Is Mr. Mead present? About how much time will you want, Mr. Mead?

Mr. MEAD. I think I can get through in 10 minutes.

The CHAIRMAN. All right.

State your name and occupation.

STATEMENT OF R. D. MEAD, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE HAWAIIAN SUGAR PLANTERS ASSOCIATION

Mr. MEAD. My name is R. D. Mead. I am a vice president of the Hawaiian Sugar Planters Association, which comprises practically all of the sugar industry in Hawaii. The production of sugar in Hawaii last year was 993,000 tons. The plantations in the Hawaiian Sugar Planters Association also own the Hawaiian Philippine Co., which owns and operates a central on the Island of Negros in the Philippines. The production of that central last year was approximately 47,000 tons.

Also, 80 per cent of the sugar production in Hawaii represented in the Hawaiian Sugar Planters Association owns the California-Hawaiian Sugar Refinery, at Crockett, Calif., where most of our sugar is refined.

The attitude of my organization on the questions which are before the committee is as follows:

First, that the question of independence of the Philippine Islands should be left to determination by Congress, after full consideration of the capacity of the Filipinos for self-government, and consideration of the international problems involved which are nationally important and paramount to any economic considerations.

Second, that such trade concessions be granted to the Philippines as the United States in justness and fairness wishes to grant.

Third, that if it shall be deemed to the interest of the United States to prohibit the entrance of citizens of the Philippine Islands not eligible to United States citizenship, a provision be made applying to the Territory of Hawaii whereby they may be admitted thereto in numbers sufficient to meet the agricultural labor requirements of the territory.

It is upon the latter subject particularly that I wish to speak.

The question of the exclusion of Filipinos has been before the Immigration Committee of the House on two occasions in recent years, and very extensive hearings have been held. I would refer the committee to the report of the Immigration Committee accompanying House Joint Resolution 473. Seventy-first Congress, third session, and quote from the bottom of page 3 thereof as follows:

An exception is made, however, in the last sentence of this subdivision, so that citizens of these possessions (Philippine Islands, Samoa, and Guam) may, if they so desire, be not considered as aliens, and may come to the Territory of Hawaii without any immigration or passport visa in the same manner and no more subject to restriction than under existing law.

We have had immigration of Filipinos to Hawaii since 1909. In the beginning, as in the beginnings of all immigrations, the people that came were not of the very best, but in later years we have brought in very considerable numbers of Filipinos from the Ilocos Provinces, in the north of Luzon, and they are fine people, hard working, industrious, thrifty, and law-abiding. We have found

them highly satisfactory, and they now form the bulk of the Filipino laborers upon our plantations.

The deposits of Filipinos in the savings banks in Hawaii at the present time amount to $4,149,321.

I am reading from a report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Hawaiian Sugar Planters Association for last year:

The remittances to the Philippine Islands through this office, largely by returning Filipinos, have amounted in the year to $662,750. We know from investigation in the Philippines that Filipinos remit from Hawaii over $3,000,000 per year to their relatives, so that in addition to the savings disclosed by Hawaiian savings banks, we have evidence that our Filipino laborers remitted some $3,700,000 to the Philippines during the year.

Naturally, Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, that must be of very considerable assistance to the Philippines.

We are trying to conduct in Hawaii, and are conducting, a tropical industry under the very highest American standards. Our wage scale is equal to the wage scale in any agricultural section of the United States, other than on the west coast.

A report of the United States Department of Labor which came out last year shows that the earnings of the plantation laborers for the period of 1929 and 1930 averaged $1.85 per day. In addition to that, they are furnished with their houses, with fuel, water, medical attendance, hospital treatment without cost, which is estimated by this report to be $28 per month. They are, in addition to that, paid a bonus of 10 per cent on their earnings if they work 23 days per

month.

Our plantation work is conducted very largely on a piece basis. There are very few day laborers. They work, as we call it, under various contracts, short term contracts, which cover work that may be completed in a short time, and the long-term contracts which may extend from the time when the fields are prepared and the cane is planted until it is harvested.

The CHAIRMAN. Would you mind explaining what you mean by piecework in agriculture?

Mr. MEAD. Yes, sir. Fields are plowed and planted, and in some instances hoed and cultivated on the basis of a price per acre; cane is cut and loaded into cars on the basis of price per ton. These are the so-called short-term contracts, and there are other contracts of the same nature covering other plantation operations.

After the cane is planted and after the first irrigation on the irrigated plantations the fields are turned over to gangs who cultivate and bring the cane to maturity. They are paid on the basis of the production of tons of cane. These are long-term contracts continuing over a period covering 18 to 24 months.

Mr. BRUMM. That is only a labor contract? There is no lease involved?

