New-York tribune., 1911-02-19
By Lewis r. Freeman.

IT, a Kanakazaion of the English
mn Before the days of the mis-
.rore must have been some other
s'ons cor singing was quite as prominent
term ,nation of the native then as now,
81 sucb term has been discarded As
pO' -s,ty long ago. The South Sea ISL
SUP aoos not cumber his memory with
sno' 10, one name for a given thing, and
no'e eu, words were forced upon him, as
Fn' ,.o,itahle with the coming Of the
N a. the old ones quickly disappeared
pIV~ .binine" AT first was applied 10
- hut the hymns which the mission
'h''-' ,ourbt Then the term expanded to
" ,sa the rowing and working chanteys
n' .sa natives. and finally TO the folk and
y" soncs To-day a Tahitian will speak
obimine" 10 which hula Is
shades cf John Williams and
&C. chalmers, 4 hula 10 a "himine.
.,,ive breakdown to missionary hymn!
avo, sinful hussies are as full of airs
,si. box" said the missionary TO
As,,. NJ frolicsome "bahines' who re-
.s u,;h a ro.licking "himine' TO his in
80, N come inside of the church and
tis sunday sermon. THAT may be,
-o,ea one Of the flower crowned dam
~, ..but We don't go with crank. at
- rate They tell YOU this story at the
-, u Papeete. and you politely. laugh
.,s, ss YOU did when YOU first heard a Va
.s.,,on Of IL ten years ago in America.
u,,,over the local adaptation is a good one
Tabltisn nymrh is indeed as full Of airs
r,usi, box. and vast deal easier 10
start up and keep going.
Rave never heard the point brought up.
M, II has struck me on more than one
ooc.sion that much Of the phenomenal sue
- of the early missionaries in the South
S,.s was due 90 their rare judgment IN
turning their first meetings into big song
,ss,s Even a meeting Of to-day is three
or.rter "himine and in the short inter
r,s of PRAYER and preaching the congrega-
~, Is in a continual fidget in its eager
,sss for the opening notes of the next song.
Now a one slips down from his seat re-
,pnss at length on the floor, and lights
banana leaf cigarette. The children run
shou, moi over quietly, and amuse them
ssrss with pranks upon their elders But
a, the first long drawn note OF the him
,,,~ leader-the trumpet call 10 action
,n lean to their seats. throw away their
Cigarettes and SIT at stiff attention. and
from then till the end of the song have
M ewes nor ears for anything but the
business in hand.
Dancing IS the natural concomitant of
singing in all OF the South Sea Islands,
and the only occasion on which one is en-
loved without the other is at church ser
vice As for dancing, singing is sine
qua non. Not only can native not dance
without a singing accompaniment, but mis-
own voice must also be a part of that ac
Compartment. To bind Tahitian dancers
mouth is TO tie his feet quite as much as
tying Laun's hands is tantamount 10
binding his mouth.
The first Tahitian dancers of whom there
Is any authentic record were the members
Of the "Areo," a secret intertribal organ
zaton Of the old days. which would un-
doHbtedly be credited TO Bacchic inspira
ton were there any way of tracing the
connection The AdeOs were a registering
LOT Of madcaps hardly comparable 10 any
thing else in history. but partaking OF
something Of the character of a modern
choral society. e fancy dancing class and
band Of brigands, with the avowed en-
ooaragement OF human sacrifice. murder.
cannibalism and general immortality thrown
n
We have seen how the missionaries
adopted and turned the song to their own
good ends. Has the dance had the vitality
10 survive without the patronage Of the
real aTbiters Of island destiny? Hardly. in
lis pristine purity or impurity. The hula
IN Tahiti to-day is in about the same state
as the "Earp that once Through Tara's
Halls; the only evidence Of its existence