Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1898-08-27
Commissioner ]. ?. Brown States Some
Facts.
Small Amount Of Land Now NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
SurVeyors-SuesestIOnS 10 Those Contem-
plating Settling In Hawaii.
Commission of Public Lands,
Honolulu, II. l., Aug. 26, 1898.

sA'i - mug HoJ iooos
Sir:-The natural interest taken
in Hawaiian matters by the people
of the Great Republic, and the
tendency which exists with many
of looking for great and golden OPP
portunities in the distance, is apt
to tempt to these Islands a consid.
cradle number of people who are
i'll informed, or not at all inform
ed, of true conditions here, and
many of whom must be disap.
pointed. .
1t is with the desire to clearly
set forth the conditions at least as
far as regards the public lands of
the Islands, that L write hoping
that the statements made may
come to the attention of some of
those intending to try their for
tunes in Hawaii. .. 70.
First it should be noted that
Hawaii is not "new" country
with great unbroken areas of pub
lie lands awaiting the settler. For
half a century a definite system of
land division and ownership has
existed, and for that long period
transactions in public and private
lands have steadily taken place as
in all civilized countries. The
policy of selling lands outright
for cash at low figures, and
of making long leases
Of large tracts, was steadily car
ried out from the early "fifties"
until the date of the land Act of
1895, and the result is easily in
ferred. A large portion of what
might be called the "cream" of the
Government lands had at the lat
ter date passed into the hands of
private owners, and long leases
have been made covering the most
valuable Government and Grown
lands, many of which leases are
still in force. 1t was to conserve
and devote to the use OF "bona
fide" settlers the remaining pub
lie land, that the Land Act of 1895
was passed, which Act, eminently
suited to the conditions of the
case, is in force at this date.
To carry out the purpose Of
this Act, public lands have as fast
as practicable been divided and
opened up. AS there has been for
the past two years keen demand
for such lands, both on the part of
old residents of the country and OF
new corners, it has followed that
all tracts have been taken up as
soon as opened, at the present
date there is practically no land
ready for the occupation of any
considerable number of new COM
ers. The survey work which over
rough mountain lands and
through dense tropical jungle, is
at all times a laborious and slow
process, was interrupted at the
end of 1897 by the exhaustion of
appropriations for that purpose,
and has only been recently resum
ed upon the passage of new appro
priatlons. 1t is inevitable that
some time must elapse before ne
cessary surveys can be completed.
The new lands are off the lines of
travel; much difficulty is eucount-
cred in projecting roads to reach
them and the task all around, is a
difficult one which Que unfamiliar
with the country can not easily
estimate.
The lands laid out and disposed
Of since the date of the 1895 Land
Act have been those portions most
fayorably situated, and those re-
naming are of course still further
removed from centers of popula-
ton and lines of travel. To settle
upon and to improve such lands is
no soft snap"
To residents of the Islands it is
we'll known, but for the informa-
ton of others it ia necessary to
state that, as far as cane lands
and sugar cultivation is concern
ed, there is practically no open
ing except for large capitalists,
and for few, if any, of those.
The field is occupied by those
who for forty years have been
developing this industry, extend
ing and consolidating their inter
ests.
The low lvipo flat land of tba