The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1908-05-12
KING SUGAR I'M HAWAII

tests, tnefe are now lnuriHurIHs9 ANU
chickering's
1t is said that 81 total stranger can
buy machinery or other supplies frotl
sugar agent much cheaper tLAl she
of that agents plantations can buy II.
muck-raker would undonbtediy i.n9
some molasscs OH the tines OF IFS I'm.
plcment IL he t7a.i Il IT ovcr Hawaii.
On the other nali. tlie pr1sperits of
tile Islands and everybody In IL tas
been made by lug1r, is supported y
sugar. and without sugar would perish
lniserabiy. ,rhe sugar Dar1ns lave
brought great curse upon thtir ,''nu
by the importation nj an e.>.'ss or
Oriental labor, pcrl:as, hGt " ii;tteSHr
blessings the ccuntrY las they di'"
brought.
Politics in Hawaii is not idenlly free
from corruption. /; wasn't III the 6 ~
days OF tho monarchy, and II isnt
now But it Is 10 SC doubted II atf
State IN the Union mas ia'ys wflch
throw as much Ugh. i:,to che iiis',in
workings OF .oro ,ra:i"ns as d. ne
laws OF Hawaii. This ~ spite cf tht
fact that dozen men control all VI .
the one great industry OF the. country.
It is not meant that these laws are
|litopian, or that they accomplish great
results 1t is merely the wonder that
such publicity laws arc on the statute
books.
The sugar barcns apparently nave
not been put to the necessity OF study
Legislature two years ago TO enapie
them to bring III s.ine Portuguese ana
Spanish immigrants. badly needed 10
relieve the labor situation. They
didn't mention 1t to their leader IN
the Senate, and IL went 10 the table.
IL he had known 1t. II could have been
passed without word. AS II was u
required hard work to pull IL through.
on the whole. the sugar barons seem
not to be such bad barons after all
IL IT,, tut
built its prosperity. and. in q measure,
the community is grateful.
These things may change Some
of the sugar barons are placing obsta-
cles in the way of homesteadine ard
/ other efforts toward Americanization.
fearing the effect upon their system
of labor. This attitude is antagonistic
10 the moving spirit OF the Territory,
and when the clash comes Ii VIII be
the sugar barons' heads that are crack
ed. Some OF the sugaE barons. espe-
ciaiiy the British and Germans, stu
believe. or affect to believe, that the
United States will again open the doors
| to Asiatic immigration so far as Ha-
wall is concerned. The. majority OF
the American planters look toward
the south OF Europe for help.
! Tho sugar planters have problems.
| of course. but In Hawaii their out
| look is rosy. Just now they are glory
ling in the biggest crop OF their his
L
the dreaded thing happens and Philip
pine sugar, or even Cuban sugar is
admitted into the United States with
| out duty. the sugar planters may find
cons olation in the rapidly increasing
| consumptionS OF sugar. Thirty-five
years ago the sugar crop of the world
was two or three million tons each
lyear. over half of which was made
from cane. It did not reach four MIL
lion tons until 1859. when for the first
thine the beet sugar production was
! little the larger half. The crop reach
ed the -ihillion-ton mark In 1902.
six of which was from beets and four
,from cane.
The last annual statistics reported q
worlds crop of over twelve million
tons, seven from beets and five from
cane. The increase of consumption of
sugar in the United states. rs might
be expected. has been startlnglv rapid.
/ having tripIed in quarter of cen
Itury. This growth continues all over
/ the world and the sugar producing sec
| lions are called upon to do their ut
.lmost So far as Hawaii is concerned.
LIT is believed that practically all the
/ available sugar land Is now under cul-
|tivation. But such predictions are un-
certain as witness the maximum pos.
/ sible" estimate of Twenty-Five wears
lago. In the meantime. King Sugar
/ smiles IN Hawaii. and this TERRITORY Is
one part of the United States that
1 adversity in the good year 1905
/ Copyright 1905, by Frederic j.
. Haskin)
o-nlorrow-Labor Conditions in Ha-
wa II