CORRESPONDENCE.

THE DEMISE OF THE CROWN IN HAWAII. [nom I CORRESPONDENT.]

[We have been favoured with the following extracts from private letters, which, though now a little out of date, contain so much more minute an account of events in which most of our readers will take an interest than any which we at least have seen in print, that we do not scruple to bring them before our readers. —ED. Spectator.] "Honolulu, December 14, 1872.

"A great event happened here last 1Vednesday, King Kame- bameha V. died on the forty-second anniversary of his birth. He had been ill for several months, but not dangerously ; at least, according to his ministers and physicians, there was no cause for alarm ; but he had not been seen for many weeks, and the last nine days his ministers were not admitted, still they persisted in saying all was well. T— felt sure that something serious was -the matter, and therefore was not surprised when on the morning of his birthday, at ten o'clock, his death was announced. It seems that Dr. H—, his physician and chief minister, was quite unprepared for it, but the great trouble is that he died without appointing a successor. At his death-bed he was entreated to do :so, but no one could induce him, and now the country is really without a king and without a constitution. The late King died from excess of fat, and no other disease. He was an immense man, and he would take no exercise to keep himself in health, and it is said his heart was so enveloped in fat -that it could not act properly. It was a singular thing, was

it not, that he should die on his birthday ? On the following -day there was a lying-in state from ten till two, which is always a grand ceremony. The natives have a way of embalming the body, or of course this would be impossible in such a climate, and considering the immense size of the man. Even with this pre-

caution it was necessary to burn a quantity of incense during the time, and they were obliged to close the room an hour sooner than was intended. T— wished me to go, as it is quite a sight, and he said I should be sorry afterwards if I had not seen it. Mrs. A—, J— W—, and I waited at Mrs. M•—■'£1, while 'I'

went officially with the French commissioner, and then he came to fetch us. The palace yard was full of natives, and the soldiers and household troops were all round the palace doors. Everything was hung with black, the soldiers carried arms' as T— and I passed them. The body of the King was on a bier in the centre of the room, raised nearly fifteen feet from the ground. It was in a slightly reclining position, and it was dressed in a uni- form of scarlet and blue. The bier was covered first with a piece of cloth of silver which had been the King's mother's wedding- dress, and had been used for the same purpose for his sister and mother. As this King was the last of his family, it was put in the coffin with him. On a table, at the head, was a very handsome piece of plate, but what it was we have not yet discovered. On each side of this was a plate of incense, which was being continually replenished. At the feet were the ministers, standing in full uniform; around the body were the staff-officers, the officers of the household troops, the volunteer cavalry and infantry, and others, all in full uniform ; at the head were two Freemasons.

Twelve of the lesser Princes stood around, waving kahilis. One of • the Chieftainesses stood at the aide of the body, holding a sponge up to the mouth and nose.. This must be the most dreadful post of all, yet none but chiefs and chieftainesses are allowed to touch the body. Queen Emma held the sponge when we were there. When Mrs. D— went, Mrs. B— was holding it. There was a constant stream of people, walking two and two, through the room, and as they entered the door, the natives would commence their dreadful wailing, and continue it while they walked pass the body and out at the other door. It is im- possible to describe this sound, you must hear it to understand it.

Very soon after we left they closed the room and the body was put into the leaden coffin, which, I am told, weighed 700 lbs. None but chiefs and chieftainesses may touch it, and fancy such people -as Mrs. B.— and Queen Emma helping to lift this mountain of a man, who weighed 21 stone ! He died on December 11, and is to be buried on January 17, if possible, and all that time the chiefs with the kahilis must relieve each other, and one of the chief tainesses with one of the staff officers must watch beside the coffin. Every night there are hula-hulas or native dances and songs in honour of the late King, and these will probably be continued till after the funeral. We are rather afraid that there will be trouble when the new King is elected, for there are seven possible candidates. Queen Emma, who has not much chance, I think ; Mrs. B who was the King's choice, but who would not accept the succes- sion from him ; Ruth, the King's sister, who has an adopted son, a very flue young native about seventeen years old, who was educated at Mr. A—'s, and whom I have heard recite the 'Lay' of Horatius Codes. (Should Ruth be Queen, he would follow.) But I think the most probable one is Prince William Lunalilo, a fine clever young man ; he is the highest chief in the islands, and is a favourite with the natives. Then there is David Kalakaua, too, elder brother of the adopted son of Ruth mentioned already.

