The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1903-12-29
FRIEND OF
KALAKAUA
Oregon's Com.
mander Here
in 1887.

Captain w. T. Burwell, Of the bat
tleship oregon, was in command of one
of the American war vessels in port
during the revolution of 1887 the first
of the revolts against King Kalakaua
by his people. Captain Burwell has
fund of interesting stories regard
ing his visit during those stirring times
when he became one of the Kings in
innate friends.
"Those were busy days" said the
gallant captain to an Advertiser re-
porter. II used to take my men out
every day for a drill through the
streets. The people wouldn't let us
spend a cent. Telephones were run
out to the ships in the harbor and the
telephone girls were kept busy calling
up the officers aboard. 1t got to be
very much of a nuisance.
Il remember one incident of the 1887
revolution, particularly well. One
night after midnight, King Kalakaua
came out to my ship in a boat, in a
great state Of excitement. After much
effort he succeeded in awakening me
and L came out, not in the best of
temper for being SO suddenly reused
out of my sleep. But Kalakaua
couldn't be resisted. He told me then
the reason for his midnight journey
1t seems that some one had posted a
placard on the palace gates threaten
ing to kill the king. Kalakaua wanted
me to land my men Immediately in
order to prevent the threatened assas-
fp11
that isn't the way men go about 1t
when they intend to kill some one.
They don't threaten to kill a man and
warn him first. Generally they kill
first and tell about it afterwards Ka-
lakaua wasn't to be pacified by any
such talk, and he insisted on being
protected from the men who had
threatened his life. I finally told him
that the best 1 could do was to take
him to the American consul and so we
finally went and wakened him. The
king repeated the story he had first
told me. The consul didn't like to be
routed out any better than I did, and
was inclined to be little angry at
first. Finally he saw the humor of the
thing too, and between US we managed
to quiet the King and assure him that
he wasn't in any danger.
King Kalakaua was the most hos
pitable man in the Islands and our
officers never lacked for anything
while we were in port. We were al
ways welcome at the palace and when
ever anyone needed any thing special
in the way of refreshment, a visit to
the palace was all that was necessary
laukea, the Kings chamberlain, had
champagne in plenty and there used
to be frequent visits to him.
Captain Burwell also told of the
Kings fondness for cards and related
one incident when Kalakaua played in
a little game of poker at the boat
house for a stretch of forty-eisht
hours. The late Paul Neumann and
a local supplier of provisions to ships
were in the game with the King, which
Captain Burwell was invited to Join.
The King insisted that the game
would be as novel a one as he had
played in, with a king, a lawyer, a
butcher and a naval officer holding
hands.
The revolution of 'S7 was the one in
which a mass meeting of the citizens
of Honolulu insisted upon and obtained
a more liberal constitution. The rev.
olution of 1889 was the one headed by
the late Delegate r. w. Wilcox Quite
a number of the officers on the ships
of the fleet were in Honolulu at various
revolutionary nariO5S