CHAPTER IV.

Kawelo Loses His Wife to Aikanaka.—Plot to Kill Kawelo and His Ulus.—Kamalama, the Last Defender, Falls as He Calls Kawelo From Surfing.—Kawelo Buries His Friend.—Is Stoned to Supposed Death.—His Half-Sister Appointed Caretaker of the Body.

Kawelo dwelt peacefully with no one to contend with in war, but, after living together with his wife she was taken [1147] by the ruling chief, Aikanaka. At this, Kawelo was left without a wife. Because Kawelo grieved very much for his wife, a thought came to him to seek a way whereby his older brother might be thwarted.

He dwelt alone, but meditated within himself: “What shall I do to him? Either death, perhaps, or life?” And when he had spent some time in musing, all at once he noticed the crowd assembled on the lowland for surf-riding, which always drew a gathering from morning to evening, and great was the desire of Kawelo; consequently he forgot his wife and engaged in his favorite pastime of surf-riding. Let us now depart from the narrative of Kawelo and speak about the beloved friend of the marvelous one and his ulu followers.

Whilst they were engaged with comparative comfort in their special calling, spear practice, thereafter an idea occurred to the king, Aikanaka, to destroy [1148] them all; and he said to the wife of his younger brother whom he had brought: “Say, you woman whom I have taken by my own hands!” “What is it?” the wife answered. “How is it; is it possible for me to defeat Kawelo and his ulu adherents?” She replied: “If you want to kill my husband and his ulus, here is the only way to insure death: Should you wish the death of the ulus first, then proclaim that all the people gather together to perform the Friday [1149] tasks; and no man shall stay away during that time you have so decreed, and he who defaults will suffer death. Thereby the ulus will be killed, [1150] and afterwards my husband. Furthermore, however, I have instructed my husband: all things were taught him, except one, and that is fighting with stones, which art I [1151] did not teach him. But if he should come out unscathed from that death-dealing method, what a great pity would it then be that our bones should be allowed to bleach in the sun.” The other remarked: “Does he know what he has in store?” Soon after this, Aikanaka summoned all the men to assemble; no man should stay back, and if any was absent from the king’s call, death would be the penalty. Let us leave the proclamation of the king and turn aside to the ulus of Kawelo. What are they doing now?

While the ulus were making preparation to attend and ascertain the object of the king’s proclamation, young Kamalama [1152] first cautioned the most of the ulus: “Should we ascend, and should the labor day approach, do not one of you go off; we must remain in one place together; maybe this is a summons [1153] wherein our death is planned.”

The ulus readily assented. They therefore went up and approached the place that had been set apart for the work. To their surprise, they noticed the majority of the men held diggers in their hands. But Kamalama had brought his javelin, Hawae, along. Said he to the ulus: “In the event of our remaining here, and the king commands us to ascend to perform the labor, then go up in a body. Here it is: Doom appears to lurk before me—we are going to be killed, and no survivor will remain.” Kaulukauloko remarked: “Decidedly so; if we are defeated by them, that is all to it; but wait until the trial takes place.”

However, before an attack was commenced against them, eight piles of stones had been prepared by the men and the king on a hill, the name of which was Hulili. Immediately the ulus were surrounded, and they were trapped in the center. He (Kamalama) heard the king command that the diggers be thrust; that the stones be thrown. Kamalama said to the ulus: “There is no hope left! Seek your strength in order to escape.” The ulus began to press forward. They all fought on furiously from early morning until the sun had passed the zenith; two ulus still survived, and nine were killed. The names of the remaining ulus were Kauluikapapaakea and the friend of Kawelo, Kamalama. Nevertheless, the greater part of the men had been killed by Kamalama; and had the men been less in number they would all have been slain by Kamalama. They moved towards the sea, with a hope of securing aid should his friend [1154] notice [them]. The greater force pushed the battle on until Kauluikapapaakea had been killed, leaving Kamalama alone.

Kamalama was much worn by the struggle, for he had, singlehanded, assisted the ulus until they were all killed. As to his javelin, it was broken short, and only the handle was left. At this moment Kawelo beheld this great horde of men, and Kawelo was still in the lowland surf-riding, as it was his favorite sport. Fear crept into him, and when Kamalama saw his friend, since he was powerless to resist and his strength well spent and his javelin all splintered, he straightway raised their chant, as follows:

There is my lehua [1155] at Makanoni! That is being surrounded with the chill [1156] of the koolau [wind] Within me is heavily bearing your love: Perhaps you may see, or perhaps not, eh! O farewell to you!

When he had finished chanting, Kawelo then looked carefully, and seeing the sand particles rising up, he concluded that his friend was ill-fated; wherefore he commenced to conjure up a surf for himself. [1157] This is the manner in which he called:

Arise! Arise, the great surf from Kahiki! Come, break, deep blue sea, the long heavy surf!

He caught a hurried view of a very high-sounding surf coming dancing in, and he was immediately brought to shore. Just as he reached the sand the head of Kamalama received a blow from the digger of Ohiakuikalaka. The friend came forward and, raising him up, observed the blood trickling from the head of his bosom companion. He kissed the nose, [1158] and took him for burial. However, he looked back and saw the men closing in behind him who had come to secure his death. He buried and covered up his friend; then turned around and beheld the many men on the hill, and observed the bodies of his ulus lying scattered about, and secretly commented on the haste of them in wandering away to broader destruction. Whereupon Kawelo recited these lines of chant:

It has risen above Nihoa, From the foundation of Lehua, [1159] The rain falls, the stream is fed; My lehua [1160] is softened by the makoa rain.

Soon he was pursuing the men who, whenever captured by him, were crushed. He kept on, but there was no place of meeting; [1161] the men fled hastily towards, and occupied the top of the hill and very calmly began to pelt stones at him.

While he was making ascent he saw his wife standing together with her husband; and because of the men that ran about on the hill he addressed these lines of chant:

The children are growing mischievous; [1162] The surf-riding boards are ever increasing. The surfs break! Kamalama!

Persistently he climbed up; they were pelting stones at him. He was struck, but he still pressed upward. When he was covered over with stones he shook and they all fell [off]. Still he ascended. Reaching the summit, there were only two piles of stones left, when he was held down by the many stones on top of him, and he lay back quite dead. [1163] Kawelo was then picked up, conveyed to and placed on a structure [1164] already prepared. Then the king asked for one to act as guard until the bones were loosened, whence they would be stripped. [1165] At this moment the half-sister of Kawelo heard [it] and said to the king: “It is well that I be caretaker,” to which the king assented, and they all returned feeling assured there was no mischiefmaker left to cause trouble again, that the tyrant had been killed, and the comparative ease of living had come and slumber was undisturbed during the night.