I think it lies between him and William, but altogether it a nice meas.' Everyone is going into mourning

January 14, 1873.

"'We have gone through great changes since I last wrote, but I must try to give a connected account of the events as they occurred. On New Year's Day a poll was held for Lunalilo all over the islands, when the votes were unanimous for him, and the feeling amongst the natives so strongly in his favour, that they actually threatened with death any representative who should dare to support any other candidate. Seeing that their chances were hope- less, all the claimants withdrew excepting Colonel David Kalakaua, who until the evening before the election felt pretty confident of success. While matters were thus in abeyance, the time for the King's funeral arrived. It was fixed for Tuesday, the 7th of Jan- uary; on the 8th, the nobles and representatives were to meet and elect the new Sovereign. On Monday night the palace grounds were thrown open. The King's remains lay in state in the magnificent coffin provided ; and the hula-hulas went on from seven o'clock to twelve. Every night since the King's death these dances had been taking place, but foreigners had not before been admitted, and of course the dancers concentrated all their efforts on the night on which the public was invited to attend. The staff officers had been obliged to relieve each other in attendance during the whole four weeks, and the kahilis never stopped waving over the coffin. As I had never seen any of these dances, T— took me and J— W— down about eight o'clock. The palace is a square building, with verandahs all round, and a broad flight of steps at each side leading to a wide avenue. The front and back steps were occupied by officers of the body- guard, the staff officers and ministers being on the verandahs and in the throne room. Only the favoured few ' were admitted to the verandahs, but the grounds were thronged with spectators, native and foreign. T— took us up, and we passed through the palace to the front verandah, where there was most to be seen. The pictures presented by different Sovereigns to the Kamehamehas were all hung with crape. The throne room was ' tabu,' but the windows were wide open, and we could see into it from the verandah. The coffin was covered by a magnificent black velvet pall, embroidered with coats of arms, &c., in brilliant-coloured silks. At the foot was a black velvet cushion, edged with gold lace, on which lay the late King's hat and sword. On another were arranged his orders and me lats. At the head was the crown covered with crape. The six chiefs stood round with the small kahilis, and the large ones—which were to be carried next day—were placed in stands in different parts of the room. Some of them were as much as two feet in diameter. There were sixteen in the throne room and some in the entrance hall. They are made of feathers, each kahili of a different colour ; they are very beautiful things, and added much to the appearance of the room. When we were satis- fied with our inspection, we went to look at the hula-hulas, and sat down on the verandah opposite the principal party of dancers, which consisted of five native women and one little girl dressed in the proper hula costume. A carpet or mat was spread on the ground, on which the girls stood facing the palace. The dresses were short, of a brownish-yellow silk. I supposed it to be the native ' tapa,' until a man joined them with a tape skirt, when I saw the difference. The native shoe was edged at the ankle with a ruffle of white feathers. Sitting in a row behind the women were the men, with the drums, made of two calabashes of peculiar shape. They keep time with these, striking them on the ground, which produces a dull, booming sound. The dancers sing a peculiar shout. I feel perfectly unable to give you any idea of the hula in a letter ; it must be seen to be comprehended. The dance consists in the movements of the hands and arms, while the feet keep up a constant step. The marvellous part of it is the power they seem to have of moving the middle of the body, while the legs and upper part are perfectly still. This swinging gets wilder and wilder ; occa- sionally they would stop to take breath, and then all commence again, and go on till you expect them to drop from fatigue. A little to the left were a number of old women executing the sitting

hula, accompanied by a monotonous chant on three notes. They seemed to ask questions of one neighbour and retail the answer to the other, with incessant bows. Opposite one of the side verandahs was a single native woman, apparently re- citing some long native song, accompanying herself with dancing and drumming. Each party of performers was surrounded by torches and lanterns. Opposite the throne-room was a company of natives, who had come down to sing to the King a kanikau,' or song in honour of the dead. The voices were beautiful, and we thoroughly enjoyed the wild style of the music. We had been there about half-an-hour when Ruth (the King's sister) sent to request all foreigners to leave the palace."

