 Chapter 16 of A Voyage in the Sunbeam by Anna Brassi This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Recording by Davy Cross, Taos, New Mexico. Hawaiian Sports In wrestling, nimble, and in running swift, In shooting steady, and in swimming strong, Well-made to strike, to leap, to throw, to lift, And all the sports that shepherds are among. Tuesday, December 26th. We went to shore at eight o'clock after an early cup of coffee, And found Mr. Lyman already waiting for us. Two baggage mules were sent off with a photographic apparatus, And all the materials for breakfast to the rainbow falls, Where the children are looking forward with intense glee, To boiling their own kettle, poaching eggs, And trying other cooking experiments. Before setting out for the falls ourselves, We went to see the national sport of surf swimming, For their skill in which the Hawaiians are so justly famed. The natives have many other games of which they are very fond, And which they play with great skill, Including spear-throwing, transfixing an object with a dart, Kona, an elaborate kind of drafts, And talu, which consists in hiding a small stone Under one of five pieces of cloth placed in front of the players. One hides the stone and the others have to guess where it is, And it generally happens that, however dexterously the hider may put his arm beneath the cloth, And dodge about from one piece to another, A clever player will be able to tell by the movement of the muscles Of the upper part of his arm, When his fingers relax their hold of the stone. Another game called parua is very like the Canadian sport of tabogging, Only that it is carried on on the grass instead of on the snow. The performers stand bolt upright on a narrow plank Turned up in front and steered with a sort of long paddle. They go to the top of a hill or mountain And rush down the steep, grassy sunburnt slopes At a tremendous pace, Keeping their balance in a wonderful manner. There is also a very popular amusement called pāhe, Acquiring a specially prepared smooth floor, Along which the javelins of the players glide like snakes. On the same floor they also play at another game called maita, Or uru maita. Two sticks, only a few inches apart, are stuck into the ground And at a distance of 30 or 40 yards, The players strive to throw a stone between them. The uru which they use for the purpose is a hard circular stone, Four inches in diameter and an inch in thickness at the edge, But thicker in the middle. Mr. Ellis in his Polynesian researches states that these stones Are finely polished, highly valued, and carefully preserved, Being always oiled or wrapped up in native cloth after having been used. The people are, if possible, more fond of this game than of the pāhe. The inhabitants of a district not unfrequently challenge the people of the whole island, Or the natives of one island, those of all the others, To bring a man who shall try his skill with some favorite player of their own district or island. On such occasions, seven or eight thousand people, men and women, With their chiefs and chiefesses, assemble to witness the sport, Which, as well as the pāhe, is often continued for hours together. With bows and arrows they are as clever as all savages and wonderfully good shots, Attempting many wonderful feats. They are swift as deer when they choose, though somewhat lazy and indolent. All the kings and chiefs have been special adepts in the invigorating pastime of surf swimming, And the present king's sisters are considered first-rate hands at it. The performers begin by swimming out into the bay and diving under the huge Pacific rollers, Pushing their surfboards, flat pieces of wood about four feet long by two wide, Pointed at each end, edge-wise before them. For the return journey they select a large wave, And then either sitting, kneeling, or standing on their boards, Rush in shorewards with the speed of a racehorse, On the curling crest of the monster, enveloped in foam and spray, And holding on, as it were, by the milk-white manes of their furious coarsers. It looked a most enjoyable amusement, and I should thank that to a powerful swimmer with plenty of pluck, The feat is not difficult of accomplishment. The natives here are almost amphibious. They played all sorts of tricks in the water, some of the performers being quite tiny boys. Four strong rowers took a whale boat out into the worst surf, And then, steering her by means of a large oar, Brought her safely back to the shore on the top of a huge wave. After the conclusion of this novel entertainment, we all proceeded on horseback to the falls, Baby going in front of Tom and Muriel riding with Mr. Freer. After a couple of miles we dismounted and had a short walk through grass and ferns to a pretty double waterfall, Tumbling over a cliff about 100 feet high into a glassy pool of river beneath. It fell in front of a fern-filled black lava cavern over which a rainbow generally hangs. As it was too wet to sit on the grass after the rain, we took possession of the veranda of a native house, Commanding a fine view of the bay and town of Hilo. The hot coffee and eggs were a great success eventually, though the smoke from the wood fire nearly suffocated us in the process of cooking. Excellent also was some gray mullet brought to us alive and cooked native fashion, Wrapped up in tea leaves and put into a hole in the ground. After taking a few photographs it was time to return and we next went to a pretty garden, Which we had seen on the night of our arrival, and tying up our horses outside, Walked across it to the banks of the river. Here we found a large party assembled, watching half the population of Hilo disbording themselves in, upon and beneath the water. They climbed the almost perpendicular rocks on the opposite side of the stream, Took headers and footers and ciders from any height under five and twenty feet, Dived, swam in every conceivable attitude and without any apparent exertion, deep under the water or upon its surface. But all this was only a preparation for the special sight we had come to see. Two natives were to jump from a precipice, one hundred feet high, into the river below, Clearing on their way a rock which projected some twenty feet from the face of the cliff, At about the same distance from the summit. The two men, tall, strong and sinewy, suddenly appeared against the skyline far above our heads, Their long hair bound back by wreaths of leaves and flowers, while another garland encircled their wastes. Having measured their distance with an eagle's glance, they disappeared from our sight in order to take a run and acquire the necessary impetus. Every breath was held for a moment till one of the men reappeared, took a bound from the edge of the rock, Turned over in mid-air and disappeared feet foremost into the pool beneath, To emerge almost immediately and to climb the sunny bank as quietly as if he had done nothing very wonderful. His companion followed, and then the two clambered up to the twenty feet projection, Declare which they had had to take such a run the first time, and once more plunged into the pool below. The feet was of course an easier one than the first, but still a leap of eighty feet is no light matter. A third native who joined them in this exploit gave one quite a turn as he twisted in his downward jump, But he also alighted in the water feet foremost and bobbed up again directly like a cork. He was quite a young man and we afterwards heard that he had broken several ribs not more than a year ago, And had been laid up for six months in the hospital. We now moved our position a little higher up the river to the falls over which the men, Gliding down the shallow rapids above in a sitting posture, allowed themselves to be carried. It looked a pleasant and easy feat, and was afterwards performed by many of the natives in all sorts of ways. Two or three of them would hold each other's shoulders, forming a child's train, Or some would get on the backs of their companions, while others descended singly in a variety of attitudes. At last a young girl was also persuaded to attempt the feat. She looked very pretty as she started in her white chemise and bright garland, And far prettier still when she emerged from the white foam beneath the fall, And swam along far below the surface of the clear water, with her long black hair streaming out behind her. No description can give you any idea what an animated and extraordinary scene it was altogether. While our accounts were being settled preparatory to our departure, I occupied myself in looking at some cahilis and feather lays. The yellow ones, either of U or Mamo feathers, only found in this island, are always scarce, As the use of them is a prerogative of royalty and nobility. Just now it is almost impossible to obtain one, all the feathers being taboo, To make a royal cloak for Ruth, half-sister of Kamihama, the fifth, and governess of Hawaii. Mamo feathers are generally worth a dollar apiece, and a good lay or loose necklace costs about $500. Cahilis are also an emblem of rank, though many people use them as ornaments in their houses. They are rather like feather brooms, two or three feet long, and three or four inches across, Made of all sorts of feathers, tastefully interwoven. I bought one and a couple of ordinary lays, which were all I could procure, But a last too soon all was over, and time for us to go on board. On our way off to the yacht, we met one of the large double canoes coming in under sail from a neighboring island. It consisted of two canoes, lashed together with a sort of basket dropped into the water between them, To enable them to carry their fish alive. They are not very common now, and we were therefore fortunate in meeting with one. Mr. Lyman made the men in charge turn her round so as to afford us an opportunity of thoroughly examining her. In the time of Kamihama there was a fleet of 10,000 of these canoes, And the king used to send them out in the roughest weather and make them perform all sorts of maneuvers. We found the yacht in the usual state of confusion incidental to a fresh departure, But everything was soon reduced to order, and off we started to steam and sail round the north end of the island. But we could not afford time to visit the place of Captain Cook's death and burial in Kila Kiyakua Bay. I believe there is not a great deal to see, however, and the spot is chiefly interesting from its associations. For many years a copper plate fixed to a coconut tree marked the spot where Cook fell, But this has now been replaced by a monument, the cost of which was defrayed by subscriptions at Honolulu. Maui is, I believe, a charming place containing many fine plantations and several gentlemen's estates laid out in the English style. Unfortunately, time forbids our accepting some invitations we have received to visit the island where great many interesting excursions may be made. At Kahulaui there does not seem much to be seen. It was purchased some years ago and pays well as a sheep run. Lauea, the next island, is scarcely inhabited and its scenery is not remarkable. A sad interest attaches to the island of Molokai, which is situated midway between Maui and Oahu. It is the leper settlement and to it all the victims of this terrible, loathsome and incurable disease, Unhappily so prevalent in the Hawaiian archipelago, are sent in order to prevent the spread of the contagion. They are well cared for and looked after in every way, but their life separated as they inevitably are from all they hold most dear, And with no prospect before them but that of a slow and