The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1917-08-24
Japanese Papers Comment Edi-
toriaIIy On Letter Of Head Of
Planters Labor Bureau
LARGE INCREASES SINCE
WAR READILY ADMITTED
Living Costs Have Increased Out
Of Proportions With the
i..,s Gain IN Earnings 49,.

Editorial comment at length on the
letters written to the Japanese press
by Royal d. Mead of the Hawaiian
Sugar Planters Association has ap.
peared in both the Nippu Jill and the
Hawaii Shinpo. The former takes the
stand that while wages are increased
under the bonus system the increase is
not commensurate with the increased
cost Of living and that as a result the
laborers. are suffering. The latter APP
pears TO take the stand that the la
borer il, the one who is responsible for
the crops, that the companies are
earning more money and that the pro.
portion that goes to the stockholders
is greater than the Increase which the
laborefs win have under the bonus sys.
TEN. 1t does not appear to have con
sidered the fact that heavy taxes and
imposts will be placed upon the com,
panies under the war revenue tax bill.
1t is doubtful whether the amounts
that may be distributed in dividends
TO the stockholders, after the war taxes
are paid, will be greater, if as great
as they we're last year while more than
a million dollars increase in bonuses
will go to labor. ss .gE 30 .~
Considers Planters Explanation ~.
Commenting on Mr.. Mead's letter
editorially, the Nippu Jill says: .r
The Hawaiian Sugar Planters AS
ISOLATION has published in The Adver-
tiser a long open letter to the Japan
csc newspapers on the subject of high
er wages for plantation laborers the
consideration of which is now interest
ing the Japanese community. OF course
this open letter is written to explain
the standpoint Of the planters and such
self explanation is very minute, de-
tailed and precise. II shows the re-
suits of the bonus system and gives
figures and examples to show the earn
ings of the laborers on different plan
tations. 1t seems to us that it is the
idea Of the planters association that
the planters are giving to the laborers
as generous treatment as they are able
and that a demand for higher wages
is, under the circumstances unreason1
able. 4. n ,af ~
"Mr. Mead, director of the labor
bureau of the Hawaiian Sugar Plant
ers' Association, who drafted the ex-
PLANTATION and the letter, said at the
outset that there are usually two sides
to every question, and this we. take to
contain hint that the opinion of the
Japanese newspapers and their argu-
ments are one sided and selfish. We
have noticed ourselves that some of
them are futile and far apart from
the facts and some are based on old
statistics. However, such arguments
are not representative of the best jap
anese opinion. f., .,..'. ..
japanese Seek TO be Fair ..,
nWe do not hope or expect to ac-
complish our purpose and secure our
demands by such selfish arguments or
by taking only the Japanese side. If
we are to win our hopes it must be by
impartial and moderate efforts. For
that purpose was organized the Gas
ISOLATION for Higher Wages, and re-
spOnsible persons selected to investi-
gate and study the facts. In our
opinion Mr.. Mead's explanation is
one sided and represents only the
standpoint of the Planters Association
and does not consider the standpoint
of the laborer, which we regret.
Increases Are Admitted
"As precisely stated in the explain
alton of the Planters Association it
is O fact that the plantation laborers'
increased over what they received be-
fore the war, as result of the high
price of sugar. 1t is also a fact that
the increase in earnings is result of
the working of the bonus system. We
have never denied these facts What
we insist is that the initiation of liv-
ing costs is greater than has been the
increase in the laborers' earnings. In
consequence nearly all of the laborers
are suffering by reason of such, hard
conditions. Therefore the planters,
capitalists, should come to their assist
ance and share some of the enormous
plantation profits. How plantation
labOrers of all the Islands are suffering
on account of the very high cost of
living can be determined at the stores
in the plantations. This is the most
competent evidence, as to how the lab
0reTs are pressed financially, ...
90 Mr.. Mead having cited the aver
age monthly earnings of day laborers,
short term contractors and cultivation
contractors in Eva and six other plan
tations, maintains that the labOrers
must have considerable amounts over
their monthly expenses as boarding
houses are charging single men So to
$40 a month Then how does he view
the case of the laborer who has wife
aud four or five childrenf In these
days there are many more married
than unmarried laborers and most of
the married ones have three or four
children.
Living Costs Away Up
Mr.. Mead gave an illustration of
Eva, one of. the most prosperous plan
tations, and said that in 1918, before
tn" war, the average monthly earnings
of the laborer, including bonus, was
$25.09, but for this year, including the
bonus, it will be $42.l6, as the rte Of
bonus aud price Of sugar increase to
gether, This is an increase over 1913
Of SlS,U9, or seventy per cent Now,
answering Mr., Mead's claim, even
though present earnings have Increased
seventy per cent over what they were