The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1894-12-14
ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON.
The Famous Master Of English Die.
ton Dies in Samoa.

BY the s. s. Arawa the sad news
comes Of the death Of Robert Louis
Stevenson, the world renowned
novelist. He died at his home at
Apia, Samoa, on Sunday the End OF
December. His burial took place
the following day on the high hill
back of his residence.
MIR. Stevenson was a well known
figure in Honolulu. He spent a sea-
son OF rest here several years ago,
and again last year. On the latter
occasion he lived for some months at
Sans Souci. Mr.. Hutchinson the
sculptor executed a bust OF the
famous author at that time, which
the subject praised as the best ever
made OF him. He left here in very
delicate health.
One evening a deputation from
the Scottish Thistle Club waited on
Mr.. Stevenson, to ask him for lee
ture before that society. He con-
sented with great cordially, but de-
INJURED to its being called lecture.
He would just give a little talk to
the club. Mr.. Stevenson asked each
member of the deputation about his
place of birth, etc, and spoke enter
tainiDgly about his own family tree.
He had been making Investigations
for a life OF his grandfather which
he was writing, in the course of
which he had discovered several
variations in the family name. At
the time of the prescription Of Rob
Roy McGregor and his family, many
relatives OF the famous freebooter
changed their names to avoid prose-
cution. Some OF them took the
name Of Stevenson or Stephenson.
Suddenly the novelist changed the
subject, with a merry CLEAN in his
eyes saying: What q strange world
this Is. Here is q lot Of Scotchmen
sitting down in the middle OF the
Pacific discussing their pedigrees."
In that short interview Mr.. Steven.
son gave some interesting facts ri
curious things in Samoa, aud seemed
to take great pleasure in eliciting in.
formation out Of the ordinary about
Hawaii.
His talk to the club was delight
ful in a high degree. II was de.
livered without notes and was full
Of nervous FIRE. The subject was q
sketch OF what he described as shat
long brawl known as Scottish his.
tory" Mr.. Stevenson referred to q
dedication OF a book to him by .
friend in Scotland, a. being "crush-
ingly pathetic, so that could not
read IL without gulp. II was adj
dressed to me In the third person
and babe me remember those places
where about the graves OF the
martyrs the whaups are crying, THIS
heart remembers how Now, when
] think upon my latter end, as | do
sometimes, especially Of late years
when IL seems less imminent, | feel
that when l shall come to die out
here among these beautiful islands,
I shall have lost something that had
been my due, my native, predesti-
nate aud forfeited grave among
honest Scots sods. And feel that
| shall never quite attain to what
Patrick Walker ,alls, In one Of those
pathetic touches OF which | have al.
ready spoken, to my resting grave,
unless IL were to be on one OF our
purple hillsides, under one OF our
old quaint and half. obliterated table
tombstones slanting down the slope,
and where about the graves Of the
martyrs the whaups are crying, NY
heart remembers how"
The foregoing pathetic conclusion
OF the talk" is now copied from
Mr.. Stevenson's own handwriting,
he having kindly jotted il down in
reply to a request from the repre-
sentative OF this paper. Mr.. Steven.
son later consented to deliver a pub
lie lecture for the benefit OF the
Scottish Thistle Clubs library. A
day or two before the date fixed,
however, he became severely i'll, and
the late DR.. Trousssau warned him
that any such exposure and exercise
would DO at the peril of his life. He
, id not realize how i'll he was and,
in talking to his wife aud q friend,
expressed a desire to avoid disap-
pointing the club and the public, IL
possible, rs many tickets had been
sold. When told that his life was
the first consideration in the matter,
no IehoIhcu WIN suiIe, wen, IL
would seem hard to die for the sake
OF a two-bob lecture" Mrs. Steven
son, II should here be said, gener-
ously expressed Willingness to
! donate to the clubs library fund a
, sum equal 10 the probable receipts
, OF the lecture.
Nj II. Stevenson wrote a great many
stories, besides articles for maya,
zines. Among his most sensational
l works is "Dr. Jekyll and Mr.. Hyde
( One OF the most popular is "The
Master OF Ballantrae.' He wrote a
number OF stories whose scene
: is among the islands OF the Pacific
One is The Bottle Imp" whose
first scene is LAID at a rich mans
house in San Francisco. Then the
reader is brought to a mansion in
Honolulu, thence to Kona on Ha,
wall, aud lastly to Tahiti, where the
story, which had been almost ap,
pallingly weird, suddenly ends in q
most ludlcrous episode, yet one with
rather obvious moral. Mr.. Steven,
q sons popularity was chiefly based
on a most fascinating styls, cbarac,
L terized by command OF extremely
|, foIcible English.