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 N E W ZEALAND: 
 
 BEING 
 
 A NARRATIVE 
 
 OF 
 
 TRAVELS AND ADVENTURES 
 
 DURING A RESIDENCE IN THAT COUNTRY BETWEEN 
 THE YEARS 1831 AND 1837. 
 
 BY J. S. POLACK, ESQ. 
 
 MEMBER OF THE COLONFAL SOCIETY OF LONDON. 
 
 IN TWO VOLUMES. 
 VOL. L 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 RICHARD BENTLEY,.NEW BURLINGTON STREET, 
 ^ublisijcr (n ©itiinarg to ?i?cr iWajcgtfi. 
 
 M.DCCCXXXVin.
 
 LONDON: 
 
 PRINTED BV JAMES MOYKS, CASTLE STREET, 
 LEICESTER SQUARE.
 
 Reading 
 Ctb * 
 
 DU 
 410 
 
 P75n 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 The materials of the following work were 
 collected during a residence in New Zea- 
 land between the years 1831 and 1837. 
 
 The cause that has induced me to pre- 
 sent to the public a narrative of a few of 
 my adventures in that country, is princi- 
 pally to excite attention towards it by a 
 statement of plain, unvarnished facts. I 
 claim no other credit than what may be 
 due to the strictest fidelity. Having been 
 for many years sequestered from the so- 
 ciety of literary men, and from access to 
 works emanating from them, matter, rather 
 than manner, has been the object I have 
 had in view. 
 
 Many of the details regarding the say- 
 ings and doings of the islanders may be 
 
 or\r\r\i-\^'=^
 
 IV PREFACE. 
 
 accounted as being of too simple a nature 
 for record ; but it must be borne in re- 
 membrance that the work is descriptive 
 of a primitive people. 
 
 To describe the habits and manners of 
 a people just emerging from the deepest 
 barbarism, and the progress of an incipient 
 colony without the aid, or even the acknow- 
 ledgment of a mother-country, is a task of 
 rare occurrence ; but it is hoped that, in 
 addition to curiositv, a laudable desire to 
 see a weaker people (morally speaking), 
 protected from the ill effects of such in- 
 tercourse, may arise in the bosom of the 
 reader. 
 
 I thus place myself in the arena of 
 public opinion, regarding it as the duty of 
 every individual to add, to the best of his 
 abilities, some contribution towards the 
 general treasury of knowledge ; and, how- 
 ever ill qualified for the task, he deserves 
 well of his countrymen for the intention, 
 who will furnish information of the exist- 
 ence of countries, whereby they may obtain 
 for a redundant population an honour- 
 able footing, unlike the barbarous system
 
 PREFACE. V 
 
 of colonisation practised in former days, 
 and open a new and unlimited mart for 
 commercial enterprise; adding to the riches 
 of the mother-country ; affording an op- 
 portunity for the enterprise of her indus- 
 trious citizens ; rescuing from the darkest 
 barbarism and revolting superstition the 
 most interesting race of uncivilised man ; 
 initiating them in the habits and comforts 
 of social life, and changing their present 
 decrescent state to a rapid increase of 
 their now stunted population, their future 
 comfort and security. 
 
 87 PICCADILLY, LONDON, 
 
 July, 1838.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 THE FIRST VOLUME. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Progress of Discovery in the South Seas — De Balboa — 
 Murder of Almeida — Magalhaens — Voyage of Sir Fran- 
 cis Drake — Discovery of the Country by the Chevalier 
 de Gonville — First Australian in Europe — Abbe Paul- 
 mier — Juan Fernandez — Hertoge — Le Maire — Abel 
 Tasman's two Voj^ages of Discovery — Discovery of Van 
 Dieman's Land — Staten Island — Hostilities of the Abo- 
 rigines — Captain Cook's first Visit in the " Endeavour." 
 
 — Native Testimony subsequently obtained verifying the 
 Annals of the Voyage — Te Ratu, supposed King of part 
 of the East Coast — His Death — Tupia — Simplicity of the 
 Natives as to the value of Iron — Voyage of M. de Sur- 
 ville — His Transactions — Traverse of Marion du Fresne 
 
 — Treachery of the Natives — His Death, and Part of 
 the Crew of the " Mascarin " and " Marquis de Castries " 
 
 — Captain Crozet — His Proceedings — Departs for 
 France 1 
 
 CHAPTER IL 
 
 Cook's Second Visit in the Ships " Resolution" and " Adven- 
 ture" — Vessels separated by a Storm — Discovery of the 
 Insularity of Van Dieman's Land — Death of Tupia — 
 Cook's Third Visit — Ten Seamen murdered and de- 
 voured by the Natives — Cook's Fourth Visit — Disco-
 
 Vlll CONTENTS. 
 
 very of Norfolk Island — Cook's Fifth Visit in the " Re- 
 solution " and "Discovery" — Vancouver's Voyage — 
 Discovery of the Chatham Group of Islands — Voyage of 
 the " Daedalus " — European Sealers' Discovery of SteM'- 
 art's Island — and Banks's Peninsular — Sealing Gangs 
 captured by the Natives, murdered and devoured — 
 An Englishman made a Chieftain — Survey of the Coast 
 by the " Astrolabe," M. D'Urville — Voyage of the " Co- 
 quille," M. Duperrey, " La Favorite," M. La Place — 
 Notices of the French Expedition of 1837 — and the 
 American Surveying and Exploring Expedition of 1838 
 — Russian Navigators, &c 36 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Journey to Kaipara — Proceed down the Hokianga — 
 Arrive at Moperi — Wainga, Priest of Araitehuru — 
 Joined by an aged Chief, who accompanies us — Defile 
 through a Native Plantation and Village — Descend to 
 the Sea Shore — Arrive at Waimemaku — Method of 
 producing Fii'e, and the Operation of Cooking — Monu- 
 ments — Alarm of the Natives — Waipoa, Fortification 
 and Valley — Manners, Habits, Customs — Appearance 
 of the Villagers — Native Dances and Lamentations — 
 Transactions in the Village — Difficulties arising at our 
 Departure 59 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Pursue our Journey in a Storm — Effect a Purchase on the 
 Road — Examine a stupendous Headland, that alters the 
 Course of our Journey — The dead Shark — A Woodland 
 Concert — Arrive at Kaihu Village — Alarm of its De- 
 fenders — Transactions at the Village — Amusements of 
 the Villagers — Rumours of Wars — Preparations formed 
 against an Assault — The Envoy — European Sorcery and 
 Native Incantations — Superstitions of the People — Our 
 Departure 97
 
 CONTENTS. IX 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Continuation of our Journey — Native Cemetery — Arrival 
 at Tetaita — Flax Houses — Sojourn in a deserted Village 
 
 — Pursue our Route — The Scenery — Arrive at the 
 Banks of the River Kaihu — Embark in three Canoes — 
 Meet with adverse Weather — One of the Provision 
 Canoes upsets — Sojourn for the Night on a Bank of 
 Mud — Singular Alarm — Pursue our Voyage in the 
 dark — Are taken for Enemies — Meet with a Sacred 
 Embassy — Native Superstitions — Arrive at Maunga- 
 kahia — Amusements in the Village — Curiosity and 
 Manners of the Natives 136 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Transactions in the Village — Cannibalism of the People — 
 A Council of New Zealanders — Native Oratory — Cere- 
 monies attending a Native Marriage — An Embargo on 
 the Canoes — Superstitions of the Fishermen — Arrival 
 at the Cemetery of a Divinity — The deserted Districts 
 
 — A Tapued Village — The Mountain of Tokatoka — 
 Traditions respecting it, and the adjoining Land — Sand- 
 banks — Land on the Sacred Beach of Taohara — A Land 
 Storm — History of Kaipara, and its former Inhabitants — 
 Our Arrival at the Harbour ; its Entrance and Dangers 
 
 — Return, and sail up the River — Sojourn on the 
 Banks of the Kaipara 171 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Dismiss the Canoe — Pursue our Journey to Maunganui — 
 Arrive there, and erect Huts for the Night — Meet with 
 a Party of Pleasure — Ascend the Maunganui Mountain 
 
 — Joined by a Party of Fishers and a Clan of Robbers
 
 X CONTENTS. 
 
