The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1888-03-09
PLANTATION SLAVES.
The Story Told by Portuguese From
King KaIakaua's Dominion.
[san Francisco Examiner, Feb. 26.J

/
The Portuguese colony of this city is
being rapidly increased by arrivals from
the Sandwich Islands. Every steamer
brings its quota of steerage passengers,
who upon arrival present a rather sorry
appearance. All seem to be glad to have
! reached California and rejoice that they
! are no longer virtual slaves under the
contract" system prevailing upon the
| islands. One of the newcomers in a
| conversation with an Examiner" rep
resentative who speaks Portuguese, said
that the planters did not want any
whites there but themselves, and so the
| Germans, Scandinavians and Portuguese
| are glad to leave the miserable serfdom
on the plantations as soon as their con-
tracts expire. The Asiatics, Chinese
! and Japanese and South Sea l landers
are now the principal laborers on the
plantations. The white workingmen of
Honolulu and other towns are banding
together against the Chinese and they
are arousing strong anti-Coolie feeling.
The "mutineers," as they are called.
now in power told the Portuguese that if
they voted for them they could have
what they wanted, but once in power
the voters were left to do as they
pleased and bluntly informed that if they
didR't like the country they could leave
it, which they did gladly
The Honolulu papers, said the re-
rOrtarIC iDfOrpoaDt Dovor foil +I,o +-,,tI
about what what is going on in the ISL
ands. The last cargo of Japanese serfs
this is what they are when they once
touch the islands-were not allowed to
land in Honolulu, but were transshipped
to the island steamers and parceled out
among the planters like so many ami
mails. The "mutineers" in control of
the government were afraid to let them
land in the city for fear of coming in
contact with their countrymen long resi-
dent on the islands, who would post
them as to the fate in store for them All
the guarantees of the Japs under the
Gibson administration have been set
aside by the existing Government.
Life on the plantations, as depicted by
the newcomer, is brutalizing in the ex-
extreme to white laborers, who are com
PEELED to work from dawn to dark under
''lunas" (overseers) armed to the teeth,
and with authority to shoot down any
one daring enough to make a break for
liberty.
The steamer Australia, which arrived
on Wednesday, brought 10 Portuguese,
who for five years past have been en-
gagged on the Hawaiian sugar planta-
tons. They are now preparing to go to
the country
sit was too hot down in the islands |
for u.s." said Emilio Pendennis to an |
Examiner" representative yesterday. |
eve are not accustomed to so warm a |
climate, and thought California would |
suit US better. Besides, we have learned |
that we can make more money here. |
Prior to leaving Portugal many of us
were engaged in raising wine and fruits
of various kinds We understand the
fruit business very WE'LL"
Others told the same story. They are
rather a good-loOking lot of people,
There are many women and children
with them, and some young girls, who
are models of old country beauty.
''There are a great many Portuguese
coming to California; said H. Laidley,
the Portuguese Consul, yesterday.
''There were 200 or 300 last year, and
every train brings some here. Not all
OF them reach San. Francisco, of course,
for many of them drop off at Fresno,
Tulare, and at various other points in
the State.
Portugal has topography and eli
mate remarkably like California, and the
Bay of Lisbon is almost an exact dupli-
cate of the Bay of San Francisco. The
only difference is that the city is on the
east side, while we are on the west"
One of the emigrants who arrived
rom Honolulu told the reporter that
everyone had some money, though per-
maps none had over 1000 or 81 800.
JudIciously invested, he said, he thought
hey could do very well at fruit raising
here. .