Hawaii

ha-wi'e, a territory of the United States. It consists of a group of islands lying in the Pacific Ocean about 2,100 miles southwest of San Francisco. The latitude is about the same as that of Porto Rico. There are seven inhabited islands. The largest is Hawaii. The others are Maui, Lanai, Molokai, Oahu, Kauai, and Niihau. There are also a dozen or more islets and coral reefs visited chiefly for guano and eggs. It is about 400 miles from one end of the group to the other. A slender chain of uninhabited rocks and islets stretches north by west for a distance of 1,350 miles. The total area is 6,449 square miles of which a small portion, only, is suitable for agriculture.

Honolulu, the capital and chief port is on the island of Oahu. The islands are the mere summits of volcanoes that rise from the ocean floor. Hawaii, the most south-easterly island of the group, has three active volcanoes. Mauna Kea, 13,805 feet high, is the loftiest peak in the Pacific Ocean. Kilauea has an oval crater nine miles in circumference. It is the largest active volcano in the world. For the benefit of tourists a telephone line runs from the hotels up to the crater. Mauna Loa, the third peak, has a circular crater 8,000 feet in diameter, with vertical inside walls from 500 to 600 feet high. The coasts of the islands are in places lava cliffs 2,000 feet high. In other places there are plains between the mountain and sea. A first sight of so much water and so little land gives visitors an impression of a toy country. There are coral reefs surrounding the islands, through which a number of artificial channels have been cut to permit the passage of ships.

The islands lie between the eighteenth and twenty-third parallels of north latitude. The trade winds blow from the northeast steadily from nine to ten months in the year. The northeastern sides of the peaks receive an enormous rainfall, amounting in places to 200 inches a year. The mountain slopes on that side are covered with heavy forests and swamps. The opposite slopes are arid and barren, except where they are irrigated by means of flumes and artesian wells. For a region so near the equator the climate is remarkably even and free from heat. The soil consists of disintegrated lava. It is exceedingly fertile. The cultivation in one part of the island is hampered by drouth, while possibly not over a mile away, or even on a different part of the same plantation, tremendous freshets carry away the soil. Water for purposes of irrigation is pumped at a cost as high as thirty-five dollars per acre. The upper slopes are devoted to pasturage and to the production of hides, tallow, and meat. The coasts produce bananas, pineapples, and cocoanuts. Ninety-five per cent of the effort of the islands, however, goes to the production of cane-sugar. The cane is said to be the sweetest in the world. The annual product at last accounts was not far from 1,000,000,000 pounds a year. Coal is wanting; wood is scarce. Bagasse, the crushed stalk of the sugar-cane, is the chief fuel.

The labor problem is a serious one. The native islanders, who constitute about one-fifth of the population, cannot be induced to work. European labor is too expensive. Over half of the population in 1900 consisted of coolie laborers, but these are dying off or returning to China or Japan. The laws of the United States, now extended to the islands, forbid further importation of this class of laborers.

The islands, though not unknown to the world, were visited and described for the first time in 1778 by Captain James Cook. He called them the Sandwich Islands. In 1792 cattle were introduced by the Dutch navigator, Vancouver. A fine growth of fragrant sandalwood, now depleted, attracted American and English ships. An active trade in the exchange of firearms, cloth, knives, beads, looking-glasses, and the like was set up. American missionaries were established in the islands early in the nineteenth century. In 1820 a native ruler of Hawaii brought the other islands under subjection and caused the Christian religion to be adopted officially. His descendants became extinct in 1872. During the period of local faction which followed, intriguing Americans succeeded in overthrowing Queen Liliuokalani. She had been chosen by the native legislature and was aiming to restore the heathen customs. Without going into detail, it may be said that July 4, 1894, the resident Americans proclaimed a republic with Sanford B. Dole president. In 1898 Congress ratified a treaty with President Dole's government for the annexation of the islands. June 14, 1900, Congress organized the territory of Hawaii, with Dole governor. The inhabitants of Hawaii are therefore citizens of the United States.

The population is increasing rapidly. There are about 150 miles of railroad on the islands. A cable line runs the length of the group. Local telegraph lines have been established. The territory has a debt of about $4,000,000. A system of graded free schools has been established. Attendance is compulsory. The English language is used. Over half the teachers are Americans. At present, about one person in fifteen is able to read. There is a leper settlement on the island of Molokai, to which all lepers are banished.

STATISTICS. The following statistics are the latest to be had from trustworthy sources:

See Honolulu; Cook; Leprosy; Damien