cruel death must indeed be a miserable one. In Molokai there are many tiny children, fatherless and motherless, parents without children, husbands without wives, wives without husbands, All condemned, as this bird says, to watch the repulsive steps by which each of their doomed fellows goes down to a loathsome death, Knowing that by the same they too must pass. A French priest has nobly devoted himself to the religious and secular instruction of the lepers, and up to the present time has enjoyed complete immunity from the disease. But even if he escapes this danger, he can never return to his country and friends. When one thinks what that implies and to what a death in life he has condemned himself for the sake of others, It seems impossible to doubt that he will indeed reap a rich reward hereafter. At two o'clock we saw Diamond Head, the easternmost headland of Oahu rising from the sea. By four o'clock we were abreast of it and steaming along the coast. The cape itself rises grandly from the mist of a grove of coconuts, and the shore all along with the sharp high mountains of the Pali as a background is fine and picturesque. A coral reef stretches far into the sea, and outside this we lay waiting for a pilot to take us into Honolulu Harbor. It was a long business mooring us by houses from our stem and stern, but we were at last safely secured in a convenient place, a short distance from the shore, and where we should be refreshed by the sea breeze and the land breeze alternately. It was six o'clock and nearly dark when we reached the shore. The town seemed entirely deserted, all the little wooden houses were shut up, and there were no lights visible. The post office was closed, but it was a terrible blow to hear there were no letters for us, though we still hoped that there might be some at the British Consulate. After a short time we returned on board the yacht in time for a late dinner. The first lieutenant of HMS Phan Thong came on board to pay us a visit during the evening and told us all the latest English and American news, lending us some files of English papers, a great treat, but no compensation for our disappointment about the letters. Thursday, December 28th, Tom and I went ashore at seven o'clock to make arrangements for repairing our mizzen sail. We soon found a sailmaker who promised to set all hands to work and complete the job as quickly as possible. Being detained by a heavy shower of rain, we occupied the time in a gossip about Honolulu and its sayings and doings. When the shower was over, we walked through the town, which is clean and tidy, being laid out in squares after the American style. The houses are all of wood and generally have verandas overhanging the street. They are seldom more than one story high and nearly all have a little greenery about them. We returned to the yacht for breakfast and, having heard that no sharks ever came into the long, narrow bay, were able to enjoy in perfect peace of mind the luxury of a bath overboard. It is a great pity that in the tropics where bathing is such a delightful occupation and where one might swim and paddle about for hours without fear of getting cold, it is often impossible even to enter the water for fear of the sharks. The natives are such expert swimmers that they do not seem to take much of this danger. As the shark turns on his back to take a bite at them, they dive underneath him and he snaps his jaws on emptiness. In fact, sometimes the swimmer will take advantage of the opportunity to stab his enemy as he passes beneath him. Scarcely was breakfast over when we were inundated with visitors who kindly came to see what they could do for us to make our stay agreeable. We lunched on shore and afterwards went to the new government buildings and museum. From thence we strolled to the various shops where curios and photographs are to be bought and collected a goodly store, returning on board the yacht to find more visitors. We lunched on shore and afterwards went with Mr. Chambre, the navigating lieutenant of the phantom, to the new government buildings. There we found an excellent English library and an interesting collection of books printed in English and Hawaiian on alternate pages including alphabets, grammars, the old familiar nursery tales, etc. There is also a good though small museum containing specimens of beautiful corals, shells, seaweeds and fossils. All the ancient native weapons, such as bows, arrows, swords and spears, now alas no longer procurable. Sling stones and stones used in games, back scratchers, hair ornaments made of shark's teeth, tortoise shell cups and spoons, calabashes and bowls. There were some most interesting, though somewhat horrible, necklaces made of hundreds of braids of human hair cut from the heads of victims slain by the chiefs themselves. From these braids was suspended a monstrous hook carved from a large whale's tooth called a palua, regarded by the natives as a sort of idol. There are models of ancient and modern canoes, the difference between which is not very great. Paddles inlaid with mother of pearl, old war masks and dresses still in use in the less frequented islands, anklets of human teeth and many other things far too numerous to mention. The most interesting of all were perhaps the old feather war cloaks, like the ancient togas of the Romans. They are made of thousands of yellow, red and black feathers of the U, Neamo and the Aini, taken singly and fastened into a sort of network of string, so as to form a solid fabric, like the richest velvet or plush that glitters like gold in the sunlight. The helmets, made of the same feathers but worked onto a frame of perfect Grecian shape, similar to those seen in the oldest statuary or on the Elgin marbles, are even more artistic and elegant. Once came the idea and design, untutored savages could scarcely have evolved them out of their own heads. Some element of civilization and of highly artistic civilization too must surely have existed among them at some remote period of their history. Friday, December 29th. We had a bathe overboard early this morning. The children were ashore at half past nine to go and spend the day at a friend's at the top of the Nuanu Avenue on the road to Pali. The king's two sisters came to call on us in the morning with their respective husbands. We had a great many visitors all morning till it was time to go to lunch, after which we went to call on the princess Laiki Laiki, who drove me to Waikiki to see her sister, the princess Kama Keha, at her country residence, a very large native grass house with an enormous veranda. Both ladies are married to Englishmen and live partly in English style. Inside there is a spacious drawing room, well furnished, with pictures and knickknacks where we spent a pleasant half hour in the gloaming. The sunset over Diamond Ted and the sea, which was just visible through the coconut trees, was splendid. Both the princesses were as kind as they could be. The royal family have formed quite a little colony here. The king's house is next door and that of the prince Lelayahoku is not far off. They all come here in the most unpretending way possible and amuse themselves by fishing and bathing. It had been quite dark for some time when the princess Laiki Laiki dropped me at the hotel at half past seven, where I found Tom and Mr. Freer waiting for me. We had a quiet dinner and then went for a stroll. It was a fine clear night with an almost full moon. The streets were full of equestrians riding about in pairs, for there was to be a great riding party up to the Pali tonight, the rendezvous for which was in Emma Square. Every lady had to select and bring with her an attendant cavalier. Footnote. The event was thus announced in the Hawaiian Gazette. The last chance. We are informed that a riding party will come off on Friday evening when all the young ladies who desire to participate are expected to be on hand, each with a cavalier whom she may invite. As leap year is drawing to a close, it is expected that this opportunity will be extensively embraced. Place of rendezvous Emma Square, time seven thirty. Luminary for the occasion, a full moon. Footnote. There are no side saddles in any of these islands. All the ladies ride like men and sit their horses very well. They wear long riding dresses, cleverly and elegantly adapted to the exigencies of the situation, generally of some light material and of very bright colors. The effect of a large party galloping along with wreaths and garlands in their hats and necks and with their long skirts floating in the wind is therefore picturesque and strange in the extreme. Saturday, December 30th. Maybell, Muriel and I were up early and went off to the coral reef before seven in the flash. It is very beautiful, but not so fine as those we have already seen at Tahiti and other South Sea islands. We collected four of the distinct varieties of coral and saw many marvelous creatures swimming about or sticking to the rocks. There were several canoes full of natives fishing who appeared highly amused when we ran aground on a coral tree, as happened more than once. It was a pleasant way of spending the early morning in the bright sunshine, peering into the dark blue and light green depths below. Breakfast was ready by the time we returned on board, and soon afterwards I went on shore to pay some visits and do some shopping. We went first to the fish market, which presented a most animated scene, owing not only to the abundance of the dead produce of air, earth and sea which it contained, but to the large number of gaily attired purchasers. Saturday is a half-holiday in Oahu, and all the plantation and mill hands came galloping into Honolulu on horseback, chattering and laughing dressed in the brightest colors and covered with flowers. The latter are not so plentiful nor so beautiful as in Tahiti, but still to our English eyes they appear very choice. For fruit, too, we have been spoiled in the South Seas. The fish market here, however, is unrivaled. Fish, raw or cooked, is the staple food of the inhabitants, and almost everybody we saw had half a dozen or more brilliant members of the Fennie tribe wrapped up in fresh green banana leaves ready to carry home. Shrimps are abundant and good. They are caught both in salt and fresh water, and the natives generally eat them alive, putting them into their mouths and either letting them hop down their throats or crushing them between their teeth while they are still wriggling about. It looks a very nasty thing to do, but after all, it is not much worse than our eating oysters alive. From the fish market we went to the prison, a large and apparently admirably managed establishment, built of stone and overlooking the harbor. After a pleasant drive along shady fragrant roads, we returned to Emma Square to hear the excellent performance of the Saturday afternoon band. There was a good assemblage of people, on horseback, in carriages, and on foot, and crowds of children, all more or less white, languid and sickly looking, poor mites. I suppose the climate is too hot for European constitutions. Still, they abound among the foreigners, while the natives are gradually but surely dying out. Among the whole royal family there is only one child, a dear little girl of rather more than a year old. Princess Kauailane, sent from heaven, she is always called, though she has a very long string of additional names. She is heiress presumptive to the throne and is thought a good deal of by everybody. Among twenty of the highest chief's families there is only one baby. On the other hand, all the foreign