 — Continue our Journey to Waipoa — Grand Feast of 
 Exhumation — Customs and Habits of a Native Festival 
 
 — Sojourn for the Night, and pursue our Route — 
 Arrive at Waimeraaku — Leave for Hokianga — Death 
 of Pakanai — Lamentations for the Deceased — Our 
 Return to the Settlement 212 
 
 CHAPTER VHL 
 
 Harbours, and general Description of the Islands of New Zea- 
 land — North Cape — Reinga and its Tradition — Three 
 Kings' Islands — Cape Maria Van Dieman — Columbia 
 Reef — Rangounou River — Mount Hohora — Doubtless 
 Bay — Maunganui — Oruru — Wangaroa — Cavalhoes 
 
 — Bay of Islands — Wangaruru — Wangamurau — Tutu- 
 kaka — Poor Knights — Bream Bay — Barrier Isles — Frith 
 and River Thames — Mercury Bay and Isles — Bay of Plenty 
 and Islands — Rivers and Ports of Warre Kahika — Wai 
 Appu — Tokomaru — Uwoua — Povei'ty Bay and Rivers 
 — Maihia —Table Cape — Hawke's Bay and Rivers — Coast 
 to Cape Kawa Kawa — Inland Scenery — Cook's Straits, 
 North Side — Port Wanganui-atera — Cape Egmont — 
 Rivers and Ports of the West Coast of Ainomawi — Mu- 
 kou — Morakupo — Kawia — Autia — Waingaroa — Wai- 
 kato — Manukou — Kaipara — Hokianga — Wangape — 
 Herekino — Summary of Observations on the Island — 
 District of Kai Koliura — South Side of Cook's Straits — 
 Coast to Banks's Peninsular — Chatham Islands — Port 
 Otago — Foveaux Straits — District of Te Wai Poenaum 
 
 — Coast and Harbours of Stewart's Island — Southern 
 Port — Trap Rocks — Snares' Islands — Cable Island — 
 South-western Bays and Sounds — Summary ofObserva- - 
 tions on the Southern Portion of New Zealand. . . 243
 
 CONTENTS. XI 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Climate — Soil — Botany, indigenous and European — Forests, 
 Timber-trees, and otlier Productions — Edibles — Lichens 
 — Mosses — Liands — Ornithology — Tropical and Land 
 Birds — Sea Fowl — Quadrupeds — Amphibious Ani- 
 mals — Reptiles — Entomology — Piscivorous Tribes — 
 Shell-Fish — Lithophytes — Corallines — Polypae — Zoo- 
 phytes — Madrepores — MoUuscae — Fuci, &c. . . 281 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Mineralogy — Volcanic Origin — Boiling and Bituminous 
 Springs — Mayor Island — Motiti — Whale Island — 
 Sulphur Lakes — Hot Baths — Lakes Rua, Ma, Iti, 
 Ihu, and Kahi — Subjection of the Tribes — Taupo 
 Country — Rocky Fissures — Snowy Mountains — Tou- 
 nariro — Ruapahu — Mounts Edgcumbe, Egmont, Iko- 
 rangi, Tokatoka — Local Traditions — Geologic Forma- 
 tion of the Country — Minerals — Fossils — Fungitse — 
 Arborigations — Ostracites — Caverns, Marine and Sub- 
 terrane — Cascades — Rivers — Fresh Water Streams, 
 &c 327 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 Origin of the People — Traditional Origin of the Country — 
 Traditions respecting the Earlier Settlers — Their Deri- 
 vation — Variety in the Appearance of the New Zea- 
 landers, Moral and Physical — East Cape Natives — The 
 Female Character ; Habits before and after Marriage — 
 Chastity — Domestic Manners — Temperament — Dis- 
 position — Self-immolation — Devotion — Marriages — 
 Adultery — Tangi, or Lamentation — Children affected 
 by Rank — Parental Affection — Native Mummies — 
 Polygamy — Conduct of Children — Ceremony of Ma-
 
 XU CONTENTS. 
 
 trimony — Affiancing — Puberty — Infanticide — Native 
 Conversations on the Subject — Concubinage — Methods 
 to procure Abortion — Chiefs, their Character. . . 353 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Tattooing — On Grades of Native Rank — Costume of the 
 Sexes — Provisions, and Methods of preparing it — Food 
 prepared for Journeys — Filthy Habits ^of the New Zea- 
 landers, &c 384
 
 LIST OF PLATES. 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 Koroiarika, Bay of Islands . . . To face title. 
 
 Map of New Zealand ..... page 1 
 
 Interior of a Kainga, or village ... . . .92 
 
 Cemetery in the river Hokianga . . . .138 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 The North Cape, and Sperm Whale Fishery. To face title. 
 Interior of a native village .... page 23 
 
 Fortified villages near Poverty 13ay . . . .120
 
 NEW ZEALAND 
 
 IN 
 
 1837. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Progress of Discovery in the South Seas — Dc Balljoa — 
 Murder of Almeida — Magalhaens — Voyage of Sir Fran- 
 cis Drake — Discovery of the Country by the Chevalier 
 de Gonville — First Australian in Europe — Abbe Paul- 
 micr — Juan Fernandez — Hertoge — Le Mairc — Abel 
 Tasman's two Voyages of Discovery — Discovery of Van 
 Dieman's Land — Staten Island — Hostilities of tlie Abo- 
 rigines — Captain Cook's first Visit in the "Endeavour" — 
 Native Testimony subsequently obtained verifying the 
 Annals of the Voyage — Te Ratu, supposed King of part 
 of the east Coast — His Death — Tupia — Simplicity of the 
 Natives as to the value of Iron — Voyage of M. de Siir- 
 ville — His Transactions — Traverse of Marion du Frcsnc 
 — Treachery of the Natives — His death, and part of the 
 Crew of the " Mascarin"and "Marquis de Castries" — 
 Captain Crozet — His Proceedings — Departs for France. 
 
 The very existence of the Pacific Ocean was un- 
 knovN-n to Europeans, until early in the sixteenth 
 century, when the Spanish commander, Basco 
 Nunez de Balboa, crossed the narrow ridge of 
 the Andes, at the Isthmus of Darien. 
 
 VOL. I. B
 
 a MAUALHAENS. 
 
 Magalhaens, the most intrepid navigator of 
 his day, succeeded in discovering the southern 
 hmits of the American continent in 1526, and 
 accompKshed the passage through the straits that 
 bear his name. He is said to have shed tears of 
 joy as the expansive element burst upon his view, 
 which promised to gratify, to the fullest extent, 
 the ardent ambition he possessed for discovery. 
 But he was made to feel the nothingness of 
 human wishes ; like the celebrated Almeida, who 
 ingloriously fell by the assagais of a ruthless horde 
 of South Africans in Saldanha Bay, the unfor- 
 tunate Magalhaens fell in a similar manner by the 
 hostile savages of the Moluccas. His successor 
 in the command returned laden with treasures 
 of nature and art. 
 
 Magalhaens' voyage has been supposed as 
 the earliest undertaken to the South Seas ; and, 
 at the time, it produced an excitement in com- 
 mercial Europe, that displayed itself in various 
 expeditions, attended with more or less success : 
 so that, in those early days, the extensive islands 
 in tjiis hemisphere were described in a tolerably 
 accurate manner. England, even at this early 
 period, was determined not to be outdone in her 
 own peculiar element ; and the hardy adventures 
 of her truculent sons, in every portion of the 
 globe, proved, however her energies in the pro-
 
 DRAKE l)i; OONVJLl.i;. 3 
 
 gress of discovery liad lain dormant, it was 
 but for a short period ; and, like the noble 
 lion, whose effigy she had emblazoned on her 
 escutcheon, she contended for mastery with her 
 hitherto successful opponents, and, after a tedi- 
 ously contested warfare with the kingdoms of 
 the Peninsula, France, and Holland, became at 
 once the mistress of those seas previously disco- 
 vered by her enemies. Drake, in 1578, found 
 the open sea south of the islands off Tierra del 
 Fuego ; but it was unknown to the public until 
 1628, when the " Worlde Encompassed"' was 
 published. The Abbe de la Borde, in his " His- 
 toire Abrege de la INIer du Sud"' (published in 
 1791), states his conviction that the Capitaine 
 Sieur de Gonviile, in the month of June 1503, 
 touched at New Zealand. His words are : — 
 " Storms, near the Cape of Good Hope, caused 
 them to lose their route, and in the end aban- 
 doned them to a wearisome calm, in an unknown 
 sea ; they were consoled by the sight of many 
 birds, which were observed to come from, and 
 return to, the southward : steering in that direc- 
 tion, they came to a great country, and an- 
 chored in a river. The Europeans were re- 
 ceived with veneration, and treated with respect 
 and friendship. Here they sojourned six months, 
 as the crew refused to return in the vessel, from
 
 4 BE GONVILLE. 
 
 her weakness and bad condition." The land 
 they discovered was situated between 50" and 
 60° south latitude. 
 
 Gonville took his departure from the land on 
 the 3d of July, 1504, taking with him a native, 
 named Essemoric, who willingly accompanied 
 the French. De Gonville and his officers drew 
 up a declaration of his discovery, and lodged 
 the document in the Admiralty, at Paris. Esse- 
 moric never had an opportunity of returning : he 
 was admitted into the Catholic Church, and 
 married into De Gonville's family. The Abb6 
 Jean Paulmier, the compiler of the voyage, was 
 a descendant of this chieftain ; and, in his book, 
 claims to himself the honour of being the elder 
 branch of the first Christian of the Terre Aus- 
 trale. The description given by this obsolete 
 writer appears to relate to the New Zealanders 
 only. Captain de Gonville observes of the 
 people, " Gens simples, ne demandans qu'a 
 mener joyeuse vie sans grand travail" (a simple 
 people, desiring to lead a life of happiness with- 
 out much labour). 
 
