New-York tribune., 1911-02-19
The Hunting the Hula" Its Native Lair Among South Sea Islands

I the arm of the slender miss who repre-
sented the manmast and brought her
crashing to the deck. squealing like
roped pig. The cutting up OF the shark
owing to this obstreperousness. must have
been biz more realistic than usual Tor no
still bore marks OF it when ] chanced upon
him in Papeete a week later.
In the good doctors original plan OF tho
evenings entertainment several more dances
of the nature OF those just described were
called for but the carelessness OF the COM
missariat in dealing out the orange vino
J too rapidly ordained otherwise. The sounds
Of revelry from the green room were
keying higher every moment. and our hosts
apprehensveness showed In the quick
glowings and palngs Of his nervously
puned cigarette. When. instead OF the
sober "himine" which opens up the anus
ing burlesque Missionary Dance" there
: sounded the wall OF acccrdlons. the roll or
shark hide drums and clear. deep-throated
voices of the girls in the preliminary strains
of the 'Nuptal Hula" he sprang to his
! feet to explode into excited Anglo-German-
/ Tahitlan with "Neinl Nen. Das ist NIGHT
was | tell them. Hare. Hare! Go back
: nit YOU" But he might well have tried
! swirling onrush from the green ROOM
! By this time the shaft OF lunar calcium,
slightly broadening as the moon rose. had
/ moved across the dancing floor TIL It's
outer side was just beginning TO encroach
upon our mat-covered dais. so that instead
| Of back row. left. as at first. our seats
/ now occupied approximately the position
! OF first row orchestra. centre. We were
I t.rffh
| geance. and just at the wrong time.
Like a pack of hungry wolves charging
down upon a fold Of lambs. the bacchio
/ throng swarmed out Of the shadows Into
/ the spot light about our das. and threw
| itself with the reckless abandon born OK
/ three hours OF steady tippling at the wine
! calabashes into the sinuous writings OF
dance rarely performed in the past except
at the wedding feasts OF royalty.
To a spectator watching from distance
some suggestion OF rhythm and unity
might have been apparent in the move
ments of the dance; from our advanced po-
sition. as to a man in the thick Of battle.
I the general action was lost sight or in the
wealth OF local interest There was moth
ing to do but fix your attention on the
nearest dancer and hope, as at multi
rnged circus. that nothing OF greater In
terest was going on anywhere else. once
! your attention is fixed. IL Is not likely 10
go far afield for a new centre OF attraction.
As an exhibition OF ecc cantric muscular
action alone the dance is worth a world or
trouble to see. In the slow opening move
ments, 10 a half-crooning, half-chirping
air, II is as though every square inch OF the
oil glistenng form before you is trying 10
move in a different direction. There ~
something of the suggestion OF coiling
and uncoling snake in II; something or
that of the twisting green stream OF water
where It shoots between two mid-stream
bowlders: something OF that of the whirl-
ing columns Of the dust devils" OF the
desert.
! But what comps rison can YOU find for
the wild thing that springs into life as tho
music duickens and the intoxicatton or the
dance enters into the blood Of the dancers?
, There is still a suggestion OF the former
| undulating sinuousty of motion, but at
trip-hammer speed which defies the eye 20
follow Il: a double-action, reciprocating'
triple-expansion quiver. beginning at the
| plume tips and ending at the toes. that
would make a Newfoundland dog shaking
himself after a bath look like a stuffed
museum specimen in comparison
For minute. or two. or three-one loses
count Of time when elemental forces like
these are loosed-this rapid-fire action con-
tinues; then they all sink into quivering
heaps on tie grass. with just enough
strength left to raise feeble cries for the
boys with the wine calabashes, a circum-
stance which led W 20 remark that
their enthusiasm had probably been due
TO the fact that they were shaking for
the drinks"
This which was just finished was the
first of the three movement" or the
dance. explained the doctor in the short
/ rest interval He had not expected IL 10
be danced. but now that II was started II
would be an objectionable breach of eti-
ouette 10 stop IT, "Bezides." he added,
you chentlemen haf bewail der decadence
/ of der hula in Tahiti. und said der white
/ man cannot der real thing see In one
leetle moment you der real thing shall
/ see"
! And We DID. But my mcst earnest ef-
forts would fall so short Of doing II JUS
tice that have thought 1t best not TO court
certain failure by attempting description.