HAWAIIAN GROUP. 1? 



Although the hopes of the French consul to see the island taken 

 possession of by his countrymen were frustrated, he took advantage 

 of the state of affairs to secure a personal advantage to himself, by 

 procuring a commercial treaty which should abrogate, in favour of the 

 French, the laws against the importation of spirituous liquors. Captain 

 Laplace lent himself to this design, and a commercial treaty was drawn 

 up, which, under the avowed intention of protecting French commerce, 

 provided for the free admission of brandy and wine, in which the consul 

 had hitherto been an illicit trader. This treaty was presented to the 

 king, who had by this time arrived, late in the afternoon, and he was 

 required to put his signature to it by the next morning, failing which, it 

 was intimated that hostile measures would be again resorted to. It is 

 not surprising that the king, on this occasion, found himself, as he 

 expressed it to me, completely at a loss what to do, when he found a 

 second treaty presented to him for his signature, which broke down 

 his laws and the municipal regulations of the island. These difficulties 

 were enhanced by finding that he was left entirely to himself, and with- 

 out the aid of any friendly advice; for no time was allowed him, even 

 to call in the counsel of his own chiefs. The foreigners, both lesidents 

 and missionaries, kept aloof from him, although now was a juncture at 

 which the true friends of this people might have acted to advantage by 

 stepping forward in support of the laws under which they lived. They 

 cannot be too much blamed for having suffered this flagrant outrage 

 upon the rights of a feeble nation to be committed with their knowledge, 

 and without strong and decided remonstrances on their part. The 

 missionaries, in particular, lost a glorious opportunity. It would have 

 shown their character in a beautiful light, if, after abstaining as they 

 did from any act that might have increased the embarrassment of the 

 government, when they were themselves threatened, they had come 

 forward to oppose, by every means in their power, the overthrow of 

 the laws enacted to check the scourge of intemperance, against which 

 they had so long contended. 



The merchants, also, had not the spirit to raise a voice in condem- 

 nation of an act fraught with so much evil to the people from whom 

 they were gaining their livelihood. Although all were aware of what 

 was going forward, and some of them were appealed to, none would 

 take the responsibility of advising the king to withhold his signature 

 from a treaty that was to degrade him in his own eyes, and which 

 subverted the laws that had hitherto been so beneficial. 



I make these comments on the conduct of the foreign residents and 

 missionaries, because I am satisfied that the smallest opposition would 

 now have checked the career of Captain Laplace ; and it would have 



VOL. IV. B2 3 



