The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1905-01-11
WANTED-LABORERS.


primarily sought was very simple.
The plantations, as well as the mino
industries, need more field laborer'
The immigration does not more ina
offset the emigration of laborers, Whli
the demand for labor is slowly ou
steadily increasing.
The natural course to pursue uiiue
these circumstances, is to seek aodI
4ioDal sources of supply. Years OF eN
narience and many experiments render
all sources except one, problefnatlca
of success That one is China. Simply
take down the bars, and in SNORT
time laborers would be available III
plenty.
All that stands in the way of the
accomplishment of this object Is Unit
ed states legislation which prohlolts
it.
Some of our good people believe that
lightning can be induced to strike
ITncIe Sans hard heart some day, ana
melt away the drastic legislation which
now excludes Chinese laborers.
There is no doubt but that the pres
emf Chinese exclusion law is unnecess-
arily harsh and arbitrary; there is
equally no doubt but that limited ana
restricted Chinese immigration to Ha-
wall. of agricultural laborers, would
be beneficial to not only plantation
owners. but to nearly every one else
who lives here-mechanics included
for. in the last analysis, practically
every one here lives off of sugar.
The great obstacle to the immigra-
ton of Chinese into the Union is or
ganized labor.
1t is conceived by those who believe
that in some way Chinese agricultural
Iaborers can be secured, that if local
organized labor could be convinced
that Chinese immigration would be
beneficial to it, and would so represent
to their fellows on the mainland. the
opposition of the latter to Chinese i'm
migration into Hawaii might be re-
moved or modified. Whether this the
ory is correct, is another story.
The first and main object of the
Pinkham commission was, therefore,
to convince the local labor people that
it was beneficial to them to have Chi
nese agricultural 1aborers come to Ha-
wall, if they could be restricted to
agricultural work.
Instead of going to the labor people
and dealing directly with them the
unfortunate decision was made to act
through Pinkham who is supposed to
be able to do the Svengali act on the
most radical walking delegate who
ever breathed.
Pinkham's Imagination Immediately
began to sprout. Jacks bean stalk
wasn't in it. He started in to compile
an encyclopedia of Hawaii and to turn
out photographs by the mile. One of
his texts was that the small farmer
was a failure and never could be any
thing else in Hawaii that diversified
industry was a fraud, a snare and
delusion. While everything else was ,
shrouded in obscurity he left behind
him trail of denunciation of small
farming. and those who advocated it,
like the path left by an exploding
meteor as it streaks the heavens.
He went out of his way to unneces-
sarily walk on the neck of every in
dUstry, except sugar, in the territory,
and thereby excited the suspicion and {
hostility of every one who believes
that twin necessities of Hawaii are
diversified industries and beef eating
American citizens. "a
What need was there for a cord of
and a mile of photographs
to prove that coffee was a failure,
bananas of little account, sisal not
worth considering and the cattle busi-
ness a back number?
Does the showing, if true, help the
sugar business? Does it tend to con-
vince any one that we need Chinese
cheap labor? Does it help Hawaii or
any resident within its borders? On
the contrary is it not on par with
the bird which wantonIy fouls its own
nest? C
The Pinkham report is a monument [
of misplaced energy.
The planters want a specific thing .
They want the support of the local t
labor men in attempting to secure it. t
These men know just as much about d
the situation as the planters do. They +
do not need Pinkham's library to help a
them make up their minds, any more e
than cat needs two tails.
Why is not the sound course to dunn =
Pinkham; ignore his report, which has i
raised all this rumpus I
on a side issue. and deal directly with 1
the labor representatives on the one =
main issue? !
If the other statements in the Pink
ham rerOr+ arc no mara oor-oo+ +Lo