The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1915-10-01


we should seek to remedy, 80
This Is the way Dr. Harry B. Elliott,
president of the Hilo Board of Trade, !
addressed the civic convention at Lid
hue Yesterday. He was unable to be
present in person, but his speech was
read BY the Rev. George laughter OF |
IIiIo. II follows: . p. ~ Pc be-. 49,. = =
"The committee in charge of the lit
erary program to be presented to you
apparently assume that this paper Is
TO be a more or less elaborate dag
nosis arranged in due logical se'
quence of the present civic and politi'
cal conditions In our counties. Now
n correct diagnosis is simply an &c
eurate Interpretation Of RseoTtained
facts ! have no authority to pose n
an expert interpreter, and my actual
knowledge of the facts is exceedingly
incomplete. .Es.f.t. .. i
"when this difficult and thanklc -
part was assigned to me / naturally
asked for further Instructions. The
letter in reply laid special emphasis
upon citizen indifference, official graft,
and the evils Of gambling and social
vice. wondered IL II would profit you
very much If | favored you with IN
By-products Of onr political and social
organization. I doubt IL. I would
prefer to tell you that graft Is not
cause Of bad government, and that
sending Wrong.doers to Jail is no cure
for it. e. se.. ...,: 3D.
what talk Is Based On
"Perhaps the best thing that can
do is to give You frank, straightfor.
ward talk upon a few phases Of the
situation that lie beneath the surface
and are too frequently overlooked when
reformers and wOuld-be reformers meet
in conference! r.s9t@.. ~
. Most of you have feeling. and
You express it very londly At times,
that If those fellows in the county
building would only stop "playing pol.
'ftias' everything would soon be all
right. Now, what do you mean when
we talk. about playing politiesS
INV really RnAlyZed some of these
current phrases we might get closer to
the truth. Your brain would register
a~kiek at once If you were told that you
played ati book keeping. doctorinR, or
managing o sugar plantation, You
wonii .replyI This il not play, this
IL work. Quite right, aud ;Ithe ele-
mental reason why You keep both eyes
on our job ten hours a day is that You
want 10 keep on living, and to do this
Fl You must have food, clothes and shell
ter, ta1,as .e-|e ..'..-:.as .,
Municipal Interests Subordinate
HYchr bjgsSst interest lies within
this circle Your other interests, So
Il rial i political, intellectual, and so
forth, are all subordinate to the in-
stinet OF self-preservation Your polit-
zeal interest in your county government
Is distinctly minor interest-it must
be because you devote so little time
and thought to it.
This interest, because you are a
comparatively large tax payer, house
owner, automobile user, and business
man, lies chiefly in the direct products
of the municipal organization, in pub
lie improvements, roads, water works,
and protection of life and property. 1'
"You may have some slight interest
in the county as a buyer of supplies,
most probably you have none at all in
the county as an employer of labor.
county position of any kind If il was
offered to you on a silver platter
you have a better job where you are
and do not need it. .,,
Emuloyx A Smile '..'
Many of YOU have read the hook.
EsYiee Versa, >" 40 we will imagine that
by some similar magical transforma.
ton Won are transformed from an
American book.keeper. doctor. or plan-
tation manaper-born in 8 otIand o.
CIeTmany-into an ordinary, every. day
Hawaiian. raised right here on these
islands. Your view point would now
he n different one. wouldn't ~
ON a couple OF hours the claims of
the stomach would begin to assert
Themselves, and II Won were too proud
70 beg. II would be necessary 10 start
riQht out after a lob of some kind.
Well where wopld Won beY Not much
nse knocking at the door Of hnole
business house where the staff have
been trained and hammered into shapq
for their particular work ever since
thew were youngsters. ; You would not
want 10. 90 out into the plantation field
with q hoe and compete with hordes
Of aliens. You miabt IL that was the
onty Wayr TO get a square meal, hut