The record-union., 1896-02-06

| cookie buIrs Notwithstanding the
| Americanism of the Hawaiians, the
| cookie burr and taking up a collection
in church were the only really familiar
features in the country.
AS we walked our horses up a steep
incline or galloped over a level plain,
we met some odd and interesting peo-
pie. A long caravan of pack mules was
| seen coming down the road from the
mountain. They were loaded with bags
of rice. It is astonishing the amount of
rice these hardy little creatures will
carry up steep mountain sides or along
a shelving rock, where a single false
step would precipitate them to the
| sharp rocks hundreds of feet below.
These caravans of pack mules were un-
| der the control of two Cinnamon, one
| before and one behind. The caravans
usually contained eight or twelve pack
mules all tied together, the Chinaman
| in front leading the first mule, and a
Chinaman in the rear lashing the lag
CARDS.
Flowers in wild profusion bloomed
along the way; nature has done for this
mountain road what the most skill
ful gardener might envy. Just below
tive women washing. Their method
was peculiar, The water was in sort
cf stone basin, and they were on their
bare knees on the stony earth, dipping
the clothing into the water and rubbing
it on a stone.
The reservoir which supplies Homo
lulu with water is fed from the mount
ain streams, of which there are many.
ervoir, on which is the order of the Min
lister of the Interior, in both English
and Hawaiian, warning people to
neither fish, wash, nor battle in the
waters above that point
| Crossing the bridge over the reservoir
| from a short distance we found the as
cent less steep. Wild guava trees grew
in abundance along the road, some hav-
| ing ripe fruit on them, which we ate
and found delicious. The famous guaya
| jellies are made of this fruit.
One of the most picturesque and novel
| sights on the road was a Chinaman
moving. He had his shoulder pole on
his shoulder, on one end of which was
/ his valise, together with his household
and kitchen furniture On the other
end was his livestock, consisting of
| chickens in a large gunny sack, holes
| being cut in the bag for the chickens to
put their heads through. This little
! fellow had come over the Pail and was
! going to Honolulu, carrying all his
! earthly possessions on that pole
1T is nothing for them to carry 200
pounds twelve or fifteen miles," said
my guide. "They are tougher than
mules
| We crossed some of the plains made
famous by the great battle fought by
| Kamehameha the Great, and, reaching
plateau, halted at the halfway house
| tc get drink of water and allow our
horses drink and rest
| Half a mile or more beyond we met
| a Japanese family of wanderers. The
father Of the family was carrying a pole
on his shoulder with the household
goods on each end, and the mother who
1 had taken off those silly, short wooden
sandals and was going barefoot, had a
| baby lashed to her back, and two or
three were walking. At the sight of us
the mothers womanly pride asserted
| itself and she stopped and put on her
ridiculously small sandals and came
| limping like a cripple.
| During the entire journey we did not
meet a single white person. Wandering
Chinese and japanese without any
home, or going to the markets, were the
only persons, save the natives, living
along the road side.
At last the Pail was reached. The
path winds along the pass between two
mountains through which the wind
sweeps down with such terrific force as
| to sometimes almost take one from his
| feet The view from the Pail is sublime.
On one side may be seen the sea. with
| Honolulu looking like a speck in the
distance; on the other are the planta-
| tions and houses looking also like mere
| specks in the dim distance, with the
dark blue sea for a background. Gil
gantic grim and silent as the sphinx,
stands the frowning cliffs on the right,
and on the left a sharp cone-like ridge
extends so far away that it is lost in
the distance, while the only possible
place of crossing the island is at the
Pail.
| One cannot but admire the military
genius of Kamehameha in securing this
pass. 1t was the Thermopylae of Kala-
nikupule, the last Oahuan chief Here
was fought the great battle which made
Kamehameha, the Hawaiian Napoleon,
master of all the islands.
| Before the battle Kamehameha, with
| a fleet of war canoes and one schooner
and some artillery, appeared off Oahu
and landed at Waialae Bay, and, after
few days spent in arranging his men,
he marched at Nunana Valley, where
Kalanikupule had posted his forces.
! Kamehameha had a good General in
an American named John Young, whose
descendants may still be found on the
islands. There were several Americans
in his army, and their skill with artil-
Iery gained Kamehameha his victories,
He encountered the enemy at Laimi and
Puiwa, where the Oahu troops made a
brave resistance until Kaiana, their
leader, was killed by cannon ball,
when they gave way. They were closely
pursued up the valley, some escaping
up the ridges on either side, while others
were hemmed in and driven over the
Nuuanu Pail, or pfecipice north of the
road. and dashed to death on the rocks.
| Their bones may still be found among
| the bare jungles or algeroba forests
| COO feet below. Kalanikupule wan
dered for several months in the Koolau
Mountains until he was finally captured
| in a cave above Waipio brought down
and offered in sacrifice to the conquer
ors' war god at Moanahua.
| The Pail looks like the gate between
| two fairy lands 1t is a pass that could
| be made impregnable. A few hundred
| men could hold an army of thousands
at bay On the east side, opposite Homo
| lulu, the descent is very steep and
rocky. Two or three hundred feet below
| the top a spring gushes out from the
rocks, falls into a pocket very inviting
| To the thirsty traveller The road is