The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1898-12-01
YAKIMA 5 SOLDIER BOYS
Chatty Letter From HOnOIuIu--H0w
Co. L. Stood the Trip.
THE MlSERIES OF NAL DE MER
The Paradise Of the Paeific-The Dolce far
Nlente-Our Soldier Boys Enraptured
With the Islands-Queer Sights
and Sensations
THE MISERIES OF NAL DE MER
Letters From Sergeant Leach.

Francisco, $50 miles from Honolulu,
Nov. 4, 1898.
Dear father, mother, sisters and broth
ers: This is my seventh day on the great
Pacific, with nothing in sight but water
and fog. We have made very good run
from Frisco, in fact made much better
time than we expected, although the
ocean has been very rough at times. and
about all person can do is to get good
hold on the rail OF the boat and hang on,
for the boat jumps so hard sometimes
that it piles US all up in a heap together.
This is positively the toughest experience
have ever had, and 1 am sore all over
from the bumps | get on the side Of the
boat. The second day out was the
toughest one we have had. We were in
pretty hard storm, and the sight never
will forget. The boys seemed to all get
sick at once, and out of the 900 on board
don't think there 20 we'll ones and it
was sight to see the poor fellows hang
ing over the rail. 1t looked as though
they would throw up their boots and
their socks too; but | was one of the
lucky ones, and didn't have to line up
with them in fact l have felt extra fine
ever since | left, excepting a headache.
This way of travelling is not to my liking,
for the scenery never changes, and about
the only amusement we have is watch
~ ~ ~, A,,;, G,L n &c
quite sight to see whole school of fish
rise up out of the water and fly for
hundred yards and then dive into the
water again. The whales come up on
top of the water and splash around and
seem to amuse themselves. Well, We
expect to reach some of the Sandwich
islands this afternoon, and Honolulu to-
morrow morning. The island that we
pass today is the one they keep the peo-
pie on who have leprosy.
We boys from Washington were given
the greatest reception that has been ten
dered any regiment which has left Frisco
during the war, and there were enough
tears shed to float our transport; and
they were the pure ,stuff-no onion juice
mixed with them. 1t is so warm here
that we boys have to shed our blue
clothes and heavy underwear, and all
we wear is our linen pants and Bingham
shirt. and we sleep on top of our blank
cts. 1t keeps person busy to keep up
with the time, and we have to turn our
watches back half an hour every day to
keep up with the time in the United
States. When it is one o'clock here it is
about three where you are. We are trav-
cling in what they call the Australian
current" now, and the water is so rough
that have to hold on to my seat with
one hand and to write with the other, so
am going to quit, and finish this letter
when get to Honolulu.
Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands, Novem-
Der 6.-We arrived here this morning
about AS, and after we were inspected
by the quarantine officers we were al
lowed to go on shore and get square
meal, the first since leaving Frisco. At
ter that was over We were turned loose to
take in the city, so Herman Leeper and
l went together in the forenoon. We
took in the business part of the city;
then in the afternoon we hired a couple
bicycles and went out to see some of the
country, and have come to the conclu-
sion that this is tie most beautiful place
eve. saw or heard of. This island is
about 60 miles long and II to 20 miles
wide, with beautiful rolling hills covered
with grass and orange, lemon, banana,
cocoanut and date trees, and the houses
are little low huts covered all over with
moss and vines. The city OF Honolulu
is place of thirty Thousand inhabitants;
six thousand of whom are Americans,
and the other "a 900 are mixed race of
Chinese, japanese and kanakas. The
city itself don't think much of; there
are too many Cinnamon in it; the streets
are very crooked and only about half as
wide as the streets where you are, and
in the business part they have hardly
any sidew alks. The natives here are
study for us boys. They have some very
peculiar ways about them, but they seem
to be up-to.date in almost everything.
They hardly ever walk anywhere. The
white people ride bicycles and the natives
ride horseback or in horse cars, and in
carts with men to draw them. There are