family | I didn't plan it that way. . .

Please excuse the grammar; it is a direct reproduction of the original.

Pacific Commercial Advertiser – 1884

The steamship SS Bordeaux, left Madeira on July 22, 1884, and after the ship set sailing away from Madeira, it was found there were 20 stowaways aboard. During the trip to the Islands, there were 12 births and 72 deaths; 69 were children under the age of 10 years old. Two of the adults died of consumption, the third adult was handicapped at 19 years of age and died the day after arrival in Honolulu at 5 o’clock PM, after suffering from consumption for nearly 3 years. This steamer has a greater carrying capacity than the SS City of Paris, but she brought a fewer number of immigrants. The mortality, it is claimed, was due more to the introduction of measles at the port of Madeira than from any other cause, although the change in climate might have caused some of the difficulties. The trip of the vessel was made as follows:

She entered the Straits of Magellan, passing Cape Virgene, August 19, and cleared Cape Aeiler and she entered the Pacific Ocean on August 22, 1884. The ship’s baking apparatus having been broken down, she went to Coronal, Chile, for biscuits on September 17, then sailed again on September 19, and arrived in Honolulu on October 2, 1884, making a trip of 72 days from Madeira, anchored at Wilder’s Wharf at 9 o’clock AM.

Dr. Parker of the Board of Health and Dr. Henri McGrew, the port physician, visited the vessel, and after an examination, found no evidence of contagion. They learned that the greater part of the mortality was noted when the vessel was crossing Cape Horn, mainly attributed to the cold atmospheric effect on those who had measles. Through the efforts of a new port captain at Madeira, the Bordeaux was allowed to bring only a portion of the immigrants who were prepared to sail to Honolulu. About 400 Portuguese were left behind. It is expected that another vessel will be sent from London to bring the the remainder of them here. The circumstances were caused by a change of interpretation of the regulations for emigrants, which say the the vessel may carry two persons (adults) for every 5 tons of register. In this case, the authorities have decided that it means 2 persons for each 5 tons of space appropriated to passengers. Should the Japanese immigration of laborers prove a success, and plenty laborers, of a satisfactory quality be introduced under it, there will be a cry to stop the spending of money on the introduction of Portuguese. This will be a grave mistake although we have to confess that it will be a natural one because it is true, that to the planter who only looks to laborers so favorably known. But, should the Portuguese be discontinued? The first cost is high, and the wages of the men are high, but taking the average cost of labor performed by the men, women, and children, they may be cheaper than any other class now here.

Portugal

From the steamship “City of Paris”, it was a good fortune to get 14 families. The average wage of the 14 men are 68 cents per head per day; to this must be added, say 15 cents per day for the first cost of interest on the same, etc. that made the cost for the men 83 cents per day. Too costly, no doubt, but beside the men, we have an average of 20 women, girls, and boys doing good work, at an average daily wage of 31 and a half cents. That gives a total of 34 workers at an average cost of 52.7 cents per day.

Chinese laborers are getting 65 cents per day where I write from, and on some plantations they are getting out of the light hoeing much more (and on a well kept Plantation, there should be no heavy hoeing) there, women and children will do much of the work in a day as a Chinaman, and at stripping cane, many people believe they, the women and children, do better and more!

Hawaii

Again, with the 14 men, there are 20 women and children working, some 25 other children too young to work, but who will eventually, as they grow up, become the most valuable of the plantation hands. Furthermore, every Portuguese family consumes about 3 bags of flour per month, besides a variety of other California produce, and help to make up the balance of the trade with the United States, and thus strengthen the treaty.

United States

My thoughts over this article brings me to the present day. Even as much as we’ve progressed over the ensuing years, we still have people coming to the West (and specifically to the United States) for better opportunities for themselves and their children… fully aware that it only offers work for pennies a day and not much chance of success … but those with the will to succeed often do, and that is exactly the opportunity they desire when they leave their home countries to come to America. Imagine that … (wink)
They were at sea for 72 days and witnessed 72 deaths onboard the ship… how dedicated must they have been to get on a ship where someone died every day of the voyage. They didn’t know that when they boarded, but the possibility of death is always there and understood ahead of time – in addition to other calamities (pirates and sinking by the weather) that might ruin their entire plan.
I thank every ancestor of mine for having the courage and fortitude to make the journey on my behalf … and never seriously consider going back regardless of how difficult it must have been through those days and beyond.

God bless America…

... Maui visit ...

It all started during my time on Maui …

During the time I grew up on Maui, one of the first associations I can recall was with family there. I was never one to understand those sorts of things – it was the traditional back then to address all older male individuals or close male associates as Uncle as a sign of respect and deference in informal situations, whether they were related or not – so for a kid who was accustomed to only having two members in the family (my Uncle John and Grandma Ida Moniz), I was totally oblivious to the real family relationships to which I was exposed.

