The Hawaiian gazette., 1908-03-27
When Hawaii Was Peop|ed by Giants
Scientist Makes Amazing Discoveries Island Caacombs Which
Are Older Than Those of Rome.

BY H. Coffin Berry in S. F. Call.

for believing that this vast and scat
tered Polynesian race originally came
from Asia, as did some OF the Ameri-
can pioneers whose descendants are
our American Indians.
saw two ancient idols dug from be-
meath an old rice field on Pearl harbor.
which instantly suggested the totem
poles OF our Haida Indians: and 1 have
seen Japanese students attempt con-
versation with Siwash Indians mistak-
ing them for coolies OF their own
country.
HUNTING BURIAL CAVE.
A cave hunting equipment consists
OF long. stout rope for lowering ones
self into holes or over preclplces that
look promising; q pair OF field glasses
FOR the examination or distant OPEN
ings; mosquito netting FOR protecting
he face from insects and yellow Jack
cts which infest all Hawaiian caves; n
sharp Ratchet or cane knife, for cut
ting away lantana, whose poisonous
thorns make progress az times ahso-
Wkly impossible; reliable lantern
and pair OF thick gloves, Frequently
these caves present only small OPEN
ings into the wall of some cliff hum
dreds OF feet above the canyon, while
IN other eases one must be lowered at
rectly into some dark hole az the risk
OF being stung 60 death. and, again,
other caves are reached only by diving
beneath the oceans surface during
calm weather,
In January, 1908, after two weeks OF
the severest physical exertion and be-
ing repeatedly stung and laeeratod by
lantana and caeti, we finally came upon
an ancient burial cave OF considerable
magnitude, A half white native boy
whom | had lurcd into service, and
whose name eurtailed 10 pau" from
one or sufficient length 10 have per-
speetive, was removing the luscious
! fruit from the abundant cacti, pre-
pairing Il for lunch by rubbing on the
needle like thorns on his coat sleeve,
when he noticed the repeated flight OF
bees from the cacti 20 a small opening
almost under our feet, A few mo-
ments OF energetic work with our cane
knives, and the removal of a bushel
or two Of lava rock revealed an open
ing just large enough for mans body,
After burning out the bees and yellow
Jackets, / lowered the native into the
opening to a distance OF about 10 feet,
where he secured a footing; fastening
the rope above, I was about to join
him with my bicycle lamp, when In a
voice unnecessarily loud and agitated,
he began casting insinuationS deroga-
tory to the moral character of insects,
past, present and future. The yellow
jackets had gotten at him and stimu-
lated a subterranean vocabulary that
was positively poetic. a peculiar echo
of the cave made it seem that he was
swearing in two languages at once;
each oath being as neatly welded as
links in an endless chain. hauled him
ont as quickly as possible, and in a few
moments we both entered the cave well
protected by mosquito netting and
lighted by a calcium carbide lamp.
This cave led gradually down hill for
100 feet to an opening in the sheer
wall of a cliff where we could look
down for hundreds of feet to a stream
Glow where wild bananas and 'hau"
trees were growing. The entrance
within the cave was thickly covered
with disintegrated lava rock, but farth-
er along we soon saw that the abode
had been previously entered, and after
much searching, that our path led
through a small opening about four
feet above the floor and into a much
larger volcanic bubble, which was the
actual burial cave and which soon set
my blood tingling.
At the farther end of the cave, which
must have been 800 feet in length, sat
five giant human forms wrapped in
kappa cloth with head and arms rest
ing upon the knees, covered with the
dry dust of ages of rock disintegra
ton, and apparently asleep. For a mo-
ment I stood spellbOund with my light
thrown upon them, for it seemed that
surely they must awaken at any mo-
ment, turn their parched and faded
countenances toward me and demand
an explanation. I found myself quot
ing Omar, as did during student days
when I visited the "Capuccinf' in
Rome. under which the Capuchin friars
lie mummifed in holy earth brought
from Jerusalem. and where the living
and departed of the order look nearly
enough alike to make it embarrassing
for the visitor:
When you and I behind the veil are
past,
Oh, but the long, long while the world
shall last,
Which of our coming and departure
heeds
As the seas self should heed a pebble
cast"
And even as stood thus, they SEEM ,
ed to take up my thought and humble |
in unison:
"Oh, but the long, long while the
world shall last"
My reverie was suddenly interrupted |
by a blood curdling moan which came !
from far away and back of me. Pau |
in attempting to escape in the dark |
ness had fallen through the small open |
ing and was floundering about like a |
lost soul cast into the bottomless pit; |
he had lost his mosquito netting, as /
well as his vocabulary, which was I'M |
fortunate, for the yellow Jackets were |
at him again. The five giant forms !
before me were those of hardened war /
riors of the old school, and had sat |
thus waiting for fully 1000 years.
They all measured much over six /
feet in height, and in life must have !
weighed fully 300 pounds, the tallest by |
actual measurement being six feet five !
inches in height. Near him was |
calahash and wooden plate, as well as /