Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1916-11-06
ASHFORD ASKS
GRAND JURORS
PROBE IWILEI
CONTINUED from pass. II.

heart 81 the eityA uf Honolulu. so
/ called restricted or --rtd-iight dis
tTiCt. TO which several scores ri WON
en-, ri diyers nat.Cnaliticss have resort
ed. for. the Practise OF their vocation
as common PROSTITUTES That said
y omen have rented premises At lwiIei
Ii vale. they reside and conduct their
Illicit itr1fcSstOu Ttat, as a result 81
their location at said point, many nan
-dreds Of men constantly, and ess ecial-
" az night resort TO said neishbor
/ hood aud that iuHCu cEime ana dis
order has attended and now attends
! the presence Of the women in ques:
ton At said point. That in addition
Ito our local and civilian pCnulationlt
/. there are now garrisoned on the Island
OF Oahu from 5000 10 ig,99@ sCIGlers
FOf, the different arms Of the United
States service. the vast majority OF
whom are in their early youth. unmar-
/ ried. and socially unattached, and with
rather restricted means provided FOR
their rational entertainment while off
duty. r.. ~
Location a Menace
That the district OF Iwilei. besides
being the home Of the red-lght deni-
zens; is the scene of a great majority
of our manufacturing establishments,
including the manufacture of lime, fer
tiliZers, gas ami tin cans, besides lum-
Der yards and pineapple canneries, in
some of which, especially the last
named, large numbers Of young boys,
women and girls are employed. whose
duties frequently necessitate their
passing to and from their places of
employment after dark.
1T is further a notorious fact that
the women in question have been and
are being permitted to ply their vi
cious calling under what is virtually
the protection OF the police of the city,
and it is locally understood that the
police, in. thus granting immunity 70
those women tas well as to their
landlordsC in the premises have done,
and are doing so in virtual continual
ton of a policy which, with varying
degrees of publicity, and in various
localities of the city, has obtained in
Honolulu during many decades past
the statutes il such case made and
rrovided' to the contrary notwith-
standing 1t is further locally under
stood that the police have been, and
are, actuated, in their attitude toward
the offenders in question by what
they regard as the necessities OF the
situation, that is, under the convic-
tion that the practise of the vice in
question is a necessary evil, and that,
as regards our city, the necessity OF
this condition has been largely in
creased and intensified by the recent
accession to our local population OF
such large numbers of young and I'M
attached men, wearing the uniform Of
the United States.
Seek Law Enforcement
but it is also locally notorious that
movement has been recently
launched in our city by considerable
and influential element of our popula-
ton, having for its purpose the strict
enforcement Of our formerly unen-
forced statutes in this regard. There
have been spasmodic local agitations
of similar character in past years, but
never under conditions at all APP
preaching those at present existing on
this island.
Wherefore, the community is face
to face with the problem, as it has
never previously been, of how to deal
with the so-called social evil and
before the problem shall be finally
decided it is probable that the whole
ground of whether the vice in ques-
ton shall be absolutely prohibited or
tolerated under conditions of restric-
ton as to locality and regulation as to
sanitary conditions, etc, will be again
fully canvassed.
.'As Judge of this court, however,
am obliged to instruct you gentle
the grand inquest of the county, that
the grand inquest of the county, that
neither you nor |, nor any member
of the police force, or of the staff of
the city and county attorneys office
have or has the right to suspend, or to
render nugatory the written law as 1t
has been enacted and now stands upon
our statute books. No officer of this
government, nor any number of such
officers or of citizens has or have
the right to violate the law as it
stands, to habitually tolerate such VIC
lation, or to grant immunity to of
tenders against the law If the law is
unjust or unwise, in view of all pre-
vailins conditions, it should, neverthe-
less, be enforced and obeyed while it,
remains among the statutes. To the
legislature alone, and not to amy po-
lice or prosecuting officer, pertains
the privilege of amending or repeating
our statute laws and, for the reason
that the legislature of this territory
will, in the course of few weeks,
convene in regular session, and chiefly
because of a request to this effect
made to me in writing by the city and
county attorney, | have deemed the
time ,opportune for the submission TO
your body of the entire subject of the
present method of enforcement or
non-enforcement of the laws in ques-
ton by the police, and the further
question whether, in your Judgment,
any changes in, or repeal of, the laws
here under discussion should be enact
ed by the incoming legislature? And,
If YOU shall be of opinion that
changes should be made in the law
to meet changed conditions. the court
,,-;II 70 sim NJ VOnr