Samoa, A Hundred Years Ago And Long Before

The Origin Of Fire, And Other Stories.

1. The Samoans say that there was a time when their ancestors ate everything raw, and that they owe the luxury of cooked food to one Ti'iti'i, the son of a person called Talanga. This Talanga was high in favour with the earthquake god Mafuie, who lived in a subterranean region where there was fire continually burning. On going to a certain perpendicular rock, and saying, "Rock, divide! I am Talanga; I have come to work!" the rock opened, and let Talanga in; and he went below to his plantation in the land of this god Mafuie. One day Ti'iti'i, the son of Talanga, followed his father, and watched where he entered. The youth, after a time, went up to the rock, and, feigning his father's voice, said, "Rock, divide! I am Talanga; I have come to work!" and was admitted too. His father, who was at work in his plantation, was surprised to see his son there, and begged him not to talk loud, lest the god Mafuie should hear him, and be angry.

Seeing smoke rising, he inquired of his father what it was. His father said it was the fire of Mafuie. "I must go and get some," said the son. "No," said the father; "he will be angry. Don't you know he eats people?" "What do I care for him?" said the daring youth; and off he went, humming a song, towards the smoking furnace.

"Who are you?" said Mafuie.

"I am Ti'iti'i, the son of Talanga. I am come for some fire."

"Take it," said Mafuie.

He went back to his father with some cinders, and the two set to work to bake some taro. They kindled a fire, and were preparing the taro to put on the hot stones, when suddenly the god Mafuie blew up the oven, scattered the stones all about, and put out the fire. "Now," said Talanga, "did not I tell you Mafuie would be angry?" Ti'iti'i went off in a rage to Mafuie, and without any ceremony commenced with, "Why have you broken up our oven, and put out our fire?" Mafuie was indignant at such a tone and language, rushed at him, and there they wrestled with each other. Ti'iti'i got hold of the right arm of Mafuie, grasped it with both hands, and gave it such a wrench that it broke off. He then seized the other arm, and was going to twist it off next when Mafuie declared himself beaten, and implored Ti'iti'i to have mercy, and spare his left arm.

"Do let me have this arm," said he; "I need it to hold Samoa straight and level. Give it to me, and I will let you have my hundred wives."

"No, not for that," said Ti'iti'i.

"Well, then, will you take fire? If you let me have my left arm you shall have fire, and you may ever after this eat cooked food."

"Agreed," said Ti'iti'i; "you keep your arm, and I have fire."

"Go," said Mafuie; "you will find the fire in every wood you cut."

And hence, the story adds, Samoa, ever since the days of Ti'iti'i, has eaten cooked food from the fire which is got from the friction of rubbing one piece of dry wood against another.

The superstitious still have half an idea that Mafuie is down below Samoa somewhere; and that the earth has a long handle there, like a walking-stick, which Mafuie gives a shake now and then. It was common for them to say, when they felt the shock of an earthquake, "Thanks to Ti'iti'i, that Mafuie has only one arm: if he had two, what a shake he would give!"

The natives of Savage Island, 300 miles to the south of Samoa, have a somewhat similar tale about the origin of fire. Instead of Talanga and Ti'iti'i, they give the names of Maui, the father, and Maui, the son. Instead of going through a rock, their entrance was down through a reed bush. And, instead of a stipulation for the fire, they say that the youth Maui, like another Prometheus, stole it, ran up the passage, and before his father could catch him, he had set the bush in flames in all directions. The father tried to put it out, but in vain; and they further add, that ever since the exploit of young Maui, they have had fire and cooked food in Savage Island.

2. The Samoans have their stories of a golden age of intelligence long long ago, when all things material had the power of speech. They not only spoke, but they had evil natures as well, and quarrelled with each other and fought, very much like the races of mankind. We have already referred to the early battles of cosmogony, and to the wars of the rocks and fires and earth and stones. It was the same with the flora and fauna. Or to give it in their own words: "The small stones fought with the grass, the stones were beaten and the grass conquered. The short grass fought with the strong weedy grass, the short grass was beaten and the strong grass conquered. The strong grass fought with the long grass of the bush, the strong grass was beaten and the bush grass conquered. The bush grass fought with the trees, the grass was beaten and the trees conquered. The trees fought with the creepers, the trees were beaten and the creepers conquered—and then began the wars of men." Pity but the wars of men had been as bloodless as those which preceded them!

The principle seems to be that whenever one thing prevails to excess above another thing, or is in any way superior, be it rock, stone, earth, grass, or tree, we are sure to find some tradition of its battle and victory. The old poetic Samoan forefathers who framed these fabulous fights added a deal of circumstance and minuteness to their tales, and all was seriously believed by some of their more prosaic posterity.