consuls, ministers, missionaries, and other white residents appear to have an average of at least half a dozen in each family. After the performance was over, we walked to the Princess Leike Leike's house, where we were entertained at a poi supper. The garden was illuminated, the band played, and a choir sang alternately, while everybody set out in the veranda, or strolled about the garden, or did what they liked best. Princess Leike Hoku took me into supper, which was served in the native fashion in calabashes and on leaves, laid on mats on the floor in the same manner as the feast at Tehiti. The walls of the dining room were made of palm leaves and bananas, and the roof was composed of the standards of the various members of the royal family gracefully draped. At one end of the long table, where the prince and I sat, there was his special royal standard as heir apparent, and just behind us were stationed a couple of women with two large and handsome kahiles, which they waved incessantly backwards and forwards. The vians were much the same as at Tehiti, raw seaweed which was eaten with each mouthful being substituted for the chopped coconut and salt water. The carved koa bowls, which were in constant requisition as finger glasses, were specially elegant and useful looking articles. Poi is generally eaten from a bowl placed between two people by dipping three fingers into it, giving them a twirl around and then sucking them. It sounds rather nasty, but as a matter of fact, it is so glutinous a mixture that you really only touch the particles that stick to your fingers. The latter you wash after each mouthful, so there is nothing so very dreadful about it after all. There was a quantity of raw fish, which I did not touch, but which some of our party thought most excellent, besides dried and cooked fish, which seemed very good, fried candle nuts, baked pig, and many other delicacies. We could get, however, nothing to drink. After supper we returned to the house, where we found an abundance of champagne and other wines, cakes, and biscuits. About twelve o'clock we thought it was time to say goodbye, as it was Saturday night. Beneath a brilliant full moon, the drive to the wharf and row off in the boat were delightful. Sunday, December 31st. I was on deck at six o'clock and saw what I had often heard about, a team of twenty oxen driven by a man in a cart, drawing by means of a rope, about a quarter of a mile in length, a large ship through the opening in the reef, the man and cattle being upon the coral. Footnote. The following notice appeared in the Hawaiian Gazette recently. To be repaired, that staunch little craft, the Pele, which Captain Brown has for so long a time successfully commanded, is now being hauled up for the purpose of repairs. She will probably be laid up for six or eight weeks, and in the meantime the antique plan of towing vessels in and out of the harbor with teams of oxen on the reef will be resumed. End footnote. About half past eight, Maybell and I were just going overboard for a swim when I thought I saw the upper fin of an old familiar enemy, and directly afterwards the cry was echoed all over the ship. A shark! A shark! It was a ground shark, and very nearly a ground in the shallow water. They say this is the worst kind of all, and on making inquiry I was told that the safest way to enjoy a dip here is to bathe with a number of other people. The splashing and noise made by a whole ship's company frightened the sharks away. This discovery puts an end therefore to our hopes of enjoying an occasional peaceful bath. We went to eleven o'clock service at the cathedral. It is a pleasant small building, beautifully cool, and well adapted to this climate. The bishop was unfortunately away, but the service was well performed. Later Tom read the evening service to the men, and we afterwards landed and dined late at the hotel, so late indeed that we could hardly get anything to eat, and they began to shut up the room and put out the lights before we had half done. Luckily we were a large party, and an indignant protest and threatened appeal to the landlord brought the Chinese waiters to their senses and induced them to grant us half an hour's law. On our way back to the boat the streets looked much more lively than they had hitherto done, being full of people returning from rides, drives, and excursions into the country. As a rule, directly after dark not a creature is to be seen about the streets, for everyone disappears in the most mysterious manner. We went on board and sat in the calm moonlight, thinking and talking over the events of the year, whose end was so swiftly approaching, and wondering what its successor may have in store for us. So ends, with all its joys and sorrows, its pleasures and pains, its hopes and fears, for us, the now old year, 1876. End of Chapter 16 Chapter 17 of A Voyage in the Sunbeam by Anna Brassy. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain, recording by Debbie Cross, Taos, New Mexico. Honolulu departure for Japan. Years following years steal something every day. At last they steal us from ourselves away. Monday, January 1st, 1877. At midnight we were awakened by our ship's bell and that of the phantom being struck violently sixteen times. For the moment I could not imagine what it meant and thought it must be an alarm of fire. Indeed it was not until Tom and I reached the deck where we found nearly all the ship's company assembled at the top of the companion, and were greeted with wishes for a happy new year and many of them, that we quite realized that nothing serious was the matter. Soon the strains of sweet music, proceeding from the Honolulu choirs which had come out in boats to serenade us, fell upon our ears. The choristers remained alongside for more than an hour, singing English and American sacred and secular hymns and songs, and then went off to the phantom where they repeated the performance. The moon shone brightly, not a ripple disturbed the surface of the water. The cocoa trees at Waikiki and the distant mountains near the Pali were all clearly defined against the dark blue sky. It was altogether a romantic and delicious scene, and we found it difficult to tear ourselves away from the sweet sounds which came floating over the sea. When I again went on deck at half past six there was a large double canoe close to the yacht crowded with people. It was difficult to make out what they were doing for they appeared to be sitting on a great heap of something piled up between the two canoes. Our sailors suggested that it must be some sort of a new year set out. I ordered the flash to be got ready and went with the children to make a closer investigation, and as we approached we could see that the pile that had puzzled us was a huge fishing net. The tide here is very uncertain, but as soon as the water is low enough they stretch the long net right across the narrow mouth of the harbor and so secure an enormous quantity of fish of various kinds. It was a really good New Year's hall and provided a hearty meal for a great many people. Maybell and I went at twelve o'clock to the Queen's New Year's reception held in the other wing of the palace. Having driven through the pretty gardens we were received at the entrance by the governor and ushered through two reception rooms into the royal presence. The Queen was dressed in a European court dress of blue and white material with the Hawaiian order of the garter across her breast. Two maids of honor were also in court dress. Of the other ladies some were in evening, some in morning dress, some with bonnets and some without, but their costumes were all made according to the European fashion, except that of Her Highness Ruth, the governess of Hawaii, who looked wonderfully well in a rich white silk native dress trimmed with white satin. She had a necklace of orange colored oo feathers around her neck and dark yellow Alamanda flowers in her hair. This native costume is a most becoming style of dress, especially to the chiefs and chiefesses, who are all remarkably tall and handsome with a stately carriage and dignified manner. The Queen stood in front of the throne on which were spread the royal robes, a long mantle of golden feathers without speck or blemish. On each side stood two men dressed in black, wearing frat coats and capes of red, black and yellow feathers over their shoulders and chimney pot hats on their heads. In their hands they held two enormous Cajiles of black oo feathers with handsome tortoiseshell and ivory handles. They were at least eight feet high altogether and the feathers were about six inches across. The princess presented Maybell and me to Her Majesty and we had a short conversation through a lady interpreter. It is always an embarrassing thing to carry on a conversation in this way, especially when you find yourself in the midst of a square formed by a large crowd of ladies, who you fancy are all gazing at you, the one stranger present, and I was glad when fresh people arrived and Her Majesty's attention was claimed elsewhere. Queen Capiolani is a nice-looking woman with a very pleasing expression of countenance. She is the granddaughter of the heroic Princess Capiolani, who, when the worship and fear of the goddess Pele were at their height, walked boldly up to the crater of Kilauea in defiance of the warnings and threats of the high priestess of the idolatrous rites, proclaiming her confidence in the power of her God, the God of the Christians, to preserve her. This act did much to assist in the establishment of Christianity in the island of Hawaii and to shake the belief of the native worshipers of Pele in the power of the fearful goddess. The princess showed me round the room which contains the portraits of the kings and queens of the sandwich islands for many generations. The early ones attired in their feather capes, the latter ones dressed in European costumes. Most of them were the work of native artists, but the portraits of Kamahama the Second and his queen were painted during their visit to England by a good artist. Their majesties are depicted in the height of the fashion of the day, the king wearing a blue coat and brass buttons with many orders on his breast, the queen having on a very short-waisted, tight-fitting white satin dress, a turban surmounted by a tremendous plume of white feathers and a pearl necklace and bracelets, rather a trying costume for a handsome woman with a dark complexion and portly figure. They both died in England and their remains were brought back here for burial in HMS Blonde commanded by Lord Byron. There was also a portrait of Admiral Thomas whose memory is highly referenced here for the happy way in which he succeeded in terminating the disputes arising out of our claim to the island in 1843 and in restoring King Kamahama the Third to his own again. The collection likewise included excellent portraits of Louis-Philippe and Napoleon the Third. Curiously enough each of these was sent off from France to the Sandwich Islands by way of Cape Horn while the original was in the zenith of his power and fame and each reached its destination after the original had been deposed and had fled to England for refuge. But the most interesting object of all was still to come. The real feather cloak, cape and girdle of the Kamahamas not generally to be seen except at a coronation or christening but which the princess Kamakeha in her capacity of Mistress of the Robes had kindly ordered to be put out for my inspection. The cloak which is now the only one of the kind in existence is about eleven feet long by five broad and is composed of the