The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1896-04-09
The HAWAIIAN HOLIDAYS.
Thew are Twelve in Number and
July 18th is Among the
Number.
Scenes on Christmas Eve and Day
in a Land of Unknown
Snow.
Copyright, 1896, by Funk & Wagnalls Com
pany, New York;

VIII
The Hawaiian holidays are
twelve in number, and are
strange mingling of American,
European, and Asiatic civil and
religious observances. January
1st is a holiday, being New
Years day; January II is hol-
day in celebration of the down
fall of monarchy; February
18th is Chinese New Year;
March 18th, Kamehameha ITS.
birthday; Good Friday; May
24th, birthday of Queen Vic
toria; May 3Oth, Decoration
Day; June 18th, Kamehameha
Day; July 4th, Birthday of the
Republic and American indie
pendence; Nov 2Sth, Recogni-
ton of Hawaiian Independence;
Thanksgiving Day and Christ
mas. If all holidays are kept
as Christmas, the Hawaiians
will not soon forget the several
events they celebrate.
| left Kailaua on December
%, 1895, on the Inter-Island
Steamer w. G. Hall, for Homo
lulu, and was surprised to find
the steamer crowded with peo-
pie of all possible shades of
complexion and stations in
life, all bound for Honolulu to
spend the holidays. The school
teacher from Hawaii, the clerk
and plantation manager from
Maui, all boarded the Hall for
the capital city. Quite a gay
party of fair and dark ladies
and gentlemen were assembled
on the deck of the steamer as
she piled the waters, and gui-
tars and banjos were brought
out, singing and instrumental
music being the order until a
late hour.
BY daylight on the oath we
were at the dock in Honolulu.
The day was as warm as one in
Tuly. Men went about in white
duck suits and straw hats,
many of the natives were bare
footed, and, so far as the
weather was concerned, there
was no indication whatever OF
Christmas. But the shops dis
played the usual amount OF
Christmas toys, the churches
were decorated with Christmas
trees, and it only lacked cold
weather and winter garb to
make one sure it was Christmas
indeed.
When evening came on
walked out on the streets and
found them all brilliantly
lighted up, and the shop men
doing a thriving business
Fort street and Hotel street, and
other principal streets, were
thronged with men, women, and
children so that one could
scarcely squeeze his way
through. 1t almost reminded
one of Fourteenth and Twenty
third streets, New York, during
the holiday trade.
Shop windows were filled
with toys, trinkets, and holiday
presents, some displayed with
the most excellent taste. Art
icles of bright colors seemed tc
attract the natives most. The
Hawaiian loves the beautiful
the gaudy, the brilliant. He
does not always display the
most approved of tastes in the
selection of colors, for blue and
pink, red and yellow are liable
to be mingled proniscuously
in the makeup of his or he1
dress
An incident attracted my
attention which will illustrate
what it is to be in a tropical
country during the Christmas
holidays. [ saw a great throne
| of natives gathered in front OF
| a confectionery shop on Fort
street, who seemed to be greatly
excited and talking rapidly in
their native language, the OBJ.
ject which was attracting thei1
attention being evidently on
the sidewalk. One put his fin
ger forward as if to touch some
| object and suddenly jerked il
away again as if the creature
was alive and had bitten him
1 pressed forward to get q
glimpse of the wonder and il
proved to be-a large square
cake of ice. That ice attracted
more attention than anything
on exhibition that evening
In the center of it was frozen
some California fruit, and the