Hawaii Holomua, Volume I, Number 53, 18 November 1893 — The Star Scavenger. [ARTICLE]

The Star Scavenger.

The Star has chosen to go into what we would call the scavenger business, and has made a number of charges against different officials and prominent citizens on the opposition side. Most of these charges will end in libel suits, and we do not feel called to make them subjects of discussion at the present stage. But since the annexation organette, seems desirous of doing the scavenging act, we should humbly suggest that the “cleaning up" be done on both sides of the street. Of course Editor Smith being a stranger here, may lack the necessary material, but we are perfectly ready to furnish him with all information needed. In regard to corruption, he might write a few columns about the Marnie Hospital. Of course we all know that poor Christie is dead and Magnin absent, but still the records can be found in the U. S. consulate, and we have no doubt that Consul-General Mills will be only too happy to assist the Star in its patriotic work of exposing “the rascals." The Star might then turn its eagle-eye towards the little “irregularity” performed by a certain missionary firm, and strongly exposed to the public gaze by a Legislative finance committee. The irregularity in question dealt with the importation, free of duty, of telephonematerial for a company privileged by law, but sold to other companies at a great advantage to the firm. The starry exposer of corruption might also write one or two chapters on Alcohol for the special benefit of the W. C. T. U. or Y. M. C. A. or all the other blue-ribbon-wearing, psalmsinging sons—of missionaries. The scavenger-editor might then devote some space to “opium in reform circles.” He might tell us about the miraculous transformation of dope into bricks or straw or molasses. He might tell us about the high and prominent chump who now receives honors and wears gold-lace, as a pillar of the P. G., in his capacity as a schemer and boodler. He might repeat with some advantage the well-known statement of the said “pillar" when he corralled $700 from a pakapio crowd that “he would surrender it to his superior or anybody else who had a better right than he to it”— and then he kept it. But it is not necessary in our efforts to assist the Star scavenger to stop at corruption. We could fill columns for our esteemed contemporary about “reform” thieving. We shall not mention the smuggling of opium among broom handles or in sewing machines by a “holy" firm, which hasn’t even under such circumstances been able to avoid financial ruin; we shall not take up the records of our “anti Chinese’’ politicians and legislators, who mysteriously disappeared when they were wanted; we shall omit recalling any incident with the tons of

opium landed from the Likelike, the result of which was the building up a prominent man and a prominent —and very much “reform”—firm. We shall furnish the Star scavenger with no information in regard to the honest and trust-worthy and reliable and government-job-deserv-ing Hawaiians who have swindled their clients and spent the money forwarded by Honolulu attorneys on receipt of executed mortgages. We shall refrain from telling the Star about the foreigners, who have secured honours and offices by prostituting their wives to the Kanakas—be it a King or a Minister or a politician—for the purpose of gaining office. We shall say nothing about the bar sinisters—which have been caused and created by the men ; who now compose the Councils of the Provisional Government. We shall not go back into the dark ages and remind our immacuIate Christians—fathers and sons—about their escapades (Whoa, Emma“). We shall refuse to remember the lights of the churches and the hopes of our saintly flocks being refused admittance to society —as it was—on account of their wild and disreputable living— be they fat boys or otherwise. We shall not publish the diary of the man high in office covered with honor—and through his late actions with disgrace and odium. We shall refuse to remind the Star of the Police Court records of the holy, but cruel man, and we shall not endeavour to search the records of our high officials in the countries, from where they hailed before they stranded on this beach. All this we say we will not do for the purpose of assisting the alleged journalist who has taken upon himself the office of public scavenger. But if the Star man honestly means what he writes, and he is determined to rake up ancient history, we will help him to the best of our ability—and God help those who made the ancient history.