CHAPTER XXXVIII

HIIAKA AND LOHIAU ... A REUNION

Hiiaka's sense of outrage touched every fiber of her being and stirred such indignation against her sister that she could not again take her former place as a member of Pele's court. Hawaii was the largest island of the group, but it was not large enough to hold herself and Pele. Of all the islands Kaua'i was the one most remote from the scene of her troubles; it was also the land which Lohiau had claimed as his own--and his was a name that called up only the most tender emotions. To Kaua'i would she go.

The company of those who shared her feelings and whose personal attachment to her was sufficient to lead them with herself in a venture of new fortunes was not large. It included, of course, her two staunch attendants, Pau-o-pala'e and Wahine-oma'o and, strangely enough, a considerable quota of the sisters who shared with her the name Hiiaka (qualified though it was in each case by some additional distinguishing epithet). Towards Kaua'i, then, did they set their faces or, more literally, turn the prow of their canoe.

Many unforeseen things, however, were to happen before the God of Destiny would permit her to gain her destination. Other strands stood ready to be interwoven with the purposeful threads Hiiaka was braiding into her life.

In the ancient regime of Hawaii, the halau, as the home and school of the hula, stood for very much and for many things. It served, after a fashion, as a social exchange or clearing house for the whole nation; the resort of every wandering minstrel, bohemian soul or beau esprit whose oestrus kept him in travel; the rallying point of souls dislocated from an old and not yet accommodated to a new environment; a place where the anxious and discouraged, despairing of a new outlook, or seeking balm for bruised hearts, might quaff healing nepenthe.

It is not to be wondered at, then, that Hiaaka, not yet healed of her bruises, on reaching Oahu and finding herself in the peaceful haven of Kou, should turn her steps to the home of that hospitable siren and patroness of the hula Pele-ula, as to a sanitarium or hospital whose resources would avail for the assuagement of her troubles. It was almost an article of Pele-ula's creed that in the pleasures and distractions of the hula was to be found a panacea for all the wounds of the spirit; and Pele-ula, as if taking her cue from the lady of the Venusberg, offered her consolations generously to every comfort-needing soul that fared her way.

Hiiaka stepped into the life at Pele-ula's court as if she had been absent from it for only a day. Madame Pele-ula, good sport that she was, bore no grudge against the woman who had outplayed her at every turn, and would do it again. She received Hiiaka with open arms. As to entertainment, the play was the thing and that, fortunately, was already appointed for the same evening. It was the same old performance, the hula kilu, with but slight change in the actors and with full opportunity for Hiiaka to display her marvelous skill in hurling the kilu.

It was Hiiaka's play and she, following the custom of the game, was caroling--in sober strain--a song of her own; when, to her astonishment, a voice from the crowd struck in and carried the song to completion in the very words that would have been her's. Hiiaka stood and listened. The voice had a familiar ring; the song was not yet in the possession of the public, being known only to a few of her own household, among whom was to be reckoned Lohiau. There was no avoiding the conclusion: it was Lohiau.

It remains to tell the miracle of Lohiau's reappearance among men in living form and at this time. While the body of Lohiau lay entombed in its stony shroud, his restless spirit fluttered away and sought consolation in the companionship of the song-birds that ranged the forests of Hawaii.

When the magician La'a, who lived in Kahiki, contemplated the degraded condition of Lohiau, alienated from all the springs of human affection, living as a wild thing in the desert, he determined on his rescue and despatched Kolea (plover), one of his ancestral kupuas, to fetch him. The mission of Kolea was not a success. The voice, the manner, the arguments of the bird made no appeal to Lohiau; they were, in fact, distasteful to him and rather increased his devotion to his other bird-friends.

"Well, Kolea, what sort of a place is Kahiki?" asked Lohiau.

"A most charming place," he answered, nodding his head and uttering his call, "Ko-lé-a, Ko-lé-a."

Lohiau was disgusted with his performances and would have nothing more to do with Kolea.

When Kolea returned and reported his failure to La'a, that magician sent another bird on the same errand, one of more seductive ways, Ulili. There was something in the voice and manner of Ulili that touched the fancy and won the heart of Lohiau at once and he began to follow him. Ulili skilfully lured him on and at last brought him to Kahiki and delivered him over to his master. La'a ministered to the soul of Lohiau with such tenderness and skill that he became reconciled once more to human ways. But the soul of Lohiau still remained an unhoused ghost, and at times ranged afar in its restless excursions.

Now it happened that at the very time when these events were taking place Kane-milo-hai, an elder brother of Pele, was voyaging from Kahiki to Hawaii. His canoe was of that mystical pattern, the leho (cowry) in which Mawi had sailed. While in the middle of the Iëië-waho channel he caught sight of the distracted spirit of Lohiau fluttering like a Mother Carey's chicken over the expanse of waters. The poor ghost, as if desirous of companionship, drew nigh and presently came so near that Kane-milo-hai captured it and, having ensconced it in his ipu-holoho-lona, [508] he sailed on his way.

Reaching Hawaii and coming to the desolate scene of Lohiau's tragedy, he recognized a charred heap as the former bodily residence of the shivering ghost in his keeping. He broke the stony form into many pieces and then, by the magical power that was his, out of these fragments he reconstructed the body of Lohiau, imparting to it its original form and lineaments. Into this body Kane-milo-hai now introduced the soul and Lohiau lived again.

The tide of new life surging in the veins of Lohiau stirred in him emotions that found utterance in song:

I ola no au i ku'u kino wailua, I a'e'a mai e ke 'lii o Kahiki, Ke 'lii nana i a'e ke kai uli, Kai eleele, kai melemele, Kai popolo-hua mea a Kane; I ka wa i po'i ai ke Kai-a-ka-hina-lii-- Kai mu, kai lewa. Ho'opua ke ao ia Lohiau; O Lohiau--i lono oukou. Ola e; ola la; ua ola Lohiau, e! O Lohiau, ho'i, e!

TRANSLATION

I lived, but 'twas only my soul; Then came Kahiki's King and took me-- The King who sails this purple and blue, An ocean, now black, now amber, The dark mottled sea of Kane, The sea that whelmed those monarchs of old, A sea that is ghostly, foreign, strange. Lohiau flowers anew in the sunlight; It is I, Lohiau! Do you hear it? New life has come to Lohiau! To Lohiau, aye, to Lohiau!

Having come to himself, Lohiau sought his own. His chancing at Kou and his appearance at the halau in which Pele-ula was holding her kilu performance, and on the very evening of Hiiaka's arrival, was an arrangement of converging lines that reflected great credit on the god of Destiny.

Lohiau arrived at the kilu hall just in time to witness the opening of the game. Having seated himself quietly in the outskirts of the assembly, he begged a neighbor to permit him, as a favor, to conceal himself under the ample width of his kihei, exacting of him also the promise not to betray his retreat. Thus hidden, he could see without being seen. The sight of Hiiaka, the words of her song--he had heard them a score of times before--stirred within him a thousand memories. Without conscious effort of will, the words of his response sprang from his heart almost with the spontaneity of an antiphonal echo. Let us bring together the two cotyledons of this song:

O ka wai mukiki a'ala lehua o ka manu, O ka awa ili lena i ka uka o Ka-li'u, O ka manu aha'i kau-laau o Puna:-- Aia i ka laau ka awa o Puna. Mapu wale mai ana no ia'u kona aloha, Hoolana mai ana ia'u, e moe, e; A e moe no, e-e-e.

And now comes the unexpected antiphone by Lohiau:

O Puna, lehua ula i ka papa; I ula i ka papa ka lehua o Puna: Ke kui ia mai la e na wahine o ka Lua: Mai ka Lua a'u i hele mai nei, mai Kilauea. Aloha Kilauea, ka aina a ke aloha.

TRANSLATION

Nectar for gods, honeyed lehua; Food for the birds, bloom of lehua; Pang of love, the yellow-barked awa, Quaffed by the dryads in Puna's wilds; Bitter the sweet of Puna's tree-awa. His love wafts hither to me from dreamland-- The cry of the soul for love's fond touch; And who would forbid the soul's demand!

Antiphone

Puna's plain takes the color of scarlet-- Red as heart's blood the bloom of lehua. The nymphs of the Pit string hearts in a wreath: Oh the pangs of the Pit, Kilauea! Still turns my heart to Kilauea.

We must leave to the imagination of the reader the scene that occurred when Lohiau, the man twice called back from the dead, leaves his hiding place and comes into Hiiaka's encircling arms lovingly extended to him.

This was accomplished the reunion of Hiiaka and Lohiau, and thus it came to pass that these two human streams of characters so different, in defiance of powerful influences that had long held them apart, were, at length, turned into one channel--that of the man, not wholly earthly, but leavened with the possibility of vast spiritual attainment under the tonic discipline of affliction; that of the woman, self-reliant, resourceful, yet acutely in need of affection; human and practical, yet feeling after the divine, conscious of daily commerce with the skies; and, yet, in spite of all, in bondage to that universal law which gives to the smaller and weaker body the power to introduce a perturbation into the orbit of the greater and to pull it away from its proper trajectory.

The old order has passed away, the order in which the will of Pele has ruled almost supreme, regardless of the younger, the human, race which is fast peopling the land that was hers in the making. Hitherto, surrounded by a cohort of willing servants ready at all times to sacrifice themselves to her caprice,--behold, a new spirit has leavened the whole mass, a spirit of dissent from the supreme selfishness of the Vulcan goddess, and the foremost dissident of them all is the obedient little sister who was first in her devotion to Pele, the warm-hearted girl whom we still love to call Hiiaka-i-ka-poli-o-Pele.

THE END

NOTES

[1] Hui, an elided form of huli, the l being dropped.

[2] Paoa. One Hawaiian says this should be pahoa. (Paulo Hokii.)

The Paoa mentioned in verse eight was a divining rod used to determine the suitability of any spot for Pele's excavations. The land must be proof against the entrance of sea water. It also served as a spade in excavating for a volcanic crater.

When a suitable place was finally discovered on Hawaii, the Paoa staff was planted in Panaewa and became a living tree, multiplying itself until it was a forest. The writer's informant says that it is a tree known to the present generation of men. "I have seen sticks cut from it," said he, "but not the living tree itself."

[3] O Ahu. The particle o is not yet joined to its substantive, as in Oahu, the form we now have.

[4] Pola, the raised platform in the waist of the canoe, a place of honor.

[5] This Laupahoehoe is to be distinguished from that in Hilo.

[6] Ua, rain. It is suggested this may refer--sarcastically--to the watery secretion in Pele's eyes, as found in old people.

[7] Ina, here means consider.

[8] Loiloi. If a chief was not pleased or satisfied with a gift, loiloi would express his state of mind.

[9] Elua oiwi, literally, two shapes. Pele had many metamorphoses.

[10] The wavering of indecision.

[11] This Pohakau was the friend, previously mentioned, who had brought to Pele the faithful dog that lay fasting and mourning at Lohiau's grave. Pohakau remained at Pele's court; the dog Pele hid away in her own secret place.

[12] One critic says it should be po'e.

[13] Kaupaku o ka hale o kaua. A hidden reference to sexual intercourse.

[14] Malu-ko'i, dark and gloomy.

[15] Kamaaina, a resident, one acquainted with the land.

[16] Ele-i. One Hawaiian says this rare word means blue-black, shiny black (J. W. P.); another says it means rich, choice, select (T. J. P.)

[17] Ka, to remove, clean up entirely, as in bailing a canoe.

[18] Hea, destroyed, flattened out.

[19] Ne, an elided poetical form of nele, meaning gone, blotted out.

[20] Piko, the navel. The belly, or piko, of a fish was the choicest part. "I ka piko no oe, lihaliha." Eat of the belly and you shall be satiated. (Old saying.)

