The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1909-09-07
CONCRESSMEN
lee I WIT H
MERCHANTS
crrom saturday.s AavertIser.D

Merchants Association luncheon yes
terday noon pledged themselves to be
Hawaii IS friends whenever any matters
relating to the welfare of the Islands
reached them as members of the House.
For the first time since the Congress
sional party arrived here last Monday
they met the business men of Honolulu
at formal function. The addresses
dealt with matters of vital Importance
TO the development of the Islands, par
ticularly as a tourist resort, and argu-
ments were advanced on behalf of the
mercantile community for either a ship
subsidy to increase the number of pas
senger carrying vessels plying between
the mainland and Hawaiian ports, or
TO suspend the coastwise laws to per.
init foreign vessels to take their share
of the passenger business.
The luncheon brought together
large assemblage of representative men
of the community to meet the Congress
men, and the military services were
also well represented. The luncheon
was served in the Commercial Club g
dining hall, tables being arranged to
seat six guests, which broke the as
semblage into groups where converse.
ton could easily be carried on and
Congressman taken care of. Governor
Frear occupied table with W. F. Dill
lingham, chairman of the Merchants
Association and toastmaster for this
occasion, Hon. Richard Bartholdt of st.
Louis also being at the same table.
Captain Rees, U. S. N, commandant
of the naval station; Civil Engineer
Parks, U.S.N.; Major B. B. Ray, Army
Paymaster; Major Winslow, Engineer
Corps; Major Dunning, U.S.A., were
there and many civil officials were
present.
Subsidy or Suspension.
Mr.. Thurston, responding to the
toastmaster's request for an address,
said it gave him great pleasure to be
asked to speak to the visiting Con-
gressmen and to present some of the
problems which the Islanders needed
Congressional assistance in solving.
The Territory induced the Congress.
men to come here because we are al
ways glad to have distinguished
strangers visit these shores, and sec
ondly, because of the control which
Congress has over Hawaii. "You are
here representing Congress-" said Mr.
Thurston, "and we want you to have
first hand knowledge of who we are
and what we are and what we need,
in order that we may not suffer from
Ignorance of our conditions.
81 think you will find this is an
American territory. There is promi.
nent man in Washington who generally
refers to the people of Hawaii as
those expatriated Americans. An ex-
patriated man is one who leaves his
country and evades his duties and OBJ
legations as a citizen. Americans be.
gan to come here long ago, and have
continued to come ever since. They
eXpatriated themselves so far as resi-
dence is concerned, but they did not
evade the duties and obligations of
American citizens. The American citi.
zens who came here found savagery
and they created a high civilization.
They found paganism and they created
a Christian community. They found
ignorance and they introduced the
American school system and compul.
sorry education of the young people be.
tween the ages of six and sixteen.
what we are going to do with the
Japanese children born here, about
5000 of them, who are to become voters
in time is one of our problems. l do
not believe We are going to have any
great difficulty with it. There are
few Japanese who were born here in
the seventies and they have become
responsible citizens and voters. We
have some four or five hundred Chinese
voters, who were born and educated
here, who are responsible and conserva.
tive l believe the Japanese and Chi.
nese who were born here and educated
here and grown up in this American
environment will make responsible vot.
ers, as conservative as the electorate
will that we have here now.
"One of the functions of our local
Legislature has been to appoint com
mittees to interview various people and
institutions and hear what grievances
they have. i presume You may think
yourselves committee not only to
study our conditions, but to hear our
grievances. We have no grievances.
LApplause.l
81 believe we are the most prosperous
people on Gods footstool. During the
late panic in the United States Ha-
waii was on gold basis and when it
was over Hawaii was more prosperous
than ever before.
This is largely because of the lib.
eral, fair treatment we have had at
the hands of the American Congress.
The present session has passed tariff
bill which has taken care of Hawaii
as well as if the Islands had possessed
many representatives and four sena.
tors in the upper house, instead of
none at all.
"We have problems with the labor
situation, as we have had since / was
ns high as this table; but Congress
has given us the opportunity to get Ia
borers here who would be eligible e
become citizens, and l believe we will
solve the problem,
'There are other details which need
adjusting. The land question need
some adjustment, but our most orueia
problem, for the present, IL the ques
lion ~ transportation between her,
and the mainland Of the United States
When the Organic Act was euacte,
there WAS incorporated 10 Il PROV
Sion that tho eoastwise laws should b.
lNaA