General | Page 43 | Images of Old Hawaiʻi

March 23, 2024 by Peter T Young 2 Comments

Brockengespenst

And art thou nothing?
Such thou art, as when
The woodman winding
Westward up the glen
At wintry dawn, where
O’er the sheep-track’s maze
The viewless snow-mist
Weaves a glist‘ning haze,
Sees full before him,
Gliding without tread,
An image with a glory
Round its head;
The enamoured rustic
Worships its fair hues,
Nor knows he makes
The shadow he pursues!
(‘Constancy to an Ideal Object,’ Samuel Taylor Coleridge)

The Brocken is the highest peak of Northern Germany. The Brockengespenst (Brocken spectre, Specter of the Brocken) is a common phenomenon on this misty mountain, where a climber’s shadow cast upon fog creates eerie optical effects.

“This beautiful sight is rarely seen in any country, and seldom except at sunrise or sunset, during a fog or cloudy weather. For this reason, the following account of what was seen in August, 1894, on Haleakala, written by Miss Lillie A Brown, one of the ladies who witnessed it and who were accompanied with a guide, possesses great interest:”

“‘We arrived at the brink of the crater (August 20, 1894, 5pm,) just in time to witness not only a marvelously glorious sunset above the clouds, but the Specter of the Brocken as well —a wonderful phenomenon, which comparatively few have ever been privileged to behold, at least as perfect as we saw it.’”

“‘Upon our approach to the summit, we found the crater completely filled with an unbroken, sheeny, silvery, misty cloud, obliterating every physical feature, and reaching itself above the horizon to sky-clouds of the same nature, so that above and below and around us was but cloud-world.’”

“‘Directly opposite us, as we stood together on the same rock, there suddenly appeared, suspended in this cloud, a rainbow, gorgeous in color, forming a complete circle, and enclosing, as in a hanging frame, three figures, many times larger than life, which we soon discovered to be our own reflected images.’”

“‘To test the reality of the apparition, we waved our hats and handkerchiefs, and our silhouetted images waved back to us out of the centre of the gorgeous rainbow frame, our reflected motions seeming to shoot off rays of color, in effect something like that of a search light.’”

“‘Five times this phenomenon appeared and disappeared, on each successive occasion losing somewhat of its brilliancy of color. The suspended rainbow, ourselves on the crater’s edge, and the sun’s fiery ball – in our rear, were all perpendicular to the same horizontal plane.’”

“‘As the rainbow gradually faded from our vision, we turned; the sun was setting in great billowy clouds, with gorgeous masses of color above it. To our right – I can compare it only to a vast rolling Arctic plain – lay great strata of clouds as far as the eye could see …’”

“‘… so like a white frozen country that it required but a slight effort of the imagination to people it with furclad humanity, the reindeer, and the Arctic bear, or to imagine ourselves being fleetly sledged over its glistening snows.’”

“‘Above this new strange cloud world was the blue dome of heaven, making far away with the white plain, a distant elevated horizon.’”

“‘Again we turned our faces to the crater. The silvery, misty cloud had rolled partly out, giving us a glimpse of the great depth of the yawning chasm below us, several of the great blow holes, and far beyond, just for one moment, we saw the blue sea of Hawaii over the further ridge’”

“‘Then darkness enveloped the great crater in her mantle, and we groped our way down from the rocks to the overhanging cliff which was to be our shelter for the night.’” (Whitney, 1895)

Specter of the Brocken appears when a low sun is behind a person who is looking downwards into mist from a ridge or peak. The “specter” is the shadowy figure – the glow and rings are of course a glory centered directly opposite the sun at the antisolar point.

It is no more than the shadow of the person projected forward through the mist. All shadows converge towards the antisolar point where the glory also shines. (Atmospheric Optics)

Solar_glory_and_Spectre_of_the_Brocken

Brocken_Gipfelstein-summit marker

March 20, 2024 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Rupert’s Land

The Thirty Years’ War (1618 to 1648) was one of the longest conflicts in European history; the primary cause of war was the actions of Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand II in forcing the Protestants into Catholicism. Prince Frederick, a Calvinist, sided with the Protestants and became King of Bohemia and lived in Hiradcany Castle in the Rhine.

