have other letters from British
oonsuls in ports at which they have
stopped while en- route to Honolulu, the
last coming from Manila. 1t is stated
in the Governors Office that one of the
priests asked for letter and he was
referred to the local British consul. The
priests came back and said the consul
would not give him letter, whereupon
the mayor jumped into the breach and
affirmed that the men were what they
represented themselves to be. 1t is
stated from the mayors office, also,
that the head priests insisted on hav-
ing the city and county's seal impress
ed upon the letter and his request was
complied with.
These two letters-the Turkish one
and the mayors presented to
householders and book shown them
and they are asked not only to "give
something for the hospital,'' but also
to inscribe their names in the book, so
that the people who are to benefit from
their contributions may know whom to
thank.
About n year ago a priest arrived
here wearing about the same kind of
clothes with the same clerical cut
high, notched clerical collar and frock
skirted coat, and reversed collar, and
made the rounds of the city. He was
denounced by Bishop Restarick as
faker, and he finally left town. The
priests are stopping at the Popular
House and say they are eating at Chi
nese restaurants, so as to keep their
expenses down. Although they came
here by steerage, even that costs money,
especially when three are travelling, and
even if the mission was all that it is
alleged to be and perfectly proper, after
deducting expenses of travelling, and
such, very little cash would be turned
into the "hospital fund"
The man who was here about a year
"So was coilPelieu 10 leave town.
1t is well.known fact that the rep
resentatives of foreign mission boards
of England and the United States are
to be found in all these ut-of.the-way
places of Asia Minor and that foreign
mission funds maintain schools, hos
pitfalls, homes and all manner of houses
of refuge of the people there, and that
If hospital were needed or an orphan 's
home the necessity for it would
be made known to the mission boards
and if needed, would probably be put
up at their expense. And, by the same
reasoning, there would be no necessity
for sending half a dozen priests out on
a money-collecting mission