[21] Hu-la. (Notice the accent to distinguish it from hula.) To dig up, as a stone out of the ground.

[22] Kukui, the tree whose nuts furnished torches.

[23] Uli, an elder sister of Pele, a character much appealed to by sorcerers.

[24] Kahuna, in this case probably Hiiaka.

[25] Alohi-lani, literally, the brightness of heaven; a term applied to the residence or heavenly court of both Uli and Kapo. In verses 36 and 37 it is distinctly mentioned as the abode of Kapo-ula-kina'u: "E ho'i, e komo i kou hale, O Ke-alohi-lani."

[26] Ilio-uli, literally, a dog of dark blue-black color. The primitive Aryans, according to Max Müller, poetically applied the term "sheep" to the fleecy white clouds that float in the sky. The Hawaiian poet, in the lack of a nobler animal, spoke of the clouds as ilio, dogs. With this homely term, however, he coupled--by way of distinction--some ennobling adjective.

[27] Ilio-ehu, literally, a white dog.

[28] Ilio-mea, literally, a dog--cloud--of a warm pinkish hue.

[29] Ku-ke-ao-iki, Ao-iki, small clouds that stand ranged about the horizon.

[30] Ao-poko, a short cloud, in contrast with ao-loa.--J. H.

[31] Ao-loa, long clouds--stratus?--such as are seen along the horizon.

[32] Ao-awihiwihi-ula, a cloud-pile having a pinkish, or ruddy, tint.

[33] Hoalii, the relatives of Hiiaka.

[34] Ko-wawa, a notched pali that formed part of the wall enclosing the caldera of Kilauea--on its Kau side.

[35] Kupina'e, echo, hero personified and endowed with the attributes of a superhuman being.

[36] Ku-haili-moe, one of the forms, or characters, of god Ku, representing him as a smoother and beautifier of the landscape.

[37] Ha'iha'i-lau-ahea, a goddess who had to do with the flame of fire. Her share in the care of a fire, or, perhaps, of Pele's peculiar fire, seems to have been confined to the base of the flame.

[38] Mau-a-ke-alii-hea, a being who had special charge of the flame-tip.

[39] Kanaka loloa o ka mauna, this included Ku-pulupulu and his fellows.

[40] Ku-pulupulu, described as a hairy being, the chief god of canoe-makers, who had his residence in the wildwoods.

[41] Kuli-pe'e-nui. This much-used term is the embodiment in a word of the wild, lumbering, progress of a lava-flow, or lava-tongue. Translating the figure into words, my imagination pictures a huge, shapeless monster, hideous as Caliban drunk, wallowing, sprawling, stumbling along on swollen disjointed knees--a picture of uncouth desolation.

[42] Kike-alana, the formulation in a word of the rending and crashing sounds--rock smiting rock--made by a lava-flow.

[43] Kahuna i ka, puoko o ke ahi. The word Kahuna is used here where the word akua or kupua would seem to have served the purpose of the meaning, which, as I take it, is the spirit, or genius, of flame.

[44] I'imi, derived seemingly from imi, to seek.

[45] Lalama, derived seemingly from lala, a branch; or possibly, from lama, a flambeau.

[46] Kane-hekili. Thunder is always spoken of as under the control of god Kane.

[47] Ka-ulua, the name of one of the months in the cool season of the year; one can not say positively which month is intended, for the reason that the nomenclature varied greatly in the different islands, and varied even on the same island.

[48] Kumu-kahi, the name of a hill in Puna on the easternmost cape of Hawaii; also the name of a monolith once set up there; in this connection the name of the female kupua who acted as keeper of the Sun's eastern gate. This name is almost always coupled with that of ...

[49] Ha'eha'e, of whom the same account can be given as above.

[50] Kapo-ula-Kina'u, one of the family. The epithet ula-kina'u is used in allusion to the fact that her attire, red in color, is picked out with black spots. The name Kapo alone is the one by which she is usually known.

[51] The awa papa had a small root, but it was of superior quality.

[52] Moe-ha-una-iki, literally, the sleep with a gentle snore--such sleep as follows the use of awa. The poet personifies this sleep. To such lengths does the Hawaiian poetic imagination go.

[53] Pahu kapu a ka leo. One--who ought to know--tells me this means the ear; as if the ear were the drum on which the voice played.

[54] Ho'okiki kanawai, to enforce, to carry out the law.

[55] He kua a kanawai. It was said of Pele that her back was hot like fire, and that a bundle of taro leaves laid thereon was cooked and turned into luau. It was an offense punishable by death for any one to stand at her back or to approach her by that way.

[56] He kai oki'a kanawai, literally, an ocean that separates. Exclusiveness, to live apart, was the rule of Pele's life. This principle is enforced with further illustration in the next line:--

[57] He ala muku no Kane me Kanaloa. Even to the great gods Kane and Kanaloa the path of approach to Pele was cut off by the edict, thus far shalt thou come and no further.

[58] He ki ho'iho'i kanawai. The ki is said, to my surprise, to be the thong with which a door was made fast, ho'iho'i, in the olden times of Hawaii. I cannot but look upon this statement with some suspicion.

[59] Leo, the voice; articulate speech. Leo o ka kanaka hookahi. This one supreme man was Kane. The poet evidently had in mind the myth which is embodied in a certain Kumu-lipo, or song of creation: Kane, the supreme one, looking from heaven, saw Chaos, or the god of Chaos, Kumu-lipo, spread out below and he called to him to send his voice--leo--to the east, to the west, to the north and to the south. Kumu-lipo, thus roused from inaction, despatched the bird Halulu, who flew and carried the message to the east, to the west, to the north and to the south.

[60] Ka manu, the bird Halulu, above mentioned.

[61] Kai-nu'u a Kane. This expression is an allusion to god Kane's surf-riding, which is often mentioned in Hawaiian mythology. Huli refers to the curling or bending over of the breaker's crest; Nu'u to the blanket of white and yeasty water that follows as the wake of the tumbling wave. The Hawaiians who are best informed in these matters have only vague ideas on the whole subject.

[62] Amama, a word frequently used at the end of a prayer in connection with the word noa (free), as in the expression amama, ua noa. The evident meaning is it (the tabu) is lifted, it is free. I conjecture that the word amama is derived from, or related to, the word mama, light, in the sense of levitation.

[63] Kui-hanalei, a region in Puna, not far from the caldera of Kilauea, said to be covered now with pahoehoe and aa.

[64] Pu'u-lena, a wind that blows in the region of the volcano.

[65] Ke-ka-ko'i (literally, the ax-maker), the name of the guide and path-finder to the company.

[66] Ka-maiau, their trumpeter who carried a conch.

[67] Hinihini, a poetical name for a land-shell, probably one of the genus Achatinella, which was popularly believed to give a shrill piping note.

[68] Mapu, one of the trumpeters.

[69] Ale ula, a cloud of steam and smoke, such as accompanied an eruption.

[70] Ale lani, the patches of blue sky between masses of clouds.

[71] Pu-ko'a, a column of steam and smoke bursting up from a volcanic eruption.

[72] A'aka, a column of lapillae, accompanied by hot vapor and smoke, such as jet up from a volcanic crater or fissure.

[73] Lono, a message; to hear a message, i.e., to receive it. The expression ahu a lono is at first a little puzzling. It means the visible bulk, or sign, of the message.

[74] Au-hula-ana. This is the term applied to such a break in a seaside trail as is above described. The word hula indicates the billowy toss of the ocean or of the swimmer's body while making the passage. The term, following Hawaiian usage, is employed either as a noun or as a verb.

[75] Maka'u-kiu, afeared-o-a-spy.

[76] Ma-hi-ki (mahiti, mawhiti), to leap, to skip, to spring up suddenly. The Maori Comp. Dict. E. Tregear.

[77] Wai-luku, water of destruction.

[78] Mo'o-puna, a grandchild, nephew or niece.

[79] Kahuli-huli. Kahuli, or its intensive, kahuli-huli, primarily means to upset, to overturn. A secondary meaning, much employed in the argot of hula folk, is to hand over, to pass this way; as when one guest at table might say to a neighbor, "hand me the salt (if you please)."

[80] Nuku-o-ka-manu, literally, the beak of the bird; said to be a cape in the neighborhood of Hilo.

[81] Hala. The fruit of the hala was so often worn in the form of a wreath by Kapo that it came to be looked upon almost as her emblem. To ordinary mortals this practice savored of bad luck. If a fisherman traveling on his way to the ocean were to meet a person wearing a lei of this description he would feel compelled to turn back and give over his excursion for that day. In this instance Kapo was on her way to visit a sick man--a bad omen for him.

[82] Kapo-ula-kina'u. This was the full name of Kapo, who was one of the goddesses of the kahunas who practiced anaana (po'e kahuna anaana). Ula-kina'u is a term applied to a feather cloak or cape made of yellow feathers which had in them black spots.

[83] Makani. The reference is to the halitus, spirit, or influence that was supposed to rest upon and take possession of one obsessed, even as the tongues of fire rested upon the multitude in Pentecostal times. Kapo herself had this power.

[84] Ua, literally, rain, is by a much employed figure of speech used to mean the guests or people of a house. Thus, if one sees a great number of guests arriving to share the hospitality of a house, he might say, "kuaua ua nui ho'i keia e hele mai nei."

[85] Pua-lehei, a pali mauka of Wai-he'e.

[86] Olohe, an expert in the hula.

[87] Aoaoa, an imitative word, meaning dog.

[88] The most acceptable bonne bouche that could be offered to Pele, or to Hiiaka, by way of refreshment, was the tender leaf of the taro plant. We of this day and generation eat it when cooked under the name of lu-au. In the old old times, when the gods walked on the earth, it was acceptable in the raw state under the name of paha; but, when cooked, it was called pe'u. The word luau seems to be modern.

[89] Po'ipo'i. Po'i uhane, soul catching, was one of the tricks of Hawaiian black art and sorcery.

[90] There seems to be a disagreement in the different versions as to who is the king with whom Hiiaka is now contending, whether Ole-pau or Ka-ula-hea. For historical reasons I deem it to be Ole-pau, unless, indeed, the two names represent the same person.

[91] Kau, offered, literally put upon the altar.

[92] Lohelohe. By some inadvertence, this word was wrongly written as kohekohe, and I was cudgelling my wits and searching heaven and earth, and all the dictionaries, to learn the meaning of this artifact, this false thing. After having vainly inquired of more than a score of Hawaiians, one man, wiser than the rest, suggested that it should be lohelohe, not kohekohe, meaning underdone, or half-baked dog. The word-fit was perfect; the puzzle was solved.

[93] Kanaloa, a name given to Kaho'olawe, the island that faces East Maui, lying opposite to Lahaina, and acts as a sort of buffer against the blasts of the south wind, allusion to which is made, as I believe, in the word A-a, in the same line.

[94] Ele. Some critics claim that ka and ele properly form one word (kaele), meaning overturned. The grammatical construction of the sentence forbids this claim, and favors the interpretation I have given it. The figure is that of a canoe whose black body has turned turtle.

[95] Pa'iauma. This is a word that has presented some difficulties in the discovery of its meaning. The reference, I believe, is to breast-beating practiced by persons distracted with grief. Uma, the final part of the word, I take to be the shortened form of umauma, the bosom.

[96] Pili, to meet, the point or line of meeting, the boundaries of a land, therefore, the whole land.

[97] Ka-ma'o-ma'o, the name given to the sandy plain between Kahului and Wailuku, Maui.

[98] Female deities of necromancy.

[99] Akua, literally, a god, or godlike, i.e., in an awe-inspiring manner.

