The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1909-07-21
DECISION ON
OPIUM CASE
Original Package Defense Is
Disposed of by Judge
DE Bolt.

/
with the question involved in the illegal
sale of opium in the Territory, and the
defense set up by E. A. Douthitt, at
| torney for Lam Zip Kee, whose case
was brought into the Circuit Court on
the defendant being charged with the
violation of Section 1899 of the Re-
| vised Laws of the Territory, relating to
the sale of opium. The. charge, in sub
stance, was that on April 80, 1909, Lam
Zip Kee, not being duly licensed ply.
stefan or surgeon, or holding a license
TO sell poisonous drugs, sold to All 10y
a fye-tael tin Of opium.
A plea of not guilty was entered by
the defendant, and the jury being Waiv
ed, the case was tried before Judge De
Bolt Attorney Douthitt for the de-
Tense admitted the sale of the opium,
but eontended that al the time of the
sale the opium was In the original pack
age and that, as a consequence, under
the provisions of the interstate com
merce clause in the Constitution, the
local statute was without application.
In disposing of the question presented
for solution and holding that the de-
PENDANT is guilty of the charge against
him, Judge De Bolt says:
1T appears from the evidence that
the ive-tael tin of opium sold by the
defendant to All 10y was one of con-
Segment originally shipped by Chi
nese firm in Hongkong, China, to one
II. G. Playfair, in San Francisco, Cali
fornia. That on April Fl, 1909, the de-
PENDANT imported into the Territory of
Hawaii from the State of California,
i've hundred five-taeI tins of opium, in
Guiding the tin in question, which opium
was ordered from and shipped by a
Chinese firm in San Francisco to the
defendant in Honolulu.
8 That the opium was packed in five
wooden boxes, as follows: Twenty five
taei tins in a tin ease and five tin eases
in each of the wooden boxes; the wood
en- boxes were then securely fastened
and the address of the defendant writ
ten on each;
That upon receiving the opium in
Honolulu, packed in the manner above
stated, the defendant opened one of
the wooden boxes and removed there
from the fvetael tins in question and
sold it to All 10y;
THAT each of the fve-tael tins had
affixed thereon, as shown by the tin ex-
hibited in evidence, customs stamp
on which was written the date Of inn
portation, the name of the importer,
the name of the vessel, the port of en-
try and the signature of the proper Of
fetal. y
Summarizes Case.
Referring to the motion made by At
torney Douthitt to acquit the defendant,
Judge De Bolt says:
ssThis motion, as well as the evidence
adduced, presents the following ques-
! ton, which, to my mind, is the only
question involved in the case, namely:
Was the tin of opium, under The inter-
| state commerce clause of the Constitll-
| ton of the United States, at the time
of the sale thereof by Lam Zip Kee, in
| the possession of the defendant as the
importer thereof in the original pack
ages In my opinion this question must
| be answered in the negative. In NY
opinion the wooden box, aud not one OF
/ the fve-tael tins of opium contained
therein was the original package. This
view rs supported by both reason and
authority. The wooden boxes which
were delivered by the shipper to the
| carrier in San Francisco, in which Wert
packed for convenience and security in
| shipment the 500 small tins of opium,
were the original packages of com
merce, and when those boxes were
opened in Honolulu and the tins of
i opium Were removed therefrom the lat
| ter became and were subject to the
| police and taxing power of the Terri
! tory OF Hawaii as part of the common
mass of the property therein. And, ae-
| eordingly, the sale of the tin in ques-
/ ton was an offense committed ia vio-
lation of Section 1899, Revised Laws of
Hawaii. -
| The judgment and sentence imposed
is that the defendant pay fine Of $50
and costs.
Court Notes.
The Bishop Trust Company has been
appointed administrator of the estate Of
Kong Len Shing. The estate consists in
cash IN bank approximating 100000
A notice of appeal has been filed in
the case of the Territory against Higa-
SIN, charged with selling beer without a
| license. Higashi was fined 800 in the
District Court.
decree of divorce was signed by
Judge Robinson yesterday, dissolvine
| the matrimonial bonds existing between
Ida Smith and Daniel Smith.
Suit has been begun by Paul R. Isen
berg against John Lucas and Charles
Lueas, defendants, Thomas R. Lucas
John Lucas and Charles Lucas, co
partners, doing business as Lucas Bros
garnishees. The complaint is based on
promissory note for $1,000. 1t is stated