Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1909-03-25

feature of the HOnOkaa plantation
that has attracted considerable atten.
tion, particularly because the scheme
Manager Gjerdrum is carrying out there has
proved successful.
On the Honokaa homestead lands of the
higher attitudes, there are eighty families,
twenty.seven of which are growing cane and
selling II to the plantation. For the year 1908
the plantation received 1900 tons from these
people. When others saw the success OF
these pioneers In independent cultivation
they applied for seed, readily granted by
the plantation, and the crop of the coming
two years will be materially increased from
this source. On these high land homesteads
Striped Tip cane grows nicely and ratoons
well three ratoons can be raised.
One family of three, took small home.
stead and the father and son spent their
whole time cultivating their land. When
the crop was taken off and paid for the
homesteader said he figured that he and his
son had averaged S1.25 per day for all the
time they had worked and had put In less
time than If they had been working on the
plantation. Besides the cane crop they had
raised quite a garden supply.
The cane averages 25 to 80 tons to the
acre and the plantation pays s275 per ton.
The lands of the Honokaa Sugar Com.
pany, comprising some S7S9 acres, are in the
Hamakua district of the Island of Hawaii
Nearly half the lands are owned In fee sim.
pie and extend from the sea about 3 to 3b
miles toward the mountains to the home.
stead lands, being bounded upon the east by
the Paauhau Sugar Plantation Co and upon
the west by the Pacific Sugar Mill Co s hold.
ings.
About 67Si acres have been planted I'm
sugar cane of the Yellow Caledonia, and
Striped Tip varieties, the latter is showing
good percentage of success
Sugar cane was first grown on this plan.
tation in the 70s, the Lahaina variety pre-.
dominating until about fifteen years ago
when L was given up to rest the lands.
The sugar output for 1908 was 1857 tons
taken from 1875 acres of plant cane and
1425 of rattoons. The 1909 crop is estmat.
ed at 5000 tons.
About 675 Japanese, Chinese, Portuguese.
Koreans, and Porto Ricans find employ
ment on the plantation
Method Of Cultivation.
The soil is cultivated with two sets OF
Fowler Steam tackles, and ordinary pows
and harrows drawn by mules. The planta-
ton keeps $50 horses and mules. The land
is plowed, narrowed and cultivated by steam
plows; cross plowed with mules and then
narrowed again before being furrowed out
and planted.
Transporting Cane.
Transportation of the cane from field to
mill Is over seven miles of steam railroad
which practically reaches the entire planta-
ton. Cane Is now iumed from more remote
parts of the plantation into railroad cars
and then brought to the mill and unoaded
by the Wicks cane unloader direct into the
carrier Two engines Of ten and seventeen
tons weight respectively and eighty cars
make the railroad equipment
At the mill two separate platform scales
have been erected, one for weighing the
loaded cars as they go in and the other for
weighing the empties as they come out
The cars are hauled into the mill by
rope cable operated by steam power and
unloaded direct to the cane carrier by
Wick's cane carrier feeder (patentedD. This
simple efficient device operated by two men
consists of a long, moving adjustable arm
fitted at one end with steel prongs and
operated by a double.acting rope transmits.
sion, power being supplied by the main mill
engine.
Mill Equipment.
The mill plant consists of new two
roller crusher and three 3-roer mills hav.
ing a capacity of rs tons of sugar In twenty.
three hours. The cane is fed from the end.