The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1894-02-09
A CURIOUS KANAkA CHARACTER.
Bill Ragsdaie. the Hawaiian Parliament
tary Interpreters.

tary Interpreters.
During the early years of Kalakaua's
reign and for some years preceding half
white called Bill Ragsdale was the Off
cial interpreter in the elective branch of
the Hawaiian parliament. Ragsdale had
great natural aptitude for occurring Ian
guages, and it was told of 3m that when
he visited French man-of war the officers
would not believe he had not been educat-
ed in Paris, and that the German naval
officers wanted to bet that he had been
educated from infancy in Berlin. He was
quick witted, eloquent, a fop in dress and
as citizen good for naught. His official
duties required him to interpret the speech
es of the natives into English and the
speeches of the foreigners into Hawaiian.
The latter was necessary, as many of the
native mem bers from districts remote from
Honolulu and Hilo had little knowledge of
any language but their own. The former
duty, turning the natives speeches into
English, was seldom necessary, as the for
eign members were naturally men who had
been on the islands long enough to master
the simple and easily acquired native Ian
guage. But it was a duty Ragsdale loved,
and it's performance was a source of con-
slant delight to the foreign members and
spectators His method was to interpret
every two or three sentences, and he would
sometimes suavely interrupt native strug-
Cling in an impossible Labyrinth of gut
terals and leave him there in speechless
amazement, while he launched into an ell
oQuent address ON the beauties of moon
light rain bow or some other equally unre-
lated subject Or gray haired mem Der
from Waikipoo might arise in his place
and explode few guttQrals which were
to the effect that one of his oxen had been
drowned in the Ulupelakua ford, and he
wanted to know when the government pro-
posed to bridge that creek. Ragsdale would
rise, bow to the member and proceed dra
matically in some such manner as this:
'The distinguished and eloquent mem
Der from Waikipoo desires to direct the at
tention of the honorable members to what
he aptly characterizes as their lamentabl
lapse from that high sense of duty which
most distinguishes the patriot from the
politician. Not since the regretted days
of Kamehameha l of glorious memory,
whose warclub was as the thunderbolt
and whose canoes shimmered DER the wa
tiers like the mysterious lights which bea-
con the spray IS it dashes across the coral
reef not since the taboo was by royal edict
placed on the religion of our forefathers
and we all became Christians by ukase,
not since the enemies of the great Kane
hameha fed in alright up the valley of the
Nuuanu, and fearing death less than the
wrath of their pursuer flung themselves
over the Pail where their bones in fantastic
disarray strew the cruel rocks even now;
not since the juice of the ava first made the
sailors of Captain Cook delirious with joy,
not since then has there been on all these
islands Kanaka SO mad as was the hon
orable gentleman from Waikipoo when his
off OK sank in the treacherous sands where
purl the waters of the Ulupelakua.
Then the members, delighted to hear
that so little Hawaiian would make SO
much English, would utter few more
sentences.
Ragsdale in pretending to interpret this
would attribute to the native the latest
good story the interpreter had probably
heard on board some foreign man-ofwar.
When he had finished his story, he would
inform the member that he was out of Or
der, as the river and harbor improvement
bill was not before the house; that the only
bill before the house was Bill Ragsdale.
He had many foppish eccentricities in
dress, so no particular notice was taken
when Ragsdale began wearing one glove
constantly, even while interpreting.
He furnished an explanation of that
when he gave himself up to the authori-
ties as a leper and asked to be transported
to Molokai The fatal disease was mani
fest only on that hand he had kept gloved.
Through that hand knife might have
been run without Ragsdale feeling it.
He went to Molokai, where he lived sew
eral years, dying before Father Damien.
That good priest gave testimony that Rags
dale's example in voluntarily going to
Molokai did much to allay the discomfort
of others there, and that he was cheer
full, intelligent and Industrious aid to the
priest in governing and caring for their
unfortunate comprehensive York Sun.