The Hawaiian gazette., 1909-06-15
CAPTAIN BARBER
AND HIS SHIP

Few people there are here, except
among those who have been in the
Islands for many years or have stud
led the history of them, who under
stand why so many haole names are
of Nature. BARRIERS Point, on the
coast of Oahu. for instance, was NAM
ed after Captain Barber, whose vessel
was wrecked there in the days when
Kamehameha / was on the throne.
Captain Trip, assistant harbormaster
than whom there are few having a
more intimate, first-hand knowledge
of the natives in the early days, tells
an interesting story regarding Captain
Barber. Captain Trip does not know
exactly the year that BARRIERS ship
was wrecked, but he thinks it must
have been about 1918 or thereabouts,
for 1t was while Kamehameha was at
the height of his power. The latter
died in 1919.
Captain Barber came from the New
England States,' said Captain Trip,
"and his vessel was loaded with rum
He anchored off the coast here, and
sent samples of his liquor ashore to
the King. Kamehameha tasted it,
found it good, and gave Barber a
liberal order. When the stuff vas sent
| ashore, however, it was found that 1t
had been watered to a great extent,
and Kamehameha didn't like it.
In the meantime, however, Captain
Barber had taken his ship up North
trading. He came back in the course
of time with a miscellaneous cargo,
composed, in the main, of valuable
furs. In beating up the coast of Oahu,
| his vessel was lost at BARRIERS Point,
and the most of the cargo was either
washed or carried ashore. The King
was at that time over in the noun
tains of Hawaii, making canoes, and
the natives took a number of liberties
with BARRIERS cargo which the latter
greatly resented. They packed away
the furs, refusing to give them up.
80 Barber and another white man
who lived on the island got a big
canoe and went over to Hawaii to
talk the matter over with the King.
Kamehameha greeted them very pleas
antly, apparently having forgotten
the fact that Captain Barber had wa
| tered the rum which he had sold to His
| Majesty. But Kamehameha hadn't
forgotten. He had a big demijohn of
whisky in the mountains with him
and he offered the white man who was
with Barber a drink. The sea-captaln
was ignored entirely. Barber, who had
a genuine sea-dog's thirst, then ask
ed the King for a drink. Kameha-
meha laughed, and said: You DOM
like whisky; you only like water.
And he wouldn't give him drink.
But Kamehameha was angry at his
subjects on Oahu for stealing the
cargo, furs, ETC., of Captain BARRIERS
wrecked ship. So he gave Barber g
little wooden bowl, covered with 6
piece of white tapa, telling him tC
show it to the sub-chiefs on Oahu
Barber and the haole who accompanied
him then returned to Oahu, via canoe
"They showed the bowl to the chief.
without taking the Empowering of
at first, but it produced no effect
Finally they took the tapa off, anC
inside, set around the inner edges o
the bowl, were the teeth of the chief!
who had dared to oppose the authority
OF the Great Chief. Kamehameha. Blu
there was a vacant space, the circle
had not been filled! 1t was an ominoui
threat, and it produced an instantane
Gus effect The Oahu chiefs had nj
desire to have trouble with Kameha
meha.
$50 every fur, every thing down L
a needle, that had been taken from
BARRIERS cargo was restored to tn
owner by the natives"