740 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
The native is a great lover of the hee, and has a number of methods of capturing 
it, one of the most interesting of which is with the cowrie shell. One or more cowrie 
shells of the Mauritiana or Tiger varieties are attached to a string. When only one 
is used, an oblong pebble about the size of the shell is tied to the face of it, a hole 
is pierced in one end of the back of the shell, a line is passed through, and after being 
fastened here, allowed to hang a few inches below the shell, to which a hook, whose 
point stands almost perpendicular to the shaft or shank, is attached. Only shells 
with small red spots breaking through a reddish-brown ground have an attraction for 
the hee, and it will not rise to any other kind. Shells which have suitable spots but 
unsuitable background are given the desired hue by steaming them over a fire of 
sugar-cane husks. 
On arriving at the fishing ground the fisherman in pursuit of hee either chews up 
and spits upon the water a mouthful of candlenut meat, to render the surface glassy 
and clear, or he uses the water glass, which is described below. He drops the 
shell into the water, and by means of the line swings it back and forth over a place 
likely to be occupied by a hee. The greedy animal perceives the shell, shoots out 
an arm, and seizes it. If the bait is attractive, after a few moments’ hesitation 
another arm is placed around it, and then another, until at last the animal' withdraws 
itself entirely from its hole and hugs the shell closely to its body, oblivious of every- 
thing else. The fisherman then draws it rapidly up through the water, and when it 
raises its head at the surface, pulls it over against the edge of the canoe and delivers 
a blow between the eyes with a club which is generally fatal. Owing to the hee’s 
quickness with its eight tentacles or arms, the fisherman has to be very rapid in his 
movements, as the animal would be no mean antagonist should it have an oppor- 
tunity to seize him with its arms. The natives say that a number of persons have 
lost their lives in struggles with the octopus. This method of fishing is called bjr 
the natives “Lawaia hee me ke leho” (squid-catching with cowrie). 
A cowrie shell, with a metal hook laid across the mouth of the shell and fixed in 
position with melted lead, is sometimes used in fishing for hee; and, again, a line 
with a piece of lead attached to the end in a horizontal position, a hook with the 
point up being lashed to one of the ends of the lead, is employed. 
Water glasses are frequently used along the Hawaiian coast. An oblong, square 
box, with a piece of glass fixed in the bottom, is put on the water, with the glass end 
downward, and the fisherman, by placing his face in the open end, can distinctly see 
the bottom, although the surface may be broken with ripples outside of the water 
