The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1907-12-09
As Others See Us
Washington correspondent of the New
Evening Post accompanied Congressional Party.


! This does not accord with the state
ment of white carpenter already
quoted, but there are degrees of skill
among the Asiatic mechanics, and they
do not turn out uniform work: so that
a person is apt TO form general opin-
ion of their craftsmanship from ex-
amples that are not representative of
their highest skill. In fact, a good
deal of the work done by Japanese un-
der white builders is undertaken by
tartele" at contract rates; and the
builder has no interest in econemizing
time or allowing short cuts IN construc-
ton or finishing.
WHITE LABOR LEAVING THE
COUNTRY.
A prominent builder and official of
an employers organization in Homo
lulu said: White men have left the
country by hundreds on account of the
competition of Asiatics."
The japanese do not always bid in
telligently, and they have a system of
subletting contracts that often leads
to getting the work into the hands of
"sweated' workmen, or laborers, who
do not make a living wage out of the
job; all of which is prejudicial to the
interest of the person having the work
done. On the other hand. the eff
ciency and skill of the japanese in Ha-
wall are probably increasing, and they
are becoming better prepared to com-
pete with white men for ali grades of
work They are very ambitious to
learn. Fathers bring their sons to
builders and employing mechanics,
inc Of
fering to let them work for nothing
in return for what they can learn.
Many large employers are decidedly
opposed to having a Japanese on their
force, for the very reason that they
realize that they are training up future
competitors in their business. Il won't
teach men to cut my throat" was a
typical expression from large en-
ployer, when asked why he had no
Oriental labor on his payroll. A
plumber said: when 1 was doing
work on the Sanitary Laundry, a Jap
offered me $50 to teach him to wipe a
joint. Some white plumbers who came
down here in 1900 and 1901 made a good
deal of money teaching their trade to
Japs" A mechanic in Honolulu said:
This country is really a sort of kim
dergarten for Japanese mechanics ="
1t has not been found possible to
procure exact data showing how many
white skilled artisans have been dis
placed by Asiatics. Records kept by
seven establishments employing brick
layers, carpenters, plumbers, painters,
plasterers, and masons show that while
they had 159 skilled white workmen in
their employ in 1901, they had only 4S
in 1905. Orientals are not employed as
printers in the English printing trades.
This is about the only urban occupa-
ton in which they do not enter a.
competitor. Neither have they been
found capable of working in the man
ufacture of sugar mill machinery, on
skilled electrical work, brewing, and
in the building trades where the most
highly skilled workmen are needed.
WHAT COMMISSIONER NELL
LEARNED.
Commissioner Neil of the Bureau of
Labor tells of an interview he had one
evening here with a white plumber
and timer and with white tailor,
who both spoke with bitterness of how
their trades We're steadily being taken
from them The plumber and timer
to some extent in plumbing, but that
this branch alone could not maintain
him. and that the timing work-the
of small tinware-had
been taken from him entirely by Jap
lnese.
He said that he had let go most of
MS white workers, and had little trade
eft. That day had been an idle one
n his shop but, although it was then
past ten o'clock in the evening, Japa-
1ese tinsmiths with their helpers were
found still working busily trying TO
i'll orders. and early in the morning
nearly every stage leaving that village
vas found carrying bags of tinware
rom these same japanese shops to |
white plantation stores in the island.
The tailor told a similar story. He |
lad made his struggle and refused to |
employ Asiatic help, but he said his /
business was a dwindling one; that |
many of the well-to-do whites patroniZ- I
ID Asiatic or white employers of Asia |
lie labor, and that his only custom was |
rom a few whites who were trying to /
1atronized him even though they paid |
more for his goods The day had been |
| dull one for him, but in the street |
below at that late hour were several |
Asiatic tailoring shops in which the |
working force was still busy making |
clothing.