Fourth of July is coming and we are getting out the fireworks, not so with some Hawaiians. Their July 4th doesn’t come till Nov. 28. That’s their Independence Day and it started with high adventure.
America has its heroes, George Washington and Paul Revere, Hawaii has Timeteo Ha’alilio and William Richards.
They were the stuff of legends.
They took a hair-raising journey worthy of any great traveler, the purpose was to gain worldwide recognition for the Kingdom of Hawaii. There were other envoys, but this is their saga. Hang on, it’s a good one.
Timeteo was Hawaiian alii. The photos of the time show him to be young and good-looking. His secretary, Richards, was an average-looking missionary. The two were commissioned by King Kamehameha III to travel to the U.S., England and France to gain recognition for the kingdom. They left by ship on July 18, 1842.
To hurry it up they decided to travel across Mexico.
They traveled through Mexico on foot and by donkey to Washington D.C. There’s your story.
Imagine a dark-skinned dignitary, dressed in finery, with a white-skinned missionary, stepping off the boat in a little town in Mexico. Imagine them finding two donkeys and provisions, then hoofing it across the deserts of Mexico, just the two of them.
Hundreds of miles across deserts, hills and rivers they rode, on two shaky donkeys, through strange cities. What sights did they see? Did they visit ancient ruins? See Indians? Meet senoritas? Encounter rattlesnakes? Who knows. It was Don Quixote and Sancho Panza, Indiana Jones and sidekick.
After months traveling across Mexico, the two adventurers landed in Washington D.C. and met with the President of the United States, John Tyler. Walking around town they caused a stir. Ha’lilio was quite the celebrity in Washington. No one had ever seen a real Hawaiian prince.
Americans to this day are dazzled by royalty.
There was an incident on a steamship when the captain of the ship thought that Ha’lilio was Richards’ slave and refused to serve him breakfast. It was 1843 in the U.S. Even after Richards explained that he was the underling and servant of the prince, the Hawaiian alii still could not eat with the white folks.
He met with a president and kings but could not sit at the breakfast table.
So after getting word that the U.S. would support the kingdom they crossed the Atlantic to meet the queen of England and the king of France. Ha’lilio had carried a royal paper in his waist coat halfway around the world for them to sign. It was The Treaty of Independence.
On Nov. 28, 1843, the paper was signed and this became Hawaii’s Independence Day, called in Hawaiian, their La Ku’oko’a.
The two had done it, Hawaii was a nation of the world.
Sadly, after enduring a rough trip through Mexico and a cold winter in foreign lands, Ha’lilio died on the trip home. He gave his life for his people, handing them their freedom and status as a royal kingdom. A true hero.
So when fireworks are going off on July 4th and it seems a little quiet in the Hawaiian neighborhoods, no worries, they are proud to be American but their big day is coming up Nov. 28.
Dennis Gregory is a writer, artist, singer, teacher and Kailua-Kona resident who mixes truth, humor and aloha in his biweekly column. He can be reached at makewavess@yahoo.com