The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1883-03-07
The Story OF a Princess.

The several current press notices of
the royal order of Kapiolani, recently
presented to the author of a. 'Kalani of
Oahu" by King Kalauea, failing to de-
scribe the rehgo-ronaantic Incident
which imparts intrinsic value to the
name, l send brief epitome of the
story for publication. The literal mean
ing of Kapiolani is prisoner of Hea en-"
Princess Kapiolani, of Hawaii, was
daughter o the last ing of Hilo. and
among the iirst converts of the mission
aries. When first seen by the VIII lie
clergy Kapiolani was publicly amounting
herself with cocoanut oil, while under
going some heather rite of her tabu
creed. From this state of pa yan degra-
datiou the beautiful Princess soon be-
came one of the most devout Christian
converts, glowing with pio zeal to &C
complish something which m ght break
through the superstitions of her people.
Twenty-six thousand idols had been de-
stroyed by fire, by order of hing Liho-
liho and the High Pr.est, Hewahewa,
and yet the degrading tabu remained
unbroken. 1t was time for some other
overt act to be thought of. In state
o: drunken frenzy Liholiho had broken
the tabu by eating with the women. A
brave act for a young King, but not of
sufficient Importance to affect the tabu.
Kapiolani now came to the rescue,
and. with q moral heroism equal to any
act of her sex. she determined to brave
Pele in her own fiery stronghold of
Kilauea, testing the divine power of her
new-found God by defying the goddess
and breakin her tabu in the presence
of a multitude News o. her intended
sacrilege WIS proclaimed all over the
island, Great ng a feelin of consterna-
ton. not only for the welfare of the
Princess. but lest the very island should
be destrov ed Many came to plead that
she would abandon the rash act; and
none were more terrified for her safety
than Naihe. her warrior-husband-
Followed by eighty of her terror
stricken friends, Rapiolani walked a
hundred miles through the mountain
wilderness on her pilgr mage OF terror.
Approaching the seething crater, Ka-
piolani was met by shriveled old
priestess of Pele, bearing a fiery male
diction from Pele-hot from the dread
Hallman-n an, house of everlasting
fire i'm which Pele threatened not
only death to all comers but destruction
of the island
The multitude stood appalled,, and
D6Ogeu lIl6 L TTluCcSS W ucS 81 lEOIH ucE
rash act But quoting some new
learned passages from Scripture to the
ahuna wahine-woman priest-Ka-
piolani talked calmly and resolutely to
the crater's verge, where the sea of
molten lava IA ed like storm-lashed
ocean demonstrating the wrath of Pele.
Gathering q handful of sacred ohelo
berries, ever consecrated to Pele, she
ate them in derision of the tabu rite,
instead of casting them into the crater
as n peace Offering to the goddess
Gathering up stones. she threw them
into The fiery food instead of the aecus-
toned berries. Standing there in the
presence of the most awful natural phe-.
nomena on earth, confronting the most
terrible conception of n pagan deity.
Ka9iolani calmly addressed the multi
tude as they stood appalled, at their
own fears:
'.Behold! my people, the gods of
Hawaii are vain gods. Great is Jeho-
yah, my Col. He kindles these fires.
ear not Pele; she is powerless. Should
I perish, then fear her power. Should
Sod preserve me, then break your tabu.
knowing there is but one God, Jeho-
YAH" In commemoration of this brave
act OF Kapiolani, Ke Nui (the great).
the ting's present wife, was named.
and the royal rider of Kap:olani was
proclaimed, for the ''recompense of dis
tinguished inert to the st te. for hu-
manity. genius, science and art. ser
ices rendered TO Ourselve or ur Sue
sessors- '-Boston Courier.