Changes

Grueling though the schedule was, plantation life was more than just work, and Japanese on the plantations began to form their own communities and local cultural practices and experiences. Many groups invented and sang work songs called ''[[holehole bushi]]'', which sang of their toils, while other ethnic groups came up with songs of their own. Some Japanese managed to become peddlers, traveling around the communities selling traditional [[kanpo|herbal remedies]] and the like, while others worked as cooks (called ''ôgokku'') instead of in the fields; still others took on other occupations.<ref>A fuller list of occupations held by Japanese in Hawaii in 1926, listed by demographic numbers, by gender and by island, can be found on Odo and Sinoto, pp178-179.</ref> Before long, Japanese constituted the vast majority of barbers on the islands, not only on the plantations but also in the cities. On and off the plantation, some Japanese began operating funeral parlors, providing more proper funerary services to replace burial in the basic wooden boxes provided by the plantations, while others took up fishing, sailing, raising hogs, or producing fresh noodles, fishcake, tofu, or other Japanese foods. Some took advantage of their literacy to serve as interpreters or translators, or to produce documents of various sorts, including simply writing letters home for others, for a fee. Many Japanese also got involved in prostitution, either as prostitutes themselves in the case of women, or as purveyors or procurers in the case of the men, though this of course became the target of [[Japanese Christians in Hawaii|Japanese Christian leaders]] and others who strove to improve the morality and lifestyle of the Japanese.

Grueling though the schedule was, plantation life was more than just work, and Japanese on the plantations began to form their own communities and local cultural practices and experiences. Many groups invented and sang work songs called ''[[holehole bushi]]'', which sang of their toils, while other ethnic groups came up with songs of their own. Some Japanese managed to become peddlers, traveling around the communities selling traditional [[kanpo|herbal remedies]] and the like, while others worked as cooks (called ''ôgokku'') instead of in the fields; still others took on other occupations.<ref>A fuller list of occupations held by Japanese in Hawaii in 1926, listed by demographic numbers, by gender and by island, can be found on Odo and Sinoto, pp178-179.</ref> Before long, Japanese constituted the vast majority of barbers on the islands, not only on the plantations but also in the cities. On and off the plantation, some Japanese began operating funeral parlors, providing more proper funerary services to replace burial in the basic wooden boxes provided by the plantations, while others took up fishing, sailing, raising hogs, or producing fresh noodles, fishcake, tofu, or other Japanese foods. Some took advantage of their literacy to serve as interpreters or translators, or to produce documents of various sorts, including simply writing letters home for others, for a fee. Many Japanese also got involved in prostitution, either as prostitutes themselves in the case of women, or as purveyors or procurers in the case of the men, though this of course became the target of [[Japanese Christians in Hawaii|Japanese Christian leaders]] and others who strove to improve the morality and lifestyle of the Japanese.

Many Japanese on and off the plantations formed rotating credit groups called ''tanomoshikô'', in which all the members contributed a small amount, and then one member received it all, either by lottery, by need, or by merit of their ability to invest it most effectively. These were often spent on wedding or funeral costs, repaying debts, or the like, but many also saved or invested this money, so as to start shops or businesses.

Many Japanese on and off the plantations formed rotating credit groups called ''[[tanomoshi ko|tanomoshi kô]]'', in which all the members contributed a small amount, and then one member received it all, either by lottery, by need, or by merit of their ability to invest it most effectively. These were often spent on wedding or funeral costs, repaying debts, or the like, but many also saved or invested this money, so as to start shops or businesses.

People on the plantations rarely enjoyed fresh meat, poultry, or fish, but got their protein mainly from tofu and other soy products, and from canned fish. After the first immigrants to Hawaii realized a dearth of familiar vegetables, subsequent groups brought with them seeds to plant gardens; by 1900, Japanese communities on the plantations were growing their own ''[[daikon]]'', lettuce, green onions, string beans, eggplants, turnips, ''[[kabocha]]'', ''[[gobo|gobô]]'' (burdock), and ''[[shiso]]'' (perilla; Japanese basil/mint). Workers soon were able to enjoy standard, if quite basic, Japanese meals of rice, vegetables, miso soup, and tea, with the occasional fish. ''[[Sake|Saké]]'' became available in Hawaii in [[1888]]; in addition to ''saké'', Japanese frequently drank beer, wine, whiskey, and a local/native drink called ''ʻōkolehao'', made from the roots of the ''ti'' plant. A former plantation worker named Sumida Tajirô established the Honolulu Japanese Sake Brewing Co. Ltd. in [[1908]], the first saké brewery ever opened outside of Japan. Located in the Pauoa Valley, Honolulu, it is still in operation today.

People on the plantations rarely enjoyed fresh meat, poultry, or fish, but got their protein mainly from tofu and other soy products, and from canned fish. After the first immigrants to Hawaii realized a dearth of familiar vegetables, subsequent groups brought with them seeds to plant gardens; by 1900, Japanese communities on the plantations were growing their own ''[[daikon]]'', lettuce, green onions, string beans, eggplants, turnips, ''[[kabocha]]'', ''[[gobo|gobô]]'' (burdock), and ''[[shiso]]'' (perilla; Japanese basil/mint). Workers soon were able to enjoy standard, if quite basic, Japanese meals of rice, vegetables, miso soup, and tea, with the occasional fish. ''[[Sake|Saké]]'' became available in Hawaii in [[1888]]; in addition to ''saké'', Japanese frequently drank beer, wine, whiskey, and a local/native drink called ''ʻōkolehao'', made from the roots of the ''ti'' plant. A former plantation worker named Sumida Tajirô established the Honolulu Japanese Sake Brewing Co. Ltd. in [[1908]], the first saké brewery ever opened outside of Japan. Located in the Pauoa Valley, Honolulu, it is still in operation today.