The Rutland County herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1852-1855, 1854-11-10
MORNING. NOVEMBER 10. 1854.
rtsm ~ ns-sisn jeasnsl
TuN ~ASpwWa ISLANDS.

nrAaiion 81 thc NAndstNh isiands "a The
United States Is prominent point tor
discussion, both IN private and political
circles, and when treaty for this
end is said 10 be even nov in process Of
cOnsumnasion by tho governments Of
the respective counties. brief sketch
Of this important liillc isIanl.kingiom
oannoi fail 10 be both interesting and ap.
propriatc.
The Sandwich Islani. are situated
near the centre Of The North Pacific
Ocean. between bat Is deg 80 min. and l
- deg 20 min Norlh, and lon i5i deg.
50 min. and 100 deg Is mia. West -
rhi. group forms a. !, were. the north
ern advar I'd guard Of The great Island !
world Of the Pacldc They arr the half !
way station Of the Pacific route, being /
nearly eqni-dsiaa, from the chief ports
10 Amcrica on the onc side. and Asia
on the other. They constitute the gem
eral rendezvous for the whalrsmen who
frequent the Northern Pacific seas
The group comprises the twelve islands
which cover au aggregate area Of sixty.
one hundred square miles. Eigh, only
Of the islands are inhabited
This little island-cmpire of the west
ern world Is supposed to have been ORR
ginally discovered by some Spanish ma
sigator. as upon n chart found in a Span
ish galeon which was captured by Lord
Anscn in l74S. there was laid down
group Of islands answering in all essen.
iial respects TO those. Captain Cooks
discovery Is the first, however. Of which
we have authentic record. This re.
ncwned navigator saw the island, and
east anchor in the harbor Of Wamea, in
January Of 1878. Vancouver was the
next visitor, and his arrival, which was
in 1892, created such a senation that
the King cedoi asnsli island to tho Brit
ish but il was never accepted. Snbse-
quently many American vessels traded
there for sandal wood and in 1910
school for the education OF the young
i'landers was established by the Presby-
terian board Of foreign missions. The
first regular mission was organized in
1919, and afterwards successive mission
AIRY parties were sent ont. until eventual
" the inhabitants were converted from
race of barbarous heathcns to a chris
tian nation.
The missionaries have been laborin z.
however. among dccaying race. When
Cook visited the group in l179 it was
teeming with inhabitants. lie compu-
ted the population at four hundred ihous-
and and that his computation did not
the abundant d9sra avlhsae,er hG E,facii lhIaTD,hy
ola once over0owing populaiion--by the
countless fooipaihs not yet entirely ov-
ergrown with grass by the sites Of an
cient villages, of varied extent, and oc-
cupying every favorable position and
by the various remains of temples, aqne-
duct. &c, some of which would be re.
garled as extraordinary work, even in
the United States. Within the compar-
aiively brief space Of seyenly-six years
this dense population has dwindled down
TO sixty-live thousand, and Of this mum
b.,r nearly ten thousand are whites. IN
lSiS. the .ear when the last census was
taken, the Total population was S0,Gil |;
the number of births lI78, deaths 70ii
thu. giving decrease dnring the year
of Gi66 inhabitants. aud this is about
the average annual decrease. The ma
tion's course of empire is fulfilled. II
has long since passed the summit Of lis
glory. and is now rapidly fading away.
In the language Of native historian -
ION account Of the magnitude Of these
evils which have come upon the King.
dom, the Kingdom IA sick il Il reduced
to n skeleton and il near death yea.
the whole Hawaiian Kingdom il near 10
a close
The causes Of the rapid decrease Of
the numerous population which once
fiourishcd throughout the gronp 4 Is.
lands may be traced chiefly iolhc evils
which naturally attend an excess ofsav.
age popalation. lndolence was one great
cause Of their decline. This vice seems
to have been constitutional With the H.
landers, and 10 have grown from the
mildness Of the climate. the proiu.ion Of
natures bounies, and the uncertain ten.
ure by which they held their possessions,
Pesiilence, another prominent cause Of
their decay, has at times swept over the
island and fund many victims among
the indoleut, sensual natives When
kamehameha !. resided at Oahu. rnore
than half Of the population Of the island
was swept away in a single year BY .
dreadful disease Licenliousness hai
been. and still continues To be. perhapi
the most powerful, and ai the sane iim'
the most deplorable source Of their de
cline. Before the gooi effect Of the Mis-
sionary's work began 10 be manifest. IN.
crime Of finfsniieide was lrigblfally prey
aleni among the people. II was 80 con
mon that iis parallel was never kno~I
in apy other eganiry. Human saeriles
too was praciiced upon every public oc
casion. and ihs aliars which rccked viii
the blood u the victims AT the eonelasioi
Of every war or victory, nj every failur'
or remarkable sBecess Of The crops, q
/, every sickae-s. recovery or death u
! King. sin remain. moarnfii memorial
r Of the past whas will b. ii,s result q
! this gradual decay. 0f this passing asa