 No other country has yet been found to 
 answer the description given by Juan Fer- 
 nandez, in a voyage performed by him in 1576, 
 when he states that he sailed some six weeks 
 towards the south-west from Cape Horn, and
 
 JUAN FERNANDEZ HERTOGK. 5 
 
 discovered a land hitlierto unknown, wliose in- 
 habitants, customs, habits, and dress, &c., leave 
 no room for doubting the truth of his account. 
 (See Note 1.) After the discovery of the western 
 coast of Australia by Frederick Hertooje, in the 
 year 1616, the several voyageurs from the United 
 Provinces endeavoured to obtain further know- 
 ledge of the Great South Land, and many of 
 their vessels from Europe, outward bound, pur- 
 posely visited various parts of the coast of New 
 Holland. The names of many of these early 
 adventurers are transmitted to us, by being borne 
 on the several " landts " at the present day. The 
 western and northern coasts were wtII known 
 (Note 2), being near to the track of the Dutch to 
 the Indian Ocean ; but the rest of the coast was 
 unknown and unvisited until the presidentship 
 of Antony Van Dieman, governor-general for the 
 Dutch in India, who determined, in a council 
 held at Batavia in 164-2, to prosecute the further 
 discovery of the extent of the Terra Australis. 
 The command of the expedition was given to 
 Captain Abel Janszen Tasman, and his voyage 
 proved one of the most important ever under- 
 taken, from the first circumnavigation of the 
 globe, to the time of Cook. This celebrated 
 navigator, whose name is adopted by every born
 
 TASMAN. 
 
 subject in Van Dieman's Land (a Tasmanian), 
 and who occupies so honourable a place among 
 the earlier discoverers, wrote a journal of the 
 voyage, which was published in the Dutch lan- 
 guage, entitled " Een Rort uer hael nyt het 
 Journael, van den Kommander Abel Janszen 
 Tasman, int' ontdekken van t'oube Kende Suit- 
 landt, int jare 1642" (A Short Relation from the 
 Journal of the Commander, A. J. Tasman, in the 
 Discovery of the Unknown South Land, in the 
 year J 642). Its value was instantly acknow- 
 ledged by a translation into various European 
 languages. (See Note 3.) 
 
 They left Batavia on tlie 24th of iVugust, 
 1642, in two vessels — viz., the yacht '^ Heems- 
 kirk," and the fly-boat '' Zeehaen'" (Seahen); 
 and, after casting anchor at the Mauritius, they 
 stood to sea on the 8th September ; " for which," 
 adds Tasman, *' the Lord be praised." A council 
 was held on board the commodore's vessel, in 
 which it was resolved to keep watch continually at 
 the mast-head ; " and,'" adds this munificent com- 
 mander, " whoever first discovers land, sand, or 
 banks under water, shall receive a reward of three 
 reals and (last, not least, in the Dutchman's love) 
 a pot of arrack." On the 24th they were gratified 
 with the sight of land, which was named after
 
 TASMAN DISCOVERS STATEN ISLAND. 7 
 
 the governor-general, Antony Van Dieman's 
 Land. Various headlands were named in honour 
 of the council at Batavia. 
 
 On the 29th, the vessels, previously to an- 
 choring, were driven from a bay, which was called 
 Stoorme Bay ; a remarkably appropriate name, 
 as I have experienced. The river Derwent, on 
 whose banks Hobart Town is situated, disem- 
 bogues itself into this bay. They made the land 
 again and anchored, but finally quitted it on the 
 5th of December ; not before the gallant bachelor 
 named an island in the above bay after his 
 betrothed lady, Maria, daughter to the gover- 
 nor, his patron. On the 13th of December, land 
 was seen bearing S. S. E., distant fifteen miles. 
 The next day the vessels anchored two miles 
 from the shore. The following day the vessels 
 got under weigh and steered to the northward, 
 and several fires and smoke were seen on the land. 
 On the 18th they stood into a bay (in Cook's 
 Strait), preceded by a shallop and boat of the 
 " Zeehaen," in search of a favourable anchorage 
 for wooding and watering. " At sunset," says 
 the journal, " it was calm, and we cast anchor 
 in fifteen fathoms water. An hour after we saw 
 several lights on the land, and four vessels coming 
 from the shore towards us. Two of these were 
 our own boats — the people in the other boats 
 called to u«; in a loud, strong, rough voice; what
 
 I 
 
 8 TASMAN — STATEN ISLAND. 
 
 they said we did not understand ; however, we 
 called to them again in place of an answer. They 
 repeated their cries several times, but did not 
 come near us ; they sounded also an instrument 
 like a Moorish trumpet, and we answered by 
 blowing our trumpet. Guns were ready pre- 
 pared, and small arms, for an emergency, and strict 
 w^atch kept." The master of the " Zeehaen," 
 Gerard Janzoon, ordered his boat, with a quar- 
 ter-master and six men, to carry directions on 
 board the " Heemskirk" not to allow too many 
 persons to enter the ship at a time, as several 
 canoes had put off from the shore. When the 
 boat had cleared the ship, the canoes of the 
 natives paddled furiously towards her. The fore- 
 most of the natives, with a blunt-pointed pike, 
 gave the quarter-master, Cornelius Joppe, a 
 blow on his neck that made him fall overboard ; 
 a scuffle ensued, and four of the Europeans were 
 killed. Joppe, and two seamen, swam to the 
 vessel, and were taken up ; the canoes made 
 hastily for the shore, carrying one of the dead 
 seamen with tliem. In vain were the guns dis- 
 charged, for the natives had paddled out of 
 reach. As no refreshments could be peaceably 
 had at this anchorage, the two vessels were got 
 under weigh. At the time, when twenty-two 
 canoes, crowded with natives, made towards 
 them, some guns were discharged, without sue-
 
 TASMEN — STATEN ISLAND. 9 
 
 cess. The shot was heard to rattlfe among the 
 canoes ; the effect was not known, otherwise 
 than the hasty retreat of the fleet. Tasman 
 called the place INIoordenaer's Bay (/. e. INIur- 
 derer's Bay), 
 
 On leaving this bay, the country was named 
 Staaten Land, in honour of the States-General 
 of the United Provinces. Tasman observes, 
 " It is possible this land joins to the Staten 
 Land (to the eastward) of Tierra del Fuego, dis- 
 covered by Shouten and Le Maire, and after- 
 wards found to be an inconsiderable island by 
 Heindric Brower ; but it is certain it is a very 
 fine country, and we hope it is part of the un- 
 known continent." The vessels made but little 
 progress up to the 25th, when they entered a 
 bight, or bay, expecting to sail through into the 
 great South Sea : they with difficulty returned 
 to their station, having to beat up against a 
 strong breeze from the north-west, and a strong 
 current setting into the bay. They found an- 
 chorage, and weathered some heavy gales, that 
 nearly drove the '' Zeehaen" from her anchors. 
 On the 27th they saw Puki Aupapii, the high 
 mountain of Teranaki, called Cape Egmont by 
 Cook, said to be 14,000 feet above the level of 
 the sea. The Dutchmen were disappointed in 
 not finding a passage through the land. On
 
 JO TASMAN — STATEN ISLAND. 
 
 the 31st they made the sand-hills of Hokiaiiga, 
 three miles distant from the shore. This coast 
 is deservedly lauded in the journal as being free 
 from sandbanks or rocks, but a heavy surf lining 
 the shore. On the 4th January, they made a 
 cape which was named after the peerless Maria 
 Van Dieman. On the 6th, some small islands 
 and rocks were discovered, and named Drie 
 Komingen Eijlandt (Three Kings' Islands), it 
 being the anniversary of the Epiphany. The 
 shallop was sent to the largest island to search 
 for refreshments, and they returned in the even- 
 ing, reporting that they had found an abundance 
 of water descending from a mountain ; but 
 the heavy surf on the beach rendered it a 
 work of danger, and about forty natives were 
 seen with clubs, which added to the insecurity 
 of the undertaking. The vessels anchored that 
 night on the north side of the largest island ; 
 and early the next day they got under weigh 
 and quitted the coast, arriving at Batavia on the 
 14th June, 1643. 
 