[100] Ke-olo-ewa, an akua ki'i, i.e., a god of whom an image was fashioned. Some form of cloud was recognized as his body (Ke-ao-lewa(?)). One of his functions was rain-producing. Farmers prayed to him: "Send rain to my field; never mind the others." S. Percy Smith of New Zealand (in a letter to Professor W. D. Alexander) says that in Maori legend Te Orokewa, also called Poporokewa, was one of the male apa, guardians and messengers of Io, the supreme god who presided over the 8th heaven.

According to Hawaiian tradition Ke-olo-ewa was, as Fornander has it, the second son of Kamauaua, a superior chief, or king of Moloka'i, and succeeded his father in the kingship of that island. His brother, Kau-pe'e-pe'e-nui-kauila, it was who stole away Hina, the beautiful wife of Haka-lani-leo of Hilo, and secreted her on the famous promontory of Haupu on Moloka'i. For the story of this interesting tradition see Fornander's "The Polynesian Race," Vol. II, p. 31. After death he became deified and was prayed to as a rain god.

[101] Kama-ua, literally, the son of rain.

[102] Ulu-nui, meaning the crop-giver. This was the name of a king, or chief of Makawao, Maui, under whom agriculture greatly flourished.

[103] Me-ha'i-kana, the goddess of the bread-fruit tree; said to be one with Papa.

[104] Kele honua, an instance of a noun placed after its adjective. The meaning of kele honua, literally, the miry soil, a deep taro patch.

[105] Oloku'i, a high bluff that overlooks Pele-kunu and Wailau, valleys on Moloka'i.

[106] Maka-pu'u, a headland at the eastern extremity of Oahu, on which a lighthouse of the first class has been established within three years.

[107] Lae o Ka-laau, the south-western cape of Moloka'i, on which is a lighthouse of the first class.

[108] Makua-ole, literally, fatherless or parentless; seemingly a reference to the lonely inhospitable character of the place.

[109] Ulu-ma-wao, a hill in the same region as Maka-pu'u point. The name is said to mean a place having a very thin soil.

[110] Ua poai-hale, a rain that whisked about on all sides of a house.

[111] Moko-li'i (little snake), compound of moko, archaic form of mo'o, and li'i.

[112] I-maka, a watch-tower. (This is a new word, not in the dictionary.)

[113] Ha-lawa-lawa, zigzag.

[114] Ololo-e, out of line; out of order; irregular. See ololo, in Andrews' Hawaiian Dictionary. Keke'e, halawalawa and ololo-e have the same generic meaning.

[115] Manu'u-ke-eu, the name of a mythical hala tree that once grew in Puna. The seed was brought from Kahiki by Ka-moho-alii, when he came from that land with Pele and others. They ate the drupe of it with salt and sugar-cane, and then Ka-moho-alii planted the seed. The tree that grew up was, of course, a kupua.

[116] Halu'a-pua, flower-bedecked; compound of halu'a (covered), and pua (a flower).

[117] Pe'ape'a, a bat; a creature regarded as a kupua.

[118] Ka-upu, some sort of a sea-gull.

[119] Lu-ahi, the object of a person's wrath or indignation.

[120] Hika'a-lani, facing heaven; looking up to heaven. This was the name given later to a beautiful princess on Oahu.

[121] Ma-u, literally, damp; the name of the wife of Maka-li'i, as here indicated. Maka-li'i, here used as the name of a deity, is also, 1. the name of the Pleiades; 2. the name of the month in which that constellation rises at the time of sunset; 3. the name sometimes applied to the six summer months collectively. The visible sign of Maka-li'i, as a deity or kupua, was a rain-cloud.

[122] Awa i-ku, awa i-lani. A clear understanding of these words calls for a reference to the customs, that had almost the dignity of a rite, that were observed in the handling of awa for purposes of worship, or as an offering to the gods. This began with the very digging of the awa root. He who did this had first to purify himself by a bath in the ocean, followed by an ablution in fresh water and completing the lustration with an aspersion of water containing turmeric, administered by a priest. Then, having arrayed himself in a clean malo, he knelt with both knees upon the ground and tore the root from its bed. Now, rising to his feet, he lifted the awa root to heaven, and by this act the awa was dignified and was called awa i-ku. The utterance (by the priest?) of the kanaenae, or prayer of consecration and eulogy, still further enhanced this dignity and set it apart as a special sacrifice to some god, or to the gods of some class. Awa thus consecrated was known as awa i-lani.

[123] Mauli-ola, the God of Health; also the name of a place. The same name was applied also to the breath of life, and to the kahuna's power of healing. In the Maori tongue the word mauri means life, the seat of life. In Samoan mauli means heart; in Hawaiian it means to faint. "Sneeze, living heart" ("Tihe, mauri ora"), says the New Zealand mother to her infant when it utters a sneeze. The Hawaiian mother makes the same ejaculation.

[124] Ka-ulu-ola. I can throw no light on this phrase further than is to be obtained in the above note.

[125] Kapu-kapu-kai. Awa was forbidden to women. Under certain circumstances, however, it was set before them. In such a case the tabu was first removed by sprinkling the root with sea water (kapu-kai).

[126] Haumea, the mother of Pele.

[127] Ai. In another version, instead of ai, I find eli or elieli used.

[128] Ma-u, the sister of Haumea, therefore aunt to Pele, also the wife of Maka-li'i.

[129] Lua-wahine, (lua-hine?), said to be an incarnation, or more properly, perhaps, a spiritual form (kino-lau) of Haumea.

[130] Kukuena, the goddess, au-makua, who presided over the ceremony of preparing awa for drinking; said to be an elder sister of Pele.

[131] Akua malihini, an epithet applied to himself by Kauhi, because, as previously stated, he had since his arrival from Kahiki been obliged to remain fixed in his station in the cliff and had thus been denied acquaintance with the other islands, especially the big island of Hawaii.

[132] Ka-ma'a-ma'a, a land in Puna.

[133] Pua-le'i. Bird-hunters often stripped off the lower branches from a selected lehua tree that was in full flower and then limed it to ensnare the birds that were attracted to its rich clusters. Such a tree was termed pua-le'i.

[134] Apua, a place in Puna.

[135] Ku-ka-la-ula, a place on the road that ascends from Puna to Kilauea. The same term was applied to the ruddy glow that appears on a mountain horizon just before sunrise.

[136] Pu'u-lena, said to be the name of a hill near Kilauea-iki. It is now commonly employed as the name of a wind, as in the old saying: "Ua hala ka Pu'u-lena, aia i Hilo."

[137] Akua. That was Pele herself. "Aina a ke Akua i noho ai" has passed into a saying.

[138] I have purposely weeded out from the narrative, as popularly told, several incidents that have but little interest and no seeming pertinence to the real purpose of the story.

[139] Moa'e, the trade wind.

[140] There seems to lurk a play in this word hala. It stood not only for the pandanus tree; it also meant a fault, a sin.

[141] Poluea, ordinary meaning, to be nauseated; here it means to slope down.

[142] Moe-wa'a, literally, a canoe-dream. To dream of a canoe-voyage was considered an omen of very bad luck.

[143] Uwa'u, a sea-bird, a gull.

[144] Nene-le'a, a place near Ka-ena point, close to Pohaku o Kaua'i.

[145] Koa'e, the tropic-bird, or bosen-bird.

[146] Ka-ieie, the channel between Oahu and Kauai.

[147] Ka-peku. The word kapeku, at the beginning of verse 13, means, I am told, querulous.

[148] Ho'o-ilo, or Ho-ilo, the cool or rainy season of the year, covering six months according to the Hawaiians. There was no such month (mahina) as Ho'o-ilo, or Ho-ilo.

[149] Ka-hulu-manu. The kai o Ka-hulu-manu is, as reported to me by a well-informed Hawaiian, a flood that submerged the land in mythological times, distinct from Kai-a-ka-hina-alii.

[150] Hoohaehae, to chase, to irritate, to tease.

[151] Lae-o-ka-laau, (literally, Cape of the Trees), the south-western cape of Moloka'i, on which the United States have established a first-class lighthouse.

[152] Kihe, to sneeze; to spatter; to wet with spray.

[153] Wawalu, a cove.

[154] Owaewae, gullied. This is an instance of the adjective being placed before its noun.

[155] Huna i ka wai. The people of the region concealed the holes where water dripped, as it was very scarce.

[156] Muli-wai, literally a river, a poetical exaggeration.

[157] Wa'a-wa'a, simple-minded; unsophisticated; "green;" the name of two youths mentioned in tradition, one of whom committed blunder after blunder from his soft-hearted stupidity.

[158] Pohaku o Kaua'i. The most audacious terrestrial undertaking of the demigod Mawi was his attempt to rearrange the islands of the group and assemble them into one solid mass. Having chosen his station at Kaena Point, the western extremity of Oahu, from which the island of Kaua'i is clearly visible on a bright day, he cast his wonderful hook, Mana-ia-ka-lani, far out into the ocean that it might engage itself in the foundations of Kaua'i. When he felt that it had taken a good hold, he gave a mighty tug at the line. A huge bowlder, the Pohaku o Kaua'i, fell at his feet. The mystic hook, having freed itself from its entanglement, dropped into Palolo Valley and hollowed out the crater, that is its grave. This failure to move the whole mass of the island argues no engineering miscalculation on Mawi's part. It was due to the underhand working of spiritual forces. Had Mawi been more politic, more observant of spiritual etiquette, more diplomatic in his dealings with the heavenly powers, his ambitious plans would, no doubt, have met with better success.

[159] Kua-o-ka-La (the back of the sun), a personification and deification of that orb.

[160] Kowelowelo, to sink into; to be submerged.

[161] Haupu, a famous hill on Kauai, visible from Oahu. When it was capped with a cloud, Hawaiians said, "Ua kau mai ka pua'a i Haupu; e ua ana." If that occurred in the rainy season, they said it was about to clear.

[162] Waha, the same as haawe, i.e., a load for the back. In this case it was a bank of mist or clouds.

[163] Ke-olewa, a hill, smaller than Haupu, on the side towards Kipu-kai. The word also applied to the floating clouds about the mountain.

[164] Lawa-kua, a precious object bound to the back; applied, therefore, to a child, a dear friend and the like; the local name applied to a wind at Ka-lalau.

[165] Ka-unu-kupukupu, a land in Puna. The intrinsic meaning of the phrase is an increasing, overmastering, passion ka-unu, a passion; kupukupu, to grow up, to increase.

[166] Li'u-la, twilight.

[167] Poha-kau, a resting place where the burden-carrier leaned back and relieved his shoulders of their burden for a time.

[168] Kaulia, old form of kauia (kau ia). It connotes the removing from the back the haawe, preliminary to a long rest.

[169] Kilohana, here means a comfort, a relief.

[170] Ka-hua-nui, the elder sister of Lohiau.

[171] Kau-nu, desire, passion. Wai o kau-nu, lit., the water of love--"the warm effects."

[172] Ulu o Wahine-Kapu. Wahine-kapu was the name given to the plateau over which Kaneohoalii presided, a very tabu place. As to the bread-fruit tree Ulu, I have been able to learn nothing; this is the first mention of it I have met with.

[173] Na-maka-o-ka-ha'i, an elder sister of Pele, with whom she had trouble over the question of tabus, rights and privileges, involving the right to dominion over the volcanic fires. Pele was not only a stickler for her own rights and privileges but ambitious for their extension. The result was she had to flee for her life. (For the story of this trouble see p. V of the introduction.)

[174] Elieli, kau mai! A solemn expression often found at the end of a prayer. Hawaiians are unable to give an exact account of its meaning. The phrase kau mai by itself means overshadow me, sit upon me, possess me.

[175] Hana-kahi, an appelation applied to Hilo derived from the name of an ancient king.

[176] Wai-o-lama, the name applied to the eastern section of Hilo town, including the sand-beach and the river there located.

