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Northern California, Oregon, and the Sandwich Islands written by Charles Nordhoff

C >> Charles Nordhoff >> Northern California, Oregon, and the Sandwich Islands




Meanwhile Umi, who had a taste for savage life, had taken leave of his
favorites, and wandered alone in the midst of the forests and mountains.
One day, when he descended to the shore at Laupahoehoe, in the district
of Hilo, he fell in love with a woman of the people, and made her his
companion without arousing a suspicion of his high birth. Devoting
himself, then, to field labor, he was seen sometimes cultivating the
ground, and sometimes going down to the sea to fish.

By generous offerings, he knew how to skillfully flatter an old man named
Kaleihokuu, an influential priest, who at last adopted him as one of his
children. Umi always kept at the head of the farmers and fishermen, and
a considerable number, recognizing his physical superiority, voluntarily
enrolled themselves under his orders and those of his foster-father;
he was only known by the name of Hanai (foster-child) of Kaleihokuu.
Meditating probably, even then, a way of acquiring supreme power, Umi
exerted himself to gain the sympathies of the people, in whose labors he
took an incredible part. There are seen to this day, above Laupahoehoe,
the fields which Umi cultivated, and near the sea can be seen the heiau,
or temple, in which Kaleihokuu offered sacrifices to the gods.

Hakau continued to reign, always without showing the least respect to the
old officers of Liloa, his father. Two old men, high chiefs by birth, and
highly honored under the preceding reign, had persisted in residing near
the palace at Waipio, in spite of the insults to which the nearness of the
court exposed them. One day when they were hungry, after a long scarcity
of food, they said to one of their attendants: "Go to the palace of Hakau.
Tell his Majesty that the two old chiefs are hungry, and demand of him, in
our name, food, fish, and awa."[14] The attendant went at once to the king
to fulfill his mission. Hakau replied with foul and insulting terms: "Go
tell the two old men that they shall have neither food, fish, nor awa!"
The two chiefs, on hearing this cruel reply, commenced to deplore their
lot, and regret more bitterly than ever the time they lived under Liloa.
Then rousing themselves, they said to their attendant, "We have heard of
the foster-son of Kaleihokuu, of his activity, courage, and generosity.
Lose no time; go directly to Laupahoehoe, and tell Kaleihokuu that two
chiefs desire to see his adopted son." The servant went with all speed
to Laupahoehoe, where he delivered his master's message. Kaleihokuu told,
him, "Return to your masters, tell them that they will be welcome, if
they will come to-morrow to see my foster-son." The old men, at this news,
hastened to depart. Arrived at the abode of Kaleihokuu, they found no one,
except a man asleep on the mat. They entered, nevertheless, and sat down,
leaning their backs against the walls of the pandanus house. "At last,"
said they, sighing, "our bones are going to revive, _akahi a ola na iwi_."
Then, addressing the slumbering man, "Are you, then, alone here?"--" Yes,"
replied the young man; "Kaleihokuu is in the fields."--"We are," added
they, "the two old men of Waipio, come expressly to see the priest's
foster-son."

The young man rises without saying a word, prepares an abundant repast--an
entire hog, fish, and awa. The two old men admired the activity and skill
of the youth, and said to themselves, "At all events, if the foster-son
of Kaleihokuu were as vigorous a stripling as this, we should renew our
life!" The young unknown served them food, and made them drunk with awa,
and, according to the usage of those times,[16] gave up to them the women
of Kaleihokuu, that his hospitality might be complete.

The next morning the old men saw Kaleihokuu, and said to him, "Here we
have come to become acquainted with your foster-son. May it please the
gods that he be like that fine young fellow who entertained us at your
house! Our bones would revive."--"Ah, indeed," replied Kaleihokuu; "he who
has so well received you is my _keiki hanai_. I left him at the house on
purpose to perform for you the duties of hospitality." The two old men,
rejoiced at what they learned, told the priest and his adopted son the ill
treatment they had received at the court of Hakau. No more was needed to
kindle a war at once.

At the head of a considerable troop of people attached to the service of
Kaleihokuu, Umi went by forced marches to Waipio, and the next day Hakau
had ceased to reign. He had been slain by the very hand of the vigorous
foster-son of the priest.


THE REIGN OF UMI.

Umi ruled in place of Hakau. His two aikane, Koi and Omakamau, had joined
him, and resided at his court. Piimaiwaa of Hilo was his most valiant
warrior. _Ia ia ka mama kakaua_--to him belonged the baton of war, a
figurative expression denoting the general-in-chief. Pakaa was one of the
favorites of Umi, and Lono was his kahuna.

