KOHALA RAILROAD.RICE FIELD, PEARL CITY.CASH FREEHOLDS.Cash Freehold Lots are sold at auction to the highest qualified bidder, at appraised value as upset price.The qualification of applicants for Cash Freeholds and the areas of land which may be acquired are the same as those under Right of Purchase lease system.APPLICATIONS.Applications must be made to Sub-Agent of District in writing with sworn declaration as to qualifications, and a fee of ten per cent. of appraised value of lot, which fee is forfeited if applicant declines to take the premises at the appraised value, and is credited to him if he becomes the purchaser of the lot. If such applicant, however, is outbid, his fee is returned to him.If two or more applications are made and there is no bid above the upset price, the first application takes precedence.The purchaser at auction sale must pay immediately thereafter one-fourth of purchase price and thereupon receive a "Freehold Agreement."CONDITIONS OF FREEHOLD AGREEMENT.The freeholder shall pay the balance of purchase price in equal installments in one, two and three years, with interest at 6 per cent., but may pay any installment before it is due and stop corresponding interest.Twenty-five per cent. of agricultural land must be cultivated, and pastoral land fenced before the end of third year.Freeholder must maintain his home on the premises, from end of first to end of third year.He may not assign or sub-let without consent of Agent of Public Lands.He must allow Agents of the Government to enter and examine the premises.He must pay all taxes that may be due upon the premises.If all conditions are fulfilled he is entitled at end of three years to Patent giving fee simple title.In case of forfeiture or surrender the land and permanent improvements are reappraised separately, and the value of such improvements when received by Government from new tenant or freeholder, will be paid to surrendering freeholder.SETTLEMENT ASSOCIATIONS.Six or more qualified persons may form a "Settlement Association" and apply for holdings in one block.The provisions for cash freehold apply to the settlement of such blocks, but first auction sale is confined to members of such Settlement Association.Any lot in such block which may be forfeited or surrendered, or which is not taken up by any member of the Settlement Association, within three months, shall be open to any qualified applicants.Disputes, disagreements or misunderstandings, between the parties to certificate of occupation, homestead lease, right of purchase lease, or cash freehold and relating thereto, which can not be amicably settled, shall be submitted to the Circuit Judge in whose jurisdiction the premises are situated and his decision shall be final subject only to appeal to Supreme Court.CASH SALES AND SPECIAL AGREEMENTS.With consent of Executive Council, public lands not under lease may be sold in parcels of not over one thousand acres, at public auction for cash, and upon such sale and payment of full consideration, a land patent will issue.Parcels of land of not over six hundred acres, may with consent of Executive Council, be sold at public auction upon part credit and part cash, and upon such terms and conditions of improvement, residence, etc., as may be imposed.Upon fulfillment of all conditions a Land Patent will issue.GENERAL LEASES.General leases of public lands may be made for a term not exceeding twenty-one years.Such leases are sold at public auction, and require rent in advance quarterly, semi-annually or annually.The conditions of general leases are made at discretion of the Commissioners, and may be made for any class of public lands.CHAPTER VII.MISCELLANEOUS.POPULATION.The population of the Islands according to the census of 1890 was 89,991, or in round numbers 90,000. A census of the population has just been taken, but the results cannot be exactly known for some months. An estimate recently made based upon the knowledge of general increase from various sources gives the population as follows:Hawaiians35,000Part Hawaiians10,000Chinese15,000Japanese24,000Portuguese9,000American and European14,000Total107,000Since the census returns began to come in, it is very evident that this estimate will be exceeded by some 2,000, making the total population 109,000. The increase will probably be found among Japanese and Portuguese. The population of Honolulu is 29,920, or practically 30,000.SHIPPING.The vessels flying the Hawaiian flag number 52, aggregating 21,678 tons. They are divided as follows:23steamers,aggregating9,575tons5barks,''4,198''3ships,''6,272''21schooners and sloops,aggregating1,623''Of these vessels 13 are employed in foreign trade and 39 in trade between the Islands.FINANCES.Mention has been made of the taxes of this country. A few words will be to the point upon the financial condition of the government.The direct taxes yielded, in 1895, $592,691.92. The Customs revenue was $547,149.04 and licenses, &c., produced $600,224.23, in all $1,740,065.19.The current expenditures are kept within the current income. Great public improvements are provided for by loan. This is what every growing country has to do. The public debt of the country on January 1, 1896, was $3,764,335. With a population of 109,000, this gives about $34 per head of the population. The Hawaiian Government finds no difficulty in obtaining means for internal improvements, and a scheme is now on foot to reduce the interest and consolidate the public debt.The exports in 1895 amounted to $8,474,138.15 and the imports to $5,339,785.04. This certainly shows well for a country whose total population is exceeded by dozens of cities. Of the exports $7,975,590.41 were accredited to sugar, $22,823.68 to coffee, $102,599.25 to bananas and $8,783.84 to pineapples. These three latter items are elastic and the showing of 1896 will give a very large increase in their yields.Of the imports $4,121,920.22 came from the Pacific ports of the United States and $394,399.16 from the Atlantic ports; a total of $4,516,319.38, leaving but $1,197,698.16 for every other nation that the country has commercial relations with.In point of fact, taking exports and imports, the business in 1895 done by the Hawaiian Islands with all its commercial relations amounted to $14,188,155.69; of this sum $12,908,508.92 was done with the United States, which amounts to 91 per cent. of the whole business of the Islands. From these figures it can be judged how prosperous a little community that of the Hawaiian Islands is, and further how close are its relations with the Great Republic. What country in the world has 91 per cent. of its commercial relations with its neighbor?The financial condition of Hawaii is on a sound basis. The men in charge of its government are frugal and careful of the public expenditure, the whole tendency of the Republic is to foster industry and thrift. The institutions are liberal and nothing is more desirable for such a country than the immigration of colonists, with capital to develop the industries and determination to work honestly and well.FOR TOURISTS.It was not the intention when planning this pamphlet to speak of the opportunities for tourists visiting the Islands, but a few words are appended. The object of the pamphlet has been to show the agricultural resources and general conditions.The great attraction of the Islands is undoubtedly the Volcano of Kilauea, the greatest and most striking volcano in the world. Though quiescent for a time during part of 1895 and 1896, it has now burst forth with renewed splendor and promises to exceed many of its former efforts. Moreover, from the rising of the lakes of fire, and the floor of the crater generally, it has evidently come to stay.But it is not only this one great natural wonder that is attractive to the tourist. The crater of Haleakala, the largest extinct crater in the world, is almost, in its silent magnificence, equal to the wonder of the boiling and seething Kilauea. Then the delightful climate, the balmy breezes, the brilliant coloringof sky, sea and land, the luxuriant tropical vegetation, and the peculiar "Dolce far niente" life, all lend a charm to which no one who visits the place has ever failed to respond. In fact a visit to the Hawaiian Islands is one of the pleasantest experiences of a life-time.For people suffering from pulmonary troubles the climate is unrivalled and there are now several sanitariums where such patients can be attended to.San Francisco and Victoria are the two points of deportation for the Hawaiian Islands. The Oceanic Steamship Line has vessels sailing twice a month. One steamer sails for Honolulu, stays a few days, and returns to San Francisco. The other steamers touch at Honolulu and go on to the Australian colonies. Round trip tickets can be obtained and also lay over tickets, at the