3. A story is told of a battle between two trees—a Fijian Banian tree and the Samoan tree called Tatangia (acacia laurifolia). A report reached Samoa that the trees of Fiji had fought with the Banian tree, and that it had beaten them all. On this the Tatangia and another tree went off from Samoa in two canoes to fight the Fijian champion. They reached Fiji, went on shore, and there stood the Banian tree. "Where is the tree," they inquired, "which has conquered all the trees?" "I am the tree," said the Banian. Then said the Tatangia, "I have come to fight with you." "Very good, let us fight" replied the Banian. They fought. A branch of the Banian tree fell, but Tatangia sprung aside and escaped. Another fell—ditto, ditto—the Tatangia. Then the trunk fell. Tatangia again darted aside and escaped unhurt. On this the Banian tree "buried its eyes in the earth," and owned itself conquered. As many of the towns and districts are spoken of figuratively by the names of trees noted for strength or beauty, the inference as to the real actors in these tree fights is obvious. The present generation, however, will hardly admit that they may describe the wars of men.

The following is a specimen story of a piscatorial fight:—A shark which had its habitat in a cave on the south side of Savaii mustered all the fish in the neighbourhood to go and fight with the great red fish of Manu'a. The Manu'a fish with their red leader met them in the ocean between Tutuila and Manu'a. They fought. The Savaii fish were beaten, and fled pursued by their conquerors. Most of them took refuge under stones and rocks and escaped, but their leader, the shark, fled to his own cave. He was pursued, however, and killed by the red fish of Manu'a. I tell them that the shark, red fish, etc., must have been mere figurative names for chiefs and districts, and the finny troops under them were doubtless living men, but in all these stories the Samoans are rigid literalists, and believe in the very words of the tradition. And yet at the present day they have towns and districts bearing figurative names, distinct from the real names, such as the sword fish, the stinging ray, the dog, the wild boar, the Tongan cock, the frigate bird, etc. And if such creatures had been known of old in Samoa, they would no doubt have had their bear, their lion, and their eagle, and stories too of their battles.

4. We have also accounts of battles fought by the birds on the one side and the fish on the other. The fish and the birds were in the habit of paying friendly visits to each other. The inanga, or small fry of a fresh-water fish, were offended at not being hospitably received on shore by the birds; on the other hand, the birds despised the inanga for being so small. They fought, and the fishes conquered, and it ended in the fish becoming birds and the birds fishes; and hence they say the back-bone of the inanga projects so much. But after that there was another battle, in which the fish were beaten and the birds conquered; and ever since the birds have had their wings, and their supremacy, and the right of going to the sea, or the river, as they please, to pick up the fish which come within their reach.

A battle also between the owl and the serpent is noteworthy. It runs as follows:—There were ten brothers, whose names were Sefulu, Iva, Valu, Fitu, Ono, Lima, Fa, Tolu, Lua, and Tasi, and so named from the ten numerals, which in those days began with Sefulu as 1, and ended with Tasi as 10. These ten brothers went to the forest to cut wood for a large canoe. They came upon an owl and a serpent fighting. Sefulu was walking first, and to him the owl called out; "Sefulu, you come and kill my enemy here, the serpent, and if you do, you shall have a right to the Ifilele and Maota timber trees" [Afzelia bijuga, and Dysoxylon Sp.]

"No, let us pass on," said Sefulu, "there are plenty of other trees which will answer our purpose." Then the owl turned to Iva and all the others on to Lua, and implored help in killing the serpent, but each in turn answered as did Sefulu. Tasi, however, replied to the entreaty of the owl, and said, "Yes, I will," and grasping his felling axe, struck out at the serpent and killed it. "Well done, Tasi!" said the owl, "and to keep in remembrance for all time to come your bravery, and respect for me, you shall stand foremost in everything that is numbered. Sefulu who has been first shall now be last, and you who have been last shall always be first." And so it has continued to the present day—the first, Tasi, and the tenth, Sefulu.

5. The appearance or forms of things, as in this latter instance perhaps, have also suggested some other fabulous stories. They say that the rat had wings formerly, and that the large bat or flying fox at that time had no wings. One day the bat said to the rat: "Let me try on your wings for a little, that I may see how I like flying." The rat lent the bat his wings, off flew the bat with the wings, and never came back to return them. And hence the proverb applied to a person who borrows and does not return: "Like the bat with the rat."

Take another illustration. With the exception of the mountain plantain (Musa uranospatha) all the bananas have their bunches of fruit hanging downwards towards the earth, like a bunch of grapes.

The plantain shoots up its bunch of fruit erect towards the heavens. As the reason of this, we are told that of old all the bananas held their heads erect, but they quarrelled with the plantain, fought, were beaten, and, ever since, have hung their heads in token of their defeat, whereas the plantain is erect still, and the symbol of its own victory.

