The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1900-09-24
JAPANESE ASK CONTRACT.
Continued from page one.)

NCOhtihuSu AAOih P"bS OhS''
to a business way of doing business, so
all may know where they are at
In the early eighties most plantations
had more or less of their cane work
done by contract or grown upon shares
which lasted only a few years, as the
plantation superintendent and owners
came to the conclusion that It was
troublesome and Improbable and some
plantations were determined to get
rid of such improbable business. Con-
tracts became fewer. and in some cases
where share planters were unwilling to
give up their contracts, questionable
methods were adopted to force them to
leave. After this, plantation labor ran
along quite smoothly for several years
or until quite recently. The little con-
tracing and share cane raising attract
ing but little attention until Eva start
ed it again, and the papers spread and
commended the move over all the ISL
ands; extClling the manager for his
sagacity in showing plantation mana
gers how to grow cane. az | at the same
time settle up the [ ID. ! with Euro
peans and Americans . place Ct Asia
tics, which has not been the case as
Asiatics practically have all the con-
tracts.
This started a slow contract fever
among plantation managers particular
ly on this island who became anxious
to share in this move and they began to
give out liberal contracts. Laborers
soon learned that there was more
money to be made out of contracts than
| by monthly labor. Thus this contract
| fever passed to the laborers and it has
been raging among them in epidemic
violence the past few months. All want
contracts, none care to do regular plan
tation labor The effect of this is, that
on some plantations the manager con-
trolls only in part, as they pass over
much of their power and authority to
| those contractors who now hold the
right to hire laborers to do the work
which was formerly held by the man
ager, and most of these contracts are
so liberal they can and do pay larger
wages than the management were per-
mitted to pay. One large contract /
hear of lam exception, no doubt accord
ing to my reckoning, is so liberal, the
contractor will realize $50 per month
for every man he works on that con-
tract. 1t is these liberal contracts the
| laborerS hear of and spend both time
and money to get one.
To labor on a plantation for going
wages is too small business for jar
or Chinaman when contracts are in
reach. We must not blame the contrac-
tor when we consider the methods now
in vogue, and the great desire of some
managers as well as laborers to make
contracts.
Yes my "opinion" is that it is the con-
tract craze that has caused the larger
| part of all our plantation labor troubles
on this island the past few months. The
past fCW years contracting being the
exception attracted but little attention
consequently injured no one. Now it is
| the rule and dominates plantation man
! ayers as well as laborers, and surely
Injuries plantations, not only by it cost
| ing more to produce a ton of sugar, but
where a plantation has given out its
| cane to be raised by contract. and by sc
doing passed its plantation domination
over to Asiatics-a half civilized race
and some of them very ignorant-who
have not improved their methods of
cultivation or their tools for a thousand
years, must expect less yield per acre
than If their plantations were super
vised and directed in every detail by
able men schooled in civilized meth
| DDS. If this is not so. where stands our
boosted civilization?
| This is a most serious matter to dea'
with nov, but could have been easily
controlled a few months ago.
Since the above was written I have
read the communication of Mr.. Fair
child written on the labor question and
printed in The Star of the 18th inst,
and must say heartily agree with his
statements and his five suggested re-
NEEDLES, If they could be carried into
effect.
JNO. NJ. HORNER.