The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1895-07-31
Interesting "reminiscences by Mrs
McCully-Higgins.
CHANGES IN LIFE AND CUSTOMS.
What Thirty Years Progress has Brought
AbOut-DescriptiOn of Business POr-
tiOns-OId Family HOuses-Barren
Plains Replaced by Tropical Verdure.


has something interesting and in
structive for the people of Hawaii.
The following article on "Hono-
lulu Thirty Years Ago" was read
by Mrs. Higgins at the last meet
ing of the Mission Children's
Society:
To one who knew Honolulu thirty
years ago, there are today few land
marks remaining to connect our
ating town of that day, and to indicate
what it was then. Coming back after
an absence, heart breaking in its
length of two years, 1 fall into remin-
iscence and recollection of the town
and people of that time.
We came to Honolulu on the d. c.
Murray (there were no steamers in
those days., the finest bark of the
whole fleet, commanded by Captain
Bennett. We arrived on the Sth of
May, 1865, getting alongside the wharf
at o'clock on one of those April-like
days, when brisk little shower every
now and again pushes itself into the
sunshine, falling from some betraying
cloud which had neither size nor den
sity enough to hide the sun over an
area larger than q few acres. We
brought news of Lincoln's assassina-
tion, and sewed the wide border OF
black around the American flag
which hung at half-mast at the ships
stern as we came into port. The mail
was taken off before we came to the
wharf, and the people were gathered
about the post office, then in the coral
building at the east end of the present
office, absorbed with the sad news we
brought. A day or two after public
meeting was held to do honor to the
martyred president. Father Damon,
of blessed memory, preached a sort of
funeral sermon the next Sunday from
the text, "Clouds and darkness are
joined about Him; righteousness and
judgment are the habitation of His
throne" and one of the hymns was
that beginning "servant of God, well
DONE"
There was an intense feeling
of loyalty among the Ameri-
can residents of the islands in
those days to the United States, and
the cause of the North during the
war of the rebellion, then just closing,
had many warm friends here. Two
from the South, Mr.. -
and Mrs. --, were outspoken seces-
sionists. They were saved from the
despicable fortune of being gcopperheads
by the place of their birth, however.
The first decided foreign flavor / got of
was through guava jelly.
1 had come by way of Panama, far
more tropical aud foreign in appear
ance than Honolulu, and had seen the
tropical vegetation there and at Aca-
pulco, but had never tasted guava
jelly till ate it here, and it was on the
lunch table so constantly the first few
weeks of my life in Honolulu, that the
taste of 1t helps to revive my first i'm
pressions of the islands. And o, the
mosquitoes! and the suffering even to
tears they caused me! My fresh, rich
Northern blood, so uninfected by
virus, and which they east
ly reached through the tender flesh OF
those years, furnished them feast
they did not neglect. Few of the bus
iness houses OF thirty years ago re-
main as they were-noL more than
two perhaps, the buildings being
as well as the personnel of
the firms. On Fort street the build
ing now used by Christian Gertz as
shoe store was dry goods store, either
B. +. Ehlers or Fred Phuger. Mays
grocery was then owned by Mr.. Saw
idge who lived with his family in Mr..
Twins town house. Warehouses;
No. 10 was a little wooden building,
and just makai were the dressmaking
rooms of Mrs. McDougall, and at the
corner Mr.. William McCandless' gro
Gerry store, now owned by Mcintyre
and all these were in wooden
buildings. Across the street were Mr..
Bartlett's grocery, and Mr.. Ladd's
hardwa store, in which Mr.. Sam
Damon began his business career, and
Mr.. and Mrs. O'NeiPs store. E. O.
Hall sold drygoods in his low wooden
store as well as hardware, as did Cas-
lie & Cooke in theirs.
General DimOnd was partner, with
his father, in store on King street;
Hoffschlaeger, Grinbaum, Hackfeld,
Henck & Won Holt, JaniOn, Green d
Co., Walker & Allen, Brewer & Co.,
were we'll known business firms, with
Bolles & Co. and Captain Snow as
ship chambers. A man by the name
If Lawrence, and Mr.. Robinson, father
If Mark Robinson, were ship builders,
partners together. Captain Oat had
sail loft somewhere on the
wharf; M0ssman a cTockery store.
Toe ROderique was chief caterer and
restaurant keeper, under waning for
une, on my arrival. There were no
hotels, except the Sailors Home, inn
kept by Mrs. Crabbe.
Travellers or tourists who could not