purest yellow or rather golden feathers which in the sunlight are perfectly gorgeous as they have a peculiar kind of metallic luster quite independent of their brilliant color. On leaving the palace I had intended to get some lunch at the hotel but found that establishment was closed to the general public and was in the possession of a native teetotal society so I was obliged to return to the yacht. At half past three however we all went ashore again and set out on horseback a large party for an excursion to the Pali the children, servants and provisions proceeding us in a light two horse American wagon. We rode through the Nuanu Avenue and then up the hills along a moderately good road for about seven miles and a half. This brought us into a narrow gorge in the midst of the mountains which we emerged on the other side of the central range of hills forming the backbone of the island. The view from this point was beautiful though I think that the morning would be a better time to enjoy it as with a setting sun the landscape was all in shadow. The change of temperature too after the heat of Honolulu was quite astonishing considering the short distance we had come about eight miles only. The carriage could not go quite to the top of the mountain and after descending a short distance to where it had been left we dismounted and spread our dinner on the ground but darkness overtook us before we had finished. Matches and lamps had of course been forgotten so that the business of packing up was performed under circumstances of great difficulty. The ride down in the light of the almost full moon was delightful. We were on board by half past seven and went ashore to a ball at nine o'clock. The dance took place in the large room of the Hawaiian hotel and was a great success. The royal band played for us and there was neither stuffiness nor crowding nor were there any regulations as to dress, gentlemen and ladies coming in evening or morning dress as it suited them best. The governor and most of the English present including our own party wore evening dress and the officers of the phantom were in uniform. Every door and window was open there was a large veranda to sit in a garden to stroll about in between the dances and an abundance of delicious iced lemonade very different from the composition thus named which is generally met with in London assemblies to drink. At half past twelve when people were beginning to disperse we took our departure captain Long taking us off to the yacht in his boat. There is to be another ball on Thursday night for which everybody is most anxious that we should stay as it is to be rather a large affair. In order that you may see the Hawaiian fashion of sending out cards I copy the form of invitation we received. The pleasure of the company of Mr. and Mrs. Toss Brassley is requested at a subscription ball at the Hawaiian hotel on Thursday evening January 4th, 1877 at eight o'clock. Respectfully H.A. Wideman for the committee. Mrs. Jass Smakey and Mrs. J.S. McGrew will kindly act as matrons of the evening. Tuesday January 2nd at 11 o'clock the king who was rather better went on board the phantom saw the minute quarters and witnessed the firing of a couple of shots at a target and shortly before 12 paid us a visit accompanied by the Prince Leila Hoku and others. His majesty is a tall fine-looking man with pleasant manners and speaks English perfectly and fluently. He and the Prince visited and examined every corner of the yacht and looked I think at almost every object on board. The pictures, curiosities, engines and our various little contrivances for economizing space seemed to interest them the most. The inspection occupied at least an hour and a half and when it was over we had a long chat on deck on various subjects. The Prince of Wales's visit to India and the Duke of Edinburgh's voyage around the world were much discussed. I think the king would like to use them as a precedent and see a little more of the world himself. His voyage to and stay in America he thoroughly enjoyed. It was two o'clock before our visitors left and a quarter of an hour later the queen and her sister arrived. Her majesty and her sister made quite as minute an inspection of the yacht as her royal consort and his brother had done before them. We had arranged to be at home to all our kind friends in Honolulu at four o'clock, at which hour precisely the governor sent the royal band on board to enliven the proceedings. Soon our other visitors began to arrive but the queen appeared to be so well amused that she did not leave until five o'clock. By half past six the last of our guests, over 150 in number, had said farewell and there only remained the band to be shown round and feasted after their labors. Tom went on board the phantom to dine and to meet the British, French, German and American representatives. We went to the hotel and I must say that I never in my life felt more thoroughly worn out than I did that night after standing about and receiving and entertaining all the day. Wednesday, January 3. This was sure to be a disagreeable day since it was to be the concluding one of our short stay in this pleasant place. The final preparations for a long voyage had also to be made. Stores, water and livestock to be got on board, bills to be paid and add you to be made to kind friends. I was on deck at six o'clock in order to take some photographs and to stow away the coral, shells, curiosities and presence of various kinds that the king, queen, prince and princess as well as other kind friends had sent us. Before seven, the yacht was surrounded by boats and the deck was quite impassable so encumbered was it with all sorts of lumber waiting to be stowed away until the boats could be hoisted on board and secured for the voyage. The large mizzen sail which had just been repaired and sent on board looked enormous as it lay on the deck, surrounded by hencoops, sheep, geese, sacks of coal and baskets and parcels of every size and shape. One really began to wonder whether space could possibly be found on board for such a miscellaneous collection. Several visitors who had been unable to come yesterday arrived in the midst of the confusion. They must have carried away in their minds a different impression of the yacht that they have done had they seen her looking as trim and smart as she did yesterday. It could not, however, be helped for the departure of a small vessel with forty people on board on a voyage of a month's duration is a matter requiring considerable preparation. At eleven o'clock we landed and went to see the interior of the queen's hospital. It is a fine and well-kept building containing at the time of our visit about ninety patients, the women of the lower, the women the upper story. Each ward is tastefully decorated with bouquets and the name is written up in bright mauve bougainvillea or scarlet hibiscus, tacked on to white calico. Many of the convalescence were wreaths and garlands of flowers and even those in bed had a few beside them or in some cases a single spray laid on the coverlet. The effect was bright and cheerful and it seemed a kind and sensible idea to endeavor to gratify instead of to repress the instinctive love of flowers universally felt by the natives of these and of the South Sea islands. From the hospital we went to pay farewell visits, to lunch at the hotel and to settle sundry bills. At three we were to go to the royal mausoleum. This was a special privilege and I believe the greatest compliment that has been paid to us anywhere. No foreigners are allowed to enter Admiral's von the station and very few inhabitants of Honolulu have ever seen the interior. The king has one key, the Dowager Queen Emma another and the minister of the interior, the third. On our way up the hill to the mausoleum there was a funeral going on, very much after the style of an Irish wake in one of the dwellings of the poorer class. The house was decorated with flags and was crowded with people all dressed in black and with bright yellow lays over their heads and necks. They had evidently come from some distance judging by the number of carts and wagons drawn up outside the door. Several people were sitting in an upper veranda. The corpse was laid out in the lower room facing the road as we could see through the open windows and door. It was surrounded by mourners and four women were waving large cajiles slowly backwards and forwards in front of it. Emma herself met us at the mausoleum which is a small but handsome stone gothic building situated above the Nuanu Avenue on the road to Pali. It commands a fine view over land and sea and the gentle breezes waft through the open windows, sweet scents from the many fragrant trees and flowers by which it is surrounded. There lay the coffins of all the kings of Hawaii, their consorts and their children many generations past. The greater part were of polished kua wood, though some were covered with red velvet ornamented with gold. Many of them appeared to be of an enormous size for, as I have already observed, the chiefs of these islands have almost invariably the men of large and powerful frames. The bones of Kamihama I were in a square oak chest. At the foot of the coffin of Kamihama IV there were two immense kalahilis about 12 feet high, one of rose colored, the other of black feathers, with tortoiseshell handles. The remains of King Lunailo are not here, having been buried just outside the native church in the town. In the vestibule to the tombs of the kings rests the coffin of Mr. Wiley, described as the greatest European benefactor of the Hawaiian people. The ship now in the harbor bears his name and one constantly meets with proofs of the respect and reverence in which his name is held. The princess drove us down to the wharf where we said goodbye to her with feelings of the greatest regret. I cannot express the sorrow that we all feel at leaving the many kind friends we have met with in dear Honolulu, as Muriel calls it. But the farewells were at last over. The anchor was weighed and the yacht, which was by this time once more in apple pie order, began slowly to move ahead. Suddenly we heard shouts from the shore and saw a boat pursuing us in hot haste. We stopped and received on board a basket of beautiful ferns and other parcels from different friends. A second boat was then seen coming off to us which contained a fine dish of delicious honey and some flowers. The order to go ahead again was scarcely given before a third boat in, if possible, hotter haste than the two previous ones put off after us, bringing some things the laundress had forgotten. Now we are fairly off and now surely the last link that binds us to the shore is broken. But no, there are farewell signals and hearty cheers yet to come from the officers and men of the phantom and still further out on the top of the tiny lighthouse at the mouth of the narrow passage through the reef stand other friends cheering and waving their handkerchiefs. We had rode out thither being determined to give us really THE parting cheer until the shades of twilight fell we could see their white handkerchiefs fluttering and hear their voices born on the evening breeze as we meandered slowly through the torturous channels into deep water. Once outside we found there was plenty of wind and a heavy roll which sent me quickly to bed. End of Chapter 17 Chapter 18 A Voyage in the Sunbeam by Anna Brassi This LibriVox recording is in the public domain recording by Davy Cross, Taos, New Mexico Honolulu to Yokohama As slow our ship her foamy track against the wind was cleaving her trembling pinnets still