The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1910-07-05


described. the people found wooden
ehanties, without roofs. the floors
made of rough boards, set apart with
wide crevices. The furniture, con.
sisted of a few benches, a table and
a few beds, instead of the promised
electric light, Kerosene lamps were
used, the oil to be supplied by the
men themselves; the fuel consists OF
the roots of the sugar cane, which
the men were to carry from three t.
seven miles. Coal is a great luxury
which is but seldom obtainable.
| Instead of the free transportation.
to and 10 I'm work, the men had t.
walk to the place of work at dis
tance of five miles, and the time con
sumed was not included In the work
ingday; lateness by five to ten minutes
was punished by a deduction of a
quarter of a days pay; the wages are
$1,000 month for men and $500 foi
women.
THE men are compelled to buy all
their provisions in the plantation
stores at such exhobitant prices thai
they exceed the earnings due and
they become the debtors of the plan
ters.
I'm short the conditions are such as
would establish a condition oil peon-.
age.
AFTER three months of suffering ana
quite SUBMISSION, having spent not
only their scant earnings, but the
money they brought with them, real
tied from the sale of their real prop
erty and other belongings at home,
the men revolted; they left the plan
tations and went to Honolulu with a
view of informing the American
Government, through its regular con-
stituted authorities.
"The people looked for work else
where, but could find none.
J"The Government of the Territory
was informed by a delegation sent by
the men, of the unbearable conditions
but the only answer that they receiy-
ed from the Governor was that they
were to return to the plantations, and
a promise to improve the conditions
of their life was made.
"The people returned to work, bur
found no fulfillment of any OF tive
promises made, and the people began
to appeal for assistance from the out
side world.
THE people rose in protest, ana
they were driven from the planta-
tons. Some have found employment
working on Japanese vessels.
Hundreds of others were left
breadless and homeless, all of them
having been driven from their shan,
ties, their belongings having been
thrown out into the open fields.
They have sent two delegates to
go to Washington; on their way these
delegates stopped at the Imperial
Russian Consulate at San Francisco
and there they were assured by the
Consul that there was no necessity for
them to go to Washington, advising
them to return to Honolulu the Cno-
sui having referred them to a Rus
sian representative, one Kerberg, who
The assured them, would take caro- of
their grievances and remedy all
wrongs.
The mon returned. but nothing was
done for the people, and the owners
Iof the plantations evidently took an
other course to drive the people into
submission. 1t started with the ar
rest Of their three leaders. A. vasilieff
Bilon and Surupoff, who, charged
with vagrancy, were sentenced to
three months Imprisonment: then
came 10 more arrests for alleged va.
grancy, and six of them were SEN
fenced to six months Imprisonment.
At the time Vasilieff was arrested
the people rose in indignation, de-
manding an explanation for the arrest
OF their leader but obey were brutally
attacked by the police brutally
wounding many of the men, as
well as the women and children. Ru-
more have been spread through the
press dominated by the planters. with
view or oYerawing the peasants and
force them into submission that the
Police Commission of Honolulu had
ordered the police TO shoot to XIII"
" N n h h X