EMERSON] UNWRITTEN LITERATURE OF HAWAII 119 



performance the olapa alone handled the two sticks of the xylophone, 

 which in other parts formed the sole instrument of musical accom- 

 paniment to this hula. Other striking novelties also were introduced. 

 The olapa held between their toes small sticks with which they beat 

 upon a resonant beam of wood that lay on the floor, thus producing 

 tones of a low pitch. Another departure from the usual style of this 

 hula was that the hoopaa, at the same time, devoted themselves 

 with the right hand to playing upon the pu-niu, the small drum, 

 while with the left they developed the deep bass of the pahu. The 

 result of this outre combination must have been truly remarkable. 



It is a matter of observation that on the island of Kauai both the 

 special features of its spoken language and the character of its myths 

 and legends indicate a closer relationship to the groups of the south- 

 ern Pacific, to which the Hawaiian people owe their origin, than do 

 those of the other islands of the Hawaiian group. 



