Evening star., 1896-06-11
KATE FIELDS DEATH
Tributes Paid Her by the People Of
Honolulu.
CURRENT NEWS FROM HAWAII
The Islands Are OVERLOOKING With
Wealth..
p ~ q D p n u T. n M G
A G E P r o B L E M S

HONOLULU, May 2s-The eruption of
Mauna Loa, which has furnished topic tor
my last two letters, is quite played out.
after some splendid pyrotechnics Most of
the Amherst Eclipse party from the yacht
Coronet visited Kau fortnight since, in
tending to ascend the mountain. On their
arrival all glow on the cloud above the
crater had disappeared and they contented
themselves with the usual everyday in
spection of the heavily smoking pit of
kilauea, which the Volcano House people
anxicusly assure everybody is heating Up
at such a rate as to make fresh outgush
Of the live lava certain thing right away.
So we all hope. Such long suppressions of
fire there as have lasted the most of
twenty months past are not on the records
at the Volcano House. Now that Madam
Pele" has finished her picnic on the big
mountain. she ought to be ready to attend
to regular business at the usual headquar
ters. The dense reek of vaporS pouring
up from the black abyss of e-a-mau-
mau proves that the furnaces below have
not lost communication with the upper
world.
On their return voyage by the steamer
w. G. Hall, our Coronet friends, on reach
Ing kona, were permitted sorrowfully to
minister to much-beloved and dying
woman. Miss Kate Field who came aboard
home III Honolulu. Dying no one supposed
her to be. although seriously i'll with a
sudden attack Of pneumonia. DR.. Adriance
CT the Aoronet had gone to her relief. and
by her desire had helped her to board the
steamer. After reaching the ship she rap
idly developed alarming symptoms of pros
tration By the next morning she SO be-
gan to sink that the ship was hastened
and reached the city several hours ahead
Of time. The sufferer lived little more
than an hour after she had reached
friendly home, borne by sailors from the
Adams. For a moment before the last
she became conscious, so as family to
smile in recognition of Mrs. DR.. McGrew
Miss Field had been so agreeably conspic-
uous In Honolulu and had made so many
warm friends that her return thus in the
grasp Of death inflicted on us all most
severe and saddening shock.
Miss Fields Funeral.
The funeral was attended the following
day by crowded assembly at the Central
Union. which is quite the representative
American Church, and for that reason Sc
lected by DR.. McGrew, who, like his la
mented guest, Is ardent American pa
triot. The casket was fairly buried under
the copious floral contributions. prominent
among which was large red, blue and
white tribute from the Honolulu press. A
kind friend received the precious remains
into his family vault. until American
friends could be heard from. The attorney
general had sailed the previous evening
for Yokohama on the swift Doric, and
bore dispatch for the Chicago Times
Herald. announcing the sad event.
Miss Field $ death was evidently the re-
suit of continued overwork in travelling
She was resolute and persistent explorer.
but unfortunately at the age of ffty-five,
not ireless ore, as she needed to be to
match her Will and enthusiasm. AStride
of mules and ponies. for weeks she had
toiled over stony trails in Puma and tn.
muddy roads and deep canyons of Hilo and
Hamahua. bent upon seeing and judging
OF conditions In the remote out-districts.
Her last toilsome journey was the sixty
mile ride from kohala to Kona in parts
one of the worst on the island, over Sc
ries of those hideous clinker lava beds of
which 1 have descanted in these letters
she reached the hotel of Miss Paris in
haliua. worn out, and with sharp symp-
toms OF pneumonia, but still determined to
press on and complete the remaining nine
" miles or evil trails remaining before
reaching civilized roads at Klauea She
pushed on ten miles farther the next day
to Mr.. GreenweIls near KaawaIoa There
poully worn out, she finally succumbed.
ana consented to change her course for
Honolulu. She seems to have borne up un-
I'll safely on board the steamer, and no
more effort was needed. Then nature ut
terry gave way. and the collapse was final
Nell-ft Is not altogether an evil to die
IN the active pursuit of ones career-in the
harness. Yet one would rather that our
GIFTED friend had somewhat spared her
wasting frame and so lived to share the
rleh treasures of her experience and knowl-
edge of mankind with us all for a few
more years. Especially will supporters of
the Hawaiian republic remember Kate
Field with grateful sorrow She was
most 1althfui friend and earnest advocate
OF our new and rising state.
Portuguese Asninst Orientals,
Our Portuguese fellow citizens continue
to be demonstrative. This is apparently
under the influence of persons of perhaps
demagogic character so-called mass
meeting was held on Union Square, near
the government buildings, few nights
since, attended by few hundred Portu-
guese, who were addressed in their own
language. Their chief grievance dweIt
upon was the one already mentioned, and
which Is felt by nearly all cIasses-the
crowding OF Asfatic immigrants to fill all
branches i OF occupation. It will not tend
to quiet their uneasiness that two Japan
ese steamers are now due with g 100 more
Japanese laborers to swell their already
alarming numbers. Exactly how this in
nuX of Asiatics is to be checked does not
clearly appear. Perhaps If there was
more will the way would be found. But
1t Is too much for the pecuniary profit of
our planters to continue the incoming of
cheap labor.
Annexation would promptly solve the
problem, by means of the immediate ap-
plicaton of United States laws prohibiting
further immigration from Asia Annexa-
ton would also insure a rapid immigra-
ton of white workers, who would speedily
outnumber the colored races. AS this
abler class took up lands for coffee and
other industries the Asiatic laborers al
ready on the ground would render them
most valuable assistance. 1t seems not
improbable that sugar production may ulti-
mately decline and give way to other indus
tries. 1t Is claimed that beet sugar can be
produced in California in qua1tity and at
rates to defy competition from other sugar
producing countries. AT the same time, it
looks as If our plantations had not reach
ed the limit Of their productiveness. This
crop of '96 is an exceptional one I know
of two plantations which this year are ex-
ceeding all expectations. One with an ex-
pected crop of 5000 tons is turning out
$500 The other. instead of an estimated
1900 Is yielding 11,5O0 tons. When the
planters do so well as this their money
power is bound to be felt
Thrift and Sugar.
At the same time, 1t Is clear that this
prosperity in the chief industry of the
country tends to promote prosperity among
all classes. And whatever materially
checked and hampered the development Of
the plantations would have a depressing