The Hawaiian gazette., 1902-02-25
Especial to the Adyertlser)

Especial 90 the AdVertiscr)
SAN FRANCISCO. Feb. i5.-The New
York Commercial publishes the follow
ing from san Francisco: While sugar
is uppetmost in business talk, u IL
interesting 10 look into the astonish- .
ing decline In the value of Hawaiian
sugar stocks. Prices today are only
from one-half to two-thirds or what
they were a year ago, and even then
the retrograde movement was well un-
der way. The principal causes OF de-
probation were two-fold-thc increas-
ed cost Of labor. and the falling IN the
price Of raw sugar
Before Hawaii was annexed TO the
United States labor cost about Sl2 per
month. This labor was mostly Japan
ese The japanese were under con-
tracts. Now this same labor costs from
S25 to $50 "A month, and laborers are
scarce.
Raw sugar, which was cents. is now
only cents, with a prospect of going
still lower. as Cuban sugar becomes
more plentiful. This means differ
ence in the gross returns of the crop
Of about $40 "A ton, with labor costing
over 100 per cent more than formerly.
with the depreciation in the value of
raw sugar large profits have been wip-
ed out and dividends have gone glim-
/ mering.
FAIL TO MAKE PROFITS.
Many new plantations have been
started I'm the last few years. Some
OF these have not earned anything, and
immense sums have been spent for ma
chinery and exploitation.
The man who may most be blamed
for the present condition of sugar
stocks is Edward POLITE of POLITE &
Co, brokers, i'm San Francisco. POllit2
began to manipulate sugar stocks
three years ago, and created "A craze in
san Francisco that exceeded almost
any similar excitement, The stock Of
/ the Hawaiian Commercial and Sugar
Company, and the Hutchinson Sugar
/ Company the only two
stocks listed thcn-rushed up at a ter
rife pace Hawaiian Commercial went
up to $l2S a share, and Hutchinson
went over a hundred. The new stocks.
such as Makaweli, Onomea, Honokaa,
/ Kilauea were listed, and these, too, be
gan to swell.
! STOCKS BEGAN TO DECLINE.
Then the market took a turn, and
stocks began to drop, not suddenly, but
steadily and consistently. Now Ha-
waiian sugar stocks are bid as follows
here: Hawaiian Commercial, S35;
Hutchinson, $l4; Honokaa, $1,000; XII
lauea, 80. 50: Makaweli 1925 80; Onomea,
$24 Paauhau, sl0.25; Hama, $2ts.
This is the present situation, but the
: facts in Hawaii do not warrant it. 1t
is n reaction from the POLITE boom.
The fact that most of the sugar CONS
panies have been compelled to with
draw dividends has made investment
money forsake those stocks. They are
bound to come up, although 1t may be
, a year or two. AS they stand today
| for one who is willing to wait.
The Hawaiian government is stable,
freights are being lowered, plantation
outputs are growing, and unless Gu
ban sugar is admitted at more than
20 per cent discount from its pres
ent tariff, Hawaiian sugar can com
pete easily.
ROOSEVELT ON SUGAR.
: The New York Commercial says edi-
torially:
1t is stated authoritatively by a re-
, cent caller at the White House who
had serious talk with President
Roosevelt on the proposed reduction of
the duty on Cuban sugar, that the
chief executive defined his own position
and that of the administration as
briefly and substantially this:
, Whatever concession is made must
be purely and wholly in the interest
of the Cubans-not for the benefit of
any persons or interests in the United
States. And it must be made in that
way--whatever il may be discovered to
be--which will infict the very smallest
measure of injury upon any American
interest and impose the least burden
or embarrassment possible upon any
American citizen.
, Waving now the questions as to
? whether or not We are under any obli-
; cation to cuba and whether or not
: such radical change from time
5 honOred policy is economically defenSl-
! BILE in its relation to our home indus
5 tries Of cane and beet sugar growing,
we are confronted with two great and
serious problems-from the administra-
tion point Of view, and that is appar-
iently the one most likely To give form
and color to the legislation now looked
for. In other words, benevolent leSis-
lation of this sort must not, in its
practical effects, put single penny
into the pockets of the American re-
= iinerS of raw sugar or of any Other
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4 dicted that her visitor would marry IN
; October Miss Noeller returned to hei
5 Island home, met Humeltenhrrg, who
/ posed MS a bachelor. and he made low,
I to the young woman. Miss Noclcr re
$ memhered the prediction Of the forum,
: teller, imagined that her sutor was tn,
= affinity the seer had dscerned in tn,
1 dim future accepted him, and on Octo
r her LIST the couple We're married. Tn,
:, young wife was so delighted over tn,