Company's offices on Montgomery street, San Francisco. The Pacific Mail and O. & O. S. S. lines, running from China and Japan to San Francisco, also touch at Honolulu regularly. Arrangements can be made to lay over in Honolulu, visit the Volcano and proceed on the voyage by the next vessel.From Victoria the C. & A. S. S. sail once a month. They give the tourist a chance of seeing the Canadian Pacific Railroad before coming here, but a round trip ticket would have to be for a full month. By the O. S. S. lines less time need be spent on the Islands.The cost of round trip passage is $125.The cost of trip to the Volcano, including all expenses is $50.Hotel expenses in Honolulu from $2 a day, according to accommodation.Particulars on these subjects can always be learned by writing to Wilder S. S. Co., Fort street, Honolulu; or the Inter-Island Steamship Co., Queen street, Honolulu.PRICE LIST OF PROVISIONS ON THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS.Fresh Hawaiian butter,from 25 to 50c. per lb.Hams, from 16-1/2 to 30c. per lb.Bacon, from 16-1/2 to 20c. per lb.Cheese, from 20 to 35c. per lb.Family pork, from 15 to 18c. per lb.Corned beef, 7c. per lb.Fresh meat, from 6 to 15c. per lb.Loin of Porterhouse steaks,from 6 to 15c. per lb.Tinned fruits per doz.,from $1.75 to $2.25.Golden Gate Flour, per 100-lb., $2.50.Lower grades, $2.20.Hawaiian rice, $3.25 to $5.00 per 100 lbs.Hawaiian bananas, per bunch, 25 to 55c.Potatoes, from 1 to 2c. per lb.Eggs per dozen, 25 to 50c.Rolled oats per case, $5.50.Ice, in small quantities, 1-1/2c.; 50 lbs. and over, 1c. per lb.WAGES.The following is an approximation of the wages paid to different classes of labor on the Hawaiian Islands:Engineers on plantations, from $125 to $175 per month, house and firewood furnished.Sugar boilers, $125 to $175 per month, house and firewood furnished.Blacksmiths, plantation, $50 to $100 per month, house and firewood furnished.Carpenters, plantation, $50 to $100 per month, house and firewood furnished.Locomotive drivers, $40 to $75 per month, room and board furnished.Head overseers, or head lunas, $100 to $150.Under overseers, or lunas, $30 to $50 with room and board.Bookkeepers, plantation, $100 to $175, house and firewood furnished.Teamsters, white, $30 to $40 with room and board.Hawaiians, $25 to $30 with room; no board.Field labor, Portuguese and Hawaiian $16 to $18 per month; no board.Field labor, Chinese and Japanese, $12.50 to $15 per month; no board.In Honolulu bricklayers and masons receive from $5 to $6 per day; carpenters, $2.50 to $5; machinists, $3 to $5; painters, $2 to $5, per day of nine hours.DOMESTIC LABOR.The domestic labor in Honolulu and in all parts of the Islands, has for many years been performed by Chinese males, who undoubtedly make excellent house servants. During the last four or five years the Japanese have entered the field; the Japanese women are especially in demand as nurses for children.The following are the prevailing rates of wages:Cooks, Chinese and Japanese, $3 to $6 per week, with board and room.Nurses and house servants, $8 to $12 per month, with board and room.Gardeners or yard men, $8 to $12 per month, with board and room.Sewing women, $1 per day and one meal.Good substantial meals can be obtained at respectable Chinese restaurants and at the Sailors' Home for 25 cents or Board for $4.50 per week.The market for all kinds of labor is overstocked and it would be very unwise for any one to come to these Islands with no capital on the mere chance of obtaining employment. The many steamships arriving at this port bring numbers of people seeking employment who are obliged to return disappointed.NUUANU AVENUE, HONOLULU.WAIKIKI BEACH.CHAPTER VIII.HISTORICAL SKETCH.Although the written history of the Hawaiian Islands begins with their discovery by Captain Cook in 1778, yet the aboriginal inhabitants had at that time an oral traditional history which extended back for several centuries.ORIGIN.As to their origin, these people formed but one branch of the Polynesian race, which at a remote period settled all the groups of islands in the central and Eastern Pacific, as far as New Zealand in the South and Easter Island in the East. This is shown by the close physical and moral resemblance between their inhabitants, as well as by the facts that they all speak dialects of the same language, and have the same manners and customs, the same general system of tabus,and similar traditions and religious rites.The evidence of both language and physical traits tends to show that their remote ancestors came from the East Indian Archipelago, and that they were still more distantly related to the pre-Arian races of Hindostan.It is also proved by concurrent traditions of the different groups that there was a general movement of population throughout central Polynesia during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries of the Christian Era, during which the Harvey Islands and afterwards New Zealand were colonized, and manyvoyages were made between the Hawaiian Islands and the Samoan and Society groups. This intercourse, however, seems to have ceased for four or five hundred years before the arrival of Captain Cook.ARTS AND MANUFACTURES.The ancient Hawaiians were not savages, in the proper sense of the term, but barbarians of a promising type. When we consider that they occupied the most isolated position in the world, and that they were destitute of metals and of beasts of burden, as well as of the cereal grains, cotton, flax and wool, we must admit that they had made a creditable degree of progress towards civilization. Like the other Polynesians, they had not invented the art of making pottery, or the use of the loom for weaving.Their cutting tools were made of stone, sharks' teeth or bamboo. Their axes were made of hard, fine grained lava, chiefly found on the mountain summits. Their principal implement for cultivating the soil was simply a stick of hard wood, either pointed or shaped into a flat blade at the end. With these rude tools they cut and framed the timbers for their houses, which were oblong with long sides and steep roofs, and were thatched withpiligrass, ferns orhalaleaves. In the building as well as in the management of canoes they were unsurpassed. For containers they used a large gourd (cucurbita maxima, which was not found elsewhere in the Pacific), and also cut out circular dishes of wood as truly as if they had been turned in a lathe.For clothing they beat out the inner bark of the paper mulberry and of some other trees, until it resembled thick flexible paper, when it was calledkapaortapa. For insignia of rank, they made splendid feather cloaks, and feather helmets, which were worn only by chiefs.For lights they used the oily nuts of thekukuior candle-nut tree.For food they chiefly depended upon the tuberous roots of thetaroplant (Colocasia antiquorum), but sweet potatoes were cultivated in the dry districts, and yams in Kauai and Niihau. They also cultivated bananas and sugar cane and theawaorkavaplant for its narcotic properties.Fishing was carried on with great ingenuity and skill. Extensive fish ponds were built along the coasts, which must have cost immense labor.Their food was cooked then, as now, by steaming it in animuor underground oven with heated stones. Fire was produced by friction, viz., by rubbing a hard, pointed stick in a groove made in a piece of softer wood, until the little heap of fine powder collected at the end of the groove took fire.There was no circulating medium which served the purpose of money, and all trade was conducted by barter.CIVIL POLITY.The civil polity of the ancient Hawaiians was far more despotic than that of any other Polynesian tribe. The community was divided into three classes, namely:1. The nobility orAlii(N. Z.Ariki), comprising the kings and chiefs of various grades of rank.2. The priests,Kahuna(N. Z.Tahunga), including priests, sorcerers and doctors.3. The common people,Makaainana, or laboring class.There was a wide and impassable gulch between the chiefs and common people. In fact, the distinction between them was primarily of a sacred and religious character. The chief was believed to be descended from the gods, and to be allied to the invisible powers.The contrast in stature and appearance as well as in bearing between the chiefs and common people was very striking. Onlya chief had the right to wear the feather cloak and helmet, or the ivory clasp,Niho Palaoa; his canoe and his sails were painted red, and on state occasions he was attended by men carryingkahilisor plumed staffs of various colors. When the highest chiefs appeared abroad, all the common people prostrated themselves with their faces upon the ground. It was death for a common man to remain standing at the mention of the king's name in song, or when the king's food, water