The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1897-12-14
OLD SETTLEMENT
Macao First City Peopled By
Foreigners.
OF INTEREST TO MANY IN HAWAII
Assigned To Portuguese In 1857.
Even Chinese Conform To
Their Standards.
OF INTEREST TO MANY IN HAWAII
Especial Correspondence.

EDITOR p. G. Ave could not
leave this part of the world without
taking the opportunity we had to visit
Macao, the oldest foreign settlement
on the China coast. Assigned to the
Portuguese for place of residence
and traffic, away back in 1857, for
their aid in Kidding Chinese commerce
of the piratical vessels that played
havoc with legitimate business, it was
averted by the Dutch, who twice tried
in vain to take forcible possession of
the beautiful harbor. But since Hong
Kong was opened by the English as
a free port, the business of Macao has
steadily declined. The Infamous coolie
traffic gave the place a bad name.
The steamboat-side paddle wheel,
like the one to Canton-was to leave
at p. m.; but large amount of
freight detained the vessel for half
an hour, and curtailed just so much
the amount of daylight available for
visit to the various sights Of the
city. The sail among the islands of
the archipelago was similar to that
on the trip to Canton. The hills were
like Koko Head in badness as we'll as
height, with no more verdure than a
worn and thread bare brussels carpet
has of its pristine beauty. No habita-
tion nor cultivation, was to be seen in
any of the islands, except one. where q
deep gorge seemed to have perma-
nent water supply, and the hill side
was terraced for cultivation pre-
sumably of rice. The Captain said
that on the island of Formosa there
was hill side, cultivated in terraces,
and all the water for irrigation car
ried up by hand. Mr.. Evans, formerly
of Lahaina, who now has home in
Macao, supplying coolies for coal
mines, told us that only the day be-
fore, with a 5000 gun loaned him by
a friend, he had shot partridge, plover,
ohApO, AOSO1 OACC mASSlAS AI0 GILL;
The islands around Hong Kong furnish
much game for the lovers of such
sport.
1 was as much deluded in my ideas
of Macao from descriptions read, as
1 was in regard to Hong Kong. The
commerce of the place is carried on in
the harbor formed by the jutting PENN
sula, on both sides of which the city
is built, while the residential portion
is on the shore of Bishops Bay, the
open rOadstead, open to the south.
In the completeness with which the
ground was covered by buildings, /
was reminded of Cologne; in the steep
ness and crookedness of the streets,
the old city of Edinburgh was brought
to mind. But the city is clean, the
streets we'll metaled with broken
sand of the disintegrated granite
There are 4,500 Portuguese, so other
foreign residents, 1900 Chinese; but
the Chinese live in houses built after
the Portuguese model. The houses
were kalsomined in blue, or pink, or
yellow. In the yellow style with white
scroll work ornamentation, thought
I saw the original of our American
architecture. The headquarters Of the
military was decidedly Moorish, and
from that apparently has come the
three and four storied balconies OF
Macao and subsequently Hong Kong
1t is absolutely necessary in Hong
Kong to give some shelter from the
suns rays; and there, too, the height
is necessary because building ground
| is so limited.
| The streets were lined with banyaI
or pagoda trees. Their big sprawlins
| roots seemed like the suckers of the
octopus, drawing their food from the
very cement of the side walks. Ole
churches were numerous, one was IL
ruins, one was being repaired; but the
work was done in a very leisurely
way. The church that was burned was