The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1893-03-17
SUNNY ISLES OF HAWAII.
HOW LIFE GOES IN THE PACIFIC
PARADISE.

TN the silent waste Of the broad Pa.
cite Ocean, 2000 miles or more
from San Francisco, lie the sunny
isles Of Hawaii, which some day
may be part OF the Uuited States OF
America.
When you steam into the harb ,r OF
Honolulu you begin to catch the flavor
Of the island. At one side tower tie
gigantic mountain peaks Of Molokai,
where the lepcr lives.
A line of foam. friugei reefs au
n stretch of cleaning sand, where a
single group of sentinel palms rear their
heads in tropic beauty, make uP the fir 4
glimpse of the island. Still bsyo I'D
these palms can be seen the stccplcs and
Hagstatfs and gray cmbosse green roofs
OF Honolulu, while, frowning down upon
1T in the far background, is the deal
magniticence OF a crushed volcano.
The docks ut Honolulu. which is tho
capital city Of the Island Kin ydon. pre-.
sent Il curious spectacle. To greet tho
big iron Pacihc Mail steamer, says the
New York Journal, there tlcc;< brown,
'coppcry colorcd natives, in their simple.
hrwcr.deckcd garbs, almond-eye
Cinnamon, little subjects of the Mika 10.
Portuguese, Germans, Britons, Amcri.
cans, all coolly clad in white duck.
Honolulu has a population Of 25,OOC
souls. 1t has fifteen miles of street rail.
way, 1900 telephones, 800 public hacks,
macadamizcd streets, lighted by electric.
ity, and in its business part is well
built Of brick aud stone. Its resident
portion is almost entirely Of wood.
In Honolulu, as everywhere else in
the islands, one is struck by the ch,rac
ter Of the population. Americans, Eu.
glish and Germans number only 45)0
in all tho islands. Portugal ha, fur
n:shcd 5000 people, while Caina fur.
nishes 20, 900, the laboriny classes in the
island beng nearly all Chinamen.
or the pure native that once upon
time ate up Captain Cook, there arc less
than 1000, and they are dying at the
rate of two per cent. year. But the
native had married with the alien races
before dying, and the result is the half
caste race, which numbers about 600
and is very influential socially and polit.
iCally.
AS you drive through the streets in the
hush of the early morning, you soon
learn what is meant by the Iuxuriaut re.
pose of the tropic. The bloom of un.
wonted flowers, the FURNISHED sheen Of
the leaves, the lancc-like foliage Of the
palms, all tell you that you arc far away
from battling New York.
The Hawaiian home Is in itself typc.
1t is but one story in height, with q
broad lanai or wide verandah in front,
into which open wide doors from parlor,
dining room, billiard, and, in fact, from
all the rooms on the first floor, the lanai
being sort Of common meeting grouad
for everybody.
Swinging in hammock, one can
watch the white .friuSed reefs where the
long Pacific breaks. Below you lies the
town IN indolent reposc, and you drink
in the mellow air aud become lotus
cater.
The lower rooms Of the house are all
planned for coolness, for we are in the
tropics, mind you. Tie windows are
shaded by blinds aud curtains, the floors
are matted, with easy, light aud grace
full furniture. The sleeping rooms above
are planned for comfort, too, for ice is
manufactured luxury in Honolulu,
and "keep COOL is the motto of its citi-
zen.
Still, there are many more pretentious
homes than the one described in Hon
olulu, built after the American and Eng.
lish styles. Claus Spreckels, the ",Sugar
King Of Hawaii, owns splendid bric<
palace, while the Government House, or
the palace OF the recently dcthroued
Queen, aud the Queens Hospital are
modern brick houses OF elegance. In
fact, Honolulu is a town where civiliza.
ton is at high tide.
In no city in the world is there so
much business done by telephone as in
Honolulu. Nearly every house in the
city can be communicated with. One
fairly lives in q network of wires. The
shop, the market, the doctor, the dent
ist, the undertaken, all respond to this
long distance talk, aud no small amount
of gossip wings its way over the sensitive
wires. 1t is so easy to lazs away the day
on your lanai, with telephone at your
elbow, through which you can chat with
your friends.
"In the lanai we take no note Of time, "
IS fayoritc Hawaiian saying.
When early evening comes it is the fad
for every one in Honolulu to hurry t,
Thomas square, the biggest open space
in the city, 20 hear the concerts given by
band of musicians, Their efforts arc
aided by the singing Of bands OF natives,
whose music contains patheticaliy
weird strain, full of pathos. All the
Honolulu world strolls about in the mel
low moonlight, during these concer 5,
while stately palms make fantastic sill
houettes against the sky.
Sotr-aou ~ .Fto-~~~--r l. ~ g. - ----
call winter as we'll as in summer, the
Hawaiian devotes to pleasure. In Homo.
lulu baseball is the fad. All the island
world goes to the grounds and watches
gentlemen teams play. Many of tn,
young ladies in the city go to the grounds
on horseback; some riding astride in male
fashion, but always with escorts. Ther
the Hawaiian Jockey Club has rae,
track near Honolulu, and to it, during
the racing season, the fair world and thu
brown world of Hawaii go.
AT all these amusements the native
band is n cOnsDicIIoua foaturo The hon1