While Umi reigned over the eastern shores of the island, one of his
cousins, Keliiokaloa, ruled the western coast, and held his court at
Kailua. It was under the reign of this prince, about two centuries before
the voyage of Captain Cook, that a ship was wrecked near Keei, in the
district of Kona, not far from the place where the celebrated English
navigator met his death in 1779. It was about 1570[C] that men of the
white race first landed in the archipelago. One man and one woman escaped
from the wreck, and reached land near Kealakeakua. Coming to the shore,
these unfortunates prostrated themselves on the lava, with their faces to
the earth, whence comes the name Kulou, a _bowing down_, which the place
which witnessed this scene still bears. The shipwrecked persons soon
conformed to the customs of the natives, who pretend that there exists to
our day a family of chiefs descended from these two whites. The Princess
Lohea, daughter of Liliha,[16] still living, is considered of this origin.
Keliiokaloa, who reigned over the coast where this memorable event took
place, was a wicked prince, who delighted in wantonly felling cocoa-nut
trees and laying waste cultivated lands. His ravages induced Umi to
declare war against him.

He took the field at the head of his army, accompanied by his famous
warrior, Piimaiwaa; his friends, Koi and Omakamau; his favorite, Pakaa;
and Lono, his Kahuna. He turned the flanks of Mauna Kea, and advancing
between this mountain and Hualalai, in the direction of Mauna Loa, arrived
at the great central plateau of the island, intending to make a descent
upon Kailua. Keliiokaloa did not wait for him. Placing himself at the head
of his warriors, he marched to meet Umi. The two armies met on the high
plain bounded by the colossi of Hawaii, at the place which is called _Ahua
a Umi_.

Two men of the slave race, called Laepuni, famous warriors of Keliiokaloa,
fought with a superhuman courage, and Umi was about to fall under their
blows, when Piimaiwaa, coming to his rescue, caused the victory to incline
to his side. Although history is silent, it is probable that the king of
Kailua perished in the battle.

This victory completely rid Umi of his last rival; he reigned henceforth
as sole ruler of Hawaii; and to transmit to posterity the remembrance of
this remarkable battle, he caused to be erected on the battle-field, by
the people of the six provinces, Hilo, Hamakua, Kohala, Kona, Ka'u, and
Puna, a singular monument, composed of six polyhedral piles of ancient
lava collected in the vicinity. A seventh pyramid was raised by his nobles
and officers. In the centre of these enormous piles of stone he built
a temple, whose remains are still sufficiently perfect to enable one to
restore the entire plan. The whole of this vast monument is called, after
the name of its builder, the Heaps of Umi--_Ahua Umi_.

Umi built another temple at the foot of Pohaku Hanalei, on the coast of
Kona, called _Ahua Hanalei_. A third temple was also erected by him on
the flank of Mauna Kea, in the direction of Hilo, at the place called
Puukeekee. Traces of a temple built by the same king may also be
recognized at Mauna Halepohaha, where are found the ruins of Umi's houses
covered with a large block of lava.[17]

They give Umi the name of King of the Mountains. Tradition declares that
he retired to the centre of the island, through love for his people, and
these are the reasons which explain the seclusion to which he devoted
himself. It was a received custom in Hawaiian antiquity that the numerous
attendants of the chiefs, when traversing a plantation, should break
down the cocoa-nuts, lay waste the fields, and commit all sorts of havoc
prejudicial to the interests of proprietors or cultivators. To avoid a
sort of scourge which followed the royal steps, Umi made his abode in the
mountains, in order that the robberies of his attendants might no longer
cause the tears of the people to flow. In his retreat Umi lived, with his
retainers, upon the tribute in kind which his subjects brought him from
all parts of the coast. In time of famine, his servants went through the
forest and collected the _hapuu_, a nourishing fern which then took the
place of poi.

Umi, however, did not spend all his time in the mountains. He came to
live at various times on the sea-shore at Kailua. He employed everywhere
workmen to cut stones, to serve, some say, in the construction of a
sepulchral cave; according to others, to build a magnificent palace.
Whatever may have been their destination, the stones were admirably
hewn.[18] In our days the Calvinistic missionaries have used them in the
erection of the great church of Kailua, without any need of cutting them
anew. There are still seen, scattered in various places, the hewn stones
of King Umi, _na pohaku kulai a Umi_. It is natural to suppose that they
used to hew these hard, and very large stones with other tools than those
of Hawaiian origin. Iron must have been known in the time of Umi, and its
presence is explained by the wrecks of ships which ocean currents may have
drifted ashore. It is certain that they were acquainted with iron long
before the arrival of Cook, as is proved by the already cited passage from
an old romance: _O luna, o lalo, kai, o uka, a o ka hao pae, ko ke'lii_.

