The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1870-02-02


labor in our islands"
With no desire to comment upon per-
sons, wish Mr.. Editor, to call your at
tention to the above invitation of the Id
reytiser, an invitation to look at Laie, for
the purpose of comparison, with other
plantations. The extract contains several
points, inductively asserted of the latter,
which the Adcertiser is not able to sub
stantiate.
In Laie " it says there is free labor"
the implication is, that on other planta-
lions, there is slave labor Notwithstand-
ing the brilliancy of the Adrertiser, it has
not yet succeeded in pursuading this com
munity, that slavery, or any modification
thereof, exists upon these islands; nor the
laborers themselves that they are in a
IL of the Constitution it would be the
acme of stupidity on the part of the la
borer to remain one moment slave fif he
is one) and remissness of philanthropy
Tin that case) on the part of his friends, to
neglect to inform him of the fact, and to
cause his instant deliverance
1t says In Laie can be found from
forty to fifty laborers employed, not one
of them under written contracts" Laie
has forty-fve acres of land under cane cul-
tivation, and employs in this, about an
average of ten Hawaiians the year round,
! q do not speak by the book,) and has a
good supply of white persons, engaged in
| its work
1t is favored, in having a larger num-
Der of natives living upon it in their own
right, and by reason of locating there on
account of a religious faith, than the ada
cent lands, and it happens, that more men
are at hand, that can be hired on occasion
than it needs to carry on its work, even
during the pinch of grinding season.
Its plantation work is small, and by
reason of the above facts, it can safely
trust to getting its laborers day by day,
a more economical method, where it can be
used, than to hire laborers the whole year
through, in order to. have them on hand
when needed most. 1t has no need of
written contracts, other plantations that
must have from one to two hundred men,
cannot sa'ely trust to verbal agreements.
A strike among the laborers in the midst
of the year, would be fatal, in districts
where men cannot be obtained on call, in
sufficient numbers to carry on the work.
"Honor and faithfulness" in the Laie
laborer, can hardly be predicated, on
| the non-existence of written contract
as the same qualities are found to obtain
among laborers on other plantations.
Contracts are not incompatible with faith
fulness, while they may be said to be ac-
tually necessary, in order to secure eOntin-
nous and steady labor, where this, in large
amount is required by an employer.
In Laie "not dollar has been adj
vanced to the laborer Happy indeed is
Laie it is to be envied for other plan
tations, much against the interests and in
clination of owners, are obliged to make
advances.
1t is implied in the above quotation,
that advances destroy the freeness of la
Dor, but advances are the choice of the la
borer himself, he will have payment for his
labor before it is performed, and if there
is any hardship in advances, it falls upon
the employer The practice of advances
is bad one, but it is the laborer who
must work a reform, for under the pres
ent scarcity of hands, the employer has
no recourse but to submit to the terms of
the laborer. The other plantations would
be only too happy to follow the example
of Laie in this particular. Does not the
AdoertiSer know that wherever labor is in
short supply, that the laborer is the dicta-
tor. He may insist upon heavy advances,
may get into debt, may try desertion as
speculation, may get up strike, may get
lazy and unfaithful, may do many i'm
proper things with IMMUNITY, that he
could not do, if another hungry and pen
niless man stood ready to step into his
yoluntarily-vacated place? A fair supply
of laborers on these islands, would speedi-
ly solve all the questions that have been
started about our labor system, to the sat
isfaction of every body.
In Lale at the end of every month,
each is paid his wages in full" A most
excellent practice, and one followed by all
the plantations.
In Laie g all are anxious to continue "a
very proper frame of mind, brought about
it is to be presumed, by satisfactory wages,
and the chance to the laborer, work
month and then skip month, IA very
taking method of employment with Hawa-
iians) if he is so disposed, without risking
his eiectment as a tenant from the land.
The implication that on other plantations,
laborers are unwilling to ship again is in
correct, for the fact is, that the majority
go on from year to year, shipping again
!