 This ancient journal is written in a plain, 
 intelligible manner, abounding in traits of the 
 nautical usages of that early period. In this 
 voyage, Tasman discovered Van Dieman's Land, 
 New Zealand, the Friendly Islands, Annamuka, 
 Pylstaarts, Prince William's Islands, and several
 
 COOK. 11 
 
 portions of New Guinea. We first read of the 
 name Staaten Land being changed to that of 
 New Zeahmd in the instructions given to Tasman 
 previously to setting out on a second voyage of 
 discovery, dated 1644, in which Nova Zealandia 
 is substituted. The reason why their High 
 Mightinesses, the States General, in the pro- 
 fundity of their sagacious dictums, should have 
 done so, cannot be solved at this distance of 
 time ; for there is no greater resemblance be- 
 tween the old Zealand and the newly disco- 
 vered islands than there is, to use a simile of 
 the learned Knickerbocker, in the forms be- 
 tween the flat Dutch cheese and the pinnacled 
 one, called tiie pine-apple. 
 
 Tasman did not visit his late discovery on 
 his second expedition. The sketch of Tasman's 
 route is to be found in a chart of Australasia, in 
 Thevenot's '' Divers curious \'oyages, 1696,*' 
 wherein an account of this voyage is found. 
 " Route de Abel Tasman, autour de la Terre 
 Australe avec le Decouverte de la Nouvelle 
 Zelande et de la Terre de Van Dieman," tom. ii. 
 
 Though, doubtless, the coast of this country 
 was seen by several vessels bound on discovery 
 in those seas, yet no published account is pre- 
 served until Cook visited the country in 1769, 
 when he first discovered land bearing W. by N.
 
 12 cook's first voyage. 
 
 That vessels have been seen in the straits that 
 divide the two islands has been handed down to 
 the present people ; bnt to the Dutch must be 
 ascribed the merit of being the first discoverers, 
 in a number of crazy ships, if they deserve the 
 name, that would not be accounted sea-worthy 
 to undertake a coasting voyage at the present 
 day, much less to double the Cape of Good 
 Hope or Cape Horn, pursuing their route 
 through unknown seas, studded with rocks and 
 reefs of coral. 
 
 From Tasman's time to that of Cook, one 
 hundred and twenty-seven years, it had been a 
 cherished opinion of geographers that New Zea- 
 land was part of a southern continent, running 
 N. and S. from 33° to 64° of south latitude, and 
 its northern coast stretching across the South 
 Pacific to an immense distance, wliere Juan 
 Fernandez, some fifty years previously, had seen 
 the eastern boundary. The result of Cook's first 
 voyage in the " Endeavour " totally dissipated 
 these suppositions. That intrepid navigator 
 spent nearly six months on its coasts betw^een 
 1769 and 1770, during which period he entirely 
 circumnavigated the islands, ascertained the ex- 
 tent of each, and barely escaped shipwreck on 
 a reef of rocks, which, from their position to 
 catch unwary strangers, were named the Traps,
 
 cook's first voyage. 13 
 
 in 46° 27' S. Heavy gales induced the navi- 
 gators to stand away to the westward, naming 
 an island near the northern extremity of the 
 smallest of the three islands, but supposed by 
 Cook to be joined to the largest of the islands, 
 after Dr. Solander, generally known as Cod-fish 
 Island, from the quantity of that fish abounding 
 in the vicinity. 
 
 It is distinctly notated among the natives, 
 that a ship put into the straits named after Cook 
 during the period that elapsed between his first 
 and second voyage. The people, in addition to 
 other causes, have one that is to be regretted to 
 this day. On this subject I have often put the 
 question to the southern people ; but they had 
 never heard of any except the Kaipuki no te Kuri, 
 or " the Dog Ship," which first brought that 
 companionable animal to these shores. It has 
 been supposed the vessel was destroyed, with the 
 crew, by the natives ; but this may be reason- 
 ably doubted, as the destination of many of the 
 early commercial voyages was kept a profound 
 secret from the world, and this very likely 
 was one of them. On Cook making the land, 
 it gave rise to much controversy among the 
 officers, many stating their conviction that the 
 country in sight was part of the unknown Aus- 
 tralian continent.
 
 
 14 cook's first voyage. 
 
 Oil the 8th October, 1769, Cook first cast 
 anchor in the bay of Turunga, opposite a small 
 river called Turunganui, near the small island 
 of Tua Motu, abont two miles from the shore. 
 The same evening Cook, accompanied by Mr. 
 Banks (afterwards Sir Joseph), and Dr. Solander, 
 went on shore, but had scarcely put foot on the 
 beach when they were attacked by a portion of 
 the natives. In relating Cook's transactions in 
 this bay, I must also mention the account given 
 me by Manutai, grandson of Te llatu, a principal 
 chief, who headed the attack on the Englishmen, 
 and was the lirst native killed by Europeans, 
 which was done in self-defence. It appears that 
 the tribes who now assaulted Cook had not been 
 long in possession of the land, as they were ori- 
 ginally a party of strangers from the southward, 
 who had made war on the inhabitants of the place, 
 and had defeated and destroyed them. This 
 decisive battle had taken ])lace l)ut a very few 
 years previously to the arrival of Cook, and Te 
 Ratu had been one of the principal warriors. 
 Another chief was shot in the shonlder ; this 
 man recovered, and had died within a few years 
 previously to my visiting those localities in 1836. 
 I saw the son of this wounded warrior, an elderly 
 man, who pointed out to me, on his body, the 
 spot where the ball had passed through the
 
 cook's niiST voyagl:. 15 
 
 shoulders of his father. Cook's sliip was at 
 first taken for a bird by the natives ; and many 
 remarks passed among them as to the beauty 
 and size of its wings, as tlie sails of this novel 
 specimen in ornithology were supposed to be. 
 But on seeing a smaller bird, unfledged (with- 
 out sails), descending into the water, and a 
 number of party-coloured beings, but apparently 
 in the human shape, also descending, the bird 
 was regarded as a houseful of divinities. No- 
 thino' could exceed the astonishment of the 
 people. 
 
 Cook almost despaired of having any inter- 
 course with the natives, who lamented, with 
 anxious terror and grief, the inanimate body of 
 their leader, w^hicli lay dead before them. The 
 manner of his unseen death was ascribed as a 
 thunderbolt from these new gods ; and the noise 
 made by the discharges of the muskets was re- 
 presented 'as the Watitiri, or tlumder, which 
 accompanies the sublime phenomena. 
 
 To revenge themselves was the dearest wish 
 of the tribe ; but how to accom})lish it with divi- 
 nities, who could kill them at a distance without 
 even approaching to them, was difficult to deter- 
 mine. Many of these natives observed, that 
 they felt themselves taken ill by only being 
 particularly looked upon by these Atuas. It
 
 16 cook's first voyage. 
 
 was therefore agreed, that, as these new comers 
 could bewitch with a single look, the sooner their 
 society was dismissed, the better it would be for 
 the general welfare. 
 
 The next day Cook traversed the bay in his 
 boats in search of wood and water, as the sea 
 rushes over the sand-bars of the small rivers, 
 and mingles with them to some distance. While 
 thus engaged, he met with a fishing canoe enter- 
 ing the bay from sea, bending round the Kuri, or 
 Young Nick's Head, the south-east head of the 
 bay. Cook was almost up with them before he was 
 perceived, when the fishermen took to their pad- 
 dles as fast as they could, and would have escaped, 
 but a musket was discharged over their heads to 
 make them surrender. This, however, had a con- 
 trary effect, for the paddling was stopped, and, 
 regardless of the odds against them, they hastily 
 doffed off their mats, and, as soon as the boats 
 made up, commenced a furious attack, and resisted 
 being captured until four men who were in the ca^ 
 noe were killed ; and three lads, who also formed 
 the number of the crew, were made prisoners^ 
 Few commanders equalled Cook in humanity, 
 and none exceeded him ; and he apologises for 
 this unfortunate transaction by saying, " he had 
 tried presents in vain, which were valueless, as 
 their use was unknown^ and the nature of his
 
 TUl'IA. 17 
 
 service required tliat he should nut only gain 
 admittance into the country, but also procure 
 a knowledge of its inhabitants." On the boys 
 being taken out of the water, whither they had 
 liung themselves, they expected instant death ; 
 but kind treatment, and a present of some of 
 the seamen's clothes, soon restored their good 
 temper, and they quickly appeared to forget the 
 friends they had lost. On board the ship food 
 was presented to them, and they ate with a vo- 
 racity that is pandemic to the nation. They 
 viewed the surrounding objects with apathy ; 
 but not so the supper, on which they recom- 
 menced eating with an avidity, that, but for the 
 ocular demonstration furnished to the officers 
 of the ship at dinner, it would have been sup- 
 posed the lads had fasted for the previous week. 
 Tupia, the favourite Tahitean of Cook, was 
 soon enabled to speak the language of these 
 people with sufficient facility to be understood by 
 them ; and he exerted himself to entertain the 
 new comers, and prevent their thoughts from 
 harboming on the loss of their companions who 
 had fallen in the skirmish. The next morning, at 
 breakfast, they again set to with increased appe- 
 tite, devouring an enormous quantity of food. 
 They were then decorated with trinkets from 
 head to foot, and descended into the boats with 
 VOL. I. c
 
 18 TuriA. 
 
 great joy, to be put on shore. The boats were 
 to have landed near a small village, close to a 
 river with a bar at its mouth, called Wero-wero, 
 on the south side of Turunga ; but the lads en- 
 treated not to be put on shore at that place, or 
 they would be killed and eaten. Landing after- 
 wards with Cook, and some of the crew, they 
 perceived one of their uncles among the crowd. 
 Notwithstanding the relationship, they preferred 
 returning with their new acquaintances. 
 
