Simon Kaloa Kaʻai (died March 22, 1884) was a politician who served many political posts in the

Kingdom of Hawaii The Hawaiian Kingdom, also known as the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ɛ ɐwˈpuni həˈvɐjʔi, was an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country from 1795 to 1893, which eventually encompassed all of the inhabited Hawaii ...

. He served multiple terms as a legislator from the island of

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

from 1878 to 1880 and from 1882 to 1883 and

Minister of the Interior An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...

in 1882.

Life and career

He was born at Keopu, Kailua, North Kona, on the island of

, the son of Kaʻai (died 1859) and Kaupena. His father was from Waikapu, on the island of

Maui Maui (; Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ) is the second largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2). It is the List of islands of the United States by area, 17th-largest in the United States. Maui is one of ...

, and served as a servant at Pohukaina to Prince

Lunalilo Lunalilo (William Charles Lunalilo; January 31, 1835 – February 3, 1874) was the sixth monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaii from his election on January 8, 1873, until his death a year later. Born to Kekāuluohi and High Chief Charles Kanaʻin ...

, who would reign as king from 1873 to 1874. His paternal uncle was named Methuselah Mahuka (died 1881). The younger Kaʻai was educated at schools in

Wailuku Wailuku is a census-designated place (CDP) in and county seat of Maui Island, Maui County, Hawaii, United States. The population was 17,697 at the 2020 census. Wailuku is located just west of Kahului, at the mouth of the Iao Valley. In the ...

. He served as turnkey or under-jailer for

Oahu Oahu (, , sometimes written Oahu) is the third-largest and most populated island of the Hawaiian Islands and of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital, Honolulu, is on Oahu's southeast coast. The island of Oahu and the uninhabited Northwe ...

Prison before moving back to Hawaii Island where he served as deputy sheriff of Kona in the late 1860s. He was given many political appointments including marriage license agent for Hawaii on July 8, 1869, tax assessor for Waialua, Oahu on June 19, 1877, and a member of the Board of Health on July 3, 1878. He also served as an agent of the estate of Princess Ruth Keʻelikōlani. Kaʻai began his legislative career as a member of the House of Representatives, the lower house of the legislature of the kingdom, for the district of South Kona. He sat as a representative during the legislative assemblies from 1870 to 1874. During the special session and regular session of 1874, he presided as Vice President of the Legislative Assembly. After the accession of King

Kalākaua Kalākaua (David Laʻamea Kamanakapuʻu Māhinulani Nālaʻiaʻehuokalani Lumialani Kalākaua; November 16, 1836 – January 20, 1891), was the last king and penultimate monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi, reigning from February 12, 1874, u ...

to the Hawaiian throne, Kaʻai switched his former loyalty from the defeated Queen Emma and became a supporter of the new monarch. Kalākaua appointed him to the House of Nobles, the upper house of the legislature, on January 11, 1876, and as a member of his Privy Council of State on December 10, 1877. Kaʻai would serve as either a noble or cabinet minister from 1876 to his death in 1884. Kaʻai was a leading figure of a new generation of Hawaiian leaders, along with Prince

Leleiohoku II William Pitt Leleiohoku II, born Kalahoʻolewa (January 10, 1855 – April 9, 1877), was a prince of the Hawaiian Kingdom and member of the reigning House of Kalākaua. At birth, Leleiohoku was ''hānai'' (informally adopted) by Ruth Keʻeli ...

(the brother of the king) and John Mākini Kapena. The king appointed him to succeed Kapena as

from July 3, 1878 to August 14, 1880. From May 20, 1882 to August 8, 1882, he served as

. He was appointed as Minister of Finance for a second term from August 8, 1882 to February 13, 1883. An avid supporter of the absolute power of the king, Kaʻai once stated at a public meeting in 1880 after his first dismissal from the cabinet that "the King has the absolute right to make and unmake cabinets, and that no one has the right to object or criticize no matter what he does or how he does it." Historian Ralph Simpson Kuykendall notes, "This statement is of great interest, for it contains the very essence of one side of the constitutional controversy that raged in Hawaii for the next dozen years." Kaʻai was dismissed from his second term as minister on February 13, 1883. The reason cited was for "dereliction of ministerial duty" with American ambassador Rollin M. Daggett writing, he was dismissed "because of his notorious and persistent intemperance." Kapena was appointed Minister of Finance in his place.

Death

Kaʻai died from a "paralysis of the brain", at his residence in

Kapālama Kapālama, now often called Pālama, is a neighborhood of Honolulu, Hawaii. It is often combined with the adjacent Kalihi and referred to as a single entity, Kalihi–Pālama. History The name comes from ''ka pā lama'' in the Hawaiian languag ...

, on March 22, 1884. His funeral the following day was officiated by Reverend Henry Hodges Parker while many members of the government paid their respect to his passing. He was interred beside his first wife in the cemetery of Kawaiahaʻo Church. He left a widow Becky Kekoa Kaʻai (1863?–1903), his second wife, and a surviving son

Ernest Kaʻai Ernest Kaʻai (1881–1962) was considered by many to have been the The Ukulele Hall of Fame Museum foremost ukulele authority of his time and is noted by some as being "Hawaii's Greatest Ukulele Player". Kaʻai, who was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, ...

who became a renowned musician and "Hawaii's Greatest Ukulele Player".

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Sources

; Books and journals * * * * * * * * * ;Newspapers and online sources * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kaai, Simon Kaloa Year of birth unknown 1884 deaths People from Wailuku, Hawaii People from Hawaii (island) Native Hawaiian politicians Hawaiian Kingdom politicians Members of the Hawaiian Kingdom House of Representatives Members of the Hawaiian Kingdom House of Nobles Members of the Hawaiian Kingdom Privy Council Hawaiian Kingdom Finance Ministers Hawaiian Kingdom Interior Ministers Burials at Kawaiahaʻo Church National Party (Hawaii) politicians