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 be the sacred bond of her engagement, although her life had been taken by her betrothed. Maha then determined to try some means whereby he could remove Kauhi by death, so, having learned from Kaha the words she sung on the morning she was struck down, he proceeded to the place where Kauhi was living. The cruel prince was engaged with his companions in playing games, but he stopped and listened when the voice of Maha was heard singing the touching words of sorrowful love with which she had striven to soften the stony heart of her slayer. Kauhi angrily demanded of Maha where he had learned the song, and was answered that it had been taught to him by the beauty of Manoa, who was then staying with the sisters of the singer. Kauhi asserted this to be a falsehood, and denied that Kaha was still living; words of bitterness passed, and only the influence of friends prevented bloodshed. So bitterly enraged did Kauhi become that he acknowledged that he himself had slain the beautiful girl, and he challenged Maha to produce her alive, offering to forfeit his life if she was still in existence. Maha wagered his life that he would produce her, and both offered to be firmly bound by the conditions. The terms were ratified in the presence of the king and the great nobles.