HAWAIIAN ISLANDS.

Colonist, Volume II, Issue 115, 26 November 1858, Page 3

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS.

We (Sydney Herald) have Tifeeived files of Honolulu papers, from the Ist of May to the 9th of September, inclusive. We have glanced through them without perceiving much eatractable matter likely to interest Australian readers. Ofthe birth of a Crown Prince on the 20th of May, and re-. joicings thereupon, news had already reached Sydney. We find that the young " heir apparent" and his august mamma were doing remarkably well. The rejoicings consequent upon this occasion to the reigning family lasted for a considerable , time, addresses and gifts pouring iv, at intervals, _ from all parts of the kingdom. One very interest- i ing present was a small carriage, from the children \ of foreign parents residing in the city of Honolulu, who went in a body to present it, and to take a look at the young Prince. The following account of this unique presentation is extracted from the Patifie Commercial Advertiser of 17th June:— The procession was headed by a lad bearing a beautiful silk flag, which, with two other flags, had been made for the occasion. The carriage had t been beautifully decked with flowers and ribbons,; i and surmounted by a bouquet "crown,- made of ! roses and white jessamine flowers^*and on the sides of ifc crowns were painted. The procession, as it _noved alonjjf through King-street, was the very picture of juvenile simplicity and sport. All the little girls were dressed in white. As the procession approached the palace, the large gates'were j thrown open, and the youthful throng marched Up j the broad walk and 9teps into the large, audience-: chamber of tlie palace, drawing with them their little present, and followed by many of their parents. In the centre ofthe room the cradle had been placed, and as soon as the children were kll arranged around the room, the infant was brought in by its nurse, accompanied by royal kahilibearers, and followed in a few minutes by his Majesty, who was accompanied by Prince Lot and several of the chiefs. On the entrance of the King, he was addressed by Master D. Henrique Everett (i years old), in the following neat speech:— " Sire,—-You would scarce expect one of my age to speak to a king; but I have come with the foreign children of Honolulu to see your little boy the Prince of Hawaii. We desire to present him this little carriage as a mark of our respect." His Majesty replied nearly as follows:— "I thank you Master Everett, and your little companions, for the present you have made to my infant boy. I appreciate it as another expression of sympathy so generally manifested in the foreign community in his behalf. You have but followed your parents' example, and I feel highly honored that both should have so kindly remembered my | boy." A pillow aud three silk flags were also presented to his Majesty for the young Prince. After the addresses were finished the children thronged ! aroHnd the cradle to see the babe, and almost j every one joined in exclamations of praise of his ! beauty. He is * fat, healthy, And exceedingly beautiful boy| and many of the children who ; visited him feel as much interest in him as if he belonged to their own family. We are certain 1 that the result of the visit of the children will be ; beneficial in exciting in them a lively interest in the welfare of the Royal Prince. The cradle in which he was shewn is one of the finest specimens of cabinet work that we- have ! ever seen made from our native woods. It is in i form of an eggshell cut in two, lengthwise, and in j its design and execution is creditable to the maker, j Mr. Fischer. It is said to have cost GOO dollars, j The Hawaiian Legislature assembled in Jnne, i hut adjourned, after a sitting of about fifteen days, I until December, in order to afford time for the j consideration, by a select committee from hoth Houses, of a new code of laws prepared hy special commission. The multiplication of enactments, j year after year, in consequence of the rapid progress of the islands, and the growth of new interests, had rendered a codification of the laws highly expedient, and it has been determined to complete j this code before passing any new laws, unless for -J immediate purposes. Tlie only thing done, therefore, had been to pass one or two acts of this nature, and to make provision for the current ex- - penses of the Government until December. Ano^ther reason for prorogation was that a new treaty with France was under negotiation, one effect of which would not improbably be to change the duties on Spirits, and thus render necessary some; modification of the financial arrangements. That treaty was not, in fact, signed until September, just before the date ofthe last journal which has ■■ come to hand, and its stipnlation had not then transpired. But-it is stated that there had been a considerable departure from the original draft as it came, from. Paris with the Emperor's approval. The king of Hawaii, it is asserted, had positively refused his ratification to the treaty in its then shape^ because there were certain stipulations in it which he considered derogatory to his : sovereignty, 6uch as the exemption of French subjects from the action of the local Courts, and their trial by a peculiar tribunal .under, or partially under, Brcnch authority. Thisrefusal wassaid to have been the cause of the delay. But the French Minister at Honolulu had at length (most probably under instructions) made such concessions as were necessary to remove the king's objections, and the affair was finally adjusted. There had been a, good deal of popular excitement in reference to this treaty and to the difficulties said to have arisen out of it, and a general determination was evinced- to submit to no. conditions which would '.affe'etithe.)complete' independence of,the Hawaiian government. .Trade appeared to be dull at the time of our last dates,'but the islands, nevertheless, were advancing, as heretofore, both socially and commercially. By the last census, however, it would

