The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1916-07-07

WIHEN farmers who are growing crops fail to
" realize return greater than day wages, il
hurts them first, and in turn the whole community
II would seem that the government experiment sta
tion IS at fault when independent planters and
homesteadefs show by the returns they receive
from their acres of cane that their agriculture
methods are in feriOr to the plantation standards
a share in the blame must also be borne by the
public school system in this Territory and by the
College of Hawaii, and, not | y any the
least, the banks and agencies The fault is not
by any means entirely with the homeScaders.
Blame restk~ with the Hawaii experiment station
because from the time this institution first
established its policy has been to ignore prob
lens. In 1901 cane production was the one solid
industry in Hawaii. In 1916 it is still the one inn
one successful that owes its inception to the
experiment station.
Blame rests with the public school system be-
cause il has trained the boys and girls who enjoy
the privilege of frel schooling away from the main
industry OF Hawaii and not towards it. The public
schools graduate young men and young women
to become teachers, clerks stenographers sales
men and oGiceholders- anything but planters.
The Normal School is about the only school in
Hawaii that starts out from the beginning to train
students for one definite useful purpose, and 1t
must be said that the Normal School does its
work well. Its graduates are good teachers.
The College of Hawaii is infected with the same
idea that runs through the schools and the expert
ment station. There is no State in the Union, not
even excepting West Virginia which has been for
many years VIGOROUSLY behind in practical edu-
cation, where the subconscious sentiment that the
next generation of citizens must be trained to
something other than the main industry, IS so
firmly fixed it is right here in Hawaii.
Hawaii cannot go on importing fresh supplies
of Oriental labor indefinitely, because whatever
the men who have created the sugar industry may
think the day is coming when the 10000 children
Of alien parentage now comprising the school popu-
lation, grown to manhood and wOmanhood will
demand their birthright. The birthright of the
sons of land supported by one dominant industry
is equipment and training so that they can find
place in it.
1t is not wholly the fault Of the small men who
essay to become cane growers that they fail when
the common and higher schools have neglected
giving them instruction in the agriculture OF cane
growing, and when the experiment station estab-
lished by federal funds to help Hawaiian farmers
goes on the presumption that there is nothing in
cane for the small farmer"
The bankers, agencies and the public generally
cannot be absoved from share in the blame OF
the failure of small planters 1t is quite generally
understood that considerable amount Of capital
other than mans own brain and muscle ne
cessary to properly equip plantation. Yet the
banks refer the prospective small planter to the
agents, and the agents refer him to the plantation
manager and the manager refers him back to the
banker, and on second appeal for funds with which
to buy fertilizers tools and supplies, the banker
opines that "the government or the Bishop estate
ought to do something
Growing cane is an honorable business, and 1t
ought to be the principle business of the majority
Of the young men who coming to manhood 5
estate in Hawaii.
i 1t is the opinion of more than one man who
has looked at the broader aspects of the sugar
problem in Hawaii that the outcome must be here
what it has been in other lands. There must be
capital in large volumes to handle the milling,
transportation and marketing, but the day IS
bound to come when the growing of the crop must
be more in the hands of individual planters, own
ing and cultivating their own lands. All over the
world this is the tendency. Hawaii cannot say
that this natural law will never apply here be-
cause the day will come when for self-preserva-
tons sake we must apply it. 1t is not question
OF profits but of placing Hawaii's sons on the
land, or living to see the day when an alien race
will take the land away from them and US.
I Against the coming of that day what will the
be?