The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1902-10-03
l<ukalnu. paAuIIn Hawaii
sept CO. 1900.

~
Editor Advcrtlscr-i have road Mr..
\. :. Humphreys statement before the
Commission and must say lrs the most
misleading and mivchicyous dis.
tortion ~ facts that have
ever heard Of. and if these gentle
men take any stock en- IL IL IL liable to
work great deal of harm to all the
residents Of these Islands. Now Mr..
Humphreys may know something
about law, and government, etc. but
when he begins to talk OF the labor
question, and the sugar industry OF
Hawaii his utterance sounds more like
the views Of some poor native or white
renegade. than the remarks To be eN-
pscted of "A lawyer. Now l have been
between twenty and thirty years upon
various plantations and ought to know
something about them, and | say that
when Mr. Humphreys states that white
, men can, or rather will, do the field
work as laborers on the plantations OF
Hawaii, he does not know what he is
talking of. | will say that at first I
had hoped to see great white popula-
ton on the plantations, but every eff
fort that | have made or heard 81, or
seen others make, have all turned out in
failure: and every new trial shows the
utter uselessness of further effort in
this direction. Mr. Humphreys also
says that no true or earnest effort has
ever been made to try to induce white
men to work as field laborers. But
does he not know that efforts We're
made to introduce white laborers here
before he was born?
Capt. MCGEE, of Ulupalakua, Maui,
was the first, think to try this class
of American laborers; but ii only re-
suited in disappointment, and failure;
as have all the efforts that have been
tried since. Germans, and Norwegians
and various other nationalities have
also been tried without success. And
even the Portuguese that We're at one
time supposed to be just the men for
this class Of work, now, with few eX-
ceptions, turn from 1t with disgust.
And the rising generation, with few eX-
CeptiUns, will not think of working on n
plantation other than as teamsters or
on some other light work. The fact of
the matter is, that Americans are made
of too good stuff to do this class of
work, and they know it.
And If Mr.. Humphreys has any
doubts of this, let him try but one
days work cutting or stripping cane,
and if he enjoys being blinded with the
glare of the sun from the glistening
cane, or choked up with dust, or burnt
up by the terrible heat, when not a
breath of air, or wind can be felt; to
say nothing of swinging a cane knife
all day long, then he is just the man
for a field laborer and the man to in
| troduce others.
In regard to the harsh treatment,
docking, etc, of the Japanese, and Chi
nese laborers ! will say in all my long
experience / have never, with one or
| two exceptions, seen them treated any
worse, and often not so bad, as they
deserved. Mr.. Humphreys must know
there are among them. as among the
| lawyers. men who are bent on mischief,
and who aim to make all the trouble
they can. Many of these japanese are
among the most brutal, and lowest
specimens Of humanity and think moth
ing Of death, or of killing others. And
had Mr.. Humphreys been smashed on
the ground, by one Of them, and had
this same Jap start to MAIN him for
life, or perhaps kill him If he could, as
many a luna, and manager too for that
matter, has been treated, he, perhaps
would not have such a sickly sympathy
for them. Or II he had been belted over
the head with a hoe, or a shovel or
slashed with a cane knife he would not
1 feel like singing their praise quite so
much. The fact of the matter is that
while the great majority of japanese
and Chinese are good men, there are
always found some Of them that are
vicious and lazy, and some means must
be taken to bring them to their senses:
and as docking seemed to be the most
effective, 1t was sometimes used, but
almost always with moderation. But
as very little, or any, of this Is going
on at the present time, what good is
to be done by bringing up old griev-
snces? Mr.. Humphreys also says that
these laborers are now on some plahta-
ton working for $500 per month. Will
he be kind enough to say where these
! plantations are to be found? Also who
were the men, or body of men, that re-
quegted him to air his views on the
! labor question?
| notice that Mr.. Humphreys has an