looked back to that dear isle twas leaving. Thursday, January 4th it was very rough but fortunately the wind came from a favorable quarter. Sorry as we all were to bid farewell to these charming islands I could not help rejoicing that we had picked up a fresh, fair wind so unexpectedly soon. While we were at Honolulu a regular epidemic of influenza prevailed in the place affecting both man and beast this is often the case during the prevalence of the south wind which blew more or less during the whole of our stay. We none of us suffered from the malady at the time but now nearly everybody on board is affected and some very severely. Friday, January 5th the fresh, fair breeze still continues at noon we had sailed 240 knots the head sea we could dispense with as it makes us all very uncomfortable. Muriel, baby the three maids and several of the crew are ill today with influenza and I have a slight touch of it so I suppose it will go right through the ship. Towards the evening the breeze increased to a gale. Saturday, January 6th the gale increased during the night and the head sea became heavier there was a good deal of rain in the course of the day the wind dropped about sunset and was succeeded by intervals of calm with occasional sharp squalls baby was very poorly all day but seemed better at night we have now regularly settled down to our sea life again and if only the children recover I hope to get through a good deal of reading and writing between this and Japan at present they occupy all my time and attention but I think like the weather they have now taken a turn for the better. Sunday, January 7th a very rough and disagreeable day with much rain rolled about the calmed in a heavy swell steam was ordered at half past 12 but before it was up the fair wind had returned so the fires were put out we had the litany at 11 and a short service without a sermon at 4 baby was very ill all night everything was shut up on account of the torrents of rain so that the heat was almost insufferable and we tossed and tumbled about in the most miserable manner Monday, January 8th all the early part of the morning we were in the greatest anxiety about baby she could hardly draw her breath and lay in her cot or on her nurse's lap almost insensible and quite blue in the face in spite of the application of mustard, hot water and every remedy we could think of the influenza with her has taken the form of bronchitis and pleurisy the other children are still ailing heavy squalls of wind and rain and continuous rolling prevailed throughout the day Tuesday, January 9th the wind fell light and the weather improved but we tumbled about more than ever the thermometer and the nursery stood at 90 degrees the children are a shade better Wednesday, January 10th very hot and a flat calm steam was up at 7 30 a.m. Maybell is convalescent Muriel not so well baby certainly better one of the boiler tubes burst it was repaired and we went on steaming in the evening it burst again and was once more repaired without causing a long stoppage Thursday, January 11th had no existence for us as in the process of crossing the 180th meridian we have lost today Friday, January 12th Wednesday morning with us was Tuesday evening with people in England and we were thus 12 hours in advance of them today the order of things is reversed and we are now 12 hours behind our friends at home having quitted one side of the map of the world according to Mercator's projection and entered upon the other half we begin to feel that we are at last really homeward bound at 4 a.m. Powell woke us with the announcement that the boiler tube had again burst and that we had consequently ceased steaming and blowing out the boiler made a tremendous noise which aroused everybody in the ship it was a lovely morning but a flat calm and the sun rose magnificently the few light clouds near the surface of the water caught and reflected the rays of light most brilliantly before the sun itself appeared and assumed all manner of fanciful shapes about 6 o'clock a very light breeze sprang up which increased during the day but the sea remained perfectly calm we think we must have got into the trade again this weather is indeed a luxury after all the knocking about we have lately gone through and I feel as if I could never rest enough the constant effort to maintain one's balance whether sitting standing or moving about has been most fatiguing and the illness of the children has made matters worse baby is I hope now quite out of danger Saturday January 13th the engineers made up their minds that we were in the trade winds again yesterday and that we should not want the engines for some days they therefore did not hurry on with the repairs as they should have done this morning there was a calm and when Tom ordered steam to be got up at once the reply was please sir the engine won't be ready till night this was annoying but they worked extra hard all day and by 4 p.m. steam was raised at 6 a nice little breeze sprang up which freshened during the evening and at midnight orders were given to stop steaming we had another bad night of it a headwind the sea washing over the decks everything shut up and the thermometer standing at 90 degrees Sunday January 14th I was on deck at 4 a.m. the Southern Cross the Great Bear and the North Star were shining with a brilliancy that eclipsed all the other stars during the day the wind freshened to a squally gale sometimes we were going 10 sometimes 13 and sometimes 15 knots through the water knocking about a good deal all the while service was an impossibility cooking and eating indeed were matters of difficulty it rained heavily and the seas came over the deck continually many of the sailors and servants were ill I was hopelessly so nothing annoys me more than to find that after having sailed tens and tens of thousands of miles I cannot cure myself of seasickness I can stand a good deal more rolling than I once could but still many are the days when nothing but the firmest determination not to think about it but to find something to do and to do it with all my might keeps me on my feet at all fewer happily are the days when struggling is of no avail when I am utterly and hopelessly incapacitated ignominiously and literally laid flat on my back and with no effort of will can enable me to do what I most wish to accomplish if only some physician could invent a sovereign remedy for seasickness he would deserve well of his country and of mankind in general Monday January 15th I woke once or twice in the night and felt exactly as if I were being pulled backwards through the water by my hair we were rushing and tearing along at such a pace against a head sea that it almost took one's breath away but at noon we were rewarded for all discomfort by finding that we had run 298 sea or 343 land miles in 24 hours and that between 814 yesterday and 815 today we had made 302 knots or 347 land miles nearly 350 miles in the 24 hours under very snug canvas and through a heavy sea the winds still continued fair and fresh but the sea was much quieter and we all felt comparatively comfortable more sails were set during the afternoon some albatrosses and long-tailed tropic birds were seen hovering above us the moon begins to give a good light now and we found it very pleasant on deck this evening Wednesday January 17th it was a fine warm morning and we got the children on deck for the first time for 10 days Thursday January 18th between breakfast and lunch we sailed over the spot where Tarquin Island is marked on the chart and between lunch and dinner over a nameless reef also marked on the chart a good lookout had been kept at the masthead end in the bowels but not a trace could be seen of either of these objects in any direction the weather kept clear and bright and the sea was much calmer during the last five days we have covered 1,221 sea miles Monday January 22nd at daylight a sunset on island was still visible it is a volcanic origin and is in the form of a perfect sugar loaf 2,600 feet high rising out of the sea exactly as I had expected the peak of Tenerife to appear I should like to have landed on the islands of Grigin or Tinian so as to see the interesting remains left by the ancient inhabitants some people say that they resemble Aztec remains others that they are like those of the more modern Peruvians all authorities however seem to agree that they are like those on Easter Island the southeast extremity of Polynesia this being the northwest we were close hauled all day the wind was strong and the sea rough and disagreeable Tuesday January 23rd still close hauled and still a heavy swell I felt very ill and could scarcely move my head for neuralgia the galley boiler burst today so we are now dependent on the one in the forecastle during the night we passed the Euphrosine rock it looks like a ship in full sail and abounds with turtle, fish and sea elephants Wednesday January 24th very much colder though we are only just outside the tropics the wind was rather freer and we had a beautiful moon let night Friday January 26th during the night the breeze freshened and in the morning increased to a gale steam was therefore let off it has been a miserable day so cold, wet and rough that it was impossible to do anything or to sit anywhere except on the floor about 9pm I was sitting in the deck house when I heard a tremendous crash and looking out saw that the four gig davits had been carried away taking with them a piece of the rail stankion and cavle the gig was hanging from the after davits one might say by a thread splashing and dashing in and out of the water and crashing and splintering against the side of the yacht all hands were speedily on deck and in spite of the risk they ran and the remonstrances of their comrades two of the gigs crew jumped into her with a rope which they tried to pass round her it was a difficult task in that heavy sea and many times they failed and we constantly feared that men boat and all were gone half a dozen of the crew caught hold of the rigging outside put their backs against the yacht and with legs outstretched tried to keep the gig off the ship's side all the loose gear was floating away out of her at last there was a shout of triumph the rope was round her the men jumped on board the yacht again whilst sailors stewards and passengers proceeded to hoist and drag the boat in with all their might in Maine alas she was only a wreck her sides were stovin her planks were started there was a hole in her bottom and the moon shone through her many cracks Saturday January 27th about two o'clock this morning the yacht plunged so heavily into a deep sea that the jaboom, a beautiful spar broke short off and the four top gallant mast and top gallant yard were carried away almost at the same moment with a terrible noise it took about eight hours to clear the wreck all hands working all night and a very forlorn appearance the deck presented in the morning lumbered up with broken spars ropes, etc the jaboom fell right across the forefoot of the yacht and now looks as if it had been cut at for weeks with some blunt tool the weather cleared a little today but there was still a heavy sea and nearly a headwind the crew were busily engaged in repairing damages unfortunately two of them are ill and so is the carpenter a specially important person at this juncture no men could have behaved better than they all did after the accident it was frightful to see them aloft in such weather swinging on the ends of the broken spars as the yacht rolled and pitched about when it comes to a pinch they are all good men and true not that they are