At last a child was born in Hawaii, who was unusually strong and wise. He grew up and became a great chief. His name was Kamehameha. That word means "The Lonely One." He was very ambitious. He looked over the island of Hawaii, and said to himself:
"I will make myself king of this whole land. I will bring the people more closely together. I will change many of the customs which are bad and harmful."
He kept his word. He rallied his own men around him, and was soon ruler of the entire island. But still he was not satisfied. He looked across the sea to other islands, and said:
"I will be ruler over all these, too. My kingdom shall be a powerful one."
He sailed with his troops in his strong war-canoes, and soon landed on the island of Maui, not far from Hawaii.
The king of that island had been warned of the coming of the enemy. He was already marching down a narrow pass between the mountains to meet The Lonely One and his army.
Kamehameha did not waste a moment. He rushed up the pass, his men following him in single file, and there, in a narrow pathway at least a thousand feet above a deep abyss, the two armies met. As each one of the Hawaiian soldiers stepped upward, he met and grappled with one of the enemy. One or the other was sure to be hurled downward over the precipice, and meet death below, if he were not already killed on the narrow pathway.
It was a terrible battle. When night came the army of Maui was no more, and Kamehameha was ruler of that island.
He was suddenly called back to his own home, for news came that a rebel leader in Hawaii had risen against him. This leader encamped with his men near the volcano Kilauea. As the great Kamehameha advanced to meet them an earthquake shook the land; a violent storm of cinders and sand rose out of the crater to a great height, and then fell down over the mountainside.
When the men were able to advance once more it was found that a large part of the rebel army had been killed by the eruption. At this the people exclaimed: