Novemaba 2, 1827: Leka a Jeremia Evarts iā Kauikeaouli

November 2, 2018 ʻOihana no kō nā ʻĀina ʻĒ

November 2, 1827: Letter from Jeremiah Evarts to Kauikeaouli

Portrait of Jeremiah Evarts by Artist Samuel Finely Breese Morse. Photo Credits: Boston Globe.

In a letter dated November 2, 1827, Jeremiah Evarts, early leader and corresponding secretary of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM), wrote to King Kauikeaouli. Evarts was a prominent lawyer, journalist, and social reformer. See Charles A. Maxfield, The Legacy of Jeremiah Evarts, 22 Int’l Bulletin of Missionary Research Oct. 1998, at 172 (available online). During the 1820s, he strenuously advocated against the removal of the Cherokee from their homeland in Georgia to the territory west of the Mississippi River. Id.

Evarts letter to expresses a sincere appreciation of Kauikeaouli’s desire to learn. It goes on to explain that more teachers will be sent to hasten the work of “enlightening” the people of Hawaiʻi. The letter informs Kauikeaouli that a book containing maps, “the best that was ever made in America” would also be sent. Excerpts from this letter are below, followed by transcripts.

Na Kauikeaouli

Aloha ino oe e kuu Aikane hou o makou ka poe luna missionary e noho ana maanei ma America ua lohe makou ua makemake oe i ka palapala a o kou makemake no ia e malama . . . .

Ke palapala nei no wau i keia i ka inoa o ka poe luna misionari a pau. O wau no kou makamaka aloha oiaio.

Jeremia Evarts

Na keena o ka
Hale Misionary
Boston
Novemaba 2 1827

Na ko Amerika poe luna Misionari