The Hawaiian gazette., 1902-12-02
wurt mrs m TINT TROPICS.

WHITE MN w Iht ikOFl'>'
1hs erect ~ ihe tropics upon indi.
.lgan ,nHas in proportion to co. 80
sfrlso tnksn ana tho quantity ard va
r.ty af food consumed There BE- t.th-
Irf loo warm weather. rra,Iding that
che Blr BE- not unduly damp. ana ihai
dwelling places nt, sanitary which ~
v0rs. Tor ihc system than cool weather.
The human race had lts cradle boz
spui-tropiral region. and those OF lts
subdivisions that are native to the
tropics live AZ long ana enjoy as E1"d
health AZ those that are native 90 the
temperate zone. For Instance, the 'guh-
torIal negro Is as sound man a. the
N1rth American Indian. These races
have. In their primitive states, adapted
themselves to their surroundings Ih'lI
dwellings their foods and their aciINi-
ties are all precisely what long cNper-
fence has taught To be best for them
and ii Is only when civilization mas
forced customs upon them inimical to
these. that they have begun To decline
and die.
The civilized man who brings in these
customs and lives up 10 them. soon
complains Of the climate, especially the
tropicpl climate. But the trouble Is
not due to the sunshine so much as II
is to him. He insists, i'm warm coun-
tries. upon eating the same foods ana
as much of them AZ he did In coIu
countries, and at the same time ne
rclaNes in the matter Of the exercise
through which, in a northern climate
he was able to digest his three or four
stout meals per day. 1t Is easy To Sc"
what happens. His liver gets clogsed'
.lis muscles soften, the blood begins to
run sluggishly and he cites himself as
another example Of the fact that
white man and the tropics cannot
agree. But ne is mistaken. They can
agree perfectly If he will only let them.
Honolulu boasts, now and then, OF its
young white men who are taking atm
lrtic ana scholastic honors at main
land schools; and the clogged and sur
feited elders, who eat plenty OF beef ana
pork and always ride when they might
better walk, say that it merely shows
how much better it is for the young
man to be in a cooler climate. But II
happens that all these young fellows
were put into condition here to compete
in tests of mind and body abroad. They
prepared by ample and varied exercise
and a light delight as compared
with what young men eat in the states
for the competitions ahead. Their
muscles and minds were built up here
in the first place; they did not lie fal-
low until awakened and invigOrated by
a breath of cold air.
What the youngsters do the oldsters
may safely adopt. Not that the latter
need go so far as the former in the
prosecution of sports; for, as LORD
Rosebery points out, man after forty
/ may easily override. But regular eX-
ercise, including walking and, If pos
/ sible, swimming; a rigid adhesion to
! the mo- breakfast" rule; a distinct
I leaning towards the foods of the coun-
/ try and away from the heat-producinS
foods Of the north, will soon convince
any one that a sanitary life in the
! tropics is as productive of sound con-
sttutons and longevity as a sanitary
/ life in the temperate zones. AS mat
! ter of fact one ought to thrive better
or a trade wind island like Oahu
| where the temperature keeps at about
/ the same degree of warmth the year
around than in any country where the
system is subjected to the strain OF q
constantly rising and falling thermom'
| meter and barometer and where one
mas to live through, in the course of {
twelvemonth, four sharply accentuateC
seasons.