The Maui news. [volume] (Wailuku, Maui, H.I.) 1900-current, 1919-01-10
Open Forum
Citizens, Subjects, And The Divine
Riuht OF Xmas

10 my article on CltlZenSnlp, L feel IL
is my duty to reply.
First, however, for the benefit of
Mr.. Hall and all others who may feel
that l did not treat the subject as it
should have been treated, l desire to
say that the article l wrote was writ
ten in answer to a request from Mr..
Otsuka, the Editor of the Maui Re
cord, a local Japanese newspaper to
be published in the New Year edition
of the Maui Record, and which was so
published. My idea at the time was
that the best message l could convey
to the japanese was something that
would impress On them just what AM
erican Citizenship means; for it is
only a question of a short time until
there will be a considerable number
of Hawaiian born Japanese, sufficient
in number to be a power on election
day, By reason of this fact, it be-
hooves us to educate the Japanese to
a true understanding of the meaning
of American Citizenship, so that they
can assume the burdens and execute
the duties of American Citizenship in
diligently. For a popular govern
ment,-such as exists in this country,
and in England,-the masses must be
intelligent. The greatest danger to
our Republic is ignorance. An in
telligent electorate is necessary to our
eXistence,-or to the existence of any
true Democracy for hat matter.
Further, 1 desire to say that in de-
fning the difference between citizens
and subjects, l was defining such
bodies as a whole. l had the subjects
of no particular king, prince, emperor
or p~otentate in mind. And further, l
will say that the history of the recent
war indicates that the day of the alb
solute monarch is fast fading; there
are but few, if any, monarchies in
existence today where the subjects
have not demanded and obtained Ger
tain rights for themselves, and placed
certain restrictions on their sove-
reigns. in theory at least.
l will Furthermore say that 1 have
no desire to enter into any discussion
relative to the various forms of gov
eminent existing in different count
ries. Yet, as l am a believer in our
present form of government, and be-
lieve it to be in form superior to any
other existing form Of government,
and personally hope the day will come
When all kings and ~potentates will be
a thing of the past, and the various
peoples of the world will have suf1c-
lent intelligence to govern themselves
in toto. When the people collectively,
will in all countries constitute them
selves the sovereign, and, as Mr.. Hall
mas stated, in effect, that 1 have I'M
knowingly stated that which is on
trary to the truth, I will briefly take
up the quotation he cites from Green's
History of the English People,, and
the divine right of kings" as 1 I'M
derstand it exists in England today.
While l do not have Green's His
lOly VI TIC IISllon COplS az huLub
and as it is more than twenty years
ago since / read it, l cannot say just
what precedes the quotation given by
Mr.. Hall, to the effect that all claim
of divine right, Independents of law,
was put an end to by the election of
William and Mary; yet l take it that
Green was referring tC that certain
act of Parliament which William caus-
ed or asked to be passed at the time
James II abdicated the throne, and
which secured for himself and Mary,
the daughter of James II. by legisla-
tive act, the crown of England. Furth-
er, I will say that / have no quarrel
with the statement of Green. The
quotation as given by Mr.. Hall reads:
"All claim of divine right, or heredit-
airy right, independent of law, was
formerly put an end to by the election
of William and Mary" That is just
what happened, and still is, as I III
derstand, the condition under which
the present King of Great Britain
reigns. But Green did not say, nor is
it true, that the theorJ of the divine
right of kings is entirely dead in
Great Britain. What he says,-as
read it, is that the theory does not
exist, Independent of law. At least
it is not the theory cXpounded in the
latest edition of the Encyclopedia
o., Dr;yt,,;,, ,rl xrhfah I 20 10 70 10 rr1n-
posed to give what constitutes the
consensus of opinion on the subject;
. for in the Britannica article, dealing
with the subject of the divine right
of kings, this appears:
: "The principle that kingship is
l descendible in one sacred family.
nc GoOrpa CANNING nutc II ic MT