Honolulu Star-Bulletin Limited
1915
Copyright, 1915, by
N. B. EMERSON.
Published March, 1915.
PREFACE
The story of Pele and her sister Hiiaka stands at the fountain-head of Hawaiian mythand is the matrix from which the unwritten literature of Hawaii drew its life-blood.The material for the elaboration of this story has, in part, been found in serialcontributions to the Hawaiian newspapers during the last few decades; in part, gatheredby interviews with the men and women of the older regime, in whose memory it has beenstored and, again, in part, it has been supplied by papers solicited from intelligentHawaiians. The information contained in the notes has been extracted by viva voce appeal to Hawaiians themselves. These last two sources of information will soon beno longer available.
Merely as a story, this myth of Pele and her kindred may be deemed to have no compellingmerit that should attract one to its reading. The cycle of world-myth already gathered