(Myths and Songs, p. 8.)]
[Footnote 22: In the song the girl is likened to the lovely _lehua_,
blossom, so common to the Puna forests, and the lover's longing to the
fiery crater, Kilauea, that lies upon their edge. The wind is the
carrier of the vision as it blows over the blossoming forest and
scorches its wing across the flaming pit. In the _Halemano_ story the
chief describes his vision as follows: "She is very beautiful. Her eyes
and form are perfect. She has long, straight, black hair and she seems
to be of high rank, like a princess. Her garment seems scented with the
_pele_ and _mahuna_ of Kauai, her skirt is made of some very light
material dyed red. She wears a _hala_ wreath on her head and a _lehua_
wreath around her neck."]
[Footnote 23: No other intoxicating liquor save _awa_ was known to the
early Hawaiians, and this was sacred to the use of chiefs. So high is
the percentage of free alcohol in this root that it has become an
article of export to Germany for use in drug making. Vancouver,
describing the famous Maui chief, Kahekili, says: "His age I suppose
must have exceeded 60. He was greatly debilitated and emaciated, and
from the color of his skin I judged his feebleness to have been brought
on by excessive use of _awa_.
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