1121-1124
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- "My countrymen, with the exception of the most intelligent among them, do not understand much about these things. They need to be educated. They have so often been told by designing men that the United States was their enemy that they are naturally suspicious. Politicians who have sought to use the natives simply as so many tools have deceived them. When they understand from the lips of disinterested men and patriots what annexation means, and become acquainted with the benefits that it will bring them, they will be as much in favor of the movement as any of our other classes of citizens.
- "Does the present Provisional Government command the respect of the native Hawaiians?
- "They are naturally somewhat prejudiced against it, as monarchy is the only form of Government with which they are familiar, but this feeling will quickly wear away as the Hawaiians are led to see that the Government is friendly to them and their interests. They already have confidence in the integrity and patriotism of President Dole.
- "You advocated annexation to the United States, I believe, several months ago, in your newspaper, 'The Liberal?'
- "Yes, and I have repeatedly done so in public meetings held in this city.
- "How long do you think it would be after hoisting the American flag before the natives would be entirely reconciled?
- "Almost immediately.
- "Are you doing anything to instruct the natives so that they may have correct views in regard to these matters?
- "Yes; but I am compelled to move cautiously or I shall lose my influence over them. I believe I am doing a good work by constantly conversing with them on the subject. I have told my countrymen that the monarchy is gone forever, and when they ask me what is the best thing to follow it I tell them annexation, and I firmly believe that in a very short time every Hawaiian will be in favor of that step. The great thing is to keep them from being influenced by the arguments of designing men who pretend to be their friends, but who are really their enemies-men who will try and use them as tools to accomplish their own corrupt and selfish plans. We have had too much of this and it is high time to call for a halt.
- "Have you confidence in the integrity and patriotic intentions of the commission that has just been sent to Washington by the Provisional Government?
- "It is made up of good men, and I believe they will endeavor to do what is for the best interests of the country.
- "The above is correctly reported."
- "R .W. Wilcox."
Senator Frye. That is signed by Mr. Wilcox?
Mr. Hoes. Signed by him personally, and read to him carefully before he signed it.
The Chairman. By whom?
Mr. Hoes. By me.
Senator Frye. The day that the Government buildings were taken possession of by the Provisional Government and the proclamation was read were there any United States troops in front of the Government building?
Mr. Hoes. I did not see any.
Senator Frye. Do you know where they were at the time?
Mr. Hoes. Yes.
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Senator Frye. Where were they?
Mr. Hoes. In Arion Hall.
Senator Frye. Back in the yard?
Mr. Hoes. I can not say.
Senator Frye. They were not in sight of the Government building?
Mr. Hoes. I am sure I would have seen them if they could be seen from the front of the Government building, but I saw none.
Senator Frye. Do you know anything that the United States did to help or hinder either side?
Mr. Hoes. No.
Senator Frye. Did you ever hear any complaint?
Mr. Hoes. I never did, except that it was charged in a general way by the newspapers that she had been dethroned by Mr. Stevens and the United States forces.
Senator Frye. The Royalist press?
Mr. Hoes. Yes.
Senator Gray. And the Royalist people?
Mr. Hoes. I take it for granted that they made this charge, although I have no recollection of hearing any of them do so.
Senator Gray. You did not come in contact with them?
Mr. Hoes. Yes I did, I made it my study to associate with all classes.
Senator Gray. You did not come in contact with the Royalist people on that point?
Mr. Hoes. I have no recollection of that claim being put forward by them while I was there.
Senator Frye. Is this a copy of the act of the bill 185 granting a franchise to establish and maintain a lottery [exhibiting paper]?
Mr. Hoes. Yes; it is a copy of the original bill as introduced in the legislature. The bill referred to is as follows:
- No. 185 z.
- Introduced by______ .
- First reading,______day of______, 1892.
- Second reading, ______day of , ______1892.
- Third reading, ________day of , _____1892.
- AN ACT granting a franchise to establish and maintain a lottery.
