Elinor Langer says:

And it was on January 17, 1895, the second anniversary, that the Republic opened the trials of the people arrested for “treason” in the revolt. Has anyone seen accounts in the Hawaiian papers about what happened on January 24, the day the Queen signed her forced abdication statement? According to “The Friend” (February 1, 1895) “On the 24th, while engaged in the trial of a company of natives, the Court was startled by the fall upon the table around which they sat of a massive bar of plaster from the lofty ceiling [of the Throne Room, where the trials were taking place.] The bar was nine feet long, forming part of a decorative panel. It fell upon the center of the table, precisely fitting the length of it. Col. Whiting had a narrow escape, his face being grazed, although protected by his military hat. The plaster had been loosened by a sharp shake of earthquake the night before.” The Queen signed the statement at 11 a.m. in the rooms directly above –perhaps even at the same time?

[See the original article, “The Story of the Insurrection” in The Friend, Volume 53, Number 2, Pages 9–11. February 1895.

Comment to Writing on the wall, 1894.]