or clothing was carried past; to put on any article of dress belonging to him, to enter his enclosure without permission, or to cross his shadow or that of his house. If a common man entered the dread presence of the sovereign, he must crawl prone on the ground,kolokolo, and leave in the same manner.The head chief of an island was styled theMoi, and his dignity was generally hereditary. There were usually at least four independent kinglets in the group, and sometimes the single Island of Hawaii was divided between several independent chiefs.LAND TENURE.As a rule, the chiefs were the only proprietors of the soil. They were supposed to own not only the soil and all that grew upon it, not only the fish of the sea, but also the time and labor of their people.The accepted theory was that all the lands belonged to the king, of whom they were held by the high chiefs in fief;i. e., on condition of rendering him tribute and military service. Each of these district chieftains divided up his territory among an inferior order of petty chiefs, who owed to him the same service and obedience that he owed to the king.In this way the land was subdivided again and again, while at the bottom of the scale were the miserable serfs who tilled the soil. These last were simply tenants at will, liable to be dispossessedof their little holdings at any time, or to be stripped of their personal property at the requisition of the chief.WAR.Wars were frequent and cruel. There were numerous wars to settle the succession to the sovereignty of an Island, as well as contests between the head chiefs of the principal Islands. For example, the chiefs of Oahu often contended with those of Maui for the possession of Molokai, and there were frequent wars between the chiefs of Hawaii and those of Maui for the district of Hana.Their weapons consisted of long spears,pololu; javelins,ihe; daggers,pahoa, and clubs made of hard wood. They never used the bow in war, but slings made of cocoanutfiber or human hair were extensively employed. They used no shields, but became wonderfully expert in catching or parrying spears thrown at them.Sometimes they engaged in sea fights, with large fleets of canoes on each side. In general no quarter was given to the vanquished, but there were certain sanctuaries calledpuuhonuas, which afforded an inviolable refuge in time of war. Cannibalism was regarded by them with horror and detestation.RELIGION.The religious system of the ancient Hawaiians was very similar to that of other Polynesians. It consisted in a great measure of nature worship. To their minds all the powers of nature, especially those that are mysterious and terrible, were conceived of as living and spiritual beings. Thus the volcano, the thunder, the whirlwind, the meteor and the shark were feared as being either the embodiment or the work of malevolent spirits (akuas).The four great gods, Kane, Kanaloa, Ku and Lono, who were worshiped throughout Polynesia, originally belonged tothis class, as is shown by the cosmogony of the New Zealand Maoris. Among these four Kane held the primacy. The souls of great chiefs went to his abode after death.Pele, the dread goddess of volcanoes, and her numerous family, dwelt in the crater of Kilauea, but also caused the eruptions of Mauna Loa and Hualalai. In Hawaii she was feared more than any other deity.One large class ofakuaswere supposed to be incarnated in certain species of animals, which were feared or believed to have a supernatural character, as the shark.Another class of deities, which included most of the professional gods, consisted of deified spirits of the dead. TheAumakuaswere tutelar deities, attached to particular families, who were often deified ancestors. Sickness and disease were generally caused by their displeasure.CEREMONIAL SYSTEM.There were two hereditary orders of priests, endowed with lands, who kept up the elaborate liturgy and ritual of the temples, and also preserved whatever knowledge of astronomy, history, medicine, etc., had been handed down to them.The tabusystem covered the entire daily life of the people with a vast network of minute regulations and penalties. Thus, it was tabu for men and women to eat together, or even to have their food cooked in the same oven. Women were forbidden to eat pork, bananas, cocoanuts,or turtle and certain kinds of fish, on pain of death. There were certain tabu days when no canoe could be launched, no fire lighted, and when no sound could be made, on pain of death. Even dogs had to be muzzled and fowls shut up in calabashes for twenty-four hours at a time.The human sacrifice was the crowning act of the ancient worship, offered only on certain solemn occasions, and at the temples (Heiaus) of the highest class.Whenever a temple was to be dedicated, a new house to be built for the chief, or a new war canoe to be launched, many of the people fled to the mountains and lay hidden till the danger was past.Besides the regular priesthood, there were many kinds of medicine men, necromancers or mediums, sorcerers and diviners, who preyed upon the superstition and credulity of their countrymen. The belief that all forms of disease were caused by evil spirits, and their fear of being "prayed to death" (anaana), kept the people in a state of abject fear.There is too much reason to believe that during several centuries preceding the discovery of the Islands they had been deteriorating in many respects. As the historian Fornander has stated:"It was an era of strife, dynastic ambitions, internal and external wars on each Island, with all their deteriorating consequences of anarchy, depopulation, social and intellectual degradation, loss of liberty, loss of knowledge, loss of arts."DISCOVERY OF THE ISLANDS.It seems to be almost certain that one Juan Gaetano, a Spanish navigator, saw Hawaii in 1555 A. D. A group of islands, the largest of which was called La Mesa, was laid down in the old Spanish charts in the same latitude as the Hawaiian Islands, but 10 degrees too far east.On the eighteenth of January, 1778, Captain Cook, the great navigator, while sailing due north from the Society Islands, discovered the Islands of Oahu and Kauai. The next day he landed at Waimea, Kauai, where he held friendly intercourse with the natives, and afterwards laid in supplies at Niihau. He finally sailed for Alaska, Feb. 2d. The Hawaiians looked upon him as an incarnation of the god Lono, and upon his crew as supernatural beings. Returning from the Arctic the following winter, he anchored in Kealakekua bay, January 17th, 1779.Here he received divine honors and was loaded with munificent presents of the best that the islands could produce. By his rash and arbitrary conduct, however, he involved himself in an affray with the natives, in which he was killed on February 14th, 1779.The spot where he fell is now marked by an appropriate monument.LUNALILO HOME, FOR AGED HAWAIIANS.KAMEHAMEHA SCHOOL.EARLY TRADERS.For seven years after the death of Captain Cook no foreign vessel ventured to touch at the Islands. After that time many of the vessels engaged in the fur trade on the northwest coast of America called at the Islands for supplies on their way to Canton or ran down here to spend the winter. Waimea, Kauai, and Kealakekua bay were the two harbors most frequented by them. Fire arms, powder and shot were the articles most in demand among the natives.THE RISE OF KAMEHAMEHA.At the death of Kalaniopuu,Moi, of Hawaii, in 1782, a civil war broke out, which rent the Island into three petty sovereignties, which were presently reduced to two.The districts of Kohala and Kona were held by Kamehameha, a nephew of the late king, while the other districts were loyal to his son, Keoua. After a sanguinary war lasting nine years (during which Kamehameha had ravaged West Maui and conquered the district of Hamakua), he became master of the whole of the Island of Hawaii by the assassination of his rival, Keoua, at Kawaihae, in 1791.VISITS OF VANCOUVER.The name of Capt. George Vancouver is still cherished as that of a wise and generous benefactor to these Islands. During hissurvey of the northwest coast of America in 1792-1794, he made three visits to the Islands. He uniformly refused to sell fire arms or ammunition to the chiefs, but gave them useful plants and seeds, and presented Kamehameha with the first cattle and sheep ever landed in the Islands. On the 25th of February, 1794, Kamehameha and his chiefs voluntarily placed Hawaii under the protection of Great Britain, in token of which the British flag was hoisted on shore at Kealakekua.CONQUEST OF OAHU.After the death of Kahekili, the sovereign of the leeward Islands, in 1794, a civil war broke out between his brother Kaeo and his son Kalanikupule, in which the former was killed. Soon after Kalanikupule treacherously massacred Captains Brown and