[177] Ako ia ka hale. The hands elevated and the fingers brought together in the form of an inverted V were, I am informed, an accepted symbol that might be used in place of a heiau at a time when distress or emergency made impossible the erection of such a structure. David Malo narrates a similar incident as occurring in the mythical story of Wakea at a time when he was in peril and beset by his enemies.

[178] Ko'i ke Akua. There is a division of opinion as to the meaning of this passage. Some, including J. W. P., think it may be the shortened, poetical form of ko'iko'i, heavy, referring to the timber used in building a temple for the deity. Others take the view that the word ko'i should be given its face-value. I see in it a possible reference to pahoehoe, the plates of which, in their hot and nascent state, are capable of felling a forest as effectively as a ko'i. One expounder (Pelei-oho-lani) finds in this word ko'i a reference to a symbolical lifting of the thumb of the left hand as a sign of prayer. The arguments on the one side and on the other are not quite convincing.

[179] Kou pua'a kanu. Pua'a-kanu is the name of a place in Puna, said to be the spot where Pele had her sexual encounter with Kama-pua'a, the swine-god. I look upon it as meaning the encounter itself.

[180] Kukuena wahine, an elder sister of Pele. (Some one says the first born of the Pele family. This assertion is not verified by other authorities.) She had charge of the making and distribution of the leis and of the ceremonies connected with formal awa-drinking. She was, in short, a sort of lady of the bedchamber to Pele.

[181] Lauwili, literally, an entanglement. It refers to the lustful attack made by Kama-pua'a on Pele, an attack to which she gave seeming acquiescence.

[182] Apa'apa'a, the name of a violent wind, here used adjectively.

[183] Luahine moe nana, Pele, who is depicted as an old woman huddled up on a lava plate. The snoring must refer to the sounds made by the lava while in action.

[184] Wa'a kauhi, an unrigged canoe, without iako or ama.

[185] Pepe mua, Pepe waena. This a detail in the development of the figure in which flowing lava is compared to a canoe. The pepe is a chock such as is put under the canoe when it is at rest on land. Mua, waena and muimui mean respectively at the bow, amidships and astern.

[186] Muimui, an elided form of mulimuli, the hindmost.

[187] Kihele ia ulu. Kihele, to bail out; ulu--the belly of the canoe, its swell amidships, the place where the bilge would settle. The implication is that, if the water is not bailed out, the incrusted salt will form a spot like the staring eye of Niheu.

[188] Niheu, a mythological hero who is always spoken of as kalohe, mischievous, because of his restlessness and stirring energy. His mother, Hina, had been abducted by a pirate chief who lived on the high bluff of Haupu, on Moloka'i. Niheu and his brother Kana, whose body was a rope of immense length, went to their mother's rescue, in which they succeeded, after many adventures. The eyes of Niheu were a marked feature in his appearance, being described as large and searching.

[189] Hina, the goddess with whom Wakea consorted after he had divorced his wife Papa by spitting in her face. Hina became the mother of the island of Moloka'i. From such a distinguished parentage arose the proverbial saying "Moloka'i nui a Hina."

[190] Kaunu-ohua, a hill on Moloka'i between Halawa valley and Puko'o, where is said to repose the body of Pele.

[191] Haupu, a hill on Moloka'i.

[192] Okaoka, said to be the flame-body of Pele, or the small stones, iliili, that entered into the composition of her body.

[193] Nana'i, an archaic form of Lana'i.

[194] Ka-ula-hea, a goddess with whom Wakea consorted after his divorce of Papa. The name also of a historic king of Lana'i, as well as of a kaula--prophet--attached to the disreputable set of gods that infested Lana'i at one time.

[195] Poli-hua, a sandy cape on Lana'i famous for its sea-turtles.

[196] Wai-li'u, full form, wai-li'u-la, mirage.

[197] Hoopa'apa'a Pele ilaila. Pele had planted a spring at this place, near Wai-lua, Kaua'i. Kama-pua'a, in company with two dragon-goddesses, Ka-la-mai-nu'u and Kilioe, who will find mention later in the story, took possession and moved the spring to another spot. When Pele came that way again, after a wordy contention with the two dragons, she slew them.

[198] Ulu, to guard, to farm, to protect. The kahu was the one who offered the sacrifices and prayers that were necessary to the maintenance of power and life in an artificial divinity, such as many of the Hawaiian deities were.

[199] Mo'o-kini, literally, the multitude (40,000) of dragons; the name of a heiau in Puna. There is also a heiau in Kohala called by the same name.

[200] Ko'i, said to be a kupua who had to do with carving and finishing the canoe. Pua seems to be epithet applied to the group of workmen who assisted him.

[201] Lele-iwi, a cape on the Puna side of Hilo bay.

[202] Mokau-lele, the name of a little land in Hilo situated near the point where the eruption of 1881-1882 came to a stand-still.

[203] Lili. This word, accented on the final syllable, means to rush, to move with one fixed purpose in view. It is to be distinguished from lili, having the accent on the penult, and meaning to be angry, jealous, alienated. (My authority is J. M. Poepoe). The word is not given by Andrews in his Dictionary.

[204] Haili-opua, the name of a deity. It means the piling-up of cloud-portents.

[205] Wai-a-kahala-loa, the Green lake, in Puna. This was, no doubt, much larger and of more importance in ancient times than it is now.

[206] Wa'a, the name of a kaula, soothsayer, who observed the omens in the heavens and instructed the fishermen. He had his station on or near the hill Maka-noni, in Puna.

[207] In one text this is Pu-ala'a, said to be a place in Puna. I have amended it to make better sense.

[208] Ko'e-ula, a family of Kupua, superhuman creatures, who had power over men's lives. They were, in truth, some kind of mud-worms, or glow-worms. They came out from their subterranean retreats to see Pele.

[209] A'ama, an edible black crab whose shell has a highly decorative pattern. It is said to have been used as a special, or sacred food by certain priests.

[210] Pe'ai, a contracted form from pe'e, to hide. In this case, the meaning seems to be to hang low in the heavens.

[211] Ihi, another form for uhi, to cover, or covered. The ahea, or aheahea is a common plant that was cooked and eaten like luau. It was also used as a poultice, after heating.

[212] Ka-ula-hea. See note 22.

[213] Ka-o-mea-lani, a god of rain. He indicated his presence by piling up volumes of white clouds.

[214] Hokahoka, disappointed, fooled, deceived; said of Pele in view of her painful experience with Kama-pua'a.

[215] Ne'ene'e, to shift about, as Pele had to do because her back was pierced to the bone by the sharp points of a-a on which she lay during her affair with Kama-pua'a. The point of the irony is to be found in the fact that she was as a rule indifferent to the roughness of the bed on which she lay. Yet she was accustomed--so the story goes--to choose pahoehoe as a bed.

[216] Ai pau, literally, to eat the whole; and for the first time.

[217] Pahoehoe. The mention of pahoehoe in this and in the following line has reference to a saying, or belief, which asserted that Pele was covered with an armor of pahoehoe. It is as if the poet sought to banter her on this popular notion.

[218] Pau hale, literally, the destruction of the house, meaning, of course, the deflowering of Pele.

[219] Kane-ula-a-Pele, literally, the red man of Pele, meaning Ka-moho-alii, a brother of Pele. He is described as having a ruddy complexion and reddish hair. He presided over the council of the Pele gods.

[220] Ku-ihi-malanai-akea, one of the forms or attributes of god Ku, the Trade-wind. The word Malanai by itself is often used in modern Hawaiian poetry to signify the same thing.

N.B.--The occurrence of the preposition e in verse 147 illustrates the somewhat vague and, at times illogical, use of prepositions in Hawaiian poetry. If I read this passage correctly, Kane-ula-a-Pele and Ku-ihi-malanai-akea are in apposition with hoalii, the subject of the verb noho; and, that being the case, instead of the preposition e we should have the particle o standing before Kane-... as we find it before Ku-.... The explanation of this anomaly, it seems to me, is to be found in the demand of the Hawaiian ear for tone-color, at any cost, even at the expense of grammar.

[221] He noho ana ai laau, a session of the gods in which they partook in common of some laau, medicine, or spiritual corrective, as a sign of mutual amity, even as the North American Indians smoked the peace-pipe in token of friendly relation between the participants. This laau is said to have been none other than the tender buds of the a'ali'i, which was chewed by the members of the assembly and was deemed to be not merely a symbol but an active agent in the production of amity and a good understanding.

[222] Papa-walu, literally, eightfold. The wahine are the Hiiaka sisters, seven in number. The inclusion of Kukuena fills the number to eight.

N.B.--It should be noted that during the time of Pele's disqualification, or retirement, or disgrace, Hiiaka-i-ka-poli-o-Pele would be the one to control the affairs of the Pele family.

[223] Kiope, to scatter, said of a fire, in order to extinguish it.

[224] Ku mau-mau wa. The literal meaning is, stand in order, or, as I have put it, stand shoulder to shoulder. It corresponded to and served the purpose of a sailor's chantey, and was employed in the ancient times to Hawaiian history to give spirit and precision to the work of the men straining at the hauling line of a canoe-log. The koa tree has been felled and rudely fashioned; a strong line is made fast to one end of it, and the men, having ranged themselves along, rope in hand, their chief, sometimes standing on the log itself, gives the signal for them to be ready for a start by uttering the inspiring cry "I ku mau-mau wa!" "I ku mau wa," answer the men, and with a mighty pull the huge log starts on its way to its ocean-home.

[225] Mauli, contracted form of Mauli-ola; the name of a kupua, a deity, who had to do with health, after some ideal fashion, a sort of Hygeia; also the name of that kupua's mystical abode. The name Mauli, or Mauli-ola, was also given, as I learn, to the site of the present Kilauea Volcano House.

[226] Hua-wai maka, literally, an unripe water-gourd. In this place it means a small collection of dew or rain-water, a water-hole, a thing much sought after by men, even as the owl--as remarks the poet in the next verse--searches after it. Whether the poet is correct in his assertion about the owl, is more than I can say.

[227] Pu oe i kau laau me kou makaainana. Kou makaainana is, undoubtedly, Pele. The reference is to the practice spoken of in note 48.

[228] Hahau i ke Akua, offer to the god.

[229] Ku'u ia a'e Pele. (In the text the ia is shortened to a). The meaning seems to be that Pele is exonerated from blame. That would not, however, alter the facts and render back to Pele the sacredness that belonged to her uncontaminated body.

[230] Lapu'u 'na Pele. This seems to have a double meaning, referring at once to the dismissal of hard feelings against Pele and to her rising up from her customary attitude in repose, that with her head crouched forward and her legs drawn up towards the body.

[231] Kauwiki, a hill in Hana, Maui, famous in history.

[232] Ho'oili, to come together in a bunch, said of fish. This is an unusual use of the word, though an old Hawaiian (J. T. P.) tells me his mother used it in this way. It refers not to the swarming of fish, but their bunching together when driven.

[233] Paiea, a species of crab that resembles the a'ama. The background color of the paiea is black; this is strewn with spots and markings of dark red, producing a highly artistic effect. The specimen I examined was found in the Honolulu fish market and came from Kona, Hawaii. In spite of mutilation, it still retained a formidable claw.

[234] Maunu paiea. The Hawaiian fisherman often prepared his bait by chewing it fine, after which he blew it into the water to attract the fish. The poet finds a parallel between this action of the fisherman and the discharge of venomous words by an angered person.

[235] Nie, an elided form of niele, to question.

[236] Ea, the sea-turtle.

[237] Honu, the land-turtle.

[238] Kukuau, a hairy, spotted crab, said to be poisonous.