- Be it enacted by the Queen and the Legislature of the Hawaiian Kingdom:
- Section 1. The exclusive franchise is hereby granted to D.H. Cross, of Chicago, Illinois, United States of America; W.B. Davenport, of St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America, and John Phillips, J.J. Williams, and Dr. Gilbert Foote, of Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaiian Islands, and their successors and assigns, or such corporation as may hereafter be incorporated or organized by them, to establish and maintain a lottery and to sell lottery, policy, and combination tickets, devices, and certificates and fractional parts thereof at terms and prices in just proportion to the prizes to be drawn, and to insure perfect fairness and justice in the distribution of the prizes, for the term of twenty-five (25) years.
- Section 2. The majority of the said grantees, or if a corporation be formed, then a majority of the directors of said corporation shall be domiciled in Honolulu, and said business shall be conducted in the city
S. Doc. 231, pt 6----71
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- of Honolulu, on the island of Oahu, Hawaiian Islands, where all the drawings of said lottery shall take place.
- Section 3. The said grantees and their successors and assigns shall pay for said franchise to the Hawaiian Government the sum of five hundred thousand ($500,000) dollars each year, in quarterly installments, at the end of each quarter after the announcement of the first drawing; that is to say, on the 31st day of March, the 30th day of June, the 30th day of September, and the 31st day of December, of each year.
- Section 4. Said sum shall be devoted to the uses and purposes hereinafter set forth, and the minister of finance is hereby authorized to pay the same as herein provided, as long as the same is received for said franchise.
- First. Subsidy to be paid for an ocean cable between the port of Honolulu and a port on the North American Continent connecting with any American telegraph system, one hundred thousand ($100,000) dollars per annum. This subsidy shall be paid in quarterly installments in the manner in which it is received, to such company with which the Hawaiian Government may enter into a contract under Chapter LXX of the session laws of 1890, and to commence after the sending of the first message over such cable, and to continue as long as such cable is maintained in working order.
- Second. Subsidy to be paid for the construction and maintenance of a railroad around the island of Oahu, fifty thousand ($50,000) dollars per annum, to be paid to such company who may construct and maintain such railroad and during such time in which said railroad is kept in operation.
- Third. Subsidy to be paid for the construction and maintenance of a railroad from Hilo, Island of Hawaii, through the districts of Hilo and Hamakua, fifty-thousand ($50,000) dollars per annum, to be paid during such period during which said railroad is kept in operation.
- Fourth. For improving and maintaining the improvements of Honolulu Harbor, fifty thousand ($50,000) dollars per annum.
- Fifth. For roads, bridges, landings, and wharves in the Hawaiian Kingdom, one hundred and seventy-five thousand ($175,000) dollars per annum, to be apportioned as follows: Island of Oahu, fifty thousand ($50,000) dollars; Island of Hawaii, sixty thousand ($60,000) dollars; Island of Maui, forty thousand ($40,000) dollars; Island of Kauai, twenty-five thousand ($25,000) dollars.
- Sixth. For the encouragement of industries in the Hawaiian Kingdom, fifty thousand ($50,000) dollars per annum, to be disbursed as may be from time to time directed by the Legislature.
- Seventh. For the encouragement of tourist travel and immigration, twenty-five thousand ($25,000) dollars per annum, to be disbursed as may be from time to time directed by the Legislature.
- Eighth. If at any time during the existence of this franchise the provisions of the reciprocity treaty relating to Pearl Harbor should be abrogated, then the amounts mentioned in subdivisions fifth and seventh shall be used as a subsidy for the purpose of opening the harbor known as Pearl Harbor and erecting and maintaining dry docks and other improvements in said harbor.
- Ninth. If for any reason any of the above subsidies can not be applied to the purposes herein set forth, then the sums so set apart shall be used as from time to time the Legislature may direct.
- Section 5. The grantees and their successors and assigns shall be exempted from any and all taxes and license fees of any kind whatsoever upon or for said franchise, except the said sum of five hundred thousand ($500,000) dollars per annum, paid as aforesaid.
