Excerpt from Around the World With Eyes Wide Open: The Wonders of the World Pictured by the Pen and Pencil
The days were full of sunshine, the nights full of stars, and the ocean quite pacific, during the first week of our journey; and on the eighth day we caught a glimpse of the Hawaiian Islands; soon the white houses of Honolulu were in sight; and in the twilight of the evening we were anchored in the handsome harbor facing the Paradise of the Pacific.
The Hawaiian group consists of five principal islands: Hawaii, Maui, Oahu, Molokai and Ranai, located about 2000 miles from San Francisco in the Northern Pacific Ocean, between the ninteenth and twenty-third parallels of latitude. As our steamer approaches Honolulu, on the island of Oahu, the seat of the Hawaiian government, the picturesque Diamond Head is seen outlined against the sky. This headland is an extinct volcano, whose fires in years past lit the sea far in the distance, acting as nature’s lighthouse to warn the passing mariner. Passing this verdureless dome as we move toward the harbor, groves of cocoanut trees, stately palms, graceful ferns and every variety of tropical plants greet the eye; and looking upon this Paradise of the Pacific, you can excuse Mr. Samuel L. Clemens for his enthusiastic reminiscence: I can see its garlanded crags, its leaping cascades, its plumy palms drowsing by the shore, its remote summits floating like islands about the cloud racks. I can feel the spirit of its woodland solitudes; I can hear the gurgle of its brooks; and in my nostrils still lives the breath of flowers that perished twenty years ago. My friend of years, Mr. Willis, the distinguished United States minister to the islands, gave us an old-fashioned Kentucky welcome, and through his courtesy our visit was made most instructive and delightful.
About the Publisher
Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
