The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1876-09-23
Correspondence Of the P. C. Advertiserl
M0ETHLY LETTER FROM EUROPE

Forty Years Mission Work in Polynesia and New
Guinea by the Rev. A. W. Murray Of the London
Missionary Society, from whom we have already a
book on Missions in Western Polynesia for in
deed few men have more experience in the CONVEX
sion of the distant and savage races of the South Sea
than Mr.. Murray, whose work, commenced in 1885,
did not terminate till 1875. The author speaks of
the results Of the missionary movement through
which nearly all the principal islands and groups Of
the Pacific, both north and south Of the equator.
from the Marquesas in the east to the Loyalty Isl
ands in the west and from New Zealand in the south
to Hawaii in The north are now occupied by different
sections Of the Protestant church. The story Of this
change is intelligently told, with many curious par
ticnlars of the native population Of those islands
which came within The sphere of Mr.. Murray's exer-
ton.
Commodore Goodenough's Journal in the Paci-
fc,' also just published, abounds in vivid sailor like
sketches of the shifting scenes in South Sea waters,
of the newer Britains growing up in Australia and
New Zealand, of the now historic Islands Of Fiji and
Samoa and the uninhabiied volcanic crags of New
Amsterdam with their strange relics Of shipwrecked
mariners. Miss Birds Hawaiian Archipelago
has already been brought out in the second edition
by Murray.
At the last meeting Of the Anthropological Insti-
tute q paper by Mr.. Ranken was read son the
South Sea Islanders" The author proposes that the
name Of Mahori be adopted to distinguish the light
races of the Pacific from the Papuans or blacks, and
adduced evidence 10 show that the latter fret occu-
! pied q considerable number of islands, while the light
races arrived subsequently, from the west and formed
a settlement on Samoa, whence it is now well estab-
lished () that they spread in all directions and in
some instances mingled with the Papuans. The
author then mentioned several points in which the
Mahories differ specially from the Malays, who on
the whole however appear to be a cOgnate race.
The news comes from Hobart Town that Trunca-
minis Cor Lalls Rookh) the last Tasmanian abort
ginal, has died of paralysis aged rs. She was queen
consort to King Billy, who died in March, 1871, and
has since been under the care of a Mrs. cambridge,
who was allowed ESQ annually by the government
for her maintenance.
Hawaii having been the principal British Transit
Of Venus station in 1874, it may be of interest to
know that recently the first Admiralty Lord stated
in Parliament in answer to a question, that the re-
suits of the observations of the transit of Venus could
not be made public for six months or perhaps a still
longer period. The "Daily News" correspondent
writes from Philadelphia "Another petty nation
atty that, ifI am not mistaken, appears for the first
time at a worlds fair, is Hawaiia Isle D-the archi-
pelago kingdom in the Pacific Ocean, whose brown
King Kala Kama O. visited the United States last
year. Here the chief article shown of commercial
interest is sugar, but there is q small museum of
utensils, furniture and clothing that serves to give a
glimpse Of the manners and customs of a fast disap-
pearing race,-a race that is literally dying of civil
ization administered in too large doses"
The Barracuda has been ordered home to Eng
land for an investigation into Captain Stevens pro-
ceedings at Samoa. The British naval force in the
Pacific station consists at present Of eight men-of.
war, that of Russia Of only three. June 10th Rear
Admiral Hancock relieved Rear Admiral Cochrane of
the Pacific command on board of the Repulse ct
Panama.
London, August %, 1876.
The British commander in chief in the Pacific has
again been changed, Admiral Hancock, who succeed
ed Admiral Cochrane not longer ago than June 10Th.
having already sent in bis resignation on account of
sickness. The admiralty have appointed in his place
Rear Admiral Algernon F. de Horsey. This officer
entered the navy in 1910, received bis first command
in 1853 and has till now been employed on the North
American, West Indian, Cape of Good Hope and
West Coast of Africa stations. AS according to the
rules of the service an admiral selects his own flag
captain, Captain Kennedy formerly of the Reindeer,
who was appointed by Admiral Hancock, has again
been placed on halfpay, while Captain Bedford, who
commanded the Scraps during the Princes trip to
India, has been selected by Admiral de Horsey as
Efag-captain Of the iron screw frigate Shah. &c, now
fitting out at Portsmouth as the new flagship on the
Pacific station. Until the arrival of the new COM
mander in chief the senior officer Of the Pacific
Squadron will be Captain Pollard of the Zenedos.
admiral Hancock comes home in the mail steamer,
while Admiral Cochrane, who held the Pacific COM
mand for three years, during which time he also
visited Honolulu in his flagship the Repulse, recent
~ had an audience With the first Lord Of the Admit
rally to report his arrival in England.
The screw corvette Scout, which brought the Brit
ish transit party to Honolulu in 1874, has been con-
demned az u~nseaworthy and will be broken up, while
the Challenger, having completed Its peaceful mis-
sion around the world in the interest Of science is
now stationed at Harwich as coast guard ship.
After leaving Honolulu May 22d for China, the
German man-of-war Tineta encountered a terrific
hurricane in 21o north latitude and 1899 east longi-
tude on the 18th, during which the foremost, bow
spirit and three boats were lost and the screw fouled;
the total damage to the vessel is estimated at 25 to
. $4,000. HOngkong was reached May 8lst.
4 The new route from the Australian Colonies via
and San Francisco is yearly becoming more
\ popular in preference to the hot and ~fatiguing Suez
route. as the lengtA of the passenger lists Of the mail
steamships proye4 The last Honolulu mail per T. NJ.
s. S. .4ustraliaY trans-continental railroads and
White Star steamship Germanic, reached Queens
town in 20 days.
The eighth volume Of the Z" Transactions of the
New Zealand Institute - just received here, shows
great activity on the part Of your ~neIghbors - at
the a~ntipodes, containing as it does So papers, IA Of
which treat Of the origin of the Maori races, the moa.
Its caves and relics, ancient cooking places, mythol-
ogy and traditions. Twenty-three papers are classed
under zoology. four under botany, while among the
six geological papers is one "on volcanic action re-
garded as due to the retardation Of the earth's
rotation
tsrIlaneht before closing mas ordefed an !nSestI-
CATION into the present state Of leprosy in India, q
subject which must also be Of interest to every Ha-
waiiap. New Zealand does not seem to suffer with
the same immigration troubles as Hawaii, for alone
during the month Of July five ~emigrant vessels took
out q total Of no less than 400 people. During the
first quarter Of this year the amount of gold obtlined
in Victoria was 40,930 ounces. The number of
miners was 40,673, of whom II PIG were Chinese
+. The Hawaiian bark r C. Wyiie, Capt. Walters,
having left Bremen May 18th for Honolulu. has since
been spoken in the Atlantic June 10th by the ship
Excelsior from Bombay in 40e11' north latitude,
1925 west longitude. F B..