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- Section 6. The minister of the interior is hereby authorized to grant a charter of incorporation to the grantees of this franchise and their successors and assigns, in conformity with this act, and under the following conditions:
- First. The capital stock of such corporation shall be five million ($5,000,000) dollars, represented by fifty thousand (50,000) shares of stock of one hundred ($100) dollars each, par value, provided the said capital stock may be increased to ten million ($10,000,000) dollars, represented by one hundred thousand (100,000) shares of par value of one hundred ($100) dollars each share.
- Second. All powers of the corporation shall be vested in a board of directors to consist of five (5) persons, each of whom shall own at least five hundred (500) shares of the capital stock of the said corporation.
- Third. The corporation shall be empowered to sue and be sued, to plead and be impleaded, to appear in any court of record or justice, and to do any other lawful act, such as any person or persons might do for their own defense, interest, or safety, in its corporate name.
- Fourth. The president and secretary of the board of directors shall be the proper persons upon whom citations, notices, and other legal process shall be served.
- Fifth. The corporation shall furnish bonds to the minister of finance in the sum of one hundred and twenty-five thousand ($125,000) dollars as surety for the prompt and punctual payment of the sums and in the manner set forth in section 3 (three) of this act; which bond shall be filed at the time when the first drawing and distribution of prizes is announced.
- Sixth. The board of directors shall have power to establish as many agencies as may be necessary, and to appoint a president, superintendent, secretary and treasurer, and such clerks and agents as may be required, and may remove them at pleasure, fix salaries of all officers and employees of the corporation (except that of the commissioners appointed by the Queen, with the approval of the cabinet as hereinafter provided), and fix the amount of their respective bonds and sureties, and shall make and establish such rules and by-laws for the proper management and regulation of the affairs of the corporation as may be necessary and proper. A majority of the board of directors shall be necessary to constitute a quorum, and shall have power to remove any officer of the company. The board of directors shall have power to fill any vacancy that may occur by death, resignation, or removal.
- Seventh. At all meetings held for election of directors or for any other purpose, every stockholder whose name is entered upon the books of the company as such, and none other, shall be entitled, either directly or by proxy, to cast one vote for each share of capital stock held by him. All transfers of stock shall be made and entered on the books of the company.
- Eighth. The persons named in the first clause of this act shall be, and they are hereby, constituted the first board of directors, who shall at their first meeting appoint one of their number president, and the said board shall serve for two (2) years from the time this incorporation takes effect, and thereafter until their successors are elected and qualified, at the expiration of which term a meeting of the stockholders for the election of a board of directors shall be held on a day fixed for all elections thereafter. A two-thirds (2/3) vote shall be necessary to constitute an election, and if no election be held, the meeting will adjourn over one (1) year.
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- Ninth. There shall be two (2) commissioners appointed by the Queen with the approval of the cabinet, who shall hold office during the pleasure of the Queen and cabinet. The duties of said commissioners shall be to preside at all Lottery drawings and to superintend the same and secure perfect fairness in the allotment of prizes in each scheme. The salary of said commissioners shall be six thousand ($6,000) dollars per annum each, payable out of the treasury of the corporation in quarterly installments. The said commissioners shall not own or be interested in the capital stock of the said corporation, nor purchase nor own any ticket or tickets, devices, certificates, or fractional parts thereof.
- Tenth. All drawings of lotteries under this act shall be made public, admission free, and it shall be compulsory upon said company to hold annually twelve (12) regular drawings, and as many additional special drawings as the directors of said company may designate;
- Eleventh. The stockholders of the capital stock of the corporation shall be liable to the creditors of said corporation to the amount of the shares by them respectively held.
- Twelfth. The corporation shall present a full and accurate account or exhibit of the state of its affairs to the minister of the interior, on the first day of January of each and every year.
- Thirteenth. At the expiration of this franchise, three (3) commissioners shall be elected by the stockholders, whose duty it shall be to liquidate its affairs on such terms and in such manner as shall be determined by a majority vote as set forth in subdivision eight of section 6 (six) of this act.