Gordon, who had assisted him in the late war, and seizedtheir vessels in the harbor of Honolulu.Having put his guns and ammunition on board, he proposed to sail immediately for Hawaii, in company with a fleet of war canoes, to attack Kamehameha. But the English sailors who had been reserved to navigate the two vessels, suddenly rose at midnight, recaptured them, and sailed for Hawaii, where they informed Kamehameha of all that had occurred.Kamehameha saw that his opportunity had now come, and lost no time in mustering all the war canoes and fighting men of Hawaii.After overrunning West Maui and touching at Molokai, he landed in Waialea bay, Oahu, in the latter part of April, 1795. There he spent a few days in organizing his army before marching up the valley of Nuuanu, where Kalanikupule had prepared to make his last stand. The Oahu warriors were soon routed and pursued up the valley. Some of the fugitives were hemmed in and driven over the "Pali," or precipice, at the head of Nuuanu, a little north of the present road.This victory made Kamehameha master of all the Islandsexcept Kauai and Niihau. With the exception of a short insurrection in Hawaii, there was peace during the rest of his reign.DECREASE OF POPULATION.The decrease of the population during this period must have been very rapid. Vancouver in 1792, Broughton in 1796, and Trumbull in 1801, were strongly impressed with the misery of the common people and their rapid decrease in numbers. This was partly the result of wars, but was still more due to the diseases and vices introduced by foreigners. In the summer of 1804 a pestilence, supposed to have been the cholera, carried off half of the population of Oahu. Botany Bay convicts had introduced the art of distilling liquor before the year 1800, and drunkenness had become very prevalent.THE SANDAL-WOOD TRADE.During the first quarter of the present century the sandal-wood trade was at its height. This wood was in great request at Canton, where it was sold for incense and the manufacture of fancy articles. It was purchased by the picul of 133-1/2 pounds, the price varying from eight to ten dollars for the picul. This wood, while it lasted, was a mine of wealth for the chiefs, by means of which they were enabled to buy fire arms, liquor, boats and schooners, as well as silks and other Chinese goods, for which they paid exorbitant prices.THE CESSION OF KAUAI.In March, 1810, Kaumualii, the last King of Kauai, visited Honolulu in the ship Albatross, Capt. Nathan Winship, in order to have an interview with Kamehameha. It was then arranged between the two chiefs that Kaumualii should continue to hold his Island in fief of Kamehameha during his life-time, on condition of paying tribute.RUSSIAN AGGRESSIONS.During the year 1815 a Dr. Scheffer was sent to the Islands by Baranoff, the Russian Governor of Alaska. He built a fort at Waimea, for Kaumualii, on which the Russian colors were displayed, and urged him to place himself under the protection of Russia. On hearing of this, Kamehameha sent a large force to Honolulu, where a substantial fort was built during the year 1816. He also sent orders to Kaumualii to expel Dr. Scheffer, which was done.DEATH OF KAMEHAMEHA.Kamehameha I. died on May 8th, 1819, at Kailua, Hawaii. His work was done. He had consolidated the group under a strong government, put an end to feudal anarchy and petty wars, and thus prepared the way for civilization and Christianity.ABOLITION OF IDOLATRY.In accordance with his will, his eldest son, Liholiho, was installed as king, with the title of Kamehameha II., and Kaahumanu, his favorite queen, as premier, to exercise equal powers with the young prince, whose dissolute and reckless character is well known.Their first important act was the abolition of the tabusystem, which took place at a great feast held at Kailua in October, 1819, at which men and women ate together in public for the first time. This was followed by the general burning of idols and temples throughout the group.Kekuaokalani, a cousin of Liholiho, put himself at the head of the adherents of the ancient faith, but was defeated and slain in the battle of Kuamoo, fought about December 20th, 1819.THE ARRIVAL OF THE AMERICAN MISSIONARIES.The pioneer company of American missionaries to these Islands arrived at Kailua, April 4th, 1820. They soon reduced the language to writing and commenced printing the first book in January, 1822. They found in the Hawaiians an amiable and highly receptive race, eager for knowledge and easily influenced for good or evil. The principal opposition to reform was made by foreigners.THE WHALING FLEET.The first whale ship called at Honolulu in 1820, and was soon followed by many others. Their number soon increased to 100 every year, and the furnishing of supplies for them became the chief resource of the Islands, as the sandal-wood became exhausted.DEATH OF LIHOLIHO.The young king, accompanied by his wife and six chiefs, embarked for England, November 27, 1823, on an English whale ship. On their arrival in London they received the utmost hospitality and courtesy, but in a few weeks the whole party was attacked by the measles, of which the king and queen both died.REBELLION ON KAUAI.Meanwhile, on the death of Kaumualii, a rebellion broke out in Kauai, led by his son, Humehume. A desperate assault was made on the fort at Waimea, which was repulsed with loss. Over 1,000 warriors were sent down from Oahu and Maui, and a battle was fought near Hanapepe, August 18th, 1824, in which the rebels were routed.VISIT OF LORD BYRON.The frigate "Blonde," commanded by Lord Byron, cousin of the poet of that name, was commissioned to convey the remains of the late king and queen, together with their retinue, back to their native land. It arrived at Honolulu, May 6th, 1825, when the royal remains were deposited in a mausoleum with impressive funeral ceremonies.Kauikeaouli, the younger brother of Liholiho, was proclaimed king with the title of Kamehameha III., and Kaahumanu as regent during his minority. Her administration was signalized by a series of outrages at Lahaina and Honolulu, committed by a depraved class of foreigners who resented certain regulations made to restrict public prostitution.Com. Jones visited the Islands in the "Peacock" in 1826, and concluded the first treaty between the Hawaiian Islands and the United States. The next year the first written laws were published against murder, theft, adultery and gambling.THE ROMAN CATHOLIC MISSION.The first Roman Catholic missionaries arrived at Honolulu, July 7th, 1827, on the ship "Comet," from Bordeaux, and soon gathered a congregation. They were members of the so-called "Picpusian Order," or "Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary." Unfortunately, misunderstandings arose, and from a mistaken belief that they were fomenting discord and sedition, the chiefs caused them to be deported to San Pedro, California, in January, 1832.ACCESSION OF KAMEHAMEHA III.Kaahumanu died June 5th, 1832, and was succeeded by Kinau, half-sister of the king. The king's minority was declared to be at an end in March, 1833. A tract of land was leased to Ladd & Co. in 1835, and about the same time a silkplantation was commenced by Peck & Titcomb. Cotton was raised and manufactured on a small scale at Kailua, Hawaii.PERSECUTIONS.During the next few years the chiefs persisted in a harsh and unjustifiable policy, which imperiled the independence of the country.On the return of the two banished priests from California, in April, 1837, they were ordered to return in the same vessel in which they had come, and were obliged to go on board of it. Meanwhile the British sloop of war "Sulphur," Captain Belcher, and the French frigate "Venus," Captain Du Petit Thouars, arrived and interposed in behalf of the priests. As a compromise, they were landed again on condition that they should leave by the first favorable opportunity. Again on the 3d of November, another priest, Rev. L. Maigret, and a lay brother arrived from Valparaiso, but were not allowed to land. Finally Revs. Maigret and Bachelot left in a schooner for Bonabe, Micronesia. From 1835 to 1839 the persecution of native converts was resumed, but was at last put an end to by the declaration of rights promulgated June 4th, 1839, and the king's edict of toleration, issued June 17th.VISIT OF THE "ARTEMISE."In consequence of these proceedings the French frigate "Artemise," Captain Laplace, was ordered to Honolulu, where it arrived July 9th, 1839.Captain Laplace immediately sent the Government a peremptory letter demanding that full religious liberty be proclaimed, and that the sum of $20,000 be brought on board by noon of the 12th, or hostilities would commence. The required treaty was signed and the money promptly paid, and on the 16th, a commercial convention was also signed.