6. They have a number of other fabulous stories referred to in proverbial language in daily use. Take the story of the fowl and the turtle. A fowl made her headquarters over a rock from which a cool spring of fresh water ran out into the adjacent stream. One day a turtle made its appearance. It was enjoying the cool fresh bath, and rising now and then to look about, when it was addressed roughly by the fowl: "Who are you?" "I am a turtle." "Where have you come from?" "From the hot salt sea." "What are you doing here?" "Bathing, and enjoying the fine cool fresh water." "Be off, this is my water." "No, it is mine as much as it is yours." "No, it is mine, and you must be off." "No I won't. I have as much right to be here as you." "Well, then," said the fowl, "let us decide in this way which of us will have it. Let each of us go away, and whoever is first here in the morning shall have the right to the spring." "Let it be so," said the turtle, "I'm off to the briny sea; you go away to the village."

The turtle was back from the sea, up the river, and at the spring, very early in the morning. The fowl thought there was no need to hurry, as she could with one bound on her wings be at the rock; and so she roosted till the sun was rising, and then flew over to the rock, but there was the turtle before her! "You are there, I see," said the fowl. "Yes, I am," replied the turtle, "and the spring is mine." And hence the proverb applied to the lazy and the late: "Here comes the fowl, the turtle is before you!"

7. Here is another of these fabulous stories:—There were three friends, a rat, a snipe, and a crab. They thought they would like to look about them on the sea, and so decided to build a canoe and go out on a short cruise. They did so, and when the canoe was ready off they went. The snipe pulled the first paddle, the crab the second, and the rat steered. A squall came on, and the canoe upset. The snipe flew to the shore, the crab sank and escaped to the bottom, and the rat swam. The rat was soon fatigued, but an octopus came along, and from it the rat implored help. "Come on my back," said the octopus. The rat was only too happy to do so. By-and-by the octopus said: "How heavy you are! my back is getting painful." "Yes," said the rat, "I drank too much salt water when I was swimming there; but bear it a little longer, we shall soon be at the shore."

When the octopus reached the shore off ran the rat into the bush. The octopus felt the pain still, however, and now discovered that the rat had been gnawing at the back of its neck. The octopus was enraged, called all his friends among the owls to assemble, and begged them to pursue and destroy the rat. They did so, caught it, killed it, and ate it, but there was hardly a morsel for each, they were so many. And hence the proverb in exhorting not to return evil for good:—"Do not be like the rat with the octopus, evil will overtake you if you do."

8. Here is a story of Toa and Pale, or Hero and Helper.

The King of Fiji was a savage cannibal, and the people were melting away under him. Toa and Pale were brothers, they wished to escape being killed for the oven, and so fled to the bush and became trees. It was only the day before a party were to go to the woods to search for a straight tree from which to make the keel of a new canoe for the king. They knew this, and so Pale changed himself into a crooked stick overrun with creepers, that he might not be cut by the king's carpenters, and advised Toa to do the same. He declined, however, and preferred standing erect as a handsome straight tree.

The party in search of a keel went to the very place, liked the look of Toa, and decided to cut it down. They cut, and Toa was felled to the ground, but Pale, who was close by, immediately raised him up again. The carpenters were confounded—cut again—but it was just the same. They persevered, and the cutting, falling, and rising again, went on till night fell, when they gave it up. After they left Toa said to Pale, "What a Toa (trouble) I have been to you!" and hence the proverb to this day, when a person or thing has been a trouble to another, he says to the sufferer in a sympathising or apologetic tone: "What a Toa it has been to you!"

9. The following are a few more of these proverbs, but stated more briefly.

(1) "One and yet a thousand," is a common description of a clever man, and equivalent to our own expression: "He is a host in himself."

(2) "Only the appearance of plait." Spoken of a thin worn-out person reduced to a mere shadow. Not a real plaited mat, but only the appearance of one.

(3) "Many footprints." Spoken of a large settlement which makes many at a festival, or night-dance, or public meeting of any kind.

(4) "A single cocoa-nut." Referring to a single nut hanging from a tree. This is said of a man who has no brothers, and who is therefore called the single nut of the family.

(5) "Great and yet small." Applied to a populous place which has no courage. Or a large family, but without one who has any pluck.

(6) "The emptiness of a large basket." A good deal of food seems but little if put in a large basket. Also the population of a large village, if the houses are widely apart, seems small until they really come together.

(7) "The break of a cocoa-nut leaf net." This leaf net is an arrangement for enclosing fish by a long string of cocoa-nut leaves, which, if the leaves break, can be easily tied again. This is spoken of a chief who dies but leaves a number of sons to take his place.

(8) "Afterwards touched." If a family is numerically strong, no one dares to injure them. If, however, a number die, then those who survive are more liable to insult or injury from the neighbourhood. In the event of such ill-usage they throw it back on their injurers: "You dared not touch us before."

(9) "Helping with the burden." As one may run in and stretch out his hand to ease the shoulder of a weak person struggling under a load, so a person who prompts a public speaker in a difficulty is said to help with the burden.

