140 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 38 



When one listens for the first time to the musical utterance of a 

 Hawaiian poem, it may seem only a monotonous onflow of sounds 

 faintl}^ punctuated by the primary rhythm that belongs to accent, but 

 lacking- those milestones of secondarj^ rhythm which set a period to 

 such broader divisions as distinguish rhetorical and musical phrasing. 

 Further attention will correct this impression and show that the 

 Hawaiians jDaid strict attention not only to the lesser rhythm which 

 deals with the time and accent of the syllable, but also to that more 

 comprehensive form which puts a limit to the verse. 



With the Hawaiians musical phrasing was arranged to fit the verse 

 of the mele, not to express a musical idea. The cadencing of a 

 musical phrase in Hawaiian song was marked by a peculiarity all its 

 own. It consisted of a prolonged trilling or fluctuating movement 

 called ri, in which the voice went up and down in a weaving manner, 

 touching the main note that formed the framework of the melody, 

 then springing away from it for some short interval — a half of a step, 

 or even some shorter interval — like an electrified pith-ball, only to 

 return and then spring away again and again until the impulse 

 ceased. This was more extensively employed in the oli proper, the 

 verses of which were longer drawn out, than in the mele such as 

 formed the stock pieces of the hula. These latter were generally 

 divided into shorter verses. 



Musical Instruments 



The musical instruments of the Hawaiians included manj'^ classes, 

 and their study can not fail to furnish substantial data for any 

 attempt to estimate the musical performances, attainments, and 

 genius of the people. 



Of drums, or drum-like instruments of percussion, the Hawaiians 

 had four: 



1. The fohu^ or pahu-hula (pi. x), was a section of hollowed log. 

 Bread-fruit and coconut were the woods generally used for this pur- 

 pose. The tough skin of the shark was the choice for the drumhead, 

 which was held in place and kept tense by tightening cords of coconut 

 fiber, that j^assed clown the side of the cylinder. 



The workmanship of the pahu, though rude, was of tasteful design. 

 So far as the author has studied them, each pahu was constructed with 

 a diaphragm placed about two-thirds the distance from the head, 

 obtained by leaving in place a cross section of the log, thus making a 

 closed chamber of the drum-cavity proper, after the fashion of the 

 kettledrum. The lower part of the drum also was hollowed out and 

 carved, as will be seen in the illustration. In the carving of all the 

 specimens examined the artists have shown a notable fondness for a 

 fenestrated design representing a series of arches, after the fashion of 



