The Lebanon express. (Lebanon, Linn County, Or.) 1887-1898, 1888-09-28
WORTH a MILLION.
The Red-and-Yeiiow Royal Cloak OF the
Kamehamcha Dynasty.

that cost a million dollarsPn said the
stout man in satirical tone that indi-
Gated that the woman he addressed was
his WIFE,
The pair had stopped before the royal
feather cloak from the Sandwich Islands
that is spread out fan-shaped in a case
in the National Museum. This cloak is
1mputed 70 have cost in labor 81 ,000,-
40. The native name for it is mans.
In tho days when Hawaiian beau or
belle wanted little clothing, but wanted
that gorgeously colored, this cloak or
mantle would have been considered of
more value, esthetically and intrin
sically, than shipload of Worth cos
tunes, and its happy possessor might
truly be said to be in high feather.
Since the natives have adopted wide
trousers, l;twn-tennis shirts and four-in-
hand ties, its value lies chiefly in the
traditions that surround it. The man
tie, which is semi-circular, is 4 feet
long or deep, and it is IL 1-2 feet wide
where it goes around the neck. The
entire outer surface is made of feathers
of fine texture, giving the whole the
appearance of plush. The prevailing
| colors are red and yellow or orange.
/ The body is decorated with large fig
ures, crcscent-shaped, of either red or
/ yellow feathers. The upper and lat
! er-,l borders are corded and decorated
with alternate tufts of red, black and
/ yellow feathers.
A legend on label states that this
feather cloak formerly belonged
to Kehuarkalani, one of the high
est chiefs of the Sandwich Islands.
After the abolition OF idolatry in
1919 that chief rebelled against the
reigning king and attempted TO re-estab-
lish the ancient religions. A sanguin-
airy battle was fought and Kehuarkalani
was slain, and this cloak, which
he then had on, fell into the
hands OF the conquerors and
thus became the property of King
Kemehameha, by whom 1t was present
ed to Captain J. II. Aulick, U. S. N.
in 1871. The cloak is now the property
of Captain Aulick's grandson, Rich
mopd Ogston Aulick. who deposited ii
IN ,he National Museum The great
!, value OF the cloak is due TO the long
time required 70 secure the feathers that
compose it gnd to manufacture the
cloak.
The foundation is network of olona.
or native hemp, and to il are attached
by fine thread OF the same material the
feathers OF birds found only in the
Hawaiian Islands, and very rare there.
Recent writer's have declared that the
bird is now extinct The feathers are
woven in so as TO lap each other and
lie nat, forming smooth. plush-like
surface. The inner surface is without
lining and shows the olona network
and the quill-ends of the feathers. The
cord OF the upper margin is prolonged
so as to serve as a fastening at the
throat The yellow feathers are OBJ
tanned from the 90 or Uho, and as stat
ii, are of great value, as the bird is
rare. very shy and difficult to capture,
and it has but very small tuft of these
feathers upon each shoulder. The
! black feathers are from the head and
back of the same bird-its general
plumage being a glossy black. The 90
5 caught alive by means of bird lime;
The yellow feathers are then plucked
3
are from the body and neck of the Dire
pants Coccinea, the most abundant bird
Of the Sandwich Islands.
The Hawaiian Spectator, a newspaper
published in 1889. refers to this, or a
similar mantle, as follows: "Kaw-
1eauli has the mans, or feather war
,loak of his father Te-Meha-Meha- II
was not completed until his reign, hav-
I ing occupied eight preceding ones in its
fabrication. a piece of nankeen,
valued at one dollar and half, was
formerly the price of five of the yellow
feathers. By this estimate the value OF
the cloak would equal that of the purest
. diamonds in several of the European
regalia, and including the price of the
feathers, not less than a million dollars
, worth of labor was expended upon it al
, the present rate of computing wages.
A bunch of the yellow feathers called
hulu was received by the king from his
subjects in payment of poll tax, and
it required many years to collect the
material and manufacture one of these
!, mantles. Until recent years these
mantles were the royal robes of state
/ stuu tOucAutFtu the bfGdSuTCs
Of the crown, but European clothing
has entirely superseded them and they
are not now manufactured. A beauti-
! full head-dress for women, called leis,
D was made of these feathers.
Another authority states that two
: yellow feathers only are obtained from
d each %. and these are found under the
: wings. When the much-prized feathers
ire plucked the bird is set at liberty,
The price of the feathers, according tC
this authority. was one dollar and hal
for three, and the time occupied in
3 making the cloak was estimated from
q fifty to one hundred years. Washington
0 Star.
! In report on ''Steam Boilor Tx
plosions," recently made to the Liver
: pool Engineering Society, it was state;
that 1.-The actual percentage OF Gxplo
: sions to boilers at work is very small
being at the rate of one explosion t
every $500 boilers in use.
Variation in sound is regulated b.
: the number of vibrations; the NOR
numerous these vibrations the highe
the sound. The deepest, gravest ton
that is possible for human ear to hea
has thirty-two vibrations per second
The highest and shrillest has abou
10000. Mans voice can scarcely g
below a sound that gives 164 vibra
tions. nor woman's voice hipher thai