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george h.
johnson : surfriding waikiki,
1898
George H.
Johnson : Surfriding Waikiki, 1898.
Johnson, George H.
(Sc. D.): The Sandwich (or
Hawaiian) Islands. Christian Work : Illustrated Family Newspaper New York, Volume
64, Number 1619, February
24, 1898.
Hathi Trust https://hdl.handle.net/2027/nyp.33433003056631
Introduction A
The Sandwich (or Hawaiian)
Islands. By George H. Johnson, Sc. D. Concluding Paper.
Page 299 The Hawaiian Islands possess many attractions
for tourists.
The greatest of these are the two largest volcanoes
in the world.
The most conspicuous object
in the viciniiy of Honolulu is the old coast crater called
Leali, or Diamond Head.
It is six miles from the town, and may be approached either
by sea or land.
The road is along the shore, and leads through many fish
ponds and taro patches.
Near the base of the crater stands the old village of
Waikiki.
Here is the stone house where Kamehameha the Great once
lived, and here on his birthday, which is a great fete day,
the Honolulu Jockey Club have races which are the "Derby" or
"Grand Prix" of Honolulu.
Waikiki also claims to be a fashionable seaside resort, and
is a favorite place for surf bathing and aquatic sports, for which the
natives are famous.
Formerly aquatic sports were practiced by all classes of
persons, all ages and both sexes exercising at the same time
and place. But the habits of civilization seem to have
discouraged these sports, so that now they are principally
practiced by the young.
The swimmers start from shore, each one taking a surfboard.
They dive under the heavy rollers until they are several
thousand feet from shore.
Then each bather mounts his board, lying on his chest, striding, kneeling or
standing, and so is borne to the shore on the crest of a
wave.
Having approached the shore in this amphibious way, he slips
from the board, dives under the wave, and swims seaward to
repeat the sport.
This amusement is sometimes carried on for hours without
apparent effort or fatigue.
It is to such exer- (Page
300)cises, practiced from early childhood, that
travelers attribute the exquisite forms of the native women.
