The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1912-05-03

Hawaii has spent literally millions
of dollars in trying to diversity her in.
dustrial production. At one time it
was believed that a large coffee industry
could be built up, and more than
s2,O0O,00O was sunk in that effort. be.
fore the impossibility Of competing
with Brazil was proven to us. Similar
efforts have been made to develop the
cultivation of sisal, cotton and rubber,
but they have been commercially un-
successful. Pineapple growing has beea
developed to profit yielding basis,
but for this the market is limited;
aside from pIneapples and certain limit
ed areas that will produce tobacco, we
have been unable, even by the aid of
long and costly experiments, to find
other crops to take the place of sugar,
Would Be Catastrophe.
al desire to make it very explicit
to congress that free sugar will mean
in the case of Hawaii not merely the
loss of capital invested in one of sew.
eral industries and the expense of
transferring to other lines of produc-
ton as here on the mainland; it means
for Hawaii the closing down of four
fifths of her industrial units, with no
other crops available for substitution
1t must also be remembered that alb
sence of fuel and raw materials make
it impossible to build up any manu-
featuring industries In Hawaii.
"ln making this small statement of
fact that free sugar will mean INDUS
trial disaster for the Hawaiian Islands,
| frankly recognize that congress would
have an excuse for enacting such legis
lation if it would permanently confer
a benefit on the people of the United
States. 1 am not in the position of
contending that the 90,000,000 of peo-
pie in the United States shuold be tax
ed to support the sugar industry of
Hawaii and the beet sugar States.
Disaster without Benefit.
''The testimony of Mr.. Willet, the
ablest sugar statisticnn in this coun-
try, and the analysis of the worlds
consumption and supply of sugar as
governing the price, which will be pre-
scented by Others before your commit
tee, ought to make it clear to unpre-
JUDGED minds, that with the loss of
Hawaiian sugar and that now produced
ON the mainland, the American con
sumner will in the end pay as much for
his supply under a free sugar law as he
has ON an average during the past ten
years.
My contention is that this govern
ment through the power of congression-
al enactment, will bring disaster to Ha-
wall without permanently benefting
the people here bv giving them cheap
sugar.
''Sngar now constitutes one of the
chief sources of revenue of this gov
eminent. l do not believe that con
gress should enact n law that will both
cause the loss of that revenue and at
the same time cause disaster to the
entire people of Hawaii and the valu-
able industries in Louisiana and the
western States, without first having 1T
Mt least clearly proven that the Amer
lean people will be assured of an inn
portant gain to offset this serious loss.
"No Industry Basis.
The economic effect upon our Isl
lnds of this drastic legislation VIII be
10 change Hawaii from one-industry
country to a no-industry country; but
wish to go beyond that to point out
is probable effect ON the future of the |
of Hawaii.
"During all the years since annexa
ion, the federal government has been |
dvocating the Characterization of |
laval by inducements to American
md Caucasian immigrants to displace
he oriental population of those Isl
nds. Within the last four years the
territory of Hawaii, through its board
# immigration, has expended about
of million dollars to
remote and assist Caucasian immIgra-
ion.
"These funds are raised by special
income tax of two per cent. restricted
D persons or corporations with an in
ONE in excess of $4,000 per year. In
edition to that the sugar plantations
ave directly aided the movement to
lmericanize the Islands and vOluntar.
" paying higher wage to citizen la
or and those eligible to become citi-
ems. AS result of this, there is now
steady decline in the percentage of
rental labor engaged in plantation
'ork; there has been no oriental i'm
ligration to Hawaii for the past four
ears, while there is more or less
,eady stream of oriental departure.
Must Cut Wages.
" What, then, must be the inevitable
fleets of a free sugar law on the la
OF and citizenship of Hawaii The
eaker plantations-th ones produc.
Ig sugar at the highest cost-will at
lce be forced to close; this win in
ude not only the small plantations,
ut two at least of the larger ones
hich have never paid dividend. The
feet on the stronger plantations will
. to compel them to at once discon-
nue. their higher wages to Caucasian :
borers. The closing down of many
antations will at once produce a sur. s
us of labor and tend to lower tho I
inimum wage;. the inevitable result 2
i'll be that the plantations in their
ruggle to continue as going concerns, I
i'll be forced TO employ the oriental
declining wages, and that citizen
ID Caucasian labor will be forced to g
ave the country to find profitable en- a
oyment. ,
"It is a fixed economic law that nm. !