At the death of Kamehamehu a weak tyranny succeeded a strong one. The monopoly of the sandal-wood was divided between the chiefs; and the multitude of masters increased the amount of suffering. I am writing from what I find in Sir G. Simpson, and add that the extremes of bloodshed and oppression brought with them their own remedy. The coercion was too successful to leave an enemy to fight against; and the sandal-wood became too nearly exhausted to command its previous price of life and labour. In 1819, the great father of his dynasty died; and his idols died with him. Pagan as he was himself, his nation had outgrown Paganism; and there was a _tabula rasa_ for any better creed. 2. With the reign of Liho-Liho began the influence of the missionaries--American, English, and French; the American and English with their respective forms of Protestantism, the French with Romanism. I have no inclination to meddle with the distasteful details of these mischievous contests. The ethnological result is the triple character of the influence now in operation. In politics, Hawaii is independent; independent and semi-constitutional; with its independence guaranteed by England, America, and France. In religion it is Protestant--with Romanism tolerated and something more; tolerated and making way amongst the people. 3. The improvement of the agriculture of the Sandwich Islands is going on steadily. Silk and sugar are beginning to be grown; and a healthier trade is replacing the sandal-wood monopolies. I have admitted the previous notice of the character of Hawaiian civilization for the sake of comparing it with the present state and actual prospects of the islands. Cook, when he visited them, put the population at four hundred thousand--an exaggeration. Perhaps it came to half as much. In 1832 and 1836, there were censuses; of which the result was as follows:-- POPULATION. NAME. AREA. 1832. 1836. Hawaii 4,600 45,792 39,364 Mowee 620 35,062 24,199 Lanai 100 1,600 1,200 Molokoi 190 6,600 6,000 Kakoolawe 60 80 80 Woahoo 530 29,755 27,809 Kanai 500 10,977 8,934 Niihau 90 1,047 995 ----- ------- ------- Whole group 6,090 130,313 108,579 ------ ------- ------- This gives us a reduction; a reduction which has increased by 1840. This, I suppose, is the one from which Prichard takes his numbers, for two of the islands-- For Maui 18,000 --- Woahoo 20,000 Emigration will not account for this decrease. This we may see at once, from the proportion in 1840--the figures and reasoning are Sir G. Simpson's--in the single island of Kanai, between that part of the population which was under, and that part which was above, eighteen years of age.