2 OCTOBER 1915, Page 10

LEGENDS OF OLD HONOLULU.

Some entertaining. stories are told by Mr. W. D. Westervelt in his collection, Legends of Old Honolulu (Constable and Co., Cis. net). The adventures Of Pikoi the Rat-Killer are especially amusing: Rat-killing contests were a favourite sport, and on one occasion when Pikoi was still a small boy he bad a remarkable boutwith Mainele, a rich chief, who wagered .all his treasures in a trial of fifteen shots. Mainele shot first; and Pikoi pointed out rat after rat among the shrubs until his opponent bad killed fourteen. Then the boy cried : "There is only one shot more. Shoot that rat whose whiskers are by a leaf of that aweoWeo, tree. The body is concealed, but I can see the .whiskers.". But Mainele was angry, and denied that there was a rat there at all. So Pikoi took his bow and arrow and sang this song 'Large eyes have you, 0 Minato; But on did mut see that rat. Afyon had shot, 0. If ainele, You would have Ito the whiskers of that rat— You would have had two rats—two. Another cornett—three rats—three 1'

Then Pikoi let the arrow go twisting and whirling around, striking and entangling the whiskers of three rats. Mainele saw this wonderful shooting, and delivered all the treasures he had wagered. But Pikoi said lie had not really won until he had killed fourteen more rats, so he shot again a very long arrow among the thick loaves of the shrubs, and the arrow was full of rats strung (nit froin end to end hanging on it by forties. The people stood with open mouths in silent astonishment, and then .broke out in wildest enthusiasm."

This was by nd means the most wonderful of Pikoi's deeds, and many of the other legends in the book are hardly less extraordinary.