(10) "Covering the dead bird." If a pigeon sees its mate fall dead it will drop down and cover the body with its wings even if it should be killed also. To this the Samoans compare a brother who will rush in among troops after his wounded brother even if he should be killed himself.

Names Of The Islands.

Illustrating Migrations, etc.

1. Of the group generally, it is said that a couple lived at Pulotu called Head of Day and Tail of Day. They had four children—(1) Ua, or Rain; (2) Fan, Long grass;(3) Langi, Heavens; (and 4) Tala, or Story. The four went to visit Papatea. Pulotu is in the west, Papatea in the east. The Papateans heard of the arrival of the four brothers and determined to kill them. First, Ua was struck on the neck; and hence the word taua, or beat the neck, as the word for war. This was the beginning of wars. Others stood on the neck of Fan, and hence the proverb in war: "To-morrow we shall tread on the neck of Fan." Others surrounded and spat on Langi, and hence the proverb for ill-usage, or rudely passing before chiefs: "It is spitting on Langi." Tala was spared, and escaped uninjured.

Tala and Langi returned to Pulotu and told about their ill-usage. Then Elo, the king of Pulotu, was enraged, and prepared to go and fight the Papateans. This was the first war in history. They went, they fought, they conquered, and made a clean sweep of Papatea; and hence the proverb: "Like the rage of Elo." Also for a village destroyed in battle they say: "Ua faa Papateaina"—made to be like Papatea.

All who fled to the bush were sought and killed, only those who fled to sea escaped. A man called Tutu and his wife Ila reached the island of Tutuila, and named it so by the union of their names. U and Polu reached Upolu, and hence the name of that island by uniting their names. Sa and Vaila reached Savaii, united their names also, and, for the sake of euphony, or, as they call euphony "lifting it easily," made it Savaii instead of Savaila.

Political Divisions And Places Of Note On Upolu.

On Upolu the name of Pili has an early place among the doings of mortals and in the division of the lands. In one of the traditions his history runs thus:—Manga had a daughter called Sina, who married the king of Manu'a. They had a daughter called Sinaleana, White of the cave, because she lived in a cave in which there was also kept the parrot of the king. The god, Tangaloa, of the heavens looked down and fancied her. He sent Thunder and Storm for her; they did not get her. Lightning and Darkness were also sent to fetch her, but they also failed. Next Deluging Rain, dashing down in great egg-drops, was sent, but to no purpose. He then let down a net, which covered up the mouth of the cave, caught her, and pulled her up to the heavens. She became his wife, had a child, and named him Pili, or Entangled, from the way in which she was entangled in the net.

Pili grew up to manhood under the care of the gods, and was sometimes told, pointing down to the earth, that that place was his. He begged of his father Tangaloa to be allowed to go down. The reply was: "If you go down, come up again. But if you wish to go and not return, take my wooden pillow and fishing-net with you."

He was let down to the earth by the fishing-net, and placed on Manu'a. The king of Manu'a asked where he came from, and on hearing that he was his grandson, and that his mother, Sina, was still up in the heavens, he wept aloud. Pili went to visit Tutuila, tried his hand at fishing, but caught nothing, and was mocked by the Tutuilans. He then swam away to Savaii, took up his abode at the village Aopo, and from that was called Piliopo. He quarrelled with the chief there and went off to the village called Palapala, where he met with Tavaetele, Great tropic bird, who had come from Aana on Upolu to seek taro plants. The Palapala people were generous, and presented the Upolu chief with 100,000 plants. The retinue of the chief made a difficulty about taking so many across the channel, but Pili stepped forward and said he would bring them all over himself, which he actually did, and helped in making a taro plantation, which extended from the one side of Aana to the other, right across the island. He remained there and married Sina, the daughter of this chief.

Pili and his wife had four children. First there were twins, the one called Tua and the other Ana. Tua was so named from the back of a turtle which Pili caught at that time, and Ana from the cave in which it was taken. The next born was called Tuamasanga, or, After the twins. Then followed Tolufale, or Three houses, from the three houses into which the mother was taken before the child was born.

When Pili was old and dying he called his children together and appointed them their places and employments. To Tua, the eldest, he gave the plantation dibble, as the business of agriculture, and the eastern division of Upolu now called Atua. To Tuamasanga he committed the orator's staff and fly-flapper, with which to do the business of speaking, and, as a residence, the central division of Upolu called Tuamasanga: hence the name of the district there called Sangana, sacred to oratory. To Ana he gave the Spear as the emblem of war, and as a district, the western division of Upolu called Aana. Tolufale was to live on Manono, but to go about and take the oversight of all. The old man finished up his will with: "When you wish to fight, fight; when you wish to work, work; when you wish to talk, talk." After his death they separated, and went to their respective places and employments.

1. Atua is the eastern division of Upolu, and it again was subdivided into what they called the head, the middle, and the tail.