 In the afternoon they again requested to be 
 put on shore. Their desires were complied 
 with ; but, on landing, they felt the compunc- 
 tion they had experienced in the morning. 
 On the boat leaving the beach, they waded in 
 the water after it, entreating to be taken in ; but 
 Cook had given orders to the contrary. Pre- 
 viously to quitting the bay, Tupia demanded of 
 the lads the name of the place, pointing around 
 with his hand. He was answered, Te One roa, 
 or the long sand, which entirely surrounds the 
 bay. Cook named it as such in his chart, but 
 the name of the bay is Turunga ; any sandy 
 spot, having the appellation of One or Oni 
 attached to it, signifying sand ; but Cook, disap- 
 pointed in getting supplies, of which he was now 
 in much need, called the place Poverty Bay ; 
 but, from the valuable agricultural nature of the
 
 TUPIA. 19 
 
 country in the vicinity of this bay, it merits any 
 other name than " poverty." 
 
 The next day the " Endeavour"^ was under 
 weigh, saiHng south as far as Cape Turnagain, 
 in hit. 40"^ 34' S. Cook then steered north, nam- 
 ing several places in his route. Among other 
 presents bestowed by Cook on the people at 
 Turunga, a tomahawk and axe was thrown to 
 them (as they admitted not of any near ap- 
 proach), and some large nails, which were 
 cast into the sea by them. 
 
 In describing the simplicity of their ances- 
 tors, the chiefs would tell me that their lathers 
 were fools, who knew nothing. " Ah !" said 
 Rakou, the son of the chief who had been 
 wounded by Cook, " I wish I had been suffi- 
 ciently old at the time ; would I have thrown 
 away an axe or a nail ? try me !" It also 
 appears the venerable priests were much puzzled 
 (a circumstance not of very rare occurrence), as 
 to what cause they should ascribe the arrival of 
 the white men. They knew it would never answer 
 to say they had procured their arrival by their 
 incantations, as they would have had to pay for 
 the death of Te Ratu, and the four chiefs killed 
 in the canoe. They contented themselves by 
 stating, that their supplications to the Taniwoa, 
 or native Neptune, had alone been instrumental
 
 20 COOK. 
 
 in causing the disappearance of these new Atuas, 
 who so materially differed from the native thco- 
 gony ; the latter only appearing in the form of 
 the humble Tui bird, or giving a wink to their 
 followers by the twinkling of a star, whereas the 
 former had presumed to embody themselves in 
 the human form. 
 
 Cook, after touching at various parts of the 
 coast, sailed north until he rounded the North 
 Cape. His principal views being directed to 
 ascertain if the country was insulated or not, 
 he kept some distance from the shore, and sailed 
 down the entire west coast, which, from its 
 barren appearance from the sea, he named the 
 Desert coast ; but one mile only inland, the 
 face of the country is materially improved. He 
 met with nothing worthy of observation until 
 he arrived at the bay where Tasman had an- 
 chored, and, much to his surprise, found the 
 supposed bight of that early discoverer to be a 
 wide strait that divided the northern island from 
 the southern, and which he left unnamed ; but 
 it was afterwards justly called by geographers 
 after this celebrated man, wdio had sailed round 
 the island on again sighting Cape Turnagain, 
 whence he had taken his departure. Cook 
 now sailed to the south island, the coast of which 
 he had partly seen when in the strait ; and con-
 
 SURVILLE. 21 
 
 tinned his course down the eastern coast. In 
 lat. 42° 20' S. four double canoes were seen, with 
 fifty-seven men on board of them. Mr. Banks, 
 who was out of the ship in a boat, a calm pre- 
 vailing at the time, had a narrow escape from be- 
 ing taken by them. They approached close to 
 the vessel and then laid on their paddles, gazing 
 with perfect astonishment. Tupia addressed 
 them in vain. Cook here remarks on the 
 various emotions expressed by the inhabitants 
 of the country on first beholding a ship. He 
 says, " These kept aloof with a mixture of 
 timidity and wonder ; others had immediately 
 commenced hostihties by pelting us with stones. 
 The gentleman whom we found alone, fishing in 
 his canoe, seemed to think us entirely unworthy 
 of his notice ; and some, almost without an in- 
 vitation, had come on board with an air of con- 
 fidence and perfect good-will." The point was 
 called " The Lookers-on." I must refer the 
 reader to the account of the voyage, which is 
 highly interesting. Cook entirely circumnavi- 
 gated the land, and took his departure from the 
 north-west cape of the largest island, naming it 
 Cape Farewell, on 31st March, 1770. 
 
 On the 12th December, 1769, a French ship, 
 called the '' St. Jean Baptiste," commanded by 
 Captain Surville, arrived off the east coast of the
 
 22 SURVILLE. 
 
 country, and came in sight of a bay which Cook 
 had called Doubtless Bay, and actually passed 
 in the " Endeavour " early the very same morn- 
 ing. This singular coincidence resembled a 
 similar occurrence that took place in 1788, on 
 the founding of the colony of New South Wales, 
 which followed consequent on the researches of 
 Cook in that quarter, during this same voyage. 
 
 The fleet of colonists had anchored at Bo- 
 tany Bay, with the intention of establishing the 
 head-quarters of the colony in that place, when 
 a sailor, named Jackson, by accident discovered 
 in his rambles a splendid port, full of innume- 
 rable coves ; which being reported to the go- 
 vernor, Captain Phillips, and the truth ascer- 
 tained, the harbour was named after the dis- 
 coverer, and called Port Jackson. On the fleet 
 getting under weigh to sail for the newly disco- 
 vered harbour and intended settlement, two 
 ships were discovered approaching the land, 
 which proved to be the French discovery ves- 
 sels, under the command of the deservedly 
 lamented La Perouse, whose subsequent hap- 
 less fate at Manikolo, one of the New Hebrides 
 group, was made known to the world by Captain 
 Dillon in 1827. 
 
 Captain Surville left the Ganges on the 3d 
 March, 1769, in search of an El Dorado, or
 
 SURVILLE. 23 
 
 island said to have been just discovered by the 
 Enghsh, some seven hundred leagues from the 
 most southern point of South America. It was 
 further stated tliat gold was to be had in abund- 
 ance. Contrary winds prevented the '' St. Jean 
 Baptiste " from approaching the land ; but, on 
 the 17th of December, the vessel cast anchor in 
 Doubtless Bay, called by the natives Paroa, 
 but named by Surville, Lauriston Bay, after the 
 governor-general of the French possessions in 
 India. Had the French commander had an 
 interpreter on board his ship, he would early 
 have known that Cook was on the coast, as such 
 news would be dispersed among all the natives. 
 This account of Surville is taken from Cap- 
 tain Crozet's narrative, who is much embittered 
 against his predecessor, as he attributes the mis- 
 fortunes that fell on his own vessel solely to the 
 heartless conduct of this commander.* On the 
 day after anchoring, he went on shore, where he 
 was kindly received by the natives, flocking 
 around him with childish curiosity. As a proof 
 of the dependence he could place on these 
 people, a chief one day demanded the musket 
 which Surville carried with him ; he refused to 
 
 •■ '•' Aiix hostllitt's comniisos par lo vaissfan (■oiuuiaiHlc 
 par M. do Survillo," avIio ua-;, iiovortlielt'ss, a brave, intropirl 
 fellow, " mais un ])pu Ir ofirpiin.
 
 24 SURVILLE. 
 
 comply ; his sword was then requested, which 
 he gave up : on this the chief who received it 
 turned round to liis countrymen, making a 
 speech which was uninteUigible to the French, 
 flourished the weapon, and then returned it. The 
 visitors procured refreshments in plenty, but the 
 account does not state of what description. 
 
 On the 22d, Surville changed his anchorage, 
 as being too much exposed, and entered further 
 within the bay, opposite a small village called 
 Parakiraki, which Surville named Cove Chevalier. 
 He had scarcely dropped anchor, when a hurri- 
 cane swept the coast with such fury that the ship 
 was on the point of being wrecked, as the cove 
 is unprotected, a low, flat, sandy beach, rendering 
 it open to the wind from the north, A boat be- 
 longing to the ship attempted in vain to make 
 the vessel ; the people were obliged to return to 
 the shore, after being nearly lost. 
 
