The Paradise of the Pacific. By the Rev. H. H.
Gowen. (Skeffmg- ton and Son.)—This " Paradise " is Honolulu and the Hawaii Islands generally. Mr. Gowen spent four or five years in it, in the capacity of missionary to the Chinese. He is sanguine of the ultimate success of Christianity among this people, holding that their steadfastness of character is a more hopeful feature than the Japanese pliancy, attractive as is the latter quality. One virtue the Chinese Christian certainly has. A congregation which numbered only thirty communicants, and belonged to the poorest class, con- tributed .260 in one year at the weekly offertory. Generally, the missionary experiences of the author were of an encouraging kind. Of the islands and their population he gives a pleasant
and lively account. The Hawaiians are a simple, somewhat feeble folk, who are scarcely suited to the brand-new constitution of the British pattern which they enjoy. "There is decidedly too much politics," writes Mr. Gowen, who thinks that the " benevo- lent despot" would be the man for the place. Such despots, how- ever, are not easily found. If a "Rajah Brooke" could be supplied in all such cases, there would probably be no reason to complain. Meanwhile, there is that dangerous element, a great army of place hunters. Young Hawaii thinks nothing so desirable as a Government appointment, and gives itself to intrigue accordingly. Happily the revolutions are bloodless affairs. Leprosy, the Hawaiian volcanoes, and the many remarkable features of the island scenery, are treated of in this very readable volume.
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