[239] Hinalea, a name applied to fish of several different species, among which one that is rare is the Hinalea akilolo (Macropharyngodon geoffroy, Quoy and Gaimard). Another less rare, though beautiful, species is the Hinalea i'iwi (Gomphosus tricolor, Quoy and Gaimard).

[240] Apuhihi.

[241] Hihi-wai, a bivalve shell that is found clinging to rocks or reeds in fresh or brackish water streams. Its dorsum is jetty black, its front white, shading into yellow.

[242] Loli-pua, loli-koko and loli-ka'e, different species of holothuriae, or sea-slugs, some of which are esteemed as food by the Hawaiians. They were, nevertheless, looked upon as kupua.

[243] Lelea, a marine creature that is said to be slimy and adheres to the rocks.

[244] Kahi-kona, said to be a god of the fishermen.

[245] Leo hokiki, an imperfect tone caused by a torn drumhead.

[246] Kua a. The penalty of approaching Pele from behind was death: she is said to have had a consuming back.

[247] Kai oki'a, an engulfing abyss.

[248] Ala muku, the rainbow. (For further comments on these difficult passages, see notes 11, 12, and 13, on page 114.)

[249] Ho'o-nou o ka lani. This must be Pele. The word ho-onou is used of a person striving to accomplish some physical task, as of a woman straining in labor.

[250] Ku-walu, literally, eighth in order of succession.

[251] Ulu-po, said to be the name of a heiau at Kailua, Oahu.

[252] Iku-wa, the name of a month in the Hawaiian year, corresponding, according to one account, pretty closely to October; according to another nomenclature it corresponds pretty nearly to our April. The name etymologically connoted thunder and reverberations.

[253] Eka mua, literally, the first blast of a storm; here used figuratively to mean the first sexual ecstacy.

[254] Hoaka, a setting forth in figures. (Hoakaka).

[255] Ana-ku, the name of a cave situated somewhere in the caldera of Kilauea, a place of assembly for the gods. Its use here is evidently for a highly figurative purpose, and has, of course, to do with Pele and her affair with Kama-pua'a.

[256] Ha-amo, the name of the road to Ana-ku. (Peleioholani).

[257] Pahu. It is doubtful whether this means a drum or a post. In either case, in the smash-up of the one or the overthrow of the other, the figure evidently is designed to set forth the confusion caused by the catastrophe--Pele's debauchment. The other figures that follow have the same purpose.

[258] Halau ololo, literally, a long shed or canoe-house, meaning a place of common assembly for people. The figure is applied to Pele and is intended to declare that, through her affair with Kama-pua'a she had degraded herself and robbed her body of its tabu, its sanctity.

[259] Kiko, a mark to indicate a tabu. Two ti leaves placed crosswise, and held in place by a pebble, would constitute a kiko.

[260] Mo'a, literally, cooked; meaning that the tabu has expired, been abrogated.

[261] Pu'e-pu'e, the hills of taro. Kaele means the division or apportioning of them.

[262] Ne'ine'i, the more scattered, smaller, hills of taro, those that are nearer the bank.

[263] Pakikokiko, the scattered taro plants that grow in the water-course.

[264] These Honopu women, two in number, were mo'o, witches, related to Kilioe, a famous witch-mo'o of Hawaii, and their names were Kili-oe-i-ka-pua and Ka-lana-mai-nu'u.

[265] Kili-hau, the name given to a local wind accompanied by a fine rain.

[266] Kili-opu, a name descriptive of a wind and rain-shafts that, plunging into the water, made as little splash as a skillful diver.

[267] Pu'e. This word is here used in an unusual sense to mean cold.

[268] Hanehane, the shrill, seemingly far-off, wailing of a ghost; ghostly.

[269] Pololei, an archaic name applied to the land shell, now known as pupu-kanioi. This was supposed to utter a delicate trilling cry similar to that of the cricket.

[270] Lima-loa, the god Mirage.

[271] Wawae-nohu, the name given to a red cloud seen at sunset in the west from Mana, Kauai.

[272] Ka-halau-a-ola, literally, the hall of health. The more commonly used appellation Mauli-ola, was both the name of a deity and of a mystical place. One may infer from their use that Halau-a-ola meant rather a sort of house-of-refuge, a place of security from the attack of an enemy, while Mauli-ola had in view a mystical, beatific, condition. The former is illustrated in the line describing Kama-pua'a's escape from Pele's onslaught:

Noho ana Kama-pua'a i ka Halau-a-ola. Kama-pua'a finds refuge in the hall of life.

[273] Hala-aniani, a small lake of fresh water in a cave at Haena, in which the writer has bathed.

[274] Koa maka-iwa, idols with eyes of mother o' pearl. To this class belonged Ku-kaili-moku, the famous war god of Kamehameha.

[275] Halawa, the largest valley on Moloka'i, a stronghold of priestcraft and sorcery. "Ua o'o na pule o Moloka'i," the incantations of Moloka'i are ripe, became a proverbial expression.

[276] Hea, a stream near Haena.

[277] Hana-ia-ka-malama, a benevolent goddess who presided over the tabus that were the birthright of certain chiefs. The rules and observances that etiquette prescribed in the life and conduct of such a chief were intricate and burdensome to the last degree. It was, for instance, required that an infant who inherited this sort of a tabu must not be placed in such a position that the sun's rays could shine on its vertex.

[278] Mai-u'u, Ma-a'a, two goddesses (of the wilderness) whose function it was to string or twine leis and wreaths for the decoration of the superior gods. All the gods here mentioned were sometimes grouped under the appellation Akua o ka wa po--gods of the night-time--the fact being, however, that they worked as much by day as by night.

[279] Nahinahi-ana, another name for the goddess Hina-ulu-ohi'a, under which appelation her function was to make the dyes used in coloring and printing the tapas.

[280] Kuhulu ma. The particle-affix ma indicates that this name, or cognomen rather, comprises a group--in this case a family group--of deities. Under the family cognomen Ku were ranged a large and important group of deities, to whom were given individual appelations appropriate to their functions. Thus, Ku-huluhulu and Ku-ka-ohi'a-laka were deities worshipped by the canoe-makers. Ku-hulu and his set (ma) exercised a function akin to that of the water-carrier. They had charge of the fabled, life-giving water of Kane, Wai a Kane, and served it out according to the needs of men.

[281] Hanau a Kane, offspring of Kane. This appellation is intended, apparently, to cover the whole list of names already mentioned and, perhaps, some to be mentioned later in the mele.

[282] Wahine. Who these women, goddesses, were is brought out in what follows.

[283] Na Wahine i ka pa'ipa'i, literally, the women who clapped, or applauded; but more closely specified as:

[284] Pa'i-kua, the goddess who slapped the back, as was done in the hula.

[285] Pa'i-alo, the goddess who slapped the chest, as was also done in the hula.

[286] Pa'i-kauhale, she who knocked at the doors of the village, i.e., who roused the people generally.

[287] Aha, the charm of a pule, its ceremonial correctness, its power as an incantation.

[288] Lele wale, to get off the track; to go astray; to fail to hit the point.

[289] A pa ia'u, pa ia oe, with results disastrous to me and to you.

[290] Wahine-kapu, a bluff in the north-western wall that surrounds the caldera of Kilauea, the tabu residence of god Ka-moho-alii, a brother of Pele.

[291] Hoali'i (Hoa, companion and alii, chief); a fellow chief.

[292] Ku-wa'a, a god who presided at the hauling of a canoe-log. The shout raised on such an occasion, though it sounds almost like a repetition of this god's name, being "ku maumau wa," had a different origin.

[293] Ku-haili-moe, one of the Ku gods, whose function it was to induce or preside over dreams at night.

[294] Naele o Hawaii, probably meaning the whole broad area of Hawaii. One view would make it refer specially to the swampy lands.

[295] Kui-kui, an archaic form of the word kukui; here meaning both the candle made from the kukui nut and the god who had the same under his special charge.

[296] Koli-koli, the god who presided over the snuffling of the kukui nut candles. These were made by stringing the roasted nuts on a coconut leaf-rib.

[297] Kaha-ula, the goddess who presided over erotic dreams.

[298] Lono-makua, a god one of whose functions was to act as guardian of fire. When Pele and Kama-pua'a fought together and Kama-pua'a had succeeded in extinguishing the fires of Kilauea, Pele, in dismay, appealed to Lono-makua, saying, "There is no fire left." Lono-makua calmly pointed to his armpit and said, "Here is the fire, in these fire-sticks," (aunaki and aulima). The armpit was his place for carrying these sticks. When the Hawaiians first saw a White man with a lighted pipe in his mouth, smoke issuing therefrom, they said, "Surely, this is the great god Lono-makua; he breathes out fire."

[299] Kane-kapolei, god of flowers and shrubs.

[300] Laka, a god, or demi-god of various functions, such as fishing, agriculture, and house-building. Malo mentions Ku-ka-ohi'a-Laka as a god invoked by canoe-makers. Laka is evidently derived from the name Rata, which in Tahiti, Raro-tonga and New Zealand is the name of the ohi'a tree. Laka is to be distinguished from Laka, the goddess of the hula.

[301] Haina-kolo, the same as Ha'i-wahine, the name used in the Hawaiian text. Ha'ina-kolo is a name that spells tragedy. She was a princess of Hawaii who married a mythical being, Ke-anini-ula-o-ka-lani and went with him to his home in the South. Being deserted by her husband, after the birth of her child she started to swim home to Hawaii. Arriving in a famished condition in Kohala, she ate of some ulei berries without first making an offering to the gods. For this offense she was afflicted with insanity, and being distraught, she wandered in the wilderness until her repentant husband sent for her and restored her by his returning love.

[302] Uli, the chief aumakua of sorcery, but at the same time having power as a healer if she would but exercise it.

[303] Alohi-lani (literally, the shining heavenly ones); the notions that prevail as to its precise meaning in this place are vague.

[304] Kupukupu, a benevolent deity who healed diseases and who caused vegetation to flourish.

[305] Uli. In this connection the word means black. Ilio is a cloud.

[306] Mea, yellow. Ilio mea, a yellow cloud.

[307] Ku-ke-ao-iki, a form of the god Ku, a small cloud--hand-size--that grew and grew until it became ominous and seemed to fill the heavens.

[308] Ku-ke-ao-loa, a cloud-omen grown to full size.

[309] Ku-ke-ao-poko, said to be a cloud that quickly dissolved itself in rain.

[310] Ku-ke-ao-apihapiha, a sky full of small clouds, probably the same as our "mackerel sky." All these different kinds of clouds are forms in which Ku showed himself.

[311] Kanaka o ka mauna. This undoubtedly means Ku-pulupulu, a god of the canoe-makers. He seems to have had much influence over the lawless Kini Akua. He it was who contracted for the building of a canoe for the hero Laka.

[312] Ulu laau, another form of ulu; a shady place.

[313] Hina, to sit or kneel for prayer.

[314] Omaka, a quiet, silent, place in the wilderness suitable for prayer.

[315] Kana, another form of kena, enough.

[316] Wai, the awa cup.

[317] Ka-hoalii, one of the gods who came with Pele from Kahiki.

[318] Piko. The operation of trimming the thatch over the door of a house was a ceremonious operation and was termed oki ka piko. No one would think of sitting in the doorway or of standing on the door sill; it was sacred to Ka-hoalii (mentioned in the 14th line.)

[319] Uli, the arch-goddess of sorcery and anaana (praying to death). It seems to be implied that she has healing power as well as power to kill. Or, it may be, she is invoked, retained, to keep her from enlisting on the side of the opposition.

[320] Ilio-uli o ka lani, the slaty-blue clouds, here appealed to as kupua, beings possessed of power for good or ill.

[321] Ilio-mea, a white cloud (cumulus).

[322] Ilio-ehu, a cloud having a ruddy tint from the light of the sun.

