The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1900-02-22
OUR MUSEUM
The Bishop Collection
of Curios.
One of the Most interesting Sights
In Honolulu Pleasantly
Described.
(Concluded.)

N1OACtuu6ul .
Death seems to have played an i'm ]
portant part in the ancient regime, as f
the kings and chiefs had the power c
of life and death over their subjects. :
Then too, the priesthood, or kahunas, :
exercised what is termed the "tabu,' s
which prescribed certain rules and
regulations for the natives, any viola
ton of which was punishable by death;
for instance a chief placed "tabu"
Sticks at the entrance to his hut; that
meant to one and all, do not enter or
pass within the shadow of the tabu
sticks under pain of DEATH" if a Ha
waiian subject, and even petty chief, |
violated this tabu, he was instantly put |
to death; supplication was of no avail. |
The power of the kahunas in their ex-
ercise of the tabu, was so great and the
superstitious awe of the common ma
| tive so intense, that it's effects have
not died out even in this day and age.
! The common natives are yet prone to
believe in their kahunas, and believe
that they have the power to pray them
to death; in olden days, if an enemy
obtained any part of the body of an
other, a hair, part of the finger nail
spittle, or anything of the body itself,
he would give it to a kahuna and ask
him to pray the other one to death;
with great ceremony the kahuna would
perform certain mysterious functions
over the hair, say strange words, offer
| it before the poison god, and then an
nounce that he was praying the native
| to death; this being told to the native,
so great his superstitious fear, he would
go to his hut and in reality become
sick over the thought of the dread
fsummons made by the kahuna, and In
many cases they actually died OF
| the fright thus given them; and to this
| day many of the natives place more
faith in their kahunas than in the
l"haole' or foreign physicians. If the
ipraying did not perform the evil work
ithen a piece of the poison god wa'
Isteeped and the fluid given the sufferer
lit is said, which, acting upon his heart
KILLED him. On every hand in the mu
tseum are the evidences of kahunaisn
land death. There are stones, peculiar
lily shaped, Qike gourd,) with small
ineck; these stones were suSpende
from the low door of a grass house i
tsuch a way that the person enterin
latter the. trap was set, would probabl
be crushed by the fall of the stone
tThey are made from lava rock.
Stone pestles for grinding roots an
icereals; stone lamps in which greas
Twas burned. and later on whale-oi
iabound The great calabashes, c
t"poi containers, form most inter
esting exhibit; they are made from
single piece of wood, sometimes tw
and three feet in diameter, take higf
Ily polished surface, and are now (
| extraordinary value, some of them b.
ing sold as high as three and four hui
! dred dollars; the largest one in Il
. museum, more than two hundred yea
old, is valued at $500; some of the
) were used by Kamehameha. ''Po
fcalabashes or bowls are used yet by Il
natives, and no ''luau" or native fea
to which foreigners are invited, is COZ
o. plete without costly array of poi co
RS tanners, as well as the smaller gour
for the individual use of each CUES
the poi is eaten by the Hawaiians wi
the fingers entirely, foreigners bel
expected to partake of it in the sal
manner; neither are knives and for
used at a feast; the meats are usua
=. cooked to such an extent that
fingers of the right hand are sufficie
. to shred it, and pass it to the mout
of course, the Hawaiians use fins
bowls. and wooden calabashes are 81
cially prepared for this purpose; fel
are placed in the water which act
cleansers as well. Refuse bowls
wood are placed at the elbow of ef
guest, the bowls in the ancient days
ing decorated with an inlaid work
the teeth of their enemies.
tS6 In a large and beautiful cabinet
fine Hawaiian workmanship is va
.Hu able collection of Kamehameha {
- Kalakaua dynasty decorations, those
Est the former being red, and the lat
l. blue. The massive solid silver serJ
JIG presented to King Kalakaua by GU
Victoria is enclosed in the same CO
OIL net
A peculiar feature of this race
their evident desire in ancient d
as we'll as in modern times, to m
IAN appearances; they fashioned I
rors from stone, making discs OF
size of a dollar. and others, two or tt
IVY inches across the face; the high pc
7 of the stones enabled the bellies of
- period to makeup" as well as II I
had a modern mirror of glass.
Personal relics of the different X
of the Kamehameha line and of
Kalakaua line fill many large ca
cooked military hats, swords, g
to bedecked uniforms, and royal insis
give one an impression that this !
monarchical court was about as sh
and as well conducted as any c
of Europe: at all events, the gold
sion tinsel and sheen of brass buttons
D. ever present, if that goes TO make
- royal court.
Polynesian Relics.