(1.) Aleipata is a district at the east end of the island, and was called the head, as the titled king or head of Atua resided there. The name originated in Alei and Pata, a couple who were said to have come from the heavens and taught their children to build houses. They were very good-looking, and charged their children that when they died they were to be buried in a standing posture, with their faces uncovered, that people might still come and look at them; and from this probably originated the custom of embalming practised there.

Lefao was the name a chief who came from Tutuila and lived in one of the districts bordering on Aleipata. When the meeting was held for the division of the lands of Atua he did not attend, but the chiefs voted him the place and neighbourhood where he lived at Lepa, or the wall, which, of old, ran across the island and ended there, and hence the place was named Salefao—sacred to, or, the province of Lefao.

(2.) Lufilufi.—This settlement, on the north side, was the principal residence of the kings of Atua. The word means food-divider. It had its origin in the name of a fish called Naiufi, which was cut up, on one occasion, with surprising dexterity by one of the king's attendants with only a bit of the cocoa-nut stem as a knife. He received on that account the name of Lufilufi, and was promoted to be chief carver to the king, and to rule in all divisions of food on public occasions. The town was named after him, and to this day in all public gatherings the distribution of the food part of the entertainment is committed to some of the young men of this place.

(3.) Saluafata.—This village is closely attached to Lufilufi, and was so named from a lady called Luafata who lived there, and whose daughter married the king of Atua. Her grandchild by this royal father was among the indulged, and, like other scions of royalty in Samoa, had such privileges as to stand or walk about when he ate his food; and, while others carried burdens of cocoa-nuts, etc., he was allowed to march up and down with a fancy spear, and play at spear throwing. He was named the Right-arm-of-Atua, and took the lead in the village as body-guard of the king.

(4.) Solosolo means falling, and the town was so named from a loose stone wall which the first settlers there built, but which repeatedly fell down. Aumua and Oloatua are the names of two divisions of the settlement, separated by the wall. These were the names of two attendants of a lady called Manu, who had several Samoan suitors but rejected them all, and went to Tonga. Two Tongan kings made proposals to her. The one was good-looking, and the other was more noted for good living and even cannibal preferences. Her attendants advised her to marry the latter, but to try and get her share of the cannibal feast alive, and save them. She took their advice, married the gourmand king, and when baked human bodies were laid before her, begged that, for the future, such offerings might be presented alive. This was granted, and one after another of her share in the victims was passed over, alive as she got them, to the care of her attendants, Aumua and Oloatua, at a place on the opposite side of the road. By-and-by it became a large village of the saved.

Queen Manu had a daughter called Vaetoeifanga who grew up to womanhood. She was heard of in Samoa, and a lady was sent to Tonga to try and get her to come and marry the king of Aana. The lady described his land as a perfect paradise, with nine springs of water, and she was persuaded to go and be the wife of the king of Aana. When she came to Samoa a number of the people from the village of the saved, with Aumua and Oloatua, came with her, and gave the names to these places at Solosolo. Some of them also went further east and occupied and named some of the settlements about Fangaloa, or the Long-bay, as it is called from its running far inland.

Solosolo was also noted as the residence of the cannibal god, Maniloa, as he was called. He lived in a valley, and the people worshipped him. As they went with their offerings of food they had to cross a ravine, walking, Blondin style, on a thick vine which the god stretched across the valley. He sat himself in the middle of the said vine-rope, shook it as any one he fancied approached, and down fell the victim dead into the ravine, and ready for the next meal.

A young man called Polu-leuligana, Polu-of-dark-speech, son of Malietoa, called one day when on a journey. The people related to him their grievances, and how they were being all eaten up by Maniloa. This daring youth concocted a scheme. He told them to fix upon some one to sit concealed with an axe at the end of the rope next to the village, and that he would go round, axe in hand also, by a circuitous course, and conceal himself close by the end of the rope on the other side of the ravine; there he would watch till the god was again in his place on the centre of the rope, rise up, shout at the top of his voice, and this was to be the signal to cut the rope at each end and let fall their cannibal enemy. They did so. Next day Maniloa went along and sat down on the rope to wait for his victim. Presently the valley rang with a shout, the rope was cut at both ends, and down, crash into the ravine, went the horrid old creature, and ever after Solosolo was saved from his cannibalism.

