HONOLULU. 393 



hundred miles to the westward of Oahu, I determined to beat up for 

 it, instead of standing to the northward of the islands. The wind 

 occasionally veered four or five points, which was favourable to this 

 design. 



On the 20th, we made the island of Kauai, which is mountainous : 

 it bore north-northwest and east-northeast. The lightness of the ship, 

 with the sea and slight current setting to leeward, combined to impede 

 our progress, and I found, although we had a good breeze, we were 

 beating without making much headway. I therefore, although re- 

 luctantly, determined on filling up our tanks with salt water, to 

 enable the ship to hold a good wind and make progress. 



On the 23d of September we made the island of Oahu, and stood 

 in for what those who had been there before, and professed to have 

 a knowledge of the land, said was the situation of Honolulu. They 

 all knew its locality to be under our lee, and I ordered the course 

 accordingly. On approaching the land there was no town to be 

 seen, and every one then knew that a mistake had been made, of 

 which no one was willing to assume the blame. Instead of being- off 

 Honolulu, we were under the high land of Mauna Kaala, on the west 

 side of Oahu, near the small village of Wainai. 



The appearance of Oahu is by no means inviting. It has a 

 greater resemblance to the desert coast of Peru than any other of 

 the Polynesian islands we had visited, and has as little appearance 

 of cultivation. The country would be termed at first sight barren 

 and rocky. The land in places is very much broken, and rises into 

 high ridges, here and there divided by deep and narrow ravines, 

 with little vegetation, except on the mountain ranges. From the 

 published descriptions of the Hawaiian Islands, I was prepared to 

 see them, and particularly Oahu, a perfect garden. I was inclined 

 to impute my disappointment to our approach being made on its lee 

 side, which is unusual ; but I regret to say that any side of it, when 

 seen from the sea, is very far from having an inviting appearance. 



Judging myself still to leeward of our port, as our observations, on 

 calculating them up, proved, I made a tack off, and by four o'clock 

 we saw the town of Honolulu, which is very conspicuous from the 

 sea, and has more the appearance of a civilized land, with its churches 

 and spires, than any other island in Polynesia. It is, therefore, 

 strange that it should have been forgotten by those who had once 

 seen it. 



As it was too late to reach the anchorage, I concluded to beat to 



vol. in. 09 



