The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1902-01-20
W. j. LOWRIE RESIGNS
EXPRESSED DISSATISFACTION OF
SYSTEM STATED AS CAUSE
( Unsatisfactory Labor Conditions at
Puunene Reported as Leading to
Resignation.

The news Of the resignation of w.
j. Lowrie from the management of the
Spreckelsville plantation was received
on Saturday afternoon i'm the mail from
Maui and while the fact. coupled with
the announcement that H. F. Baldwin
would control the plantation affairs, at
any rate for the present has caAsed
considerable talk among those inter-
ested, action was apparently not en-
| tlrely unexpected or unprecedented.
Manager LOwrie was one Of the best
known plantation men i'm the islands.
| Originally the head of affairs at Eva,
where he was successful i'm introduce
! ing several new ideas, he assumed con-
troll Of the Spreckelsville plantation at
the time that the Spreckels lost their
control of the Hawaiian Commercial
Sugar Company. Mr.. Lowrie himself
owns large interest in the Spreckels-
vile, amounting to about one-twen-
tieth of the stock, as well as in Eva,
and the Castle interests in Spreckels-
vile, which are very large, have al
ways been favorable to the late man
agement. II is said however that the
opinions of the Alexander and Bald
win interests have not cOincided with
Mr. LOwrie's in the handling Of the
plantation affairs.
Rumor has if that the friction has
acts stopped the enforcement of con-
tract labor and that the chief cause
of dissatisfaction has been in Mr..
Lowrie's handling of the labor ques-
ton on the plantation since that time.
Spreckelsville has had more trouble
than the rest of the Maui plantations
in this respect
When the late David Center was
made assistant manager at Spreckels-
vile the opinion. was freely aired that
he would ultimately succeed to the
higher office. His death however put
an effectual stop to such speculations.
H. p Baldwin is reported from Maui
as having been almost a resident at
Spreckelsville since the adjournment
of the local legislature and the same
source of information states that there
have been constantly slight differences
of opinion between the two men, in
which Mr.. Baldwin eventually got his
own way. These differences of opinion
FASTENED the resignation of the man
ager, a step which the latter is stated
to have had under consideration for
some time, having indeed determined
on carrying it out within a short time.
There is no certain information di-
vulged as to the length of H. p. Bald
wins assumption of the managership
but it is thought in Waikiki that w.
H. Baldwin, now at Makaweli, will re-
turn to Maui and relieve H. P. Bald
win at Spreckelsville. A special meet
ing of the MakaWeli plantation called
for this morning would seem to throw
a favorable light on this conjecture
az the Maxwell bond issue has been
satisfactorily progressing at the reg
ular meetings held for that purpose.
1t is surmised that changes will be
made all along the Hawaiian Sugar
COMPANY plantations
The principal developments of the
Puunene plantation, as 10 is properly
termed which are identified with the
management of Mr.. Lowrie, have been
the establishment of the big ditch and
the new mill. The Maui News states
that Mr. Lowrie will dispose of his
household effects on Maui this week
and return to Honolulu next Saturday.