(5.) Falealili, or the House-of-Lili, is the name of a district on the south side of Atua. Lili was a chief from Fiji whose mother was a Samoan. He and some others were driven away from Fiji on account of bad conduct. When he came to Samoa the land had been divided, but he got his share, as the tail of Atua. He built a large house, and from this house of Lili the district was named. It embraces a number of villages and adjacent places, named after local circumstances or events. Salani was so called from the white coral pebbles on the beach with which the women decorate the graves of the dead. Salesatele was also called the sweat of Falealili, from the heroism of the people of that place in battle. If the king of Atua was on a journey, and carried along shoulder high, as soon as he reached this village he had to get down and walk, as a mark of respect to the chivalrous villagers. Faleulu, or Housed-by-the-bread-fruit-tree, was so named from a party who came from Fiji by way of Manu'a and Tutuila, and who, on reaching Upolu, were benighted there and slept under a bread-fruit tree. The name of Poutasi, or One-post, had its origin in a great O'a tree (Bischoffia javanica) which a chief ordered to be dug up root and all, planted in the village, and made the centre post of his house. Lotofanga is said to have been named after Loto and Fanga, who were sent by the king of Fiji to search for a runaway son. A lagoon is said to have been there once, but was dried up by these first inhabitants of the place pouring hot water into it.

2. Tuamasanga is the central division of Upolu, having about sixteen miles of coast on the north side, and twelve on the south.

(1.) At Malie, in the district of Sangana on the north side, the chief Malietoa had his principal residence when on Upolu; and of the doings there of some of these Malietoas, or "Pleasing-heroes," as the name means, many stories are told. After Polu-leuligana had seen the old cannibal god dead in the ravine at Solosolo (p. 238) he returned to Sangana. On his arrival the first thing he heard was the wailing of a poor lad who had just been brought over from Savaii and was about to be killed for Malietoa's next meal. Polu told him to be quiet, and promised to try and save his life. He ordered the usual green cocoa-nut leaves to be plaited, and himself to be done up in them, slung on a pole, carried by two men, and laid down before his father as if it were the baked victim from Savaii. Malietoa saw a bright eye peering through the leaflets, opened, and behold! there was his son Polu-leuligana. He was so touched with this extraordinary condescension of his son that he not only saved the lad who was about to be killed, but further, to mark the day and the event, he declared that from that time no more human victims were to be killed for the oven, and that pigs were to be used instead. After this Polu was named Faaifoaso, or "Downfall-of-Cannibalism."

Another story is told of the said Malietoa. He was annoyed at the disappearance of some of his bread-fruits, bananas, and fowls, and summoned to Sangana all the priests of the Tuamasanga. Twenty of them assembled. He told them what had been stolen, and ordered them to divine the thief. After a long silence they said they could not tell. They were then tied hand and foot, carried outside, and laid down in the blazing sun till they could declare the name of the thief. At the same time Malietoa sent off to Savaii for a noted conjurer called Vaapuu or "Short-canoe." After some days he arrived, and found the priests still tied up in the sun. On hearing the case he turned to Malietoa and said: "Listen while I tell you the names of the thieves. The owl has taken your fowls. The bat has eaten your bread-fruits. And the Kingfisher bird has made away with your bananas." This was enough. The twenty priests were liberated, went to their respective homes, and told how they owed their lives to the ready reply of the expert Vaapuu.

(2.) Faleata, or the "House-of-Ata," embraces a number of small villages, and was so named from the chief Ata. Ata was killed in battle, and his brother Too took it so much to heart that he went away inland, scooped out a great hollow, and filled it with his tears; and hence the lake there called Lanutoo, or "Lake-of-Too."

The Faleata people were and still are distinguished for their heroism and clever scheming in war. In a battle on Savaii they fled before the Safune people, or rather pretended to flee. While some fled others lay down among the slain as if motionless and dead; and when the Safune people came to search for those of their own who had fallen, up started the living Faleata people with their clubs, rushed at them, and again conquered Safune. Hence a sham retreat in war is to this day called "a Faleata flight."

(3.) Apia is the name of the principal harbour in the Tuamasanga. The word is abbreviated from Apitia, or straightened, and the place was so named in remembrance of a battle, in which the Tuamasanga came suddenly down from the bush on to the fleet of Manono canoes, threw them into disorder, and, in their haste to escape, ran upon one another in the narrow passage out of the harbour. The village inland of Apia, called Tanumamanono, or "The-burial-place-of-Manono," keeps up in its name the remembrance of the slain of Manono buried there.

(4.) Laulii is the name of a village in the east end of the Tuamasanga. A couple lived there called Lau and Lii, with a party who came from Fiji and took up their abode in the bay there which was called "Sacred to the gods." A large canoe was being built by three chiefs there in the bush. Lau and Lii wished to see it, as it was a very superior one, and to be called, "The canoe without a leak." They mistook the road, wandered, could not find either the canoe or its builders, and were so angry over the disappointment that they changed themselves into two rocks which stand there, and in remembrance of them the place is called Laulii.

(5.) Laloata is the name of a village inland of Apia. The word means "Under the shade," and had its origin as follows:—Pai and his wife lived there, and had a daughter called Sina. The woman went down to the sea one day to fetch salt water for cooking purposes; a small sea eel stuck to her cocoa-nut shell water-bottle, and she took it home as a plaything for her child Sina to feed and keep in a cup. The eel grew, and then they digged a well for it. One day Pai and his wife returned from some plantation work and found Sina crying, as the eel had bitten her. They concluded that it must have become the incarnation of some cruel god, and determined to go away from the place.

