A well-spring of water, to quaff,
A water of magic power—
The water of Life!
Life! O give us this life!
[[211]]
The story of Au-ke-le has a solemn if not a tragic ending, which is unusual in Polynesian stories. Its close makes one think of that chant that Melville heard the aged Tahitians give “in a low, sad tone”:
A harree ta fow,
A toro ta farraro,
A now ta tararta.
The palm-tree shall grow,