The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-05-31

Il wished I had never opened school. as
one by one tired heads dropped and big
eyes grew dim. AS a rule, this means
lack of breakfast, and the sleepy one is
sent home to eat. But no, they had all
eaten. Then l found that one and all
had been to the "polealea," similar to
the Irish wake. The childrens transla-
ton is "a happy time for the wailing
is interrupted by eating, drinking, sing
ing and dancing, which program is kept
up till morning dawns. At 2 l dismissed
school, as the coffin brought that morn
ing from Honolulu was borne to the
grave by the native men. Women of all
degrees of adiposity, clad in the dress
designed by the missionaries, the holo-
ku, followed, chatting and laughing. A
short prayer in native was said by the
oldest son and then one by one the ma
tives passed the open grave, dropping a
flower and a stone on the coffin for the
peaceful resting of the departed. On the
childrens return to school / asked why
they staid all night and did not go nome
| to get some sleep. '''Fraid,' they all
replied in thrilling tones. "Of what?"
said skeptical l. Ghosts said they.
And When l asked how many had ever
seen a ghost my skepticism was unavail-
ing, 1 saw nearly every hand raised.
One boy volunteered the information he
had seen the ldte departed's ghost, Tall
and all in white OF course there is
real grief at some beloved ones death,
for on Hawaii / met native man who,
crazed by his young daughters death,
had refused consolation and for days at
time would sit on a rock by the ocean
wailing and refusing nourishment. But
as rule the native grief is not deep
and shows the childlike characteristics of
the race.
One peculiar quality of the children's
minds is the ability to memorize words
which convey no meaning to their intel
ligence. When I began to teach them
''Hiawatha" l gave them the lines to
learn
Downward through the evening twilight
In the days that are forgotten.
and the following four lines as an ex-
pertinent simply pronouncing the words.
with no explanation. The next day these
six unintelligible lines were repeated cor
rectly but. oh, the Tightening of faces
when | explained carefully the meaning.
Talk of lotus blossoms and poppy flowers,
| of soft haze on a Shimmering sea to
produce a torpid condition! Why, all 1
have to do is to speak gently the magic
word arithmetic to see every muscle
grow limp and dull, unseeing eyes.
defy the professors Of mathematics in
| all the eastern colleges to hold these
children's attention more than 10 min
utes
To them singing is the one unmixed
joy of school life. When the term opened
their repertoire of English songs were
| '"Toiling on Casting ALL ITO the
work" and "Kiawe tree" These are the
titles they gave. Besides these they
knew innumerable and amending hulas.
as the native song and dance is termed.
THE dance is that interesting one where
1.-THE ladies move their BELTS" as young
man politely described the Hawaiian
"danse du ventre." The songs are nearly
all so bad as to be untranslatable. though
the airs are beautiful
| Their knowledge of geography was
istartling in the extreme. In mentioning
lcities. London. Paris and New York
brought not a CLEAN to their question
ling eyes. But when I casually mentioned
\ ST. Louis and Milwaukee, their faces
frightened. Oh. yes, they all knew those
places. Why? Simply-oh We shades of
missionaries Observation-Disclosures special
brands of beer were made there. OF
course, this little school must not be
thought of as sample one, for nearer
Honolulu and in the city the schools
compare most favorably with those of
1.-THE far East. 1t is only in the districts
far away from the influence of the better
class of whites that the native Hawai-
| ians are still living very near to their
primitive life 1t is a terrible fact to
realize that it is the vileness of our
white brothers that is adopted by these
children of civilization not 100 years
old 1t is only when one meets a re-
| fined highly-bred Hawaiian, polished by
travel and eastern schools, that one can
see the power for good we Americans
have over the tractable native.
| In some ways it seems hopeless task
| to permanently influence these children,
SO utterly devoid of morality, few of
whose parents speak English, and whose
environment gives them little chance to
come in contact with the better class
| of haoles, as the white race is termed.
| But always before my mind Is the
knowledge of the progress of the Hawai-
| ian people in 100 years, and that even
| in this small way I am helping to the
upward life one of the kindliest peoples
| on this fair earth.