I recall moving a few times before settling down in Dream City … a development in the central valley. It has become a huge residential area that almost connects Kahului to Wailuku. At one time, we lived in a huge house behind what eventually became the Maui Soda Company. The floors creaked, the roof squeaked each night as it cooled down, and all of us kids (Eric, Elliot, and myself) thought it was haunted, but we were too afraid to speak of it openly. I believe it was eventually torn down.

At the time, dad owned a 1949 Ford – the turtle-looking car that might have inspired the VW Beetle … lol … that would have been one of the few ideas the Germans engineers ever took from America since the war … (grin). I remember while getting out of that car once in the front of that big house, Eric slammed the door on my hand, knowing full well I was coming out that side. Fortunately, the automotive tolerances in those days left a little to be desired, so my finger was just severely pinched to the point of turning blue and swelling up, but it never tore the skin, and I was never in real danger of losing it completely. It did still hurt like the dickens! Of course, Eric was wise enough, even at that age, to act innocent and claim no knowledge of me coming out that side of the car… (sigh)

After moving to Dream City, each of us was given a bicycle by Santa over the next couple of years. During the time I was expecting mine, I envisioned a sleek, ten-speed English bike like Melvin Young owned. Well, my dad, unknown to me, did a little research on a good dependable bike that would last for years in spite of daily use by a kid without any knowledge of bicycle mechanics or preventive maintenance. So, I ended up with a two-speed Roadmaster monstrosity that no one I knew had ever even heard of or seen in their bicycle circle of friends … (sigh)
A TWO-speed bicycle, for crying out loud … what was that … ? slow and snail-paced … ? (grin) Of course, during the ordering and purchasing process, I was not permitted to go measure for it; so I ended up with a bike that was just about two inches too big for me. In my initial attempts to ride the thing in our back yard, shifting my body from side to side in order to push each pedal to the bottom of its cycle, I fell quite often (how fast can a kid go on grass and deep sand on a bike with pedals he can’t reach?) – to which my dad would throw in a few snide remarks to motivate me to do better – like, I guess you’re too young to ride a bike … or I thought you said you could ride a bike? – and make our father-son interactions that much more memorable… (sigh)

In a little while, I was cycling all around the neighborhood and within several blocks of the house. Eventually, I made my way down to KAC … which in the lazy linguistic tradition of the Hawaiian culture, became more popularly known as KC … Only until years later did I learn that KC was a shortened version of KAC, which itself was an abbreviation for Kahului Athletic Center. I spent many hours at the KAC. It was a Salvation Army Center with pool tables, table tennis tables, speed bags, and a small weight room in the corner. It was accompanied by a four-lane bowling center with manual pin setting machines. The center was run by Eddie Kalani, a gentile man with a bum leg, which I believed was a result of his service during World War II. Everyone respected him for his calm demeanor and fair decisiveness in any controversies that arose during our games and competitions.
I still recall pin setting for Mr. Tanaka, our grade school principal, who used to throw a bowling ball just as hard as he could as quickly as he could during his turn on the lanes. I soon learned to pick up a few pins, then return his ball as I finished up and moved out of the way … none of us ever wanted to get caught in the pit when Mr. Tanaka was up on the lane… (grin) If any one of us returned his ball first, he ran the risk of getting caught in the pit as Mr. Tanaka delivered his ball… it normally landed half-way down the lane and sprayed pins everywhere very quickly upon impact. Each pair of lanes had a pass-through to the other lane … it didn’t take long to learn to stay out of either pit when Mr. Tanaka was up – he occasionally sent a pin careening into the other pit, not a good surprise if anyone was in there.
We earned ten cents a game and tens cents a bowler… for a series of three games and four bowlers on each team, that was $4.80 … big money in those days… (grin)

I was also able to visit with Uncle Stephen Moniz. He was the one who introduced me to plastic model building. We started with smaller, easier projects, and worked our way up to more intricate kits. He was the most patient, understanding, and helpful relative I remember from those days. I would go over after lunch on a Saturday, and we would work on a model until just before dinner time when I would have to leave for home. We would open the kit, inventory the parts, separate the parts that we thought we might need for the steps we planned to accomplish that day, work on it without a rush or any sense of urgency, clean up afterward, and put the kit away to dry for the next opportunity. Never once did I ever go there when he had completed any step without me … I cannot recall any of the projects we ever completed. I only remember his patience, gentleness, and sincere willingness to spend as much time with me as was necessary to do things right and complete each project in such a manner as to give me a sense of pride in what I had done to help him build it.
My one regret over those days is that I never was able to remember to thank him for the time he took from his own life to enrich mine with such wonderful memories. Not long after, he divorced his wife and moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico where he lived for 20 years before returning to Maui.

Back then, I found it strange that someone could leave Maui and stay away that long before coming home.

I didn’t plan to … move away from Maui right after high school graduation in 1966 and never return … it’s just the way it turned out…