Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 10, Number 1, 1 January 1993 — BOOK REVIEW: "TO STEAL A KINGDOM" [ARTICLE]

BOOK REVIEW: "TO STEAL A KINGDOM"

by Ellen Blomquist An almost inexorable progress to the events of January, 1893 could be argued, but would not be evident from reading Miehael Dougherty's, "To Steal A Kingdom" (Island Style Press). Dougherty tries to probe Hawaiian history, from the origins of the Polynesians to the reign of Kamehameha I and the arrival of Captain James Cook, and finally to the overthrow. Despite its title, however, 'To Steal A Kingdom" is less a history of the loss of the Hawaiian nation than a collection of pieces centered around people who figured prominently-or in the case of author Hennan Melville,

not so prominently-in Hawai'i's history. Organizing the book by personalities rather than chronology is confusing. The emphasis on individuals also obscures the U.S.'s role in the takeover of the nation. Although the Protestant background of the missionaries is interesting, the political doctrines of the U.S. at the time are even more relevant. The author has been praised for his "exposes" of island figures such as Charles Reed Bishop. I'm not sure they add anything new to the discussion. Bishop's prime lending rate or the size of his estate confirms only what we already know-Westerners profited

greatly at Hawaiian expense. Despite praise for his use of varied sources, his citations leave something to be desired. A Cleveland quote on the "miserable affair" is dated December, 1893; it is more generally attributed to the date of annexation. The Chief Seattle quote that heads Chapter Nine has been largely discredited; Chief Seattle didn't say that: a 20th century author put those words in his mouth. Whole pas-sages-such as the elaim that Kalākaua promised Pearl Harbor in retum for Western support for his election-have no citation. Dougherty also tends to overwrite, e.g., a town "rife with sin" or "an obscure 21-year-old

wearing a worry-etched face." (How could Dougherty know what Melville's face looked like?) Equally annoying are the gratuitous and occasionally anachronistic comparisons, for example, between a 19th century Hawaiian beauty and a 20th century Western ideal body type; such contrasts are neither accurate nor fair. "To Steal A Kingdom" does make clear that the Hawaiian monarchs participated in their

own destruction to the degree that they were influenced by illchosen Western advisors. Dougherty also makes a good point that Hawaiian history has been controlled in large part by those who conquered and then rewrote themselves as heroes. We should be reading anything that increases our knowledge of Hawaiian history, and Dougherty's book provides a wealth of anecdotal material so it is cautiously recommended.