Frederick’s wife was Princess Elizabeth, the older sister of King Charles I of England, Scotland and Ireland. They had a son Prince Rupert. The family was forced into exile; following Frederick’s death (1632), Elizabeth sent Rupert to England (in 1635). He later became the first head of Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) in what is now Canada.

In 1670, King Charles II of England granted a royal charter to create the Hudson’s Bay Company, under the governorship of the king’s cousin Prince Rupert of the Rhine. According to the Charter, the HBC received rights to:

“The sole Trade and Commerce of all those Seas, Streights, Bays, Rivers, Lakes, Creeks, and Sounds, in whatsoever Latitude they shall be, that lie within the entrance of the Streights commonly called Hudson’s Streights …”

“together with all the Lands, Countries and Territories, upon the Coasts and Confines of the Seas, Streights, Bays, Lakes, Rivers, Creeks and Sounds, aforesaid, which are not now actually possessed by any of our Subjects, or by the Subjects of any other Christian Prince or State …”

“and that the said Land be from henceforth reckoned and reputed as one of our Plantations or Colonies in America, called Rupert’s Land.”

The Royal Charter of 1670 granted “the Governor and Company of Adventurers of England trading into Hudson Bay” exclusive trading rights over the entire Hudson Bay drainage system.

This territory was vast, and the Crown had little knowledge of the land or the people calling it home. According to the Royal Charter, the land was “unoccupied”, or not “actually possessed by any of our Subjects, or by the Subjects of any other Christian Prince or State.”

Rupert’s Land (aka Prince Rupert’s Land) was a vast territory of northern wilderness. It represented a third of what is now Canada. At the time, King Charles II had no idea that this encompassed about 1.5-million square miles.

In terms of modern geo-political boundaries, Rupert’s Land covered northern Quebec, northern Ontario, much of the three prairie provinces, and most of southern Nunavut. It also included parts of Montana, Minnesota, and North and South Dakota.

For HBC, Rupert’s Land provided an entry point into the fur trade, and although the Charter outlined a clear purpose for the land and its resources, its boundaries were ambiguously defined.

Expanding HBC’s geographical network and understanding of the land relied on Indigenous local knowledge and alliances. Exploring and mapping the region was motivated by economic and political goals, especially as HBC was confronted by other commercial enterprises challenging its claim to exclusive trading rights within the territory. (HBC Heritage)

The royal charter did not apply to any parts of Rupert’s Land “actually possessed” by “any other Christian Prince or State,” but made no mention of the many First Nations who actually held sovereignty within the territory.

At the time, the Hudson’s Bay Company’s actual claim to the land was limited to small sites for trading posts and safe passage between those posts. (University of Winnipeg)

From 1670 (to 1870), it was the exclusive commercial domain of the Hudson’s Bay Company and the primary trapping grounds of the fur trade.

The maritime fur trade focused on acquiring furs of beavers, sea otters, seals and other animals from the Pacific Northwest Coast and Alaska. The furs were mostly sold in China in exchange for tea, silks, porcelain and other Chinese goods, which were then sold in Europe and the US.

Needing supplies in their journey, the traders soon realized they could economically barter for provisions in Hawai‘i; for instance any type of iron, a common nail, chisel or knife, could fetch far more fresh fruit meat and water than a large sum of money would in other ports.

A triangular trade network emerged linking the Pacific Northwest coast, China and the Hawaiian Islands to Britain and the United States (especially New England).

Then, on July 1, 1867, a federation of colonies in British North America – New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec and Ontario – joined together to become the Dominion of Canada. Under the British North America Act, 1867, the Queen remained head of state, represented nationally in Canada by the Governor General and in each province by a Lieutenant Governor.