Mr. MEAD. No, sir; our cane requires from 18 to 24 months to mature, so that it extends over a very considerable period. The long-term contracts more nearly approach a lease than anything else, but we call them long-term contracts.

The short-term contractors, according to the report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor, earned during the period under consideration $48.10 per month, which, with the addition of the estimated value of their perquisites at $28, brings

their earnings, or the cost to the plantation of that labor, to $76.10 per month per male adult. The long-term contractors showed earnings of $53.82, and with the $28 added it would be $81.82 per month per male adult. The day laborers, who are very few in number, had a minimum wage of $28.08 per month and a maximum wage of $91.78 or an average of $59.80, which, with the addition of perquisites, would bring it up to $87.80 per month. Those wage earnings are in excess of any wages paid to any farm labor anywhere in the United States, except perhaps on the west coast of the United States.

Mr. BRUMM. Do you include Pennsylvania and New England in there?

Mr. MEAD. Yes; I include every section.

Mr. BRUMM. They get more than the farm laborers in the State of Pennsylvania?

Mr. MEAD. Yes, sir.

If you will examine the tables of farm wages set forth in the latest statistical abstract of the United States, you will find that the statement I have made is corroborated.

I thought I had it here with me, but I find I have not.

We are trying in Hawaii to develop a home-grown supply of agricultural labor. It is a noble experiment, with perhaps a greater chance of success than another noble experiment much discussed. Mr. BRUMM. I hope so.

Mr. MEAD. And I hope so, too. The indications are that our efforts will be more successful.

Mr. BRUMM. It is more popular than the other one, is it not? Mr. MEAD. I think so. We are trying to reverse the present trend from the farm to the city; we are trying to make them go from the city to the farm. We are bringing out of our schools a large number of young men and women, and they can not find the white-collar jobs that they would wish to get, and we are trying to make conditions on the plantations so attractive for them that they will go back to work on those plantations.

Mr. UNDERHILL. Are you having any success?

Mr. MEAD. Yes, sir; we are having quite a measure of success. Pending that, and our effort to accomplish it, we ask that you permit to come to Hawaii during the intermediate period before independence becomes an accomplished fact Filipino laborers to assist in our agricultural work. That is our petition to you.

That is all, Mr. Chairman, unless there are any questions.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you very much.

Gentlemen of the committee, I have a short statement here, submitted by Senator Hawes, with the request that it be read to the committee.

Is there any objection?

If not, I will ask Mr. Cartwright to read it.
Mr. CARTWRIGHT. The letter reads as follows:

Hon. BUTLER B. HARE,

Chairman Committee on Insular Affairs,

FEBRUARY 5, 1932.

House of Representatives, Washington, D. C.

MY DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Senate Committee on Territories and Insular Affairs held extensive hearings in the matter of Philippine independence in 1930, and probably will limit its hearings in this session to statements of the

official commission from the Philippines and such department heads as desire to express opinions.

I have followed as far as possible the well-conducted, thorough manner in which the House is considering this subject. There is one phase which I consider of importance and which has not been presented before your committee. I hope this communication may be read to your committee and made part of the printed hearing. I am sure you will agree that a very great stimulus will be given to the people of the Philippines to push forward into new fields for greater opportunity and expansion in agriculture, manufacture, and trade, but this stimulus can not come until a definite date for independence is set, and I fear that if this is refused, the present uncertainty, economic stagnation, standing still, and lack of advancement will continue. The Filipinos are all desirous of independence; have been temperate and kindly in their requests for it. Their petitions have never been accompanied by bombast or threats.

The special subject that I desire to present to your committee is their record during the World War, which should give us confidence in their ability to maintain order and administer a stable government. What happened in the Philippines at that time should be known to all Americans.

Our participation in the World War naturally gave new hope to their independence movement. Our declaration in favor of self-determination by nations was taken as an indorsement of the aspiration for self-determination for the Philippines in the matter of independence.

Their conduct then was as fine as that displayed in the States of our Union, and we should not fail to remember and appreciate it.

There was no hostility in the minds of the Filipinos against the Germans. A number of German merchants and residents in the Philippines were very popular with them, so their offer of assistance to the general object of the war, which had been described to be the preservation of the small nations and the self-determination of all was most creditable.

But it also gave them an opportunity to demonstrate in a very practical way, both financially and, with the offer of their young men for active war service, their loyalty to the United States and to the American flag.

We declared war in April, 1917. On May 5 of the same year a monster demonstration was held in Manila. Fifteen thousand Filipinos gathered in front of the Governor General's residence; speeches were made pledging them to any sacrifice for the benefit of the United States.

