The Hawaiian gazette., 1902-12-23
HOW NATIVES
ONCE FISHtO
Women Got the
Octopus With
Spears.

i ne lidNailanS nave i've methods or
fishing; by spearing. hand catching.
baskets hook and line. and with nets.
The la q is the speerlng OF fish and Is
of two kinds, below and above water.
That below water is the most import
ant, and is generally employed for the
different kinds of rock fish The spear
used by the diver is a slender stick of
from TO feet in length made of very
hard wood and sharply pointed at one
end. but more tapering at the other.
Since the possession of iron. spears are
always tipped with It. but perfectly
smooth without hook or barb. Diving
to well-known station by large cor
ri rock on against the steep face Of the
reefs. the diver places himself in half
crouching position on his left foot. with
his right foot free and extended be-
hind. his left hand holding ~ to the
rock to steady himself. wa hes and
waits for the fish. Fish In onl yAwo posi-
tioSs are noticed by him. those passing
before and parallel to him. and those
coming straight towards his face. He
always aims a little In advance. as. by
the time the fish is struck. lis motion
has carried 1t so far forward that it
will be hit on the gills or middle of the
we're aimed at the body it would be
very apt 10 hit the tail, or pass behind.
when the fish is hit. the force Of the
blow generally carries the spear right
through to the hand. thus bringing the
fish up to the lower part or handle of
the spear. where it remains whist the
fisherman strikes rapidly at other fish
In succession should they come In
Except In the case OF Oopuhue spear
ing. ab6ve-water spearlng is very rare
ly used. and then generally in connec-
tion with deep sea line and hook fish
ing. Oopuhue is the well-known poi
son fish Of the Pacific, but Of delicious
flavor. 1t is generally speared In en-
closed salt water ponds from the stone
embankments. The poison of this fish
Is contained in three little sacks which
must be extracted whole and unipjured
The fish IL first skinned, as the rough
skin Is also poisonous in a slight de-
gree. Should the teeth Of the fish be
yellow then it is so highly charged with
poison that no part of its flesh is safe
even with the most careful preparation.
OOrJhue caught in the open sea are al
ways more poisonous than those from
FISH ponds
Some fishermen dive 30 well-Known
habitats OF certain fish and Holsters
and, thrusting their arms up to their
drmpits under rocks or In holes, bring
out the fish one by one and put them
into n bag attached for the purpose to
the malo or loin cloth Women fire.
qucntly do the same I'm shallow waters
and catch fish by hand from under cor
al projections. 1t IS also u favOrite
method employed by women in the cap
turc of the larger varieties Of shrimps
and lopus I'm the fresh water streams
and ltalo ponds. Gold fish are also
caught In that way and gt the present
tune form no inconsiderdble portion Of
thc daily food of the poorer classes liv-
irg near kalo patches or fresh water
ponds. Their power Of reproduction
Is very great. The different kinds of
edible sea slugs are caught in the same
wa although the larger kinds are
sometimes dived for and speaI ed under
water
There are two ways Of octopus fish
ing: In shallow water the spear is used
Women generally attend to this. Their
practised eye can tell If an octopus Is
In a hole whose entrance IL no larger
than a silver dollar, and plunging their
spears IN they invariably draw one
out. These mollusks have the peculiar
property Of drawing themselves out and
COMPRISING their bodies so as to pass
through very narrow apertures many
times smaller than the natural size or
thickness Of their bodies. Those caught
in the shallow waters vary from one
to four feet in length, but the larger
kinds live In deep water always and
are known as heeokaiuli (blue water
octopus). They are caught with cow
ries OF the Mauritania and sometimes
OF the Tiger species. One or more or
these shells IL attached to "A string with
an oblong pebble on the face of the
shells through which the line Is passed,
and having been fastened Is allowed to
project a few inches below, and hook
whose point stands almost perpcndlcu-
lar to the shaft or shank II then fasten-
ed to the end OF the line. Only the
finest kind Of Mauritania or Tiger cow
ries are employed Tor this purpose AZ
tie octopus win not rise To a large
spotted or ugly one The spots on the
back must be very small and red,
brenklng through reddish brown
ground such shell would have the
strongest attractions for an octopus,
and Is called ipo doverJ, Cowries with
suitable spots, but Objectionable other
wise, are slightly steamed over fire Of
sugar cane husks, This has the eject
of giving them the desired hue
The fisherman having arrived az his
nshlug grounds hrst cheWs ana spits on
the water a mouthful ~ Candle nut
meat which renders me water CLASSY
ana cltari he then drops tho shell with
honk ANA limo into the water ana swngs
u over place llkely % b. Inhabited
py an octopus, This helnB a'NQn
cluus animal Is always, aco0Iilng ~
Hawaiian fishermen when n iis hole,
kerIlnH "a lookout for anylhlns eataplN
ilat mas come Within reach NJ lls eight
FlnH Ihr moment rnNry h per
r''Nll an ANA Is shot pul prl lha smell
r'Hfped, " pf The attractive Sind, nnp
HrW alirr ihe Other comes nui and