The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1906-05-03
Ned Keller Writes Another Letter

DEAR SISTER, promised you would
tell you something of these islands and
their people, I'll begin where left off in
writing to Bert and you can send him
this and he can send you the one L
wrote him.
AS the ship neared the dock after six
days on the ocean, was glad to again
see land with a city, and people moving
about. My first impression of the city
as we drew near enough to distinguish
people, was, truly here is a cosmopolitan
city, for at one glance one could see
representatives of many nations. Here
peering through the closed gates were
English, American, Chinese, Japanese,
native Hawaiian, a very few Negro and
a mixture of any and all races.
The natives attracted our attention
the most as the husky dock hands and
;stevedores deftly made fast the ship
and proceeded with representatives to
unload both passengers and the mail.
We fingered on deck as the passengers
filed down the gang plank to be met by
friends or wend their way to the var
ious hotels. The natives are, as a
whole. a fine lot Their chief attraction
being a fine physique, large, beautiful,
brown eyes and smooth, rich, ripe
olive complexion, not the green olive
YOU see in bottles, but the ripe olive of
southern California. The race is so
mingled with other races that rarely
YOU find full blood native. The early
missionaries to these islands doing their
work we'll, as they usually do; most OF
the natives claiming direct dependency
from some Of them. They also estab'
Aished many churches, as most all de-
nominations are represented here and
have large following. The people are
good natured peaceable lot, taking
rapidly to Christianity and making good
American citizens-Uncle Sam doing
WE'LL for himself and they, when he an
nexed them.
The passengers all being off, we gath
cred our luggage and descended the
plank to be met by score OF men
women and maids, known as flower ven
ders, willing to part with their "leis'
for "the coin of the Realm
We boarded car and were whirlec
rapidly through the business streets tt
the Royal Hawaiian Hotel where we
procured lodging.
This hotel is picturesque spot ant
deserves few words OF description
1t is large rambling structure built D.
the late King Kalakana situated in tn
center of block surrounded by cot
tages and bungaloes which belong t.
the hotel proper and intermingle'
among them all are semi-tropical trees
shrubs and flowers. The palm, banana
cocoanut, algeroba and many others ar
in evidence. We took dinner that even
ing on the broad lanai (porch) in tn
balmy, perfumed air with birds singin
in the trees while native orchestr
= ho Ia Io0
Schitf and his party, bound for Japal
were seated at the table next us, bu
that did not disturb our appetites nc
prevent us enjoying the whole. Earl
the next morn we were awakened b
the song of the birds. These same biro
while we were at breakfast would aligf
upon a chair or a table here or there
gather the crumbs.
Breakfast over we proceed to til
water front to witness the departure
the large steamer "Manchuria" boun
for the Orient. And sight it was.
wish 1 was able describe it all. TT
great vessel, 615 feet long, 60 feet wild
and standing 80 feet above the water
the hurrican deck, with a displacemel
of $4,000 tons, is truly city in herse
And the feeling one experiences as OF
watches one of these ocean liners d
part from the dock out into the fathor
less, tractless, ever restless ocean,
very different from watching an EXPIRE
train wend it's way from station ov
a well defined and substantial track.
Our first chances took in the situate
as a whole, the rows of cabs, the fru
and flower vendors, the throng on tt
wharf and upon the boat. Then locs
lied groups of Americans, English, ia
anese, Chinese and natives bidding