STONE FIGURES. 



97 



helmet worn by a small idol. It is hollow and has a small hole in the rim, apparently 

 to fasten it on with. But the idol could not be obtained at the time the helmet was 

 purchased and now it has disappeared. I do not believe that the top was of consider- 

 able antiquity on these islands, although small ones made from a kukui nut are not 

 uncommon among children's toys. The irregular stones could be and no doubt were 

 used for net sinkers. 



I have not described the stone structures of the old Hawaiians because they were 

 of rough stone, dry laid, and consist of pyramidal and enclosed temples which will 

 properly be considered with the Ancient Worship, and extensive walls enclosing fish 



FIG. 96. MISCELLANEOUS STONE OBJECTS. 



preserves on the fringing coral reefs, which belong again to the Fisheries. In both 

 these stone works it was the great labor expended in collecting, transporting and plac- 

 ing the stones rather than any architectural skill that made them noteworthy. In the 

 case of the Kohala heiau it is claimed that fifteen thousand men formed a line and 

 passed the stones more than seven miles over very hilly and uneven ground, never 

 allowing the stones to touch the ground in their journey. From what I know of the 

 old native charac5ler I can believe this statement. 



The stone walls of the heiau often tumbled down on Hawaii in the frequent 

 earthquakes, but I do not know that they were ever made the objects of the victor's 

 destroying wrath in the interminable petty wars, while the walls of the fish ponds were 

 usually broken down to let out the fish and so materially injure the conquered owners. 



In the remarkable temple of Umi on the desert plains of Hawaii, seven thousand 

 feet above the sea, the huge pyramids of stone remain to this day as monuments of the 



Memoirs B. P. B. Museum. Vol. I., No. 4.-7. [4^9] 