 They were treated with much hospitality, 
 for two days, by the natives, during which time 
 the gales lasted ; and when they abated, the 
 sailors returned to the ship. This kindness 
 was ill requited by Surville, who missed a small 
 boat during the storm. Suspecting, without 
 cause, that the natives had stolen it, he was 
 determined on revenge, and invited Nahinui, 
 the chief of the district, on board, and made him
 
 MARION AND CROZET. 25 
 
 a prisoner. The Frenclimen then went on shore, 
 set fire to the villages where they had found 
 shelter during the storm, and then returned on 
 board, getting immediately under weigh, and 
 bearing away with them the miserable chief. 
 Nahinui died three months after of a broken 
 heart. Surville did not long survive the unfor- 
 tunate victim of his unfeeling conduct ; for, on 
 his arrival at Callao, in Peru, twelve days after 
 the death of the chief, being anxious to obtain 
 an early audience with the viceroy, he was 
 hastily conveyed in a small boat towards the 
 shore at the flood-tide, when the swell is most 
 impetuous. The boat was capsized by a heavy 
 roller, and Surville and the crew perished in the 
 surf. One Malabar alone was saved. 
 
 The next visitors to New Zealand were the 
 French, who arrived in two ships, called the 
 '' Mascarin" and "Marquis de Castries," under 
 the command of Captain Marion du Fresne. Pre- 
 vious to the voyage, particular instructions were 
 given to the commander to examine New Zea- 
 land, and to explore the South Pacific Ocean for 
 new discoveries of islands or continents. 
 
 On the 24th of March, 1772, the west coast 
 was discovered opposite Mount Egmont (Puk6 
 Haupapri)^, which Marion named Le Pic Mas- 
 carin, which was judged to be as high as the Pic
 
 26 MARION AND CROZET. 
 
 Acores of TenerifFe. On the 4th of April they 
 made Cape Maria Van Dieman, and sent a boat 
 on shore for water. A severe storm suddenly 
 arising, it was with difficulty they regained the 
 vessel, which was driven from the land. Many 
 days were lost in regaining the position whence 
 they were driven. Early in May they sighted 
 Cape Brett, the south head of the Bay of 
 Islands : it was renamed Cape Quarre. A 
 boat was despatched to the shore ; several canoes 
 came alongside the vessels ; but the people in 
 them, after much persuasion, were induced to go 
 on board. They ate with great voracity every 
 thing that was offered them : some clothing was 
 also given, wath which they w^ere delighted. 
 They appeared to understand the use of such 
 tools as were shewn to them, which was evidently 
 learnt from Cook, who was the only navigator 
 that had hitherto entered this bay. Several 
 natives slept on board the *' Mascarin," among 
 whom was a chief called Tacouri (doubtless Te 
 Kuri, or dog, a name common among the 
 natives). On the 11th, in consequence of the 
 harmony that subsisted between the French and 
 the natives, Marion got under weigh and stood 
 into Paroa, an inner anchorage, within the 
 islands, and opposite to Korokoua, a village in 
 the bay belonging to Kuri. The infirm and sick
 
 MARION AND CROZET. 27 
 
 were landed on the 12th at a village on Motu 
 Roa, or Long Island, without Paroa. Crozet, first- 
 lieutenant of the " Mascarin," tells us, he was 
 enabled to converse with the natives by having, 
 par accident, discovered the resemblance of the 
 Tahitean language to that of New Zealand, a 
 vocabulary of which was on board. The natives, 
 with national penetration, soon discovered that 
 Marion was invested with the command ; they in 
 consequence treated him with a warmth and 
 liberality that entirely lulled any suspicions that 
 might have arisen from Cook's observation, 
 " Never trust a New Zealander." The .French 
 and natives lived in perfect confidence with each 
 other — excursions were taken far into the inte- 
 rior by the ofiicers of the two ships, accompanied 
 by certain natives who had individually attached 
 themselves to the Europeans — every attention 
 was shewn by this race of savages, who seemed 
 to realise the affable customs of the ancient 
 Arcadians, whose natural, guileless manners 
 abounded in the sentimental writings of Rousseau 
 and a host of Gallic writers of the day. 
 
 Crozet remarks, that he was the only person 
 who did not permit himself to forget the charac- 
 ter invariably given of these sans culottes ; ho 
 adds, he often mentioned the same to Captain 
 Marion, who politely listened, without the com-
 
 28 MARION AND CROZET. 
 
 miinication troubling his attention. Affairs 
 thus amicably stood until the 8th of June, when 
 Marion was received on shore with an enthu- 
 siasm that made him wholly forget all precaution. 
 He allowed himself to be dressed in feathers, as 
 is the wont of the people in beautifying their 
 persons, and he returned on board perfectly 
 delighted with them. 
 
 It was observed, but not until too late, that 
 the people on shore absented themselves much 
 from the vessel — the young friends of the officers 
 discontinued their visits ; Crozet remarked the 
 change, especially in the native who had attached 
 himself to his service. On the 12th of May, 
 Marion went on shore with a crew of sixteen 
 persons, among whom were four superior officers. 
 As the evening set in, it caused some surprise 
 that the boat did not return ; but it was known 
 that Marion intended to spend the day in fishing 
 near a village belonging to Kuri, and not a 
 suspicion was entertained for a moment that any 
 accident had befallen them, as it was thought 
 probable they might have accepted the hospita- 
 ble invitation of passing the night in the village. 
 
 The following morning a boat had been sent 
 on shore from the " Marquis de Castries" for the 
 purpose of fetching wood and water. It had 
 been absent about four hours : when, to the sur-
 
 MARION AND CROZET. 29 
 
 prise of the watch on the deck of the vessel, one 
 of tlie seamen was observed swimming towards 
 her. A boat was immediately sent to his assist- 
 ance. On arriving on board this man had a 
 dreadful tale to unfold. It appeared, when the 
 boat had reached the shore in the morning, the 
 natives came up to the party with their usual 
 show of affection, and carried them on shore, to 
 prevent the feet of their intended victims getting 
 wet in stepping from the boat. After debarking, 
 the seamen dispersed to gather wood for the 
 boat, and, while each was busy in the work be- 
 fore him, unarmed, and surrounded by numbers 
 of the hostile natives, at a given signal, in the 
 space of a second, six or seven of these treache- 
 rous savages seized hold of each of the French- 
 men, bearing them down to the ground, and beat- 
 ing out their brains with a stroke of their stone 
 hatchets. Eleven were thus quickly despatched ; 
 the narrator had alone escaped, having been as- 
 saulted by a fewer number of natives, from whom 
 he escaped by plunging with speed into a contigu- 
 ous thicket, where he lay concealed, and saw the 
 murdered bodies of his comrades cut up and 
 divided among those cannibals, who shortly after 
 left the place, carrying with them their portions 
 of human flesh, and thus gave the survivor a 
 chance of swimming for his life.
 
 30 CROZET. 
 
 This dreadful tale was sufficient to disclose 
 the fate of Marion and his people. The long- 
 boat of tlie " Mascarin" was immediately de- 
 spatched, well armed, to ascertain their fate, of 
 which not a doubt now existed ; and the first 
 thing that presented itself was the boat, lying on 
 the strand, which had conveyed the unfortunate 
 commander and his companions : it was crowded 
 with natives. A party of sixty men, under Lieu- 
 tenant Crozet's own command, were employed 
 on shore, cutting down trees, close to this place. 
 On Crozet hearing the information, he, with 
 much tact, ordered the tools to be gathered to- 
 gether, and marched to the boats, without im- 
 parting to his people the fate of their comrades. 
 His orders were instantly obeyed ; but, on their 
 approach to the boats, the natives followed them 
 in great numbers, using their usual contemptu- 
 ous gestures to their enemies, trying to inflame 
 each other, and shouting that Tekuri had killed 
 and devoured Marion. 
 
 On the French arriving at their boats, the 
 savage fury of the mob broke forth, as unwilling 
 to be deprived of their prey, now on the eve of 
 escaping their grasp. They, with discordant 
 yells and shouts, pressed every moment closer to 
 the retiring Europeans, and were on the point of 
 commencing a general attack^ when Crozet
 
 CllOZET. 31 
 
 stepped forward, and, raising his musket, com- 
 manded the rabble, in a tone of authority, to 
 stand back ; and hastily marking a line on the 
 sand, as Cook had previously done on this very 
 same beach, threatened to shoot the first person 
 that overstepped the boundary. This was sup- 
 posed by the natives to be the incantations of the 
 European priesthood, which it would be impiety 
 to pass. They even sat down, to a man, on 
 being further commanded so to do by Crozet, 
 and listened in silence to what he further said to 
 them. This conduct, on the part of the natives, 
 will be readily credited by any person acquainted 
 with the character of this people. But no sooner 
 had the last man hastily jumped into the boat, 
 than they quickly rose with deafening shouts, 
 maddened at their own folly and infatuation, 
 in allowing their prey thus to escape them. They 
 rushed into the w^ater to haul the boats on shore ; 
 but now was come the moment when the French 
 could, without hazard, reward the treacherous 
 confidence of the perfidious people who had 
 destroyed their companions. Shower after 
 shower of bullets were poured upon the dense 
 mass of beings ; who, paralysed with fear and 
 astonishment, had not the power of stirring from 
 the spot to avoid the volleys of musketry that 
 mowed their ranks.
 
