186 SANDWICH ISLANDS. 



Rev. Mr. Bingham's church, to the number of 700. The 

 examination lasted several hours, the exercises being spelling, 

 reading, writing, arithmetic, singing, grammar and geography ; 

 and it is certainly speaking moderately to say, the evidences 

 of improvement exhibited on the occasion were very creditable 

 to both teachers and pupils. The Governor, and Captains 

 Wilkes and Hudson made short addresses, which were listened 

 to with much attention. The scholars were then marched 

 through the town to the Rev. Mr. Smith's church, each school 

 bearing a banner, and the whole procession headed by the 

 young chiefs. 



It was upon the whole one of the most interesting spectacles 

 I have witnessed for a long time, and spoke well for the mis- 

 sionaries. Besides the school just mentioned, there are three 

 others in Honolulu one of which is under the superintendence 

 of the Catholic bishop.* It is the opinion of the missionaries, 

 and other foreign residents, that the native children are not 

 inferior in intellect, or in other respects, to white children 

 having equal advantages. 



October 28th. Having visited every object worthy of notice 

 in the town of Honolulu, I determined to-day to ride out to the 

 Pali. Strangers visiting Oahoo, ought by all means to take 

 this drive it is impossible to conceive a more interesting one. 

 After proceeding about two miles from the principal hotel 

 you enter a valley, through the centre of which winds a beauti- 

 ful stream, whose banks are lined with taro plantations, 

 meadows and gardens, and dotted with cottages, while the 

 sides on either hand are bounded with a range of hills, covered 

 to their summits with verdure. The eye cannot turn but to 

 banquet on some lovely or romantic object. Every cottage is 



* Formerly the Protestant was the only religion tolerated by the government, but 

 now all creeds are tolerated, and the Catholics have numerous converts in Honolulu 



