Evening star., 1896-03-31

coffee plantations are growing, at 1900 feet
altitude there was the largest rainfall of
ward, along ninety miles of coast under xhe
lee of the great mountains. the shore re-
ceives only about Is inches of rain in winter
from the westward, ard lies parched and
burned all summer. Yet, strangely, only
three miles inland. at an altitude Of 1900
feet, there are 20 inches of rain precipitated
ny the daily sea breeze. creating the splen-
e9IHe 1Sa 0e1e Of kena It may be sst
islands receives only from IL to 80 inches
OF rain, or too little for agriculture without
irrigation. l We have. fortunately. a tree,
the South American Algaroba, which flour
ishes on the most arid coast lands and
which is valuable not only for hardwood
1uei, but for its abundant sweet pods, which
are excellent fodder for stock. In many
sections the hitherto brown and barren
coasts are green with the verdure Of this
useful tree.
I alluded above to the old Cape Horn
route, where so many of US old-timers used
to spend weeks ard even months in SEEM
1nsly vain struggling against an obstinate
westerly tempest, and enormous Antarctic
bllloWs endlessly rolling athwart our course
ds Day after day our good ships. close-hauled
on the head wind, and under close-reefed
topsails and staysafls, would plunge heavily
against the immense waves and week Of
that tedious fighting would record that we
mad made tenn miles westing, or perhaps
had dropped back fifty miles east. A very
similar kind of weather seems to prevail in
winter on the much vaunted great circle
route from San Francisco to Yokohama
which sweeps far north along the Aleutian
Islands, in latitude so degrees.
The Rio dc JnnefrO's VOYAGE,
Ten days since the good steamer Rio de
Jane.ro arrived here in distress, having
burned her after deck house and mizzen
topmast to save her little reserve of twenty
tons Of coal. She was twenty-six days out
from San Francisco, bound to Yokohama
For sixteen days she had fought her way
against that vile Aleutian tor Cape Horn
weather Yet thousand miles from her
destination she encountered still heavier
gales, and burned fffty-four tons of coal in
advancing stxty-s.x miles. Her supposedly
ample coal supply approaching exhaustion,
she gave up the battle and ran for Homo
lulu. $500 miles away, partly under SAIL
reaching here in ten days. Replenishing
her bunkers. she steamed off on the peace
full course she had better have taken three
weeks earlier.
This is an interesting object lesson in the
disadvantages Of the northern great circle
route. whose shortness. we have had it
dlnned into us, will divert most Of the
lulu. 1t does look very nicely upon an or
binary globe. when one stretches tape
from San Francisco to Yokohama along
the Aleutian Islands. and contrasts its di-
rectness with the long deviation via Hon.
olulu. But it is the old story of a long cir
cult around steep kill being cheaper than
the short cut directly over it. In the win
ter season, at least westerly gales are too
prevalent in those latitudes not to render
the westward passage via Honolulu the
most desirable. Another object lesson is
the desrabeness of a cable to Honolulu
Had We been in telegraphic connection, the
safety OF the Rio could have been an
nounced twelve days earlier than it was
per Peking to Yokohama.
The Queens Liberty.
The ex-queen has lately been improving
her enlarged liberty by ipdulging in trip
to her country house at Waialua, thirty
miles on the other side of the island. 1t
should be understood that she is not yet
pardoned, but only parole. OF the last
few months of her limited liberty she made
1udicious use. So completely have the ag:-
tat.ons and apprehensions following last
years insurrection passed from all our
thoughts that the parole at New Year of
the last Of the political prisoners has
ceased to be regarded as anything but nat
ural and appropriate, although at the time
many felt it to be an unsafe proceeding
Being still under a nominal surveillance
and virtually liable at any time to rem-
prisonment If suspected of conspiracy
against the government it is quite certain
that none of the late offenders are at all
likely to engage in further attempts The
republic presents every aspect of having
fairly settled down to a peaceable and pros
porous career. KAMEHAMEHA.