New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1859-11-23
How, the Kannkns swim.

Everv man. woman or child who has ever writ
ten home concerning the Sandwich Islanders, mas
described their surf boards and their astonish-
inc skill in guiding them through q surf IN which
no civilized could live as also their eXceAehee
IN swimming, and almost superhuman endurance
in the water. Travellers are apt to term hanaka |
- half man half fish, / should say that he was
s.thrtl man and thirds fish 'f-for fish that
swins the ocean could have any command over IT.
self in breakers where the island girls and boys
sport for hours, as perfectly at home as on dry
land. s4'
The surfboard is piece of thin plank, five or
six feet long by about eighteen inches in breadth
when the long, green swels are rolling in with
terrific volence-with a din and a crash that out
thunders thunder itself, then men, women and
children flock to the beach, and divesting them
selves of their superuous clothing, dash into the
breakers board in hand; with a miraculous agility
they dodge the heaviest rollers plunging beneath
them as they begin to crest and reaching the out
side breakers, prepare for their lightning ride
shoreward.
Miraculous as their outward progress through the
boiling surf, which no whale boat would attenpt,
seemed to US, setting the force Of SUCTION anu an
undertow completely at defiance, we felt tlrill o.
horror Us looked upon couple OF deiic. !ooh
ing girls kneeling upon fraii board, rushing III as
if shot from bomb, upon me erest " S,aa'
green billow, which, raising his head as ne came,
lust managing to keep in such position as 10
avoid the break of the roller, and IN less tine lla
| have taken to describe, with screams OF deight,
they dashed to the very po. Me eeas
and women appearing to possess equal powers OF
| endurance and most astonishing facts OF theif
aauatc feats are recorded one OF the most mlraeu
| lous of which is worth repeating. large haIVe
canoe. having on board a number of natives, lett
one of the Southern islands, bound to the NORTH
ward; when only a part OF the way across the
Owybee passage, where there Is Always d neavy
cross sea and furious currents, squat struck ana
capsized her; among the passengers was native
woman, the daughter of chief, with her husband,
white man; the others being all kanakas, they
of course struck out for themselves toward shore,
distance of some thirty miles; but the white man
could not SWIM and his true hearted Wife, directing
him to put his arms upon her shoulders, struck out
for the nearest land. For hours and hours they
toiled along, the fond woman inspiring the husband
| refusing to leave him; all day and all night they
buffeted the angry currents, till at last human
nature gave way, and the white man gave up the
ghost; still clinging to his cold clay, the widow
toed on till at last becoming insenslble, her efforts
relaxed and she knew no more until she found her.
self resnscitated by some friendly hands, and on
inquiry found that favoring current had drifted
her upon an island, where she had been discovered
| and brought to life by her deliyerers.
1 Another instance, scarcely less remarkable, &C.
Cured during the period OF my visit to Honolulu
4 At that time there large number OF whaling
vessels in port, many of which were short OF men,
and consequently sailors wages were very hlSn
who would ship. One ship in particular mad lost
the whole Of one watch by desertion, ana finally
/ had succeeded in obtaining her complement; the
men, all Kanakas, received their one hundred dol
lars each, as an advance, and went on board, and
the ship got under weigh. All went on very well
for the first day and night and the captain was
congratulatiig himself on his good luck. During
the middle watch Of the second night however,
stepping out on deck, the captain was astonished
on finding no one about, and asking the man at the
wheel what it meant was told he did mt know what
had become of the people, but presumed they had
/ gone below.
4 Calling the mate and mastering the crew. he
found to his CONSERVATION that every kanakas hao
disappeared they must have deliberately jumped
overheard, determining to swim ashore, a distance
Of sixty miles. On board whale ships the mates dc
not usually stand night watch-the watch being
generally in charge Of the 6 boat-steerers,' ane
d ii this Instance the boat-steerer was Kanaka
and they all went off together. The plan wa
probably hit upon before they left port-each maj
received his one hundred dollars advance. ant
then they deliberately formed their desperate plo
for breaking their engagement. dust and Foam