The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-03-10

Copyright, 1912, by Frank G. Carpenter.l Washington, D. c.
 VTHAT has Uncle Sam done for W Hawaii? It is the oldest of our
 w colonial possessions. We an- nexed it in 1898 and it has been a part of us for the past 14 years. It was rich when we got it; it is richer today. It did big business then: it does a bigger one now. It's foreign commerce is almost s70000, coo per annum, and it has more than doubled since we made this a territory. Hawaii now buys more than $27,000,000 worth of goods very 12 months and 90 per cent of this we supply. The business is all done In American bottoms. and the customs re- ceipts, which go to the federal treasury, have already amounted to about s15 000, GOO In addition to this Is large sum from internal revenue taxes, so that the islands not only support themselves and pay all their expenses. but they annually turn large sum back into Uncle Sams cof- fers. This, I should say, is good business.
 More Schools and Colleges
 The Hawaiian Islands have grown in intelligence since we took hold of them. Then S7 per cent of the natives could read and write. Now all can do so. They were a civilized country inhabited by a civilized people. At the time of annexa- ton they had A common school system
 
 16,oo0 children in the schools. There are now 26.0O0 and compulsory law has been enacted raising the school age from l5 to r years. know of no land where the school age is So high. Moreover, the schools are quite as good as our own, and they include in their teaching manual and industrial training.
 Within the past few years the govern , ment has established college of agricul- fIYra ata 10 the crops which grow on the islands. The government has a bureau of forestry and 1t has set aside three forest reserves. It has an energetic department of health, and one island has been set aside as a home for the lepers. Others of the archl- pelago have been reserved to keen alive the wonderful bird life of the middle Pa cifc and the Island of Hawaii the largest of all, is soon to be the site of a national park which will enclose the greatest vol cano known to man. A bill to this effect is now before Congress. and the governor of the islands has advised that the reser- vation be mais.
 A Naticr,-, Park of Volcanoes
 Before r0 e,rther ] want to tell you about this volcano park. We have the greatest gcvse-s If the world on our pub lie reservation of the Yellowstone. We shall have the greatest volcano and the greates active crater in this part of Hawaii The whole archipelago is made up of volcanoes It has altogether 40 vol canic peaks and volcanic ash and lava abound everywhere. The very soil is de- composed lava. and this In places is 20 feet deep. making the islands among the richest on earth. 4s+ls
 The Island of Hawaii. the largest of the group. where Congress is asked to create this park. consists mainly of the gentle slopes of five volcanic mountains, and 1t has among them the great Maona Loa. which is hv far the largest volcano of the world. There Is crater at its top which iA almost as high as Pikes Peak, and another on one. side, the famous Kilauea, which is constantly active and has . great lake of Ire in It's center. If is Qlaaned to make the reservation right