ich was met
by the performance of a dance, or by the exaction of kisses
and embraces. The satisfaction of these forfeits not
infrequently called for liberties and concessions that could
not be permitted on the spot or in public, but must wait the
opportunity of seclusion. There were, no doubt, times when
the conduct of the game was carried to such a pitch of
license as to offend decency; but as a rule the outward
proprieties were seemingly as well regarded as at an
old-fashioned husking bee, when the finding of the "red ear"
conferred or imposed the privilege or penalty of exacting or
granting the blushing tribute of a kiss. Actual improprieties
were not witnessed.

The game of kilu was played in an open matted space that lay
between the two divisions of the audience--the women being on
one side and the men on the other. Any chief of recognized
rank in the _papa alii_ was permitted to join in the game;
and kings and queens were not above participating in the
pleasures of this sport. Once admitted to the hall or
inclosure, all were peers and stood on an equal footing as to
the rules and privileges of the game. King nor queen could
plead exemption from the forfeits incurred nor deny to
another the full exercise of privileges acquired under the
rules.

The players, five or more of each sex, having been selected
by the president, _La anoano_ ("quiet day"), sat facing each
other in the space between the spectators. In front of each
player stood a conical block of heavy wood, broad at the base
to keep it upright. The kilu, with which the game was played,
was an oval, one-sided dish, made by cutting in two an
egg-shaped coconut shell. The object of the player was to
throw his kilu so that it should travel with a sliding and at
the same time a rotary motion across the matted floor and hit
the wooden block which stood before the one of his choice on
the side opposite. The men and the women took turns in
playing. A successful hit entitled the player to claim a kiss
from his opponent, a toll which was exacted at once. Success
in