The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1902-05-15
LABOR IN HAWAII.

nrst session of the 9th Congress. 1t is
document Of 256 pages, more than
half of it made up of tables showing in
statistical form, occupations, rates Of
wages, hours of labor, nationality of
employees in various Industries, cost of
living, prices of commodities and all
the factors entering into the labor
problem, that are capable of being
shown by tabulations and statistics. A
very large part of the data presented
in the report was collected by the Cen
sus Bureau, as is stated in the letter of
the Commissioner of Labor transmit
ting the report The special agents of
the Bureau of Labor, however made
the Investigations required which were
not within the scope of the Census Blu
reau and have in large measure pre-
pared the tables themselves from the
data furnished by the Director Of the
Census, and the analysis of the tables
is largely based on the special informa-
tiOn and Investigations made by the
special agents of the Bureau of Labor.
This report is the most detailed and
exhaustive treatment of the subject
which has ever been prepared. For
even the best informed residents it con-
tains much that they nave not known
in the details given in this report.
While the report is published as of date
February 4, 1902, most of the Informal
tion was obtained in the months fol-
lowing June, 1900, and therefore some
of the statements made seem slightly
erroneous unless consideration is given
to the changes and modifying effects of
time.
Nothing calculated to give a juster
impression of our conditions, and to re-
move many of the prejudices and I'M
founded notions regarding them, has
been published regarding the conditions
of labor here That the publication is
il the form of an official report while
giving additional authority to it so far
as the distant reader is concerned, will
limit the extent of its publicity.
Commissioner Carroll d. Wright in
transmitting the report recommends
that the Territorial Act requiring an
nual REPORTS in regard to labor in Ha-
wall should be amended 50 that the
reports shall be presented at longer in
tervals He says" "Once in four or
five years would answer every econo-
mic and social purpose. Annual reports
relating to the conditions of labor and
other matters specifically referred to
in the law are not necessary. Changes
are not rapid nor great enough to war
rant the expense Of collecting the nee
essary data and preparing reports to
Congress annually"
As an index to the character Of the
report aside from the statistical tables
the following may be quoted:
while the severity Of the labor re-
quired in the sugar fields has been
thought too great for the Anglo-Saxon
satisfactorily to perform, the Territory
undoubtedly affords many advantages
to the agricultural labOrer. The char
acter of the climate is such as never to
prevent him from working and the en-
plOyment is Of a kind to give him the
opportunity for continuous work. The
forms of sickness common to most trO-
piCal countries are said to be practical
ly unknown, there being no Distinctive
ly climatic diseases; and, as sanitary
conditions are closely rocked after and
maintained at a high standard, very
little sickness prevails among planta-
ton labOrers The cost of living, so far
as food is concerned, is somewhat
higher than in other portions of the
United States, but this increase is Off
set by the relatively higher wages paid,
by the continuity of employment, and
by the low cost of wearing apparel the
mild climate demanding very little eX-
penditure in this direction. On all plan
tatiOns the laborers are furnished with
comfortable dwellings, rent free and in
many cases with sufficient ground for
the cultivation of vegetables. AS a
rule plantations employ competent
physician, whose services are also Civ
en- free to all labOTeTs and to such
members Of their families as require
them, while on many plantations we'll
equipped hospitals are maintained, in
which those disabled by sickness or ac-
Cident are cared for as well as a gem
erous provision renders possible
the Monaghan laborers live, as a
rule, in rather crowded quarters, and
this manner of living seems to be
largely their preference. Their dwelling
places are generally rooms built in the
barrack style, ana each room may CON
tain from two to six or eight occupants
II is not an infrequent occurrence on
plantations that many rooms are va
cant because their occupants have vol
unfairly gone into other rooms already
occupied by their cOunTymen Those
who are married, whether Mongolians
or of other races, are frequently pro-
vided with dwellings of two or more
rooms, according to the size Of theiI
families, and there appears to be a gem
eral disposition to afford as commodi-
GUS quarters for labOrers as they them
selves desire,
1T goes without saying that in any
community, the great majority OF
whose members are unmarried, the So
cial life will not be of a high order anG
this is the case on the plantations
Each plantation constitutes cOmmu-
nifty within itself and the isolation OF
those VINO labor in these communities
is such that they rarely come into
touch with or have any knowledge OF
outside affairs or occurrences. OF
course those who have families enjoy d