The British North America Act provided the constitutional framework for Canada’s current federal system by defining broad areas of federal and provincial jurisdiction. Such national matters as defense, postal service, criminal law, and banks are under federal authority. Education, health, and natural resources are primarily among the provinces’ responsibilities.

On March 30, 1867, just one day after the British North America Act received Royal Assent in London, the United States purchased Alaska from Russia. With the American purchase of Alaska (Americans had just paid Russia $7.2 million for Alaska), Canadians were looking for other properties to expand the Republic and eyed the territory.

Canada’s Prime Minister, Sir John A MacDonald, was anxious to gain control of Rupert’s Land. He wanted it to be annexed to the new Dominion of Canada to prevent its annexation by the US.

In his mind, if he was successful, he could expand the Dominion both North and West. Canada saw Rupert’s Land as the natural extension of its new nation which included Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario and Quebec.

George Brown, editor of The Globe and a Father of Confederation, described it as “the vast and fertile territory which is our birthright – and which no power on earth can prevent us occupying.”

The prophecy in the country’s motto, “He shall have Dominion from sea to sea” (Psalm 72:8), would be fulfilled. He would also strengthen Canada’s presence in North America next to the United States. (Christian Roots Canada)

The once powerful Hudson’s Bay Company controlled the area. But the British fur trade giant had been in decline for years and it was preparing to sell Rupert’s Land.

On March 20, 1869, the Hudson’s Bay Company, under pressure from Great Britain, sold Rupert’s Land to the Government of Canada for $1.5 million. The sale involved roughly a quarter of the continent; it is the largest real estate transaction (by land area) in the country’s history.

The purchase of Rupert’s Land transformed Canada geographically. It changed from a modest country in the northeast of the continent into an expansive one that reached across North America. Rupert’s Land was eventually divided among Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Northwest Territories.

Today, Prince Rupert’s name remains a part of Canadian geography. He is the namesake of the city of Prince Rupert, British Columbia, the Prince Rupert neighborhood in northwest Edmonton and Quebec’s Rupert River, which drains into Rupert Bay on James Bay. (Information here is from Canadian Encyclopedia, Canada’s History, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Hudson’s Bay Company and Legislative Assembly of BC.))

March 19, 2024 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Pueo Kahi

Na ka Pueo kahi ke aloha
Nēnē ‘au kai o Maui

Kōwelo kō hae Hawai‘i
Ma ka ‘ilikai a‘o Māmala

Mālama ‘ia iho ke aloha
I Kuleana na‘u e hiki aku au

Ha‘ina ‘ia mai ka puana
Nā ka Pueo kahi ke aloha

The Pueo is my one love
The seafaring gull of Maui

The Hawaiian flag flutters
Over the surface of Mamala Bay

Take care of my love
That’s mine until I return

The story is told
Of the ship, Pueo that I love
(Na Ka Pueo – by Samuel Kalani Kaea)

Na Ka Pueo, a song which was perhaps written by a sailor, tells of a ship named Pueo-Kahi, a cargo vessel which sailed between Hāna and Honolulu harbors during the end of the monarchy period and during the republic.

The Pueo-Kahi was named for a place near Hāna, Maui. It is an earlier name of what we now call Hāna Bay and near the birthplace of Queen Ka‘ahumanu. ‘Pueo-Kahi,’ which could be translated as ‘Lone Owl,’ was named for the owl (pueo) demigod of that area. (Hau‘oli)

Ship, boat or canoes in Hawaiian mele were used as a poetic reference to woman. Owls were also family aumakua (ancestral gods).

“[T]he ‘aumakua was represented in marine life such as great fish, mano (shark), puhi (moray eel), mo‘o (lizard), honu (turtle), and land animals such as pueo (owl).”

“Many of [the people] looked for appearances by their ‘aumakua. For example, one informant shared that at a family funeral, his ‘aumakua, the pueo, appeared to lend support to his family.”

