The Portland daily press., 1895-08-17
The HAWAIIAN MADE A FEAST.
A Dinner in Which Curious Dishes
We're Served.
tation Celebrated by Its Owner in the
Native StyIe.

The Opening of New Railroad to Plan
tation Celebrated by Its Owner in the
| Native Style.
| (Honolulu Letter to Washington Star.
| Judge H. A. Widemann had an agree
able day two weeks ago. He made a
great feast to celebrate the opening of the
Oahu Railway extension to his planta-
tion. at Waianae. By special train he
carried thither some thirty of his children
and grandchildren, together with the Off
GERS of the road and crowd of other
guests, among whom were Chief Justice
Judd and his guest DR.. Joseph Cook
The feast was luau, (loo-ow), served,
in Hawaiian style. A large area is
| covered over by sort of booth, or lanai
(lah-nye), constructed of posts and cocoa
nut leaves. The ground is covered with
rushes The posts are wreathed with
mountain foliage, ieie, ii, marie and
ferns. Instead of tables are long spaces,
covered with banana and ii (tee) leaves
on which plates are laid Profuse sup
plies are brought on of beef, mutton
pork, fowl, fish, taro and sweet potatoes,
all cooked in the native imu (eemoo) or
ground ogen.
The meats are served in the leaves in
which they are baked. They are usually
in small packages of about two pounds,
snugly wrapped in the tough, sweet tt
leaves, which are about thirty inches by
six. There is an occasional whole pig
sometimes a dog-balzed in the large
banana leaves, with red hot stones in
serted within it and under the shoulder
blades, to insure being cooked through.
Steam does the cooking in this way. A
hole is excavated in the ground, hollow
hemisphere, from five to eight feet in
diameter. In this is laid up an arch of
large blocks of vascular lava, covered by
pile of small stones. II Under the arch
fire is maintained for an hour or two
until the inner stones are red hot. The
pile is then broken down, covering most
of the bottom of the pit Grass is laid
upon the hot stones. On that are laid
whole hogs in their banana leaves; next
piled OH are the smaller packages of meat
and fish. Over them are potatoes and
taro, and luau, or bundles Of the tender,
| unopened tarO leaves for greens, which
give name to the feast. The whole pile is
| then covered deep with grass. Earth is
heaped over it to a thickness of several
| inches; a hole is left in the top. Into
this opening are poured from twenty to
sixty gallons of water, and the earth in
stantly closed over. The water reaches the
hot stones, the interior fills with steam,
| and cooking proceeds for two hours or
more. Ii steam escapes anywhere it is
stopped with earth.
| The results are delicious The sweet
juices Of the meats are far better de-
veloped than by roasting. / believe
s'clambakes,' are managed on similar
principle. But l have not named the
| most essential Wand of a luau feast
This is poi, without which no Hawaiian
can make a square meal Bowls of this
rich and nutritious paste are in front of
every guest. 1t is the cooked taro root,
thoroughly pounded, softened with a
modieum of water to a very stiff paste,
and allowed slightly to ferment by stand
ing not over twenty four hours. TO be in
style, one must cat with two fingers
dipped into the bowl and dexterously
twirled to save the poi from dropping on
the way to the mouth. OF course you
squat on the ground with the rest, like
ably you will dislike the slight sourness
of the poi at first. To old residents it has
a wonderful relish Doctors prescribe it
as diet for fever patients. Other Haw-
allan yiands contribute variety to the
feast. Something like salted almonds
| but coarser, is the inamona, roasted kuku
nuts triturated with salt. There is
kulolo, pudding of poi and green cocoa
nut pulp Served fresh will be many
species of limu, sea moss and brook moss
There are sea eggs and Shrimps, buth of
which may be cooked or eaten alive.
There are opihi, or limpets, and raw fish
of various kinds. Stewart records feast
in 1926 where he saw one of the Queens
seize live cuttlefish and bite piece out
of it's body, while it's tentacles clung
around her head and neck Judge Wide
mann luau had no specialUies like that,
and probably no roast dog 1t was un-
doubtedly first class affair, with tables
and chairs and good supply of foreigners
victuals for those unaccustomed to
any guests went dry for lack of beverages
suited 70 their varied thirsts OF course
there were plenty of watermelons, with
| luscious green cocoanutS on tap, with
their sparkling sweet water.
Mr. Widemann is chief owner of the
Waianae plantation. Its crop this year
has been 2, 500 tons of sugar, and is likely
| to be 5000 tons next year. They hope
yet to work it up to 5000 tons. There is
unlimited acreage Of the richest bottom
land within five miles of the mill, but
water for irrigation is lacking. Seventy
thousand dollars has been spent in boring
artesian wells, all in vain, except in one
| locality, where fine pumping plant is
| lifting water forty feet to irrigate over
| 400 acres. About 500 acres more are
watered by two mountain streams.
This new section ofathe Oahu railway
adds fifteen miles to the eighteen pre-
viously reaching the Eva Mill Mr.. Dill
bingham expects to continue the road
around the northwest point of the island
and to Kahulu Mill, at the north point,
distance of thirty-fye miles, or sixty
eight from Honolulu. BY this extension
many important tracts of fertile soil will
be opened for varied cultivation which
have hitherto been unavailable. Already
the sugar mills and the existing local
traffic of many villages on the route are
ample for we'll paying business to the
road. The new section runs five miles
over plain of coral, from EVA Mill to
the western shore of the island. then
three miles between the sea and the low
land of Waianae Mountain. From there
it continues due north seven miles, along
heavy sand beaches, where the calm
1