The Story of Hawaii (Illustrated Edition). Fowke Gerard

Mahana-lua, literally to see double, was an accepted test of satisfactory drunkenness. It reminds the author of an expression he once heard used by the comedian Clarke in the play of Toodles. While in a maudlin state from liquor he spoke of the lighted candle that was in his hand as a "double-barreled candle."

²⁸⁴ Lani-kaula was a prophet who lived on Molokai at a place that still bears his name. He had his residence in the midst of a grove of fine kukui trees, the remnants of which remain to this day. Torches made from the nuts of these trees were supposed to be of superior quality and they furnished the illumination for the revelries of Kane and his fellows.

²⁸⁵ He kaula no Kane. A literal translation would be, a prophet of Kane.

      XIX.--THE HULA MAU-KANI

       Table of Contents

      The hula niau-kani was one of the classic dances of the halau, and took its name from the musical instrument that was its accompaniment. This was a simple, almost extemporaneous, contrivance, constructed, like the Jew's-harp, on the principle of a reed instrument. It was made of two parts, a broad piece of bamboo with a longitudinal slit at one end and a thin narrow piece of the same material, the reed, which was held firmly against the fenestra on the concave side of part number one. The convexity of the instrument was pressed against the lips and the sound was produced by projecting the breath through the slit in a speaking or singing tone in such a way as to cause vibrations in the reed. The manner of constructing and operating this reed instrument is suggestive of the jew's-harp. It is asserted by those who should know that the niau-kani was an instrument of purely Hawaiian invention.

      The performer did not depend simply upon the musical tone, but rather upon the modification it produced in the utterances that were strained through it. It would certainly require a quick ear, much practice, and a thorough acquaintance with the peculiarities of Hawaiian mele to enable one to distinguish the words of a song after being transformed by passage through the niau-kani.

      As late as about thirty or forty years ago the niau-kani was often seen in the hands of the native Hawaiian youth, who used it as a means of romantic conversations and flirtation. Since the coming in of the Portuguese and their importation of the uku-lele, the taro-patch-fiddle, and other cheap stringed instruments, the niau-kani has left the field to them and disappeared.

      The author's informant saw the niau-kani dance performed some years ago at Moana-lua, near Honolulu, and again on the island of Kauai. The dance in each case was the same. The kumu, aided by a pupil, stood and played on the niau-kani, straining the cantillations through the reed-protected aperture, while the olapa, girls, kept time to the music with the movements of their dancing.

       Mele

      E pi'i ka wai ka nahele,

U'ina, nakolo i na Molo-kama;²⁸⁶

      Ka ua lele mawaho o Mamala-hoa.

      He manao no ko'u e ike

I na pua ohi'a o Kupa-koili,²⁸⁷

I hoa kaunu no Manu'a-kepa;²⁸⁸

Ua like laua me Maha-moku.²⁸⁹

Anapa i ke kai o Mono-lau.²⁹⁰

      Lalau ka lima a noa ia ia la,

I hoa pili no Lani-huli.²⁹¹

      E huli oe i ku'u makemake,

A loa'a i Kau-ka-opua.²⁹²

      Elua no pua kau

      A ka manao i makemake ai.

      Hoohihi oe a hihi

      I lei kohu no neia kino.

      Ahea oe hiki mai?

A kau ka La i na pali;²⁹³

Ka huli a ka makani Wai-a-ma'o,²⁹⁴

      Makemake e iki ia ka Hala-mapu-ana,

Ka wai halana i Wai-pá.²⁹⁵

      NOTE.--The proper names belong to localities along the course of the Wai-oli stream.

      [Translation]

       Song

      Up to the streams in the wildwood,

      Where rush the falls Molo-kama,

      While the rain sweeps past Mala-hoa,

      I had a passion to visit

      The forest of bloom at Koili,

      To give love-caress to Manu'a,

      And her neighbor Maha-moku,

      And see the waters flash at Mono-lau;

      My hand would quiet their rage,

      Would sidle and touch Lani-huli.

      Grant me but this one entreaty,

      We'll meet 'neath the omens above.

      Two flowers there are that bloom

      In your garden of being;

      Entwine them into a garland,

      Fit emblem and crown of our love.

      And what the hour of your coming?

      When stands the Sun o'er the pali,

      When turns the breeze of the land,

      To breathe the perfume of hala,

      While the currents swirl at Wai-pá.

      This mele is the language of passion, a song in which the lover frankly pours into the ear of his inamorata the story of his love up to the time of his last enthrallment. Verses 11, 12, and 17 are the language of the woman. The scene is laid in the rainy valley of Hanalei, Kauai, a broad and deep basin, to the finishing of which the elements have contributed their share. The rush and roar of the waters that unite to form the river Wai-oli, from their wild tumbling in the falls of Molo-kama till they pass the river's mouth and mingle with the flashing waves of the ocean at Mono-lau, Anapa i ke kai o Mono-lau (verse 8), are emblematic of the man's passion and his quest for satisfaction.

²⁸⁶ Molokama (more often given as Na Molo-kama). The name applied to a succession of falls made by the stream far up in the mountains. The author has here used a versifier's privilege, compressing this long word into somewhat less refractory shape.

²⁸⁷ Kupa-koili. A grove of mountain-apples, ohia ai, that stand on the bank of the stream not far from the public road.