The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-09-05

In the early winter of 1896 the rolling
little Australia of the SpreckeIs line of
steamships left San Francisco for
Honolulu, and her insufficiency to meet
the eXigencies of a strong side gale,
which blew all the way, made it an
exceedingly unpleasant voyage for all
concerned, says the Commercial Adj
vertiSer.
Among those concerned was an I'M
usually large contingent of Americans,
who lived in and practically owned
Honolulu and the island of Oahu.
They were citizens not only of Hawaii,
but also of the United States. Among
them were merchants and large land
holders, owners of huge sugar planta-
lions. as we'll as more modest piano
tuners and one indiscreet Irishman-an
eXtravagant and babbling detective,
who told his room mate-a globe-trot-
ting American-al about the business
on which he was employed, which was
to hunt out possible political machina-
lions of the poor old Hawaiian queen.
He magnified the Importance of the
queen, thought her a dangerous crea-
ture, and was surprised that the people
on the steamer generally seemed to
admire him (the detective) mo more
than reason
All these AmericanS-who were at
the same time Hawaiians-weTe not at
all satisfied with the large amount
they had already taken unto them
selves. They were very few in num-
berthe men who really constituted
the so-called republic of Hawaii. a re-
public in which the great majority of
the people had no political power
whatever. They had assumed unto
themselves, with the political control
of the islands, also all the financial
and industrial plums, and yet these
men on the Australia, gathered toeeth-
er in the smoking room, spent most of
the day in talking of plans of annexa-
ton to the United States in order to
insure a permanent plutocracy; in
condemning the United States on ac-
count of it's tardy action in gobbling
the islands for the special benefit or
these worldly descendants of mission
aries; in running down the character
of the natives, and in condemning the
righteousness of the Japs, the unintel-
Hgent greed with which these people
tried to bring about condition where
IN a republic, there should be Il GER
tain amount of general representation
At one stage of the voyage a debate
was held in the dining-room after din
ner. The subject was Should Hawaii
Be Annexed?" and the function of
present an easy mark for the affirmers.
But many of these rather Immediate
ly and ingenuously self-interested men
were charming when they forgot the
main object of their lives. Some had
acquired a certain kind of graceful in
dolence from their adopted climate
and the daughters of these men, when
you met them in Honolulu, were apt
to be beautiful and friendly-might
take you out riding by moonlight, in
the soft Hawaiian night, with a pair of
high-bred horses, swift for such eli
mate.
An interesting part of the ships COM
pany were several young French Cath
Ole priests, who were going TO the is
land of Molokai, to take care of the
lepers in the settlement thereto
spend their lives among them, and
probably to die of that dreadful dis
ease. Their cheerfulness was a matter
of Surprise to the pleasure loving globe
trotter, who often conversed with
them. They were particularly gay,
fond of joking with each other, full
of enjoyment of the simplest things.
When they spoke of Molokai they
seemed to think there was nothing pc
culiarly impressive or sad in the mis-
sion.
IF you think Of the end of things
on this EARTH" said one of them, sit all
amounts to the same. Content and
happiness here is a mere mood, and
largely depends on ones faith that
something better is to come. In the
glow of that future infinite the sense Of
horror or misery here has a consoling
triviality which We can practically al
leviate, but cannot take to seriously"
After a six days trip the ship ar
rived one fine morning within sight of
the island of Oahu. on which Honolulu
is situated. The passengers all crowd
ed to the bow. and with eyes made
keen by the warm salt wastes in which
they had rested for six days. enjoyed
with peculiar intensity the ornate bril-
liancy of the Shore-the sioping fields
of sugar cane. of every hue. little knots
of cocoanut trees, hugs clumps of ba-
mana trees. and the richly colorei
mountains to which the farms ascend
ed, the dissolving effect of the waves
on tropical shores; Diamond Head, a
cliff on the right as you pass into the
harbor, shaped like diamond but not
so hard, as the globe trotter ascertainS
when he tries to climb it. for he usually
gives up the job of clamberihg up
steep hill where the ground under his
feet detacheS itself at every step and
rolls to the foot of the cliff.
When we landed and walked through
the town of Honolulu we saw streets
which are like many American towns,
but in no American town is there the
same oppressively rich air-rich with
moist, tropical warmth, with the od0r
of southern fruits and plants, thou
sand sensuous suggestions leading to
repose and forgetfulness of the strug
gle for existence
Cinnamon, Japanese and the pictur
esque Hawaiians mingled on the streets
with white clad Americans. who looked
cooler than any of them, although
more fully clad and not to the tropi-
cal manner born. AT the hotel we
found tropical friuts-the mango. ba-
Observation-Disclosures drinking whisky So
das, plenty of mosquito netting and
garden tepid with rich vegetation. fun
of plants. thick and dangerous, which
seemed to take possession of the space
and TO absorb all the life about them, a
life quality which they again trans
mitted to the air. but with their own
sweetness added.
After dinner the Englishnan and the
globe trotting American rode up
a green, yellow and purple
valley to a neck of land from which
the water on both sides of the island
could be seen, long, hesitating coast
lines on both sides. the sea, pink almost
in the delicacy of it's tone. extending
out and indefinitely merging in sky
just as indefinitely and just as beautf-
fr,lIxr tirfad Thou stood tboro ncrSrir-