“QUIXOTIC AND UTOPIAN”: AMERICAN ADVENTURERS IN THE SOUTHWEST PACIFIC, 1897–1898

Authors

Hugh Laracy, University of AucklandFollow

Abstract

The islands of the Pacific have long attracted escapists and adventurers from abroad. Mostly they have gone to Polynesia, and the bulk of scholarly commen- tary on the topic is concerned with that region. Even so, others have been tempted by Melanesia. Two such expeditions were those of the Percy Edwards and the Sophia Sutherland, which left San Francisco for New Guinea and the Solomons, respectively, in 1897. They involved 116 fortune seekers and were very well publicized at the time but have hitherto escaped the notice of historians. Yet, although they were total failures, they are not without considerable signifi- cance. This article tells the story of the two ventures. It also examines their wider significance by locating them within the tradition of Pacific escapism and by re- lating them to features of the society from which they derived. A discussion of myth and a survey of publicity cohabit with descriptions of individual behavior and experience.

Recommended Citation

Laracy, Hugh (2001) "“QUIXOTIC AND UTOPIAN”: AMERICAN ADVENTURERS IN THE SOUTHWEST PACIFIC, 1897–1898," Pacific Studies Journal: Vol. 24: No. 1, Article 2.
Available at: https://digitalcollections.byuh.edu/pacific-studies-journal/vol24/iss1/2