“The family knew where their ‘aumakua could be found and always made efforts to nurture or never harm them. … Pueo is symbolic of Wisdom and the whole universe, light and enlightenment. It is an ‘aumakua or ancestral guardian spirit.” (Matsuoka, etal)

Hāna is located on the eastern most point of Maui, approximately 60 miles from the population centers of Wailuku and Kahului. Hāna, or Kapueokahi, “the single owl”, is considered one of the most beautiful and historically important areas of Maui.

Prior to the unification of the Hawaiian Islands by King Kamehameha, Hāna was used as a staging ground for battles between warring chiefs on Maui and the island of Hawaii. (AECOS)

Alenuihaha Channel, between the southeast and south coast of East Maui and ‘Upolu Point (the northwest tip of Hawaii) could easily be crossed in either direction in a couple of hours when a trade wind was blowing.

As a sanctuary, both in wartime and peacetime, Hāna was an ideal seat for ruling ali’i of either island, as well as a much pleasanter and more beautiful place in which to live.

“Hana is called ‘a land beloved of chiefs because of the fortress of Ka‘uiki [a high rocky hillock by the bay] and the ease of living in that place.’”

“In time of war the hill was reached by a ladder of ohia poles bound together with withes. On the summit was spread a springy plant to serve as bed. Fishponds below furnished unlimited stores of fish. Heaps of ‘awa root ‘delighted the nostrils of the dear firstborn chiefs’”. (Beckwith; Handy, Handy & Pukui)

The sugar industry transformed the ecology of Hāna beginning in 1860 with the Ka‘eleku Sugar Company that formed the backbone of Hāna’s economy until sugar production ceased in the early 1930s.

Paul Fagan bought the sugarcane plantation, converting the area into cattle ranching, and in 1946, built the exclusive Hotel Hāna Ranch, historically known as Hotel Hāna Maui and today as Travaasa Hāna.

The pier at Hāna Bay (also historically known as Kauiki Bay ca. 1920, and as Kapueokahi Bay ca. 1882) was completed in the first half of 1921.

It replaced an earlier landing located near the foot of Keawa Place, on the shore of Hāna Bay, about 250 yards to the west. Here, a series of landings, jetties, and a pier had been in use since at least 1882.

When the 1921 structure was built, it was referred to as “Hāna Wharf”, not as a pier (as it is known today). As such, the historical context that follows uses the historically accurate terms “wharf” and “Hāna Wharf” to describe what is now known as Hāna Pier. (AECOS)

March 18, 2024 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Kilauea 1921

“In March of 1921, the big steamer Hawkeye State made her first Baltimore to Hawaii trip, bringing a large list of eastern passengers to visit the volcanic marvel.”

“The campaign of publicity which landed them at Hilo had been based more than all else upon the prayer that the fire goddess might be in wrathful mood.”

“As the Hawkeye State neared port, there was a disheartening lack of glow upon the side of Mauna Loa. The hopes of the promoters were faint when the hotels at Kilauea were reached, and grumbling arose at the insufficient accommodation and lethargic aspect of Halemaumau in the distance.” (Charmian London)

“This continued until the procession of motors was well on its way through the forest, bound for the pit.”

“And then it happened.” (Charmian London)

“The eruption started just as a group of the members of the Chicago Athletic Club arrived here from San Francisco on the steamer Hawkeye State.” (Richmond Times, March 20, 1921)

“‘It’s a Niagara of fire.’ This description of the lava outburst at Kilauea Volcano. The fire pit of which overflowed on Thursday night and early yesterday morning was given today by Fred J Halton, who returned this morning on the Hawkey State from Hilo.” (Star Bulletin, March 19, 1921)

“Abruptly, as if ordered for their benefit, Pele broke loose upon the starry night; arid by the time the excited scores had reached the verge of her dwelling, the ponderous surge, urged from beneath, was lashing tremendously against the battlements.”

