The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1890-03-18
ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON

Brand me with ticket, mark me Z
p IN search of health and you have !.
he chief reason why I'm here" said ,
lr. Robert Louis Stevenson In the
iotel Metropole last night, as he sat
alking to a Daily Telegraph re-
porter.
And look at Mr. Stevenson. and it
IS impossible to question the truth of
what he says. A slight slim man,
perhaps under the middle height, he
doesn't look the picture of robust
health which one sometimes gets in
to the habit Of associating with men
who have made themselves eminent |
in the higher walks of life. There
is no special reason why we should
do this, but the nearer that man
approaches to whatever may be ones
ideal artist or ideal author, the more
likely he is TO think he must neces-
sarily possess all the graces of liter
airy or artistic culture slowed away
in the frame Of Hercules. The
author of $. DIR. Jekyll aud Mr.. Hyde
Is not one of these. He seems to be
the kind of man who takes exist
ence in quiet, unconventional sort
of way, who loves his craft as a jock
ey loves his favorite horse, and who
is quite content to live life of splen-
did seciusion If searchers after auto
graphs and enthusiastic worshippers
Of literary popularity will only let
him. After pretty active literary
life in England and America, with
short occasional residence in the
south of Europe, as change MIR.
Stevenson couple of years ago left
San Francisco on trip through the
South seas. With no definite plan
in view beyond desire to see every
thing that there was to see, to find
out everything that there was to know
and to study thoroughly the varied
races of these different islands, he
started for the Marquesas as a be-
ginning.
81 wanted to see the islands right
through he said. "The subject had
SO many things IL it of special inter
est to me that I was determined not
to close that voyage until | had got
a pretty good grasp OF everything
that I could readily get hold OF
Thence l went on to the Lower Arch
ipelago, Tahiti, the Sandwich Island:
, generally aud Samoa. l was sl1
weeks in the Marquesas, four month:
in Tahiti, six in the Gilberts anc
four in the Sandwich Islands. Th'
greater part of the rest OF tn.
time was in Samoa. was charmed
with what I saw, and the trip ha
r been of immense advantage to me a
far as my health is concerned. Son
. of the natiy rs are really the nj es
: people in the world, but you woul'
s be surprised at the immense differ
: ences to be noted in them as yo
travel from group to group. l shout
prefer living among the people G
j Tahiti to any other people hav
b come across. Generally speaking
q taking the islands right throug
they. are as good o class Of peoples
u IS ~ assv IS ne commercial value O
D any of the islands to Australia ?
I 'Not much. Tho trade is very small
;. even from Samoa, and there doesn'
seem to be much prospect of it's i'm
D proving in the present unsettle
: state of the islands. We are al
y anxious to know what the new treat
is and how it is to be administered
!, The North German Company
j steamer, the Lubecks, make regula
o trips to Sydney, but don't see no,
! the speculation can be a commercia
: success. No doubt there are othe
than strictly commercial reasons 70
running her. Now, take our tri
/ across. There were myself and M
J. wife on board with one Or two other
q for the passengers, and there wer
few bananas as the cargo. But tn
cargo is never considerable and tn
y rush of passengers never taxes tn
: steamers accommodation. We, how
q ever, had a splendid trip across,
mean to say we were treated splen
dldly. Everybody on board wa
generosity itself, and if we did no
enjoy the run from Apia-thougl
we certainly did--it was not 70
l. want of attention on the part of tn
9 ships officers When you get tn
opportunity you ought to make tn
. round trip. From what l know o
: the place it is surprising to me tina
g many of you Sydney people dom
It Ike it as a holiday excursion.
o iuore charming holiday, if yo'
should be gifted with REASONABLE
fine weather, I can't imagine, AM
g you have the chance of adding
r most interesting set of experience
4 to your life For you go to total
strange country and see most in
" teresting people"
u "You were speaking of the trad
/ between the islands and Australia
n is the Lubbock running to Sydne,
the only boat? ooh, no; there ar
two trading from Auckland. Mos
9 of the business is done with New
f Zealand.o x.
What do you think of the futur
prospects of the islands-say o
, Samoan "What is the treaty
) You answer me that ard can tel
,, you the other. But until we know
what the treaty is and who are tn
people who are coming out as com
missloners we can say nothing
= Things are quiet enough now, but a
|. there has been trouble in the past S,
there will be trouble in the future
! unless tha new system of govern