New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-07-14

other institution which has at various tunes en-
messed the slperstition and reinforced the am
bition of all backward races is the " taou. Inc
Polvncsians have always and everywhere oeen
peculiarly susceptible TO this prestly system Oh
probihition. and i'm New-Zealand IT was carr'eu
by the Maoris 10 even greater lengths thaI on ,ie
Hawaiian Islands. Until the time OF L'no"No'
VIII, ttolc In, THU and supprts>cl 'hc
it. was q serious bb'd,n upon me pe'r'''
priests. chiefs and kings employed u very "'"o
as the Tweed ring employed lnJuhc'ioiS ~ Wv
ohnso, h,f,, iustioe and fortify oppressive pol
- 7, ,ros a fayorite method OF coniscatlhg
1ondod ,ronertv springs fruit trees taro F'icheS'
etc and perhaps its only useiul ana p'"'"'I c.I
ornlcotion was in the case OF the immunity
which H. secured to all fugitlNes ana cI"I""' %
,ybo ,vere able to reach the sacreu Preoii''' W
lee +, is curious g. observe III TINS
custom n reflection from the ola hepre" i"',''D
.,on - Tho c,tv Of refuge and also to note now
~ .La.o roroote islands the representatives OF
noEcion unconsciousy took the course "hi'h
49, Christiop Church pursued for so many cent
- ~ s,andinp as bulwark between the IT.
ua,,,orsjhle no,yer of the rulers and the other
,,tno ,,nrrotected masses. Just as the CHRISTIAN
C,.h moreover often allied Itself
,;th and was corrupted by the sec
,,nn ro,vcr so the Hawaiian priesthood
too frequently abused its influence in the inter-
os,s of the chiefs and kings But like the Church.
- resisted every encroachment upon the right OF
sanctuary. and stood for its own privileges with
a unity and determination proof against all but
that final aggression which destroyed the ancient
worship at a blow.
These legends are by no means stories OF merely
savage life. The people who furnished the out
lines, equally with their successors whose hVey
lamentations clothed those outlines with the DILL
ian, hucs of romance were assuredy very lar IN
advance of the savage state They possessed wiat
must properly be termed civilization. They had
settled government, an organized rehg1oh clearly
defined classes and occupations standing arihleS
arts and industries, military science, ana per-
haps as important and fertile tradition OF 'Iie
kind which precedes and furnishes the gernS
of literature as many of the Oriental peoples Ill
the same general stage of progress are Known u
have evolved. History, legend, In short, all H.
formation and record, was transmitted orally, rs
GRO tho sacred Uteratures of Iiindostan to this
day. The singular poverty OF animal hle which
cboracterizos the Hawaiian Islands must always
boya affected the development Of the people.
Among the vertebrates two lizards alone are known
n he INDIGENOUS. The mouse, the dog and the
hog were introduced later; whether by the hrst
colonists or not cannot be ascertalned. The as
positon of the Polynesians is amable. The
Hawaiians at one time pracused human sacrlhce,
but they were never given 10 canmballsm lhelr
civilization stands out conSplcuouSy for ehghteh-
ment and humanity when compared with that OIL
many scmibarbarous peoples; and the cnValfy,
love of military power, pride, sense OF personal
honor. and, above all, elevated sentiment OF
love- which are exhibited throughout their legends,
,apfSO NNlfh I'm
pean medieval traditions.
Among the interesting features of these stories
;s the light thrown upon myth-malling. The ex.
tent 70 which all myths are governed by the
physical environment of those who make them
has seldom been more strilcngly manifested.
The supernatural element Of the islands differs
but little from that of many other countries,
so long as il is human Ghosts of men and women,
rbat is to say, are simple shadows of the living {;
and the same may be said of the gods and
poddcsses But when monsters are called for the
limitations OF the region are NJ once brought
strongly in evidence for all the monstrous crea.
tions are in the form of dogs hogs. owls and
lizards or variants OF these forms. The process
of myth-evolution has perhaps nowhere been 50
clearly exhibited. In the case of Pele, the god
dess of volcanic phenomena, who presldes over the
great crater of Kilauel, the gradual growth OF
the myth from a historical fact is indicated, but
perhaps not so clearly that it may not lead to
misconception. There may, no doubt, have been
real Pele, who perished in an eruption, and
whose name became associated with the subsequent
supernatural fiction Of the fiery goddess; but the
presumption must be that the latter would in any
event have been evolved; that the situation would
have engendered the fire deity whether or not
there had been a historic Pele The growth OF the
conception of q shark. god shows the manner in
which these myths originate, and The lizard.gods
Of course had the same genesis.
Most Of the legends here recorded are, how
ever, Of the historical type. They are based upon
real persOnages and events, both OF which have
been overlaid and embcllished in the course of
time 1t is impossible TO trace in the "mele' or
chant, which among the POlynesians occupied
the place Of the old European romance, the song
of the trouveur and the Scandinavian skald, the
first aocretions of the heroic element impaired 10
actual occurrences. Few ancient customs are
more universal, and few testify more strongly
TO the vanity inherent in the human race no
matter in what stage of progress, than this. of
having bardS, prophets, skads or trouveurs 10
magnify the powers of warriors and to feed the
vanglorousnesS Of princes. Thus, in every land
and age the exceptional deeds of the dominant
individuals and classes have been inflated and
idealized, and thus the common demand for the
mary elous-the need of fiction to enliven the
monotony or relieve oppressivenoss of
real Nfe-has maintained the race of heroes
and incidentally preserved a mass of import
ant and interesting folklore which would
otherwise have been forgotten Among the
most common of the legends is that of the " ldka-
pu' the shell-trumpet which possessed magical
properties and of which il is recorded that accord
ing to the character OF the blast, it's voice was
either a summons to unseen powers, a rallying-cry
10 the people or dreadful challenge TO battle
This famous horn is still preserved in the Royal