[323] Ku-ke-ao-iki, clouds broken up into small fragments, like our mackerel sky.

[324] Ku-ke-ao-loa, the long stratus clouds, here represented as an embodiment of Ku.

[325] Ku-ke-ao-poko, a small compact cloud standing detached from its fellows.

[326] Ku-ke-ao-awihiwihi-ula, a ruddy cloud, ragged at its border.

[327] Kanaka o ka mauna, probably the Kini Akua, the host of elfins, kobolds and brownies--godlings--that peopled the wilderness.

[328] Hoa hele o ka ulu-laau, an apposition clause that explains the previous appellations.

[329] Na Keo-lani, goddesses of healing.

[330] Maka'a-pule, a term applied to an ohi'a fruit (mountain apple) when so ripe that its seed rattled within the drupe. It was then in the finest condition for eating.

[331] Ku-haili-moe, the same god as Ku-haili-moku, who bedecked the land with greenery, a god also worshipped by the canoe-makers.

[332] Ha'iha'i-lau-ahea, said to be the same as Ha'ina-kolo.

[333] Wahine i kapa ku, the woman who stood in the outskirts of the assembly.

[334] Uhau, to lay down or offer a prayer, as, e.g., uhau i ka pule. The offering of the prayer is considered as a physical act, the same as laying down a pig or a fish on the altar of the god.

[335] Paeaea, a fishing rod; the act of fishing. Hiiaka is represented as fishing for a favor.

[336] Laka, a god, or demi-god, of various functions, including fishing, agriculture and a participation in house-building. He was also one of the gods invoked by canoe-builders. The name is evidently the same as Rata, the appellation, in Tahiti, Raro-tonga and New Zealand, of the lehua (Metrosideros lutea). N.B. This Laka is to be carefully distinguished from the female Laka, the goddess and patron of the hula as well as necromancy.

[337] Kai-a-ulu, a sea-breeze that comforted Waianae.

[338] Kane-pu-niu, a form of god Kane, now an uncarved bowlder; here used in a tropical sense to mean the head. The Hawaiians, impelled by the same vein of humor as ourselves, often spoke of the human head as a coconut (pu-niu).

[339] Kona, here used as a local name for the sea-breeze.

[340] Koolau-wahine, a wind, stronger, but from the same direction as the Kona.

[341] The author begs to remark that sunstroke is unknown in all Hawaii.

[342] Lau-a'e, a fragrant plant that grows in the woods of Kauai.

[343] Akua. The word akua was used not alone to designate the gods, it was also applied to any superhuman or supernatural being. The reference here is to the little creatures that swarmed in the land.

[344] Oe. This last line is evidently addressed to her traveling companion, Wahine-oma'o, whom she descried in the canoe in the offing.

[345] Huli ke alo i ka paia. To sleep with one's face turned to the wall was reckoned to indicate a high degree of confidence in one's safety.

[346] Ula, a tingling in the ears. Tinnitus aurium, a tingling in the ears, or any similar symptom in that organ was regarded as a sure sign that some person was making a communication from a distance. This superstition, or sentiment, in regard to tinnitus aurium was not peculiar to the Polynesian. In Der Trompeter von Säckingen I find the following:

Laut das Ohr klingt, als ein Zeichen, Dass die Heimath sein gedenket,--

[347] Pahele-hala, literally, shaking the hala (pandanus tree). Hala also meant fault or sin. The figure is to be taken to mean a shaking of sins, in other words, a casting of them away, a disregarding of them.

[348] Wai-lua, an abyss in the water. The reference is, of course, to the shark-gods.

[349] Laau, wooden. The reference is to the shark-bodies of the two monsters which became dead, wooden, when discarded by them on their coming out of the ocean and resuming ordinary human form.

[350] Lehua. The full name is Moana-nui-ka-lehua, a goddess (mermaid) whose domain was in the abyss of the Ieie-waena channel. For further details see remarks in the text.

[351] Aina, to furnish food.

[352] Lahui, wholly, entirely.

[353] Huki, to fetch a wide course; to deviate from a direct course.

[354] Ilio, dog. It is explained that the meaning covered by this figure is a storm-cloud and that the stripping off of its garment, wehe ... i kona kapa, meant its break up into the fleecy white clouds of fair weather. It seems that if the head of this cloud-dog pointed to the west it meant rain, if to the east, fair weather.

[355] Hanai alualu, to fan with a gentle breeze. Alu-alu is another form for oluolu.

[356] Miki-kala and Puha-malo, names of places along the coast of Oahu in the region under observation.

[357] Kai-a-ulu, a wind felt on the leeward side of Oahu.

[358] Ha'ina na ihu. Ha'i, to break or be broken. The Hawaiian kiss was a flattening of nose against nose. The breaking of noses, as here, therefore, means excessive kissing.

[359] Lualua-lei, the name of a plain in this region.

[360] Barber's Point.

[361] Kua-mú, said to be the name of a wind, the blowing of which caused heavy rain in the woods back of Hilo.

[362] Hana-kahi, an ancient king of Hilo, frequently mentioned in poetry, whose name is used to designate the district.

[363] Hale Lehua, an evident allusion to the goddess, or mermaid, Moana-nui-ka-Lehua. She was a relative of Pele and had her habitation in the ocean caverns of Ie-ie-waena, the channel between Oahu and Kauai. Her story belongs to the time when the sun-hero Mawi was performing his wonderful exploits. (See account given on p. 104.)

[364] Pulelo, a word descriptive of the tremor of the flames that wrapped the trees.

[365] Maewa, to fork, or branch, said of the flames.

[366] Awa lau, leaf-shaped lagoon; a highly appropriate epithet, when applied to that system of lochs, channels and estuaries that form the famous "Pearl Lochs," as any one acquainted with the place will admit.

[367] Pe'e-kaua, the name applied to a portion of the plain west of Pu'u-loa.

[368] Kau-no'a, a parasitic plant (Cassytha filiformis) consisting of wiry stems that cling to other plants by means of small protuberances or suckers.

[369] Akuli-kuli, a low, vine-like plant, said to have fleshy leaves and minute flowers.

[370] Wili-wili (Erythrina monosperma), a tree having light, corky wood, much used in making the outrigger floats for canoes. Its flowers, of a ruddy flame-color, make a splendid decoration.

[371] Kane-hili, a name applied to a part of the plain west of Pu'u-loa[Pu'uloa?]. Notice the repetition of the word hili in the next verse. Hili means astray, or distressed.

[372] Hili, to go astray, to lose one's way. Assonance by word-repetition was a favorite device of Hawaiian poetry. The Hawaiian poet did not use rhyme.

[373] Mo-ewa'a, literally a canoe-dream. To dream of a canoe was an omen of ill luck. It was also unlucky to dream of having gained some valued possession and then wake to the disappointing reality.

[374] Wa'a-hila is said to have been the name of a favorite hula of Pele-ula; so called after a princess who, with her brother Ka-manu-wai, excelled in the performance of this dance. Her name has been perpetuated in an old saying that has come down to us: Ka ua Wa'a-hila o Nu'uanu. This is a gentle rain that extends only as far down Nu'uanu valley as to Wyllie or Judd street.

[375] Po Puna. Puna, as the home-center of volcanic action, knew what it was to be darkened by a volcanic eruption. Puna here stands for Hiiaka and her companion whose home it was. The night that overshadows Puna represents allegorically the intriguing designs of Pele-ula.

[376] Maka lehua. The lehua buds stand for the harmony, kindly affection and love that up to this time had existed between Lohiau and the two women escorting him. Pele-ula is the smoke that blights the lehua buds.

[377] Kihei-hei, frequentative form of kihei, to wear.

[378] Paü heihei. The pau heihei was a fringe of vegetable ribbons strung together and worn about the loins, thus serving as the conventional shield of modesty among the people of the olden time. The modifying expression, o uka, implies that the use of this particular form of pau was rather a sign of rusticity.

[379] Papa lohi o Mau-kele, glistening lava plates of Mau-kele. Mau-kele was a land in Puna. The implication is that these women, Pele-ula, Waikiki and the rest of them are plotting to steal away the affections of Lohiau.

[380] Ha'a ho'i ka papa, the lava plates rock: that is the plot is a shaky fabrication and will....

[381] Kahuli, topple over.

[382] Puna. There is a punning double entendre involved in the use of this word here. A puna-lua was one who shared with another the sexual favors of a third party. The implication is that Hiiaka and Wahine-oma'o stood thus towards Lohiau. See also note (a).

[383] Lau o ka lima, leaves of the hand. The spasmodic working (ha'a) of the fingers was deemed to be a sign of lustful passion. It is here attributed to Lohiau.

[384] Loha, to droop, to be fooled; here to be understood in the latter sense of Pele-ula.

[385] Wahine-kapu, one of the female deities of the Pele family who had her seat on an eminence at the brink of the caldera of Kilauea which was reverenced as a tabu place.

[386] Mai O'olu-eä. O'olu-ea, as a place-name calls for a preposition in mai. O'olu-ea, however, contains within it a verb, olu, to be easy, comfortable, and as a verb olu decides the mai to be an adverb of prohibition. In this meaning the caution is addressed to Lohiau.

[387] Ahi-a-Laka, a land in Puna. The double sense, in which it is here used, gives it a reference to the fires of passion.

[388] La anoano, literally, quiet day.

[389] The kilu, which gave name to the sport, was an egg-shaped dish made by cutting a coconut or small gourd from end to end and somewhat obliquely so that one end was a little higher than the other.

[390] Au-hula-ana. When the road along a steep coast is cut off by a precipice with the ocean tossing at its base, the traveler will often prefer to swim rather than make a wide inland detour. Such a place or such an adventure is called an au-hula or au-hula-ana.

[391] Laau ku'i, literally, spliced sticks; a ladder, or some contrivance of the sort to aid the traveler in climbing a pali.

[392] Lalo, below, to leeward; therefore to the west, meaning Lohiau, who came from the leeward island of Kauai.

[393] Manawa, the fontanelles; the heart and affections.

[394] Wai-lua, a river on Kauai.

[395] Lehua-wehe, a land in Honolulu; here meaning Pele-ula herself.

[396] Moe-awakea, a hill in Puna; here used for its etymological signification--literally, to sleep at noontime--which is brought out in the translation.

[397] The ami was a vigorous action of the body, often employed by dancers. Its chief feature was a rotation of the pelvis in circles of elipses. Though sometimes used with amorous intent, it was not necessarily an attempt to portray sexual attitudes. The ami honua, or ami ku'u pau, was an exaggerated action of the same description.

[398] Kalukalu, a place in Puna which supported extensive forests of hala (pandanus), a tree whose sword-shaped leaves were edged with fierce thorns. In contrast with the smart they produced the poet adduces the delights of the wilds in his own island of Kauai, instancing the laua'e, a fragrant vine that abounds in its mountains.

[399] Mohole, an unusual form for pohole, to be lacerated, but not quite so strong.

[400] Na-pali (the cliffs), a name given to the precipitous side of Kauai, where is the wild valley of Ka-lalau.

[401] Pu'u o Moe-awa. The full form is Moe-awakea (noonday sleep), the name of a hill in Puna. By omitting kea, the word awakea (noon) comes to mean bitter, thus imparting to the meaning a cutting irony. Cf. note (a), page 176.

[402] Hana-lei, literally, to make a wreath; a valley on Kauai.

[403] Hala. It was ill luck to wear a wreath of the hala drupe.

[404] According to one version of this story, Hiiaka made free use of her powers of enchantment in withdrawing from the presence of Pele-ula. At the proper psychological moment, with the wreath of victory crowning her brow, while Pele-ula was vainly intent on an effort to turn the tide of her own defeat and gain the shadow of a recognition as mistress of the game of Kilu, Hiiaka, with a significant gesture to her companions, spat upon the ground and, her example having been imitated by Wahine-oma'o and Lohiau, their physical bodies were at once transported to a distance while their places continued to be occupied by unsubstantial forms that had all the semblance of reality.

