The Hawaiian gazette., 1918-07-12

Plantation labor in large numbers Is
needed acutely by the sugar companies
of the Territory and where and how
to secure the needed workers no one
knows for the need Is as immediate. n
il is acute and even we're there a
source OF supply TO meet the need such
is the shipping situation that it is inn
possible to bring labor here. Pc
Up to Wednesday afternoon there
had been fled, with the labor bureau
of the Sugar Planters Association ap.
plicatiOns for 1875 plantation workers
and this by no means covered the re-
quirements of the plantations for it
is realized that the bureau is unable to
furnish any such supply and not all o.
the plantations had filed acquisitions
nor had all those who had asked, for
labor filed statements covering their
need fully. The shortage of labor at
the present time Is certainly in excess
/ OF $500 men. VS. )
No Supply Available
Labor could be obtained from the
, Philippines If transportation were avail.
able, perhaps not to the full require
ments but to an extent that would
prove of great assistance, but the trans
portation is not available.
Other labor has been promised from
Porto Rico but the terms and cost of
such labor have not been secured from
the government and if they had been
learned it ia as impossible TO get trans
portation for labor from there as it is
from the Philippines. AS time goes on
and it is likely that in time some
h. hn nd
1920 crops are suffering from the acute
shortage of labor. They are certain to
be considerably smaller than they
would be were the usual amount Of
labor available.
+ Some Lose Half
Some of the plantations have lost
from forty to fifty percent of their
laborers. That means they must use
| their available labor for the cutting
ard grinding of this years crop and
must let the cultivation of the fields
for the next crop and the planting for
the 1920 crop wait or must abandon
! it if relief from the shortage be not
speedily found.
IT is growing more and more evident
| that five or six months ago somebody
was asleep, apparently a good many
| somebody's, for more than half of the
present shortage might have been
! avoided by action taken by the indivi
dual plantations. They could have, If
they had taken the steps, protected the
/ field labor from call under the draft
! and they did not do 50. 1t is therefore
evident that the plantation companies
! are to blame for the serious plight in
/ IA ind hatn
Rules Not Understood
It may be that the draft law was
! misunderstood or it may be, as has
/ been suggested, that it was believed by
! the plantation cnmrani"s that the
/ draft would ncv"r hc "alle1 BE this
as it may when the tin" 70 ton was
! at hand no actio" VIZ kc~ w "ove
| made by the plnntatio} to s" re de-
! f"rr"h classification for plantation
workers.
IN some instances, perhaps in the
ma ioritY, there was misunderstood NJ
of the law II was understood that
labor required for essential production
was entitled TO deferred classification
! under the rules and regulations of the
! SelrctivP Draft Law. 1t was assumed
! that the draft board would of its own
| mOnitiOn classify the draftees accord
| ingly whether such draftces claimed or
waived exemption. Here was mistake
number one, for the law should have
been investigated.
Exempted On Claims
Instead of classifying, as it seems to
have been assumed they would, accord
! ing to tho labor in which draftees were
| I,n 81 IL ~.
| put into deferred classes according to
the demands of the draftees whom such
! demands were found to be WaFTante 4.
If the draftee waived exemption, then
he went into the first class subject to
the call. If claim for exemption had
been made by employers, and had been
proper, the deferred classification
would have been granted by the draft
| boards
Fail To Investigate
But the plantation companies did not
investigates. Instead of the. managers,
or their representatives, going before
! the draft boards with each draftee and
asking exemption or deferred classiic
ton, nothing of the kind was done
The draft was permitted to go ahead
| practically unnoticed and unheeded.
The men were classified, they were ex.
amined and their cards were issued to
them and no appeals were taken. Then
it becamc to late. And still the draft
was not called and. many of the com
panics went on IN the belief that the
call of the guard would he more i'm,
portant and would cut their for"e'
more than the call Of the draft. Be.
sides it had gone on 80 long without n
call for either that there might neNc
be II CALI And then came the call Of
the guard and the companies found