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The Garden Island. [volume] (Lihue, Kauai, H.T.) 1902-current, September 04, 1917, Image 5

Image and text provided by University of Hawaii at Manoa; Honolulu, HI

Persistent link: https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn82015411/1917-09-04/ed-1/seq-5/

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THE GARDEN ISLAND TUESDAY. SEPT. 4, 117
5
THE KAMEHAMEIIA
SCHOOLS
KKXT SCHOOL YEAR BEGINS
SKIT, 10, 1017.
APPLICATIONS FOU ADMIS
SION SHOULD BE MADE
EARLY,
For application blanks and
complete information address
E. C. WEBSTER,
President, Kaniehameha
Schools, Honolulu, T. H.
Use Staffords Inks
j
For office usb,
buy Stafford's
inks in thk nkw
DRIPLKSS rOPR
RROULATOR BOTTLES.
IN PINTS AND QUARTS.
Hawaiian News Co., Ltd.
HONOLTLU
THE DROUGHT
HAWAII
OVEN
Glass Dishes for Baking.
The Newest Method
Broad pan 1 .25 ea
Pin plates 1.00 a
CuHtard Cups .25 ea
Casseroles 1.75 ea
Shirred eag pans .05 ea
Au Gratin L00;ea
W. W. DiranT& Co. Ltd.
HONOLULU . ' ' . HAWAII.
Koloa
Plantation
Store
Wholesale and Retail Groceries
Dry Goods of all Descriptions.
General Plantation
Supplies. .
JAS. F. MORGAN
Co. Ltd.
Stocks, Bonds,
Real Estate and Insurance
NO. 125131 MERCHANT ST
P. O.Box No. 594 Honolulu
Y v
The Damocles Sword
Over Hamakua
From time immemorial the wind
ward coast of Hawaii, especially
the District of Hamakua. has been
subject to an occasional drought;
so that this is the one thing that
they fear beyond all others. Just
now they are experiencing one
that bids fair to far outrun every
thing that they hare ever known
in that Hue. They have had no
rain to speak of since April, and
now expect none of any value till
the end of October, and with no
assurance that it will come then.
And,, unfortunately, this dry Sum
mer follows a dry Winter, so that
that they are were ill prepared for
it. Thus far. in Hamakua, they
have had only some 20 inches,
when they should have had 40 or
50 inches; and this 20 inches has
been badly distributed, with prac
tically nothing in the warm grow
ing months of Summer.
hey Depend Directly on Rain
Normally they depend almost
ntirely on the rainfall for the
growth of their Crops, at least in
the Southern half of the District,
and very largely also for domestic
and stock purposes. In the North
ern end. at Honokaa and Paauhau,
they have the Hamakua Ditch
bringing them a limited supply ol
water from the Waipio mountains.
Elsewhere, there are a few small
springs which are fostered to the
utmost bv means of storage tanks
which "hold the fort" for domes
tic purposes. In time of prolong
ed drought, like the present, these
springs shrink to a minimum, a
mere trickle, and ' then finally
peter out altogother. And of
course, with the great damands for
water consequent on a large rubral
population, and large stock re
quirements, these springs are in
adequate to the demands even
when thev 8re running; now it is
a.question which will break first,
the drouth or the stored, up water
supply. In addition to this, there
are a few deep wells along the
coast, of the artesian variety, from
which a limited supply of .brack
ish water may be pumped aad
then carted over the plantations
to the various points of need.
Of course these sources of supply
do not help the growing crops at
all, as they, depend entirely on the
rainfall.
The Drouth and What it Means
Coming out from Hilo, the first
place that one notices the dry
weather signs is at Honohina, on
the Hamakua side of Hakalau
They claim that throughout the
whole Hilo' region the crops have
suffered , but mostly this is not ap
parent. Hut from Honohina on
toward Hamakua the drought con
ditions quickly increase. At Pa
paaloa large stretches of the lower
fields aie as brown as a stubble
wheat field. Passing into Hama
kua this becomes the prevailing
condition, aud much ot the cane is
absolutely dead, no rain now will
avail to revive it. This disastrous
condition applies, strange to sav,
almost wholly to the next years
crop, cane now about one year
old. The 1917 crop, of course, is
off or nearlv so, and the plant of
And -Your Home
will be
Electrically Lighted
u nn nn . l rht
is a complete electric, plant
nt a reu.s uiul !e price (or
Inline use. Lights the aver
Se home for less thuir 5
c nts a ilny.
Ask os to tell you ulwiiit
it.
The Hawaiian Electric Co., Ltd.
4S Dt'lco-Light
this year for the 1919 crop hhows
very little sign, thus far, of being
affected; being small the root sys-
tern is meagre, and it does not
I make much of a pull on the mois
ture in the soil; but the 1918 crop
is just at the critical period of its
growth when it needs all the avail
able resources of nourishment and
moisture, and failing them drys up
and dies.
Appalling Shortage for
Next Year
Accordingly, it is next year that
the crop will fall short. With the