The following morning was the one fixed for the funeral, but unfortunately we had a heavy storm of southerly rain. It poured in torrents whilst T— and I drove to the palace. We were shown into the entrance hall. After a few minutes the chamberlain took me on his arm into the throne room, and seated me in the second row of chairs at the head of the coffin, the first being reserved for the Royal family. Presently Queen Emma arrived, and was conducted to her seat, and a few others came in spite of the rain ; but as this showed no sign of abating the ministers consulted together, and finally decided to put off the funeral until Saturday, as the intervening days would be filled up with the election, &c., of the new King. It seemed strange to elect a king, and have rejoicings for him, while his predecessor lay unburied. T— was very anxious indeed about the events of the next day, indeed be had felt matters to be so unsatisfactory that he had sent for a man-of-war from Esquimault. An American man-of-war was in port, and all the marines were ordered to be ready to land at ten minutes' notice. Had there been any opposition to the wishes of the people, anything might have happened, their excitement was so great. Fortunately, Kalakaua's supporters became convinced at last that he had not a chance, and his name was quietly with- drawn. Lunalilo was therefore elected unanimously to the throne of the Hawaiian Islands. The rejoicings were very great. The town was illuminated with Chinese lanterns, &c. ; the valley road was a blaze of light. T— thought it so out of place while the late King was unburied that he would do nothing himself. As I was getting into the carriage to come home, Governor D—, one of the high officials, said, Good evening, madam. Shall I find Mr. D — anywhere at hand ? I have a message from the King : Will you tell Mr. D— that seats will be reserved for him to- morrow at Kawallabao Church ?' The King was to take the oath to the Constitution the next day. Accordingly we went at twelve, and found the church crammed to suffocation. We were shown to a seat, behind that of the Royal family, with the other foreign representatives. After waiting a short time we heard an immense cheering outside, and Lunalilo entered, with the Chief Justice and Ministers, and seated himself in the chair that does duty for a throne, and which was covered by the Royal feather cloak. At the King's left stood Chief Justice Allen, ready to administer the oath ; behind the throne stood the three Ministers, and behind them the staff-officers. On each side of the throne stood a man with a kahili, dressed in a short cape of yellow, red, and black feathers, arranged in a pattern, and two others, similarly attired, stood at the foot of the platform. First a long extempore prayer was offered in native by the pastor of Kawaiiahao Church, then Colonel 1). Kalakatia, who stood at the King's left, had to read a paper in Hawaiian stating that at a meeting of the legislative assembly on January 8, William Charles Lunalilo had been unanimously elected King of Hawaii N el. It was rather a hard task for the defeated candidate, but he did it bravely ; then Judge Allen did the same thing in English, after which he administered the oath to the Constitution. Kalakaua then came forward and said in native, God save the King !' Judge Allen repeated it in English, and then a deafening cheer came from all the congrega- tion and the crowd without. King Lunalilo rose and bowed several times, and when the noise had ceased he read his speeches, first in native, then in English, one to the nobles and representa- tives, and one to the Hawaiian people ; after this the organ pealed forth, and the King walked out, bowing on every side to the people, while the choir of the church sang the native version of 'God Save the King.' Lunalilo is a tall, well-made, hand- some native, very dark, but without the thick heavy features SO common among his race. He looked particularly well this day, with the scarlet ribbon of royalty across his breast ; he is a clever man, too, and well informed. I am thank- ful to say, Lunalilo has chosen for his Ministers good and trust- worthy men. The Attorney-General is Frank Judd, T—'s old friend ; there is no doubt he is earnest and conscientious, and will use all his influence in the right direction. The Minister of the Interior is E. 0. Hall, one of the American missionaries ; he is a. man who commands the respect of all people, for his integrity and simple-mindedness. The Minister for Foreign Affairs is Mr. Bishop, who seems just the man for the post, a thorough gentle- man, and one of much experience and sound principles. The- Minister of Finance is Mr. Sterling, the only one of the late King's Ministers who retains his portfolio. Altogether, T— is very well satisfied with the new Cabinet. "Januaty 14, 1873. "The late King was buried on the 11th. A service was held at the palace at ten o'clock, to which T— and I were invited.