seem that the purely native race was still surely, although slowly decreasing.,Mr Gregg," 'late United-States'Commissioner, had.been appointed Minister of Finance, receiving letters of naturalisation to enable him to hold this office. The British Commissioner and Consul* General, Mr. Miller, had gone to Europe for the benefit of his health, and his post was temporarily filled by Mr. Toup Nicholas, late British Consul at one of the Society Islands. The annexation "of the new guano islands to the Hawaiian Kingdom appears to have been made by a Government expedition, sent by the Hawaiian yacht Kalama. It seems to have been regarded quite as a matter of course at Honolulu, and to have created but little discussion. The guano was said to be of very fine quality. ~ y

The Kino of Dkliu's Prison Island.—The remaining years, or rather months, of the King of Delhi's miserable existence are to be endured amid the savage population of a group of small islands iv. t,he Bay pf Bengal. Since the year 1824, when the British expedition against Burmah assembled at Port Cornwall is, the Andamans have scarcely been heard of in this country, and even their position on the map is still comparatively unknown. The principal island is also the most northerly -ofthe group, and extends 140-miles in length by 20 in bread'tli. The Little Andaman on the other hand, is the most southerly,'but does not exceed 28 miies in length by; if, in"breadth. In the centre of tlie Great Andaman the land rises to the altitude of 2400 feet, forming a well known beacon to mariners—the Saddle Peak. A few small streams thence descend to the sea. Various kinds of timber suitable for shipbuilding are found in abundance j but th-.oh.y fruit worthy of mention is the mangrove; the cocoanut, which flourishes in! the' neighbouring Nicobars, does not grow in these islands. Mciny varieties of fish are caught off the coast, and constitute the chief faod of the barbarous ..inhabitants, who alsb indulge in lizards, snakes, guanas, arid rats. On the skirts of the forest which occupies the interior of the principal island are seen herds.of a diminutive species of hog, supposed to be descended from a shipwrecked stock. With the skulls and bones of these animals the islanders adorn their huts, and were thence accused of canibalism, from a belief that their favorite ornaments were the indigestible remains of human beings whom they had slain and devoured. Tliisy are, in truth, a cruel and savage race. All attempts to communicate with then, have been rerepelled by darts and flights of arrows. They are described as resembling a degenerate tribe of negroes. They have woolly hair, thick lips, and aflat nose; their stature seldom exceeds five teet ; their colour is a deep unshaded black; and their costume that of primeval Adam befere the Fall. Their huts consist of four poles driven into the ground and interwoven with boughs of trees^ Their chief want is a sufficiency of food, in search of which they are constantly prowling along the shores or climbing steep rocks; the chief annoyance is from the countless insects that infest the islands, to guard against which they plaster themselves over with mud, and thus render their skin as impenetrable as the hide of a hippopotamus. Tlieir woolly hair is painted with red ochre to an, extent that' would excite the envy of Gael. But wild as is their aspect and fierce their disposition, they are nevertheless amenable to the Ja-ws of politeness and good breeding. That man is considered a boor and no gentleman .who does not salute his neighbour in a becoming manner by lifting one leg and smiting the lower part of the thigh with the open hand.— Allen's Indian Mail. A Dirty Box.—ln Allen's Indian Mail a writer, writing from Lucknow, says:—" Yesterday (April 27) in a small corner was discovered a dirty box, after an hours digging, and when opened behold a collection of rubies, diamonds, pearls, <Src., of the value of 100,000 rupees. The soil of Lucknow is a mint of money." PHOTOOHAi'ii or Saturn.—At the Roman Observatory, M.Secchi has obtained agoodphotograpfv^ofiSaturn, which shews not only the dark spaces between, the planet and the ring, but the shadoiv\(tf the pibiet upon the ring. It also establishes*' two-points, of considerable interest; first, thaftlie planet is darker than the ring; and, second, that the light of the planet is more powerful than that^'of our moon. The proof of this is, that.it .requires 20 seconds to produce a photographic^ image;-of the moon, while that of Saturn is produced in eight minutes, or 480 seconds. But Satufhkis at* least 80 times further from us than the moon ; and, instead.of requiring 80 times the number of seconds to produce his image, he requires only 24 times. M. Secchi infers from the planet's superior photographic power thatjieis surrounded by a reflecting atmosphere, while the moon is destitute of such, and entirely: black. . -~-,:. Mr. Chenncls, a pupil of Rarey, operated upon a vicious horse lately in Hobart. Town, in the presence of a number of his pupils, to their entiresatisfaction, but having remounted the animal in an open space adjoining the premises where the exhibition took place, the horse succeeded in throwing him. Mr Ghennels. did not, however, sustain any "very serious injury. An important action, Hogan v. Hand, has been tried before the Chief Justice in Sydney. Tlie plaintiff, Avho resides in New ;York, sought to recover possession of between thirty and forty acres of land, on the banks of the Hawkesbury River, near Windsor, being a portion of the property known as the Cornwallis Estate. A veroict for the plaintiff was given, his claim as son and heir-at-law of the original grantee being satisfactorily proved. Mr. Frederick N. Isaacs and the Rev. W. B. Clarke are advocating the propriety of another expedition being sent out in search of Dr. Leichhardr, though they do not appear to be of ono opinion as to the precise line of route which should be adopted. Two Russian guns (trophies from the Crimea) have lately been received in Melbourne, having been sent as presents to the colony from the Home Government. A similar slrp-nent has been nude to Sydney.

