The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1893-08-21
He Predicts Success For Coffee
Raising in Hawaii.
a Trip Through kona. kau and to
the Volcano.


and Tea Company's place in North
Kone, whittier 1 was bound. The
steamer Mikahala reached Kailua on
Saturday morning, after fairly
pleasant trip, where Mr.. Mahale
kindly lent me a horse, and l pro-
ceeded in company with Mr.. Miller
to the Hawaiian Coffee and Tea Com
pany's egtate, some four miles dis
tant.
The first coffee l saw was on the
way, near the government road, about
1000 feet elevation. 1t consisted Of
two acres Of 2year-old trees from
stumps. These are in very thrifty
condition, although there is little
blight on them (aphis), bnt Mr.. Miller
is doing away with that with the
spray pump. There is quite good
crop of coffee on them for 2 year old
trees, and 1 would like to say, just
here, before l proceed any further,
that if we get no worse blight than
ent, coffee culture as business ven
ture will be perfectly safe. Ofcourse
ii requires care and attention like
ANYTHING else. Furthermore, this
particular little spot Is perfect hot
bed of aphis All around the guava
and mango trees are thick with it,
and entire escape under the circum-
stances could scarcely be expected.
The company does not own the sur
rounding lands, so Mr. Miller is not
able to clear space around this cot
fee. as should be done.
The next coffee that / saw was
block Of 120 acres, from 1900 to 100
feet elevation. There were trees in
this from plants just set out up to
trees three feet high, all In fine con-
dition, and everything went to show
q very vigorous growth, but at this
stage il Is a poor time for one not
posted to see it, as coffee makes its
showing in the second year, and
where an experienced eye can see
the grand possibilities ahead, an in
experienced one might be disap-
pointed. L was very much surprised
to see things SO far advanced, CON
sideripg the time the company has
been at work and the number of men
it has had employed. 1 was particu
larly struck with the growth of the
plants at the top of the field q7OOft.
elevation); they really looked fine,
and / can imagine no grander sight
both artistically and financially than
that 120 acres will present few years
from now, Notwithstanding the Sc
rious charges some of the old " ka-
maainas" make against Mr.. Miller of
wasting his time playing with squirt
pumps and lady bugs" and L put
myself on record as prophesyiDg that
the Hawaiian G. and L. Co. will be
exporting more coffee In six years
from now if the present mode of
management is kept up than all the
older coffee patches and plantations
in Kona put together, and may l be
there to see it. There is no blight |
whatever on this 120 acre field, and
If it does appear Mr.. Miller can and |
will get away with 1T.
MIR. Miller and L enjoyed COM |
pairing notes very much; this and |
seeing the place was pleasure had |
long looked forward to. We do not |
differ on any but one point, but more |
OF that anon. Suffice it to say have |
arrived at much the same results Gu |
my own place perhaps as MIR. Miller
would have done, but at greater cost.
I have had to pay for my experience
as went along, while the Haw'n Z.
and Il. Co. have benefited by its
experience gained In pre-
yious ventures, while we kamaainas
are so economical In the start and
have such varied ways of conducting
coffee culture. observed at least three
methods on my trip through hona-
One was trusting to the Lord to do |
it all: another was assisting nature
somewhat with a bush knife, and
the other was the proper cultivating |
process as practiced by the Hawaiian |
Coffee and Tea Co., and by your
humble servant now, for soon found |
out there was nothing IN 1T any other |
way. One difference of opinion, by |
the way, was In the topping. Mr.:
Miller believes In low topping and L
IN topping at six feet.
The tea plants look thrifty, but as
it was the first tea ever saw grow
ing In my life / do not profess to
know anything about IT,
Leaving here / passed through |
South Kona and saw several planta-
tions that were under the bush knife
treatment, with more or less crop, |
but not what 1 call heavy even for
wild coffee las Puma wild coffee
bears). / did notice there was more |
coffee on the trees that were out IN |
the sunlight. The only black blight |
/ saw at all was under kukui trees,
and from the appearance of things L
fancy. the lady bug has been through |
South Kona within the last six
months. I lunched with MIR. Chas.
Hooper there, and he showed me
some trees in front of his house that
had been heavily blighted and appar-
emily dead for some years. which
have this year thrown off the blight;
There is quite d foliage on them and
some crop. In fact I have a theory
as to the working of the lady bug