HAWAIIAN ISLANDS, Diplomatic Re lations of the United States with. Immedi ately following the dose of the Revolution, American vessels engaged in the Northwest trade began to stop at the Sandwich Islands, which had been discovered by Captain Cook in 1778. In 1791 Capt. Joseph Ingraham, the mate of the Columbia, returning from a trip around the world via and Canton, brought with him a native Crown Prince Opye whose visit to New England was the beginning of American friendship with Hawaii. In September of the same year, he re-embarked for the Pacific on the Hope, taking with him Opye who, after aiding in the discovery of the Marquesis group, was returned to his own island home. The Sandwich Islands became the principal place of resort for American trading vessels in the Pacific. In 1811, they were visited by John Jacob Astor who was seeking to engage supplies and men to aid in the fur trade on the North west coast where he founded Astoria in 1812 In 1814 they were visited by Lieutenant Gamble whom Captain Porter had left in command of Madison Island in the Marquesis group after its occupation in the name of the United States in 1813.
In 1820, American influence which was al ready considerable in the islands was increased by the arrival of missionaries from Boston to begin religious and humanitarian work. At the same time the importance- of the islands was recognized by the American government in the appointment (by President Monroe) of John C. Jones as agent there for commerce and seamen.
By 1825 the American government, as a re sult of steadily increasing American interest, recognized the need of the occasional presence of a public force at the islands to prevent de sertions, mutinies and other difficulties, and began to send naval vessels which had already been doing Pacific duty along the west coast of South America during the period of the Span ish-American revolts. In 1826, Capt. Thomas Catsby Jones, ordered to the Hawaiian Islands to protect commerce, to relieve the islands of seamen who had improperly deserted from whalers, to arrange to prevent future desertions and to secure debts due American citiz negotiated a treaty which the king to permit trade, to aid wrecked vessels, to assist in preventing desertions, and in time of war to protect American ships and citizens in the Islands against all enemies. This treaty, though
never ratified, was observed as a tacit under standing. Unfortunately, however, trade rela tions and other conditions were still unsatis factory, possibly partly as a result of the dis agreement between foreign merchants and the missionaries. Captain Finch, who was sent in the United States shin Vincennes in 1829 to improve relations in the Pacific, saw at Oahu many, indications of irregularities in commerce, severity to crews and bad effects of desertion. While assuring the king that the United States desired to preserve his sovereign right and to send war vessels for protection only where native governments failed to protect, he ad vised him to prevent secretion of deserters, to liquidate his debts, to retire from competition in the tavern. business, to learn English and to spend his time more usefully. At the same time Consul Jones, referring to the growing importance of the islands, and to the increasing American trade, recommended semi-annual visits of American war vessels to reduce de sertions and mutinies and to punish the guilty.
Other sources of dispute arose, including the refusal of the king to allow foreigners to transfer real estate. On these subjects Commo dore E. P. Kennedy of the United States ship Peacock opened negotiations in 1836 but failed to obtain an agreement.
In 1832, J. N. Reynolds, who sailed with the Potomac punitive expedition to the coast of Sumatra and returned via Oahu, reported that crews of whalers, after attempts at mutiny or desertion, became outlaws on the shore, and as a means of controlling the causes of disorder, he recommended in addition to regular visits of war vessels an increase in the number of consuls. In 1834, he and J. Q. Adams also revived and stimulated the project for explorations in the Pacific, proposed for the South Seas as early as 1812 and finally realized in the Wilkes expedition of 1839-43 which stopped twice at Hawaii.