Deeply imbued with a sense of the responsibility that rests upon my Government, not only to foster, but to lead the way in all that tends to the general good, I would invite your earnest attention to the recommendations that will be laid before you by my Minister of the Interior, and particularly to that portion of his report relating to the proposed improvements in the harbor of Honolulu. The facilities that would be afforded in the loading and unloading of vessels, native as well as foreign; the extra inducements that these new accommodations would hold out to those parties who contemplate making this port a place where ocean steamers may seek refreshments, and take in coal and water; the general impetus that would be given to trade by providing, at the water's edge, a site for the erection of warehouses; and the hundred other conveniences proper to a maritime city;—all these considerations prove to my mind the propriety of proceeding energetically with a work so national in its character that no part of the islands can fail to share in many of its advantages. To your wisdom it belongs to consider in what way the funds necessary to effect this great improvement may be best procured.
It is gratifying to me, on commencing my reign, to be able to inform you, that my relations with all the great Powers, between whom and myself exist treaties of amity, are of the most satisfactory nature. I have received from all of them, assurances that leave no room to doubt that my rights and sovereignty will be respected. My policy, as regards all foreign nations, being that of peace, impartiality and neutrality, in the spirit of the Proclamation by the late King, of the 16th May last, and of the Resolutions of the Privy Council of the 15th June and 17th July, I have given to the President of the United States, at his request, my solemn adhesion to the rule, and to the principles establishing the rights of neutrals during war, contained in the Convention between his Majesty the Emperor of all the Russias, and the United States, concluded in Washington on the 22d July last.
I have exchanged my ratification for that, by my great and good friend, His Majesty Oscar, King of Sweden and Norway, of the treaty concluded at my Court on the 1st day of July, 1852.
I have ordered my Minister of Foreign Relations to inform you of all treaties with foreign nations negotiated under the late reign, of the progressive steps by which the sovereignty and independence of this Kingdom have become so generally acknowledged, and of the transactions generally of the Department under his charge.
I have committed an important mission to the Honorable William L. Lee, Chancellor of the Kingdom and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and have accredited him as my Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary, from which mission I anticipate important results for the benefit of you all, which will be made known to you hereafter. In the meanwhile, I recommend you to vote such a sum as, in your wisdom, you may deem adequate for the expenses of that mission.
My Minister of Finance will submit, for your considerations, certain important measures relating to the National finances; and you cannot fail to be impressed with the necessity of devising some means of enlarging them. Without more extended means we must remain in the position of having the will, without the power, to stimulate agriculture and commerce, and to provide generally for the physical, mental and moral improvement of the nation. As a preparatory step towards increasing the sources of revenue, we must increase the revenue to be drawn from such sources as already exist. But, restricted as we are, by treaty, from exercising a right common to all free communities, we are unable to impose discriminating duties on foreign imports, which, whilst supplying the Treasury with additional means, would enhance the price of articles of luxury only. To regain the right of which we have, for the present, divested ourselves, it may be necessary that you reconsider the act by which the duty on spirituous liquors is now regulated. The Minister of Finance laid this subject before you last year in a clear and able manner, and his views have been confirmed by the experience of another year. Whether it would be wise to assist the revenue by a tax on property, is for you to determine.
To foster education and widen every channel that leads to knowledge, is one of our most imperative duties. It will be for you to determine what obstacles, if any, exist, to the general enlightenment of my people. On this subject there will be submitted for your consideration, certain proposed changes in the Department of Public Instruction. It is of the highest importance, in my opinion, that education in the English language should become more general, for it is my firm conviction that unless my subjects become educated in this tongue, their hope of intellectual progress, and of meeting the foreigners on terms of equality, is a vain one.
It is a melancholy fact that agriculture, as now practiced, is not a business of so prosperous and lucrative a nature as to induce men of means to engage in it; and capital is absolutely necessary to the successful production of our great staples, sugar, coffee and tobacco. I beg you, therefore, to consider whether there exist any restrictions, the removal of which would give new life to this important source of national prosperity, and tend to create a juster balance between our imports and exports. I need hardly mention the obligation that weighs upon you, to open wide our ports to commerce. Without commerce our agricultural produce might moulder in our warehouses; roads, and interisland communication almost cease to exist; the making of wharves become a work of supererogation, and the opening and closing of stores an idle ceremony. As the legislators of a young commercial nation, we should be liberal in our measures, and far-sighted in our views.