The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1892-05-05
IN MEMORIAM.
MRS. LUCIA G. LYONS.

residence for fifty-four years. Lucia
CARAT Smith was born at Burling-
ton, near Cooperstown, in Otsego
County, n. Y, April II, 1908, Her
family were originally from Rhode
Island, descendants of Roger Will
liams and of the founder of Brown
University. Her father, for many
years merchant, had larger library
than was usual for those days, and
of this the eleven children made
good use. One of the sisters married
a cousin of Judge Elisha Allen, of
Honolulu. The two sisters, Lucia
and Marcia, after some missionary
work by Lucia as teacher of the Tus-
carora Indians in 1886, were ap-
pointed to the foreign work in con-
nection with the Sandwich Islands
Mission. They sailed from Boston
in the bark Mary Frazier, December
IA, 1886, with Drs. Andrews and La
fon, Messrs. Bailey, Bliss, Castle,
Condo, Cooke, Ives, johnson, Knapp,
Locke, Mcdonald, Mum, Van Dugre,
Wilcox, and their wives, thirty two
in all, the largest reinforcement ever
sent. They arrived on April 10, 1887.
Miss Marcia Smith was teacher at
Kaneohe from September 1, 1887,
but afterwards at the station in
Honolulu Except one year at Kauai)
for five years, as teacher of the chill
dren of the missionaries. Then
transferred to Punahou, with whose
early memories the name of Miss
Marcia Smith is indelibly connected.
She finally relinquished missionary
work here in 1852 to take care of her
aged mother, in Princeton, Illinois,
and is still living at Dover, in that
State. Miss Lucia Smith was as
signed, before leaving home, to La
halnaluna Seminary, where she was
expected to teach the wives of the
married students. That plan was
given up, however, and she set
out for Hilo, Hawaii, intending,
among other things, to visit the vol
cano of Kilauea. But a sprained
ankle prevented her from carrying
out her plan, and though living over
fifty years on Hawaii, she never saw
the volcano. At Hilo, she met Rev.
Lorenzo Lyons, of Waimea, whose
wife had died at Honolulu, May IA,
1887. Other plans were laid aside,
and Miss Smith became Mrs. Lyons,
married by Rev. T. Coan, at Hilo,
July IA, 1888. Going then to Wal
mea, Hawaii, she found her life work
there. Whoever has visited the old
homestead has vivid remembrance
of it's quaint hooks and corners and
annexes of all shapes and sizes. One
was a school-room which, with the
teaching instinct that possessed her
soul, was the scene of her labors for
many years. Children from many
well known Hawaiian families-Iau-
kea, Kamakau, Kalama, Hoapili, John
and Isaac Davis, John Parker, and
George Beckley were among her
pupils. Then came her family school
for girls, which was kept up till 1879,
the mother caring for the Hawaiian
girls as tenderly as for her own. In
1887 she resumed for time her work
as teacher, gathering into her school
of twenty Juveniles children of peo-
pie who were born after she had
come to Waimea.
Interested from early youth in the
study of astronomy, she gave to her
own children the interest in natural
science, in which the sons have been
specially eminent-Dr. Albert b.
Lyons, Professor of Chemistry in
Oahu College, and Curtis. j. Lyons,
for many years the valued assistant
in the Government Survey Office,
Honolulu, giving special attention of
late years to the meteorological work
of the department. Two daughters,
Fidelia and Elizabeth, remain in the
old home, and have had special care
of their mother in her declining
years. Old age brought with it failure
of the heart. Yet with the constitu-
tional vigor that characterized her,
she kept about the house, only tax.
ing to her bed on Sunday April "a
Unable to lie down, propped up by
pillows to secure some little ease in
breathing, while for few days she
had much suffering, the end at last
was peaceful; and Wednesday morn.
ing, April u, little before noon
her head dropped gently upon the
pillow, and life ceased, like the flick.
ering of candle burned to It's
socket. So has passed away a good
mother, a devoted wife, a faithful
friend, an earnest missionary.
The tolling of the bell soon spread
the sad tidings through the village
and the natives among whom she
had SO long lived and labored, gath
cred from near and far to pay their
last respects, and to testify THEN
grateful affection. Flowers We're
brought to decorate the room in
which she lay, and little girls with
wands of flowers stood by the loved
form, as kahili bearers stand before
their chiefs. Rev. Mr.. Ostrom, pas
tor.of the Foreign Church at Kohala
came over to Waimea, and assisted
the native pastor, Rev. John Kalino
in the funeral services. The body
was buried by the side of her hon
ored husband, at the foot of the
monument erected to lis memory by
the Hawaiian Sunday Schools at the
time of his death, October 6, 1886
The generation of pioneer mission
aries has few survivors, and among
the honored names of the members
of the Hawaiian Mission few deserve