The Hawaiian gazette., 1913-09-05
.KEALOHA Loses
HIS FIRST FIGHT
Supreme Court sustains Demurrer
to Plea Of Abatement Entered
by Hawaii Supervisor Who Is
Striving to Defeat Impeach-
ment Proceedings.
From Wednesday Advertiser. !

(From Wednesday Advertiser)
Attorney General Wade Warren
Thayer yesterday shortly after the noon
hour scored signal victory before the
supreme court when Chief Justice Rob
ertson for the court sustained his de.
murrer TO the plea in abatement fled
by Attorney Mcbride in the Kealoha
impeachment proceedings. The sustain
ing of the demurrer knocked the plea
in abatement completely out of court.
Attorney Mcbride was given until
September 10 to file a demurrer to the
impeachment petition. The court set
the hearing of the cause for September
20 at ten o'clock in the morning. In
yesterdays ruling the supreme court
decided the three petitions fled in the
case were to be considered as one, in.
asmuch as they were all to the same
effect; that they contained more than
twenty-five signatures and, even with
the elimination of the names of the
signcrs who, it was alleged later claim
ed they did not know what they had
signed, the petition still contained more
than the minimum number of signers re.
quired by the statute.
Thayer Speaks Briefly.
The attorney general spoke briefly
yesterday on the demurrer which he had
submitted, basing his argument on the
insuiliciency of the plea in abatement.
lie was followed by Mcbride who once
/ annln M nnita Ia Al L..
points raised by the demurrer against
this plea in abatement. He made the
statement in court yesterday, first made
public in the interview with him pub.
lshed in The Advertiser some days ago,
that any one could 90 out and procure
twenty-five signatures to impeach any
elected official and then some other
could follow this up Immediately aud
get afiidavits from some of these people
to the effect that they did not know
what they had signed in the first in.
stance. {tf
This rather broad assertion brought
from Associate Justice Perry query IL
the statement was not rather extrava.
giant and added that, he had a better
opinion of the electors which. Me Brides
statement could not. shake. Mcbride
'NB'i'h nv WV NV ihtdn W hidht IL
quite that strong, pleading he made the
observation in an argumentative mood
which could be easily qualified to suit
the taste.
| As reason for his desire to have a
continuation of the case Mcbride al
| legged his presence was required in Hilo
where he had number of criminal
eases before the circuit court and pos.
] gihlx In M Iiut ri - oil
did not state these cases were against.
the impeached supervisor himself. The
attorney general did not demur to q
continuation Of the matter and al
though he did not say so 10 is felt by
those on the inside that certain legal
| proceedings in Hilo will shortly come
to a pass which will make the pressing
of the impeachment charges in the su.
preme court unnecessary.
Kealoha Has Been Convicted.
Kealoha was found guilty on the first
criminal charge brought against him in
| Ililo before District Magistrate w. s.
| Wise and appealed from the lower to
the circuit court, which has Just begun
Its sessions at Hilo. There are mum.
Der of other criminal charges now be-
fore the courts in the Big Island CAPT.
tai which will be pressed against the
impeachcd supervisor.
Rumor in Hilo is to the effect that
Kealohas by refusing to resign, as any
one else in his place would long ago
have done, is merely employing dilatory
tactics to carry out boast, alleged
to have been made by him, that Gov
ernor Frear would be unable during
the balance of his term to appoint a
Republican successor to Kealoha. By
holding out until new Governor has
been appointed and qualified those of
of this reasoning figure. a Democrat will
be made Kealoha s successor.