KOHALA RAILROAD.
RICE FIELD, PEARL CITY.
Cash Freehold Lots are sold at auction to the highest qualified bidder, at appraised value as upset price.
The qualification of applicants for Cash Freeholds and the areas of land which may be acquired are the same as those under Right of Purchase lease system.
Applications must be made to Sub-Agent of District in writing with sworn declaration as to qualifications, and a fee of ten per cent. of appraised value of lot, which fee is forfeited if applicant declines to take the premises at the appraised value, and is credited to him if he becomes the purchaser of the lot. If such applicant, however, is outbid, his fee is returned to him.
If two or more applications are made and there is no bid above the upset price, the first application takes precedence.
The purchaser at auction sale must pay immediately thereafter one-fourth of purchase price and thereupon receive a "Freehold Agreement."
The freeholder shall pay the balance of purchase price in equal installments in one, two and three years, with interest at 6 per cent., but may pay any installment before it is due and stop corresponding interest.
Twenty-five per cent. of agricultural land must be cultivated, and pastoral land fenced before the end of third year.
Freeholder must maintain his home on the premises, from end of first to end of third year.
He may not assign or sub-let without consent of Agent of Public Lands.
He must allow Agents of the Government to enter and examine the premises.
He must pay all taxes that may be due upon the premises.
If all conditions are fulfilled he is entitled at end of three years to Patent giving fee simple title.
In case of forfeiture or surrender the land and permanent improvements are reappraised separately, and the value of such improvements when received by Government from new tenant or freeholder, will be paid to surrendering freeholder.
Six or more qualified persons may form a "Settlement Association" and apply for holdings in one block.
The provisions for cash freehold apply to the settlement of such blocks, but first auction sale is confined to members of such Settlement Association.
Any lot in such block which may be forfeited or surrendered, or which is not taken up by any member of the Settlement Association, within three months, shall be open to any qualified applicants.
Disputes, disagreements or misunderstandings, between the parties to certificate of occupation, homestead lease, right of purchase lease, or cash freehold and relating thereto, which can not be amicably settled, shall be submitted to the Circuit Judge in whose jurisdiction the premises are situated and his decision shall be final subject only to appeal to Supreme Court.
With consent of Executive Council, public lands not under lease may be sold in parcels of not over one thousand acres, at public auction for cash, and upon such sale and payment of full consideration, a land patent will issue.
Parcels of land of not over six hundred acres, may with consent of Executive Council, be sold at public auction upon part credit and part cash, and upon such terms and conditions of improvement, residence, etc., as may be imposed.
Upon fulfillment of all conditions a Land Patent will issue.
General leases of public lands may be made for a term not exceeding twenty-one years.
Such leases are sold at public auction, and require rent in advance quarterly, semi-annually or annually.
The conditions of general leases are made at discretion of the Commissioners, and may be made for any class of public lands.
The population of the Islands according to the census of 1890 was 89,991, or in round numbers 90,000. A census of the population has just been taken, but the results cannot be exactly known for some months. An estimate recently made based upon the knowledge of general increase from various sources gives the population as follows:
Hawaiians35,000Part Hawaiians10,000Chinese15,000Japanese24,000Portuguese9,000American and European14,000Total107,000
Since the census returns began to come in, it is very evident that this estimate will be exceeded by some 2,000, making the total population 109,000. The increase will probably be found among Japanese and Portuguese. The population of Honolulu is 29,920, or practically 30,000.
The vessels flying the Hawaiian flag number 52, aggregating 21,678 tons. They are divided as follows:
23steamers,aggregating9,575tons5barks,''4,198''3ships,''6,272''21schooners and sloops,aggregating1,623''
Of these vessels 13 are employed in foreign trade and 39 in trade between the Islands.
Mention has been made of the taxes of this country. A few words will be to the point upon the financial condition of the government.
The direct taxes yielded, in 1895, $592,691.92. The Customs revenue was $547,149.04 and licenses, &c., produced $600,224.23, in all $1,740,065.19.
The current expenditures are kept within the current income. Great public improvements are provided for by loan. This is what every growing country has to do. The public debt of the country on January 1, 1896, was $3,764,335. With a population of 109,000, this gives about $34 per head of the population. The Hawaiian Government finds no difficulty in obtaining means for internal improvements, and a scheme is now on foot to reduce the interest and consolidate the public debt.
The exports in 1895 amounted to $8,474,138.15 and the imports to $5,339,785.04. This certainly shows well for a country whose total population is exceeded by dozens of cities. Of the exports $7,975,590.41 were accredited to sugar, $22,823.68 to coffee, $102,599.25 to bananas and $8,783.84 to pineapples. These three latter items are elastic and the showing of 1896 will give a very large increase in their yields.
Of the imports $4,121,920.22 came from the Pacific ports of the United States and $394,399.16 from the Atlantic ports; a total of $4,516,319.38, leaving but $1,197,698.16 for every other nation that the country has commercial relations with.
In point of fact, taking exports and imports, the business in 1895 done by the Hawaiian Islands with all its commercial relations amounted to $14,188,155.69; of this sum $12,908,508.92 was done with the United States, which amounts to 91 per cent. of the whole business of the Islands. From these figures it can be judged how prosperous a little community that of the Hawaiian Islands is, and further how close are its relations with the Great Republic. What country in the world has 91 per cent. of its commercial relations with its neighbor?
The financial condition of Hawaii is on a sound basis. The men in charge of its government are frugal and careful of the public expenditure, the whole tendency of the Republic is to foster industry and thrift. The institutions are liberal and nothing is more desirable for such a country than the immigration of colonists, with capital to develop the industries and determination to work honestly and well.
It was not the intention when planning this pamphlet to speak of the opportunities for tourists visiting the Islands, but a few words are appended. The object of the pamphlet has been to show the agricultural resources and general conditions.
The great attraction of the Islands is undoubtedly the Volcano of Kilauea, the greatest and most striking volcano in the world. Though quiescent for a time during part of 1895 and 1896, it has now burst forth with renewed splendor and promises to exceed many of its former efforts. Moreover, from the rising of the lakes of fire, and the floor of the crater generally, it has evidently come to stay.
But it is not only this one great natural wonder that is attractive to the tourist. The crater of Haleakala, the largest extinct crater in the world, is almost, in its silent magnificence, equal to the wonder of the boiling and seething Kilauea. Then the delightful climate, the balmy breezes, the brilliant coloringof sky, sea and land, the luxuriant tropical vegetation, and the peculiar "Dolce far niente" life, all lend a charm to which no one who visits the place has ever failed to respond. In fact a visit to the Hawaiian Islands is one of the pleasantest experiences of a life-time.
For people suffering from pulmonary troubles the climate is unrivalled and there are now several sanitariums where such patients can be attended to.
