Ka Nupepa Kuokoa, Volume VIII, Number 13, 27 March 1869 — The Coolie System. [ARTICLE]

The Coolie System.

liu f«Mi<mution June 14th, 1852 l v Kain. ii uiH'lui 111., by nnd with the niivice •uh! of the Nol)!cs and Kepre*entut.\o! :1.-. peoplo in Lr<:i>lative eouneil asartrcit' Jirst, tha{ ••C*0(l . rraU\i aii nu'ii Iroc and nju:\l." \\ »• hoM tinU \vhatevcr ilocuments may l.;:vc ! ct!) ; , ro!!Hilu r ati. , vl <ino, by auv one, or 1 v iitjy i iiii'ii, onnnot iu the slightest vi' rco ;.:itvt tho <oumiiu , ss. the valuiity f or :!:o vduo, ot ml'ow truth. h ;s » that in tho rt'Volutionary docu- !• t 11: l>y ihe pre>ent ininis'ry, •J n :h. I>Vl. \vt:!\out the advice or consent ol

;:.r i r Jlt'pro?cniaiivos of thc peoplo, i!;o ai'.uo niomouhlo olause o( ihe Constitu» 'ii i> Wo iki not ?ce ho\vev«r as v on t»y any mnn. or oi" mon, ;ho mattor, or tho ot" those ct\. >\ lioJ.-ivcn htc, aud idnjrty in this land. AH, l.vjng on U»csc Islands, moy elaim !rccdo;n and cqua|tty with thctr fcllow. liion. Lot t.< now look at iho position ol tho eooiie. or Umdcd ial>ork'T. in the |.ght of thts "Jrtv nv.d clause of the Constitution. Tho Li>: made it the duty of t?io M:ni<tor o! thc lnterior. w;th the nssjstatice a ? tho HoarJ of l*umignition. to i'mme such ru o> anJ rt\.ulatio«s as »»ay he deemcd !uv.^v Sr y lor |ii o i-ovcrnment and control of x oov.jos) llial havc lvco or ii)ay this Suoh rulc< v!un 'tod Sy thc Kini: in JVrvy Council ;rc >ty tti Ordinar.ccs. Tho>o Urdinanccs hiii >|«v iy thc jHMiaittcs Kir vic»iat.on ef the 4»no. an.i j.uuH havc :hr for*c of law; nnd Cour:> of Ju>;:ce shall takc Judioial no:.rv ūivrc uf. llen? i> t.i\Atiun aiul lcj;»sbtion without ol a luuoh uiorc }Ktlp;ible tyjH? taau eicr \ torced U}>on his co;on»vs. Jli»re we t»nd thot a Dr. Hutchin»»n, vr a Dr. rrauoia, or whatever oīher lK**tor or m.iy ehanee to bc, the Mi»isler <•1 thc Int«"nor, t> empoweml to make ru|cs ant! rc;,«u}attuns lor the special j;v)vcrntneut *nd ooutrol of the thousin<is of » ,, m»lies who havo Uvn «r who n»ay I» into thi? Knj<jJom, an«J the?c ru'os when apj>ruvcd in smioa by thc U>dy uf a

few- j>:r.>o!k- —siyUml the an<i Prīry Council, beconse law. How niany of our reader? wouM iike to exchanrre their righi-s under ihe iatvs. for a tas(e of the new Jaw«,— or ordinances, whieh mav !ron> thss new institution, the Coo!ie Co f ie <f I^>S? H'*re weftnd the dpparunents of our new gover:it: e[it in t jumbic. Things are geting ?adiy mixed. The Minhier of the laterior. the hichc?t executire ollker of ihe iand. is by one iittle Lit of a iaw, made the ieiris!ator wit!j fuii power? to fraine a code, —from whi;h there is virtuiiiy no appeai, but to whiehaii courts of justice, and especiaiiy, aii Poiiee and District Justices are eaiieel to give dutiful attention. j NVas not our industrious Legisiative body |cotnpetent to frame and adjustail the intrijcate parts of the comp!ex inaehme, that so t;rand a portion of our iaw makingshouid l>e coinmitted lo the Min:ster of the Interior. Ci3s- segisiation sends " i"ree and e^ual r> t*i ihe waii, and our netghbors, the cooiie.s nre in a position no free man ean for a rnoment think of enterini: or enduring. We hear from certain quarters thnt this is

