The Hawaiian gazette., 1875-07-21
a Charmlng Boob ON maraii.

We shall refer hereafter to the Banco cases.
a Charming Book ON Hawaii
[ The HAwArrAS AEcurrE1AGo: Six months among
the Pslu Groves, Coral Rcefs aud Volcanoes 81
the sandwich Islands. By Isabella l. Bird. author
o. the " EugiishwOuan iu America" With Illus
traitors London: John Murray, iS75 as PIP
This is the title Of the last publication which
has appeared devoted to these Islands. After
recalling the two preceding books on the same
subject we refer to Hopkins Sandwich Isl
ands and Bliss Paradise in the Pacific, both Of
which have been termed eatchpeuny abOrtions
our readers viii naturally be cautious about
trusting to any strangers observations made
during short stay in this country, or, as in
Hopkins case, to one who has never set foot
on our soil. The author of this attractive
volume, Miss Bird. arrived here from Auck-
land early in 1878, and remained on these isl
ands six months: having. during the interval,
visited almost every valley, summit, crater,
nook and corner worth visiting, which enabled
her to write from actual observation. The
hook consists Of thirty-one letters written
from different places on these islands to a sis
ter, and TO these letters are added two chapters
on Hawaiian afairs and history. Iuterspersed
through the volume are ten illustrations mostly
from recent photographs. In addition to hav-
ing seen with her own eyes aH places Of inter-
est referred to, her book shows her to be pos
sessed Of rare descriptive powers and unusually
good Judgment Of men aud things. But singh
larry enough, from the hour Of her landing"
she tells Us on pages 10 and so, that she was
actually approached by rude persons who
sought 70 poison her mind against a portion Of
the community, whose chief sin consisted in
entertaining different religious sentiments from
their own. Had she given cIew to their
names, she would not have committed a great
er breach Of social decorum than did they in
approaching . stranger in this INDIGENOUS way.
She seems To have been most favorably i'm
pressed with everything she saw here, from
the moment the vessel neared the wharf. Eve
looked down from the towering deck on
crowd of two or three thousand people
whites, kanakas and Chinamen-and hundreds
Of them Al once made their way on board, and
STRAINED over the ship, talking, laughing, and
remarking upon Us in a language which seemed
without backbone. Such rich, brown men and
women they were, with wavy, shining black
hair, large, brown, Iustr0us eyes, and rows Of
perfect teeth Ike ivory. Every one was smiI-
ing P.2O.
Her eagerness for sightseeing may be in
ferrsd from the fact that before she had taken |
time to inspect her apartments at the hotel,
she was Of with party for 4 drive through I.
the town and out 10 the Nuuauu Pail, and Of
her ride with her first Impressions we have a |
most glowing account This enthusiastic love
for adventure is observed throughout the vol
ume, and wherever she went, over mountains
OF across streams, she vas constantly in the |
front and always On the move, as restless as
the ocean she had just left.
Her description Of the hotel Is minute and 1
full, but not too much so 10 interest travellers
intending to visitit This is the perfection Of /
a hotel. Hospitality seems 10 take possession
Of and appropriate one as one enters its never
closed door. - I cannot imagine more
fascinating residence. The charges are SIS
week, o. s. a day; but such a kindly open
HANDED system prevails, that an not con-
sci0us that an paying anything"
II was not long that she remained in Homo
lulu, for n less than 4 week We ind her on the 4
KIlazea bound for Hil0, Of which place she
sruthfuIIy remarks: This is the paradise Of
Hawaii What H0lalulu attempts to be, Hilo
IS without effort. Woods and waters, hill and
valley are al there, and from the region Of an
endless sumner the eye takes n the domain Of
Al endless winter Unlike many other places,
HfI0 IS more fascinating on closer acquaintance,
50 fascinating that It Is hard to write about It
IN plain pr5se."
This formed the base Of her numerous TRAN
Zulating excursions along the coast north, then
along the coast south, then to KiIauea, then
b the sunni. of Mama Lea and IN other d.
rsctians. Her description Of the descent into
Eilzuea ( the finest We have ever read, and
30 perfect that 4 stranger who has never seen
t can take II the whole picture, while those
Via have seen # VIII have their own Teeol-
.ecti0ls wildly refreshed. As fair sample
4 the sIhaslstivsaess q her style Of descrip-
iian, We quote one paragraph frum this scene:
ssSuddeuly. Just above, and in front Of Is,
-ary drups were tossed II air, and Swinging
ilF7F1ris Es st0od On the brink Of Hale-lau-
uau, which was about IS fset below Us.
,hfnk re AL screamed, / know re all wept
bit we were speerhless, f0r a new glory and
.erruT had been aifed % the earth. Il i the
uast Enztterahls Il w01dsrfal things. The
words Il cn1men speech are quite useless
L il unilaginahIe, fnfescrihable, a sight -
-snernbsr II ever, sight which a. once took
possession q every flcaity q sense and soul,
-ezovi1z che altogether out q the range Of
lriinary iifs. Here waa the real bottomiess
5it '-she FIRE which Is not quanched - tie
lIa1e Il he'll - the lake which bzTneth with