“These capitulated to the onslaught, and crashed into the molten mass, driving the tourists hastily to their cars and the safety and sight-seeing vantage of the bluffs around the main crater. I quote from an eye-witness:”

“‘The lake broke through crevices and rushed with express speed out over the old lava surface, where flowing lava had not been known for forty years. A river formed on the side toward the Volcano House, plunged down the incline, covered the old horse corral where Professor Jaggar’s instruments were stored, sealing them forever.’”

“‘On and on the river spread until it stopped at the foot of the cliffs just below the Volcano House. All night and on St. Patrick’s day, which was also the birthday of Kamehameha III, the lava found new openings. It poured like a Niagara over the south side.”

“A new fountain formed near the bluff southwest of Halemaumau and sent incandescent rockets into the air. Another fountain formed over toward the Kau road.’” (Charmian London)

“Pele has played fast and loose the past several years; and no man can count upon his pilgrimage being rewarded by her most spectacular performances. Although I continue to maintain that her serenest vaporings are worth the voyage….”

“The goddess was surely working for the promotion committee; and a new hotel and enlargement of all present facilities, both there and in Hilo, were promptly on the way. To say nothing of improvements on the volcano highway….” (Charmian London)

“In July 1921, 250 people standing near the rim of Halema‘uma‘u officially dedicate Hawai‘i National Park. It’s actually named the 11th national park on Aug. 1, 1916, about three weeks before the National Park Service is established, and its 74,935 acres includes Haleakalā on Maui, and Mauna Loa and Kīlauea on the Big Island.” (Honolulu Magazine)

“‘We amply endorse the statement made by Mr. Horace M. Albright, assistant to Director Mather, that the Hawaii National Park has no peer. ‘I was amazed,’ said Mr. Albright, ‘by the wonders of the Kilauea section of the park. Its central feature of course is the great pit of living fire, Halemaumau.’”

“‘This pit is in the center of the main Kilauea crater, which is a great depression in a dome mountain 4,000 feet high, appearing to be a part of the eastern slope of Mauna Loa. It is impossible to describe this active lake of fire.’”

“‘It is the most awe-inspiring thing that I have ever observed, far surpassing the geysers of the Yellowstone, the waterfalls of the Yosemite, and the big trees of Sequoia Park.’”

“‘I have no hesitation in predicting that when once the people of the United States realize what a remarkable thing this volcano really is it will become the objective of thousands and thousands of visitors.’” (Honolulu Magazine)

“‘But,’ continued Mr. Albright, ‘the volcano is only one of the many sights of a wide district. There are many other steaming and dead craters, great forests of primeval tree ferns, many with fronds thirty feet in length which arch overhead, forests of koa and ohia, lava trees and wonderful tree molds.’”

“‘There is also the Bird Park, a beautiful natural park, surrounded by ancient lava flows and filled with native trees and beautiful native birds. There is also the seven-craters area traversed by the Cockett Trail. Several of these craters are almost as remarkable as the active volcano itself.’” (Honolulu Magazine)

“The picturesque [dedication] exercises included the recitation by a lineal descendant of a priest of Pete, of a prayer to the fire goddess.”

“This invocation, delivered in the full-toned chant of the old Hawaiians, was succeeded by an impressive recitation of the first Christian prayer delivered at the same brink by the spirited Kapiolani in olden days.”

“In connection with this National Park a road is to be built to the crater Mokuaweoweo at the summit of Mauna Loa. Owners of the land required for this highway are willing to donate the property.”

“The possibilities of this road are set astir in one’s imagination by the popular watchword, ‘From Surfing to Ski-ing.’” (Charmian London, Our Hawaii)

March 16, 2024 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Tree of Life

“If a man plant ten breadfruit trees in his life, which he can do in about an hour, he would completely fulfil his duty to his own as well as future generations.” (Joseph Banks, 1769)

Banks had been on the Endeavour with Captain Cook on his first voyage to the South Pacific in 1768-1771. William Bligh was part of the Cook’s crew on its third voyage when it made contact with Hawaiʻi in 1778.

