The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1907-12-23

immigrants, including men, women,
and all children over two years OF
/ age, was as follows:
| chinese l6.Sa
/ Germans 10000
l japanese ...-.................. 65.S5
/ NOrweg1anS OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES 5000
Portuguese ..-.......-....... 112.oO
; South Sea Islanders .......... 1880
! s., 00O, COO SPENT TO BRING IN LA
BORERS.
! During the five or six years prior
to 1886, the Government expended ST.
079, 797, and the planters expended
| 1891, OFT in importing laborers to the
islands, a total of over $2,000,0O0 Five
! shipments of Portuguese, about 5000
in number introduced between 1884
and 1888, cost per capita, that is for
each man, woman, and child. $S9.45, of
which the Government paid s52.41 and
the planters $37.04. The cost per adult
male laborer of the five shipments
came to $266.15. The least expensive
European immigration that have
found statistics for cost $3.50 per
capita, and about $3.50 per man. The
cost of recruiting and bringing the
5000 Porto Ricans to Hawaii was $5e4,-
191. or $112 per capita.
In the EARLIER days of immigration,
the Government and the planters d.
vided the expense by a hit or miss
plan. varying with every shipment. In
some cases the immigrant paid back
part of the expense. and in others
not. The expense incident to Japa-
nese immigration was successfully re-
duced from S65 to SIS, to $40, to S35
Al
have been coming voluntarily and at
their own expense, the cost of pas
sage from Japan to Honolulu has been
reduced 10 $50 and even less. 1t is a
conservative estimate that the average
immigrating expense of approximate
ly $4,000 immigrants to Hawaii near
ly all within the last twenty-five
or thirty years. has been $50 each, or
a total of approximately s9,O00.O0o.
HAWAII A SIEVE FOR IMMI-
GRANTS.
What has Hawaii to show for this
vast expenditure of energy and money?
Some of the immigrants are dead; but
the death rate has been far below the
normal, as the great majority were
young and robust, the kind who usual |
ly break away from old ruts to seek |
fortunes in a new country. The deaths |
are probably equalized by the births. !
The last census shows approximately |
100. 600 persons of the enumerated ma
of all classes in Hawaii. OF |
these there were working on sugar |
on December 81, 1905. 44,949 |
of whom 1858 were Hawaiians. The ac- |
count then stands as follows:
who came to
work on plantations, ap-
proximately ........... $4,000
Now on plantations. -. 1895
Otherwise engaged in
Territory ............ $4,000
Unaccounted for ........ S5,6o4
What has become of the unaccounted |
for? The reply is that they have re-
turned TO their homes, or drifted away
to the mainland of the United States.
The latter is the final destination of
such a large number of japanese that
Hawaii is at present little more than
1 sieve through with the immigrants
ire strained. the usual result follow
ne that the strongest and most ener-
yetic go. leaving behind the less efficient,
,r those who have individually estab-
ished themselves in business. That
his is no exaggeratfon is demonstrate
"a by the fact that the census of 1900
showed a Japanese population in Ha-
vail of 81. IFS. of whom 21,000 were en-
,loyed on sugar plantations. Since
hen 3S,479 Japanese have entered the
Territory, but there are only $4,000 en-
loved on plantations, and an unofficial
ensus of the japanese, which IS be-
ieved to be approximately correct
makes the present japanese population
f the Territory $4,000. In other words, /.
,ver 1000 japanese have emigrated to
he Territory during the last five years,
tut there are only 5000 more on the
and 1000 less in the Ter
itory as a whole.
REASONS AND REMEDIES.
What are the reasons and what are
he remedies for this unsatisfactory
tate of affairs? The reason is that
here is little home feeling or atmos-