The Washington herald., 1914-05-17
and the wharf. A Mr.. McVeigh, the SD

ana the wharf,. a MT. MCVefgh, inc su'
perintendent of the settlement, was over.
seeing the embarkation, and to MIN
was introduced, also to DR.. Georges, one
of the board of health physicians whom
had already met at Kalihi. The lepers
were a woebegone lot But here and
there I noticed fairly good-looking per
sons, with no apparent signs of the fell
disease upon them. One, l noticed, a
little white girl, not more than twelve,
with blue eyes and golden hair. One
cheek, however, showed the sign. On
my remarking upon the sadness of her
alien situation among the brown-skinned
afflicted ones, DR.. Georges replied:
"Oh, I don't know. It's happy day
in her life. She comes from Kauai. Her
father is brute. And now that she has
developed the disease, she is going to
join her mother at the settlement. Her
mother was sent down three years ago
a very bad case"
"You can't always tell from appear
ances," Mr.. McVeigh explained. THAT
man there, that big chap, who looks the
pink of condition with nothing the mat
ter with him, happen to know, has a
mark on his foot and another on his
shoulder blade. Then there are others
there, see that girls hand, the one who
is smoking the cigaret. See her twisted
fingers. That's the anaesthetic form II
attacks the nerves. You could cut her
fingers off with dull knife, or rub them
off on a nutmeg crater and she would
not experience the slightest sensation"
Yes, but that fne-looking woman,
there" I persisted; surely, there can't
be anything the matter with her. She is
too glorious and gorgeous altogether"
"A sad case" Mr.. McVeigh an
swered over his shoulder, already turn
ing away to walk down the wharf with
kersdale.
She was beautiful woman, and she
was pure Polynesian. From my meager
knowledge of the race and its types /
could not but conclude that she had de-
scended from old chief stock. She could
not have been more than twenty-three OF
twenty-four. Her lines and proportions
were magnificent, and she was just be-
ginning to show the amplitude Of the
women of her race.
1T was a blow to all of US" DR.
Georges volunteered. She gave herself
up voluntarily, too. No one suspected
But somehow she had contracted the
disease. 1t broke US all up, assure you
We've kept it out of the papers, though.
Nobody but ourselves and her family
knows what has become of her. In fact,
if you were to ask any man in Homo
lulu, he'd tell you it was his impression
that she was somewhere in Europe. 1t
was at her request that we've been SO
quiet about it."
But who is she?" l asked. Certain
ly, from the way you talk about her, she
must be somebody"
did you ever hear of Lucy Moku-
nui?"
Lucy Mokunui?" l repeated, haunted
by some familiar association l shook
my head. 1T seems to me I've heard the
name, but I've forgotten it"
Never heard of Lucy Mokunui! The
Hawaiian nightingale! | beg pardon.
Of course you are malahini NEW
comer) and could not be expected to
know. Well, Lucy Mokunui was the
best beloved of Honolulu-of all Hawaii,
for that matter"
you say was" 1 interrupted
And mean it She is finished" He
shrugged his shoulders pityingly. "A
dozen haoles-I beg your pardon, white
men-have lost their hearts to her at one
time or another. And I'm not counting
in the ruck. The dozen l refer to were
haoles of position and prominence
"She could have married the son of
the chief justice if she'd wanted to. You
think-she's beautiful, Ell? But you should
hear her sing. Finest native woman
singer in Hawaii Nei. Her throat is pure
silver and melted sunshine. We adored
her She toured America first with the
Royal Hawaiian Band. After that she
made two more trips on her own account
concert work"
"Oh| l cried. 81 remember now.
heard her two years ago at the Boston
Symphony. So that is she. l recognize
her now"
/ was oppressed by a heavy sadness.
Life was a futile thing at best. A short
two years and this magnificent creature
at the summit of her magnificent sue
cess was one of the leper squad await
ing deportation to Molokai.
l recoiled from my own future. If
this awful fate fell to Lucy Mokunui,
what might not my lot be-or anybody's
lot? l was thoroughly aware that in
life we are in the midst of death-but
to be in the midst of living death, to
die and not be dead, to be one of that
draft of creatures that once were men,
aye, and women, like Lucy Mokunui, the
epitome of all Polyresian charms, an