Away the three went eastward, but on looking round there was the eel out of the water and following after them. Then said the father to his wife and Sina: "You make your escape, and I will remain here and raise mountains to keep it back." Sina and her mother went on ahead, but on looking over their shoulder there was the eel again still rustling after them. Then the mother said to her daughter: "You make your escape alone, and I will remain here, raise mountains and intercept the creature." Sina went on alone, but the eel still followed just as before. As she passed through the villages the people called her in to rest and have a bit of food, and once and again she offered to do so on condition that they would try and deliver her from the pursuing eel. When they heard that, and saw the creature, they said:

"Oh no, you had better pass on; we are afraid of that thing."

Sina gave it up, thought escape was impossible, turned round and made for her home again. As she passed through one of the villages to the cast of Apia the people called the attention of their chief to the young woman passing, and an eel following her. He told them to call her in and have something to drink. She said she would gladly do so if they would only get rid of the eel. The chief called out to her: "Yes, come in, and we can do that." She went into the house, and the eel remained outside. The chief gave orders to get ready a cup of 'ava for the strangers, and quietly whispered to the young men to go off to the bush and bring all the poisonous things they could lay their hands on to mix with it. Soon the bowl was brought in, and the 'ava declared ready to be served round.

"Give the first cup to the stranger outside," said the chief to the young men; and out went one of them with a cup to the eel, which was at once eagerly drank. But immediately the creature called to Sina to go outside, and when Sina went out it said to her: "Sina, I am dying. Let us part in peace. When you hear that they have cooked me, you ask the head as your share. Then take it and bury it near the stone wall, and it will grow up a cocoa-nut tree for you. In the nuts you will see my eyes and mouth, and so we shall be able to look at each other face to face still. The leaves of the tree will be a shade for you, and you can plait them into mats, and make a fan also to fan yourself."

After saying this the creature died. It was soon in the oven; and when served up by-and-by Sina begged the head, took it home with her, and put it under the ground near the stone wall. It grew up to be a cocoa-nut tree, and she got her leaves, and mats, and fans, and nuts, marked with the eyes and mouth of her departed eel, which she could kiss still; and there too she had a shade also when she sat down to work or rest—and hence the origin alike of the name of the village, Laloata, and of the introduction of cocoa-nuts.

(6.) Safata is the name of the south side of the Tuamasanga. It is said to have had its origin in Sa, who came from Fonaui in Fiji, and Fata of Sangana. Fata had a quarrel with his brother over the Malietoa title, and so determined to leave the family and take up his residence on the other side of the island, and there he met with his friend from Fiji. It contains a number of villages, and a beautiful salt water lagoon connected with the sea by a narrow entrance.

This circular basin is said to have been formed by the dying struggles of a great fish. This "great fish" had its habitat in the straits, and was long the dread of persons crossing the channel between Savaii and Upolu. At length a Savaii man plotted the destruction of the monster. He split up some bamboos, made small knives of them, and tied them together. He also cooked food for the journey, and went off in a canoe with his two sons to search for the fish. He found it, or rather the fish found him, and as it rushed at him with open jaws he called to the boys to crouch down lest they should be injured by the great teeth. Away they went, canoe and all, down the throat of the monster. He then untied his bamboo knives and said: "Now, lads, let us cut away here right and left." It is said in one of the stories that he found some other Samoans there: some were dead, but to others who were still alive he handed a knife each, and said that they too must help in the work of destruction.

"The great fish" was in agony, flew through the ocean towards Upolu, went round the west end, along the south side, rushed in towards the land at Safata, tore up a passage for itself, madly wheeled round and round, and there and then died. The natives there looked on in amazement, and when all was still went down to see what the great carcase was. An enormous prize, and soon they commenced to cut into it with their stone axes. Presently they were startled by a voice from the inside calling out "Strike gently up there!" And who are you? "I am Alo of Palauli; we have been killing this great enemy of ours." He and his sons were soon let out of their prison. Ever after he was called I'aulualo, or the "Fish-enterer," and praised for his heroic deed. Some fragments of black rock on one side of the lagoon are said to be the petrified bones of the great sea monster.

3. Aana is the most westerly division of Upolu.

(1.) Alofi Aana, or the "Gathering of Aana," is the general name of the north side of Aana, and was so called from the gathering of the clans there for club exercise and other sports.

(2.) Leulumoenga, or "Headquarters," is the name of the capital town, and the residence of the king of Aana when they had one. Once upon a time when a king was wanted and they were rather scarce, two daring fellows went to a village thirty miles off, and stole an infant of rank and made him king. They cut their hair short, disguised themselves as women, and went to the house in the night when they heard the shout of joy over the birth of the young chief. One of them offered to nurse the baby for a little, and got it. The two slipped out with the child, and off they went in the dark. There was some stir in the house attending to the mother, and when all were settled down some wonder was expressed that the baby was so quiet "Who has it?" went round the house, but, to the amazement of everybody, no one there could reply and say "I have." It was days before they found out that while they were thus talking, the child and its captors were far on their way back to Leulumoenga with their prize. They kept him too, and the little man lived to be king of Aana.