Umi, some time before his death, said to his old friend Koi: "There is
no place, nor is there any possible way to conceal my bones. You must
disappear from my presence. I am going to take back all the lands which
I have given you around Hawaii, and they will think you in disgrace. You
will then withdraw to another island, and as soon as you hear of my death,
or only that I am dangerously sick, return secretly to take away my body."

Koi executed the wishes of the chief, his _aikane_. He repaired to
Molokai, whence he hastened to set sail for Hawaii as soon as he heard of
Umi's death. He landed at Honokohau. On setting foot on shore, he met a
Kanaka, in all respects like his dearly-loved chief. He seized him, killed
him, and carried his body by night to Kailua. Koi entered secretly the
palace where the corpse of Umi was lying. The guards were asleep, and Koi
carried away the royal remains, leaving in their place the body of the old
man of Honokohau, and then disappeared with his canoe. Some say that he
deposited the body of Umi in the great pali of Kahulaana, but no one knows
the exact spot; others say that it was in a cave at Waipio, at Puaahuku,
at the top of the great pali over which the cascade of Hiilawe falls.

From time immemorial it was the custom at Hawaii to eat the flesh of
great chiefs after death, then the bones were collected in a bundle, and
concealed far out of the way. Generally it was to a faithful attendant, a
devoted _kahu_, that the honor of eating the flesh of his chief belonged
by a sentiment of friendship, _no ke aloha_. If they did not always eat
the flesh of high chiefs and distinguished personages, they always took
away their dead bodies, to bury them in the most secret caves, or in most
inaccessible places. But the same care was not taken with chiefs who had
been regarded as wicked during their lives. The proverb says of this:
_Aole e nalo ana na iwi o ke 'lii kolohe; e nalo loa na iwi o ke 'lii
maikai_--The bones of a bad chief do not disappear; those of a good chief
are veiled from the eyes of all the world.

The high chiefs, before death, made their most trusty attendants swear to
conceal their bones so that no one could discover them. "I do not wish,"
said the dying chief, "that my bones should be made into arrows to
shoot mice, or into fish-hooks." So it is very difficult to find the
burial-place of such or such a chief. Mausoleums have been built in some
places, and it is said that here are interred the nobles and kings; but
it would seem that there are only empty coffins, or the bodies of common
natives substituted for those of the personages in whose honor these
monuments have been raised.


THE HISTORY OF KEAWE.

Whatever the historian, David Malo, may say, it is very doubtful whether
there were several chiefs of the name of Keawe. It is probable that there
was only one high chief of this name, that he was the son of Umi, and was
called Keawe the Great--_Keawe nui_ _a Umi_. David Malo was interested, as
the natives know, in swelling the genealogy of the alii, and he wished to
flatter both nobility and people by distinguishing Keawe nui, of the race
of Umi, from another Keawe. There are two Keawe, as seven Maui, and nine
Hina. It is not, indeed, so long a period from Umi to the present era,
that we can not unveil the truth from the clouds which surround, it.

The people, in general, only speak of one Keawe, who inherited the power
of his father Umi. He was supreme ruler in the island of Hawaii, and is
even said to have united, as Kamehameha has since done, all the group
under his sceptre. Kamehameha conquered the islands by force of arms;
Keawe had conquered them by his travels and alliances. While he passed
through the islands of Maui, Molokai, and Oahu, he contracted marriages
everywhere, as well with the women of the people as with the highest
chiefesses. These unions gave him children who made him beloved of all
the high chiefs of that time. He was regarded at Maui and Oahu as supreme
king. The king of Kauai even went so far as to send messengers to declare
to him that he recognized his sovereignty. Such is the origin of Keawe's
power.

By his numerous marriages with chiefesses and common women without
distinction, this king has made the Hawaiian nobility, the present alii
say, bastard and dishonored. The chiefs descended from Keawe conceal their
origin, and are by no means flattered when reminded of it. From Keawe
down, the genealogies become a focus of disputes, and it would be really
dangerous for the rash historian who did not spare the susceptibilities of
chiefs on this subject.

The principle on which those who condemn the conduct of Keawe rests is the
purity of the blood of the royal stock, required by ancient usages, whose
aim was to preserve the true nobility without alloy. Disdaining this rule,
Keawe contracted numerous marriages, which gave him as mothers of his
children women of low birth. The posterity of this chief, noble without
doubt, but of impure origin, likes not to have its lame genealogy
recalled. It is with the sensitiveness of the Hawaiians on this subject,
as with many other things in this world: they attack bitterly the amours
of Keawe, and seem to forget that Umi, their great chief, whose memory
they preserve with so much care, was of plebeian blood by his mother.

