Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1901-02-08
C0L0RED LAB0RER
ON COLONEL BEAN
Says Labor Man Told
Tennessee Men Fairy
Tales.
ABOUT WAGES ON The
ISLAND PLANTATIONS
Tells Of Troubles He and Others Had
at Northumberland Only
Sixty Cents a
Day.

According to the statement of one of
the negro laborers who lately arrived
here from Waikiki plantation the peo-
pie recruiting the laborers in Nashville
are doing so under false pretensions or
rather. are promising the negroes re-
cTUited for labor In the cane fields.
wages which the plantation refuses tc
pay.
OF the Tennessee negroes imported
here .tewnty-two of them went to Wal
luku plantation. At the end of their
first month. when the settlement of the
months wage was made. the negroes
were dissatisfied and strike ensued
which resulted in four quitting and
coming here.
From one Of these four, VIII Aliston,
the leader of the strike at Waikiki, the
following story was had.
I'm Nashville. Tennessee. where we
all came from, we were told about COM
ing to Hawaii to work on the planta-
lions. Col w. o. Bean. who brought
us here. said that the sugar companies
would pay us s26 a month. give us a
house to live in and hrewood and medi-
cal attendance free. We were also told
that the plantation We were to work OIL
was about twelve miles from Honolulu
well, We got here all right and soon
after we arrived, We were put on anoth-
er steamer. being told that We were GO
ing up into the country a little ways
II was not long after we started that We
found We were going away off to an
other island. On arriving at Kahului
We were taken up to the Waikiki plan
tation and found good houses AMI
everything nice.
I'VE started TO work and worked n
month all happy in the thought that We
were earning twenty-six dollars a
month. At the plantation store. We
had to buy things like bedding. food
and other necessary things. At the
end of the month. we went to get paid
off and were at the cashiers window
with lot of japanese.
The Japs got a great deal of mon
ey and. when II came our turn to be
paid. we got three dollars each. W.
asked where the rest of the twenty-s'v
dollars was and were told we were
not being paid that amount but sixty
cents day.
This made us angry and so I told rho
boys We would not work any more I'M
til we had found out how We stood.
"The next day. none of us went to
work and. in tho evening, Manager
Wells came TO see us.
| "He wanted to know what was the
matter and We told him we had been
promised twenty-siX dollars a month.
He said that that was wrong and thar
all he could pay us was sixty cents u
day.
IF we didn't like that, we must get
right off the plantation. We started
to get off and were told we must not
go to the houses any more or take a
single thing away. If we did we would
be arrested. Some of the boys wanted
to go to the houses and get things they
had bought at the plantation store but
| told them to look out for the law;
that the man would have us arrested IL
We took anything. so four of us start
ed right off for Kahului.
Most of the others were married
and had their wives to look out for
and so they concluded to stay rather
than take chances.
when we got to Kahului. we saw
the man who runs the railroad and told
him We wanted work. He was glad
to get us and told us we could go to
work right away. Then Manager Wells
OF Wailuku came and told the railroad
man that We were his men and that he
must not give us work so he changed
his mind and told us how it was.
I'VE didn't have enough money 10
get to Honolulu, so we gave an enter
tainment that night and made four
teen dollars. With this money, we
came here.
1--WE walked up town to look for
job. Two of us got work in livery
stable the first day and the next day,
the other two men went to work for tn e
Rapid Transit Co. We are getting
dollar and half day and work about
ten hours.
"0n the plantation, we started TO
work at o'clock and kept at it until
~; then we rested until 1890 when We
began work again and kept at it until
6 o'clock.
Here, we are able TO save money on
what We earn and by Christmas time
expect to have 5000 saved up.
"Our sleeping costs us each dollar
week and we can go where we want
to buy our food At the plantation
store they made us pay 81 for a sack
of -four. Here, you can get sack of |
the best -four for a dollar and quarter.
Everything else at the plantation was
about twice as high as 1t is here and we
got less than half the wages.
1--WE have written IN our folkc In |