Wednesday, Aug 31/98.
The concert by the stewards came off last night & with much success. £3.0.6 was the amount collected. Programmes were printed & supplied to the audience.
Fine breezy morning, expecting to see land soon after breakfast. The island on which Honolulu is situated is called Oahu, pronounced Wahu. After breakfast, & soon after 9, land was sighted by the C. officer, but our unpracticed eyes did not just then pick it up, however, it was soon visible to all. Then excitement sprang up & expectations of getting ashore, wondering how long we should have, & so on. About 11:30, we were nearing the land & saw a large sailing ship leaving the port. Engines stopped at 12:15 to let the doctor on board before entering the harbour. No sickness on board, so on we went. We could see what a beautiful island it was, lovely green vegetation, & the sugar plantations, a peculiarly pretty green, & conspicuous, these running close down to the water edge.[1] Native boats now began to come alongside as we steamed into the port, & we got alongside the jetty at 1 exactly. Entering we saw a very huge, ugly, American war ship laying at anchor, “The Philadelphia”, & close by her was “The Arizona”, the old atlantic liner.[2] She is now a US troop ship & had 1,300 troops on board for Manilla [sic], but as the war was [6:55] was [sic] finished, they put in to Honolulu. The troops were all in camps ashore. The Arizona came into Hong Kong while I was there. The North Pacific Coy., Frank’s company, had her engaged to run from Hong Kong to Tacoma & she got a new funnel after arriving at Hong Kong. Frank & I saw her. Then the US had bought her & put her into use at once. They bought other 2 steamers while I was in Hong Kong, both locally owned, & had them loaded with coal, steam always up, stars & stripes flying, & laying astern of 5 of their war ships ready to follow as soon as orders were given to leave for the Philippines. Many other ships & steamers were in Honolulu harbour, some very big, full riggers.[3] It’s a very important harbour with quay frontage & throng with labour. Quantities of timber is on the wharves & I expect this is imported. Dwelling houses are all built of wood, tho’ there are many very good stone buildings, these principally business premises & hotels. I got ashore at 1:30, went to the post office & despatched all I had ready. Of course, the mail is carried by us. Still I get it out of hands. Besides, the stamps from these various places are an inducement to post, & these will be prized, I dare say, by someone at home. It’s a great rage, the collecting of stamps, everywhere I find.
Orders were given that steamer would sail [6:56] at 9 p.m., so we made the most of our time. Honolulu is a very charming place, very much larger than I had imagined, good streets, trams & busses & buggys [sic], electric light, & quite up to date. The vegetation is most beautiful & so abundant, flowers in great profusion, so varied & so pretty. The town stands on the base of a fine range of hills which makes such a majestic background. Every house has its garden full of tropical plants & some exquisitely designed fronts, laid out so tastefully, each irrigated by pipes & all labor about houses & gardens seemed to be done by Chinee & Japs. There are 30,000 of these two nationalities on this island, & portion of the town is occupied by them, shops & trading, & while in their quarters I feel as tho’ I was in China again. So much labor is required on the island, & the natives are idlers & lazy. They really cannot do without the Chinamen. Certainly they are capital workers. I was struck with the quantity of Chinese laundrys [sic]. This is quite a speciality with them. Men do all laundrying. Then the place was quite overrun with American soldiers. The island had only been annexed 21 days. The US flag hoisted on the palace on the 10th Aug. & every where about town, & on the fronts of residences, there were the stars & stripes displayed. Some with half dozen, others 3 & rarely less than 3. I went to the palace of the late[4] [6:57] late [sic] Queen. This is now the US executive offices & it was on this building the US flag was hoisted. At 5 to 12 o’clock on Wednesday the 10th, the Hawaiian flag was lowered & at 12 precisely, up went the stars & stripes. It’s a very beautiful building, not large, but its grounds are really charming. The deposed Queen was confined in her own palace (the building I have referred to) for nearly 3 months by the Americans. She now lives in a very fine house in the town. The natives are very sore about loosing [sic] their beautiful islands, & well they may be, only it may turn out well for them by & bye [sic]. I took a few snap shots & hope they may turn out good. There isn’t really much to photo beyond the vegetation, & this was principally what I aimed at. I bought some other photos before leaving. I noted the women all rode horseback & astride, & one was a white lady too. She was very prettily dressed & out for exercise alone. She wore divided skirts & which covered her feet & really looked well. Unfortunately it was at a corner of a country lane where she came upon us, otherwise, had I seen her approaching, I should have taken a snap as the sight was worth obtaining.[5]
The natives are very intelligent looking & all seemly dressed. All women wore long gowans [sic], loose, no shape, natives & whites, [6:58] & these being principally of white material, look cool & suitable. The men natives that we saw were dressed cool costume, Chinamen & Japs according to their own fashion. Bananas grow here in great quantities & during our rambles passed several large banana gardens, & huge bunches hang on the trees. They don’t grow very high but are a pretty tree. Pomegranates, too, grow there abundantly. Some have them in the gardens in front of their windows. During the evening all were watering, with hose, the foliage & flowers on their fronts, & all looked so fresh & fine. This they will do every day.[6]
I visited the museum grounds but I got there just at 4 & the building closed 4, so I unfortunately did not get in. I was told it contained a fine native collection of curios. It is a pretty building & with some others, such as a college & technical schools &c., stand in very pretty grounds. I met there a Scotsman who is architect & superintendent for the estate, & he entertained me for half hour about Honolulu & its recent history.[7] After further viewing I returned to Miowera. It was then about 6:30. Had dinner & ashore again till 8:30. We sailed at 9 amidst great demonstration. 30 Americans joined us & are passengers. Many had gone over to be present at the annexation, others have [6:59] connections on the island, some had been for a trip as holiday &c. &c., & they are real Yankee: “I guess,” every verse end[8]. There were many scores seeing them away & a pretty custom prevails here, most lively wreaths of flowers & some of evergreens are made by natives who throng the wharf & sell them to friends who purchase them & bedecks their departing friends. Some had 3, others 4, 5, & 6 around their shoulders, & all with one around their hats, men as well as women. What a charming picture it made to see so many all adorned. We had a superfluity of flowers on board, I assure you.[9] Well, we got away nicely, a fine moon light night, & the lighted war ship & troop ship were like villages themselves, & the town & harbour lights made all like a fairy scene. The pilot left us at 9:25 & on we went full speed. Sorry was I at having spent only a short stay, a beautiful Honolulu.[10]
Tell Charlie I saw some monkeys on shore & I was sure he would have enjoyed seeing them. Ship’s position wasn’t given at noon this day, we had completed the 311 knots remaining at noon the previous day (Tuesday 30th).
[6:60]
[1] Inserted on facing page: “Doctor. Sugar plantations.”
[2] Inserted on facing page: “Ships”.
[3] Inserted on facing page: “Full rigged ships in harbour”.
[4] Inserted on facing page: “Descriptive.
Position.
Garden irrigation. Japs & Chinese 30,000.
Laundries.
Queen’s Palace.”
[5] Inserted on facing page: “Women riding astride. Dress – white.”
[6] Inserted on facing page: “Banana gardens. Pomegranates. Flowers.”
[7] Inserted on facing page: “Architect”.
[8] In the famous play, “Trip to America” (1824), English actor and comedian Charles Matthews portrays an American character, Jonathan W. Doubikin – a “real” Yankee – who always ends his sentences with “I guess,” or “I reckon,” and this became a common English stereotype of Americans.
[9] Inserted on facing page: “Flower wreaths”.
[10] Inserted on facing page: “Leaving. Decorated. Warships & lights.”