But no one pushed his wares
for sale--we were at liberty to look and admire, and pass on
unmolested. No vexatious restrictions obstructed our landing. A
sum of two dollars for the support of the Queen's Hospital is levied
on each passenger, and the examination of ordinary luggage, if it
exists, is a mere form. From the demeanour of the crowd it was at
once apparent that the conditions of conquerors and conquered do not
exist. On the contrary, many of the foreigners there were subjects
of a Hawaiian king, a reversal of the ordinary relations between a
white and a coloured race which it is not easy yet to appreciate.
Two of my fellow-passengers, who were going on to San Francisco,
were anxious that I should accompany them to the Pali, the great
excursion from Honolulu; and leaving Mr. M--- to make all
arrangements for the Dexters and myself, we hired a buggy, destitute
of any peculiarity but a native driver, who spoke nothing but
Hawaiian, and left the ship. This place is quite unique. It is
said that 15,000 people are buried away in these low-browed, shadowy
houses, under the glossy, dark-leaved trees, but except in one or
two streets of miscellaneous, old-fashioned looking stores, arranged
with a distinct leaning towards native tastes, it looks like a large
village, or rather like an aggregate of villages.
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