Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1904-01-19
TOURISTS INVITED.
Encourage Visitors TO the
Hswaiian Islands.

Hawaii wants tourists and small
farmers. and is beginning an active
campaign to get them. For long time
citizens of the island territory have been
casting envious eyes at Los Angeles,
with her tens of thousands Of visitors
every season, and at other attractive re-
sorts where the travelling, vacation
taking American goes and spends his
money, and citizens of Honolulu have
now formed tourist committee which
proposes to thoroughly advertise the
attractions Of the islands, says the
Washington Star.
The enterprise is largely the result
of the fearful depression through which
Hawaii has passed and is still passing.
When annexation was complete and
Uncle Sam began to take million dol
lars year from the islands in customs
duties, and at the same time the price
of sugar went down, Hawaii felt a
Tightening of purse strings and general
drop in values and in business activity
which would have been too much for a
community less self-confident The
lesson taught was that the islands must
cease to depend on single industry,
and must supplement sugar with other
products. Hence the starting of a cam
paign for tourists and for small farm
ers
The tourists committee has organ
lied and opened splendid headquarters
in nl,,1, oil of
are displayed and where visitors are
entertained and given information OF
all sorts. The committee is now pre-
pairing literature with which it pro-
poses to supply hotels and trains all
! over the United States. 1t will also ad-
vertise in the magazines, and from now
on every American may expect to see
showed in front of him at all times no.
tees calling his attention to the fact
that the Hawaiian islands are still in
business. with the most equable climate
in the world. frst-class hotels, wonder
full tropical scenery. volcano which
has been accommodatingly spectacular
and harmless for so long that the mind
of man runneth not to the contrary, and
all sorts of historic and other attrac-
TONS
The small farmer business is sub
| ject of much discussion and no little
sarcasm There are those who declare
that there is nothing that small farm
er can raise in Hawaii with profit. The
iaterisland steamer rates are so high
that the California produce shuts out
vegetables raised in the islands from
the Honolulu market unless the stuff is
raised on the island of Oahu, where
some earnest efforts are being made
On the other hand. it is claimed that
Hawaii ought to take the American
market away from the Bluefields ba-
mana. for bananas grow with extraor-
binary rapidity all over Hawaii. Pine
apples also flourish. and it is cOntended
that Hawaii should supply large part
of the American mar!-et. Experiments
are being made in a scientific way with
tobacco sisal production has already
drawback of being a crop for which the
producer must wait seven years, and a
lot of other tropical products are re-
ceiving attention. The latest plan is
to start a plantation of rubber trees.
The land question is in the way OF
the American farmer who wants to set
tie in Hawaii. however. The islands
are ready for the tourist, but the farmer
cannot come in very large numbers
until there is more land available
There are however, number of tracts
of extensive area which the govern
ment wants to open up. But it would
be folly to attempt settling some OF
them until there are improved roads
and methods of transportation. At q
great many points around the islands
the landings at which island steamers
come and go are owned by the planta-
tons for and by which they were made
and the overland roads to an open port
are far from good. 1t is for remedying
some of these matters that Hawaii is
floating loan of about 81 ,25O.0OO.