Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1913-10-14
THAT INTERVIEW
BETWEEN KlJHI0
AND PRESIDENT
What kuhio Said, What Kin.
Iley Said, and What the
President Said

WHAT attorney w. A. Kinney said Ii
bat now-famous interview with Pres
itent Wilson which figures SO prom
, inently in the Kuhio-C Carter open-let
: ter controversy, is shown below. Ths
Star-Bulletil herewith publishes q
statement made by w. A. kinney and
/ nuhio as to their interview, and
which, according to Mr., Carriers let
ter Sunday, was given to the Ha
waiian sugar men sin Washington by
Delegate I<uhio:
STATEMENT FROM MEMORY or
THE INTERVIEW BETWEEN
THE PRESIDENT AND THE DEL
EGATE FROM HAWAII, AND w
| "A. KINNEY, WHICH TOOK PLACE
| AT THE WHITE HOUSE. APRIL
1913, BETWEEN IL NOON AND
Up, NJ. OF THAT DAY.
After shaking hands and being seat,
ed, the Delegate said; ssMr. President,
have come to you as the Delegate
from Hgwaii to have q brief talk Oh
the sugar question English Is not my
native tongue, and while L use IT on
most occasions. consider this con.
versatt0n so Important that have
requested Mr.. Kinney to speak for me,
he and having carefully gone over
the whole ground and agreed upon
Just What should be said. Mr.. Kinney
Is Hawaiian born, a prominent Dem.
ocTat, IN fact, practically the organ
izer Of the party IN Hawaii, and we
are perfectly in accord on this qnes.
ton.
The President said: II would not
know from your speech nat English
was not your mother tongue. hut am
Of course content to hear you as you
have arranged It.
The Delegate also said before the
president replied as aboye: II wish
1t distinctly understood that j am not
here either to represent or TO bind
the planters of Hawaii by what / may
say. am here representing them
only 30 far as they are part OF the
people of Hawaii and have interests
in the Territory; I merely speak for
the Territory anu all the people.
What kinney Said. !.
Mr.. Kinney said: Mr.. President,
we do not presume to prophesy with
exactness what the results Of free SUI
gar win be to Hawaii. Some things.
however, are certain. In the first
place, we concede that there are
Plantations in Hawaii which can sur.
'vite free sugar and live, and make q
fair return on the investment. We
are equally certain that there are 9TH
er plantations which connot possibly
survive free sugar owing to poor
soil and other unfavorable environ
ments, these plantations paying little
or nothing today even under q heavy
protection. The remaining planta-
tons comprising the bulk of the plan
tations, we place In the doubtful coll
umll, not assuming to say whether
they can survive free sugar or not
The president interrupting then
said: Well, understand that so far /
aS Hawaii is concerned, there Is no
sugar-producing country in the world
where sugar is raised by such scien- |
tific and skillful means as in Hawaii. . |
Effect Of Free Sugar
Mr.. Kinney resumed: THAT prob |
ably is so in regard to field work, but
It is unquestionable that some Of thel
would go under with free
sugar as is indisputably proven by the
TACT that they pay little or nothing /
now under the most favorable condi-
ions. AS to the plantations which we |
pat in the doubtful column, there is no |
question but that they will throw their
weak spots or weak fields out of Gull
ovation and concentrate upon their
drst-class lands, so that a greatly re- /
iuced output of sugar must inevitably /
follow free sugar. and this will result /
n releasing from employment a large
iumber of Asiatic plantation hands; i
md of course those plantations that /
lease operations altogether as plan-
.ations will dismiss their labor as
veil, leaving a sufficient surplus of
abor on the market SO that the plan
atoms will not need for some time
o import labor. One other thing we
eel certain will result from free SUI
gar, and 1t is this point that we havel
;ome to bring to your attention above
I'll others, namely: that free sugar
will throw Hawaii hopelessly into the
lands of the Asiatics-first, because
practically all non-Asiatic immigration
o Hawaii will cease from the time
rec sugar is certain, and that, wheth-
II 1t is to take effect Immediately or
hree years thereafter; and secondly, 2
because the non-Asiatics in Hawaii
viii leave the territory for the Pacific
cast in unprecedented numbers as
oon as they know free sugar is GER
ain, whether Immediately or after
hree years notice. The Asiatic can
lot leave except to go home, which
WOULD be of no advantage to him.. He
will have to stay in Hawaii even
hough it is certain wages will have
o be subjected to a radical cut. But
he non-Asiatic is confronted by no
uch dilemma. He possesses little or
Iothing, in most instances, to hamper
i'm In leaving, and $40 to $50 will
and him at any. point on the Pacific
cast from British Columbia to South
IN California; to British Columbia,
where no such. processes of recon
truction would be under way, and to
-I.<- Il