was placed where I had been placed on the day originally fixed for- the funeral. T— had to sit with the other foreign representa- tives. The coffin stood in the centre of the room, and though only raised on a board a few inches thick, it is so immense that it came up as high as my elbow when T— took me up to look at it. It was the handsomest thing I ever saw made—of two kinds of native wood, which take a high polish. It was as bright as a mirror, and. the contrast between the light and dark wood was perfect. On, the top was a silver plate, with a long inscription on it, and beauti- fully chased. At the head was carved in wood the appearance of a cushion, and on it rested a crown, in relief, of frosted silver. Six chiefs stood on each side waving kahilis, six waved one way and six the other ; then they changed and waved the opposite way, then they all waved towards the coffin, and so on. These changes were all made simultaneously and without a sound. One kahili stood at each corner of the coffin, one in each corner of the room, &c., making sixteen, besides the black ones in use. After some- time came the English clergy to perform the service, ushered in by a native boy in a white surplice, bearing a tall brass. cross, who was followed by the choristers and women in surplices and white dresses, all natives ; then the bishop's crozier was borne in before the bishop, who was followed by his clergy. Then the royal procession arrived, first King Lunalilo, with the late King's sister. He took his seat in a velvet chair at the head of the corpse, she at his left and Queen Emma at his right. The other seats were occupied by high chief- tainesses. On the side of the coffin, opposite T—, stood a young chief of whom I have often spoken as coming to our house—he wore one of the ancient feather cloaks—yellow, red, and black, which came down below his knees. The ordinary burial service was then read—prayers and psalms in native language. Archdeacon Mason delivered a eulogium on the late King, after which the hymn When our heads are bowed with woe' was sung in native, and, concluded the service in the palace.

"The task of moving the coffin now began—its prodigious- weight (1,850 lbs.) rendering it a work of great difficulty, but the- arrangement of rollers, &c., was splendid, which was fortunate, as the coffin itself was not allowed to be touched at all. As soon as the coffin was safely in the hearse, I was taken to my carriage and drove home. T— had to walk in the procession to the mausoleum, a distance of two miles ; thestreets were thronged with spectators, and every available space on the valley road was occupied. From our garden we could see nearly all the way to the mausoleum, for the trees had been trimmed

to let the kahilis pass. The King was accompanied by his father. It must seem strange to you to hear of the King's own father ; you will wonder why he was not made king before his son, but in these islands the descent is through the mother, and Lunalilo's mother claims to be a daughter of Kamehameha I. The procession came on very slowly, the Bishop walking in his- full canonicals, with his crozier borne before him, and his clergy and choristers in surplices and college caps. When it reached the rising ground they had to take the hearse at a trot, for if they had, had any stoppage, the horses would never have been able to stir the immense weight again. All the different orders of people, Oddfellows, Freemasons, &c., wore their badges, and the scarlet shirts of the firemen produced a very pretty effect. Arrived at the mausoleum, the wailing that proceeded from the immense crowd of natives could be distinctly heard from our house. It must have been trying to poor Queen Emma to sit in the mausoleum, with her back to the coffins of her husband and son ; and for Lunalilo, who could hardly help remembering that he would be the next king brought there."