Hawaii Holomua, Volume III, Number 277, 7 August 1893 — THE CRISIS IN HAWAII. [ARTICLE]

THE CRISIS IN HAWAII.

Hv the titne Congre?s meets. the sci>euie f. r the annexati«n of Ha- ■ .vaii wi ■ 1 have i :gsed into the j Categorv of expl<>dvd delusions. | would never h«ve c»>mmandcd the ! a(tenlion it did, bnt f >r the extra- ■ ordinary fact that l’resident Harr;s'n actunl!y cnncluded what he ei’l'al a tre.ity witli tne prvtended envoys fr *rn Hawaii, and sent it to i tiie Senate t<* bo r.itified. That a | Pr s ; d nt of the United Stat»*s should know so little ot n hlie law ts to negotiate with a saiall cliqne ol who had no eoustituency b( hind them, und had no authority—excei>t what was self-confrrr*-d —to represent the nalion for whieh they claimed t» epeak, wili ineline most people to think that we have had a narrow escape with >ir. Harrison. Snch a reckless operator might have done a wor!d of mischiel, and it is perhaj>9 lncky f.*r the Umted Slates that ho h«s been retired t*> private life. The clam»r on this e >ast for the anuexilion of the Islands emanated from the pothonse elemenl in our polilieal S'>ciety. This element is the lineal heir of the old filibuster party. whieh in its turn inherited its principles fn>m the Bnceaneers of the Spanish Main. A buccaneer had but one plank in his polit c..l platform, whieh was that it was jnstifiable to n*b and mnrder the | weak, regardless of uationality. An Amenean fi!ibuster set on this principle the Iimitation that the people robbed and mnrden*d raust be of the Spanish race. Types of this class were Lopez, who invadcd Coba at the head cf cut-throats from the Southern States, and William P»r*er, who iuvaded Central America in the astonishing deluaion that he couid, in the middle of the mneteenth century, rejieat , the performance of Corter and Piz arro at the beginning nf the «ixteenth. The legitimate breed died oul with the war. But it §eems to have left a bastard progeny whieh. without actually projx>sing to carry fire aud sword mto the territory of our friends. hankera after that territory so rapaciously that our neigtibore are kept in a constant ferment lest we sbooid despoil tbem. Of this class a late member of Congress from S >uthern Califoruia was a type. *-• e was perpetually springiug upon Congress plots to steal Lower Califorma; tbough he knew perfectiy that the United States did nut covet that wilderness. and that Mexico w*»uld not cede it if we did. It is tbis class whieh insisted on the a*mexati >n of th«» Hawaiian lslands—n*>t because we w nted tbem, or tbey desired annexation—but b-cause it seemed grand to exteud lbe area over whieh thefl>g wavee In lhis class theold pirate instinct has not bren subdunl by the humatiizing iufluences >*f civins<tion. Mr. Nordhuff and Mr. Spreckels. who are levei headed and g md Amrrican», keenly alive to the mulual int«rests of the United States and Hiwaii, would urubably be giad to see the lalaniia heeome a terntory cf the United Suites, if the transition could be vff.ctrd. But they bave bolb satisflad tbemselves, by a cl’»se e »nvass of puhlie opinion in Ihe lslands. th.it the tbiug isimpracticable.Tne Kanaicas luve their coumry with the same devotion t'. ti Americaus love tbeirs. They ar« no more prepared to see their nationaIity extiuguisbed than we are to see the American eemmonwealh wiped from the maps. We may consider them sbortsigbted in preferrtng a gov*rnment by their own race to a gOT«rnmeQt cooducted bj Americ-

