The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1916-08-25

for. lhborers of this nationality on
Kanai showed similar retrogression.
Japanesa Beauty Homes
q The only Orientals except Fflipipos
who now are apt 70 create bad camp
Ieon rtions are the Okinawas, islanders
subject 70 Japnn, but speaking n diff
| ferent language and having 4 lower
| civilization, who came in numbers Ia
Hawaii when immigration was unre.
stricted aud who have remained there,
They take naturally to hut life, and
their standard of living rises slowly
IL at ALL Porto Ricans formerly were
in worse repute than Asiatics for filthy
home surroundings, but those who now
remain on the plantations, after fifteen
years residence in Hawaii, have a
better reputation.
"A eommendable feature of camp
Improvement is the effort made in sew.
eral places TO beautify the home sur.
roundings Of laborers japanese es.
pecially take kindly to encouragement
IN this direction, and in some places
their camps are evolving into rustic
villages. Road improvements have
made camps more accessible and have
brought their conditions more under
/ the public eye.
Sanitary Inspectors Employed
cat the instance of the territorial
board of health, many plantations, es-
Pecially on the Island Of Hawaii, either
siugly or In cooperation with their
neighbors, have recently employed san
ttary inspectors, whose duty II is e.
Inspect daily or Mt short intervals all
laborers' quarters and to enforce prop.
err cleanliness. Camp. cleaners form
part of the regular plantation force,
However, the inspectors are not a uni.
versal institution, and on few remote
plantations the health of laborers il
still left principally to Providence.
"All large plantations provide hos
pitfalls and medical attendance for their
employees, Some Of these hospitals
equal the best connected with indus
trial establishments upon the main
land, and are resorted to occasionally
by pay patients from other parts Of
the Territory. Plantations not infre-
quently send, at their own expense, i'll
or injured workers who require special
treatment TO hospitals in Honolulu
On the other hand, hospitals were visit
ed on some plantations that provided
40 trained nurses, and contained few
conveniences not afforded by the homes
of the laborers Themselves.
Contribute To Medical Fund
Most plantation workers receiving
the lower rates Of pay are given med
zeal attendance and hospital care free
but in some places ten cents a month
Is deducted from the wages of all hands
FOR the medical fund. In isolated dis
tricts throughout the Islands no hospi
tails or adequate medical attendance
are supplied by the plantations for
their workers. The employees of the
independent cane growers are even less
well provided with medical, hospital
and sanitary facilities. All European
immigrants assisted TO Hawaii by tho
government, who DIRE employed on plan
tations, are entitled by the terms Of
their contracts with the territorial gov
eminent TO receive medical and hospital
care without Vharge.
AS the same physician sometimer
serves more than oneSNplantation, and
in most instances has large number
Of employees to look out for, only acct
dents and illness Of serious character
receive much personal attention. But
the people he attends are mostly in
the prime of life and normally Of
healthy antecedents, working unde'
conditions that remove them from any
danger of most indoor and industrial
diseases. and they, are grouped conven
iently for visiting, in. compact com
munities. The, service they receive Of
ten is better than that received by
other rural working people who, employ
doctors at their own expense. "
Considers Cost Of Living ~.
The next ten pages of Doctor Clark e
report are devoted to discussions OF
the cost of living and the general soc.
ial conditions created by the plantation
system in Hawaii and to discussion Of
the pineapple industry. He says: 20
at is only fifteen years since pine
apple canning for export began in Ha.
waii, and it was not until 1904 that
the annual output rose above 10000
cases. Ten years later the pack had
increased more than two-hundredfold.
or to about 2,20O, 900 cases. Therefore
this business began. after Hawaii was
a Territory of the, United States and
grew up under a system of free labor.
But its organization does not differ
materially from that of the sugar in,
dustry. The canneries are owned and
some of the mos, profitable plantations
are cultivated directly by corpora.
tons. Among the more important OF
these companies is the large mainland
aiming firm of Libby, Mcneil 4
Libby.
"Twelve canneries were in operation
in 1915, Of which four of the largest
were in Honolulu itself, and seven were
in the island of Oahu, where Honolulu
is situated. There were three can
neries in Maui and two in Kanai. Ha
waii, which is the largest Of the Is
lands, has had two of these establish
ments, but both have gone out Of bust
ness. With one exception all the active
plants are owned by corporations, and
the stock Of some of them is sold OF
the Honolulu Stock and Bond Elk
change. One is controlled by Jap
anesej though us manager isa Portu
guese aud it is largely financed by al
American bank as}ls5.E..s .. .o~ .
. Concluded in Next Issne1, %