The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1899-10-28
CAREER OF HON. ALEXANDER
YOUNG.
How Life of Thrift, Under a Lucky
Star, Brought Him Fortune--Some
Hard Work Ahead

noon that Alexander Young had been
appointed Minister of Interior to sue
Ceed the late Captain James A. King
was not great surprise as Mr.. Young
had been freely spoken as one most
likely to be offered the post.
Alexander Young was born in Black
burn, Lanarkshire Scotland, on De-
cember 14th, 1888, and there received a
good common school education. His
father was a contractor and at the age
of twelve the boy first entered active
life, and for five years was engaged in
such hard physical work as farming.
mining, road making, ditching. etc.
When seventeen years of age, he was
indentured in the mechanical engineer
ing and machinist trade to a Glasgow
firm. For another five years he faith
fully served his employers, passing
through all the departments of the
works, and acquiring that intimate
knowledge of the business which, with
his energy, has made him one of the
foremost machinists of his time. When
his days of apprenticeship were over,
Mr.. Young continued with the same
firm as journeyman, until, in 1858, he
was selected by his employers to erect
lot of their machinery in the city of
London. Here for two years more he
worked on, and then found himself un-
der two engagements: one to marry an
English girl, and the other to go abroad
for term of three years for a London
firm. He carried out both contracts,
for on the 26th of March, 1860, he and
his young bride sailed on their voyage
around the Horn" to distant Van
couver.
Fulfilling a contract in British Col
umbia he went to San Francisco, and
reached Honolulu by the Egeria in
January, 1865. Two days after he mad
landed, Mr. Young had his family sec-
tied, and was at work in the Honolulu
Iron Works as a journeyman pattern
maker. After a few months he Joined
Mr.. William Lidgate (alsO from Van
couver Island), and they opened a ma
chine shop and foundry in Hilo, Hawaii,
under the firm name of Lidgate &
Young. Here four years were spent
with but poor success, and early in
1869 he revisited Honolulu on his way
to San Francisco. Business was at a
low ebb with the sugar planters in
those days, for Notwithstanding the
| facts that land was cheap, sugar worth
| two or three times it's present price,
| labor plentiful, and not half the wages
| being paid as are now, still many plan
| tations had to be discontinued. At that
| time the Honolulu Iron Works We're
managed by Thomas Hughes, who had
come to the conclusion that without
| success to the sugar planters, foundries
| and machine shops were bound to be-
| come failures Therefore he sold out
| his stock in the II. |. w. Co. to Mr..
Young, and resigned the management
| in the latter's favor. Thus Mr. Young
| again became resident of Honolulu,
and he continued to direct his energies
| to the study of sugar and sugar ma
| chinery.
| The Reciprocity treaty and develop
ment of the sugar business brought pro-
| fits to the Honolulu Iron Works and a
fortune to Mr. Young. He became in
terested himself in several large plan
| tatons.
He has for some time been a double
barreled millionaire and his income is
generally not far short of $3O0,0 a
| year.
The new Minister has always been
closely identified with the movement for
better government in the Islands. In
1887 he gave his influence to the party
working to that end and in 1898 was a
prominent figure in establishing the
Provisional Government At the meet
ing held just before the overthrow he
made one of the great speeches of the
day, advocating positive and firm ac-
| ton. In 1894 he was a member of the
Constitutional Convention and one of
the signers of the present Fundamental
law.
Mr.. Young now has a mansion in
Oakland and two very fine residences
here His summers are usually spent
on the Coast. He has never sought po
litical honors but has frequently beer
"the man sought" by politics. Being
at the close of the biennial period he
encounters at the start some of the
hardest work of the two years.