ans. But they are entitled to their opinion, and' Araericans are tho Iast people īn the worid to denv their r>ght to entertain it. No j*arty in this country would ventnre t*o assert our nght t*> aunex H.awaii in opj.K’silion t*> the wishes ofthe KanaK;is. Of all nations in the w»rld. the United >t»tes are the m* st firm!y ple*lg‘'d to the d *o trine that every pe>*ole >s entitled to controi ita own *le9tiuiea- If the K mak.H9 d >n’t want t*> step into our pirlor.no Amenean who has any t*olltio«l repntition at 9t»Ke would pr >jK>se to poll them in by the s v >onlders ln the disingenuous sneech Jelivered by ex-Miu ster Stevens be-f-re onr 0!>atnber of Co:nmerce. he assumed that ihe ilawatians were in f.iv>*r of antu'xati*»n. H that were the c»8e, wny dtd n'*t Mt*9Srs. L) *!e and T:iur9toii aiul tbe;r e tifeilerate9 t.Kt* a pleb'-sc»te on thft question? Fne Kanikae are U9ed j t«* the exercise of the fr»nch;se. | They woukl have v ted iniell>geut ■ lv if tlie qiie8tioii h. >d been pnt be- i fūre theui. It w,is b-cause D »Ie | and his fellow e >nspir it>*r9 knew that a jileb:soitewould have resnlted in an overwhe!ming v«*te ac.iinst autiex»tioii that they d.d not even pr *j»>se it. Mr. Nordh , *ff, *ho was ao iinp.inlinl observer, 9iys that the natives —with the excepti«>n ol the progeny <>f the missionaries—are overwnelming y in f»vor «>f Home Hule Mr. Spreckels. who knows the Island9 j.»erhaps better than any other man living, makes no secret that he enttrtiins the same opiūion. Indeed, the care wilh wlneli the c«>nspirators avoided consultat on with Ihe kanakae is self evident proof wbere the latter stand. If Thurston had eome here with a uiajonty vote of the natives in favor *>f anneialion, it wouid have heeu difficult to resist bia «ipj eal. Tlie last argument ot the Three Tai!ors of To*»Iey Slreet ts that if we do uot annel the Isiands Great Britam will. He wb«> puts f«>rlh tbis argument seri>i‘jsly mu9t take his hearers f«>r f«>ols. Gre.*t Br tain has not heen niee in her day in the ujatt« r of approj)rialuig f«*re'gn territ«>ry. But she ts not iikely. for the sake c*f a few volcaiiicrocksand a few sngir plai*tati*»ns. I<> piunge into n war with the Umtrd Siat*-9. and that. as every *>ne knows,wou!d be the imrnediate result of Ihe lauding of a Bntish regiment on a Haw.iiiau Island. Tbvre w'as a time when Euglaud cuuld be waved ia our face as a red rag in order t>> indiice us tu eoiumil some folly or 9<>nie wrong. But tliat tiuie bas piissed. Wlien Denmark tried to aell St. Tnmnas t*> the United States, and so g mhI a man as Gen eral Grant was m f.»vor of the purchase, the Danish envoys tried lo spur the rtcalcitrant Senate lo favorab!e aeliun by threatemng t«» sell lo England. Tbe āenaUi simply told the Danes t*> go ahe:-.d. There were statesmen m lhat body who knew well that Great Britain wou!d m>t venture to provoke a coutr«>versy with tbe United States **ver ihe acquisition of an islaud wlneii, thougu not covered by tbe Mouroe doclrine, w»s too near our C*>ast t*> make its transler to a gre»t man- ! tune jx>>ver a matterof ind.fftfrence. j So now, if all tbe kanmena ntid all I the whites uf Hiwaii t«»gether | should supplic»te Great Bril»in t * I tiiem assubject9,lhe ltr!lis:; ! Gavvruinent wuuld unswer that tney wmiid cost m*»re than Eng!and cuuld aff .r»l tu pay, Nu Enruj>ean aalion will run lue nsi of a war with the Uniled «St *les, Frai.ce sh**wed when aiie ev.iciated Mex io, and E:iglar>d pr«»vvd when sbe 1 paid tue Alahama claiuis. It is a matter of regret to iovprs i of c<*nstitutiunal govtrnment that tne pr«>spects »>f a tiaw.:iun republie are nut flittvr:ng, and th.»t pres»*nt sigus ind*cate the restoratton of the Queen io {>o»ver. Bul that is a basmess with whieh we h »ve nothīng tu d>. The Hawaiians are tlie best judg*-8 ot t.ie f >rui of govemmeul wti eli suits them. T«iey have been used f*>r g-nerations toa monarchy. We eaunoi iusist luat tney shali subslttute f»r tt a republie, because we tbink tbe Iatter a better form. Delicacy furbtds that we should even press the subject of a change at a time when countryueu of ours havc, in tbe moet impudent way. proposed to strip ihem of oontrol of their own afikua.

The polilieal problem in Ha» L is eomplei. There is a hau m wbite iiien, sons of m" -, J triders and planter?. who gn>wn into an overbear : j : . ■ chv; their arr-<gauce hus d ;- 4 >| the aspiration« of the old r- f . y 9ubsUntial seif-govurnmei>: are, moreover. two »ther r .■ .8 Chine9e and the Jap*nese. w a servile races without r:g ts r . . er. Between the olig.irc :v • i --,ā 3ervile racee the aamkaa hi.* found it d;tlicuit to build up 9 edidce of governuoent n? - : ■ 8ubstaotial b.»s'.s. No n.; , safe if it eonlain? a he. : .3 whieh owes noduties t the e v. : I ment, ar.d is indifferent :> welf,ire; uur ean anjr nul: >.;"]£■ ils usefulne33 il p>‘iit;cil i ■ S conceutrated in a fe v ni; , .1 F*>r mauy yeara tlie diffi-' lt; - I t*ie p*>s-iti->n iu>ve bv* ā jir.iver and more threuteniug T.g j recent eoup d' etnt of the au i J ati*>aist3 iii atteiupt t- > i t iem. ll haa tailed. NV:i il - « c*ime uest il is hard to sv:-; ;9 would ;iot be sorj>r siug if the tir.i.B evolution of the dest:ny *>f 11»». 9 \vere accompauied w.lh bl d- 3 J OH.N BoVNf.lL | Sm Franciso *, Juiy ō l,v ;