San Francisco and Victoria are the two points of deportation for the Hawaiian Islands. The Oceanic Steamship Line has vessels sailing twice a month. One steamer sails for Honolulu, stays a few days, and returns to San Francisco. The other steamers touch at Honolulu and go on to the Australian colonies. Round trip tickets can be obtained and also lay over tickets, at the Company's offices on Montgomery street, San Francisco. The Pacific Mail and O. & O. S. S. lines, running from China and Japan to San Francisco, also touch at Honolulu regularly. Arrangements can be made to lay over in Honolulu, visit the Volcano and proceed on the voyage by the next vessel.
From Victoria the C. & A. S. S. sail once a month. They give the tourist a chance of seeing the Canadian Pacific Railroad before coming here, but a round trip ticket would have to be for a full month. By the O. S. S. lines less time need be spent on the Islands.
The cost of round trip passage is $125.
The cost of trip to the Volcano, including all expenses is $50.
Hotel expenses in Honolulu from $2 a day, according to accommodation.
Particulars on these subjects can always be learned by writing to Wilder S. S. Co., Fort street, Honolulu; or the Inter-Island Steamship Co., Queen street, Honolulu.
Fresh Hawaiian butter,from 25 to 50c. per lb.
Hams, from 16-1/2 to 30c. per lb.
Bacon, from 16-1/2 to 20c. per lb.
Cheese, from 20 to 35c. per lb.
Family pork, from 15 to 18c. per lb.
Corned beef, 7c. per lb.
Fresh meat, from 6 to 15c. per lb.
Loin of Porterhouse steaks,from 6 to 15c. per lb.
Tinned fruits per doz.,from $1.75 to $2.25.
Golden Gate Flour, per 100-lb., $2.50.
Lower grades, $2.20.
Hawaiian rice, $3.25 to $5.00 per 100 lbs.
Hawaiian bananas, per bunch, 25 to 55c.
Potatoes, from 1 to 2c. per lb.
Eggs per dozen, 25 to 50c.
Rolled oats per case, $5.50.
Ice, in small quantities, 1-1/2c.; 50 lbs. and over, 1c. per lb.
The following is an approximation of the wages paid to different classes of labor on the Hawaiian Islands:
Engineers on plantations, from $125 to $175 per month, house and firewood furnished.
Sugar boilers, $125 to $175 per month, house and firewood furnished.
Blacksmiths, plantation, $50 to $100 per month, house and firewood furnished.
Carpenters, plantation, $50 to $100 per month, house and firewood furnished.
Locomotive drivers, $40 to $75 per month, room and board furnished.
Head overseers, or head lunas, $100 to $150.
Under overseers, or lunas, $30 to $50 with room and board.
Bookkeepers, plantation, $100 to $175, house and firewood furnished.
Teamsters, white, $30 to $40 with room and board.
Hawaiians, $25 to $30 with room; no board.
Field labor, Portuguese and Hawaiian $16 to $18 per month; no board.
Field labor, Chinese and Japanese, $12.50 to $15 per month; no board.
In Honolulu bricklayers and masons receive from $5 to $6 per day; carpenters, $2.50 to $5; machinists, $3 to $5; painters, $2 to $5, per day of nine hours.
The domestic labor in Honolulu and in all parts of the Islands, has for many years been performed by Chinese males, who undoubtedly make excellent house servants. During the last four or five years the Japanese have entered the field; the Japanese women are especially in demand as nurses for children.
The following are the prevailing rates of wages:
Cooks, Chinese and Japanese, $3 to $6 per week, with board and room.
Nurses and house servants, $8 to $12 per month, with board and room.
Gardeners or yard men, $8 to $12 per month, with board and room.
Sewing women, $1 per day and one meal.
Good substantial meals can be obtained at respectable Chinese restaurants and at the Sailors' Home for 25 cents or Board for $4.50 per week.
The market for all kinds of labor is overstocked and it would be very unwise for any one to come to these Islands with no capital on the mere chance of obtaining employment. The many steamships arriving at this port bring numbers of people seeking employment who are obliged to return disappointed.
NUUANU AVENUE, HONOLULU.
WAIKIKI BEACH.
Although the written history of the Hawaiian Islands begins with their discovery by Captain Cook in 1778, yet the aboriginal inhabitants had at that time an oral traditional history which extended back for several centuries.
As to their origin, these people formed but one branch of the Polynesian race, which at a remote period settled all the groups of islands in the central and Eastern Pacific, as far as New Zealand in the South and Easter Island in the East. This is shown by the close physical and moral resemblance between their inhabitants, as well as by the facts that they all speak dialects of the same language, and have the same manners and customs, the same general system of tabus,and similar traditions and religious rites.
The evidence of both language and physical traits tends to show that their remote ancestors came from the East Indian Archipelago, and that they were still more distantly related to the pre-Arian races of Hindostan.
It is also proved by concurrent traditions of the different groups that there was a general movement of population throughout central Polynesia during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries of the Christian Era, during which the Harvey Islands and afterwards New Zealand were colonized, and manyvoyages were made between the Hawaiian Islands and the Samoan and Society groups. This intercourse, however, seems to have ceased for four or five hundred years before the arrival of Captain Cook.
The ancient Hawaiians were not savages, in the proper sense of the term, but barbarians of a promising type. When we consider that they occupied the most isolated position in the world, and that they were destitute of metals and of beasts of burden, as well as of the cereal grains, cotton, flax and wool, we must admit that they had made a creditable degree of progress towards civilization. Like the other Polynesians, they had not invented the art of making pottery, or the use of the loom for weaving.
Their cutting tools were made of stone, sharks' teeth or bamboo. Their axes were made of hard, fine grained lava, chiefly found on the mountain summits. Their principal implement for cultivating the soil was simply a stick of hard wood, either pointed or shaped into a flat blade at the end. With these rude tools they cut and framed the timbers for their houses, which were oblong with long sides and steep roofs, and were thatched withpiligrass, ferns orhalaleaves. In the building as well as in the management of canoes they were unsurpassed. For containers they used a large gourd (cucurbita maxima, which was not found elsewhere in the Pacific), and also cut out circular dishes of wood as truly as if they had been turned in a lathe.
For clothing they beat out the inner bark of the paper mulberry and of some other trees, until it resembled thick flexible paper, when it was calledkapaortapa. For insignia of rank, they made splendid feather cloaks, and feather helmets, which were worn only by chiefs.
For lights they used the oily nuts of thekukuior candle-nut tree.
For food they chiefly depended upon the tuberous roots of thetaroplant (Colocasia antiquorum), but sweet potatoes were cultivated in the dry districts, and yams in Kauai and Niihau. They also cultivated bananas and sugar cane and theawaorkavaplant for its narcotic properties.
Fishing was carried on with great ingenuity and skill. Extensive fish ponds were built along the coasts, which must have cost immense labor.
Their food was cooked then, as now, by steaming it in animuor underground oven with heated stones. Fire was produced by friction, viz., by rubbing a hard, pointed stick in a groove made in a piece of softer wood, until the little heap of fine powder collected at the end of the groove took fire.
There was no circulating medium which served the purpose of money, and all trade was conducted by barter.
The civil polity of the ancient Hawaiians was far more despotic than that of any other Polynesian tribe. The community was divided into three classes, namely:
1. The nobility orAlii(N. Z.Ariki), comprising the kings and chiefs of various grades of rank.
2. The priests,Kahuna(N. Z.Tahunga), including priests, sorcerers and doctors.
3. The common people,Makaainana, or laboring class.
There was a wide and impassable gulch between the chiefs and common people. In fact, the distinction between them was primarily of a sacred and religious character. The chief was believed to be descended from the gods, and to be allied to the invisible powers.