A special session of the legislature was summoned, and it quickly passed the following resolution: "We firmly believe that the final triumph of democracy, in securing for the world the principle of nationality for the benefit of the small nations, will finally enable our people to attain the ideals for which we have always struggled, namely, our constitution into a free and independent nation, with a democratic government of law and order, ready to be another instrument of democracy and universal progress."

To this President Wilson replied: "Please convey to the Philippine Legislature in warmest terms my appreciation of its admirable resolutions."

This was later followed by the passage of Joint Resolution No. 7: "That the Governor General be, and hereby is, authorized to take all necessary steps for the earliest possible construction, under the direction of the Government of the United States and at the expense of the treasury of the Philippine Islands, of a modern submarine and a modern destroyer, which shall, as soon as available, be offered to the President of the United States for service in Philippine waters or elsewhere, as said President may require or authorize."

This act was approved by the President and finally resulted in the building of a fine, new type destroyer called the Rizal. It was officered by Americans and manned by Filipinos.

Everyone thought at the time we were entering upon a long war, but, getting into the service late, as it happened, it was transferred to the United States Navy and used in other waters, so the Filipinos were not called upon to pay for it.

Finally, what is called the Quezon Militia Act, No. 2715, was passed, giving the Governor General the power to enforce compulsory military service in the islands. It provided for the inclusion in the Philippine National Guard of every able-bodied citizen between the ages of 18 and 45. It created a military commission as advisers to the Governor General. This was followed by a proclamation of the Governor General in 1917, and legislation in the United

States was urged which would permit our President to accept the service of this division for foreign service.

All through the Provinces the best of the Filipino youths volunteered. Suspicion of the ultimate attitude of the United States regarding independence had disappeared. Here we find them volunteering for duty abroad. Twentyeight thousand volunteered when only 14,000 were authorized by Washington. The United States spent only $515,000 for their equipment and this preparation. The Filipinos, out of their treasury, expended $2,405,000.

All American troops and the American Navy were withdrawn from the Philippines during the period of the war. The whole government, its policing, and its army were left to the good judgment of the Filipino people.

Mr. Wilson expressed the opinion that "it may have a wholesome effect, even in Europe, to have Filipinos there fighting for the cause of democracy."

All agitation for independence ceased. With a fine spirit, they did not seize upon this opportunity to press their claims for independence. It is the only period in their history, in connection with our own, in which they have not on every occasion pressed a consideration of their national aspirations.

They organized a corps of 4-minute speakers. They subscribed to the Liberty loan the sum of 23,247,000 pesos, more than double their allotment, and it is significant that of this sum 9,000,000 pesos came from the Provinces, and 95 per cent of those who subscribed were native Filipinos.

In addition to their subscription to the Liberty loans they added another 10,000,000 pesos for the American Red Cross society.

For a poor people who, according to the Manila American, does not even understand what liberty means and the responsibility of self-government, this was a demonstration of offers of men and money in time of distress, and was an answer of loyalty and capacity that should be conclusive.

Another significant happening was the fact that while all American soldiers were withdrawn, none but Filipino soldiers and constabulary were left, there was no trouble in the Moro country. It was unusually peaceful during this period. It substantiates the theory of the Filipino that he can get along better with the Moros, who are Malays, and settle possible disputes quicker than can an American who belongs to an alien race.

It is reported that 4,785 Filipinos actually served in the United States Army, enlisting in the United States. Fify-six were killed. The Navy, which had formerly employed many Asiatics, replaced them by Filipinos, so that in the year 1926 we find there were 4,420 Filipinos in the United States naval service. It was freely predicted that we would have a long war of at least three years. This was the thought of everyone. If we had such confidence in the Filipino people and in their loyalty to move our troops and Navy out of the islands during the war, what justification remains for the continued presence of the Army at great cost during times of peace.

The thought of retaining the island people against their will and over their objection and despite their protest, by threat of force, should be repugnant, abhorrent, to the decent feelings of any civilized man, especially of the rightthinking, fundamental American.

Thanking you for this courtesy, I am,
Yours cordially,

HARRY B. HAWES.

The CHAIRMAN. We have Judge Linebarger, who has requested to be heard, and we shall be glad to hear him at this time.

STATEMENT OF JUDGE PAUL MYRON LINEBARGER

Judge LINEBARGER. My name is Paul Myron Linebarger; American citizen, born in Illinois in 1871; residing at Wai Chai Pin Kwan, Nanking, China. I am a lawyer by profession. I was appointed under the McKinley administration in 1901 judge of the seventh district of the Philippines, and served as such until the 1st of January, 1907, when I resigned to become legal adviser of Sun Yat Sen, who eventually founded the Chinese Republic.

I appear here in the interest of the 55,000 Chinese of the Philippines, who control 70 per cent of the wealth of the islands. I have