The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1907-01-04

them. The only time 1 ever had the
least idea of direction was on swim
ming days when / was in the water at
Waikiki and could look off beyond the
harbor out where the sun was setting |
behind Barber's Point. The sun always |
seemed to be setting on the bias, but
1 suppose the trouble was with the
town which seems to have been laid out |
without consideration for north, south,
east or west.
As substitute for the points of
compass which we know, the residents
have chosen very unique though ex-
pressive way, if provincial, of des-
ignating direction. In front of the
town lies the sea, at its back the noun |
tains. In another direction lies Wal
kiki, the noted beach resort, while In
the opposite direction several miles
away lies the great Eva pronounced
Evva) sugar plantation and cane mill.
If you ask for the Office of the Oceanic |
Steamship company, you are told 1t IS
"makai of King street, " 'makai -
meaning "in the direction of the sea-.
If you wish to know where is located
the High School, you are told it is |
''mauka'' Tin the direction of the |
mountalns) of Beretania street on En-
ma. The Young Hotel is waikiki of |
Fort street, while Kamelfameha |
Schools are EVA of Fort street" This
is the universal expression of direction |
that one hears in Honolulu-never any
thing else, and even though you are |
malihini of but two weeks standing |
you find yourself dropping into this
form of expression as naturally as If |
you mad always been accustomed to it. |
This getting used to things, the feel |
ing-at -homeness is characteristic of |
the place. Just as easily as the stranger /
is taken into the hearts and tie homes |
of the people so does the stranger in |
turn accept them and their ways till
after a few weeks he feels quite at |
home and as if he had always lived |
there.
During the two months of my stay |
in the islands l could not once realize !
a sense of distance. 1 did not feel a |
mile farther away from home than
when | am in San Francisco and now
as l look back the islands do not seem |
so very far away.
NEW STEAMSHIP LINE.
The one thing which the people of
Honolulu desire more than anything
else just now is the establishment of a
line of steamers between San Pedro
but that Southern California would be
the rgainer if such line could be es-
tablished. The trip can be made just
as quickly from San Pedro as from
San Francisco, and the rough weather
and bad seas which sometimes prevail
about the Golden Gate would be thus
escaped. The people OF the Hawaiian
Islands are liberal spenders. They buy
as they live, open-heartedly, open
handedly. Immense quantities OF things
are brought into the port of Honolulu
the steamer line were established
Southern California instead of the
north would get much of this vast
trade.
1t seems as if fortune could be
made in lemons alone. For lemons
are at a premium in the islands. You
call for lemonade and half the time
you get poor substitute made of
lines. You scowl at the waiter and you
ask wherefore No lemons to be had,
he assures you. Two nights later when
you do get lemonade you have the
pleasure of paying 20 cents for it
unless it doesn't happen to be your
treat. "How much lemons?' you ask
the Chinese vender of fruit as you stop
before pile of infnitesimal lemons that
would almost require the services of
microscope to be seen. Fifty cents
uOZeH, ue feSpouuS. ou "ohe ooy
| Shortly before 1 came away some
friends were giving tea. The morn
| ing of the day came and no lemons for
the punch. The ship bringing them
was late and there passed two or three
hours of suspense before a few pre-
eious lemons were found at a price out
of all proportion. Now it would seem
that with lemons going to waste for
want of some one to use them as l
have seen them in Pasadena, that if we
had this steamship line somebody might
feature the lemon trade and make some
money. Cabbages, caulifowers, apples
fowls, nuts, raisins, and quantities of
other things are shipped in; why not
from here's Great consignments of
goods go from San Francisco for the
shops, why not some of these from Los
Angeles' These are the questions which
the islanders are asking. Then, too, the