Saturday press. [volume] (Honolulu, H.I.) 1880-1885, 1885-05-02
SATURDAY
MAY $, ,ss,
gfon 4 Hop, SKIP aud Jump 5Iom
keaahoU to kahHk.

keaahou to kahnkU
kona Is no, Hawaiian for lava; but
wonder II is not II one should subtract from
kona its old, middle aged and young lava, It's
houses, its trees and its lantana bushes, there
wouldn't be enough Of kopa leit to start a taro
patch say this with all respect. like
kona its people, its fruits, its landscape and
some OF lis drinking water hu, ! Shouldn',
like to be its assessor, unless were " in with
the government !" for I don't think consc-
In the whole district to justify him in making
return.
And yct-and now feel reasonably sure To
be iorgiven-and yet Kcna is a fertile district,
prolific in man, products rich in numberless
possibilities fortunate in climate and despite
the contradiction, fortunate in its soil
II is true that Kona has an insufficient, rain.
fall TO insure perennial streams OF even pcren.
NAL springs, except in few, isolated spots,
II is true that the black blight and the white
blight, the lan,ana, and various other vcgc.
table, animal and mineral annoyanccs, have
devastated the Konn orange groves, dscour.
aged its coffee growers: and sent many n
stout hearted settler 10 the right. about with
scan, courtesy and Implying rigor. But
think that RICH, combination of capital and
labor may yet make Kona blossom as the rose.
Rev. ]. ID. Paris told me, in mos, sober
tones yet with a roguish twinkle in his eye,
that the Kona folks call the lan,ana "the mis-.
sionary weed Mr. Paris brough, i, to kona
some ten or more years ago, and made a hedge
Of It, The birds have seeded Kona with il ;
as the cattle seeded with ageroba the Makik
"plans in Honolulu. ] am told-,housh |
hope my informants exaggerate-tha, over
10000 acres Of Kona's best land are pract.
cally worthless to-day because Of lnntana
Mr.. Paris himself is chief sufferer.
The white blight is the curse Of kona. II
is the parasite mentioned in Kohala letter,
the same little bug familiar to every Honolulu
strawberry buyer. II has ruined what might
have been one Of the finest orange orchards in
the world, planted almos, generation ago by
Mr. II. N. Greenwel, Kona's largest land
owner. Conflicting stories are told Of the
ravages Of the white blight bu, most of my
informants agree that it and the an, are com.
panions and that it and its fellows are prob.
ably spread by ants. Every sort of fruit is
attacked by t-oranges, coffee and mangoes,
most bananas, papaias and alligator pears,
least.
Kona fruit is good, abundant and widely
extended. Mangoes, papaias and bananas
grow wild by the thousands. From the time |
left the Kiholo clinkers until reached Hco.
kena, three days later, had tasted pohas,
papaias, oranges, passion fruit, guavas, cocoa
nuts, bread fruit, bananas, peaches, figs,
prickly pears and rose apples Manages,
avocados, ohias, cherimoyas and pine apples
were not in season. 1t was too late for the
best oranges, they told me but had some
excellent ones and some delicious baking
bananas. The yellow passion fruit, which l
tasted in Kona for the first time, is fruit that
ought to be more extensively grown in Homo
lulu. It is easily cultivated /; its vine is a
splendid climber, needing only shelter 10 make
one Of the most acceptable veranda vines we
have--to say nothing Of its fruit, than which
know nothing more woodworking
kona coffee may not be world-famous bu,
II well deserves TO be. Mocha coffee is nc
better, nor is that Of Colima or Topic. The
berry OF the best sort is small and rounded,
the division almost closed. rode through
five miles Of almost continuous coffee gardens
most Of them deserted. All were in bloom
and some Of the trees were in berry. NJ
on Flora's bosom. No more brilliant emerald
than the young leaves Of the coffee shrub wa.
ever turned out Of Natures work shop--frou
either the vegetable or the mineral department
But il is idle to pluck coffee blossoms and
carry them In strong sunshine their cream,
Wilderness turns to chocolate brown, almos
while you are looking at them. you woult
send coffee flowers to your lady love, o gallant
reader, Gull them by wan moonlight, when tn
air Is chill; or when you may wrap their stem
around damp sponge without prejudice t,
your sentiment.
I am sorry TO rccord that did no, see IN,
finest a the Kona woods. MIR. Greenwich ha
II am soli--s forest, chiefly Of koa trees, ove
5000 acres In extent. Some Of these tree
mus, Ike superb. They rise without brancl
to such height that native canoes ia,hom
long are made from them and sometimes Q
such circumstance that six men, joining hands
can scarcely enciTce them. The estate Of tn
late Mrs. Bishop is said to own some splendi'
koa forest which ! hope may be CAREFUL
conserved and, II Cut at all, Gu, sparingl.
and with a view to its reproduction. For
lunstely for lis forests, cattle raising has no
had full swing in Kona. I, is beginning il
fatal march. however. Since was in Kona
have net an old uesiden, Of that district VIII
payss handpme compliment 10 the stock
uAisinG jadRsnen, Of Father Paris--as Rev.
ID, Paris Is called. lie says that when III
Old gentleman managed the Paris ranch he wa
able TO drive In numerous herd Of stock wit,
Jingle helper. lie used neither lasso no
dog. neither guns nor bullock hogs. Iii
caltle were tame his cows were handled a
calves and MIXED as heifer his steers wcr
hsvkea to tbs yoke. and unafraid. Some {
thoae cattle men whose bullocks are no tame
than hsaaloss nay take cue from this.
stayed in Kona too short time to see il
bes, laAd. or 10 meet half its people. But
au III land where Judge Hart II Kohala ha
oaes paying cane plantation and saw III
p,Aes vhsrs once aousisAing orange orchard
~ bssa killsd BY blight. broken down b
eaills q cAoksd = death BY lan,ana. "a,
eaeagh 70 saaisfy M Thai Kona had ono
ssgpctsd lasys population and tina, il ma
~ ai0pass oas quite = lssge, u the RICH, s,er
~ eaksas ~ " rishs ssosss made ., II
~ hpAe. Nv ~ plantation sys,sn can nevs
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