The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-05-07
THREE PORTO
RICO BOYS
Going to Maui to
Join Their
Parents.
SATISFIED WITH
WORK IN HAWAII
Eldest Youth Receives SIS and
Mite of a Brother, Sl4
Per Month.

Ihree Porto Rican brothers, just In
from the cane fields at Waipahu, rest
! ed on the fence across the way from
the police station yesterday afternoon,
before proceeding to the Wilder wharf,
whence they are to depart today for
Maui, where they will become laborers
in the Spreckelsville cane fields They
We're fine looking specimens of the la
boring class of that country bright of
countenance, strong of limb. and intel
Hgent. Their names We're Juan Nava,
eighteen years old; Francisco Nava,
aged sixteen, and Claudine Nava, aged
| thirteen. They came in the same i'm
portation of Porto Ricans and were
assigned to Eva plantation. Their pa
rents came in the first lot and have
been at Wailuku since their arrival
Family ties count for much among
these natives of the Antilles, and al
though they wera perfectly satisfied
with their work at Eva, they prefer
red working near their parents
| Through Captain Fox, of the mount
| ed patrol, who acted as interpreter
| the boys stated to an Advertiser re-
porter that they were perfectly salts
! fed with their lot in Hawaii, and, all
things considered they declared them
Porto Rico. Their native land held out
few inducements to them in the way
of sufficient remuneration in return for
the expenditure of their muscle. The
oldest boy was broad shouldered for a
Porto Rican, of a deep copper color,
healthy in appearance, and of a gen
orally fine build. Francisco was light
| skinned, cheerful, and apparently well
| satisfied with his present vocation.
| Claudine Nava was small boy for
| his age, but sturdy. He carried all his
! belongings, and they were few, in a
| bundle which he balanced on his head.
/ His small hands had been burned in
| the sun until the skin had peeled off.
Juan stated that he received S25 a
month as muleteer, and this sum was
| to him a wage that he had not dreamed
| of in his native land. He had, however,
| hurt his ankle during the month and
therefore had earned but little. Fran
| cisco had worked thirty-two days in
| the past month, overtime included, and
after paying all his expenses, had saw
ed s12. The little fellow received 81
| a month, and out of this he had stored
away IS so. Their transportation tc
Maui was in their pockets, paid fol
| them by the company for which they
are to work. In answer to several
questions as to their condition, Juan
|
I'VE are very well satisfied here We
are receiving good wages, and can save
something. OF course, I was sick dur.
ing the month, and that accounts FOL
my not having much left over. Blu
my brothers have money. Z received
S25 a month for driving mules; my
brother Francisco received S1S and lit
tie Claudine, s14. We couldn't do tina
in Porto Rico, for there wasn't enough
work to go round in whole family
Our parents came to Hawaii IN The
first expedition and we came later. d.
like to work here? Well, I'm no
much used to working in the fields,
have always been used to living in the
towns, and Honolulu-well. the city I:
much to be preferred to working in {
cane field, but that is our work and
we will stay by it. At first We didn'
receive as much money at the end o.
a month as we really expected, bu
that came of our procuring so much
stuff at the company stores. Now We
don't do that so much, and have beer
able to save more money.