Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1911-05-06
KEEFE REPORT
MADE SENSATION
New York World Talks OF
"VaSsalage" In Connection
With Hawaii Labor.

The Now York Worlds Washington
correspondent made SchSa''"h"
story out Of Commissioner ot lmln'-
grafton Kccfo's report on Hawai- '''
same report that was puhliShcd OK
cmsiyely by the Bulletin here. inc
following is from the Worlds spccl"
correspondent at the capital:
WASHINGTON, Apr. iO.-Comms-
sloncr- General Keefc of the Bureau ni
Immigration has just presented to
| Secretary Maggie of the Department u,
commerce and Labor a first hand
| study of Hawaiian labor conditions III
which he offers n terrific arraignmcht
| of the vested interests who control inc
| Islands.
The report is the result Of his three
! months trip through the lslaTus' anu
I IL Is believed will result In Congress
! sional investigation. Although couch
ed In the most temperate language ana
drawing few conclusions as to the cul-
inability of the land owners, II shows
by "A system of charts and figures that
the conditions of the lower classes are
little better today than when the Is
lands were annexed by the United
States
"vassaIage" Charged.
A few of the vital facts set forth In
the report art:
THAT a great majority of the in
habitants of Hawaii are living in
state of vassalage; that for all prac-
teal purposes they are owned body
and soul by the sugar planters. who
work them for starvation wages and
| t,,
ccssities Of life, which the planters sell
at cxorbitnnt prices
That the country Is not being Amer
! icanlzcd. Tho planters are making n"
attempt to draw desirable Americans
or Europeans. They are actually as
sisting I'm 'Oricntalzing' the Islands
Japanese Increasing.
| Almost onc-half of the inhabitants
are Japanese Their numbers are in
crcaslng rapidly. In another decade
the Islands will he little more than
! Japanese settlement. Virtually all OF
these japanese have seen military SER
| vice at homo and would constitute an
excellent "Hawuiian division" in case
| of hostiitics
Between nrty and sixty Japanese
women arrive on each steamer. Upon
landing they are married and 20 to
! work I'm the fields. They work ton
hours at manual labor under the trop-
zeal sun. Their offspring are scgrc-
| gated with them, and consequently
grow to maturity with nll the Inherent
instincts and traits of their fathcrland.
No attempt IL being made to Amcrl-
caniac HEM.
MISREPRESENTATION.
The agents of the planters, who are
paid per capita fee for the laborcrs
they induce tn go 70 the Islands. are
misrcprcscnting valuations. and the
consequence IL that they arc sending
In q number Of pcnnilcss aliens, Who
upon finding that they can not live on
tho wages paid by the interests, move
on to the Pacific Coast as fast as pos
sihlc. As II result the slope states arc
hnrborlng many undesirable aliens,
who sooner or later become objects Of
charity
Mr.. Kccfc skaters the myth that
white men can not live and work COM
\ fortably on the Islands, and states that
IL would he an easy matter to induce
them to migrate II the companies
would pay them n living wage. orr
entail labor Is chcaper--thcy can live
on less and cheaper food--conscducnt-
" the companies prefer them to Amer
leans or Europeans.
Scarcity in Foodstuffs.
Because sugar Is more profitable
than other products, the land owners
devote virtually all the land To the
former, with the result tlitt foodstuIts
are scarce. A laborer making, 10 cents
IA day OF ten hours pays on an average
of 30 per cent. more for the principal
necessities of life than the market
prices in the largest cities in this
| .puntrN