164 POLYNESIAN RESEARCHES. 
found, after proceeding about two miles from the 
sea, that the ground was generally cultivated 
They passed through considerable groves of bread¬ 
fruit trees, saw many cocoa-nuts, and numbers of 
the prickly pear, [cactus ficus indicus ,) growing 
very large, and loaded with fruit. They also 
found many people residing at the distance of 
from two to four miles from the beach, in the 
midst of their plantations, who seemed to enjoy an 
abundance of provisions, seldom possessed by 
those on the sea shore. They returned about 
noon. 
The night of the 22d was a restless one with us 
all, on account of the swarms of vermin that in¬ 
fested our lodging. We should have been glad to 
have changed our quarters, but I was not yet well 
enough to proceed. 
Another day’s detention afforded us time for 
the more minute examination of whatever was 
interesting in the neighbourhood, and the more 
ample development of the object of our visit to the 
people of the village ; and those were the occupa¬ 
tions of the day, 
Honaunau, we found, was formerly a place of 
considerable importance, having been the frequent 
residence of the kings of Hawaii for several suc¬ 
cessive generations. The monuments and relics of 
the ancient idolatry, with which this place abounds, 
were, from some cause unknown to us, spared 
amidst the general destruction of the idols, &c. 
that followed the abolition of the ai tabu, in the 
summer of 1819. 
The principal object that attracted our attention, 
was the Hare o Keave , (the House of Keave,) 
a sacred depository of the bones of departed kings 
and princes, probably erected for the reception of 
