THE STORY

—OF—

ELEIO.

SECTION 1.

WE PERHAPS SHOULD SPEAK here of Eleio, the caretaker of Kakaalaneo, an Alii of Maui, and thereafter, let’s speak of Kaululaau, the actual child of Kakaalaneo and a chiefess of Hawaii, Kelekeleiokaula, the daughter of Kaleihaohia, a chief of Hawaii.

It is said that Eleio was a kahu of Kakaalaneo, an Alii of Maui, and it is thought that Kakaalaneo was the fifth generation of Maui Chiefs. If their genealogy was laid out properly from Kumuhonua to Kakaalaneo, then it would actually come to five generations.

But in speaking about Eleio, we must speak about him.

Eleio was a fast runner, and because of Eleio’s speed, Kakaalaneo chose Eleio to fulfill his needs in very far places.

This is how we will see how fast Eleio was.

When the Steward of Kakaalaneo was preparing the poi and the ti-leaf wrapped fish of the Alii, at that time, the Alii sent Eleio to go get awa for Him; and the feast of the Alii would begin with the arrival of the awa fetched by Eleio.

But the location of the awa that Eleio was to fetch for the Alii was at a place very far, and that place was in the Koolau side of Maui, at a place named Waiohue.

 If Eleio went to get the awa at Waiohule when the ti-leaf wrapped fish was not cooked, he would return before the meal of the Alii began. This is something Eleio did all the time, fetching the awa for the Chief; the place the Chief lived was mauka of Kekaa, that hill standing at Kaanapali, makai side of Kealakikeekee a Maui.

[This is the beginning of the story of Eleio, it begins in the Kuokoa from 9/5/1863, and concludes on 11/21/1863. This story was written down by W. N. Pualewa (who seems to have died at Kalawao on 12/26/1873).

The closing by Pualewa of his telling of the story is interesting:

And there is this, at this point, we will end our Story of Eleio and Kaululaau; because, we have come to the place where there is great entanglements, and not because the Story is completed, but because of the complexity of putting into order, for there are five sections left of this Moolelo, and within those five parts, divided are the branches of the alii, the genealogy of the kahuna, and the ancestors of the kanaka, and because of this difficulty, I am ending Kaululaau at this Section, and it is for someone that is versed in the Moolelo who should fill this empty space of the paper. With thanks. W. N. Pualewa.]

(Kuokoa, 9/5/1863, p. 1)

Ka Nupepa Kuokoa, Buke II, Helu 36, Aoao 1. Sepatemaba 5, 1863.