The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1871-01-14
THE PACIFIC
Commercial 96bertlser,
SATURDAY, JANUARY IA.
Hawaii Seen Through Foreign
SpectacleS.

of the human mind. We like to be
well spoken of by others, and TIE pleasure Of
hearing ourselves praised is enhanced when the
praise comes from those whose character or posi-
ton gives weight to their testimony. We are
all, in a more or less degree, susceptible to fiat
terry, and roll the sweet morsel under our tongues,
resolutely striving to shut our eyes to the fact
known only to ourselves that the praise is some
what oyerdone that there are thorns and decayed
stems hidden beneath the bright flowers. When
&c the hope Of the family - is brought into the
parIor for the inspection of the visitors, with
what solicitude and anxiety the doting parents
look to see the best foot put foremost, and all
the wonderful accomplishments and precocions-
ness, with which its little pate is crammed, dis
played to advantage. Then, if all goes smoothly
and according to the programme, the visitor re-
tires with the thought,-what a remarkably for
ward child for it's age how extremely we'll
behaved. But then there is too often an after
piece, when the audience is gone, and when
Master or Miss, no longer under restraint to
" behave themselves afore folk" resume their
everyday naughtiness.
Then, on the other hand, how dreadfully thin
skinned we are if some one gets a look at our
dark side, where we strive to hide our sins, our
faults and our failings, and straightway tells
some ugly truths about us, with perhaps a gusto
that proves the wish is father to the thought
Our injured pride finds vent in accusations OF
prejudice, Ignorance, exaggeratlon and Wlliiui
Misrepresentation, and we proceed to Hing back
mud in exchange.
There is a third class of critics, who are OF
such a practical turn of mind. that they pass
over our good or bad points of character with
equal Indifference, and only regard us as SO much
raw material, bone, muscle and sinew, either to
be made available in the worlds progress, or to
be thrust aside to give room for Others This
class ignore, or only listlessly note our handsome
exterior, and look upon our proprieties, our
moralities or our religion as matters of secondary
importance compared with our capabilities of
production and consumption.
These islands and their inhabitants have,
from time to time, been favored by visits from
Representatives of each of the three classes of
critics which are mentioned above, and their good,
bad and Indifferent points have been pretty often
and extensively described and commented on in
print. Each writer, viewing us and our surround
ings from his own standpoint, gives his own color
ing to the picture, and the lights in one become
shadows in the other. One, sees only the bright
side all our good qualities are brought promi-
nently to his notice, and the bad are kept-or
keep hemselves-ou of sight. Another, through
the associations which he forms, sees only the
dark side becomes convinced that our professions
of religion. and virtue are shallow mockeries ;
that our boasted civilization is but skin deep /;
our Legislative system but the weakest OF farces.
49,
The different accounts, neither Of which is entirely
correct, but containing each some grains of truth,
90 forth to the world, and the world in the end
knows but little more about US that is reliable
than it knew before. But in truth, there is moth
ing to be wondered at in all this. These book
and letter writer's who so confidently undertake
to describe us, are mere birds of passage. A few
weeks sojourn in Honolulu, a dinner with a Gov
eminent official, several evenings spent in pleas
ant converse among our best family circles,-and
the visitor goes away crammed to the full with
pleasureable recollections of life in these sunny
isles of the sea, and of their dusky inhabitants,
who have been brought up from their former
degradation g to the high places of Christian life.
The Rev. DIR. Clark, Secretary OF the American
Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions.
some three months since communicated to the
Congre0dtionahSt, of Boston, Mass, an interest
ing letter, giving some statements respecting his
visit to these islands last summer, during the
Jubilee commemoration of the Introduction of
Christianity. Our space will not permit of our
reprinting the letter, but we give a few extracts ::
! "I found there were in all ffty-eight independent,
self-supporting churches, ~forty-four in charge of q
native ministry, with a membership of Ii, S5G-about
one fourth Of the entire population, a larger proper
ton than is to be found in Great Britain or in the
United States" -~I
Is the abstract statement that the proportion
of church membership of these islands is larger
than is to be found in Great Britain or in the
United States, 10 be followed by the inference
that the standard of piety in church members is
the same here as in those countries? If not,
why parade forth this bare array of figures?
Let us not by any means be understood as depre-
ciating or undertaking the progress which our
people have made in the knowledge and practice
of Christianity. But the truth should be told in
its entirety, otherwise we come to be BETRAYED
into what the law books term a suppressio ueri.
Farther ON Mr.. Clark, speaking on the same
subject says: l2lisn
where in all the course of human history have
results SO grand, so benefcent, been achieved in so
short a period7 Yet they have been ACCOMPLISHED
through the blessing of God upon the faith and toll
ofahostys ordained missionaries, assisted by about half
IS many laynen, as teachers, printers, mechanics,
and physicians. Tine number of persons received to
church fellowship on profession Of faith is more than
equal to the present native population over four
years of age, amounting in all to 55, 300, or an
average of about l,400 to each ordained missionary.
This, It would seem, ought to satisfy q large Christ
ian ambition. To one of this mission band, now
happily present with us, it has been permitted to
receive into his church IL $3.50
Here again we have an imposing array of
figures, which, though no doubt unintentionally,
will have the effect to mislead. Those who are
old enough to remember the great revival as it
was called, of Kaahumanu, when the whole
nation, IN obedience to the wishes of the chief
and her wishes were law-turned en- masse to the
| Christian religion. and were taken in as church