The Hawaiian gazette., 1904-04-05

SALEM, Or, March 14.-Horace Hol
den died at Tillamonk today. aged "a
years. He was an Oregon pioneer of
1874, and man whose experiences in
cluded two years of torture among
savages ip the Pelew Islands.
Holden was born in Hillsboro. n. H.,
in 1910, and al the age of p listed as
a sailor on the Mentor, bound for the
Indian Ocean. The ship was wreck
ed on one of the Pelew Islands, and
Holden and few companions escaped
watery grave. They fell among saw
ages, who stripped them, tattooed them
and employed them with slaves. After
two years of this life Holden was the
only survivor of the party. He finally
induced the savages to place him on
board a passing ship and he was
brought back to America. In 1886 Mr.
Holden married Miss Mary Millin, of
Boston, who died eight years ago. In
1887 he went to the Sandwich Islands
for the purpose of introducing the silk
growing industry. Seven years later he
came to Oregon, settling on a donation
land claim about mile south of Salem,
where he lived until - years ago when
he moved to this city.
In the last four years he has lived
alternately at Salem and Tillamook,
and although nearly century old. his
strength was such that he could walk
considerable distance without ex-
hauston. He left three sons: Horace
F. Holden of Tillamook; Eugene Hol-
den, of Wardner, Idaho, and Theodore
Holden, of New Jersey. The remains
Will be brought to Salem for burial
Horace Holden was exploited on the
mainland not long ago as the first
white man to visit the Hawaiian Is
lands, where it was said he had been
horribly tortured, but this is not true
about his priority, as Holden came
here in 1887.
Horace Holden in early youth was
shipwrecked on the Gilbert Islands
where he suffered many tortures at the
hands of the natives. This story was
published in New York paper few
years ago, but Hawaii was given the
d!scredit of the barbarism.
In 1928 Holden went on his first trip
on a whaler, This vessel was wrecked
in the Pacific and Holden with a COM
panion was thrown on a coral reef on
one of the Gilbert Islands. The two
men We're taken from their perilous
position by a boat crew of savages.
Holden, telling the story some years
before his death, says that when they
landed, they We're Immediately sur
rounded by thousands of natives en-
tirely nude, women as well as men.
There was great excitement on the is
lands, as Holden and his companion
We're the first two white men the ma
tives had ever seen. Greatly Interested
the men and women examined the
white skin of the strangers, plnching
1t to see wherein the difference from
their own tan coloring was For a
while the men We're regarded with SUI
perstitious awe by the natives, but
finally this gave way to contempt, as
they discovered that Holden could not
climb trees, row, and perform athletic
feats in as skillful manner as they
themselves could, They tore the
clothes from the white men to make
them as near like themselves as pos
slble, and this was followed by series
of horrible abuses perpetrated upon the
prisoners, For months Holden and his
companion took turns I'm sleeping and
standing guard, and during an that
time they We're craselesFly watched
by the natives, Al times me two mon
We're tied 60 trees and lcft 10 tho mer-
oy NJ mosquitoes and enats while men.
women and children stood around and
laughed az their antics aH they tried
Ia escape from The pests. Tho men
We're compelled Ga e4t lha food af Tho
Islands W'onkea ANA llaldaua come