The Hawaiian gazette., 1878-08-14
WEDNESDAY. A 10 USF IA. 1873.
Sugar Cane at Home and Abroad.

article, from the secOno eullOu Ol tue
San Francisco Bulletin of July ODD, which is an
answer to an editorial leader of the DAY previous.
in the same paper, under the head of Sugar Cane
10 California = in which the editor seems TO be
very much annoyed, because such men as Col.
Spreckles and other capitalists in California, are
investing their surplus capital in the sugar Gull
ture on these Islands when according TO the
ideas of the Bulletin. there are equal advantages
10 California for capitalists to invest 10 cane
growing in the latter State. Front street" in
his admirable reply to the Bulletin has exhausted
the subject, and rendered it unnecessary for US
to add word to what he has written SO oppor
timely and SO we'll. [ED.l Isre5 ar
EDITOR BULLETIN: Your leader of last eve
ning headed Sugar Cane IN California" is cal
cuIated to carry much weight in the minds OF
the general public, who are not supposed TO be
sufficiently conversant with the subject TO Judge
of the conclusions you draw save by the argu-
ment you use and therefore your article may be
instrumental in creating feeling against the
present treaty of reciprocity between our Gov
ernment and the Hawaiian Islands without in
the least benefllng our city or State.
The whole glst of your article, as it appears to
me. is contained in the implication that the re.
ciprocty treaty with Hawaii dlscourages home
industry IN California. Will you allow me TO
endeavor to prove that the treaty has no such
effect? l will not take advantage of the we'll
known patriotism of the gentleman to whom
your article refers, and who has already given
many evidences Of bis desire to encourage the
industries of California, but will rest my case
upon simple statement of facts which any man
can prove for himself. -..se- -..-..si e-
You say there are probably 100000 acres of
land in California as well adapted to the growing
of sugar cane as any 10 Hawali." If this is so,
it does not speak well tor the perspicacity of our
people in allowing these broad acres TO remain
untitled; and yet Californians are somewhat
noted for the readiness with which they pick up
good things" 1t may tend to explain this
seeming neglect, to give you description oil the
sugar lands of Hawaii, and to, make few com
parsons with the results obtained in Louisiana
and elsewhere.
The amount OF land actually cultivated in su-
gar cane upon the five principal islands OF Ha-
wall at the present time does not exceed 10000
acres. and not more than half of this is first class
sugar land. Even the best of it must be allowed
to rest. or lie falow for several years after bear
ing from two to four crops, and much Of the old
land can be cropped" but once. The ordinary
yield per acre OF crop Of plant cane l6 months
old is from three TO six tons, and as the total
crop of the Islands for any one year has never
reached 10000 tons you may readily infer that
the acreage" Of good sugar land is very limited.
Good sugar land must be rich and strong, and
pIentifuliy supplied with water. Nor will cane
always grow well in land that produces other
crops in perfection, and nothing but actual trial
will demonstrate the fitness of land for growing
sugar-cane Above all must the season be pro-
pitiOus. The short seasons of Louisiana, with
their frosty winters, give crops OF half ton to q
ton CT sugar to the acre. and require the crops to
be taken off at a certain time and with great
haste. At 1.-The Islands frost is never known save
on the mountains and the cane grows the year
through 1850
You ask any well.informed citizen to tell you
In what respect the sugar-cane lands OF Louisl
ana are better than the bottom lands of X ern
county, etc. Supposing Kern county to be fully
! equal to louisiana how great would be the n
ducetnent for capitalists TO invest in sugar cul
ture? Is not the land Of California capable o.
raising as big beeta as Germany or France ant
| yet has not beet-sugar proved a failure here
1t is well known that sugar making IN Louisiana
| is precarious business at best, and not very
tempting to capitalists. When it can be dem
| onstrated that California furnishes Inducements
for investments, those investments will be made
but it is not sufficient to say that sugar cant
| will come to maturity where the orange come,
to perfection" because such is not dLtcays, i
sometimes. the case. 1l-
Nor is sugar-cane culture an industry de
voutly to be wished" for in this country No
only is the labor required such as white men arr
untitled for, but the climatic conditions unde
which the cane will grow to perfection are sucl
that white men cannot do the work if they
1 would. company of white men from Thu
State some years since tried the experiment o
cutlvating sugar-cane on the plantation OF Capt
James Makee. on the island of Maui, and not
withstandng the location was the most favor
able of any on the islands for them. they gave /
up in few months. Were it profitable TO rails,
sugar-cane in California at ALL it would be don,
with Cinnamon, and would be the means of at
tracing more TO our shores Our crops of corn
wheat, etc., mature in a few months, and mucl
OF the labor OF cultivating and gathering can b.
done with comparative ease by mans of hors
power aud the use of improved machinery. The
cultivation OF sugar-cane ia long continued ap
plication of manual labor aud drudgery of th
lowest order and where irrigation by means @
"trenching" is practiced. the work of preparing
the land, planting the seed cane, wedding, water
ing, stripping, topping, cutting and piliDg tn
cane is all done by hand. This work, to b
probably performed, must be carried on for tel
or twelve hours out Of each day, and under th
broiling rays of more than "semi-tropcal sun,
by laborers who cannot expect to be paid owe
$40 or Sl2 per month, and the plain food who
sufhces them, unless, we, in our turn. are wlIiB
to pay an advance of two or three cents pc
pound FOR the sugar we consume.
Does any one suppose that the sugar can
would be cultivated in Louisiana without near
labor and are we prepared to open up me,
Industries" in California for the benefit OF th
Chinese? For this is what it amounts to- eve
supposiDg our State possesses all the advantage
you claim for it. And you may be assured tina
there are difficulties in the way of CROWN
sugar cane in California, which do not com
within the range of ordinary observation" Out
side OF natural difficulties, the same reason ez
lists to prevent our raising sugar. tea. coffee, rc
and cotton, viz: that in so doing we must 10
crease The number of our Chinese population, o
bring down the value of our white labor to
point where we can compete with the cheap an
ignorant labor OF other countries.
pass over your statement that specimens O
cane have been sent up from the low countie
as perfect as was ever produced in any land
with the reminder that zone swallow does no
make summer" and that few hills of suga
cane might be cultivated and matured where
would be practically impossible to raise crop a
profit | have seen specimens Of the cane {
which you'refer, and found them inferior to th
average cane of Hawaii
Now, as to the investments Of capital at th