ABSTRACT
On the other hand, of 8J,234,,147, the value of duty-paying merl'h:l1ldise imported during 1872 into the Islands, $800, III worth came from the Unitell States, 1'$155,030 from Great Britain, and ~205,306 from Germany. Besides this, of the total vulue of bonded goods, 1'$34,0,4,35, the large amount of $1~~5,4,87 was brought f!"Om sea by whalemcn, almost all of whom were Amel'ic:ms; and $99,567 worth was goods from the United States; or $235,000 of Amerie:m products against $21,801 of British, and $23,904, of German importation, in bond,
It is plain that the Island trade is so largely in onr hands that no other nation can be said to dispute it with us. If OUl" flag flew OVCI' Honolulu we coulll hardly expect to have a more complete monopoly of Hawaiian commerce than we already enjoy. Moreovel', almost all the sugar-plantations-thc most productive :md valuable property on thc Islands-arc owned by Americans; and the same is true of the greater number of stock farms,
Our political predominance on the Islands is as complete as the commercial. In the' present cabinet all the ministers except one arc Americans, This was true also of the cabinet of the late king, Of the Supreme COUl"t, two of the judges are Americans, and one is German. Almost all the executive and administrative offices al'e ill the hands of Americans or Hawaiians,
Nor can any foreign power rightly find fault with this state of things, 'What the Islands are they are because of American effort, American enterprise, American capital. American missional'ies civilized them; Americans gave them laws wisely adapted to the cnstoms and habits of their people; AmCl~ican enterprise ann Boston capital established the sugar cnlture and other of the important industries; perhaps I ought to add that Amel'ican sailors spread among the Islands the vices and diseases which, more than all else, have can sed the rapid decrease of the population, and to combat :md check which aaded toil and trouble to the labors of the Amel'ican missionaries,
The government of the Hawaiian Islands consists of a king and a Parliament. The Parliament meets once in two years; and under the late king consisted of but a single House. The present king has promised to call together two Houses, of which but one will be ele·cted. The other consists of "Nobles," who are nominated or created by the king for life, but have no title nor salary unless they are called to office. By the Constitution the reigning king appoints his successor, but his nomination must be confirm cd by the Nobles. As, however, he may at pleasure increase the numbm' of Nobles, the appointment virtually rests with him. If he dies without naming a succeSSOI', the Parliament has the right and duty to elect a new sovereign.
