Fish-Poisoning in the Hawatian Islands ; 229 
soms. Mr. Forbes, however, recognized it as a long-leafed form 
of IV. sandwicensis. On a subsequent visit to the district of Puna, 
on the southeast coast of the Island of Hawaii, the writer made 
further inquiries concerning the akia awaawa, was shown a shrub, 
and obtained a specimen which Mr. Forbes identified as coming 
from a short-leafed form of WV’. sandwicensis. 
While Hillebrand lists seven species and four varieties of 
Wikstroenua from these islands, the appearance of different speci- 
mens of the same species varies so greatly that the uninitiated 
might well suppose that the number of species was much greater. 
The blossoms are very small. From a consideration of the native 
accounts so far collected, it is evident that the term akia awaawa 
may be applied to many species of Wikstroemia, dependent on the 
uses to which local Hawaiians put them. 
Referring to akia, Andrews’ notes: “The bark is used to 
poison fish in fresh water as auhuhu is in salt.’ Some of the 
older natives say that akia and auhuhw were used alike in fresh or 
salt water, but that awhuwhw was much the stronger. An experiment 
tried in fresh water on imported small rainbow fish gave the fol- 
lowing results:— Auhuhu killed the fish in from 11 to 17 minutes, 
W. foetida in 38 minutes, and W. elongata in 19 minutes. The 
idea probably intended to be conveyed by Andrews was that akzia, 
being generally found in the mountains, usually served for stream 
poisoning, while auhuhu growing near the shore was used in the 
sea. It is doubtful if akia would be used were auhuhu available or 
in season. In these experiments, after the first fish died the 
others were placed in clean well-aerated water, but none of the 
fish recovered. 
The practice of hola has been almost, if not entirely aban- 
doned in the Hawaiian Islands, owing in part to a lessening of the 
available poison plants, but in a large degree, probably, to the 
adoption of the equally reprehensible and even more destructive 
method of fishing with dynamite. 
FisH-POISONING IN SAMOA. 
For the following account of fish narcotization in Samoa the 
writer is indebted to Mr. E. J. Mooklar, a chemist who resided in 
” Andrews, Lorrin, Hawaiian Dictionary, Honolulu, 1865. 
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