THROUGH HAWAII. 9 
result, not only to the present race, but to every future 
generation of the inhabitants. 
To the south of Maui, and only a few miles distant 
from its southern peninsula, is situated the small island 
of T aha ur a we, about eleven miles in length, and eight 
across. It is low, and almost destitute of every kind of 
shrub or verdure, excepting a species of coarse grass. 
The rocks of which it is formed are volcanic, but we are 
not aware of the existence of any active or extinct 
craters on the island; and from its shape and appear¬ 
ance, it is not improbable that it once formed a part of 
Maui, from which it may have been detached by some 
violent convulsion connected with the action of the ad¬ 
jacent volcanoes of Maui or Hawaii. There are but 
few settled residents on the island, and these are con¬ 
sidered as under the authority of the governor of Maui. 
Morokini, a barren rock, lies between these two 
islands, and would render the navigation of the strait 
exceedingly dangerous, were it not so much elevated 
above the sea as to be at all times visible from vessels 
passing between the islands. Morokini is only visited 
by fishermen, who on its barren surface spread their nets 
to dry, and for this purpose it may be considered a con¬ 
venient appendage to the adjacent islands. 
Ranai, a compact island, seventeen miles in length 
and nine in breadth, lies north-west of Tahaurawe, and 
west of Lahaina, in Maui; from which it is separated 
by a channel, not more than nine or ten miles across. 
Though the centre of the island is much more elevated 
than Tahaurawe, it is neither so high nor broken as any 
of the other islands : great part of it is barren, and the 
island in general suffers much from the long droughts 
which frequently prevail; the ravines and glens, not- 
c 
