The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-03-08

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purpose, the prevailing northeast trade
winds being the valuable motive power.
After winnowing, the rice is carefully
assorted by passing it through a series
of sleeves, when it is marketed Prime
rice was selling in Honolulu during the
summer at Az cents per pound. After
the labor ious and tedious OPP
erations of growing rice and preparing
it for the market, the head Chinaman
was asked if he could proftably grow
rice and prepare it for the market at the
present price, after paying the usual
rent His gu elk reply was, Two crops
a year: one crop pay expenses; the 9TH
er pay me-"
Ii the persistent Chinaman can by such
methods wiring a profit out of
rice culture, it is almost certain that
with improved implements for sowing
and harvesting, and up-to-date mills to
prepare the grain for market, there
would be enormous gains in extensive
cultivation of this cereal on the islands.
The yield of clean rice per acre is from
600 to 800 pounds, which means a
yield per year of twice this amount. The
total yield of the islands is not far
from 100000 pounds. Rice constitutes
the chief food of the larger portion of
the population of the islands, and hence
the home consumption is large. Besides
this there are exported annually between
six and eight million pounds.
COFFEE.
Coffee (Coffea Arabca) has become
well naturalized in, many places on the
Islands of Hawaii Kauai, Maui and
oahu. 1t was first introduced in 1923
by Mr.. Marin, who established a small
plantation on the Island of Oahu. 1t was
again introduced by Lord Byron, in the
blonde in 1925, from Rio Janeiro. It's
cultivation soon spread over the above
To-.
of plantations Were established (mainly
on Kauai and Hawaii which promised
excellent results, but the coffee blight,
due TO q wooly cactus, suddenly made
is appearance after the rainless winter
+ 1S55-lS56 and gave a decided check to
the expanding industry. From the pune
lures of this insect eXuded sweet,
gCmmy substance, which furnished the
ridus foT the spores of a black fungus.
pa tcheo of which soon appearing upon
the leaf ard stems impeded respiration
and destroyed vigor of plant. The rains
drive the insects in colonies from the
plant t. its roots under the ground,
where they remain until dry weather
when they are borne again to the leaves
~ = small red ant
y few years after the appearance of
this insect many plantations were cut
down and planted in sugar cane. The
insect disappeared and the blight abated
a fresh impetus was given to the re-es-
Establishment of plantations, which reach
ed fair proportions and were yielding
profitable results until the recent low
price of coffee and the comparatively
high value of sugar, suspended further
planting, and even induced many to pillow
up their coffee bushes and plant their
lands in sugar cane. The plant is, how
ever, decided success on the islands.
The trees attain early maturity and bear
heavy crops. 1t is grown on the four
larger islands. but production has reached
a commercial basis only on Hawaii,
where there are four main districts, viz.
Puma, Olaa, Kona and Hamakua. 1t is
impossible to ascertain the exact acre
age now under cultivation or the amount
and value of the annual crop produced
1t is estimated that at least 1900 to 90
200 acres are now under cultivation. The
coffees consumed on the islands are chief
.ly homegrown, and therefore the amount
! exported represents an uncertain part of
production. The exports for 1897 were
/ over 337, 15S pounds, valued at 100000. The
coffee tree required about four years to
reach maturity and produce profitable
crops: therefore the total crop at pres
ent would be larger than that of 1897
since many young trees were not then
bearing, had not whole acres been up
rooted and replanted in the more remu-
nerative sugar cane. However, the crop
OF 1899 is the largest on record, but low
prices caused by overproduction have
shorn it of profit The industry is in the
hands of men from many countries, the
/ Germans, Portuguese, Americans Eng
/ l.sh Chinese and Japanese. Plantations
We're mainly inaugurated by Anglo-Sax-
ons, but some of them have been aban-
doned for the dominant industry of the
iSlandS-sugar. The Portuguese and
Japanese have occupied some of them
and are now the chief laborers in the
coffee fields.
Some coffee planters have been and
are successful. Others have failed The
causes of failure are lack of. capital to
carry a plantation to the bearing age and
want of experience and intelligence in
the cultivation of this crop. Just here,
ii may be remarked that coffee growing
under proper conditions, has never re-
.Sceived scientific assistance, and hence a
most important and worthy field for in
vestigation by the experiment station
soon to be established on these islands.
! 1t is asserted that natural conditions
OF soil, elevation and climate sjustify the
prevailing opinion that coffee-growing
can be made a permanent and profitable
industry of the islands. Whether this
industry will be developed in the future,
along large plantation lines as in other
i. tropical countries, or upon small farms
with other crops, is yet uncertain. Elk
perience has taught the wisdom OF large
plantations, enjoying steady supply OF
labor and providing the best mechanical
devices for cleaning and grading. But
the cotton, sugar and rice plantations
are rapidly giving way to the cotton.
sugar and rice farms with neghborhood
central gins, mills and factories owned
by corporations of capital, which will
buy or work on toll the products of the
farms and convert them into merchant.
able forms. This has been largely &C
ccmplished in the cotton, rice and sugar
districts of Louisiana, and 1 see no rea-
son why similar course cannot be pur.
sued in the coffee industry. In fact, g
thorough study of the conditions pre-
vailing in Hawaii forces us to the con.
clusion that the fullest development OF
this industry can best be obtained by
dsintegration and division of the pre-.
vailing large coffee plantations into
small farms, each owned and cultivated
by an intelligent farmer, and with ar
independent central mill in each section
to prepare the berries for market, al
which the products of each farm can b.
handled either by direct purchase or
regular charge for cleaning and grading
Since the altitude for coffee planting
begins where sugar cane ceases to b,
profitable, it has been suggested that {
combination of the two industries nigh
he feasible. The labor required by thu