The Hawaiian gazette., 1908-03-27


suSterranean excavations or catacombs
which are found in all directions out
side the walls OF Rome and elsewhere,
ano which served as places of worship
and refuge for the living and a final
resting place for the dead; but 1t is not
generally known that within our own
Hawaiian territory an ancient, prim-
tive peop'e similarly obtained secur-
ity for their departed. The excava-
tons. passages and galleries about
Rome were followed out Of dry, porous
lava rock which served its purpose
well. Nature, which always smiles up
on subeouatorial native and induces
inertia. furnished the lava formation
with ready made passages, galleries
and olqyhouses OF all shapes and
diuen
By Far the greater number OF cata-
combs about Rome are subsequent 10
rho middle Of the second century, while
those 81 the Hawaiian Islands ante
date chem BY many centuries and, un-
ike those OF Rome, still remain a seal
ed Storehouse Of vast information
awaiting scientific inspection and re-
Scarch. These islands resemble IN part
a large sponge OF lava and volcanic
STAG, and 50 frequent are the caves and
volcano bubbles that one might search
carefully Tor many weeks or months
without finding even a suggestion OF
ancient hahitation, n You wish a cor.
rect Impression OF these islands and
cannot spare the time Cor an ocean
voyage ~ six days, Just make the
Assent ~ Mount Hamilton some clear
night and look at the moon through
tho bic telescope at Lick observatory,
Nou viii then see the extinct cratcrs
ana lava beds as they would appear
shove the Hawaiian Islands,
METHOD OF BURIAL
Several difrorcnt methods Of burial
were Nyacticc3, depending upon station.
The funeral rites oC n high chief dif-
fCvca widely from those OF the common
people. human sacrifices being offered
that NJ might enter the other world
with attendance suitable 20 his rank,
His ClcanScd bones, entirely freed from
the flesh and neatly covered with
"}apa" and rcd feathers, We're eventu-
ally concealed IN some secret and in
accessible cave by a trusty attendant,
selected before death and sworn to
secrecy. The bones were carried TO
the selected place Of concealment by
night when the attendants had fallen
asleep and after the "Kuni" sorcerers
had avenged the CHIEFS death, usually
supposed TO be due TO evil spirits. The
common people also were buried in
caves. or subterranean caverns. by
night. and frequently we find the body
embalmed by means of salt or some
driving process, the upper part of the
~ 20 h.A
with the head, hands and knees bound
torether by means of a cord, the body
wrapped in coarse mating, or kappa,
and then placed in some open cave and
surrounded by household effects, i'm
plements of war, canoes, treasure
chests. articles Of food, etc. The cave
was then carefully concealed from
view by means OF loose stones, which
were in turn concealed and protected
by means Of a thick growth of Ian
tana." which bristles with poisonous
thorns. and which, when dry and brit
tie. penetrate the flesh like needles,
break off and cause painful wounds.
During the first few days after death
ghosts are supposed to haunt burial
caves and battlefields and to endeavor
to strange their enemies, but grad
ually become weaker. To look upon
certain of these was supposed to cause
instant death and I have met natives
even today who believe that they have
seen the spirit of some departed chief
marching by night with his ghostly at
ten1ants. Nightmare supposedly re-
suits from a ghost sitting upon the
sleeper. This superstitious dread made
the native of early times a mere in
FAINT in the hands of the priestcraft and
medicine men. who were believed to be
descended from the gods and to be in
alliance with the invisible powers. and
it is Il tie wonder that these ancient
burial places. through either fear or
accident. are lost to US and that an
endl- as storehouse of information con-
corning an early age Of stone and wood
has remained a closed volume in the l
worlds ri=torv-a volume smeared with (
hood thai lies under our very feet AMI
calls ~ n rs for recognition. We of
the United States. who have taken pos
session Of this tropical farmland, TT .
tie understand what lies hidden be- .
meath. nor are We making any organ
ized attempt at investigation.
The fact that Captain Cook discov-
tie to the cave hunting enthusiast as
their later discovery bv the Taft party
and finally by W. ]. Bryan. The dis
covery Of human bones under ancient
coral beds and lava flows. as well as
certain cave discoveries, leads US to
conclude that emigration to these is
lands began as early. at least, as 500
A. D.. and even long before this period
there must have been human habita-
ton. these pioneers having been ex-
PEELED from distant islands of the
south or southwest, or driven from
their course by 'konas' or southerly I
gales. which frequently blow for ?
months at a time.
A Japanese fishing junk, which had .
been blown out Of its course in this
way. was wrecked upon the island of
Oahu in 1882, with four men on board,
all of whom We're rescued by the Ha-
waiians. Kadu. a native of the Caro-
line islands. drifted 1900 miles due
east to the Marshall islands, where he
was rescued by Kotzebue in 1917. These
and many other recorded instances and
traditions show the chances of migra-
ton from west to east.
Dio,+ opd oni,,,aI life az ne saa if