The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1903-10-21
A CHINESE PHILOSOPHER

BY JAMES W. GlRvlN.

4
| A few weeks ago an old Chinaman.
whose hospitality had enjoyed on the
Island of Kauai, came into my office
and after the customary courtesies, 1
said to him: well, Tong Foo, what
can do for your" If he had not want
ed something he would not have come
| in.
| Il am going home to China" he said.
| "Oh then you want to make proof
of your right to return here" said
| NO" he answered, "I am not coming
back, but want to make proof that
my grandson, who is going with me,
can return some day. should he want to
do So" The old man talked the Ha-
waiian language as well as do, hav-
ing lived on the Islands for more than
fifty years.
I why do you want to leave the ISL
ands, you will be a perfect stranger in
China" I said. He answered, ut is
cheaper living there and times are so
changed that I cannot make living
here" 81 thought you were rich man."
I remarked. He answered, 81 used to
| think I was when I owned two stores
| in Honolulu and had rice plantations
on Oahu and Kauai" What has be-
come of your property?" asked. He
replied: 1.-THE annexation of the Islands
to the United States has sent the price
of rents SO high and the Exclusion Act
preventing any more Chinese laborers
from coming, those here demand so
much more than we formerly paid that
the cultivation of rice entails a loss
each season and I thought it wise to
abandon rice planting
"Who has your lands now?" I asked.
mo one" he answered, and continuing
said, ST tried for several seasons to sell
out my leaseho1ds, machinery and Carl
boo but was unable to do so and have
abandoned the lands. The water buff
falo and horses I disposed of at low
figure and the balance is an entire
loss"
"But won't the landlord hold you to
your agreements to pay rent?" 81 sup
pose he would if had anything tangi-
ble,'' he answered. Then he will lose
as well as you,'' suggested. Yes,
annexation sometimes hurts both the
landlord and tenant" he answered.
What became of your stores in Ho-
noluiu?' I asked. Both were burned
down in the great fire of 1900. caused
by the Board of Health in it's efforts to
stamp out the bubonic plague" he re-
piled. 'tWell, you were repaid for your
losses by that fire. stated. NO he
answered, II put in claims but the Fire
Claims Commission cut them down, by
a rule it made regardless of the honesty
of the claim and had much litigation
with the insurance companies and on
the whole received less than twenty
five per cent of my losses. Still some
times have congratulated myself that
the fire took place, as I was enabled to
receive something for my stock where
as am certain that many merchants
are doing SO little business that they
are eating up their capital in rents and
expenses and will soon have nothing.
You see the Chinese people are the
principal customers of the Chinese
merchants, and no more are coming to
the country. while every departing
steamer takes away large numbers
'Annexation and the application of
the Exclusion Act to this tropical coun-
try has cinched the Chinaman,'' sug-
gested.
yes" he answered, "but if we had
known that was going to be the effect
we would have opposed it strongly.
You see." he continued, eve had lived
so long here and our dealings with the
natives and foreigners had been so