The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1883-07-14
Portuguese immigration.

BY the arrival of the steamer HankOw on
Saturday, another considerable addition
was made to our population. 1t has been a
question often raised in some minds if the
interests Of labor are well served or not by
the arrival of Portuguese immigrants it
has been complained hat they are n very
heavy burden OH the planters, who, up to
the present time are the chief resource of
the government for locating and settling
the new arrivals. No doubt there is quite
a burden imposed in the charge of so many
women and children as accompany each
shipment of lIbOrers, yet on the other hand
The planters should consider that, were it
not for this immigration, there would be
far less disposition on the part of the Chi
nese immigrants to take sci vice on the
terms that are offered them, and which the
planters can afford.
We think that the recent arrivals by the
Abergeldie had quite Il determining in
luence on the very large numbers of Chi
nese who were at that time focking into
the country, and who so readily engaged to
ship on the plantations, but who would
doubtless have held out for higher and
more eXOrbitant terms had it not been for
the immediate arrival of those Portuguese,
ard the news that others would shortly fol-
low. When the planters contribute some
what to support the surplus population
IN the Portuguese element, they are at the
same time assisting the labor market in
inducing the Chinese to engage at reason
able rates. The kind of labor generally pre-
ferred i'm this country for plantation work
is the native labor. yet this is difficult, and
in some places impossible to obtain, nor is
the supply likely to increase. Setting aside
the native, the question arises do the POrtu-
guese OF the Chinese fulfill our require
snents to the best advantage, no other kind
of labor having been tried TO any great eX-
tent. At some plantations the Chinese are
preferred, being more especially adapted
for indoor work at the mills, then again
they are said to- he equally as useful Guilt
waiting i'm the fields as the Portuguese, and
more so i'm taking charge of stock on the
other hand the Portuguese are pre-
rerred for their general superiority in
out of door work and are some
times utilized for mill work in preference
TO the Chinaman. The Portuguese settle
down in their homes, cultivate their gar
dens with great success and industry and
we never hear instances of their running
away, the Chinaman on the other hand is
of a migratory disposition, has no home and
sometimes bolts. to the great annoyance and
expense of his employer, yet ON the whole
he Is preferred to his brother labOrer on ac-
count of his c~he-pness.
1t seems to US to be manifest that there
should he two or more classes of labor on
these islands, the one to keep in check the
other. Let anyOne reflect for "A m
what the consequences would be if no more
Portuguese were to arrive during the next
twelve months. Plantations are increasing
in size and number, so that more labor
would be required ami should planters he
left to the dictation and mercy of the Chi
naman what wOuld be the result. 1t would
probably result in the impossibility ofsome
planters continuing their operations with
out serious pecuniary loss, not only to
themselves but indirectly perhaps to the
country. The effects would be so serious
hat it is almost impossible to contemplate
them. and we feel assured that they can
only be Obviated by keeping up the supply
of Portuguese immigrants to a reasonable
extent, thus preventing the entire control
of the labor market from falling into the
hands of any one class.