The Story of Hawaii (Illustrated Edition). Fowke Gerard

coast.

       Mele

      Kalalau, pali eku i ka makani;

Pu ka Lawa-kua,²³² hoi mau i Kolo-kini;

      Nu a anahulu ka pa ana i-uka--

      Anahulu me na po keu elua.

      Elua Hono-pu o ia kua kanaka;

Elua Ko'a-mano²³³ me Wai-aloha,

Ka pali waha iho, waha iho²³⁴ me ke kua;

      Ke keiki puu iloko o ka pali nui.

E hii an'²³⁵ e Makua i Kalalau.

      [Translation]

       Song

      The mountain walls of Kalalau

      Buffet the blasts of Lawa-kau,

      That surge a decade of nights and twain;

      Then, wearied, it veers to the north.

      Two giant backs stand the cliffs Hono-pu;

      The falls Wai-aloha mate with the sea:

      An overhung pali--the climber's back swings in

      Its mouth--to face it makes one a child--

      Makua, whose arms embrace Kalalau.

      The mind of the ancient bard was so narrowly centered on the small plot his imagination cultivated that he disregarded the outside world, forgetting that it could not gaze upon the scenes which filled his eyes.

      The valley of Kalalau from its deep recess in the northwestern coast of Kauai looks out upon the heaving waters of the Pacific. The mountain walls of the valley are abrupt, often overhanging. Viewed from the ocean, the cliffs are piled one upon another like the buttresses of a Gothic cathedral. The ocean is often stormy, and during several months in the year forbids intercourse with other parts of the island, save as the hardy traveler makes his way along precipitous mountain trails.

      The hula ala'a-papa, hula ipu, hula pa-ipu (or kuolo), the hula hoo-naná, and the hula ki'i were all performed to the accompaniment of the ipu or calabash, and, being the only ones that were so accompanied, if the author is correctly informed, they may be classed together under one head as the calabash hulas.

²⁰⁵ Ai, literally a food, a course.

²⁰⁶ Punana. Literally a nest; here a raised couch on the pola, which was a sheltered platform in the waist of a double canoe, corresponding to our cabin, for the use of chiefs and other people of distinction.

²⁰⁷ Kai-oa. The paddle-men; here a euphemism.

²⁰⁸ Wa'a. A euphemism for the human body.

²⁰⁹ Mawi. The hero of Polynesian mythology, whose name is usually spelled Maui, like the name of the island. Departure from the usual orthography is made in order to secure phonetic accuracy. The name of the hero is pronounced Máh-wee, not Mów-ee, as is the island. Sir George Gray, of New Zealand, following the usual orthography, has given a very full and interesting account of him in his Polynesian mythology.

²¹⁰ Wewehi-loa. Another name for Wahie- loa, who is said to have been the grandfather of Wewehi. The word luau'i in the previous verse, meaning real father, is an archaic form. Another form is kua-u'i.

²¹¹ Puka kahiko. A strange story from Hawaiian mythology relates that originally the human anatomy was sadly deficient in that the terminal gate of the primae viæ was closed. Mawi applied his common-sense surgery to the repair of the defect and relieved the situation. Ua olelo ia i kinahi ua hana ia kanaka me ka hemahema no ka nele i ka hou puka ole ia ka okole, a na Mawi i hoopau i keia pilikia mamuli o kana hana akamai. Ua kapa ia keia puka ka puka kahiko.

²¹² Pikaka (full form pikakao). Dried up, juiceless.

²¹³ Kau-kau. Conjectural meaning to point out some one in the audience, as the marionettes often did. People were thus sometimes inveigled in behind the curtain.

²¹⁴ Hala-le. Said to mean a sop, with which one took up the juice or gravy of food; a choice morsel.

²¹⁵ Ku-pou. To stoop over, from devotion to one's own pursuits, from modesty, or from shame.

²¹⁶ The meaning of this line has been matter for much conjecture. The author has finally adopted the suggestion embodied in the translation here given, which is a somewhat gross reference to the woman's physical charms.

²¹⁷ Punohu. A compact mass of clouds, generally lying low in the heavens; a cloud-omen; also a rainbow that lies close to the earth, such as is formed when the sun is high in the heavens.

²¹⁸ Wanahili. A princess of the mythological period belonging to Puna, Hawaii.

²¹⁹ Manu'a. A king of Hilo, the son of Kane- hili, famous for his skill in spear-throwing, maika-rolling, and all athletic exercises. He was united in marriage, ho-ao, to the lovely princess Wanahili. Tradition deals with Manua as a very lovable character.

²²⁰ Pu kau kama. The conch (pu) is figured as the herald of fame. Kau is used in the sense of to set on high, in contrast with such a word as waiho, to set down. Kama is the word of dignity for children.

²²¹ Pu leina. It is asserted on good authority that the triton (pu), when approached in its ocean habitat, will often make sudden and extraordinary leaps in an effort to escape. There is special reference here to the famous conch known in Hawaiian story as Kiha-pu. It was credited with supernatural powers as a kupua. During the reign of Umi, son of Liloa, it was stolen from the heiau in Waipio valley and came into the hands of god Kane. In his wild awa-drinking revels the god terrified Umi and his people by sounding nightly blasts with the conch. The shell was finally restored to King Umi by the superhuman aid of the famous dog Puapua-lena-lena.

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