192 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 76 



LI HUE 



At Niumahu, 2 miles from Lihue, on the road leading south and 

 west from the harbor of Nawiliwili, is a fish pond known as Alakoka. 

 It is a short distance above the mouth of the river, where the little 

 valley widens in a half-moon shape, the stream flowing close to the 

 bluff on the right. The bottom land on the other side is so low as to 

 be swampy. Along the river bank on this side is a heavy wall of 

 stone and earth, reaching the higher land at each end, thus forming a 

 pond of 15 or 20 acres in which the ancient Hawaiians kept their 

 surplus catch of fish. The wall has been raised and strengthened by 

 its present owner, a Chinese, who raises ducks instead of fish. 



WAILUA 



Near the mouth of the Wailua River, 6 miles from Lihue, is the 

 former abode of the royal family. The place is so overgrown, except 

 in the few cultivated spots, that no examination of it can be made. 

 No traces of the residences are apparent, although the stone boundary 

 walls of the grounds are still standing. The site of the royal cemetery 

 is set aside as public property. There is nothing now to indicate that 

 any interments were ever made in it. The " Birthstone," on or by 

 which all prospective heirs to the throne must be born in order to 

 insure their right to the succession, still lies in the brush near the 

 foot of a little cliff. In case of a dispute among the claimants to the 

 throne this stone had the power, by some means of which the knowl- 

 edge has now been lost, to determine which, if any, of the contestants 

 was entitled to possession. 



The " Sacrifice Stone," also, is in its original place, being so large 

 that it can not be easily removed. Formerly this had a grass roof over 

 it, supported by high poles. When the victim's life was extinct his 

 body was suspended to a rafter or crossbeam at the top of the struc- 

 ture and left there until the flesh had decayed. The bones were then 

 interred on top of the bluff in the rear. It is said that the corpses 

 of chiefs and others of high rank were wrapped in banana leaves and 

 steamed until the flesh fell away. The skeletons were then buried. 



A mile from the mouth of the Wailua River, on a narrow plateau 

 between it and a small tributary, the summit level being about 200 

 feet above the water, is a heiau in fairly good condition. It is one of 

 the large structures of its kind, but is so overgrown that measure- 

 ments or close description are not possible. It is supposed to be the 

 one which was sacred to the devotions of the highest priesthood. The 

 common people were not allowed to venture near it, and even the king 

 could not visit it without special permission involving the most com- 

 plicated ceremonies. It has passed into possession of the county and 