The contrast in stature and appearance as well as in bearing between the chiefs and common people was very striking. Onlya chief had the right to wear the feather cloak and helmet, or the ivory clasp,Niho Palaoa; his canoe and his sails were painted red, and on state occasions he was attended by men carryingkahilisor plumed staffs of various colors. When the highest chiefs appeared abroad, all the common people prostrated themselves with their faces upon the ground. It was death for a common man to remain standing at the mention of the king's name in song, or when the king's food, water or clothing was carried past; to put on any article of dress belonging to him, to enter his enclosure without permission, or to cross his shadow or that of his house. If a common man entered the dread presence of the sovereign, he must crawl prone on the ground,kolokolo, and leave in the same manner.
The head chief of an island was styled theMoi, and his dignity was generally hereditary. There were usually at least four independent kinglets in the group, and sometimes the single Island of Hawaii was divided between several independent chiefs.
As a rule, the chiefs were the only proprietors of the soil. They were supposed to own not only the soil and all that grew upon it, not only the fish of the sea, but also the time and labor of their people.
The accepted theory was that all the lands belonged to the king, of whom they were held by the high chiefs in fief;i. e., on condition of rendering him tribute and military service. Each of these district chieftains divided up his territory among an inferior order of petty chiefs, who owed to him the same service and obedience that he owed to the king.
In this way the land was subdivided again and again, while at the bottom of the scale were the miserable serfs who tilled the soil. These last were simply tenants at will, liable to be dispossessedof their little holdings at any time, or to be stripped of their personal property at the requisition of the chief.
Wars were frequent and cruel. There were numerous wars to settle the succession to the sovereignty of an Island, as well as contests between the head chiefs of the principal Islands. For example, the chiefs of Oahu often contended with those of Maui for the possession of Molokai, and there were frequent wars between the chiefs of Hawaii and those of Maui for the district of Hana.
Their weapons consisted of long spears,pololu; javelins,ihe; daggers,pahoa, and clubs made of hard wood. They never used the bow in war, but slings made of cocoanutfiber or human hair were extensively employed. They used no shields, but became wonderfully expert in catching or parrying spears thrown at them.
Sometimes they engaged in sea fights, with large fleets of canoes on each side. In general no quarter was given to the vanquished, but there were certain sanctuaries calledpuuhonuas, which afforded an inviolable refuge in time of war. Cannibalism was regarded by them with horror and detestation.
The religious system of the ancient Hawaiians was very similar to that of other Polynesians. It consisted in a great measure of nature worship. To their minds all the powers of nature, especially those that are mysterious and terrible, were conceived of as living and spiritual beings. Thus the volcano, the thunder, the whirlwind, the meteor and the shark were feared as being either the embodiment or the work of malevolent spirits (akuas).
The four great gods, Kane, Kanaloa, Ku and Lono, who were worshiped throughout Polynesia, originally belonged tothis class, as is shown by the cosmogony of the New Zealand Maoris. Among these four Kane held the primacy. The souls of great chiefs went to his abode after death.
Pele, the dread goddess of volcanoes, and her numerous family, dwelt in the crater of Kilauea, but also caused the eruptions of Mauna Loa and Hualalai. In Hawaii she was feared more than any other deity.
One large class ofakuaswere supposed to be incarnated in certain species of animals, which were feared or believed to have a supernatural character, as the shark.
Another class of deities, which included most of the professional gods, consisted of deified spirits of the dead. TheAumakuaswere tutelar deities, attached to particular families, who were often deified ancestors. Sickness and disease were generally caused by their displeasure.
There were two hereditary orders of priests, endowed with lands, who kept up the elaborate liturgy and ritual of the temples, and also preserved whatever knowledge of astronomy, history, medicine, etc., had been handed down to them.
The tabusystem covered the entire daily life of the people with a vast network of minute regulations and penalties. Thus, it was tabu for men and women to eat together, or even to have their food cooked in the same oven. Women were forbidden to eat pork, bananas, cocoanuts,or turtle and certain kinds of fish, on pain of death. There were certain tabu days when no canoe could be launched, no fire lighted, and when no sound could be made, on pain of death. Even dogs had to be muzzled and fowls shut up in calabashes for twenty-four hours at a time.
The human sacrifice was the crowning act of the ancient worship, offered only on certain solemn occasions, and at the temples (Heiaus) of the highest class.
Whenever a temple was to be dedicated, a new house to be built for the chief, or a new war canoe to be launched, many of the people fled to the mountains and lay hidden till the danger was past.
Besides the regular priesthood, there were many kinds of medicine men, necromancers or mediums, sorcerers and diviners, who preyed upon the superstition and credulity of their countrymen. The belief that all forms of disease were caused by evil spirits, and their fear of being "prayed to death" (anaana), kept the people in a state of abject fear.
There is too much reason to believe that during several centuries preceding the discovery of the Islands they had been deteriorating in many respects. As the historian Fornander has stated:
"It was an era of strife, dynastic ambitions, internal and external wars on each Island, with all their deteriorating consequences of anarchy, depopulation, social and intellectual degradation, loss of liberty, loss of knowledge, loss of arts."
It seems to be almost certain that one Juan Gaetano, a Spanish navigator, saw Hawaii in 1555 A. D. A group of islands, the largest of which was called La Mesa, was laid down in the old Spanish charts in the same latitude as the Hawaiian Islands, but 10 degrees too far east.
On the eighteenth of January, 1778, Captain Cook, the great navigator, while sailing due north from the Society Islands, discovered the Islands of Oahu and Kauai. The next day he landed at Waimea, Kauai, where he held friendly intercourse with the natives, and afterwards laid in supplies at Niihau. He finally sailed for Alaska, Feb. 2d. The Hawaiians looked upon him as an incarnation of the god Lono, and upon his crew as supernatural beings. Returning from the Arctic the following winter, he anchored in Kealakekua bay, January 17th, 1779.Here he received divine honors and was loaded with munificent presents of the best that the islands could produce. By his rash and arbitrary conduct, however, he involved himself in an affray with the natives, in which he was killed on February 14th, 1779.
The spot where he fell is now marked by an appropriate monument.
LUNALILO HOME, FOR AGED HAWAIIANS.
KAMEHAMEHA SCHOOL.
For seven years after the death of Captain Cook no foreign vessel ventured to touch at the Islands. After that time many of the vessels engaged in the fur trade on the northwest coast of America called at the Islands for supplies on their way to Canton or ran down here to spend the winter. Waimea, Kauai, and Kealakekua bay were the two harbors most frequented by them. Fire arms, powder and shot were the articles most in demand among the natives.
At the death of Kalaniopuu,Moi, of Hawaii, in 1782, a civil war broke out, which rent the Island into three petty sovereignties, which were presently reduced to two.
The districts of Kohala and Kona were held by Kamehameha, a nephew of the late king, while the other districts were loyal to his son, Keoua. After a sanguinary war lasting nine years (during which Kamehameha had ravaged West Maui and conquered the district of Hamakua), he became master of the whole of the Island of Hawaii by the assassination of his rival, Keoua, at Kawaihae, in 1791.
The name of Capt. George Vancouver is still cherished as that of a wise and generous benefactor to these Islands. During hissurvey of the northwest coast of America in 1792-1794, he made three visits to the Islands. He uniformly refused to sell fire arms or ammunition to the chiefs, but gave them useful plants and seeds, and presented Kamehameha with the first cattle and sheep ever landed in the Islands. On the 25th of February, 1794, Kamehameha and his chiefs voluntarily placed Hawaii under the protection of Great Britain, in token of which the British flag was hoisted on shore at Kealakekua.
