The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-03-20
PROF. STUBS ON
HAWAIIAN SUGARS
Continuation OF His Exhaustive Lee
ture on Local Plantation Affairs
Before a Southern Audience.
CONTINUED from Previous 1ssueso

tic sugars. 1t was claimed by some that
under the reciprocity treaty, the United
States ought to have paid the bounty to
the Hawaiian planters. 1t rallied again
upon the removal of the bounty and The
of a duty. Since the
adoption of the Dingley bill it has en-
joyed period of Unprecedented prosper
ity. Immense improvements have been
made, consisting of up-to-date machin-
cry in the sugar house, steam plows and
harrows in the field, enormous pumping
plants for irrigation, etc. Annexation,
which increased the confidence Of the
public in the future of the industry, and
gave higher values to plantation stock,
has also caused a considerable increase
in the price of labor, the latter being
the largest factor which enters into The
expense of sugar-making. Sugar is cult
waited on the Islands of Hawaii, Mani
and Oahu. The table lands surrounding
the islands at an elevation of from 20 to
500 feet constitute the chief sugar areas.
Nearly every acre adaptable to cane cui-
ture on these three islands is under Gull
tivation, and the probability of a mucn
larger extension of the industry is small.
In the effort to obtain the large profits
now incident to sugar culture, extensive
estates have been recently opened, cult
waited and irrigated. An experience Of
two years has proven that on some OF
them the water Of irrigation is, too salty
for sugar cane and hence these estates
had to be closed and all prospects OF
growing sugar thereon abandoned. There
are about sixty plantations on the ISL
ands, which yielded last year ,54t tons
of sugar. These plantations have about
100000 acres in cane. one-half of which
Is harvested every year. The yield per
acre varies greatly according to charac-
ter of the SOIL position Of the plantation
on the island. whether in the rainy or
rainless belts, etc. Under irrigation IS
much as eleven tons Of sugar per acre
has been the average of one planlc.ti on.
Individual acres have given much high
er yields. Upon the rainy side of the
islands the yields are less, but so are
the expenses, and the net gains from
each do not vary much.
On the leeward sides of the Islands
where irrigation is practiced, the land
is broken broadcast with steam plows,
to a great depth. Rows are laid off at
five-foot intervals, with very deep double
mould-board plows. Into these deep fur
rows the tops of the cane are dropped in
a continuous row, the soil is drawn in
lightly with hoes, and a shallow stream
of water sent over the buried tops. In
six to seven days continuous stand of
young canes is obtained. The rows are
laid off as nearly on a level as possible,
and an open furrow for frrigating is
maintained during growth for the pur-
pose of economiZing water After each
irrigation hoes draw in from the adjoin-
ing ridges small quantities of soil, in or
der to conserve the moisture applied.
Save irrigation and its incident hoe work
and the trashing of cane, no other Guilt
walton of cane is given. Contracts are
frequently made with q head Chinaman
to irrigate and trash the cane, from
planting to harvest at so much per ton
of cane harvested. The contract is usu-
ally for 100 acres, the company furnish
ing the water.
Gor
the cutting and delivery of the cane al
the sugar house, the company furnishing
the cars, engines, etc. The breaking OF
the land and the planting of the cane lie
usually done with hired labor. On the
rainy or windward side of the Islands
the conditions require entirely different
methods from those just described. The
lands are broken in similar manner
but less deeply, the tops are planted in
anSopen furrow and covered. When the
plants are large enough, the work OF
cultivation begins, which isnpsually done
with plows, cultivators anu hoes. This
cultivation is continued until the canes
are sufficiently advanced to '1ay by
Every operation is similar to the best
practices in the corn fields of the West
Here reliance is placed entirely upon the
rainfall for furnishing the needed moist
. ure to canes. Sometimes the rainfall Is
excessive sometimes deficient Severe
, tervals, which occasion great loss tt
the planters. AS a rule, however, the
rainfall is ample for good crops, and the
extra expense of irrigation is avoided
: Hence frequently the windward planta
tons are just as good dividend payers a.
the leeward estates, though the acre
yields are much less. Trashing Of the
cane is practiced here as on the leewart
side. In both instances the dead leave.
are piled up between the rows, where
, they remains until after harvest, wher
! they are burnt. "Ratooning'' or Stub
bling" is not largely practiced. Only
first year ratoons or stubbles are evel
cultivated. Whenever in the judgment
OF the manager these will not produce
thirty tons per acre, they are plowec
: up and land replanted Just here is ONT
! Of the secrets of the large success at
tending sugar growing on these islands
Two-thirds, II not three-fourths, Of the
area each year is in plant cane. In Gu
ba, Porto Rico and other tropical islands
cane is permitted to run for six to ever
: sixteen years, with the inevitable result
of annually diminishing acre yields. and
low average sugar output. Sugar
planters elsewhere are disposed tc
doubt the accuracy of the large publish
ed yields of Hawaii Let them consider
their own enormous yields from plan
, cane, and then apply such results t.
l their entire plantations, before they be
: islands. 1t is true that irrigation upor
: fresh lands, upon the warm leewart
sides, in a climate almost perfect fol
maximum growth have greatly increased
the average output of Hawaii, but thu
carrying of the largest portion OF theil
crops as plant cane is unquestionably tn
cause of their large yields. This is evi
: denced by the yields obtained on th'
rainy or windward sides of the islands
D., which are much larger than those ordi
narily obtained in Cuba, and other trop
ical countries, even though much below
: the returns of the irrigated plantation:
of the leeward side of the same islands.
The cane when harvested is delivered
to the sugar mills by wagons drawn b!
oxen or mules, by rail, with horse o.
steam by water fumes, sometimes cross
ing deep gulches, and by trolleys. Plan
tations use either one of the above meth
DDS, to suit their peculiar environment.
l have recently received the published
reports of the sugar companies Of thu
t islands for last year. There are sixty
eight of such companies, of which 60 owl
their sugar houses and manufacture
l their cane. These are distributed as fol
: lows: % on Hawaii. II on Maui, OF
Oahu, and IS on Kauai. The sugar pro
) duced last year is as follows: Hawaii
115224 tons; Maui, 57.347 tons; Oahu, So,
. s25 tons. and Kauai 63,31S tons, or to
: tai of 2S9, 544 tons.