“At Honolulu the tourists will see with surprise the high state of civilization and cultivation encountered on every hand. Honolulu is upon the island of Oahu, and has a population of about 25,000 people, including whites, natives, and Chinese. The harbor is natural, and the city very handsomely constructed. The public parks are among the most beautiful in the world. The trees and shrubberies at night blaze with incandescent electric lights, and colored fountains play, while the walks are ornamented at every turn with artistic statuary. The royal band, which gives concerts nightly at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, is without doubt one of the best I ever heard, and I have heard the bands of every civilized nation. The drives surrounding the city are naturally beautiful and are admirably cared for. The Kanakas are a remarkable and interesting race. Their skin is dark, not unlike that of the American Indian, the features small and regular, and the hair straight and luxuriant. They are excellent swimmers, and invariably surround every steamer that touches at Honolulu, eager to exhibit their skill for the most trivial recompense.
“We stop at Honolulu between twelve and fifteen hours, and play two games of ball—one between the Chicagos and All-Americans, and the other between the Chicagos and the local Honolulu team, which, by the way, is very good. I shall endeavor to arrange so that King Kalakaua may witness both games, and think I shall be able to do so, for he is very fond of athletics.
“Seven days after leaving Honolulu we stop at Tutuila, in the Samoan group. It is distant about 2,000 miles from the Hawaiian capital, and nearly as far south of the Equator as Honolulu is north. Twelve hundred miles from Honolulu our ship crosses the Equator, and Neptune is invariably received with due honors upon every boat that passes the line.
“Six days after leaving Tutuila, where our ship stops only two or three hours, we reach Auckland, the capital of New Zealand. There we stop about ten hours and propose to give the inhabitants a game of ball. Auckland is a pretty provincial town, of about 40,000 people, built in the English style. The cricket grounds are among the finest I ever saw.
“From Auckland we go to Sydney, and there our Australian tour proper commences. So much has been said of the cities of Sydney and Melbourne that the less I say now, perhaps, the better.
“When we leave America we shall leave not far from midwinter. When we arrive in Australia we shall arrive in midsummer, for our December is their July. So it will be necessary to the comfort of every member of our party to dress for the trip just as though they were providing for an approaching summer at home. A steamer coat may be a good thing to carry with one, as the nights are at times chilly.
“As to the program of the ball teams in Australia, that I cannot give you definitely now. Suffice it to say, however, that our teams will stand ready to meet Australian cricket elevens or football teams at any city they visit, and that as a result of their visit baseball will be better known, and probably better liked, by the Australian people when we bid farewell to Sydney. There will be ball games in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Bathurst, Ballarat, and every other point that we can visit to advantage. As to the recreative features of the trip, I feel sure they will be taken care of. Australians are a generous and hospitable people, and the visiting teams will doubtless become well acquainted in every city they visit. Of course we shall have a kangaroo round-up, while there will be many interesting and novel sights to entertain our party from the time we arrive on the continent until we leave it.”
A BASEBALL TEAM IN POSITION ON THE FIELD.
To Mr. A. G. Spalding, the principal baseball legislator in America, and the head of the Chicago Club, is due the credit of the enterprise. His pluck, money and position made the project feasible.