The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1900-10-09

% stvtk tot nv TIME ths piskIuus
anivant TITS 10 probably the mpsi fau.
tai move that hss usvu nsd, ih tnt A-
fecuuu ~ any company. but ~ fu.r thr
'tuuehcN has been 10 .apand tnu capital
Sttok a. lar a. the pfouts IN the rurc
would justify. Mhtrc this las not al
ready been accomplished Il In being ar
ranged for wherever possible As n fac.
tot Of cost ~ the future production Of
sugar this change operates as follows:
The Investment Of capital IN any concern
must always be reCkoncd with as having
an earning power. The operators OF any
business In making out their annual
statements must count In ms one Of the
it,ms In cost OF production fair compcn-
sato for the capital employed. II Ia
plain that this item will be larger as the
capital is expanded. In the case OF the
concern mentioned previously, this Item
VIII be Ave times rs large as II would
have been In the first Instance. II Will not
d. TO say that part OF the capital is nc
titious and that II was the smaller capital
that earned the profits because n great
tal of his capital sock goes onto the
market and passes into the hands OF bona
flde purchasers at the market value based
upon Its earning power, so that In one
sense the capital stock really represents
th' larger amount as an investment and
must be so considered In the future In es-
tin ating the cost OF production.
CROP ROTATION.
Another item that is well worth consd-
erlng in this connection Is the future
productivity of the land that is constant
ly employed In growing single crop.
This land has to be heavily reinforced al
ready by the use of fertilizers, 1t Is n
wcll-known doctrine of agriculturists THAI
land deter!orates under the constant cul-
tivation of a single crop, being called up
on constantly for the same elements or
plant food. II seems almost a certainty
that these lands will have to be given
longer periods of rest, or be used under
some system of crop rotation. which in
either case would lessen the amount of
land available for sugar cane. Already
rumors of this kind are more or less
prevalent.
The lands controlled by these p'anta-
tons are some of them owned in fee sim
pie: others are held under long leases,
some of them for fifty years. A consider
able portion of the land is so he'd. This
portion either belongs to large estates or
is Government or Grown" land. AS the
islands become more populous the value
of these leased lands will increase. Much
will depend on what may be the future
policy with reference to the population of
the Islands, and upon this policy depends
the future value of these leaseholds, and.
in my opinion, the future utility of the
islands themselves, so far as they shall
bear a part In carrying out the function
OF our free American government. which
understand is to bring to each individual
as much comfort, intelligence and oppor-
trinity for happy home life as 1t is pos
sifle for government to accomplish
| Some of these leaseholds will soon ex-
p're, and, as has been stated, some of
them are on lands under the control of
the Government. The policy adopted In
the future may be one which will bring
lese lands into the hands of small hold
ers, who would as Is the rule in this coun-
try, be men with families which they are
trying to rear, clothe. feed, protect and
educate In the approved American fash
ioE This is a condition which the Ameri-
cans as rule would recognize as ideal.
This condition would bring the most and
best population, the most wealth. peace
and happiness to the greatest number of
people. On the other hand. the policy
adopted may he such that these lands may
b" again controlled or owned In large
tracts by the plantation companies. In
this case the citizenship will be. largely,
limited. so far as the rural districts are
concerned. to hired lahorers on the plan-
ts tons without families. This condition
would mean the most wealth for the SUI
gar industry, and this is the principal in
dustry.
MAXIMUM OF SUGAR.
The future maximum production of the
islands, among those who have given this
subject consideration, ranges in estimate
between $4,000 and 5OONnO tons. large
portion Of this can be produced at large
profit. When the actual cost of pumping
water for irrigation to higher attitudes
shall have been determined, then II will
he possible to get at the earning rate of
the various kinds of land on the islands.
Probably all the lands estimated for tho
future production of the maximum 5Ooo0o
tons Will produce cane al a profit. provid-
ing there is no fall in the sugar market,
hut not over half or three-ffths of this
I,r,
~ so low as the average cost of produce
ton in the Islands at the present time.
1t has been my attempt in this discus
Son on the cost of production of sugar In
the Hawaiian Islands to give the facts.
pos sibilities. and probabilities. The re-
sources of the Hawaiian Islands for pro-
drcing sugar are wonderful. was i'm
pressed with the gentlemanly demeanor
and the business sagaclty and tact of
those representing the sugar interests
there. 1t has undoubtedly required men
of energy to build up this industry as 1t
has been done In the last twenty-three
years. They have been men of business
integrity. They have been able to induce
millions of dollars of capital to invest in
that country. and this capital has nearly
always been able to find its reward. They
have been men who have made a study
of the best resources. methods and appli-
arces. They have had faith In their en-
terprises, and their faith has heen re-
warded. They have been specially favor
ed: after many fruitless efforts, they
fiji ally succeeded in establishing reciproc-
ity between the Hawaiian Islands and the
United States In 1876. This was practi-
cally the beginning of their prosperity.
az II gave them a free market near their
shores for their chief product. sugar, and
they had water transportation to this
market. The volume of trade between the
two countries was very favorable to them.
&c the imports per annum from the Unit
ell States would not average In value
over half the amount of products that we
purchased from them. This trade bal
auce with the States Is still. and Will he
for some time. very much In their favor.
The American people have from the be-
expressed satisfaction in the an
ne> alton of these Islands. and have cheer
fully allowed this advantage in trade. AS
the sugar industry is gradually developing