It seems certain that King Keawe usually resided at the bay of Hoonaunau,
in Kona. The heiau of Hoonaunau, where may still be seen the stakes of
ohia (_Metrosideros_) planted by Keawe, is called _Hale a Keawe_--The
house built by Keawe. It served also as a City of Refuge.[19]


VARIOUS DOCUMENTS ON THE PROVINCE OF KA'U.

The people of Ka'u are designated in the group under the name of _Na Mamo
a ke kipi_--The descendants of the rebellion. The province of Ka'u has
always been regarded as a land fatal to chiefs. At the present day
an inhabitant of Ka'u can be distinguished among other natives. He is
energetic, haughty in speech, and always ready to strike a blow when
occasion presents. He is proud, and worships his liberty. Several Hawaiian
chiefs have been killed by the people of Ka'u, among others Kohaokalani,
Koihala, etc.


THE HISTORY OF KOHAOKALANI.

He was, according to tradition, the most important chief on the island,
and reigned in royal state at Hilea. He it was who built the heiau
situated on the great plain of Makanau. The sea worn pebbles may still be
seen, which Kohaokalani had his people carry up on to the height, about
two leagues from the shore. These pebbles were intended for the interior
pavement of the temple. The people, worn out by the great difficulty of
transportation, tired of the yoke of royalty, and incited by disloyal
priests, began to let their discontent and discouragement show itself. A
conspiracy was soon formed by these two classes leagued against the chief,
and a religious ceremony offered an occasion to rid themselves of the
despot.

The temple was completed, and it only remained to carry a god up there.
This divinity was nothing but an ohia-tree of enormous size, which had
been cut down in the forest above Ninole. At the appointed day the chief
priests and people set to work to draw the god to his residence. In order
to reach the height of Makanau there was a very steep pali to be ascended.
They had to carry up the god on the side toward Ninole, which was all the
better for the execution of their premeditated plan. Arrived at the base
of the precipice, all pulled at the rope; but the god, either by the
contrivance of the priests, or owing to the obstacles which the roughness
of the rock presented, ascended only with great difficulty. "The god
will never come to the top of the pali," said the Kahuna, "if the chief
continues to walk before him; the god should go first by right of power,
and the chief below, following, to push the lower end; otherwise we shall
never overcome his resistance." The high chief, Kohaokalani, complied with
the advice of the priests, placed himself beneath the god, and pushed
the end from below. Instantly priests and people let go the cord, and the
enormous god, rolling upon the chief, crushed him at once. The death of
Kohaokalani is attributed chiefly to the Kahuna.


THE HISTORY OF KOIHALA.

Koihala reigned at Ka'u. He was a very great chief--perhaps the entire
island recognized his authority. An abuse of power hastened his death.
He had commanded the people of Ka'u to bring him food upon the plain of
Punaluu, at the place known under the name of Puuonuhe. A party of men set
out with pounded kalo (_paiai_, differing from poi in not being diluted),
bound up in leaves of ki, called _la'i_ (a contraction for _lau-ki_). When
they arrived at the top of the plateau, which is very elevated, they found
that the chief had set out for Kaalikii, two leagues from Puuonuhe, and
that he had left orders for them to bring him the provisions in this
distant place. The bearers hastened toward Kaalikii. As soon as they
came there, orders were given for them to proceed to Waioahukini, half
a league's walk in the same direction, and beneath the great pali of
Malilele, on the shore. They went on. Arrived at Waioahukini, they were
ordered to go and join the chief at Kalae. There they had to climb again
the great pali, and two leagues more to go. When they reached the cape of
Kalae, the most southern point of the Hawaiian group, they were sent to
seek the chief at the village of Mahana; but he had left for Paihaa, a
village near Kaalualu, a little bay where the native vessels now anchor.
There, at last, they must find the tyrant. Exasperated, dying of hunger,
indignant at the cruel way in which the chief made sport of their pains,
the bearers sat down on the grass and took counsel. First they decided to
eat up the food, without leaving any thing for the chief who entertained
himself so strangely in fatiguing his people _(hooluhi howa_). They
moreover determined to carry to him, instead of kalo, bundles of stones.
The trial of Koihala is ended, his insupportable yoke is about to fall.

