| 136 | 137 | 138 | 139 | 140 |
| 1 | 314 | 629 | 943 | 1257 |
|
The vegetation and glory of the tropics attracted him. "In one open
spot a vine of a species unknown had taken possession of two tall
dead stumps, and wound around and about them, and swung out from
their tops, and twined their meeting tendrils together into a
faultless arch. Man, with all his art, could not improve upon its
symmetry."
He saw Sam Brannan's palace, "The Bungalow," built by one Shillaber
of San Francisco at a cost of from thirty to forty thousand dollars.
In its day it had outshone its regal neighbor, the palace of the
king, but had fallen to decay after passing into Brannan's hands,
and had become a picturesque Theban ruin by the time of Mark Twain's
visit.
In No. 12, June 20th (written May 23d), he tells of the Hawaiian
Legislature, and of his trip to the island of Maui, where, as he
says, he never spent so pleasant a month before, or bade any place
good-by so regretfully.
In No. 13 he continues the Legislature, and gives this picture of
Minister Harris: "He is six feet high, bony and rather slender;
long, ungainly arms; stands so straight he leans back a little; has
small side whiskers; his head long, up and down; he has no command
of language or ideas; oratory all show and pretence; a big washing
and a small hang-out; weak, insipid, and a damn fool in general."
138
Page
Quick Jump
|