 32 CROZET. 
 
 Crozet put a stop to this fearful requital, and 
 steered his course to iVIotu Roa, to remove the 
 sick stationed there. As no wood or water could 
 be procured at Paroa, an attempt was made next 
 day to procure these supplies at Motu Roa, as to 
 proceed to sea without them would be useless. 
 In performing this duty, the village, which lies on 
 the west side of the island, was attacked ; the 
 natives having shewn a determination to prevent 
 them, many were killed. Previously to leaving 
 this disastrous scene, the French destroyed many 
 other natives, whom they observed dressed in the 
 clothes of their murdered comrades. They also 
 paid another visit to the village where the 
 lamentable scene took place, and perceived the 
 execrable Kuri, the leader in the massacre, 
 dressed in the red cloak that had belonged to 
 Marion, and saw several pieces of human flesh, 
 on which the marks of teeth were visible. The 
 vessels then put to sea, on the 14th of July, 
 1772, after having been nearly four months on 
 the coast, and having done less to ascertain its 
 geographical position than any other voyage of 
 discovery to the country. 
 
 Crozet named the country France Australe^ 
 and nominated Paroa as the Bay of Treachery ; 
 but these names have never been attached to 
 the country by the French geographers. It
 
 CROZET. 33 
 
 was also taken possession of in the name of the 
 king of France. Crozet succeeded to the com- 
 mand, and turned his thoughts homewards, as 
 the force of the ships was much reduced, espe- 
 cially in the loss of five superior officers. On 
 his arrival in France, his conduct was fully ap- 
 proved of, and he was promoted capitaine de 
 vaisseau. His work contains a quantity of inter- 
 esting matter respecting the habits and customs 
 of the people; but the results are such as might 
 naturally be expected of a person who under- 
 stood the language superficially, and had not 
 resided among the people. No cause has been 
 assigned, why they were at first kindly treated 
 for upwards of a month, and then suddenly 
 maltreated. Even the traditionary cause is lost 
 among the natives. Some have observed, that a 
 sailor was guilty of connecting himself with a 
 female that w^as tapued ; other natives give a dif- 
 ferent version to the story. Crozet justly lauds 
 his own moderation in putting a stop to the 
 massacre; which otherwise would have annihi- 
 lated the crowds before them. The effect was 
 such, that though from 3000 to 4000 ships have 
 since anchored in the Bay of Islands at different 
 periods, yet the antipathy to the French nation 
 continues unabated. They are known only by 
 
 VOL. I. D . .
 
 34 CROZET. 
 
 the designation of Te Hevi no Mariou (the tribe 
 of Marion), throughout the country. Perhaps 
 the recent deaths of their comrades did not pro- 
 voke the fierce passions of the French to such 
 an extent as the insults that were afterwards 
 offered. Junius justly observes, '' Injuries may 
 be atoned for and forgiven, but insults admit of 
 no compensation. They degrade the mind in 
 its own esteem, and force it to recover its level 
 by revenge." Crozet, whose prudence and ability 
 has been testified by our Cook, had a distrust 
 of these people from the earliest accounts he 
 had read of them. He says, " Malgre les ca- 
 resses des sauvages, je n'oubliai jamais que notre 
 devancier, Abel Tasman, avoit nomme Bale des 
 Meurtriers, celle oil il avoit attere dans laNouvelle 
 Zelande. Nous ignorions que M. Cook I'eut 
 visitee depuis, et reconnue toute entiere : nous 
 ignorions qu'il y avoit trouve des anthropophages 
 et qu'il avoit failli etre tue dans la meme port oil 
 nous etions mouilles." The attack on Marion 
 took place while both parties were engaged haul- 
 ing in a large seine; when between every French- 
 man several natives placed themselves, in appa- 
 rently the best of humour, and, at a given signal, 
 the hapless people were murdered with stone 
 hatchets, that were concealed about the savages.
 
 CROZET. 35 
 
 My first purchase in the country was a 
 Iiouse on the spot where the massacre was per- 
 petrated ; the proprietor was Te Kouai, grandson 
 to the principal actor in the tragedy. Nearly 
 the whole country around has been purchased 
 by Europeans.
 
 36 
 
 CHAPTER 11. 
 
 Cook's Second Visit in the Ships " Resolution " and "Adven- 
 ture " — Vessels separated by a Storm — Discovery of the 
 Insularity of Van Dieman's Land — Death of Tupia — 
 Cook's Third Visit — Ten Seamen murdered and de- 
 voured by the Natives — Cook's Fourth Visit — Disco- 
 very of Norfolk Island — Cook's Fifth Visit in the " Re- 
 solution " and " Discovery" — Vancouver's Voyage — 
 Discovery of the Chatham Group of Islands — Voyage of 
 the " Daedalus " — European Sealers' Discovery of Stew- 
 art's Island — and Banks' Peninsular — Sealing Gangs 
 captured by the Natives, murdered and devoured — 
 An Englishman made a Chieftain — Survey of the Coast 
 by the "Astrolabe," M. D'Urville — Voyage of the " Co- 
 quille," M. Duperney, " La Favorite," M. La Place — 
 Notices of the French Expedition of 1837 — and the 
 American Surveying and Exploring Expedition of 1838 
 — Russian Navigators, &c. 
 
 The next ship that visited New Zealand was 
 " The Resolution/' commanded by Cook, in his 
 second voyage romid the globe. He anchored 
 in Dusky Bay, lying south-west in the district of 
 Te Wai Poenamu, in the Island of Victoria. One f 
 family only were seen for some time, consisting 
 of a man and his two wives, who were in great 
 dread, until Cook presented them with some 
 
 i
 
 RESOLUTION AND ADVENTURE. 37 
 
 trifles. The youngest lady, we are told, pos- 
 sessed a volubility of tongue that exceeded any- 
 thing our gallant countryman had ever met 
 with ; and, not being able to make a reply in 
 this unknown language, the lady commanded 
 the field, which gave occasion for a blunt sea- 
 man to remark, " that women did not want for 
 tongue in any part of the world." 
 
 The researches of Cook during this second 
 visit are of the most interesting nature, notwith- 
 standing the few aborigines he met with. He 
 staid some time visiting the surrounding coun- 
 try, which he describes with that shrewd method 
 of observation for which this invaluable com- 
 mander was peculiarly distinguished. He then 
 quitted the bay, sailed up the west coast in a 
 northerly direction, and in seven days arrived 
 at his favourite anchorage in Queen Charlotte 
 Sound, in the straits that bear his name ; where 
 he had the pleasure to find his consort-ship, the 
 '' Discovery," Captain Furneaux, who had arrived 
 some weeks before the '^ Resolution," and had 
 been separated from her nearly three months. 
 This separation was so far fortunate, that Cap- 
 tain Furneaux discovered Van Dieman's Land to 
 be an island, separated from New Holland by a 
 strait. 
 
 Cook met with several natives in the Sound,
 
 38 RESOLUTION AND ADVENTURE. 
 
 who anxiously inquired after Tupia, and appa- 
 rently felt concerned on hearing of his untimely 
 death (at Batavia). The Tahitean had been a 
 great favourite in New Zealand. On the 7th 
 June the ships left the country in company, 
 steering for the Society Islands. Within four 
 months the " Resolution " again made New Zea- 
 land, the projecting land of Table Cape (Nuku- 
 taurua) being first visible. From this place 
 they steered south to the Island of Victoria. 
 On the 29th October a calm, that had continued 
 for some time, was succeeded by a sudden gale. 
 The ships parted company, and did not rejoin 
 during the remaining part of the voyage. Cook 
 soon after anchored in Queen Charlotte's Sound, 
 and waited some time for his consort, but in 
 vain ; and, after three weeks thus spent, he 
 bore away for Cape Tierrawiti. While at 
 anchor in the Sound, the Englishmen had the 
 most unquestionable proofs of the cannibal pro- 
 pensities of the natives. 
 
 Cook made use of every means to regain 
 the company of the absent ship, and finally, for 
 this voyage, departed the country, bearing away 
 S.S.E. in search of a South Pacific continent. 
 
