The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1899-09-05
oLAA PLANTATION
Timber Lands Now Beir &
Cleared.
Eleven Hundred Acres TO be Plant
ed This Season-Mary Contracts
for Clearing Made.

II is hard to conceive of the
changes made during the past month
in the lower sections of the Olaa SUI
gar Company's lands, says the Hawaii
Herald. The several thousand acres of
land which has in the past been en-
tirely. given over to the growth of
ferns and tropical growth of similar
nature is rapidly being cleared and the
entire section is quickly approaching
a well-tilled garden in appearance.
Several hundred japanese coolies
are busily engaged in the work of
clearing the ground and getting 1t in
a condition ready for the plow, while
the planting Of the seed cane Is being
forwarded just as fast as the ground
Is prepared. A tract of LOO acres is
now already cleared fit for blowing and
a considerable part Of this is at pres
ent both cleared and planted. AS the
land is cleared it is proving to be a
much more fertile and productive
country than the most sanguine Of the
hopeful ones had looked for, and the
verdict of experienced cane men Is
that they have never seen land better
adapted for the growth of cane than is
the land now being planted by the
company. The old idea that Keaau
was but a stone quarry Of "a and pa
hoehoe has been dispelled. and as far
as the clearing has now progressed no
"a land has been encountered that can
not be plowed.
The first planting will be done with
out fertilizing and by the time this
crop has matured. experience will have
demonstrated the most desirable sys-
TEN for the future use of fertilizer. The
work pursued so far has not been con-
fined to the lower section of the dis
trict, but in the forest lands mauka the
clearing and planting of cane for seed
is being pushed in most energetic
way. Already over 300 acres of land
in the forest have been cleared, plOwed
and planted, and the work of clearing
500 acres Of virgin forest has COM
menced at eighteen and half miles on
the Volcano road. Several contracts
for clearing large areas of this land
are now being figured on and will pro-
badly be awarded in the near future.
while sufficient contracts for the clear
ing of land ready for the plot now as
sure the planting of at least 900 acres
of the wood lands by the first day of
March. II is expected that 500 acres of
seed will be in the ground near nine
miles by the end of September. The
shortage of labor is being rapidly ov-
ercome and the recent arrival Of about
200 contract coolies has now increased
the field help to nearly five hundred
hands. Arrangements have been made
for a large number Of japanese to be
shipped. and contracts for fifteen hun
dred are now made, to be here by No
vember 80. The work of investigating
and hunting for water to be used for
fluming Is meeting with success and
is progressing very satisfactorily
Streams and water heads with capac-
ity of fiuming 1000 tons of cane have
been discovered and but little of the
territory where water is most expect
ed to be found has been thoroughly in
vestigated. So far the streams discov-
cred have been near enough together
so that the work of bringing them in
one will be of but little labor or eX-
pense, and the manager of the COM
pany expresses himself as being per-
fectly satisfied and confident as to hay
ing an abundance of water for all
plantation purposes and uses. Large
stables and laborers' quarters have
been built at nine miles and the Puma
road corner Is becoming a village Of
no mean size, while all along the Vol
cano road new buildings are being
rapidly built for the accommodation of
the different gangs Of field laborers and
plantation lunas. A building to be
used for hospital purposes has been
put up at seventeen miles and labor
ers suffering from accident or illness
will be taken care of by the regular
plantation physician. The site for the
mill has virtually been decided on
and the work of construction will be
started in time to have 1t completed
when the first cane for grinding is ma
tured. The mill will be located makai
Of the Volcano road and probably well
toward the Keaau beach. 1t Is to be
Of the most modern type and In capac-
ity will be sufficient to grind all the
cane produced on the larger part Of
the entire plantation. The work so
far has certainly been pushed In a
most energetic way and to the kamaai-
ma or malihini who has not been
the Olaa district for the past
two months, changes will be seen which
for the short time work has been In
progress seem well nigh incredible.