Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-06-16
Character of the Widely Discussed
Necker Island.
DAY At HONOLULU
Assembling Of the constitutional
Convention.
THE WHITES DETERMINATION
Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.

| HONOI-ILD, May al, 1879.
| The borings made on Pearl harbor bar
have been continued by the force from the
United States flagship Philadelphia by or
der of Admiral Walker. About two-thirds
of the twenty required have been made. and
afford a reasonable certainty as to the re-
suit of the whole. Nothing has been found
to depth of thirty-two feet but soft sand
or mud of comminuted coral and shells The
/ only operation required for the entire clear
ing of the passage for the largest ships to
| enter with ease is the work Of an ordinary
suction dredge, delivering the sand through
its conveying pipe, either into the deep wa
ter Immediately outside. or upon the reef
to the westward, where the prevailing cur
rent will drive 1t farther. The entire cost
is likely to be under s20O0oO. perhaps less
than half that sum. There is talk OF the
admiral setting the government dredge at
ence at work there. 1t is a good Gnd eff
cient one. but is needed for further work In
this harbor Probably a larger dredge will
have to be procured for the purpose.
| The Race for Nccker Island.
/ Much interest has attended the secret de-
parture for Necker Island. on the 18th. Of
the small coasting steamer Iwalani Capt.
j. A. King. minister of the interior, went
with her for the purpose of raising the Ha-
I
group. and declaring possession of 1t by
this government. The peculiar interest
grew out Of the fact that the object of Capt.
| Kings mission was TO anticipate an sp-
pretended occupation of the island by
| Great Britain. Some intimation of such in
| tenttou reached the government some weeks
ago. by the Warrimoo. on the oath, such
| further Information came as caused our au-
| thorities to act in haste. What was learned
was that Necker Island was to be occupied
/ "a n hlA Of lon. lin n hn
/ tween Sydney and Vancouver, connecting
| the British colonies in America and Aus
| tralia. Such a station Is absolutely neces-
sary In this vicinity. and 1t is the desire of
| Britain to hold the independent ownership
| of IL.
Additional excitement grew out of the
| sailing Of II. b. NJ. S. Champion two hours
| after the Iwalani In the same direction. III
was not believed. however. that the Cham
pion had any inkling of the Iwalanis er-
rand. Moreover, it had been given cut sew
eral days before that the Champion would
! leave the harbor the 18th for target
/ practice at sea. Nevertheless. rumors pre-
vailed that she was going to take possession
| of Necker Island. and a race between her
and the Iwalani was imagined to be taking
place. The larger ship would have much
the advantage IN such a contest.
| History of Necker Island.
Necker Island lies within the sphere OF
| Hawaiian influence. and. naturally. belongs
! to this group. 1t is only 80 miles beyond
| Nihoa. Bird Island. which has always
! been recognized one of the Hawaiian
group. although. like Necker Island. unin-
habited. Indeed. Necker. like Nihoa. was
known to the ancient natives. although not
familiar like the latter: Many years ago
| upon several Of the further islands in the
! chain. but failed to effect a landing on
Necker Island, around which he found the
| surf breaking heavily on every side. AM
good IA a n he
| that the Hawaiian or Sandwich group does
not terminals to the northwest with Kauai
and Niiahau. the farthest of the inhabited
| Islands In that direction. long chain of
Cninhabite1 islets stretches on to the west
| and northwest for ! 40 miles forming a
continuation of the group for that distance
these are Nihoa, Necker. Lisansky. Midway.
! Laysan, Ocean and French Frigate shoal
| all in continuation OF the Hawaiian chain,
and from 100 TO $50 miles apart
These islets are to speak the grave
stones of the dead and sunken volcanoes of
an ancient portion of the Hawaiian group
few of the nearer isets still reach to "a
/ few hundred feet in height above the sea
the last worn remnants of old sierras OF
volcanic ridges. still scanned by basaltic
dykes. where lava once poured I'd through
assures, far back. perhaps, in the Tertiary
one great earth assure runs along this line
OF l.SOo miles, through which the internal
molten contents welled up into the ocean
and built up islands for many millions Of
end and proceeded slowly to the southeast
where, the giant volcanic domes of Hawaii
rise, still fresh, from the sea- with un-
scanned slopes. over which new torrents OF
lava are often discharged. To the west
ward. on Molakai. Oahu and Kauai the
old, extinct domes are deeply scanned and
broken by ages OF atmospheric erosion
while their masses have gradually subsidized
de"nly back into the ocean. Beyond Kauai
only few remnants OF surviving peaks or
OF coral reefs. are left to mark the sites
where ancient islands nourished clothed In
beauty, like their existent SUCCESSORS. Even
the youngest of the group. Hawaii, has been
slowly growing, built up out of the sea
through many a long age by Intermittent
upwellings Of fiery lava.
Settlers of the Island
Man came here only about twelve GEN.
| turtles ago to occupy these remote islands
Polynesian men, born navigators and ex-
plorers. reached here in their large and
swift ukas from Savii of the Friendly
Islands. whence New Zealand also was pop
| ulated at about the same period. The
ocean was pacific. the winds blew gently
| from one prevailing quarter. and the stars
guided them surely, they sank the
southern cross and raised the northern
vain. Their roaming ancestors had worked
eastward from Malaysia, Java Timor and
Celebes in earlier centuries. and the Poly
nesians were still explorers. But beyond
the Hawaiian group they found nothing
off westward were not worth settling upon
Necker Island is a rather barren rock about
800 feet high. about one mile I'm length. No
doubt some landings can be found on it's
shore I'm smooth weather. II is much like
Bird Island In its conditions, except that .he
latter is three times as high and far more
rugged. Both islets are the homes of in
Vulnerable birds
once landed on Bird Island and the mo-
ment We surmounted the low cliff and step
ped upon the upland BIRDS large and small,
rose I'm literal myriads around U.S. Hardly
a step could be made without treading on
eggs and into the holes burrowed for nests
On the tops Of low bushes We're built the
nests Of the great frigate bird each with
Its large single chick. helpless and clumsy
but large a great turkey. Their immense
breasts were covered with thick soft white
down. The natives with us reientiessiy
wrung their necks. despite their angry
clashing mandibles. and stripped off the
downy pelts. On the outside Of the north
ery cliffs could be seen. as we approached
the island. hundreds Of feet aloft these
young birds In long rows on the lodges
where they were born. like strings of white
pearls. while the parent birds. on long plant
wing, secured the sea around our steamer
for food for their young.
We were, by the way. on this same
steamer. 1walani some ten years ago. and
Liliuokalhni. then princess. was the chief
| of the company. Like her ancestors she
was a capital boatman, and / never saw