[405] Maka-pa, an expression used of stones that burst when placed in the fire.

[406] Makani holo ulá. The allusion is to a cold wind that chills the naked legs of the fisher-folk.

[407] Pau-kua, a place-name, meaning consumed in the back--a clear reference to the fact that the kahuna's black art very frequently made its fatal ravages by attacking first the back.

[408] Lele-iwi, the name of a cape that marked the coast of Puna. The word also has a meaning of its own, to express which seems to be the purpose of its use here. It connotes a grave-yard, a scaffold, one, perhaps, on which the body (literally the bones) of a human sacrifice are left exposed.

[409] Maka-hana-loa, the name of another cape, also on the Hilo-Puna coast.

[410] Lae Ohi'a, literally, ohi'a cape, meaning a forest growth that stretched out like a tongue.

[411] Apane, a species of lehua that has red flowers, much fed upon by the birds. (In the original newspaper-text the word was pane, evidently a mistake. There are, regretably, many such mistakes in the original text.)

[412] Manienie, smooth, meadow-like, a name given in modern times to the Bermuda grass--"fine grass"--said to have been imported by Vancouver, now extensively seen in Hawaiian lawns.

[413] Ke-ahi-a-Laka, literally, the fire of Laka, the name of a land.

[414] Ha'eha'e, the eastern Sun-gate, applicable to Puna as the easternmost district of Hawaii and of the whole group. In claiming Puna as hers--i.e., as her home-land--Hiiaka seems to have set up a claim to be the guardian of the Sun's rising, and therefore, by implication of Pele.

[415] "I hana ia ka ihu i mea honi."

[416] Muliwai o Lena. There is a stream of this name in Waianae, it is said. Lena is also said to be the name of a place in Kahiki. The word lena, yellow, strongly suggests the thought of sulphur.

[417] Moku po'o a Kane, literally, the fissured head of Kane. The first land formed by Kane.

[418] Kane-lau-apua, the same as Kane-apua. One of the numerous avatars or characters of Kane. He appeared in Kahiki--Kukulu o Kahiki--and gained a reputation as a benevolent deity, whose benign function--shared by Kane-milo-hai--was to pluck from the jaws of death those who lay at the last gasp (mauli-awa), or whose vital spark was at the last flicker (pua-aneane). He healed the palsied, the helpless and hopeless, those who were beyond the reach of human aid. On one occasion he restored himself to perfect health and soundness by the exercise of his own will; hence his name, Kane-apua. On another occasion he illustrated his power by restoring to life some okuhekuhe which the fisherman had already scaled and laid upon the fire. The motive for this act seems to have been that this fish was a form in which he sometimes appeared. The story of his adventure with Kane-lelei-aka is worthy of mention. At one time while standing on a headland that reached out into the ocean like the prow of a ship, his eye caught a gleam from something moving swiftly through the water. He saw it repeatedly passing and repassing and wondered what it was. It was the shadowy form of Kane-lelei-aka, but he knew it not. He scanned the surrounding mountains and cliffs, if perchance he might get sight of the body, bird, or spirit that produced this reflection. He discovered nothing. In pursuit of his quest, he started to go to Kukulu-o-Kahiki. On the way he met his relative Kane-milo-hai, out in mid ocean.

"Are you from Kanaloa?" asked Kane-milo-hai. That meant are you from Lana'i, Kanaloa being the name formerly given to that little island.

"Aye, I am from Kanaloa and in pursuit of a strange shadowy thing that flits through the ocean and evades me."

"You don't seem to recognize that it is only a shadow, a reflection. The real body is in the heavens. What you are pursuing is but the other intangible body, which is represented by the body of Kane-mano. He is speeding to reach his home in Ohe-ana" (a cave in the deep sea, in the Kai-popolohua-a-Kane).

"How then shall I overtake him?" asked Kane-pua.

"You will never succeed this way. You are no better off than a kolea (plover) that nods, moving its head up and down (kunou). Your only way is to return with me and start from the bread-fruit tree of Lei-walo (Ka ulu o Lei-walo). You must make your start with a flying leap from the topmost branch of that tree. In that way you can come up to him and catch him."

The rest of the story: how he followed the advice given him by Kane-milo-hai and succeeded is too long for insertion here.

[419] Nowai he wa'a? To speak of a lava flow as a wa'a, a canoe, is a familiar trope in Hawaiian mele. (See U. L. of H., p. 194). The canoe in this case is the eruption of fire sent against Lohiau, the hoapaio, against whom it is launched, Lohiau and Hiiaka.

[420] Aimoku wahine. An aimoku is one who eats up the land, a conqueror, a literal description of Pele.

[421] Kini maka o ka la. In the original text from which this is taken the form is Kini-maka, offering the presumption that it is intended as a proper name. Kini-maka was a malevolent kupua, demigod, against whom, it is charged that she was given to scooping out and eating the eyes of men and her fellow gods. Her name was then called Walewale-o-Ku. Kane, it is said, took her in hand and weaned her from her bad practice; after which she was called Kini-maka, Forty-thousand-eyes. The phrase o ka la affixed to her name discountenances the idea that she is the one here intended. It becomes evident that the whole expression means rather the many eyes of the Sun, i.e., the many rays that dart from the Sun; and this is the way I construe it.

[422] Pau o ka wahine? The question as to the kind of pau, skirt, worn by the women--those of Pele's fire-brigade, as I have termed them--is pertinent, from the fact that the answer will throw light on their mood and the character of their errand, whether peaceful, warlike, etc. The answer given in the text (line 20 of the translation) is Their skirts were fern and leaf of the ti. A pau of fern was said to be hanohano, dignified. Ua kapa ia ka palai he palai alii; o ka la-i, ua kapa ia he mea kala (the pau of fern was worn by chiefs; the pau of ti leaf was a sign of propitiation.) A woman wore a ti leaf during her period of monthly infirmity. The whole subject will bear further investigation.

[423] Kihi o ka Mahina, the horn of the Moon. The manner of fastening the pau, knotting or tucking it in at each hip, gave it a crescent shape, with an angle at each hip. This seems to have suggested to the poet a comparison with the horns of the young Moon.

[424] Akua lehe-oi, an undoubted reference to Pele,--the sharp devouring edge, lip, of her lava-flow.

[425] Akua lehe-ama. This also must refer to Pele--her gaping lips.

[426] Puke, this archaic form of pu'e, a hill of potatoes, yams and the like.

[427] The Hawaiians had no such thing as bread. The Hawaiian word ai, in line 20 of the original, means vegetable food. The necessities of the case seem to justify the use of the word bread in the translation. The reader will pardon the anachronism.

[428] Awa. The full expression would probably be ua awa, bitter rain, i.e., bad weather.

[429] Halelo, rough, jagged like aa. The following quotation is given:

Ku ke a, ka halelo o Kaupo, I ho'okipa i ka hale o ka lauwili: E-lau-wili. He lau-wili ka makani, he Kaua-ula.

TRANSLATION

How jagged stand the rocks of Kaupo, That once held the house of the shiftless!

[430] Ihi-lani, literally, the splendor of heaven; said to be a god of lightning, also the name of a hill.

[431] Ihi-awaawa, said to be the name of a god of lightning, as well as the name of a hill.

[432] Huki-huki, literally, to pull, to haul with a succession of jerks. The action here figured is eminently descriptive of the manner of advance of a lava-flow. It is not with the uniform movement of a body of water. It shoots out a tongue of molten stuff here and there; and as this cools, or is for cause arrested, a similar process takes place at some other point. This movement bears a striking resemblance to the action of a body of skirmishers advancing under fire. Its progress is by fits and starts.

[433] Pua'a-kanu. In spite of the fact that this is claimed by Hawaiians to be a place-name, I must see in it an allusion to a swine, devoted to sacrifice, connoting Lohiau himself.

[434] Oa, a poetical contraction for loa, long.

[435] Haele. By a figure of speech--metonymy--the word haele, meaning to travel, is used to signify a fellow traveler, the companion, of course, is Hiiaka herself.

[436] Ku-mauna, a rain-god of great local fame and power; now represented by a monolithic bowlder about thirty feet high, partly overgrown with ferns and moss, situated in the lower edge of the forest-belt, that lies to the south and Kau of Mauna-loa, deserves more than passing mention. The region in which this rock is situated is declared by vulcanologists to have been one vast caldera and must have been the scene of tremendous disturbances.

Up to the present time the Hawaiians have continued to hold Ku-mauna in great reverence mingled with fear. The following modern instance isnot only a true story, and interesting, but also furnishes an illustration of the attitude of mind of the Hawaiian people generally,--or many of them--towards their old gods.

During a period of severe drought in the district of Kau, Hawaii, a gentleman named S----, while hunting in the neighborhood of the rock that bears the name Ku-mauna, took occasion to go out of his way and visit the rock. Standing before the rocky mass and calling it by name, he used towards it insulting and taunting epithets, professing to hold it responsible for the drought that was distressing the land. He concluded his tirade by discharging his rifle point blank against the face of the rock, resulting in the detachment of a considerable fragment.

The vaqueros in the employ of Mr. S.----, who were assisting in the hunt, horrified at the sacreligious act, at once put spurs to their horses and made off, predicting the direst consequences from the rash act of Mr. S----.

Now for the denouement: Within about ten days of this occurrence, the valley, on one side of which Mr. S---- had his residence, was visited by a violent rain-storm--such as would in popular speech be termed a cloud-burst. There was a mighty freshet, the waters of which reached so high as to flood his garden and threaten the safety of his house, which he saved only by the most strenuous exertions. The land which had been his garden was almost entirely washed away and in its place was deposited a pell-mell of stones.

Needless to say, that, by the natives, this incident was and is regarded to this day as conclusive evidence of the divine power of Ku-mauna and of his wrath at the audacious person who insulted him. Special significance is attached to the fact that as part of Ku-mauna's reprisal the place that had been a garden was turned into a field of rocks. The only wonder is that Mr. S---- got off with so light a punishment.

[437] Kani-a-hiku, a place-name--that of a village in the remote valley of Wai-manu--here used, apparently, for its meaning. To analyze its meaning, Kani = a sound, a voice, probably a bird-song; Hiku, a celebrated kupua, the mother of the famous mythical hero Mawi. It is said that when the wind, locally known as the Kapae, but more commonly named the Ho'olua--the same as our trade-wind--blew gently from the ocean, the listening ears of Kani-a-hiku heard, in the distance, the sound of hula drums and other rude instruments mingling with the voices of men chanting the songs of the hula. This seems to be the kani referred to.

[438] Wahine ai lehua, Pele. Who else would it be?

[439] Unu kupukupu (also written, it is said, haunu kupukupu), a hummock or natural rock-pile, such as would be selected by fishermen, with the addition, perhaps, of a few stones, as an altar on which to lay their offering and before which to utter their prayers. Kupukupu indicates the efficacy of such an altar as a luck-bringer.

[440] Pu'u-lena, a wind felt at Kilauea that blew from Puna. The word lena, yellow, suggests the sulphurous fumes that must have added to it their taint at such time as the wind passed over the volcanic pit.

[441] Ku-hala-kai, a plentiful fall of rain.

[442] Ku-hulu-ku, a chilling of the atmosphere.

[443] Pu'uku-akahi, Pu'uku-alua, names applied to hills on one or the other side of the fire-pit, whence seem to come those sonorous puffing or blowing sounds that accompany the surging of the fires.

