File:A glimpse of the isles of the Pacific (1907) (14597079868).jpg

Identifier: glimpseofislesof00whee (find matches)
Title: A glimpse of the isles of the Pacific
Year: 1907 (1900s)
Authors: Wheeler, William Webb, 1845- (from old catalog)
Subjects:
Publisher: (St. Joseph, Mo., Hardman press)
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: The Library of Congress

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inches per year is their usual rain-fall.While we were there the sun was bright and hot. Their food is altogether the fruits of the trees, whichthey gather with almost no labor, and the fish, which arevery plentiful and easily caught. This is all their living-expenses, except their clothing, which is very limited, asbefore mentioned, and to pay for this they cut the meat ofthe cocoa-nuts in strips and dry it in the sun. Then it iscalled COPRA and is sold, a large amount of it to ourmarkets, where the oils are pressed out and used for makingmany of our best soaps. They are a happy and contented people, excellent diversand swimmers. The prices of railroad stocks, wheat andcorn, do not trouble them in the least. This harbor is quite small, almost a circle about half amile across, and very deep, supposed to be the crater of anold volcano, surrounded by mountains, about fifteenhundred feet high. Only a narrow strip of level land runsaround this harbor, where the straggling town of Pago 19
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Pago is built. The only house of much importance is theGovernors mansion, a large yellow frame on a high pointto the south as we enter the harbor. Our Governmentmaintains a coal supply here, which coal comes fromEngland, America and Australia. There is really almost nocommerce here, its only value to the United States beingCoaling Station in time of war, and it seems that it isvery doubtful if it is worth to us what it costs to maintain it. The London Mission Society established a missionhere in 1835, ^^^^^ nearly the whole native population havebecome Christians under their teaching. They have taughtthem to read and most of them to write, and haveestablished schools in different parts of the Island. Theyhave several books printed in their Samoan language, andthree or four newspapers. One of them is a weekly,printed under direction and at the expense of our UnitedStates Government, and distributed free, intended toeducate the people. About thirty years ago, the Catholicsestablished a

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