The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1899-06-16

held every sunday morning IN the lee.
turc room ~ the North Pacific Mis-
sionafy Institute, where for 20 long 4
time Dr. Hyde aud his associates have
been laboriBg to raise up Hawaiian
pastors and missionaries This school
has kindly consented TO help us. In
order to aid them In representing the
way In which they have risen from the
horrible pit and mlry clay Of heathen-
Ism 10 a plane of Christian civilization
not to be desslsed, they are now bring
ing a symbolic ladder of ten rounds, a
stepping stone, as II were, to Jacobs
Ladder" As they enter. singing In
Gilbertese "The Gospel Ship is Sail
ing" you will see the bottom Of the lad
der standing In mire, symbolic of their
former condition.; at the top minia-
ture plain. symbolic OF a Gilbertese
Christian civilization, on which are a
Icross. n church, a schOol-house, a store,
a courthouse and a jail. How they
climbed this ladder they will try to
show you.
Upon their arrival In our midst fif-
teen questions will be asked them by
their leader, whose wife Is a Gilbert
| Islander. but he himself native OF
| the TOkelau cluster. Several of the
| questions will be answered In concert
in Gilbertese In single sentences.
TRANSACTIONS and fuller answers to
most Of the questions will be read
from papers which they have In their
hands, written in English for them.
After the entrance Of the Gilbert
Islanders the following questions and
answers were given:
or what nationality are you?
We are Gilbert Islanders, represent
atives OF people numbering some
thirty thousand, dwelling on eighteen
low coral islands lying on the equa-
tor. some two thousand miles south
west Of Honolulu, as you may see on
this map before you.
For what object have you come be-
fore this congregation
We desire to aid the Hawaiian
Board in their efforts today to in
crease your interest in the duty OF
preaching the Gospel to every creature
by showing you some of the results
of their attempt to elevate our people,
through the blessing OF God, from bar
barism to q fair degree Of Christian
civilization.
What was the condition OF your peO-
pie when the missionaries in the
Morning Star" first came to reside
among you in 1857!
II was most pitiable. We were saw
ages. living in wretchedness and pow
erty. our annual exports not exceed
ing So per capita, and these expended
mainly in purchasing tobacco. rum,
guns and powder. Multitudes Of our
men and boys, and even our girls to|
the age OF ten or twelve. often wore
no clothing whatever, and our women
from highest to lowest only wore the
me woman who stands near me. The
riri Is cOcoanut leaf fringe which
will not bear washing.
Our houses generally had no sides.
We sat and slept on mats on the
ground. We ate fish, cocOanuts, pan
danus, papai Ga species OF coarse
taro, the Hawaiian ape. We were
not cannibals. nor did we eat mice,
but we did eat lice. Our mode Of the
care of the bodies of our dead would
not bear description before you; 1t
was most loathsome. Our widows.
prompted by affection, often carried
with them the skulls Of their hus-
bands. We worshipped false gods,
mostly rude stones set up in the sand.
The wooden idol which you see in the
hand of my neighbor Is a missionary
trophy which our teacher procured on
Marakei in 1860. We were exceed
ingly superstitious, dark-minded, ig-
EnnwlpIpp
reading and writing. without books:
yea, so ignorant Tat we robbed one
| of the first mails to arrive Tor the
| missionaries on Apaiang. distributing
| the letters ana papers among our
| selves, and some Of us even eating
them, having mixed them with cocoa
nut molasses. thinking them to BE-
| food from foreign lands. We were
without the knowledge OF the true
| God. We were in perishing need OF
the great salvation Of Christ, for, as
Paul truly says of such heather as we
were. we were more or less filled with
all "unrighteousness, fornication'
| wickedness, covetousness, malicious
! ness. full of envy murder, debate, de-
| ceit, malignity, whisperers, backDit-
| ers. despiteful, proud, boosters, in
yentors of evil things, disobedient 10
parents, without understanding, COW
| enant breakers, without natural aTec-
ton, implacable, unmerciful," and,
might add, often very abusive of our
| wives.
How did you treat the Missionaries
In those early days?
Many of our people treated them
kindly, some with Indifference. and q
flew with marked barbarity. The KING
of Apaiang, whose coat OF mail no"
have on, very cordially welcomed I'M
missionaries when they came to MI
shores and slept by the little cottage
which had been brought on the Morn
ing star" while it was being put up
Hest thieves should carry of the lum
! ber He was slain in battle thre
: months later.
We are greatly ashamed to say tina
= after residence of missionarie
: among us for eleven years, one OF on
: number shot Rev. Mr.. Mahoa In MI
Bingham's house, and later on som
|, lof our people tore down the house an
h carried off the boards for Dulldlh
4 | rhnu algn DESTROYED MI