The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1879-05-10
The Industry of Hawaiians.

Mr.. EDITOR Please permit me a place in your
columns for q few ommen upon your statements
OF the 18th April. in relation to the alleged indo-
fru1c of native Hawalluns.
There are, according to the census of 1878, in
these Islands, 1850 males between the ages of Is
and 40 years in our tohOle population, and there
are not, as you state, that number Of native
males"
adult male population OF the Kingdom are native
Hawaiians.
Now let us examine the records, and sec whether
l can be sustained in making such a statement or
not.
There are, as reported, $3.50 Chinese males in
our population, and as these ere chiefly adult i'm
migrants, it will be safe to assume that by far the
largest portion, or at least 1000, of our Chinese
males are adults between the ages mentioned.
Then We have $500 other foreign males of all
natiOnulites aud / shall be under the mark when
l assume that about two-thirds, or say 900 of
these foreign males are OF the adult ages under
consideration.
And if to these exceptions from our ,chole adult
male population we add q due proportion Of our
1873 half caste males, OF such as are between Is
and 40 years, say at least 500. We will have all
told of Chinese and other foreign and hali-caste
adult males, q total OF 1900, or about one-half the
adult male population OF the Kingdom. Then, if
you take into consideration that there are over 500
native lepers at Kalawao, aud besides, large num-
beers OF sick natives in hospitals and elsewhere
throughout the country, my statement that not one
half OF the able-bodied adult male population of this
Kingdom are native Hawaiians will hardly seem
out Of the way.
1 assume that there could not be mustered in
these Islands more than FIVE thousand able-bodied
native Hawaiians. fl for plantation work or sea-
mans duty, all told, and therefore must affirm that
the ten thousand native men sail to be living in
idleness and sponging on their fIieuds are an
imaginary host OF drones.
In 1872 there were, according to a carefully
prepared report issued by the Immigration So
ciety, 1880 native males employed on all the plan
tations in the Islands. | have no full data Tor a
present estimate, but l am led to assume from all
my that there are about $500 OF our
native adult males, or nearly so per cent. of the
working force OF the native Hawaiian people, at
this time engaged to labor on plantations ranches.
and in carrying on other industries. All the prime
youth and men OF the native race have been in
duced 10 leave their home cabin and patch and
join the plantation gang by the tempting pro1er of
a little sum ot cash in hand aud so, whilst the
plantation is busy the old haunts Of the natives
are d~esolate.
know that many idlers OF the native race are
to be seen in Honolulu. Lahaina and other towns,
even " scores" OF them at the Chinese restaur-
ants but you will find ON inquiry that these loaf
ers are chiefly official employees, petty lawyers,
kahunas and other graduates of our high schools /;
and yet, were you To search the Kingdom over. i
do not believe you could End Eve hundred udult
native male Hawaiians who are not providing for
their own subsistence.
The able-bodied native Hawaiian man cannot be
excelled in the way of hard work by any labOIing
immigrant. But perhaps il NAV be sail this
character OF the kanaka belongs to the past rather
than to the present. 1t may be partly so. and it is
to be greatly regretted that Hawaiian youths had
not been in times past appreniiced to labor rather
than taught so assiduously SO much knowledge
which they do not appreciate and have no oppor-
tunity TO employ.
Yet, for all that. though the Hawaiian has not
been trained to labor, he will compare well as II
worker with those OF other races who have been so
trained and it is to be deplored that health and
long life do not abide with him, and that he does
not increase and replrnish his native isles. Ii
would be well for employers OF labor in this archi-
pelagO il they cOnld hud all the hands they need
among the native race, and had no occasion to
seek for help IN othrr countries. for they will
never lind a better labJrer than the kanaka for
these tropic lands.
LauikrhH. WALTER MURRAY GIBSON.
I'VE were in error in stating the native male popu-
lation between 10 and 40 at 1880. A fair deduc-
ton from the census table shows that there are
1850 foreigners Of all nstionalities between the ages
Of 10 and 40: this leaves $3.50 native males between
those ages There are 1919 males Of all nationali-
ties over 40 years Of age, 1000 Of whom we will say
are able bodied men. and 5000 are natives. This
will give us not far from 1000 able bodied native
males in the country. How many Of these are fair
ly earning a living by the sweat Of their brows, and
how many on the other hand are living on their
friends? By the Census we learn that at the end Of
1878 there were 7.S4l persons employed on planta-
tons under contracts to labor. 1t will be safe to
say that about 200 Of these are Chinese and other
nationalities, and that the remainder, 2,641, are
HaWaiians. These deducted from II, 900. OF which