The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-01-03

grower who taught Robert Louis Steven
son how to play poker. spent a few days
in Washington last week. He is a typical
California ranch-OWner in appearance
the sort of man that Stevenson indicated
a liking for in many of his works.
4 met Stevenson when I went down
to the islands TO look after the coffee
raising business in Hawaii. about eight
years ago said Mr.. NOrthrup. steven
son was then living with his family in
comfortable frame house at Waikiki, a
pretty suburb of Honolulu. Every day he
would come to Honolulu in diSreputable-
looking old top buggy. driven by a Ka-
naka boy. On these occasions he would
dismiss his cOachman for an hour or two
and prOwl cOntentedly through the streets
of Honolulu. He would usually wind up
these tours by repairing to the docks,
where he would engage the Kanaka long
shOremen in talk Che could speak their
Ianguage Weld, and PICK up folklore sto-
rieS about them. treating them generously
to their beloved saki the while. COmpar-
atively short as StevensOn's residence was
in Honolulu, I suppose he got to know
more Of the Kanakas there and was bet
ter liked by them than many of the white
residents who have spent years in the
islands.
THAT'S STEVENSON
Z was down at the wharf one afternoon
when the American steamer came in A
Honolulu newspaper man was with me.
He pointed out to me man leaning alb
watching the debarkation of the DaSSen-
gers. He was q dark, thin man, with
Chinese-sort Of nloustache, dressed in
spoJleSS white duck. and, pulled somewhat
over his large, piercing eyes, he wore a
broad-brimmed straw hat with a wreath
of red and white flowers around it.
That's Stevenson, my newspaper
friend told me.
The man that wrote the Silverado
SCuatters? I asked. for ! had read the
book, and it had struck me as being a
,fr-I,+ a1e oh
much about the writer. except that MS
name was Stevenson, and that he was a
consumptive Scotchman. I told the news
paper man that ! would like to meet Ste
VensOn. 50 he took me over to him.
" Friend of mine from the coast, who
raises grapes, was the way the newspaper
man presented me TO the Scotchman.
Stevenson seemed to catch at the words,
and he sized me UP and gave me q grip
with his long. bony hand. which had a lot
Of strength in it for a man who looked so
delicate.
Stevenson rolled cigarettes necessarily
as he talked. and his whole left hand was
yellow with them. l mentioned this cigar
cite business to him one day.
&" 1 should think those things would
damage you some 1 said.
Doubtless they do he replied. More
over. l fear the vice is unamiable in the
noStrils of men not addicted to it. Yet /
hardly feel equal to the punishment of
abandoning them
a GREAT STORY-TELLER.
After the first visit Stevenson invited
me to drop round, states fashion,, any
evening. and l was glad of the invitation,
for he was a good fellow-he spoke the
language of my tribe, as We say out on
the slope l got into the habit of driving
out to SteVenSons Waikiki house couple
OF times a week, always in the evening,
and generally in company with the news
paper man who presented me to him. The
newspaper man was a Chicago boy, who
now owns $40 acres of the finest coffee
land in bearing on the mainland of
Hawaii. The three of US would sit on the
second story veranda of Stevenson
house smoking. slipping whisky and talk
ing 1 think Stevenson did most of the
talking although never in an obtrusive
sort of way. He talked in so low tone
that sometimes wee have to bend toward
him in the darkness TO catch his words.
The dullest man in the world couldn't
help but see that Stevenson was a first
rater, q man among many millions, after
five minutes conversation with him. he
was an admirable Story-teller, too and an
excellent mimic-Which latter fact I've
never seen pointed out by the people who
have written of him. l happened TO men
ton one evening that when l was a pretty
young fellow l had fitted up q schooner
at San Francisco and done a couple of
wears of profitable trading in the south
Pacific. The information / had picked
up on this voyage about the islands below
the line seemed 10 interest Stevenson a
good deal and he asked me many ques-
lions that StumDed me a bit-for he
wanted to know chiefly about the personal
characteristics of the natives. to whom /
never paid more attention than was
needed to get the greatest quantity of
their cochineal and conches for the small
est quantity of cotton and beads when 1
was trading
ARE YOU. A GOOD PLAYER?'
zone evening. when the wind was pretty
high, and sitting on the veranda was