The Hawaiian gazette., 1917-04-13
SOME WE|RDFACTS
UNEARTHED HERE
Miss Frances BIascoer, Woman
investigator" Heard From
In New York Times

Il L. y .. & y III
Many in Honolulu win remember
Miss Frances Blascoer, who came here
under the auspices OF one of the
women's societies Of the city in 1912
to conduct an industrial survey Of the
city. She has been heard from, hnv.
ing taken her pen in hand TO write to
the New York Times about Hawaiian
conditions, the result being one of the
weirdest collection Of complacently
stated peryersions Of facts vet.
Like some others, Miss Blascoer
never learned the political statusi of
the philippines and Porto Rico, and
like still others she has travelled so
far from the Islands that sticking to
the mere truth appears superfuous.
Here Is her letter:
"To the Editor of The New York
Times:
"The new immigration law, with
its further restriction Of contrnct
labor, is the immediate reason for this
letter. Nearly Eve years ago / went
TO Honolulu to make an investigation
for a local committee into the indus
trial condition Of native girls and
women in that city, Unfortunately,
the scope of my formal investigation
was limited 20 Honolulu, and my re.
port necessarily included only that
city; but in the Hawaiian Islands as
a whole found condition Of affairs
which no one seemed to understand,
and OF which have never been able
to secure an explanation.
"The Sugar Planters Association,
/ la oil Ia 4. ~ A.
the Islands and employing many thou
sands OF plantation hands, completely
evades or is exempted from--no one
seemed to know which-the contract
labor laws. Not only is labor import.
ed from all over the world, especially
from Porto Rico and the Philippines.
TO an increasingly large extent. but
men, women, and children are brought
into the islands through the planters
associations station at Honolulu with.
out even passing through the federal
immigration station there. They come
directly through the planters associa.
tons own station, subject to the
scrutiny only of the officers of, and
| physician employed by the planters
association. Filipino and Porto Riean
boys sixteen to eighteen years of age,
bearing the stamp of the American
Eschools all over them, are imported by
the thousands, thus depriving their
i own communities. for whose self-goy-
eminent the United States government
is ostensibly educating them, of the
future benefit of this education. "a,
| In this way, too, hookworm, ira
choma, specific and other contagious
diseases are being brought wholesale
into the Hawaiian Islands, and the
plantations, not equipped with either
adequate hospital or even medical at.
tendance, are being infested with all
manner OF infections. Occasionally a
human wreck, blind and decrepit, drifts
into Honolulu, bearing testimony to
this condition of affairs, but the great
majority are buried on the plantations,
for If a man is too sick to come to
the doctor he gets no medical attention.
Both the Spanish and the Portuguese
consuls called the writer's attention
TO this condition of affairs, saying they
had tried without avail TO secure &C,
ton through the department of state.
! Men, women and children, boys
and girls, were herded in one room,
where they sometimes lived for weeks
at time, with no privacy whatever.
| "Since ! returned to New York the
matter has been called to the atten-
ton of the department of labor but,
although through its children Is bureau
it has undertaken child welfare sur
vey Of Hawaii, nothing has been done
in regard to the larger question, SO
far as l have been able to learn.
"In view of the fact that even con.
tracted personal servants are barred
under the revised immigration laws, 1
shall be glad to save this letter pub
lished. s..r,.-.l.H, ssg.:E R-a.r
/ B" (Miss) FRANCES BLASCoER. -
/ The Portuguese consul referred to is
the late Count Canovarro, who cannot
now contradict the absurd stateme mt
credited to him. Certainly his success.
sor, Consul Pessoa, knows of no such
condition as stated by this investigator,
He stated that he had never met the
lady and even if he had would never
have said anything such as she states.
cit would be impossible for me to
say such thing, as l know it to be
false, +" said Mr.. Pessoa yesterday. .| L
| 81 am not against any of the labor
conditions in Hawaii" continued Mr..
Pessoa. "They are, to my mind, very
satisfactory, can even 90 so far as
to say that, during the three years /
have held Office here, l have never re-.
ceiyed a single complaint from any
Portuguese laborers."
/ Signor de Arana was the Spanish con-