The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1886-11-29

free and open emulation for mutual ad-
vaucement pursued by every teacher and
believer, Hawaii presents q spectacle of
freedom of worship and liberality of edu-
cation not surpassed by the most enlight-
ened States OF the world, deriving increased
strength from her Iiberality and from the
energy which it nourishes.
This contrast OF State policy is an out
come Of "a national education in the ways of
civilization, other results of which are
shown i'm the contrast between the social
and political life OF the Hawaiian OF to-day
and of fifty years ago. In 1886 the pill
grass hat was the general abode, the pan
daHuS mat the only carpet the gourd cal
abash, the poi slab and the poi FOUNDER
were the chief domestic utensils; the baked
dog was the browning dish of a feast, and
the vociferous hula was the only entertain
meut. The King had grass palace AT La
haiua. aud his chief pastiues were surf
riding during the day and the hula at
night In those days the Hawaiians were
more numerous than they are today, and
prepoudcrated immensely over the people
of all ndtionalities resident in the islands,
yet in matter Of Court ceremonial the
Hawaiian was out Of place or absent He
had not qualified himself to take part in
any civilized social gathering. He
still squatted on his mat, and fed
out OF his calabash. In succeeding
years. when Court ceremonial was insti-
tuted as a necessary sequence To the diplO-
matte relations which had been established
with foreign countries, he was unable to
take his proper part Anyone looking
back on Court receptions of former days
Will remember the presence there Of well
dressed foreigners. the Hawaiian only APP
pearng in a furtive way as not fitted for
the scene.
What has succeeded to all this? His
Majesty in his noble and spacious Iolani
Palace. ornamented with the upholstery
and the works of art Of Europe, America
and Asia; the stately banquets the accom-
pIished band and all the elegant concom-
nittants and associations and parapher-
MALTA of modern state. As for the people,
the well dressed Hawaiian OF this day sits
in his we'll built and substantial house,
surrounded by the comforts and by no few
of the Injuries of civilized home Con-
slider the reception which was held by His
Majesty last week at IOlani Palace, where
we saw the Hawaiian dressed in perfectly
good taste bearing his part, crowding the
halls of the Palace, and taking the position
and the precedence to which his birth en-
titled him, and for which his education had
qualified him. [Applausel
1t is the same in politics. After half
century of association with European intiu-
ence the result has not been here as it has
been elsewhere among the brown races.
Here the Polyncsan has accepted with
such perfect goodwill the association with
the European foreigner, has so cherished
every possible valuable lesson of expert
ence, that at this day he holds political
predominance in his own country, far
more so than in 1885, when in spite of
greater numbers, in spite of the autoCratic
power of the chief, the Government of the
country was liable to be dictated to by the
Captain of any mau-of-war that came
along.
In regard to our commerce, the contrast
between the two periods is of most strik-
ing character. 1t can hardly be said that
there was any regular export trade in 1886,
except in the article of salt. The furnish
ing OF supplies to the shipping which
touched at our ports was by far the most
important part of the external commerce
of the country. There are no statistics
either of quantities, values or prices availa-
BILE for the purpose of comparison with
those of to-day, but, when Il newspaper
scribe undertook in 1886 to write a com
mercial report on the produce of the Isl
ands, we find him dealing almost entirely
with possibilities. Hides, goatskins and
salt and a paint oil made of the kukui nut
he speaks of as things actually exported.
He also tells us that some few lots of the
great staple export of to-day-sugar-ha
! been sent abroad. OF everything else he
mentions, all he can say is that this and
! that would certainly become articles of
! commerce if people would only cultivate
! them Rice the production of which en-
! plovs so large a number of people in 1886,
| he does not even mention There were no
| regular trading packets and the Islands
| were often left for many weeks, and even
! months at time, without news from the
! outer world.
! To-day, with a population not greater
| than it was estimated to be fifty years ago
! we value years exports of our own pro
| duce at more than nine millions of dollars
or considerably more than one hundred
dollars per head for every man, woman
. and chill in the country. Our external
commerce employs Il fleet of nearly one
hundred and fifty vessels, the arrivals al
our ports are almost daily and the news Of
the world is brought to Us with regularity
bv some Of the finest ocean mail steamers
that are afioat.
In no one particular is the progress anC
enlightenment of this nation more marked
than in its exercise of benevolence as a ma
tional measure in behalf of its sick people
Although in 1886 human sacrifice had lon
ceased as a feature of Hawaiian religious
and social practices, yet at that time Their
was neither knowledge nor care for tn
preservation of health, and no means what
ever were provided for the care of tn
sick. But what humane progress sine
then when the Hawaiian Government O
this day appeals to the organized AM
blessed charity of other lands to assist i
the care of its suffering people. and devote
not less than one-tenth of its revenues t
promote the general health of the people
We may also note a contrast betwee
1886 and 1886 in the fact that these Is
: ands, known chiefly to the civilized wOrl
2 at the former period by few books write
.;