the freest government on earth, It is free enough to certain cinsses. Ciass h?£isiation us'jal'y ieaves een.iin classes free. The Cooiie Code by its summary delivering of the luckless imrnigrant to the tender mercifui !eg:siation of the Minister of the Interior, and the Privy Councii, indicates something far diirerent from the freedom of the freest. Itisclaimedthntthecooiie may make a eontract forlabor whieh shali benefit hirnself, nnd be of advantage both the employed aud the pmployer; That periect freedom and equality is cotnpatible with bonded labor. We do not see this eoolie system in t!iislight. norindeed does the eoolie. Ile finds himself in a land w!iere labor, such as he is ahle to perform. «•omrnnnds from eight to ten doibirsn monili, wiiiie he is bound to lubor fiveyears, atfrom three to five doiiars a u»onth, according «»s his contrnct may read. It is vain to sa\* that he signed his contract voiuntariiy and that it is all fair. The currencv of this country mny be very •d!iīerent from thut of the country from whieh i iie enine. A doliar mny bo n mueii larger sum, or of mueh greater value in his eounI try. \Vith a doiiar he migiit buy tive tiines I the amount of rtce or nankeen m ins eouni try than in this. Consequentiy his wages . are mueh suialler than he supposed when iie contracted, althougii the termsof thecoutract , inay be literally complied with by his eiu- • ployer. it is said that the eooiie gets all that (he earns. Even that may be true, and yet ' the demands of justice be not fu!fiiled. Who ( of iis wouhl work any liarder than they do,— !at tliree or five doiiars n montii, on a five | years contract ? j We doubt not tiiat the most of the coolies in this iand who have over two vears of unexpired term yet to serve, would joyiuiiy eiect to \vork without pay for six montiis, if j thereby they might earn at tiie end of that ! time a free discharge from ti)eT contrnct. ;This could not be said of nny scrvice in | whieh the emploved received satisfactory I compensation for their labor. Again it is evident that in the opinion of even the Judge of the Poliee Court of Honoiuiu, the eoolie contrnct is a hardship. A short time since we saw notice of Mr. Stnnley's arraignment for whipping his eoolie. ln justice to the man whipjied, the contract for labor \v»s dissolved by the court. This 1 was considered we presume a boon thut parti- : aliy oftset the whipping, How could this be, : if the contract is of inutual and equai advant,age to master and scrvant. We suppose that before the iaw, one man hns no more rigiit to whip his neighbor, than anether. Let us suppese the ca.ve reversed; nnd thnt ! the eoolie hnd been arraigned for whippine j »Mr. Stanley, wouhi the Court h.u'e ruled a j dissoiution of the contract as suf!icient eompcnsatiou for the act of violence ? Why not ? Again how does it happen that eooiie !.i-

borers nre oieen. or even oocasiooal!y. whippeii. while free aru'. ef(iia{ hireil serva nevor! lt is a fK»rt of the svstem whieh eurs;es our onee free countrv. AsT\in, when the Jap»ne?e fifceen or twenty at a tune, leave the piantation, and tmvei sorae twenty of thirty iniies to the j?e.it of government ot Lahaina, or Honoluiu, to in« quire ot the authorities why they eannoi have the same hoiuiays as are granted their co«iaborers the China Cooiies.—why is it that they fwui ii\iiii«igs nt onee, aiui ns a mntter ef cour?e. at the j>olice stntion house? Simp!v becaus« thev are not free men,— k»cau.«e thev «re cooiies. Aia ma ke kuianaknuhaie o Baiina, elimn mau kannka ui i hui tna kekahi piiiwaiwui—ma ka piii ann, owai ia o lakou e moe oie ka po no ka hehedoma hookahi ? Ua mukaaia loa i.nkou a kokoke eiima ia me ka hnpa, ma ka inu kope pinepine ana a me ka hoohmhoi ami ia iakou iho ma kekahi mau ano e ae. Ika hiki ana ika hopena ok* manawa, elua o iakuu i paheono pu iho; a o ke koiu, hauie aku ia, iaia e ho!o iio aua, mai ka noho aku, a hai iho |n kona lima, A 0 ku ha o lakou, ioaa iho ia i kekahi mai ikuika ino loa, a hauie nku ia mai kn Papa iuoa aku. O U .iliiuaJioi, hoowau ioa aku la ia » hiki » ka hopena o ka manawa, aka, lua emi nae hu 25 mau p.uma o koua kino, 'iuamua oka eo ona iaia oka piii. He wa i loihi aku nei hoi i haia, ua houo o Fore<leri* nia ka Nui, e iike uie koia, itia ka itiu kope \ pinepnu» ami, nkst ( , anU» na* x i;i he e.ho- | emu aku ai i ka .maka humoe e neeuiw; aku 9 , uia kahi e, mai m umka aku. i

!Ka LC.VA Hooponopon'O. - - L. H.KULIK '. ; Ka Hors Lcxa HooroNoroxo. J. I Poe Manao .no ke Kuokoa. ■ Rev. L. Luana (Lyons) ' S. M. Kev. M. Kuaea. i Kev. C. B. Aneiu. I). .Miio, iLokoino.) , uAmirew>.»