perfection anymore than other men are Sunday January 28th it is finer but bitterly cold several of my tropical birds are already dead the little pig from Harp Island and the Hawaiian geese look very wretched in spite of all my precautions we had the litany at eleven and prayer and a sermon at four after which Tom addressed the men paying them some well-deserved compliments on their behavior on Friday night the decks were very slippery and as we kept rolling about a good deal there were some nasty falls among the passengers we had a splendid though stormy sunset which did not belie its promise for the wind shortly afterwards became stiffer and stronger until at last we had two reefs down and were tumbling about in all directions as we rushed through the water the dining tables tilted till they could go no further and then paused to go back again but not quickly enough for the glasses began to walk uphill and go over the edge in the most extraordinary manner on deck the night looked brilliant but rather terrible the full moon made it as light as day and illuminated the fountains of spray blown from the waves by which we were surrounded without her heavy jaboom and with her canvas well reefed down the sunbeam rode through it all dipping her head into the sea shivering from stem to stern and then giving herself a shake preparatory to a fresh start just like the playful water bird emerging from a prolonged dive at midnight a tremendous sea struck her and for a minute you could not see the yacht at all as she was completely enveloped in spray and foam Tom said it was just like being behind the falls of Niagara with the water coming over you from every quarter at once it was only loose stuff however for not a green sea did she take on board the whole night through our old engineer who has been with us so long made up his mind that we had struck on a rock and woke up all the servants and told him to go on deck I never felt anything like it before and the shocks and half of us out of our beds on Sunday January 29th at four o'clock I was called to go on deck to see the burning mountain the wind was still blowing hard but we were among the islands and in comparatively smooth water the full moon still rode high in the heavens her light being reflected in rainbow hues from the spray and foam that drifted along the surface of the water on every side were islands and rocks among which the sea boiled and seathed and swirled while the roaring breakers dashed against the higher cliffs casting great columns of spray into the air and falling back in heavy rollers and surf just before us rose the island of Vries with its cone shaped volcano two thousand six hundred feet high emitting volumes of smoke and flame it was overhung by a cloud of white vapor on the underside of which shown the lurid glare of the fires of the crater sometimes this cloud simply floated over the top of the mountain from which it was quite detached then there would be a fresh eruption and after a few moments quiet great tongues of flame would shoot up and pierce through the overhanging cloud to the heavens above while the molten lava rose like a fountain for a short distance and then ran down the sides of the mountain it was wondrously beautiful and as a defense against the intense cold we wrapped ourselves in furs and stayed on deck watching the scene until the sun rose glorious from the sea and shown upon the snow covered sides of Fujiyama called by the Japanese the matchless mountain it is an extinct crater of the most perfect form rising abruptly from a chain of very low mountains so that it stands in unrivaled magnificence this morning in the harsh fallen snow there was not a spot nor a fleck to be seen upon it from top to bottom it is said to be the youngest mountain in the world the enormous mass having been thrown up in the course of a few days only 862 years BC we reached the entrance to the Gulf of Yedo about 9 o'clock and passed between its shores through hundreds of junks and fishing boats I never saw anything like it the water was simply covered with them and at a distance it looked as though it would be impossible to force a passage as it was we could not proceed very fast so constantly were the orders to slow, stop, port, starboard, given and I began at last to fear that it would be impossible to reach Yokohama without running down at least one boat the shores of the Gulf on each side consist of sharp cut little hills covered with pines and cryptomerias and dotted with temples and villages every detail of the scene exactly resembled the Japanese pictures one is accustomed to see in England and it was easy to imagine that we were only gazing upon a slowly moving panorama unrolling itself before us it was 12 o'clock before we found ourselves among the men of war and steamers lying near the port of Yokohama and 2 o'clock before the anchor could be dropped during this interval we were surrounded by a swarm of boats the occupants of which clamored vociferously to be allowed on board and in many cases they succeeded innovating the vigilance of the man at the gangway by going round the other side and climbing over the rail a second man was put on guard but it was of no use for we were invaded from all directions at once we had a good many visitors also from the men of war Japanese English and from the reporters of newspapers full of curiosity questions and astonishment having at last managed to get some lunch Tom went to bed to rest after his 2 hard nights work and the rest of us went on shore directly we landed at the jetty we were rushed at by a crowd of Jinraki shaman each drawing a little vehicle not unlike a handsome cab without the seat for the driver there being no horse to drive and runs between the shafts and is often preceded by a leader harnessed on in front tandem fashion each of these vehicles holds one person and they go along at a tremendous pace we went first to the consoles where we got a few letters and then to the post office where many more awaited us we had then to go to various places to order stores fresh provisions coals and water all of which were urgently on board and to give directions for the repair of boats sparse et cetera with as little delay as possible all this business including the inevitable search for a good lawn dress lay in the European quarter of the town the appearance of which was not remarkable but the people we met in the streets were a study in themselves the children said they looked like fans walking about and it was not difficult to understand their meaning the dress of the lower orders has remained precisely the same for hundreds of years and before I had been sure five minutes I realized more fully than I had ever done before the truthfulness of the representations of native artists with which the fans screens and vases one sees in England are ornamented while we were going about a letter was brought me containing the sad news received here by telegram of the death of Tom's mother it was a terrible shock coming to just as we were rejoicing in the good accounts from home which our letters contained I went on board at once to break the bad news to Tom this sad intelligence realized a certain vague dread of something we knew not what which has seemed to haunt us both on our way hither end of chapter 18 chapter 19 of a voyage in the sun beam by Anna Brassie this LibriVox recording is in the public domain recording by Davy Cross Taos, New Mexico Yokohama heavily plunged the breaking wave and foam flew up the lee morning and evening the drifted snow fell into the dark grey sea Tuesday, January 30th when we awoke from our slumbers this morning it was very cold and dark and we heard noises of a strange kind on going on deck to ascertain the cause of this state of things we discovered that the skylights and portholes were all covered and blocked up with snow and that the water froze as it came out of the hose forming a sheet of ice on the deck masses of snow and ice were falling from the rigging and everything butokens that are welcome to Japan would not be a warm one after breakfast we had many visitors and received letters from Sir Harry and Lady Parks inviting us to go up to Yedo tomorrow for a long day to settle our future plans having landed we went with the console to the native town to see the curio shops which are a specialty of the place the inhabitants are wonderfully clever at making all sorts of curiosities and the manufactories of so called antique bronzes and old china are two of the most wonderful sites in Yokohama the way in which they scrape crack, chip, mend and color the various articles cover them with dust, partially clean them and imitate the marks and signatures of celebrated makers is more creditable to their ingenuity than to their honesty still there are a good many genuine old relics from the temples and from the large houses of the reduced demios to be picked up if you go the right way to work it is limited dealers are plentiful and travelers especially from America are increasing in numbers when we first made acquaintance with the shops we thought they seemed full of beautiful things but even one day's shopping in the company of experienced people has educated our taste and taught us a great deal that we have still much to learn there are very respectable looking lacquer cabinets ranging in price from 5 shillings to 20 pounds but they are only made for the foreign market no such things exist in a Japanese home a really good bit of old lacquer the best is generally made into the form of a small box a portable medicine chest or a chao chao box is worth from 20 pounds to 200 pounds we saw one box about 3 inches square which was valued at 45 pounds and a collection of really good lacquer would be costly and difficult to procure even here the best specimens I have ever seen are at Lady Alcox but they are all either royal or princely presence not to be bought with money the tests of good lacquer are its exquisite finish its satiny oily feel and the impossibility of making any impression on it with your thumbnail it is practically indestructible and will wear forever all the poor as well as the rich people here use it and have used for centuries instead of china and glass for cups saucers, dishes, bowls which would need to be often washed in the hottest of water it is said that the modern Japanese have lost the art of lacquer making and as an illustration I was told that many beautiful articles of lacquer old and new had been sent from this country to the Vienna Exhibition in 1873 but the price put on them was so exorbitant that few were sold and nearly all had to be sent back to Japan just as the ship with these things on board reached the Gulf of Yedo she struck on a rock and sank in shallow water a month or two ago a successful attempt was made to raise her and to recover the cargo when it was found that the new lacquer had been reduced to a state of pulp while the old was not in the least damaged I tell you the tale as it was told to me after a long day's shopping we went to dine in real Japanese fashion at a Japanese tea house the establishment was kept by a very pleasant woman who received us at the door and who herself removed our exceedingly dirty boots before allowing us to step on to her clean mats this was all very well as far as it went but she might as well have supplied us with some substitute for the objectionable articles for it was a bitterly cold night and the highly polished wood passages and steep staircase felt very cold to our shoeless feet the apartment we were shown into was so exact a type of room in any Japanese house that I may as