360 POLYNESIAN RESEARCHES. 
under the hams, and passed up between the knees., 
when the head, hands, and knees were bound 
together with cinet or cord. The body was after¬ 
wards wrapped in a coarse mat, and buried the 
first or second day after its decease. 
They preferred natural graves whenever avail¬ 
able, and selected, for this purpose, caves in the 
sides of their steep rocks, or large subterranean 
caverns. Sometimes the inhabitants of a village 
deposited their dead in one large cavern, but, in 
general, each family had a distinct sepulchral 
cave. Their artificial graves were either simple 
pits dug in the earth, or large enclosures. One 
of the latter, which we saw at Keahou, was a 
space surrounded with high stone walls, appearing 
much like an ancient heiau or temple. We pro¬ 
posed to several natives of the village to accom¬ 
pany us on a visit to it, and give us an outline of 
its history; but they appeared startled at the 
thought, said it was a wahi bio , place evil, filled 
with dead bodies, and objected so strongly to our 
approaching it, that we deemed it inexpedient to 
make our intended visit. Occasionally they buried 
their dead in sequestered places, at a short dis¬ 
tance from their habitations, but frequently in 
their gardens, and sometimes in their houses. 
Their graves were not deep, and the bodies were 
usually placed in them in a sitting posture. 
No prayer was offered at the grave, except 
occasionally by the inhabitants of Oahu. All 
their interments are conducted without any cere¬ 
mony, and are usually managed with great secrecy. 
We have often been surprised at this, and believe it 
arises from the superstitious dread the people 
entertain respecting the places where dead bodies 
are deposited, which they believe resorted to by 