[444] Kua-loi. This is probably shortened from the full form Kua-loiloi. The reference is to a law, or custom, which forbade any one to approach Pele from behind, or to stand behind her. He kua loiloi ko Pele, the meaning of which is, Pele has a fastidious back.

[445] Ka-hoa-lii, literally, companion of kings; the shark-god, a relation of Pele, who occupied a section of the plateau on the northwestern side of the caldera, a place so sacred that the smoke and flames of the volcano were not permitted to trespass there.

[446] Maiau pololei, land shells found on trees, generally called pupu-kanioi.

[447] Kanaka loloa, Ku-pulupulu, one of the gods of the canoe-makers; here spoken of as a tall man in contradistinction, perhaps, to the dwarfish Kini-akua, who were his followers.

[448] Kuli-pe'e-nui, a deity, or an idealization, of a lava flow. The feature that seems to be emphasized is the stumbling, crawling, motion, which as seen in a flow, may be compared to the awkward, ataxic movement of one whose knees are dislocated and leg-bones broken.

[449] Pi'i-kea, the god of the roaches, who is described as given to making certain tapping motions with his head which, I believe, are practiced by the roach at the present time.

[450] Mahao'o, an epithet applied to a dog that shows a patch of yellow hairs on each side of his face. It has somewhat the force of our expression, breathing out flames.

[451] Ama wa'a. The commotion in Kilauea is here compared to the upsetting of the canoe's outrigger (ama). When an outriggered canoe capsizes the outrigger, ama, as a rule, lifts out of the water.

[452] Wa'a. The reference seems to be to the masses of solid lava that, not infrequently may be seen to break off from the wall of the fire-pit and float away on the surface of the molten lake, even as an iceberg floats in the ocean.

[453] Na'ena'e, said of an object that looks small from a distance. The use of the particle emphatic o, placed before this word, implies that it performs the office of a proper name, here a place-name. Such a use of the particle emphatic before a noun not a proper name indicates that the word is used as an abstract term.

[454] Lama kau oni'oni'o. When two strings of kukui nuts are bound together to form one torch, the light given by it is said to be of varying colors. The word oni'oni'o alludes to this fact.

[455] Kukulu a awa, said of those in the rear of the company that came against Lohiau. I cannot learn that this is a military term.

[456] Kai-a-ka-hulu-manu, literally, the sea of the bird feathers. Some claim this as being the same as the Kai-a-ka-hinali'i; others, and I think rightly, claim that it was a distinct flood that occurred at a later period and that destroyed all birds and flying things.

[457] Opiopi. The waves of the sea in the season of Makali'i are compared to the wrinkles in a mat, the contrast with those of the Kai-a-ka-hulu-manu, and the kai a ka pohaku.

[458] Noho, a seat, or to sit. Here used for the people there living.

[459] Kua o ka makani (literally, at the back of the wind). Koolau, the windward side of an island, was its kua, back. The whole line contains an ingenious reference to the manner of fire-lighting. When the smouldering spark from the fire-sticks has been received on a bunch of dry grass, it is waved to and fro to make it ignite. To the old-fashioned Hawaiian familiar with this manner of fire-making this figure is full of meaning.

[460] Ulu o ka La, the figure of the Sun as it touched the horizon, or its glare.

[461] Akua, literally, a god. This is a generic term and includes beings that we would call heroes, as well as devils and demons.

[462] Ka-wai-hoa, the southern point of Niihau.

[463] Hoaka-lei, a hill on Niihau.

[464] Kiu, the name of a wind.

[465] Makalii, Kaelo and Ka-ulua are cold months. Lohiau found them hot enough.

[466] Ha'aha'a, literally, hanging low. I am reminded of an old song uttered, it is said, by a hero from the top of Kauwiki hill, in Hana, Maui: "Aina ua, lani ha'aha'a." Land of rain, where the heavens hang (ever) low.

[467] Wai-wela-wela, a hot lake in lower Puna.

[468] Ko'olau, a term applied generally to the windward side of an island, which was, of course, the stormy side. The expression au Ko'olau, or Ko'olau weather, is one of great significance.

[469] E ki'i mai oe ia'u; eia au la i ke au a ka hewahewa.

[470] Lawakua, an intimate companion, a friend.

[471] Ua a ka lipoa, a fine, cold rain; a Scotch mist.

[472] Lala, to bask in the sunlight.

[473] Oma'o-lala, a place in upper Ola'a, named from the bird oma'o.

[474] Aina i ka houpu a Kane, a proverbial expression applied to Puna, signifying the affection in which Puna was held.

[475] A'aka, an ocean cave (definition not given in the dictionary).

[476] Nawele ka maka o Hina-ulu-ohi'a. By metonymy, a figure of speech for which the Hawaiian poets showed great fondness, the name of the goddess, or superior being, Hina-ulu-ohi'a, is here used instead of the fruit which seems to have been her emblem. This fruit, the ohi'a puakea, is a variety of the ohi'a ai, or mountain apple, as it is commonly called. The common variety is of a deep red color shading into purple; but this variety, departing from the usual rule, is of a pale lemon color. This pale variety shows a faint pink or reddish ring about the maka, or eye where the flower was implanted. The poet's fancy evidently makes a comparison between this delicate aureole and the dim glow by which the volcanic fire made itself perceived in its periphery at Kahiki.

[477] Kahaea, a pile of white cumulus clouds, or a single large cloud, which was regarded by weather prophets, soothsayers and diviners as a significant portent.

[478] Ku-lani-ha-ko'i. The old Hawaiians imagined that somewhere in the heavens was an immense reservoir of water, and that a heavy downpour of rain was due to the breaking of its banks. When the clouds of storm and rain gathered thick and black, they saw in this phenomenon a confirmation of their belief, which gained double assurance when the clouds discharged their watery contents.

[479] Eleua ... Eleao. When a Hawaiian house had a door at each end, the door at one end was named Ele-ua, that at the other end Ele-ao.

[480] Kula-manu. A plain or tract of land that was flooded in wet weather and thus converted for a time into a resort for water-fowl, was termed a kula-manu or bird plain.

[481] Wahi'a ka lani. This passive form of the verb has here the force of entreaty almost equivalent to the imperative. The opening here spoken of was the parting and drawing aside of the dark clouds that shut in the heavens, an opening that would be equivalent to the restoration of peace and good will.

[482] Ku-lili-ka-ua, the name applied to a grove of pandanus in Puna.

[483] Pohaku-loa, the name of a rocky ledge or cliff in Puna.

[484] Lau-ahea. This was a deceitful voice, a vocal Will-o'-the-wisp, that was sometimes heard by travelers and that enticed them into the wilderness or thicket there to be entrapped in some lua meke or fathomless pit.

[485] Kuku-ena, a sister of Pele who, like Kahili-opua, was a physician and of a benevolent disposition. She was wont to act as the guide to travelers who had their way in the mazes of a wilderness. So soon, however, as the traveler had come clear into a clear place and was able to orient himself, she modestly disappeared.

[486] Ku kihikihi, to stand cornerwise or edgewise. In the ebullition that stirs the mass of a lava lake at seemingly rhythmical intervals the congealed crust that has formed on the surface is seen to break up, become tilted on edge, and then be sucked down into the depths by the vortex of the lava-pit. The allusion here is to the tilting of the plate on edge in this wonderful phenomenon.

[487] Olohe. This is explained and described as meaning a spectral appearance of human figures and of objects animate and inanimate moving about in the firmament. The description given of it almost leads one to think it a mirage or fata morgana.

[488] Kuahiwi haoa, a term applied in Kau to a forest-clump which a devastating lava flow has spared, after having laid waste the country on all sides of it.

[489] Hiiaka-i-ka-ale-i, Hiiaka of the bounding billow. The number of the sisters in whose names that of Hiiaka formed a part was considerable, as may be inferred from the fact that the names here mentioned do not include the whole list of them.

[490] Hiiaka-i-ka-pua-enaena, Hiiaka of the burning flower. Her emblem was the little budlike pea-blossom flame. This name is sometimes given as Hiiaka-i-ka-pua-aneane, a more delicate but less striking epithet.

[491] Hiiaka-noho-lae, Hiiaka who dwells on the cape. She was recognized by a trickle of blood on the forehead.

[492] O ka la ko luna. O ka pahoehoe ko lalo. The sun overhead. The lava below.

[493] Aohe o kahi nana oluna o ka pali. Iho mai a lalo nei; ike i ke au nui me ke au iki, he alo a he alo; nana i ka makemake. The exact meaning of ke au iki and ke au nui is not clear.

[494] Keehi ... e nalo kapua'i. I am informed that Hawaiians, in order to conceal their goings, would erase their footprints by blurring them with their feet.

[495] Onohi ula i ka lani, a fragment of a rainbow.

[496] Lele kapu i kai. This may be put,--the old order has passed.

[497] Hoole akua, hoole mana. (To deny God, to deny supernatural power). It thus appears that the old Hawaiians were not unacquainted with those phases of skepticism that have flourished in all philosophic times.

[498] Ho'o-malau, to treat one's religious duties, or solemn things, with scorn.

[499] Ho'o-maloka, to be neglectful of one's religious duties, or of solemn things. In old times, how often did the writer hear the term ho'o-maloka applied as a stigma to those who persistently neglected and showed indifference to the services and ordinances of the church.

[500] Apapa-nu'u, the under-world and its spiritual powers.

[501] Apapa-lani, the heavens and their spiritual powers.

[502] Mano-ka-lani-po. This distinguished name was borne by that one of Kaua'i's kings who preceded its last independent monarch, Ka-umu-alii, by fourteen generations, which would bring his reign in the first half of the fifteenth century. He has the honor, unique among Hawaiian kings, of having his name affixed as a sobriquet to the island that was his kingdom. Whether the use of his name in this connection, apparently as a god, is to be regarded as antedating its occurrence in the Ulu genealogy (given by Fornander. See The Polynesian Race; vol. I, p. 195.), or whether, on the other hand, it is to be considered as an apotheosis of a name justly held in veneration, we cannot decide.

[503] Pahu-kapu a ka leo. The best-informed and most thoughtful among the Hawaiian authorities have poorly defined and contradictory notions as to the meaning of this term. Its literal meaning may be given as sacred (or tabu) pillar. Mr. Tregear, in his incomparable Maori Comparative Dictionary, gives one meaning of the word to be sanctuary. One thoughtful Hawaiian defines it as a pillar, such as Pele set up, due regard for which demanded silence. Another, equally well informed, defines it as an edict, or canon. To the writer it seems more logical and safer to adopt the material view regarding this phrase.

[504] Ala hele ... ala muku, (literally, a short path or road). This ala hele ... ala muku was probably the rainbow. It is said in Hawaiian story that when Hiiaka came down from the cave where she found the body of Lohiau she used a rainbow as her way of descent. In an old mele occurs this line: O ke anuenue ke ala o Kaha'i. The rainbow was the path of Kaha'i.

[505] Ki ho'iho'i. Hawaiian authorities differ as to the meaning of this phrase. After much cogitation and search, I concluded that the word ki has the same root-meaning as i, to utter. (I find myself supported in such an interpretation by no less an authority than Edward Tregear. Maori Comparative Dictionary.)

[506] Kai oki'a. Hawaiian authorities are quite at sea as to the meaning of these words. I think it means that the ocean is a gulf that swallows up and destroys. A very stringent tabu, says one, that regulated the diet, cutting off bananas and the like.

[507] Kua a. Pele is said to have had a back that was so hot that any fabric laid upon it was reduced to ashes. It was also said to be tabu for any one to approach Pele from behind.

[508] A calabash, often covered with a net, used by a fisherman to hold his spare hooks and lines and, by the traveler, his belongings.

End of Project Gutenberg's Pele and Hiiaka, by Nathaniel Bright Emerson