Penal Servitude.—The absurd system (copied from Imperial mode's) of maintaining convicts in idleness was very clearly described by ; Mr. Allison the other evening when introducing his motion for opening up to public occupation 140,000 acres of land on Tasman's Peninsula. He said he had. been recently there on an excursion. He found tbe penal establishment planted on a few acres of land near Small Bay v one of the loveliest spots in creation, but denied to the use of those who desirecLto bo useful to their fellow men. The whole penat*^ establishment was in a very small compass, arid jhe thought it a pity that all the beautiful land of the Peninsula should be shut up from useful settlers who desired to make homes because there were a few prisoners there. There were abotit 600 able-bodied prisoners, as he understood, but amongst all those he did not see above twenty pairs of sawyers doing anything to earn their own living, and a gang or two of. men employed to carry, in wood; for the remainder the able superintendent could not find anything better for them, to do than beautifying the pans and kettles, &c, some merely polishing brass, others cutting out weeds wjth knives, and numbers engaged in the latter useless employment. He had said to Mr. Boyd that all this was very bad, and Mir. Boyd admitted that one of the greatest difficulties ha had to contend with was to find sufficient employment to keep the men out of mischief. Thinkm.**, then, that it would be much better if those men, instead of being left without useful occupation, if possible, should ba set to some useful work, it suggested itself to him that they should be set to work to build a wall to vail themselves in, so that they might not annoy the colonis'g, and then the Peninsula, ho thought, could be safely opened up. Each of these sien cost the colony annually _£33,105., and be was not aware that anything scarcely had .been done to mako tlieir labor reproductive— -Lvmeetton ExantincT.