drought still on, and no assurance
when the rain will come, it is of
cour&e difficult to pav what that
shortage will be; but from intelli
gent estimates made on the ground
by a manager of experience who
has been through the same sort of
thing before, the probability is that
it will run to something like 20,000
tons, for the district of Hamakua
alone, to say nothing of Hilo, Ko
hala and Kau. A loss of 20,000
tons, at present prices, means a
financial loss of some three million
dollars. Of course there will be
some savings in cultivation, and
harvesting, and manufacture, to
offset this, but they will not ma
terially affect the figures; and these
again will be offset, and perhaps
more than offset, by the minor loss
on the 1919 plant and the ratoons
following the 1918 crop.
No Water for Milling
Some of the places in the Hilo
district are in,' trouble also about
the.. 191 7 crop, because of shortage
of water for numing and milling.
This is particularly true of Papaa
loa, where they have not been able
to flume for two or three months,
and where they are behind some
three thousand tons on their crop.
In this case it is not only the lack
m a 1 f .
ot water lor numing, Diu.even
more disastrous, for running ahe
condensers in the mill. They have
also been badly handicapped about
seed for planting. - The tops from
the cutting held are ordinarily tak
en for seed, the two operations of
milling and planting going forward
together, and of course when there
is no grinding, and no cutting.
there is no seed for planting. This
deficiency has been partlv met by
securing top seed from neighbor
ing places that were still milling.
And a Gasping Land s
Altogether it is the most serious
drought within the memory of man
The whole windward coast of Ha
waii. from. South Kau to North
Kona, lies palpitating and gasping
under a cloudless, burning sky.
the vegetation by the road side is
brown and shrivelled,' the ferns
and mosses in the deep forest are
wilted and curled up gasping for
rain, the roads are deep iu dust,
and the wind blows unceasingly.
day after day, dry and hot, carry
ing the dust in great clouds aleng
the lines of travel, while above,
the mountains stand sentinel, silent
and cloudless and arid and on
every body's lips there is the pite
ous crv. 'Oh when will it rain!'
alternating with tht hopeless cry
"Will it ever rain again ?"
Mr. C. E. French recent home
steader in the Waipouli region has.
jusi aisposea oi ins noiuings mere
to Miss Booge, and taken his de
parture for the coast We under
stand that he has sold out to good
advantage. We are sorrv to lose
Mr. French, that is the kind of
homesteader that we, would like to
keep.
Technical Department 'Butletin
Peerless Motor Car Co.
To Alt Dealers:
For your information we wish
to advise that in our experiments
and tests here at the factory with
our new eight-cylinder car, we
have been able to secure uniform
ly better results with Standard
Oil Company's Z.erolene motor
lubricant than with any other
which we have used.
Endorsed by Peerless Motor. Car Co.
The above letter sent out from the factory to all
Peerless dealers is an unsolicited testimonial to tha perfect
lubricating qualities of Zerolene. Less wear, more power, '
least carbon deposit because correctly refined from
California asphalt-base crude. ,
Dealer everywhere and at our service station.
STANDARD OIL COMPANY
(California)
The Standard Oil for Motor Cars
ROLENS E
Wednesday, September 5,
at the
TIP TOP
WILLIAM FOX PRESENTS
George Walsh in
'The Island of
Desire"
A supposedly Hawaiian pic
ture of romance and adven
ture. SAM SEARLE, a native
sou of Honolulu, makes his
debut here in this strong
photoplay.
J J
Friday and Saturday
Sept. 7 - 8
JESSE L. LASKY
Presents
Wallace Reid and
Myrtle Stedman
IN
"The Prison
Without Walls"
saespc:
J ' A f i a
. V J 'J
l I
'The storvof a young prison reform experU thrilling and relentless drive ngainiit "The man
higher up '
HOTEL LIHUE
(The Fairview)
Twenty-two elegant rooms
In Main Building
Thret Airy Cottages
Cuisine unexcelled in country
districts
W. H. Rice, Jr.,
Proprietor
WAIMEA HOTEL
Waimka, Kauai
jt
Breakfast '
Lunch
Dinner
Room
.50
.50
1.00
1.50
J Jl J i
FRANK COX, Manager
THE BANK OF HAWAII,
Limited
LIHUE BRANCH
Lihok, Kauai, Hawaii
Deposits are received subject
to check. Certificates of de
posit issued payable on de
mand. Loans made on ap
proved security.
Drafts Dkawn on
Honolulu Bremtn
San Francisco Berlin
New York Hong Kong
London Yokohama
Savings Def artment
Interest paid on Savings De
posits. 4 per cent on ordi
nary and 4 per cent on Trm
Deposits. Ordinary Savings
Deposits will be received up to
$2,500 in any, one account.
Safe De?osit Boxes fob
Rent $2 and $3 a Year
For
Young
Men
$7.50
$8.00
$8.50
t5
S8e
1UKU un WUK (jwf
Manufacturers' Shoe Store
1051 Fort St.

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