THROUGH HAWAII. 337 
tricts through which we had passed. We thought the 
people generally industrious ; for in several of the less 
fertile parts of the district we saw small pieces of lava 
thrown up in heaps, and potato vines growing very well 
in the midst of them, though we could scarcely perceive 
a particle of soil. There are plenty of ducks in the 
ponds and streams, at a short distance from the sea, 
and several large ponds or lakes literally swarm with 
fish, principally of the mullet kind. The fish in these 
ponds belong to the king and chiefs, and are tabued 
from the common people. Along the stone walls which 
partly encircle these ponds, we saw a number of small 
huts, where the persons reside who have the care of 
the fish, and are obliged frequently to feed them with a 
small kind of muscle, which they procure in the sands 
round the bay. 
The district of Waiakea, though it does not include 
more than half the bay, is yet extensive. Kukuwau 
in the middle of the bay is its western boundary, from 
which, passing along the eastern side, it extends ten 
or twelve miles towards Kaau, the last district in the 
division of Puna. 
Taking every circumstance into consideration, this 
appears a most eligible spot for a missionary station. 
The fertility of the soil, the abundance of fresh water, 
the convenience of the harbour, the dense population, 
and the favourable reception we have met with, all 
combine to give it a stronger claim to immediate atten¬ 
tion than any other place we have yet seen, except 
Kairua. There are 400 houses in the bay, and pro¬ 
bably not less than 2000 inhabitants, who would be 
immediately embraced in the operations of a missionary 
station here, besides the populous places to the north 
2 x 
