SOME FOLK-SONGS AND MYTHS PKOM SAMOA. 123 



a-Ui, and he was the father of Ta'e-o-Tangaloa, Le-Fanonga and others, 

 who are famed in Samoan myths. 



Mr. Powell's Summary — 3. Ui was the daughter of a couple named 

 Fiso and Ufi. They belonged to and lived in the Atafu land, which 

 included Atafu'uli, Atafu mea, Atafu tea, Atafu sina. It was the cus- 

 tom of the people of Atafu to present a human sacrifice every day as an 

 offering to the Sun (' ua fai le aso o le La i tagata'); each family by turns 

 furnished a victim, either male or female. The families were thus gradu- 

 ally disappearing, and, in the family of Ui, there were only three sur- 

 vivors, — her old mother, herself, and her brother Lua-ma'a. Some say 

 that, besides Ui, there was another daughter named Ala. The day was 

 approaching when one of these also must be sacrificed. They wept 

 together, each being unwilling that either of the others should die, and 

 each contending to be the victim. Then Ui said that she would endeavour 

 to induce the Sun to accept a substitute. Accordingly, with her brother's 

 aid, she at once prepared her offering, which consisted of taro, some fish, 

 a fowl, and portions of the kava plant, together with the bowl for pre- 

 paring the kava drink, a drinking cup, a strainer, and some turmeric. 

 These were placed carefully in a basket ; and, on the morning of the day, 

 when the sacrifice should be presented, very early before day-light, she, 

 accompanied by her brother, repaired to the altar of sacrifice, which was 

 on a mountain at some distance from the village and stood between two 

 trees, afetau and afasa. Shortly after she had taken her seat upon the 

 altar, the Sun arose over the fasa tree. She immediately addressed him 

 in the following strain — ' 



Le La e, maui mai, 



E taumafa ola atu lau tagata, 



Ua leai le aiga nai lou taumafa, 

 Le La fai atu ; 



Ui e, ta fia inu 'ava, &c. 

 Which means — 

 4. O Sun, approach, thy human being to eat alive ; 

 For of this family, through thy feasting, none survive. 



To this the Sun replies : 

 O Ui, for kava, [not for blood,] I thirst. 



The virgin immediately answers : 

 Here's kava [grown] by a man of skill and labours many ; 

 It stood [grew] in the rocky ground ; 

 It stood devoted unto thee ; 



Its root-branches were of a rich and tempting hue ; 

 This kava I'll divide in pieces, and with shell will scrape it well ; 