well describe it once for all the woodwork of the roof and the framework of the screens were all made of a handsome dark polished wood not unlike walnut the exterior walls under the veranda as well as the partitions between the other rooms were simply wooden latticework screens covered with white paper and sliding in grooves so that you could walk in or out of any part of the wall you chose and it was in like manner impossible to say whence the next comer would make his appearance doors and windows are by this arrangement rendered unnecessary and do not exist you open a little bit of your wall if you want to look out and a bigger bit if you want to step out the floor was covered with several thicknesses of very fine mats each about six feet long by three broad deliciously soft to walk upon all mats in Japan are of the same size and everything connected with house building is measured by this standard once you have prepared your foundations and woodwork of the dimensions of so many mats it is the easiest thing in the world to go to a shop and buy a house ready made which you can then set up and furnish ganti Japanese fashion in a couple of days on one side of the room was a slightly raised dais about four inches from the floor this was the seat of honor on it had been placed a stool a little bronze ornament and a china vase with a branch of cherry blossom and a few flag leaves gracefully arranged on the wall behind hung pictures which are changed every month according to the season of the year there was no other furniture of any sort in the room for nice looking Japanese girls brought us thick cotton quilts to sit upon and braziers full of burning charcoal to warm ourselves by in the center of the group another brazier was placed protected by a square wooden grating and over the whole they laid a large silk down quilt to retain the heat this is the way in which all the rooms even bedrooms are warmed in Japan and the result that fires are a very frequent occurrence the brazier is kicked over by some restless or careless person and in a moment the whole place is in a blaze presently the iderdown and brazier were removed and our dinner was brought in a little lacquer table about six inches high on which were arranged a pair of chopsticks a basin of soup a bowl for rice a sake cup and a basin of hot water was placed before each person whilst the four Japanese maidens sat in our midst with fires to keep the sake hot and to light the tiny pipes with which they were provided and from which they wished us to take a whiff after each dish sake is a sort of spirit distilled from rice always drunk hot out of small cups in this state it is not disagreeable but we found it exceedingly nasty when cold everything was well cooked and served though the ingredients of some of the dishes as will be seen from the following bill of fare were rather strange to our ideas still they were all eatable and most of them really palatable soup shrimps and seaweed prawns egg omelette and preserved grapes fried fish spinach young rushes and young ginger raw fish mustard and crests horseradish and soy thick soup of eggs fish mushrooms and spinach grilled fish fried chicken and bamboo shoots turn up tops and root pickled rice ad libytum in a large bowl hot sake pipes and tea the meal concluded with an enormous lacquer box of rice from which all our bowls were filled the rice being then conveyed to our mouths by means of plastics we managed very well with these substitutes for spoons and forks the lack of using which to a certain extent is soon acquired the long intervals between the dishes were beguiled with songs music and dancing performed by professional singing and dancing girls the music was somewhat harsh and monotonous but the songs sounded harmonious and the dancing was graceful though it was rather posturing than dancing the views being made of the fan and the long trailing skirts the girls who were pretty wore peculiar dresses to indicate their calling and seemed of an entirely different stamp from the quiet simply dressed waitresses whom we found so attentive to our wants still they all looked cheery light-hearted simple creatures and appeared to enjoy immensely the little childish games they played amongst themselves between wiles after dinner we had some real Japanese tea tasting exactly like a little hot water poured on a very fragrant new moon hay then after a brief visit to the kitchen which though small was beautifully clean we received our boots and were bowed out by our pleasant hostess and her attempt of handmaidens on our return we had considerable difficulty in procuring a boat our own boats being all ashore under repair it was a beautiful moonlit night but bitterly cold the harbor being so full of shipping our boatmen were at first puzzled how to find the yacht till we pointed to the lights in the deck house always a good beacon at night in a crowded harbor Wednesday January 31st we left the yacht soon after 8 o'clock and started by the 9 34 a.m. train for the city formally called Yedo but laterally since the Mikado has decided there Tokyo or eastern capital of Japan the ground was covered with snow and there were several degrees of frost but the sun felt hot and all the people were sunning themselves in the doorways or wide verandas of their houses Yokohama has been so completely Europeanized that it was not until we had left it that we caught our first glimpse of Japanese life and the whole landscape and the many villages looked very like a set of living fans or tea trays though somehow the snow did not seem to harmonize with it we crossed several rivers and reached Tokyo in about an hour when we had once emerged into the midst of a clattering chattering crowd amongst whom there did not seem to be a single European the reverberation under the glass roof of the station of the hundreds of pairs of wooden clogs pattering along was something extraordinary giving up our tickets and following the stream we found ourselves surrounded by a still more animated scene outside the station we were just deliberating what to do next when a smart little Japanese with a mail bag over his shoulder stepped forward and said something about Sir Harry Parks he then popped us all into several double and treble managed Enrique and started off himself ahead at a tremendous pace Tokyo is a genuinely Japanese town not a single foreigner resides within its limits with the exception of the foreign ministers there is no hotel nor any place of the kind to stay at so that unless you have friends at any of the legations you must return to Yokohama the same day which makes a visit rather a fatiguing affair footnote I have since heard that there are two hotels at Tokyo such as they are and footnote our first halting place was at the temple of Shiba not far from the station where most of the tycoons have been buried it is a large enclosure many acres in extent in the center of the city with walls overgrown with creepers and shadowed by evergreen trees amid whose branches rooks call ravens croak and pigeons coo as undisturbedly as if in the midst of the deepest insolitude I had no idea there was anything so beautiful in Japanese architecture as this temple the primary idea in the architecture of Japan is evidently that of a tent among trees the lines of the high overhanging richly decorated roofs with pointed gable ends are not straight but delicately curved like the suspended cloth of a tent in the same way the pillars have neither capital nor base they come through the building perpendicularly without beginning or end the principal temple was burnt down a few years ago but there are many smaller ones remaining built in exactly the same style and all the tombs are perfect some people say the bodies are enclosed in coffins filled with vermilion but I need hardly say we had no opportunity of ascertaining the correctness of this statement we entered several of the temples which are perfect marvels of carving gilding, painting, and lacquer work their style of decoration may be somewhat barbaric but what a study they would form for an artist outside where no color is used the overhanging roofs and the walls are carved with a depth and boldness and yet a delicacy I have seldom seen equalled the doors and railings being of massive bronze brought from the Korea within a dim religious light it looms and harmonizes a dazzling mass of lacquer gold and painting it is the grandest burial place imaginable too good for the long line of men who have tyrannized over Japan and its lawful sovereigns for so many centuries past the streets of Tokyo were crowded with a motley throng up to the very gates of the citadel where within the first moat stand all the yashkis or residences of the demios each yashki is surrounded by a blank wall loop-hold and with a tower at each of the four corners within this outer wall is the court of the retainers all of them two sordid men then comes a second wall also loop-hold inside which dwell distant relations of the demio and then again a third enclosure guarding the demio himself with his immediate belongings after crossing the third moat we reached the Mikado's gardens and palace the public offices and the residences of the foreign ministers all of which were formally occupied by the tycoon or shogun in his ministers on the waters of the inner moat were thousands of wild ducks and geese nobody is allowed to harm them and the birds seem to be perfectly aware of this fact for they disport themselves with the greatest confidence the English Embassy is a nice red brick house built in the center of a garden so as to be as secure as possible from fire or attack after a most pleasant luncheon we looked over the nucleus of a second collection which Lady Parks is beginning to form her former beautiful collection was burnt a few years ago a most disheartening misfortune especially as the opportunities for obtaining really old and good things in Japan are diminishing day by day a little later we started in great force some in carriages and some on horseback attended by running grooms to see something more of the city these men think nothing of running by the side of a horse in carriage some 40 miles a day they form a distinct class and when working on their own account wear little clothing when in the service of private individuals they are dressed in tight fitting dark blue garments with short capes fastened to their arms and large hats just outside the embassy we passed two of the finest of the still existing yashkis the larger one being used as the home office the other as the foreign office there is always a festival going on in some part of Tokyo today there had been a great wrestling match and we met all the people coming away such crowds of Jean Rikiskas full of gaily dressed and painted women and children with their hair plastered into all sorts of inconceivable shapes and decorated with artificial flowers and glittering pins we met six of the wrestlers themselves riding in Jean Rikishash big men prodigiously fat and not at all according to our ideas in fighting or wrestling condition one of their Jean Rikisha men stumbled and fell just as they passed us and the wrestler shot out head over heels and lay a helpless ball of fat in the middle of the road till somebody came and picked him up he was not in the least hurt and as soon as he was set on his feet again began to belabor the poor Jean Rikisha man most unmercifully after a long and delightful drive we arrived at the station just in time to catch the train the return journey to Yokohama in the omnibus like railway carriages was very cold and the Jean Rikisha