THE HAWAIIAN PEOPLE. 35 



their wants. For this reMsoii, among others, their life was not the one of 

 indolence it is sometimes thought to have been, j'et conditions were uniformly 

 more favorable to life in Hawaii than were those met with in certain other 

 groups in the Pacific to which Polynesians migrated and settled, presumably 

 as they did in these islands. 



Fauna and Flora Explored by the Hawahan.s. 



So much must be said of the animals and plants in another connection that, 

 though they form an important feature of environment, it will suffice here to 

 note the salient facts. The flora furnished trees for the construction of their 

 canoes and houses, the implements of their warfare and peaceful pursuits, the 

 raw material for the manufacture of their clothing, nets, calabashes, medicines, 

 and above all, a sufficient amount of wholesome food throughout the year to pro- 

 vide for their sustenance. 



The most important animals existing on the islands at the time of their dis- 

 cover\- by the w'hites were the swine and the dogs, both of which were freely used 

 as food. There were domestic fowls of the same species as were common 

 throughout the Polynesian islands. The waters about the group provided a 

 never failing supply of fish food. The insects were all inconspiciious and harm- 

 less. The only game birds, as ducks and plovers, were not abundant, while the 

 reptiles were represented \)y a few species of small, inoffensive lizards that 

 were of little importance. 



The Hawaiians were preeminently an agrieultiiral people with a natural 

 love for the soil and its cultivation. The.v had an appreciation of the beautiful 

 in flower and foliage that has had an abiding influence on their homes and 

 home surroundings. They were also skilled fishermen. The lack of animals, 

 domestic or wild, other than the few species mentioned, prevented them from 

 following the hunting and pastoral life, and as a result they were settled in 

 permanent villages, usually along the coast. 



Since there were no noxious insects, poisonous serpents or dangerous birds 

 or beasts of prey, there was no occasion for the alertness and constant fear that 

 so frequently makes life in a tropical country a never-ending strain if not an 

 actual burden. 



Food and Its Effect on the People, 



While the chiefs and the more prosperous of the people were well supplied 

 with meat, the connnon people had it only at rare intervals. They were forced 

 to subsi.st on a diet chiefl.y vegetable, wdiich was lacking in variety, and, although 

 fat-producing, was also diffuse and bulky. To the character of their food ma.v 

 be attributed the habit of alternately gorging and fasting, which was so com- 

 mon a trait of the ancient Hawaiians, and which is believed to have resulted in 

 the abnormal development of the abdomen, formally so noticeable among them. 



Althougli taro was the stai¥ of life in Hawaii, sweet potato, or yam, 

 also figured largely in the every day diet of the common people. Thouuh meat 

 was never abundant, as has been stated, thev were not entirely without ani- 



