MAUI. 241 



at their morning meal than they had done on the day of our arrival, 

 wearing now neat white capes ; but I still saw the same frocks. I do 

 not, however, wish to give the idea that they are not in reality clean : 

 they are so beyond a doubt, as I understood they bathed almost every 

 day; but they did not look tidy. Miss Ogden took her place at a 

 small table, whence she was enabled to overlook the whole. Their 

 food is that of the country, consisting principally of poe and fish, and 

 they are occasionally indulged with molasses. 



Baths and walking-grounds are prepared for them, where they can 

 take exercise. The avowed object of this establishment is to educate 

 the daughters of Hawaii as wives for the young men who are educated 

 at Lahainaluna. They are fed and clothed by the Missionary Society, 

 and it is proposed that they shall remain at the establishment until they 

 be married. 



One courtship has already taken place by letters; and I was informed 

 these were the first love-letters that had ever been written in this group. 

 I was extremely desirous of obtaining the originals or copies, but was 

 not successful. The correspondence appears to have been carried on 

 under the eye of the missionaries, and the expressions they contained 

 were very common-place. 



This whole establishment does great credit to those who are engaged 

 in rearing it up, on account of the method and perseverance with 

 which it is carried on. It is extremely gratifying to see efforts of 

 this kind made, but I cannot help doubting the policy of not allowing 

 any of the burden of it fall upon the natives themselves (the parents). 

 The only argument advanced in justification of this course, was the 

 rather unsatisfactory one, that these people cannot understand and 

 appreciate sufficiently the advantages, to be persuaded to contribute to 

 the education of their children. As far as my own observations went, 

 I believe this to be an error. As long as the children are educated 

 and maintained gratis, the natives will never make any exertions to 

 furnish the means. Some of the natives said to me, on my making 

 inquiry why their children were not at the seminary, that they could 

 not get them there, for all those admitted were selected by the mission- 

 aries, and there are no other means of tuition ; they also added, that 

 they would be willing to contribute a few dollars for the education of 

 their children, if allowed. 



The greatest objection to the system of this school, in my opinion, is 

 that the pupils are not taken at an earlier age, and before their habits 

 are in any way formed, and that it is attempted to educate them ex- 

 clusively for civilized life as it now is. Taken at too advanced an 

 age, they have scarcely an opportunity of forgetting the life of ease 



vol. iv. v 31 