The determined conspirators, after satisfying their hunger, set off, and
soon arrived, with humble mien, in the presence of the chief, between
Paihau and Kaalualu. "Prince," said they, "here are your servants with
provisions." They humbly laid at his feet their bundles wrapped in la'i.
The wrappers were opened, and the scene changes. These people, apparently
half dead, became in an instant like furious lions, ready to devour their
prey. They armed themselves with stones, and showered them upon Koihala
and his company, who perished together.

Two other high chiefs of the island were exterminated by the same people.
One was killed at Kalae, beaten to death by the paddles of fishermen; the
other was stoned at Aukukano.

These revolts against the chiefs have given birth, to several proverbial
expressions, applied to the district of Ka'u. Thus it is called _Aina
makaha_--Land of torrents: a nation which removes and shatters every
thing like a torrent; _Ka'u makaha_--Ka'u the torrent; _Ka lua kupapau
o na'lii_--The sepulchre of the high chiefs; _Aina kipi_--The rebellious
land.


LEGEND OF KALEIKINI.

He was a chief of the olden time.

On the sea-shore, between Kaalikii and Pohue, the waves were ingulfed
beneath the land, and shot into the air by a natural aperture some fifty
feet from the shore. The water leaped to a prodigious height, disappeared
in the form of fine rain, and fell in vapor over a circuit of two leagues,
spreading sterility over the land to such an extent that neither kalo nor
sweet-potatoes could be grown there. The chief Kaleikini closed the mouth
of the gulf by means of enormous stones, which he made the natives roll
thither. It is plainly seen that this blow-hole has been closed by human
hands. There still remains a little opening through which the water hisses
to the height of thirty or forty feet.

Kaleikini closed at Kohala, on the shore of Nailima, a volcanic mouth like
that of Ka'u.

On the heights of Honokane, he silenced the thunders of a water-fall by
changing its course. At Maui Hikina, he secured the foundations of the
hill of Puuiki, which the great tides had rendered unstable. To do this,
he put into the caverns of Puuiki a huge rock, which stopped the tumults
of the sea, and put an end to the trembling of the hill.

For these feats of strength, and many others like them, Kaleikini was
called _Kupua_--Wizard.[D]


DOCUMENTS ON THE PROVINCE OF PUNA.

According to common tradition, the district of Puna was, until two
centuries ago, a magnificent country, possessing a sandy soil, it is true,
but one very favorable to vegetation, and with smooth and even roads. The
Hawaiians of our day hold a tradition from their ancestors, that their
great-grandparents beheld the advent of the volcanic floods in Puna. Here,
in brief, is the tradition as it is preserved by the natives:


LEGEND OF KELIIKUKU.

This high chief reigned in Puna. He journeyed to the island of Oahu. There
he a prophet of Kauai, named Kaneakalau, who asked him who he was. "I am,"
replied the chief, "Keliikuku of Puna." The prophet then asked him what
sort of a country he possessed. The chief said: "My country is charming;
every thing is found there in abundance; everywhere are sandy plains which
produce marvelously."--"Alas!" replied the prophet, "go, return to your
beautiful country; you will find it overthrown, abominable. Pele has made
of it a heap of ruins; the trees of the mountains have descended toward
the sea; the ohia and pandanus are on the shore. Your country is no longer
habitable." The chief made answer; "Prophet of evil, if what you now tell
me is true, you shall live; but if, when I return to my country, I prove
the falsity of your predictions, I will come back on purpose, and you
shall die by my hand."

Unable, in spite of his incredulity, to forget this terrible prophecy,
Keliikuku set sail for Hawaii. He reached Hamakua, and, landing, traveled,
home by short stages. From the heights of Hilo, at the village of
Makahanaloa, he beheld in the distance all his province overwhelmed in
chaotic ruin, a prey to fire and smoke. In despair, the unfortunate
chief hung himself on the very spot where he first discovered this sad
spectacle.

This tradition of the meeting of Keliikuku and Kaneakalau is still
sometimes chanted by the Kanakas. It was reduced to metre, and sung by the
ancients. It is passing away in our day, and in a few years no trace of it
will remain.

Whether the prediction was made or not, the fact is that Puna has been
ravaged by volcanic action.


LEGEND OF THE CHIEF HUA.

The high chief Hua, being in Maui, said to Uluhoomoe, his kahuna, that
he wished for some _uau_ from the mountains (a large bird peculiar to
the island of Hawaii). Uluhoomoe replied that there were no uau in the
mountains--that all the birds had gone to the sea. Hua, getting angry,
said to his priest: "If I send my men to the mountains, and they find any
uau there, I will put you to death."