drive to the grand hotel cold or still but a roaring fire and a capital dinner soon warmed and comforted us after dinner we looked over a fine collection of photographs of Japanese scenery and costumes and then returned to the yacht in the house boat belonging to the hotel which was prettily decorated with bright colored lanterns and which afforded a welcome shelter from the biting wind Thursday February 1st careful arrangements have been made for our excursion to the island of Inoshima to see the great figure of Daibuts by eight o'clock we had landed and packed ourselves into a funny little shaky carriage drawn by four horses we drove quickly through the town past the station along the toketo or imperial road running from one end of the island of Nifon to the other and on which so many foreigners have been murdered even within the last ten years now however it is perfectly safe the houses are one story high and their walls are made of the screens I have already described these screens were all thrown back to admit the morning air cold as it was we could consequently see all that was going on within in the sitting room in front and even in the bedrooms and kitchen at the back of the house there was invariably a little garden to be seen with a miniature vickery a tree and a lake possibly also a bridge and a temple even in the gardens of the poorest houses an attempt at something of the sort had been made the domestic occupations of the inhabitants being conducted in this public manner a very good idea might be obtained even at the end of a few miles drive of how the lower class of Japanese wash and dress themselves and their children how very elaborate the process of hairdressing is to say nothing of a bird's eye view of the ground plan of the houses the method of cooking food etc as we emerged into the open country the landscape became very pretty and the numerous villages nestling in the valleys at the foot of the various small hills had a most picturesque appearance at a stone quarry that we passed on the side of a mountain there were about 70 men at work without any clothing though the thermometer was far below freezing point the Japanese are a sensitive nation and finding that foreigners were astonished and shocked at the habits of the people in going about without clothes keeping in public and at their house doors they passed a law prohibiting these customs and towns in the country however the more primitive customs are still in force and every dwelling has its half open bath house whilst the people do as they like in the manner of clothing after stopping twice on the road to drink the inevitable tea we changed from our carriage to Jinrishikash each drawn and pushed by four strong men bowling along at a merry pace the sun was very warm in the sheltered valleys and the abundance of evergreens of all kinds quite deluded one into the belief that it was summertime especially as Camilla's grew like forest trees covered with red and white bloom amidst a dense tangle of bamboos and half hearty palms there were many strange things upside down to be seen on either hand horses and cows with bells on their tails instead of on their necks their heads well clothed their masters without a scrap of covering tailor sewing from them instead of to them a carpenter reversing the action of his saw and plane it looked just as if they had originally learned the various processes in Alice's looking-glass world in some former stage of their existence we had not long left the town before our men began to undress each other for their clothes were so tight that it required no inconsiderable to remove them some of them were beautifully tattooed my wheeler had the root of a tree depicted on one foot from which spraying the trunk and branches spreading gradually until on his back and chest they bore fruit and flowers amongst which birds were perched on his other leg was a large stork supposed, I imagine to be standing under the shadow of the same tree another man had human figures all over him in various attitudes in less than an hour we reached the narrow strip of land which at low water connects the island or peninsula of Inoshima with the mainland the isthmus was covered with natives gathering shells and seaweed casting their nets and pushing off or dragging up their boats whilst an island rose fresh and green from the sea with a background of snowy mountains stretching across the bay above which it was powered grandly this name signifies not two but one mountain the Japanese thinking it impossible that there can be another like it in the world the lovely little island is called Inoshima and is conical in shape and covered with evergreens and Buddhist temples with a few small fishing villages scattered on its shores we walked right across it in about an hour so you may imagine it is not very large the sea teams with curiously shaped fish and beautiful shells the staple food of the inhabitants seems to be those lovely Venus's ears footnote heliotis and footnote as they are called a flattish univalve about as big as your hand with a row of holes along the edge and a lining of brilliant black mother of pearl these were lying about in heaps mixed with white mother of pearl shells as big as your two fists and shaped like a snail shell Arjun Rakesha Men deposited us at the bottom of the main street of the principal village to enter which we passed through a simple square arch of a temple the street was steep and dirty and consisted principally of shellfish and seaweed shops an old priest took us in hand and providing us with stout sticks marched us up to the top of the hill to see various temples splendid views in many directions the Camillas and Evergreens on the hillside made a lovely framework for each little picture as we turned and twisted along the narrow path I know not how many steps on the other side of the island had to be descended before the sea beach was reached here is a cavern stretching 500 feet straight below high watermark with a shrine to Benton Sama the Lucina of Japan and having been provided with candles we proceeded a few hundred feet through another cave running at right angles to the first as it would have been a long steep walk back and I was very tired we called to one of the numerous fishing boats near the shore and were quickly conveyed round to our original starting place before we said goodbye one of the old priests implored to be allowed to dive into the water for half a dollar his request was complied with and we were able to enjoy the wine most successfully we lunched at a tea house our meal consisting of fish of all kinds deliciously cooked and served fresh from the fire in a style worthy of Greenwich and as we had taken the precaution to bring some bread and wine with us we were independent of the usual rice and sake after this we proceeded on our way toward the Daibuts or Great Buddha situated within the limits of Kamakura now only a collection of small hamlets as all Japanese cities are built of wood it is not wonderful that they should in time entirely disappear and leave no trace behind them but there still remain some of the columns of the temple which once existed in the gardens surrounding the idol now he is quite alone and for centuries has this grand old figure sat exposed to the elements he was very smiling on the varying scene beneath him the figure is of bronze and is supposed to have been cast about the year 1250 or 1260 it is some 50 feet high with golden eyes and a silver spiral horn on the forehead it is possible to sit or stand on the thumb and within the hollow body an altar is erected at which the priests officiate sitting there amidst a grove and booze there is an air of ineffable silent strength about that solitary figure which affords a clue to the tenacity with which the poorer classes cling to Buddhism the very calmness of these figures must be more suggestive of relief and repose to the poor weary worshipers than the glitter of the looking glass and crystal ball to be found in the Shinto temples the looking glass is intended to remind believers that the supreme being can see their innermost thoughts as clearly as they can perceive their own reflection while the crystal ball is an emblem of purity great store is set by the latter especially if of large size and without flaw but to my mind the imperfect ones are the best as they refract the light and do not look so much like glass in another village close by also part of the ancient Kamakura there is a fine temple dedicated to the god of war but we were pressed for time and hurried back to the little carriages the homeward drive was long and cold but the doketo looked very pretty lighted up the shadows of the inmates being plainly visible on the paper walls reminding one of a scene in a pantomime on our way down a very steep hill we met the men carrying a kango it is a most uncomfortable looking basket work contrivance in which it is impossible to sit by with ease these kengos used formally to be the ordinary conveyance of Japan but they are now replaced by the Jinra Kishash and they are seldom met with except in the mountains or in out of the way places Friday February 2nd I was called at 5 o'clock and at half past 6 Mabel and I started for the market it was blowing a gale and our four oarsmen found it as much as they could do to reach the shore the Shanghai mail boat was just in and I pitted the poor passengers who were in all the misery of being turned out into the cold of the early morning with the spray breaking over them as they sat in the small boats the market at Yokohama is one of the sites of the place there were large quantities of birds and game of all kinds pheasants with tails 6 feet long of a rare copper colored variety ducks, pigeons, small birds deer, rabbits the fish market was well supplied especially with cuttlefish they are not inviting looking but are considered a delicacy here a real octopus in a basket with its hideous body in the center and its eight arms covered with suckers arranged in the form of a star is worth from a dollar to a dollar and a half according to its size I was not tempted however to make any purchases in the market we went to one or two small shops in back streets and thence over the bluffs in the teeth of a bitterly cold wind to a nursery garden to examine the results of the Japanese art of dwarfing and distorting trees some of the specimens were very curious and some beautiful but most were simply hideous we saw tiny old gnarled fruit trees covered with blossom and scotch furs and other forest trees eight inches high besides diminutive ferns and creepers it now being half past nine o'clock we went to the hotel to meet the rest of the party for breakfast and at one o'clock we returned to the yacht at half past one Lady Parks and several other friends from Tokyo came on board to luncheon they told of three disastrous fires that had taken place in Tokyo yesterday by which the home office one of the finest old tartar yashkis and several smaller edifices had been destroyed after the departure of our guests we paid another visit to the shore and saw the foxhounds they are a nice pack and have good kennels outside the foreign settlement they were out this morning at six thirty but unfortunately we did not know of it there are plenty of foxes and some very fair country not far from here so they expect to have good sport we weighed anchor at eight thirty p.m. and proceeded under steam at eleven thirty went off to Ryosaki we set some of the head canvas it was a cold night with sleet and snow but it was not blowing as hard as during the day end of chapter nineteen