Hawaiian Folk Tales | Page 8

to find Moemoe, who
had reviled him. But that individual was not at home. He went on in his
pursuit till he came upon him at a place called Kawaiopilopilo, on the
shore to the eastward of the black rock called Kekaa, north of Lahaina.
Moemoe dodged him up hill and down, until at last Maui, growing
wroth, leaped upon and slew the fugitive. And the dead body was
transformed into a long rock, which is there to this day, by the side of
the road.

II.--THE ORIGIN OF FIRE
Maui and Hina dwelt together, and to them were born four sons, whose
names were Maui-mua, Maui-hope, Maui-kiikii, and Maui-o-ka-lana.
These four were fishermen. One morning, just as the edge of the Sun
lifted itself up, Maui-mua roused his brethren to go fishing. So they
launched their canoe from the beach at Kaupo, on the island of Maui,
where they were dwelling, and proceeded to the fishing ground. Having
arrived there, they were beginning to fish, when Maui-o-ka-lana saw
the light of a fire on the shore they had left, and said to his brethren:
"Behold, there is a fire burning. Whose can this fire be?"
And they answered: "Whose, indeed? Let us return to the shore, that we

may get our food cooked; but first let us get some fish."
So, after they had obtained some fish, they turned toward the shore; and
when the canoe touched the beach Maui-mua leaped ashore and ran
toward the spot where the fire had been burning. Now, the curly-tailed
alae (mud-hens) were the keepers of the fire; and when they saw him
coming they scratched the fire out and flew away. Maui-mua was
defeated, and returned to the house to his brethren.
Then said they to him: "How about the fire?"
"How, indeed?" he answered. "When I got there, behold, there was no
fire; it was out. I supposed some man had the fire, and behold, it was
not so; the alae are the proprietors of the fire, and our bananas are all
stolen."
When they heard that, they were filled with anger, and decided not to
go fishing again, but to wait for the next appearance of the fire. But
after many days had passed without their seeing the fire, they went
fishing again, and behold, there was the fire! And so they were
continually tantalized. Only when they were out fishing would the fire
appear, and when they returned they could not find it.
This was the way of it. The curly-tailed alae knew that Maui and Hina
had only these four sons, and if any of them stayed on shore to watch
the fire while the others were out in the canoe the alae knew it by
counting those in the canoe, and would not light the fire. Only when
they could count four men in the canoe would they light the fire. So
Maui-mua thought it over, and said to his brethren: "To-morrow
morning do you go fishing, and I will stay ashore. But do you take the
calabash and dress it in kapa, and put it in my place in the canoe, and
then go out to fish."
They did so, and when they went out to fish the next morning, the alae
counted and saw four figures in the canoe, and then they lit the fire and
put the bananas on to roast. Before they were fully baked one of the
alae cried out: "Our dish is cooked! Behold, Hina has a smart son."

And with that, Maui-mua, who had stolen close to them unperceived,
leaped forward, seized the curly-tailed alae and exclaimed: "Now I will
kill you, you scamp of an alae! Behold, it is you who are keeping the
fire from us. I will be the death of you for this."
Then answered the alae: "If you kill me the secret dies with me, and
you won't get the fire." As Maui-mua began to wring its neck, the alae
again spoke, and said: "Let me live, and you shall have the fire."
So Maui-mua said: "Tell me, where is the fire?"
The alae replied: "It is in the leaf of the a-pe plant" (Alocasia
macrorrhiza).
So, by the direction of the alae, Maui-mua began to rub the leaf-stalk of
the a-pe plant with a piece of stick, but the fire would not come. Again
he asked: "Where is this fire that you are hiding from me?"
The alae answered: "In a green stick."
And he rubbed a green stick, but got no fire. So it went on, until finally
the alae told him he would find it in a dry stick; and so, indeed, he did.
But Maui-mua, in revenge for the conduct of the alae, after he had got
the fire from the dry