Question: Why are judges allowed to perform private wedding ceremonies in their courtrooms and be paid extra for doing so? I understand they are doing this during lunch time or on their breaks, but they are using a state facility.

Answer: Basically, the state Judiciary considers such services part of their duties, although there is nothing written that specifically covers the situation.

When we asked about the practice, we were pointed first to Section 572-12 of the Hawaii Revised Statutes, which allows “;any justice or judge or magistrate, active or retired, of a state or federal court in the State”; to perform marriages, as well as “;any minister, priest, or officer of any religious denomination or society”; ordained or authorized to do so.

The section goes on to say, “;Such person or society may receive the price stipulated by the parties or the gratification tendered.”;

There is no written authority allowing a judge to conduct marriage ceremonies in his or her courtroom, said Judiciary spokeswoman Marsha Kitagawa.

“;It may be that judges are allowed to use the courtrooms because they are authorized by law to perform marriage ceremonies,”; she said. “;As such, performing marriage ceremonies can be considered part of their duties.”;

Kitagawa said each judge and staff schedules and handles the private ceremonies, including payment of fees. The Judiciary does not keep track of how many marriages are performed or which judges are involved, she said.

Meanwhile, while the state Ethics Code governs the conduct of all state government officials and employees, it does not cover judges and justices.

Instead, the Commission on Judicial Conduct oversees the conduct of all judges and justices in the state.

Trade Name

Our Sunday column about trade winds - http://www.starbulletin.com/news/20090118_Trade_talk.html - caught Jerry Bentley's attention.

Bentley, professor of world history at the University of Hawaii at Manoa and founding editor of the Journal of World History, thanked us for the column and for pointing out Glenn James' Web site hawaiiweathertoday.com.

He also gave us a history lesson, noting that the original meaning of the term “;trade wind”; doesn't come from trade in the sense of commerce or trader.

“;It actually reflects a meaning of the word 'trade' that is now largely obsolete,”; he said. “;The original term came from Old English 'trade' related to the word 'tread,' so it has to do with something steady and regular, like a path that someone might tread. When merchants and mariners in the age of sail said 'the winds are blowing trade,' that meant they were on the regular path.”;

Later on, he said, the general public did “;get the notion”; that the term trade winds derived from traders who made use of the winds. Today, the term “;trade”; is rarely used in its old sense.

“;We do speak of our 'trade' meaning the work that we do regularly, even if it has nothing to do with commerce. And we speak of 'trades unions,' whose members have some regular and steady work. But those are about the only survivals of the old sense of the word 'trade,'”; Bentley said.