The Hawaiian gazette., 1916-05-16
HAWAIIAN SUGAR
CROPESPLAlNED
Comparison With Annual Yield Of
Cuba Must Be Divided BY
Two

With reference to the yield of sugar
an acre in Hawaii, Royal d. Mead, of
the bureau Of labor and statistics of
the Hawaiian Sugar Planters Associa.
tlons recently sent the Following letter
to the editor of The Louisiana Planter:
Referring to an article in the is,
sue Of The Louisiana Planter of March
IL, 1916, relative to the Hawaiian su.
gar crop of 19l4!15, we believe a word
Of explanation should be offered.
""You state, quoting from the bureau
Of crop estimates, mat the area har.
vested for the 1915 crop yielded an
average of 1l,40O pounds of sugar per
acre. and these figures are startling
and suggest the future possibilities Of
cane culture in Cuba where these yields
Of sugar in Hawaii might be mistaken
for yields of sugar cane in some of the
poorer cane fields Of Cuba,
,''In Hawaii the time required to
mature and harvest q crop of sugar
cane Is twenty-four months There are
always two-Aand sometimes three
crops under cultivation. In Cuba sugar
cane provides an annual crop. There.
fore, to make comparison of annual
yields per acre in Hawaii and Cuba
you must divide by two the crop yield
PER- acre in Hawaii. a., y,
a"The average yield Of sugar per acre
for the crop harvested in Hawaii in
1915 was ll,l93 pounds instead of
1l,400 pounds reported by the bureau
Of crop estimates. The yield of sugar
per acre per annum for the 1915 crop
was one.half the production, or 659s
pounds.i' XII, III. ~ AK -. 49,.
The editor of The Louisiana Planter
makes the following comment on Mr.
Mead Is communication: ,r@.- , ...... .
,taOur correspondent is unquestiona.
bly, right in his statement of facts, but
II would seem to us that our statement
therein referred to'isN equally true
Here in Louisiana we, plant cane in
October when we can and that cane we
do not expect to grind until in Deem
Der Of the following year, or fourteen
months later. The ration cane from
this plant cane we expect to grind the
following November, or thirteen
months later. Then we rotate with
corn and peas for one year and plant
again in October Of the third year
This is probably our best and most in.
tensive system of operation. We thus
| secure two crops of sugar cane from a
given area in three years, or an aver
age of eighteen months culture and
care Ter crop if ceue.
1.-THE Hawaiians need no commenda-
tion from US. They have earned the
commentator Of the world because OF
| their own successes. Nevertheless, the
sugar crop of Hawaii in 1915 yielded
IL ,l96 pounds per acre if we are to be-
lieve our own government reports and
the report our correspondent gives, the
difference of 204 pounds per acre there
noted being negligible under the cir
cumstances.
"Time required to develop a cane
crop on any particular acre or area may
be Of Importance to the Hawaiians be
cause of the cost of irrigation there
where it is necessary to maintain
growth. Where this is not the case
the value of the land, the interest and
taxes thereon are perhaps the only ell
ements that increase the cost of slow
production of sugar cane. The fruit
crops of the country are rated by an
nual quantities, whether the trees are
old or young. Let us hope that Ha
waii will maintain the high annual
crop level that she has reached.'