Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1914-01-23
LAWS AND AMERICAN SELF.
RELIANCE

/ Editor Honolulu Star-Bulletin.
Sir:-The management Of the Star
| Bulletin is worthy of the heartieSt
thanks and support Of the writer's of
! letters TO the editor for its very val
liable space allotted for these letters.
and it is hoped that the reading OF
! them by the reading public is not very
much OF a torture. However. some
letters seem to demand replies and
this effort is intended only as a re-
ply to Inquirer"
The letter is long and writing it
must have required a great deal of
thought. Many questions are asked
iand it is to be regretted that he did
not save his thought TO answer them
himself. 1t would seem to me that in
writing the questions the answers
would have occurred to him and
there would have been no need for
his writing. No doubt he knows the
: correct answers, and these "perplex-
' ing" queries are properly solved in
/ his own mind, but perhaps it is his in
tention to convey knowledge more
than seek it. Nevertheless. will try
and satisfy him, and here goes:
If an act of Congress relieved In
Gle Sam of penalties for violations of
I his own navigation laws and the vio-
I lationS in this respect are permitted
why. Uncle is no law-breaker. and if
| he did any furnishing, it would look
funny for him to slap his own wrist
Why should he not use available bot
toms to carry his own coal? Where
was there any hardship to the people
of the United States in saving the diff
ference between freight charges of
, American and foreign ships? Money
saved is money gained, and were not
the real wages of the American pub
, lie raised, so to speak, in receiving
greater service for less labor? In
fact, we really do not work for mon
, ey, but for what service our money
can be exchanged form other words,
we labor that we might have others
labor for us, and who renders the
most labor for our labor pays us the
highest real wages. Our legislators
would. not be faithful to their trust to
permit the people of the United States
to be imposed upon by demands for
too much labor money for very lit
/ tie service thigh freight rates..
Packages forwarded through par
Eeels post are mail matter, and there
is no law against Forwarding mail in
foreign boats that |. ann aware Of 1t
is fortunate such is the case, for some
shipping matters are ridiculous
enough now, and they would surely
be absurd were there, any more re-
strictive. 1t does seem funny to see
| how much some of our people worry
about American boats being "out of
job" Who worries very much if an
I individual@is at1 of.work? Is it the
duty of the government to provide
every man with a job, whether his
| services are needed; or not? If an
electrician is needed and a paperhang-
er is out of work, should one be COM
PEELED to employ the paperhanger?
Have we no choice in whom We want
to employ if the desirable applicants
are available? Why disregard for
eign ships we: want and be compelled
to employ American ships we don't
/ want? What difference should it
make to the individual whether a
Baptist or a Presbyterian hands him
i his mail? If his house was on fire
: and there was danger of his being
burned to death, would he refuse tC
! be saved by a foreign fireman be-
cause there happened to be an Amer
lean tinsmith down among the crowd
of onlookers who might be willing to
save him should he be paid the right
price? What is needed is service, and
| II tn
can for as much service as we can
! get. and am of the opinion that an
American can render as much service
as any foreigner if he wants to. What
is needed is the abolition of all re-
/ strictions to trade and industrial eff
| fort and then anyone would have as
much opportunity to employ himself
as anyone else would have to employ
' him. Do we always want to be en-
! plOyeeS? Do we trade? Do We
, breathe? Is not trading as natural as
breathing? Why restrict trade with
idiOtic navigation laws and other re-
strictions? Why choke the very lives
! out of us? Is barbarity good because
! it is the custom? Don't we ever want
, to attain civilization?
| Enquirer" accuses Uncle Sam of
an awful lot of inconsistency, espe
cially of allowing himself the use of
desirable freedom in his own ship
ping, and regrets that the private eX
press companies have not the same
! privileges. The people of the United
/ States are supposed to be accountable
| for the laws of the country. Uncle is