The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1916-08-04
James S. McCandless Tells Pitts
burgh Newspaper Of Local
Plantation Conditions
DEMOCRATIC TARIFF
POLICY IS RuINous
Protection Is Needed to Make ISL
ands Prosperous and Insure
Further Development

"The cane sugar industry in the Ha-
waiian Islands, threatened with com
plete denomination when the Wilson
administration revised the sugar tariff
schedules and reduced the duty on
European beat sugar from sixty five
cents to one cent the 100 pounds, is in
existence today only because the Euro
pean war, has temporarily destroyed
competition from France, Belgium, Ger
many, Austria and Russia, according to
]. s. MoCandless Of Honolulu, who was
at the Fort Pitt Hotel yesterday, says
The Gazette Times, j Pittsburgh paper,
Of July II. "Mr. McCandless, who
has been in Honolulu thirty-six years
and is an owner Of sugar plantations in
the Hawaiian group, said the future Of
the industry in Hawaii can be insured
only by the revision of the sugar
schedules upward to point sufficient to
protect the industry from destructive
competition that will develop in Europe
as soon as the war ends.
War Averts Tremendous Losses
1.-THE war, and the war only he
said, 'has averted losses of millions Of
dollars invested in sugar plantations
and mills. So, you see, we who live in
Hawaii can hardly subscribe to the
oftquoted sentiments of the late Gen.
eral sherman
Last years sugar crop in the Ha.
waiian Islands was $4,000 tons, or
moro than 100000 bags, according to
Mr. McCandless. II was the most pros
porous year in the history of the Is
lands. This year 3 output will be about
the same, probably n few thousand tons
less The remarkable progress in the
industry since $780, the year Mr.. Me
Candless went to Honolulu, is reflected
in the increase of output from 10000
tons to the figures quoted above. In
1880. Mr.. McCandless said, sugar
brought eight and onchalf cents a
pound, but plantation owners did not
make as much money on their product
as they do now at six and one half
cents pound.
Extrac ton Percentage Greater
1.-the reason for this is that our
percentage Of extraction is greater he
said In 1880 the best we could do
in our roller mills was to extract about
sixty or seventy per cent of the sugar
from the cane. Now we are getting
about ninety seven or ninety eight per
cent. OF course, our machinery costs a
great deal more now. A mill in 1880
cost about 100000 or 100000 A
sugar rolling mill today costs about
81 900 600
Haw allan sugarplantations are fer
tilted and irrigated more extensively
than in any other country in the
world, Mr.. McCandless said. He added:
"'Wc spend large sums of money
annually to increase the productiveness
of the soil We must do so in order
to compete with Cuba and other cane
Sugar.producing countries. We cannot
grow sugar AS chcaply as Cuban planta
ton owners do. Cuba is in the tropics
and il a warmer country. We are only
in the scmi.troPics. Cuban sugar ripens
in about twelve months. 1t takes Ha
waiian sugar about eighteen months to
reach a proper growth for cutting.
It" The reduction Of the sugar tariff
thiry-tWO cents Il year for two
wears caused sugar TO drop to about
SEQ the hundred rOunds. The re,
naming one cent Of duty, which waE
20 have been abolished on May l. this
wear, was maintained for revenue pur-
was fixed at one cent a pound. This
IS very little protection, however, and
we may as well say that European
beet sugar is virtually free of duty,
Eigher Tariff Necessary
80 Hawaiian sugar plantations will
60 out of business unless a tariff ade.
1uatO to protect us from the cOmpeti
ton of beet sugar interests i'll Europe
il established. Even the bNct sugar
Tdustry in the States is threatened.
Ii Vfll be unable to survive cOmpeti
| tion from Europe after the war unless
the tariff is increased. The beet sugar
Industry in Louisiana was dcmoralized
temporarily when the tariff schedules
were revised downward. 1t faced alb.
solute ruin, but the European war
broke out and it was able to get back
on its feet again.
1.-the revivifying effect of war on
! the cane sugar industry in the Ha
waiian Islands is shown in the change
II prices since August /, 1914. On
hat date sugar was bringing 1929 per
hundred pounds. In twelve days it
| had risen to $6.52, That price was
maintained for time, but in October,
1918, it dropped back to about 81. II
is now back TO about $3.50.
"Mr. McCandless emphasized that the
future of the Hawaiian sugar industry
nd the future Of the Islands, CONNER
tally, are synonymous. He said:
80 Most Americans do not appreciate
he commercial importance of the
Islands. INYant to impress upon you
that they are no mean factor in the
"o"'h - tr"dP. IN 1899 Our exports
totaled about $sG,QO0,Oo0 and we