(3.) Fasitoouta and Fasitootai are two large villages on either side of Leulumoenga. These places trace their origin to Tapuaau, Swimming-Tapu, or, as some call him, Tooaau, which means Swimming-stick. He is said to have swam from Fiji on a to'oto'o, or walking-stick. He landed at Leulumoenga, married there, and had two sons. When they grew up he divided the wonderful stick, gave one piece or fasi, to the one son, and the other fasi to the other. The one went to the settlement nearest to the sea westward from Leulumoenga, and called it Fasitootai, or "Bit-of-the-stick-seaward." The other went farther away and eastward, and called his village Fasitoouta, "Bit-of-the-stick-inland."

(4.) Other villages in Aana have some fragments indicating the origin of their names, such as Faleasi'u, "House of the god Siu," who was worshipped there. Samatau, "Sacred-on-the-right-side," from a large canoe belonging to the king of Tonga once anchored there, and which, owing to the illness of a lady on board, was made sacred to visitors on the right side. This place was noted for a hero called Poila who once headed the Aana troops, and killed in single combat another hero called Pepe who was the pride of the Tuamasanga, and whose death was the signal for retreat. Falelatai and Faleaseela trace their names to the children of a couple from Fiji. The one was named Latai, or "Branch-next-the-sea," from his having been born under that part of a large tree. The other was called Seela from another incident in his birth. The one lived on the north side of the mountain, and called the place Falelatai, or "House-of-Latai." The other took the south side, and called his village Faleaseela, or the "House-of-Seela."

(5.) Lefanga, or "The bay," is a name embracing a number of villages on the south side of Aana. There is a rising ground there called Taape, or "Dispersion," which is said to have been the place where a party broke up and dispersed after a visit to the heavens. There were five Atua men and four belonging to Aana.

As soon as they got up to the skies the people of the god Tangaloa laid a plot to kill them. They prepared a bowl of 'ava for their entertainment, and mixed it with poison, but no one was seriously affected by it. The Tangaloans then prepared a game at sitting in the rain to see who could endure it longest, hoping to kill some of them with cold. One of their party, called Mosofaofulu, that is, "Moso-feather-refuge," covered them with a lot of feathers, and so the rain had no effect on them.

The Tangaloans next proposed a game at floating down a stream which rushed over a cataract, of which strangers were ignorant until they were on the edge of the fall and tumbling over. The visitors were to float first, and Fulufuluitolo, or "Sugar-cane-down," took the lead. He planted his feet firmly on a rock near the fall, and as his party came floating down he seized them one by one and jerked them out of the stream and danger on to the land. And hence the proverb for an unexpected deliverance: "Saved by Fulufuluitolo." It was then the turn of a select party of the Tongaloans to float. Fulufuluitolo held out no helping hand to them, and over the fall they went one after another and were killed.

The Tangaloans next told their visitors they were going to treat them to some food, and made ready accordingly. They plotted at the same time to fall upon them when they were eating and kill them. The Tangaloans went with the food in basket-burdens as usual, carried on poles over the shoulder, and laid all down. The strangers set to work and ate furiously not only the food, but baskets, sticks, and all, to the utter amazement and unnerving of the Tangaloans, who only gaped and stared, and could not summon courage to strike a blow.

As quieter measures failed the Tangaloans proposed a game at club exercise, and thought in that way to kill them off at once. This too was accepted by the strangers. First of all Tangaloaatevalu, "Eight-livered-Tangaloa," or Tangaloa the plucky, stepped forward with his club, and up rose Tuimulifanua, "King-of-the-end-of-the-island," club in hand also to fight with him. Every blow was well aimed, struck off a liver, and made Tangaloa reel. By-and-by seven were gone, and as he had only one pluck left he called out: "Enough, enough! I am beaten; let me seek something to give you for my life." He went off and brought a fine mat cloth to wear round the body. Tuimulifanua put it round his loins, but it trailed on the ground, and had to be lifted up; hence it was called Lavasii, or "Cloth-lifted-up." He could not be troubled with the long train, and gave it to another of the party called Tuimuaiava, "King-of-the-first-harbour," who kept it and brought it down to the earth. Its name, Lavasii, became a title of chief ruler, and that title has remained in that particular family to this day. One of the Samoans killed in 1876 in a skirmish with the marines of H.M.S. Barracoutta had at that time the title of Lavasii.

When the party returned from the heavens they came down on the rising ground referred to at Lefanga, whence they dispersed, and ever since the place has been called Taape, or Dispersion.