EXPORTS OF DOMESTIC PRODUCE FROM THE VARIOUS PORTS! OF THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS (EXCEPT KAWAIHAE ON HAWAII,) FROM JULY 1, 1850, TO JUNE 30, 1851, INCLUSIVE. FROM WAIMEA, ISLAND OF KAUAI, AND THE ISLAND OF NIIHAU, PART MANIFESTED AT WAIMEA AND PART AT HONOLULU. Onions Sugar 5681 T. METCALF, Esq. REPORT ON ROADS. Puukapu, Hawaii, August 3d, 1851. As a member of the committee of the R. H. Agricultural Society, on roads, harbors, and inter-island navigation, of which you are chairman, I beg, through you, to urge upon the society the propriety and urgent necessity of doing all in their power to promote the introduction of one or more steam vessels, as coasters among these Hawaiian Islands. The delay and inconvenience to persons engaged in business, whose time is valuable, arising from the want of a speedier and more regular mode of inter-island communication, than that afforded by the heterogeneous fleet of sailing coasters, is well known and has been frequently experienced by many of the members of the Agricultural society. Do not some of them, yourself among the rest, look back with feelings the reverse of agreeable, on a three days calm to the south west of Lanai, or off Waianae, or to crossing the Hawaii or Molokai Channels in a dirty, thirty-ton schooner in rough weather, when they could not show their noses over the weather rail, and when it seemed doubtful at times whether they should ever reach Honolulu; or have none of them ever received letters two months old, which with proper means of communication they ought to have received in two days from the time they were written? The importance of this subject was recognized by the society at its last annual meeting, as I perceive by the fourth resolution, passed August 14th, and it is to be hoped that additional light will be afforded this year, as to the probable expense of running a good and sufficient steamer round the islands. Nothing short of a large and substantial sea-going vessel, will answer the purpose. A small boat, or a river boat will never be safe to cross our rugged channels in. It will require a boat with plenty of deck room, for the purpose of transporting horses, cattle, sheep, hogs, &c., without inconveniencing passengers, in order to make the business profitable. And profitable, I will venture to say, it will be, after it is fairly tried. Passengers would cheerfully pay double fare in a steamer, on account of her superior speed and accommodations, and the foreign part of the population, who pay most for their passages, would travel at least twice as much as they now do, between the islands. A steamboat would get nearly all the light freight to carry, and there are many things that would be raised on the other islands, for the Oahu market, if a proper mode of conveyance were once established. A steamer might leave Honolulu every Monday morning, and arrive at Lahaina, touching at Molokai, the same evening; leave Lahaina on Tuesday morning and arrive at Hilo the same evening, touching at Honuaula and Kohala; leave Hilo on Wednesday and arrive at Kealakeakua the same evening, touching at some place in Kau, say Kailikii, leave Kealakeakua on Thursday morning, and reach Lahaina the same night, touching at Kailua, Kawaihae and Honuaula or Kalepolepo; leave Lahaina on Friday evening and arrive in Honolulu early on Saturday morning. This of course excludes the island of Kauai, but if the depot for the steamer were situated either at Hilo, or at some port on Kauai, the whole circuit of the islands could be made between Monday morning and Saturday night. This could certainly be effected by running in the night time. There is one thing which ought to be remembered in calculating the probable expense of maintaining a steamer round the islands, and that is, the great saving of fuel which can be effected in the down passage, in four out of five voyages by sailing before the trade-winds. In reference to roads and harbors I have little to say. These subjects in your hands, will not be forgotten. The roads generally ceived the earnest attention of the last Legislature, and will doubtless be gradually improved throughout the kingdom. There are some districts, the coasts of which I think ought to be minutely surveyed, for new harbors or landing places. Hamakua, Hawaii, is one of those districts. It is a beautiful tract of land, and would make a fine agricultural country, but it possesses no harbor. There are said to be several places along its shores where landing places might be made. And here is an instance of the benefit to be derived from steam coasters. A steamer could call at such places, and land or take off freight and passengers, when a sailing vessel could do nothing. The government owns a great deal of unoccupied land in Hamakua, which can never be extensively cultivated until some place of shipment is provided for planters in the district. When this is done we may expect to see the beautiful slope of that portion of Hawaii covered with flourishing sugar plantations. Yours respectfully, G. M. ROBERTSON. REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON LABOR. The subject of labor is that, above all others, of the most vital importance to the Agriculturists of this nation. It is, in fact, the great question, upon the satisfactory solution of which, their success, their progress, their very existence depends. Its importance is increased by the fact that from our isolated position, and our want of the necessary capital, we are unable in a great measure to avail ourselves of the various labor saving inventions that are constantly being brought into use by our countrymen at home. STEAM. That great auxiliary to, and substitute for, the labor of human hands, which is now lending its giant aid, not only to the mechanic and the manufacturer, but also to the planter and the farmer, is as yet unknown among us. Not a steam engine is to be found upon these islands, and even the occasional visits of the "moku ahi," or fire-vessel, are yet hailed with wonder and admiration by the natives, and as "remarkable events by the foreign class of our population. Doubtless this mighty agent will ere long be introduced and put in successful operation, but the present obstacles, the lack of capital, the want of machine shops, difficulty of obtaining engineers, and the scarcity of fuel, appear so formidable that no one as yet has the courage to face them. This great obstacle, the scarcity of labor, was the great question which stared us in the face, at the outset of our organization as a society. Many of us who met together last year to devise means by our association to encourage and aid each other in our labors, came up to the meeting from coffee and canefields which were overgrown with weeds and run to waste before our eyes, only from the utter impossi |