The Hawaiian gazette., 1915-05-04
MIXED SKELETONS
CEMENTED N 10
CLEAR BIC CAVES
u - s-4-A4- ! fs,l
SepuIchers Of KeaIakek1a Bay
Made Orderly BY Tombs /
Of Modern Kind
ed 49, .su.
BEvIES OF BONES ARE
HIDDEN FROM VIEW
lats Funeral Of Hundreds Of Isl
anders Unattended BY b,
Any Mourner

Human bones that have for n century
'or more reposed, more or ross, in the
caves IN the vicinity of Kealak ekua
Bay, Hawaii Island, have finally had
heir repose made certain by being
placed at the ends of the caves and
protected from frisky dogs and curious
collectors by being shut in by cement
wallis,
For yenrs upon year these scattered
bones Of many Hawaiians have been
exposed, the skeletons of great and
small, young and Oil, Ueing mixed in
neutrality-suspicious. masses. 1t would
have taken a specialist a long time to
approximate the number of individuals
TO which skulls and accessories had
once belonged. Occasionally a tourist
wandered along and annexed skull for
keepsake. Probably most of the sets
are incomplete. ~
Governor Takes Action w."
Not hong ago g. II. Wears visited
one Of the caves and became impressed
with the idea that some action should
! w NAAOH "" oiu utGtnl
! sepulchre 10 what was left of these
token of once animate citizens and citi
ZeneSses. He addressed reeommenda
ton TO Senator Baker, in whose district
the exposed bones lacked repose, and
Baker went to Governor Pinkham. A,
q result Superintendent G. II. Forbe.
of the public works department was in
structed TO take action, and, through
the good offices of Donald s. Bowman
the Big Islands health agent, wht
requisitioned the kind services Of Su
Eperpisor Yates, the bones of the Ions
since departed were cengregated at thu
cave ends and walled pp.
No Inscription Possible
No inscriptions were placed on thu
walls for the good and sufficient rea
son that no one knows who the owners
of the bones were. They may hav,
been warriors who lost their lives re
sisting the forces Of the king Of another
island, or they may have been peaceful
villagers dying one by one, withered by
age and retiring to the tabu caves Of
Kealakekua. They may have beer
chiefs and princesses, priests and ka
hunas, story'tellers and scalers of cliffs
e3PcTtS WIN inc spear ana Single
handed fighters Of the shark. Blu
whether of the common sort or Of tn,
alii, who can now be distinguished il
the democracy of deathf ;
Ancient Burial Places N"
From further back than any recorC
gives hint, these caves were the buria
places of the Hawaiians. Before tn,
coming Of Captain Cook they housed tn,
dead, and the caves were sacred, a
were all the habitations Of the departed
To disturb the bones of the dead wa
against all proPriety.
In later years, however, with man,
strangers in the land and with the los
Of all account or memory of the silen
inhabitants Of the caves, the bones be
came disturbed, scattered or mixed, and
some Of them. taken away by man, O
dragged away by dogs.
Safe From Vandalism
But they are now where they cannO
oe disturbed. There are no relative
Of the originals, AS far as the relative
themselves are aware, though doubles
many descendants, of those who one,
used the now scattered frames, hav,
visited and unknowingly viewed tn
Iong'agO discarded seafroldihg of thei
ancestors.