After the death of Kahekili, the sovereign of the leeward Islands, in 1794, a civil war broke out between his brother Kaeo and his son Kalanikupule, in which the former was killed. Soon after Kalanikupule treacherously massacred Captains Brown and Gordon, who had assisted him in the late war, and seizedtheir vessels in the harbor of Honolulu.
Having put his guns and ammunition on board, he proposed to sail immediately for Hawaii, in company with a fleet of war canoes, to attack Kamehameha. But the English sailors who had been reserved to navigate the two vessels, suddenly rose at midnight, recaptured them, and sailed for Hawaii, where they informed Kamehameha of all that had occurred.
Kamehameha saw that his opportunity had now come, and lost no time in mustering all the war canoes and fighting men of Hawaii.
After overrunning West Maui and touching at Molokai, he landed in Waialea bay, Oahu, in the latter part of April, 1795. There he spent a few days in organizing his army before marching up the valley of Nuuanu, where Kalanikupule had prepared to make his last stand. The Oahu warriors were soon routed and pursued up the valley. Some of the fugitives were hemmed in and driven over the "Pali," or precipice, at the head of Nuuanu, a little north of the present road.
This victory made Kamehameha master of all the Islandsexcept Kauai and Niihau. With the exception of a short insurrection in Hawaii, there was peace during the rest of his reign.
The decrease of the population during this period must have been very rapid. Vancouver in 1792, Broughton in 1796, and Trumbull in 1801, were strongly impressed with the misery of the common people and their rapid decrease in numbers. This was partly the result of wars, but was still more due to the diseases and vices introduced by foreigners. In the summer of 1804 a pestilence, supposed to have been the cholera, carried off half of the population of Oahu. Botany Bay convicts had introduced the art of distilling liquor before the year 1800, and drunkenness had become very prevalent.
During the first quarter of the present century the sandal-wood trade was at its height. This wood was in great request at Canton, where it was sold for incense and the manufacture of fancy articles. It was purchased by the picul of 133-1/2 pounds, the price varying from eight to ten dollars for the picul. This wood, while it lasted, was a mine of wealth for the chiefs, by means of which they were enabled to buy fire arms, liquor, boats and schooners, as well as silks and other Chinese goods, for which they paid exorbitant prices.
In March, 1810, Kaumualii, the last King of Kauai, visited Honolulu in the ship Albatross, Capt. Nathan Winship, in order to have an interview with Kamehameha. It was then arranged between the two chiefs that Kaumualii should continue to hold his Island in fief of Kamehameha during his life-time, on condition of paying tribute.
During the year 1815 a Dr. Scheffer was sent to the Islands by Baranoff, the Russian Governor of Alaska. He built a fort at Waimea, for Kaumualii, on which the Russian colors were displayed, and urged him to place himself under the protection of Russia. On hearing of this, Kamehameha sent a large force to Honolulu, where a substantial fort was built during the year 1816. He also sent orders to Kaumualii to expel Dr. Scheffer, which was done.
Kamehameha I. died on May 8th, 1819, at Kailua, Hawaii. His work was done. He had consolidated the group under a strong government, put an end to feudal anarchy and petty wars, and thus prepared the way for civilization and Christianity.
In accordance with his will, his eldest son, Liholiho, was installed as king, with the title of Kamehameha II., and Kaahumanu, his favorite queen, as premier, to exercise equal powers with the young prince, whose dissolute and reckless character is well known.
Their first important act was the abolition of the tabusystem, which took place at a great feast held at Kailua in October, 1819, at which men and women ate together in public for the first time. This was followed by the general burning of idols and temples throughout the group.
Kekuaokalani, a cousin of Liholiho, put himself at the head of the adherents of the ancient faith, but was defeated and slain in the battle of Kuamoo, fought about December 20th, 1819.
The pioneer company of American missionaries to these Islands arrived at Kailua, April 4th, 1820. They soon reduced the language to writing and commenced printing the first book in January, 1822. They found in the Hawaiians an amiable and highly receptive race, eager for knowledge and easily influenced for good or evil. The principal opposition to reform was made by foreigners.
The first whale ship called at Honolulu in 1820, and was soon followed by many others. Their number soon increased to 100 every year, and the furnishing of supplies for them became the chief resource of the Islands, as the sandal-wood became exhausted.
The young king, accompanied by his wife and six chiefs, embarked for England, November 27, 1823, on an English whale ship. On their arrival in London they received the utmost hospitality and courtesy, but in a few weeks the whole party was attacked by the measles, of which the king and queen both died.
Meanwhile, on the death of Kaumualii, a rebellion broke out in Kauai, led by his son, Humehume. A desperate assault was made on the fort at Waimea, which was repulsed with loss. Over 1,000 warriors were sent down from Oahu and Maui, and a battle was fought near Hanapepe, August 18th, 1824, in which the rebels were routed.
The frigate "Blonde," commanded by Lord Byron, cousin of the poet of that name, was commissioned to convey the remains of the late king and queen, together with their retinue, back to their native land. It arrived at Honolulu, May 6th, 1825, when the royal remains were deposited in a mausoleum with impressive funeral ceremonies.
Kauikeaouli, the younger brother of Liholiho, was proclaimed king with the title of Kamehameha III., and Kaahumanu as regent during his minority. Her administration was signalized by a series of outrages at Lahaina and Honolulu, committed by a depraved class of foreigners who resented certain regulations made to restrict public prostitution.
Com. Jones visited the Islands in the "Peacock" in 1826, and concluded the first treaty between the Hawaiian Islands and the United States. The next year the first written laws were published against murder, theft, adultery and gambling.
The first Roman Catholic missionaries arrived at Honolulu, July 7th, 1827, on the ship "Comet," from Bordeaux, and soon gathered a congregation. They were members of the so-called "Picpusian Order," or "Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary." Unfortunately, misunderstandings arose, and from a mistaken belief that they were fomenting discord and sedition, the chiefs caused them to be deported to San Pedro, California, in January, 1832.
Kaahumanu died June 5th, 1832, and was succeeded by Kinau, half-sister of the king. The king's minority was declared to be at an end in March, 1833. A tract of land was leased to Ladd & Co. in 1835, and about the same time a silkplantation was commenced by Peck & Titcomb. Cotton was raised and manufactured on a small scale at Kailua, Hawaii.
During the next few years the chiefs persisted in a harsh and unjustifiable policy, which imperiled the independence of the country.
On the return of the two banished priests from California, in April, 1837, they were ordered to return in the same vessel in which they had come, and were obliged to go on board of it. Meanwhile the British sloop of war "Sulphur," Captain Belcher, and the French frigate "Venus," Captain Du Petit Thouars, arrived and interposed in behalf of the priests. As a compromise, they were landed again on condition that they should leave by the first favorable opportunity. Again on the 3d of November, another priest, Rev. L. Maigret, and a lay brother arrived from Valparaiso, but were not allowed to land. Finally Revs. Maigret and Bachelot left in a schooner for Bonabe, Micronesia. From 1835 to 1839 the persecution of native converts was resumed, but was at last put an end to by the declaration of rights promulgated June 4th, 1839, and the king's edict of toleration, issued June 17th.
In consequence of these proceedings the French frigate "Artemise," Captain Laplace, was ordered to Honolulu, where it arrived July 9th, 1839.
Captain Laplace immediately sent the Government a peremptory letter demanding that full religious liberty be proclaimed, and that the sum of $20,000 be brought on board by noon of the 12th, or hostilities would commence. The required treaty was signed and the money promptly paid, and on the 16th, a commercial convention was also signed.