Bligh later captained the Bounty on a voyage to gather breadfruit trees from Tahiti and take them to Jamaica in the Caribbean. There, the trees would be planted to provide food for slaves.

Bligh didn’t make it back on the Bounty, his crew mutinied (April 28, 1789;) one reason for the mutiny was that the crew believed Bligh cared more about the breadfruit than them (he cut water rationing to the crew in favor of providing water for the breadfruit plants.) Bligh’s tombstone, in part, reads he was the “first (who) transplanted the bread fruit tree.”

For thousands of years, Ulu (Breadfruit) was a staple food in Oceania. It is believed to have originated in New Guinea and the Indo-Malay region and was spread throughout the vast Pacific by voyaging islanders.

According to a legend, the chief Kahai brought the breadfruit tree to Hawaiʻi from Samoa in the twelfth century and first planted it at Kualoa, Oʻahu. Only one variety was known in Hawaiʻi, while more than 24 were distinguished by native names in the South Seas. (CTAHR)

It was a canoe crop – one of around 30 plants brought to the Hawaiian Islands by the Polynesians when they first arrived in Hawaiʻi.

“This tree, whose fruit is so useful, if not necessary, to the inhabitants of most of the islands of the South Seas, has been chiefly celebrated as a production of the Sandwich Islands; it is not confined to these alone, but is also found in all the countries bordering on the Pacific Ocean.” (Book of Trees, 1837)

Known as ‘Ulu’ in Hawaiʻi and Samoa, ‘Uru’ is the Tahitian word for the tree, ‘Kuru’ in the Cook Islands, and ‘Mei’ in the Marquesas, Tonga and Gambier Islands, scientifically, it’s known as Artocarpus altilis.

William Dampier, claims credit for giving the fruit its English name, breadfruit. His description of it, from his 1688 Voyage Round the World, notes:

“The Bread-fruit (as we call it) grows on a large Tree, as big and high as our largest Apple trees. It hath a spreading head full of branches, and dark leaves. …”

“When the fruit is ripe it is yellow and soft; and the taste is sweet and pleasant. The Natives of this Island use it for bread: they gather it when full grown, while it is green and hard; then they bake it in an Oven, which scorcheth the rind and makes it black:”

“but they scrape off the outside black crust, and there remains a tender thin crust, and the inside is soft, tender and white like the crumb of a Penny Loaf.”

“There is neither seed nor stone in the inside, but it is all of a pure substance like Bread; it must be eaten new; for if its kept above 24 hours, it becomes dry, and eats harsh and choaky; but ’tis very pleasant before it is too stale. The fruit lasts in season 8 months in the year, during which time the Natives eat no other sort of food of Bread kind.” (Smith)

The breadfruit is multipurpose, it may be eaten ripe as a fruit or under-ripe as a vegetable – it is roasted, baked, boiled, fried, pickled, fermented, frozen, mashed into a puree, and dried and ground into meal or flour.

The Breadfruit Institute at the National Tropical Botanical Garden, Hawai‘i, is engaged in a Global Hunger Initiative to expand plantings of good quality breadfruit varieties in tropical regions.

Click here for a link to the NTBG Breadfruit Institute.

More than 80% of the world’s hungry live in tropical and subtropical regions – this is where breadfruit thrives. The trees require little attention or care, producing an abundance of fruit with minimal inputs of labor or materials.

Trees begin to bear fruit in three to five years, producing for many decades. Crop yields are superior to other starchy staples. An average-sized tree will readily produce 100-200 fruit per year.

The Breadfruit Institute manages the world’s largest collection of breadfruit, conserving over 120 varieties. The Institute has developed effective methods to propagate and distribute millions of plants of productive nutrient-rich varieties.

This initiative aims to disseminate breadfruit plants to alleviate hunger and support sustainable agriculture, agroforestry and reforestation in the tropics.

The same can hold true, here at home.

Centuries ago, the Hawaiians recognized breadfruit’s benefit and brought it with them to Hawaiʻi – we can learn from that.