The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1871-03-25
An Astronomical Legend.
Translated from The Hawaiian by Rev. A. o. FOrbes.l

u A6AEoAoNl AoAA NU~
This legend is a sequel to that of the acquisi-
, ton of fire, and runs thus Maui, having at
last obtained the secret of fire from the alae,
(mud hen,) returned and told his mother,
(Hina.)"
And she answered and said, " Where is thy
fire? Didst thou think it vas nothing for me to
be beating kappa for you all this while? Beating
am I, and before the heater has once gone the
width of the kappa, down goes the sun. So 1T
goes on till a week is past, and a whole moon is
past before one single kappa can be finished. Then
when it is spread out to dry, down goes the sun
before it has time to dry. So it is all the time.
The only way to dry the kappa will be by the
fire."
And Maui answered and said, T" Better were 1T
then that / go and cut off the SUMS feet, that he
move not so quickly s4ol .,as
cart thou able to do it?" said she.
al am able"
'sWhat are thy weapons with which to over
come the sun 2"
:. Why. my 1prowess, of course. How can he
help himself when I am after him?"
Hna assented to his proposition, and said,
$50! and, moreover, here are the implements
by whose aid thou mayest bind the sun.
And she gave him fifteen cords saying, '.These
are not all. Go to thy grandmother for the rest,
and she will instruct thee how to proceedi for
she has the care of the SUM-" l
= Now the name of this grandmother was Will
wili-puha, (the hollow wiliwili tree).
And Hina further instructed him, In thy GO
ing, when thou CONTEST to where a large wiliwili
tree is standing, there dwelleth thy grandmother,
and the name of the house where she feedeth the
sun is Haleakala." - =
She also further instructed him thus, "Abide
there until the first co~ck-crowing, and the second
cock-crowing, and the third cock-crowing, then
watch for the coming forth of a big old woman.
That is thy grandmother. When thou seest her
kindle a fire, and place bananas thereon, do thou
snatch away the bananas. And if she begins to
snuff around on that side and on this, and to
snnff upward, and inquire, Whose art thou, 0
mischief then answer thou, Thine And if
she shall inquire again, 8 Mine? mine through
whom > say thou, Thine through Hina. - F..
Hina having thus finished her instructions,
Maui left his home at Kipahulu. and went to
Kaupo, to the district Of Nuu. Thence he COM
menced to ascend the mountain until he arrived
at tine great wiliwili tree, as directed. He sat
down at the foot of the tree, and waited until
the first cock-crowing, and the second, and the
third. And the name of that cock was Kaau-
helemoa. At the third eock-crewing, he was on
the watch, and behold the old woman crept forth
to roast the bananas for the SUMS repast. Kin
ding the fire, she placed a cluster of bananas on
it, when Maui slyly snatched them away for him
self. When the old woman turned to see how
her bananas were coming on, behold they were
not. And she exclaimed, g U-hu-hut where can
those bananas be; the bananas of my sum-"
Now the old woman was blind, and therefore it
was that she had not perceived Maui sitting at
the foot of the tree. She went and got another
cluster of bananas and placed them on the fire,
and again they disappeared by Maui's hands.
So on and until soon all the old woman's bananas
were gone when she exclaimed, This beats all
!" Then she snuffed around on this
side, and on that, and snuffed upward, and said,
(" Whose art thou. o mischief?"
Chime said Maui. l.t NM
"Mine! mine through whom2"
Thine Though Hina."
Saying which, Maui came forth and sat in the
old woman'sa lap. And the old woman said,
% What is the object of thy coming?"
I" | have cone after the sun, to kill him for his
going SO rapidly, the kappa which Hina has made
has not time to dry '3''
Then the old woman gave him a stone and a
cord, which with the other fifteen cords, made
sixteen, and the stone was the seventeenth, OF
the weapons with which he should conquer the
sun. .ar ~ 0o boss
And now the day was breaking, and the sun
-. l.----. .Eon 10 .-rA Al eIo Ill
instructed Maui, .sStation yourself at
the foot of this tree, and when the first ray of
the sun comes up, lasso it with one of the cords,
and fasten it to the foot of the tree. So on with
the next, and the next, until all the cords are
used. Then use the stone that is for the body
of the sum- 1s 7se,ft ala iai5 l4s r4esd
These instructions ended, Maui dug a hole at
the foot of the tree, and hid himself therein. In
a little while the sun put forth his first foot.
Maui lassoed it with the cord, and made it fast
to the foot of the tree. So on with the next, and
the next, until fifteen feet were shared. Yet one
remained knocking about below. Patiently
he waited until at last the sixteenth foot also ap-
peared, and was lassoed with the remaining cord.
And when the sun perceived that all his feet
were fast, he attempted to 90 down again, but
Maui took a turn with the cords around the tree.
md he found it impossible to go back. Gradu-
lily he rose until his body appeared. Then
Maui seized the stone to knock the life out of
lim. But the sun spake and said, "Let me
ts<
8 Let you live, forsooth You are a traitor,
md guess you will not live at my hands /" -.
May, but let me live, and | will agree to
7our conditions"
So they entered into.a treaty, and it was agreed
hat the sun should be allowed to quicken his
for six months, and should go slowly the
six months. Whence it comes to pass that
the summer months the days are long,
nd during the winter months, short. And thus
daui became the benefactor of mankind.
itf - 81 sE1 EEL-sth Il 49, @
OpPos1r1oN OF THE MoNoPoLIsrs.-Ih import