- Section 7. Any person selling, offering or exposing for sale after the 31st day of December, 1892, any lottery or policy, or combination ticket or tickets, or devices or certificates or fractional parts thereof, except as authorized by this act, or in violation of this act, or in violation of the rights and privileges herein granted, shall be liable, upon conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding five thousand ($5,000) dollars, nor less than five hundred ($500) dollars for each and every offence, and all police and district courts of this Kingdom shall have jurisdiction in such cases.
- Section 8. The grantees of this franchise and their successors and assigns, shall have the right during the whole term of said franchise, to dispose of by lottery or a series of lotteries, any land, improved or unimproved, which said corporation may become possessed of by purchase or otherwise in the Hawaiian Islands, but such lands shall be disposed of by special drawings only, which shall be advertised as drawings for property.
- Section 9. The grantees of this franchise and their successors and assigns, are hereby given the right of uninterrupted passage through the mails of the Hawaiian postal system, of all written and printed matter relating to or connected with the business of said lottery upon paying current rates of postage therefor.
- Section 10. This act shall take effect from and after its approval, and all acts and parts of acts in conflict with the same are hereby repealed.
Senator Frye. Do you think that the Provisional Government would have succeeded in accomplishing its purpose of overthrowing the Queen and taking possession of the Government buildings if there had been no United States troops there?
Mr. Hoes. I have not the slightest doubt they would have done so. If they had not, others would have done it for them. But these are among the strongest men in the community, and in the whole country.
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Senator Frye. The Provisional Government was formed on the 17th of January, and you left the next March?
Mr. Hoes. Yes.
Senator Frye. What was the condition of affairs in the Hawaiian Islands after the Provisional Government was formed?
Mr. Hoes. Absolute quietness.
Senator Frye. Any apparent unrest on the part of the opponents of it?
Mr. Hoes. None, except what was expressed in the Royalist paper, the Bulletin. The city was just as quiet as any country town in New England.
Senator Frye. Is that Government qualified to maintain itself?
Mr. Hoes. I am quite sure of it.
Senator Frye. Are you acquainted with the members of the committee of safety?
Mr. Hoes. Most of them. Of the 14 whose names are attached to the proclamation establishing the Provisional Government I am personally acquainted with all but 1.
Senator Frye. What is the character of these men?
Mr. Hoes. I believe they represent in every respect the best element in the country.
Senator Frye. Reliable men?
Mr. Hoes. I believe them all to be.
Senator Frye. Do you know Sam Parker, Colburn, and Cornwell?
Mr. Hoes. I know Sam Parker and I know Cornwell.
Senator Frye. Did you know our minister, Mr. Stevens?
Mr. Hoes. Very intimately.
Senator Frye. What was your estimate of him?
Mr. Hoes. I always regarded him as a remarkable man.
Senator Frye. As an honest man?
Mr. Hoes. As a conservative, honest, conscientious man; a man who never, under any circumstances, lost his head; a man who never acted under impulse. I sustained confidential relations with Mr. Stevens. I think I had his implicit confidence, and I know that he had mine.
Senator Frye. Did you ever learn from Mr. Stevens that he intended to interfere with the government of the Queen or the Provisional Government?
Mr. Hoes. I never learned it from him, and I flatter myself if he had told any of his associates of the fact he would have told me, because we often conversed confidentially about Hawaiian matters.
Senator Frye. In your opinion was the request made by the minister upon Capt. Wiltse to land the troops on Monday wise and discreet?
Mr. Hoes. I think it was.
Senator Frye. Were you there when Mr. Blount was there?
Mr. Hoes. No.
Senator Frye. You understand the purpose of this committee is to obtain whatever information it can, especially in reference to what took place after the revolution and the establishment of the Provisional Government. Can you think of anything you wish to say that will be information to the committee?
Mr. Hoes. I do not recall anything in particular.
Senator Gray. Where are you from, what State?
Mr. Hoes. New York.
Senator Gray. As I understand, you are a chaplain in the Navy.
Mr. Hoes. In the U. S. Navy.
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