The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1886-01-12
SEVEN YEARS IN HAWAII.

the important question to be answer
ed is, docs it payr
Certainly they have right to ask
it who are engaged in teaching Gov
eminent schools in the country dis
tricts of Hawaii. From the disinter-
ested public, there come so many
hints, that are prone to discourage
one, that | confess / have often been
obliged, like boy in the dark, to
whistle, to keep up courage; and
again and again. rs disappointments
have come, | have asked, care the
results sufficient to warrant this
sccuon from the world-with the
lack of social and religious privi-
leges2" With this question press
ing heavily, like the nightmare upon
me. | have been forced for my own
satisfaction, to sum up the discou-
fragments and encouragcments and
present them to you with the con-
clusion to which have come.
My work began here in the fall of
1873 with thirty-iivc dirty, ragged,
lounging boys, in what seemed to
me, then, very much like a barn.
For three years the work went on
with no less than four male assist
ants, at different times, besides the
help of two of the older boys. The
school, all the while, increased IN
numbers, till, in the summer of 1881,
l found myself with one hundred
and ninety pupils (girls and boys),
and no prospect of assistance for
the fall term. With the consent of
the Inspector General, two ladies
from Massachusetts, were obtained,
and systematic work began. Yet, to
this day, we have not been able to adj
vance scholars beyond the Fourth
Reader. When we hear of the adj
yancement in other schools, we are
cast down, because, with the con-
seriousness of having done our best,
results are not apparent. A cause
for this, however, may he found in
the fact that, in the seven years.
there have been three hundred and
sixty pupils in the school, an aver
age of more than fifty new pupils
each year. OF one hundred and
ninety pupils who were present in
the summer of 1881 onl y fifteen re-
main, and of one hundred and sixty
eight pupils in attendance the first
year the ladies were here, but
twenty-four are with us to-day.
Thus to this nomadic company
third of Il regiment-who silently
fold their books and steal away, we
have tried to teach the rudiments of
the English language. Who can en-
pect results from such work! What
has been the experience of other
teachers in this respect, and how
have their pupils made such pro-
gress, that their schools are of so
high a grade to-day? This is one of
the oldest schools out of Honolulu,
and ought to be in line with others {:
but we admit our inability to reach
such heights. 1t may be well here,
to mention u fact which shows the
tendency of these days. The num-
Der of pure IIawaiians in school to-
day, is less than the sum of all
other nationalities, not including
half-castes. With us, the question
how to teach English to Portuguese
and japanese, is as important as the
same question in regard to Ha'
waiians.
Here are some of the discourage.
ments:-
/. The constant changing fpupils
2. The inability of Hawaiians tC
give the consonant sounds.
3. The frequent sickness, stormy
weather, and long distances whicl
make the average attendance very
small.
4. The utter lack of wholesom,
restraint in Hawaiian homes.
). The fact that not one girl ha
shown any ambition other than tC
reach the age of fifteen, and Lawful
dismissal from school.
G. The non-attendance of pupils
at Sabbath service and Sunday
School.
Z. The increasing use of opium
tobacco and Intoxicating drinks by
the children.
s. The general sad influence OF
Chinese shops on the rising gener.
alton.
.. The unwillingness of Portu.
guese to permit the regular attend
ance of their children.
10. The bad use (and little gooC
use) made of English.
IL. The fact that older scholar:
are not fond of reading Englisl
books.
II. The general ambition (tC
which there are cxceptions) of Ha
waiian boys to be ''shipped hands
on plantation and utterly fail t.
make use of their advantages.
In regard to announcements,
must mention some Of the adyan
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