Democratic Sentinel, Volume 17, Number 6, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 24 February 1893 — HAWAII. [ARTICLE]

HAWAII.

TIMELY FACTS ABOUT THIS KINGDOM AND ITS PEOPLE. Location or the Sandwich Islands— Their Inhabitants and ltulers—Queen LtUoukalaul aud Her Palace. The kingdom of Hawaii is about &s large us New Jersey and lias a population as large as that of Hoboken. The area of the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands is 7,029 square miles. The area of New Jersey is 8,320 square miles. The population of the little kingdom which lias just beeu turned topsy-turvy is about 80,000. The population of Hoboken is about the same. Queen Lilioukalani ruled over about as many people as does the Mayor of Hoboken. The twelve beautiful islands of Hawaii lie in the Pacific Ocean, on a line between Mexico and China. They are 2,100 miles southwest of San Francisco, aud it requires only four days’ voyage on a fast steamship to reach them. 'They extend in a line 3)0 miles long from northeast to southwest. Eight of them are inhabited, and the others are s.nali islets and uninhabited. When the adventurous Captain Cook discovered the islands a century ago they had a population of 300,0J0 healthy and happy pagans. These have been civilized off the face of the earth till there are only 35,003 pure natives left. They are of a bronze brown, aud have black straight hair. Some of the men are almost giants, and much exceed Europeans iu stature. Excessive fatness, as in some parts of Africa, is considered beautiful, and native women who are inclined to embonpoint are much admired. The natives are not Africans aud not Malays. They belong to the Polynesian race, and are cousins, so to speak, of the inhabitants of New Zealand and Samoa. Five thousand miles of sea lies between Hawaii and New Zealand, but the two peoples can understand each other. The musical Hawaiian speech may become the language of American opera. ‘ It has twice as many vowel sounds as Italian. The Queen who has lost her throne is Queen Lilloukaiaui. That is her Sandwich Island name. Her everyday name was Princess Lydia. Her neighbors who didn’t like her called her “Mrs. Dominis.” One day there came to the Sandwich laiands a gay sailor hoy of the name of John O. Dominis. He fell in love with the Island princess, who was heir to the throne, aud liis suit was so successful that he married her. He never furled any more sails on a ship, and was known as the Prince Consort. Only four years ago Prince Dominis was walking on Broadway, having come to New Y’ork with Queen Kapiolaui,who was on her way to attend Queen Victoria’s golden jubilee. He died a short time ago, and the widowed Queen Lilioukalam is now in mourning for him. She is a cultivated Hawaiian woman. She speaks English, is a promoter of charity fairs, aud gives a garden party once a month to tourists. She is assisted to receive by the standing army, the members of the House of Nobles and the Hawaiian brass band. The standing army of the Sandwich Islands is a force of about 150 men. divided into the “Queen’s Own Guard,” the “Household Troops,” and the “soldiers of the line.” Connected with the palace is a “gilded chariot of state,” and ull the machinery for being a monarch. The-palace is a beautiful building, and contains forty rooms. It stands in the capital, Honolulu, is three stories high, and is built of concrete. It contains costly gifts from the kings of Europe and the princes of Asia. It measures somewhat the progress of the Hawaiian Islands that, though the Queen’s ancestors were cannibals in the last century, the palace contains a library and a music room. In the throne room is the worldfamous yellow feather cloak.

There is a beautiful bird on the Sandwich Islands which has under each wing a small tuft of golden feathers. King Kamehamelm I. wanted to be a swell in the Pacific Ocean, and he had a warcloak made of these feathers. To measure it like a sealskin sacque, this goldenfeather cloak was forty-eight inches long and 138 inches wide at the bottom. It was one of the biggest tailoring jobs on record. It took nine reigns to make it. Forests of birds furnished its golden feathers. It is the only cloak of the kind in the world. Kamehameha I. was the Sandwich Is and Julius Caesar, am. he wanted to have a mantle worthy of his greatness. Everybody remembers when that merry sovereign, Kiug Kalukaua, ruled the Sandwich Islands. He was a king, but he was ns happy as a serving-man in a tap room. The king was an expert at draw-poker. According to all accounts, he could have given “Hungry Joe” points on the gentle art of “bunco,’’and kid Miller could have gone to school to him with profit. It is said ,that he “buncoed” a Chinaman out of’ 150,000 in a few hours. His brother would have succeded him on the throne had he not died in April, 1877. His brother’s daughter, Princess Lilioukalani, then became heir apparent. King Kalnkaua died in San Francisco in 1891, and’on January 19 of that year the Princess was crowned. She is past fiftv years of age. The present heir-apparent is her niece, Her Royal Highness Princess Kawehiu-Kaiulani-Lunalilo-Kalaninuia-Kalapalapa, who is now studying French, music, etc., in Europe.