The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1909-01-11
From Honolulu to Vancouver
By Alexander Hume Ford.

There were those on the Makura who
had come out, on this her first VOYAGE.
from Glasgow, bound for America. She
is a palatial boat, $3.50 tons, can make
IS knots an hour and did make Is. so
that the trip from Honolulu to Victoria
was accomplished within seven DAYS.
There is one innovation made bv the
Makura; above the dining saloon is the
ladies saloon, no smoking here even
about the big fireplace of blazing logs
that graces one end of the sumptuous
parlor finished in pink damask Above
the ladies saloon is still another pala.
tial parlor, for ladies, mind you, who
do-smoke, or who don t object to their
escorts who smoke. None of the ladies'
aboard who smoked were American, for
which favor, the gods be praised. Alas.
it is not always SO.
The table on the Makura was equal
TO any on the Atlantic greyhounds.
save that the usual Australasian horror
of green peas as a vegetable, or in any
other form, was displayed with the
usual ardor, although delicious aspara-
gus and still more expensive fresh crisp
celery was always on the table. There
was lack of chicoryless coffee, but
then Grey of the Moana is the only
Australian bred steward | ken of
who will serve real Kona, strong as you
wish it and without chicory. [ am
placing these facts before the head of
the commissariat department in Van
couver and hope to convince him that
it is the seeming trifes that count at
sea and that such a floating palace as
the Makura should be fiawless in every
| respect. Real coffee with no "mix-
ture' in small letters on the original
PACKAGE and the violation of the Aus
| tralian rule of no green peas aboard
| ship would create perfection in travel
on the Makura between Honolulu and
Canada. 1t was rough voyage, but
few realized that the weather was
stormy, so steady was the boat Sew
eral round-the world voyagers aboard
pronounced her the steadiest ship they
had ever boarded-and | believe she is.
| One passenger on the Makdra whom
| / hope to have with me in Hawaii for
a mountaineering tramp about the is,
| IduuS IS -. OI AbHuOu, the
famous mountain climber. f. R. G. s..
author of celebrated work on Sibe-
rian mountain climbing that won him
a medal from the Russian government,
and the only man who has ever crossed
over the summit of Mt. Cook in New
| Zealand. Our Russian and Siberian ex-
/ periences formed a bond of sympathy
and when / dwelt on the mountain
| trails of Oahu, the crater of Haleakala
and the big mountains of Hawaii,
Turner agreed to come back with me
/ next year to Hawaii and we will ex.
plore. He will bring his wife and chill
dren, leaving them in Honolulu. We
both believe that book on mountain
climbing in Hawaii is needed-we need
it anyway, and there seems only one
way to get it. Mr.. Turner is to be my
pupil on the surfboard, I follow him
mountain climbing.
We had five evening hours in Vic
toria and started out for the nearest
| Seafood restaurant, where / met my
first Puget Sound crab fifteen years
ago. Victoria seemed a struggling vii
lage then compared to what she has
| since become. Crabs as big as soup
plate were then given away gratis with
a small steak order; now they are a
luxury. We ate big one, each, were
beguiled to a theater by an advertise
ment of a Hawaiian sextet and came
| back for more. The crabs were good
the sextet was bad-very bad. There
was one-half Hawaiian in the group, a
hapapake, and the rest-well they look
ed like malihinis, they sang like mali
hinis, and / believe they were mali
hinis. Yet, although they sang but one
song that might by any evasion be call
ed Hawaiian, "Tomi,' they were en-
cored again and again as the star feat
ure of the bill; which only demonstrates
that the stranger does go in raptures
over the music of Hawaii. I prefer il
to this day to any in the world-for
pleasure without intellectual effort
and / know that it will pay Hawaii tC
give more attention to her native sing
sing "Aloha Oe' / don t think they
| knew it.
Turner and I discussed the great vast
reaches of mountain valleys seen from
Puget Sound; valleys and mountain
peaks that would take weeks to ex
plore, and for what? One continuous
tramp through pine anu snow. Tuge'
Sound is wonderful. Next to the sound:
of New Zealand perhaps the most awe
inspiring stretch of mountain ani
water vistas in the world. But there
is no such grouping as in Hawaii, the
world s jewel box of surprises. Fol
lonely overpowering grandeur, Puge'
Sound and mountains, yes For invit
ing, enticing, embracing, resistles'
mountain charm, Hawaii. That is the
conclusion Turner and | reached, and
like Turner, for he has done something
and even at glance he recognized the
fact that he had left the best undone
and he is going to rectify that by do
ing Hawaii as only an experienced
thrill-loving mountain climber can do oul
most difficult and interesting peaks
Hawaii and her mountains for mine
with Turner, that I may know the lani
I love as + wish to know it and make
others know it.
l take off my hat to the Puget Sound
transportation companies. What al
example they set Hawaii. They really
| set out to tempt the tourist and they
succeed. / hope to take up the matter
of combination cruises from Hawai- ant