The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1909-06-06
Favorite Topic of the lnhabi-
tants Of the Territory Is
Regarding the Production
OF the Staple.
THIS PRODUCT THE
LIFE OF ISLANDERS

SuuOJV SUV 6OOSOOV sO0
Now Planted With Cane by
Producers.
Honolulu. May 24.-One Is not In
Honolulu long before the fact is driv-
en- home that here sugar is king. You
meet q new friend and start CONVEX.
sation. Very shortly the talk is about
sugar and the particular plantation
that IL the new friends favorite. You
pick up the afternoon paper and on
the front page under glazing headlines
10 the announcement that sugar is up
five points" You 60 for. an automo-
bile ride outside Honolulu. Very
shortly your interest is aroused to a
keen pitch because. in the distance
you imagine you see some immense
corn fields. You voice your thought
to the chauffeur who rather scorn-
fully replies. Corn nothing. that is
sugar cane"
Sugar, commercially speaking, is
the life of the islands. Without it
the wealth of the islands would not
be one tenth Of the present valuation.
A very few figures will make plain
the extent Of the industry.
Aorss Of Sugar Cane.
On all the islands there are about
300. 0o0 acres planted in sugar cane.
about half Of which is cropped each
year. In 1908 the total production of
sugar amounted to 521.123 tons. For
this the Hawaiian planters received
the enormous sum of $39.S16, 0S2 90,
gross. of course. From these figures
one is easily led to believe there is
big money IN sugar. There is but to
get at 1t requires q very large expen
diture Of money over q series Of years
without any return. ~
Sugar, as produced In the Hawaiian
Islands. must needs be obtained by
corporations having large resources
The land for q plantation. aside from
the first cost of purchase or lease
must be cleared at considerable ex
lpense. Then there is the additional
lexpense Of q complete irrigation sys
TEN, consisting of bitches and expen
lsive pumping stations. And that Is NJ
mean item. The plantations on the
Island Of Oahu. alone use annual,
two thirds more water than do thu
citizens of Greater New York. tt
cultivate the ground is also q BIZ
item. On most plantations the pillow
ing is done by hugh steam plows
Then the cane is sowed and aftel
eighteen months of wedding and irri
eating the crop of cane is ready TO
the mill. Hundreds of laborers ar,
turned loose in the fields and b!
means Of heavy knives they cut dow
the cane. Other laborers then Loaf
the cane onto the cars of the planta
ton railroad, by which means it Il
conveyed to the mill. The mill is an
other big item of expense, general.
representing an investment of over ,
! half million dollars. The cane afte
. reaching the mill is first sent through
a series Of hugh. crushing rollers, tina
extract the Juice. This juice thel
operations. all involving the use o
, special and expensive machinery. ant
finally comes out as the brown suga
LOT commerce. This is the produc
that 10 marketed. The bulk Of 1t i
sold In the United States to the bi,
sugar refineries.
: The Labor Question.
The labor question IL a big one Il
the planters. Before the islands wer,
annexed they depended to a great Ell
tent on Chinese labor. After annex
: alton, however, the exclusion law
were effective here and cut off tina
: supply Of labor. AS a substitute JAP
anese were brought in and up to tn,
present time have proved very salts
: factory. Last year. however, owinl
to the anti-Japanese sentiment on tn,
mainland, the agreement between ia
pan and the United States was reach
, Their immigration to territory unde
the stars and stripes. Consequently
the planters cannot get any additions
: japanese laborers.
II Just 1t present plantation afte
plantation II being tied up by . strik
} among the japanese 1aborers. Rea
T izing that since the new agreemen
: between Japan and the United State
!. 1t will be hard to get additional lal
! orers. they are trying to force tn
J, planters to grant an enormous IL
crease in their wages. The bulk q
8 the japanese laborers receive sixt,
+ nine cents for . days work. Th0s
lon strike are demanding = dollar
: day. Al this means such an enormou
e increase In plantation pay rolls.
: doubt II the japanese will win Ii
3 strike. believing the sugar companie
win fight them to the last ditch.
z Another interesting industry here 1
. the raising and canning Of pineapple
: This II comparatively new industr
+ and yet 1t the present rate 10 goin
e Ito be q very important one in the d
u ivelopment Of the territory. Unlih
o Isugar cane. pineapples are grow
o without the need Of expensive irrig1
q lt3oa systems and without labor bein
d Isuch big item To date over 2,O0G
e Loco has been invested in pineapple.
iefther n planting operations or
tcsnnea3na Very htfle Of tia fruit