 The " Adventure" in the meanwhile had 
 been detained in Tolaga Bay (Uwoua), and did 
 not arrive in the Sound until eight days after
 
 LOSS OF A boat's CREW. 39 
 
 Cook had departed. They found a bottle under 
 a tree, left by that commander, containing in- 
 structions for Captain Furneaux's future guid- 
 ance; and, refreshing until the 17th December, 
 he then prepared for sea. A boat was sent on 
 shore, under the command of Mr. Rowe, a mid- 
 shipman, and ten of the best hands in the ship, 
 for the purpose of collecting greens for the 
 ship's company. A mutual misunderstanding 
 arose between the seamen and the natives, ori- 
 ginally occasioned by the indiscretion of a black 
 servant attached to Captain Furneaux. They 
 were set upon by the savages before they could 
 defend themselves, instantly massacred, and 
 partly devoured. Lieutenant Burney,* with an 
 armed boat's crew, went in search of the miss- 
 ing boat and people. He landed among the 
 natives, who received him with an unfriendly 
 distrust, totally different to their usual manner. 
 After some time spent in search of their absent 
 companions, two bundles of celery were found 
 on the beach, gathered for loading the cutter, 
 which was not visible. Search was then made 
 for this useful appendage to the ship ; " but such 
 a scene of shocking barbarity and carnage," says 
 
 * Afterwards Admiral Burney, author of " a Chronolo- 
 gical History of Discoveries in the South Seas," 3 vols. 4to.
 
 40 cook's fourth visit. 
 
 Mr. Burney, " as can never be thought on with- 
 out horror ; for the heads, hearts, and lungs, of 
 several of our people were lying about the beach, 
 and the dogs gnawing their entrails." A volley 
 of musketry was discharged by the exasperated 
 Europeans among the natives, which was subse- 
 quently found not to have wounded a single per- 
 son ; and, from the great quantity of people that 
 had assembled on the beach, and were moment- 
 arily arriving, they were obliged to leave the 
 spot without retaliating on the murderers of 
 their countrymen for their barbarous conduct. 
 The '' Adventure " left the Sound within four 
 days, and effected the passage from Cape Palliser 
 (Koua Koua), to Cape Horn, 121 degrees of longi- 
 tude, in about a month. 
 
 In the middle of October, 1774, the " Reso- 
 lution" again cast anchor in Queen Charlotte's 
 Sound; previously to which, an island about 
 fifteen miles in circumference was discovered, 
 situated in lat. 29° 2' south, long. 168° 18' east, 
 which was named Norfolk, in honour of the noble 
 family of the Howards. This island, which is a 
 prolific garden, but barricaded by breakers, was 
 afterwards colonised by a number of free set- 
 tlers, but has since been made a principal penal 
 appendage to the colony of New South Wales. 
 Cook was somewhat surprised at finding the na-
 
 cook's fifth visit. 41 
 
 tives (jf the Sound keep aloof, which was in con- 
 sequence of the untimely fate of the boat's crew 
 of the '•' Adventure ;" but the moment it was dis- 
 covered that it was Cook who now visited them, 
 an instant change took place. The natives who 
 had approached, halloed to their friends, who 
 had taken to the bush for fear. When the latter 
 heard the glad tidings they instantly salHed forth, 
 embracing the gentlemen over and over again, 
 dancing and jumping for joy, and skipping about 
 like madmen. Cook inquired repeatedly after the 
 detention of the " Adventure ;" and he began to 
 feel great anxiety as to her ultimate fate, in con- 
 sequence of the mysterious manner of the na- 
 tives, some of whom stated that she had been 
 wrecked, and all hands had perished. He gained a 
 few particulars which inclined him to feel assured 
 the vessel had not been wrecked ; nor was he 
 made acquainted with the truth, until in this 
 voyage homeward-bound he touched at the Cape 
 of Good Hope, where he received an account in 
 a letter from Captain Furneaux, who had also 
 touched at the Cape, detailing his proceedings 
 subsequently to his separation from the " Reso- 
 lution," including a loss of the cutter and her 
 crew. 
 
 The fifth and last visit paid by this immortal 
 navigator to the shores of New Zealand was in
 
 42 cook's fifth visit. 
 
 1777, in the "Resolution" and "Discovery," 
 when lie sighted the west coast of the island of 
 Victoria. On the 10th Fehruary in that year, 
 the ships were soon surrounded by canoes ; but 
 no one would venture on board, from apprehen- 
 sion of suffering punishment for the destruction 
 of the crew of the " Adventure's " cutter. This 
 feeling of the natives increased on beholding 
 Omai, an interesting Tahitean, now on his pas- 
 sage to his own country, who had been taken to 
 England by Captain Furneaux, and had been on 
 board the " Adventure " at the time the un- 
 happy transaction took place. The natives, 
 after being assured that they should not be 
 called to account for their former misconduct, 
 flocked on board, and made Cook acquainted 
 with the origin of the fracas, which was, it 
 appeared, unpremeditated on their part. The 
 principal actor in the transaction was a chief 
 named Kahoora (Kahura), who had with his own 
 hands killed Mr. Rowe, the commander of the 
 party. He frequently placed himself and family 
 in the power of Cook, who was often applied to 
 by the natives to rid them of this chief, who was 
 an obnoxious character among his countrymen ; 
 but that commander says, " If I had followed 
 the advice of all my pretended friends, I might 
 have extii-pated the whole race ; for the people
 
 TERATU. 43 
 
 of each village applied to me to destroy the 
 other." 
 
 Within a fortnight after the arrival of the 
 two ships, such was the despatch made, they put 
 to sea, accompanied by two native lads, as friends 
 to Omai. During the time the sea-sickness of 
 those youths lasted, they gave themselves up 
 to tears and despondency, spending their time 
 in singing mournful songs, expressive of the 
 praises of their country and its people, from 
 whom they were about to be separated for ever. 
 But by degrees these feehngs subsided, and at 
 last they appeared as firmly attached to their 
 new associates as if they had been born among 
 them. 
 
 The voyages of this celebrated man cannot 
 be dismissed without remarking the general cor- 
 rectness of his observations on the inhabitants 
 and country of this interesting portion of Aus- 
 tralasia. Had Cook resided for some years 
 among the people, instead of the transient visits 
 he paid them, his conclusions on their character 
 would have been similar to those given to us in 
 his voyages. His name, at this distance of time 
 (for such it is to a nation whose traditions de- 
 pend on the memory only), is regarded with 
 reverence in those parts to the southward where 
 he was best known.
 
 44 TERATU. 
 
 Cook labours under a mistake respecting the 
 identity of Teratu, whose name was continually 
 repeated to him in his first voyage. He says, 
 respecting the east coast of the north island, 
 " This part of the coast was much the most 
 populous, and possibly their apparent peace 
 and plenty might arise from their being under 
 one chief, or king ; for the inhabitants of all this 
 part of the country told us that they were the 
 subjects of Teratu. When they pointed to the 
 residence of this prince, it was in a direction which 
 we thought inland, but which, when we knew the 
 country better, was found to be the Bay of Plenty. 
 It is much to be regretted we were obliged to 
 leave this country without knowing any thing 
 better of Teratu but his name. As an Indian 
 monarch, his territory is certainly extensive ; he 
 was acknowledged from Cape Kidnappers to the 
 north and west as far as the Bay of Plenty, up- 
 wards of 240 miles, and we do not know how 
 far west his dominions may extend : possibly the 
 fortified towns in the Bay of Plenty may be his 
 barrier, especially as at Mercury bay he was not 
 acknowledged, nor, indeed, any other single 
 chief," &c. This was a strange mistake, espe- 
 cially when it was well known to Cook that every 
 small district, of almost a mile in extent, was 
 usually under the authority of one or more prin-
 
 TERATU. 45 
 
 cipal chiefs, who were invariably seeking to anni- 
 hilate each other. On inquiring of the chiefs in 
 Poverty Bay and Uwoua who Teratu could have 
 been, mentioning his name as having belonged to 
 a great chief, they laughed at what I said, and 
 told me that Te Kuki (Cook) knew nothing of 
 the language at the time, or he would have 
 early discovered his mistake ; that Teratu was 
 only Te Ratu, who was the first chief that was 
 killed in Poverty Bay by Cook's people, on his 
 first attempt to establish an intercourse with 
 the natives ; the murdered warrior was well 
 known in the country for his deeds of valour, 
 and, being at the head of his tribe, the account 
 of the death of such a man would quickly spread 
 on every part of the coast, from a continual in- 
 tercourse among the tribes. When Cook was 
 speaking to various natives on different parts of 
 the coast, they would twit him with being the 
 cause of the death of that chief, and tell him, 
 as he had unscrupulously deprived that re- 
 nowned chieftain of existence, he might also 
 be guilty of the same act towards them. When 
 the " Endeavour " was lying to the northward 
 of the Bay of Plenty, they would naturally point 
 to that part of the coast in directing the navi- 
 gators' attention towards Poverty Bay ; as the 
 coast after passing the east cape trends westerly.
 
 46 VANCOUVER. 
 
 and the river Kopututea, in the latter bay, is 
 nearly in the longitude of Te Kaha, or Cape 
 Runaway, in the Bay of Plenty. 
 
 The next discovery-ship that touched at 
 New Zealand was the sloop '' Discovery," under 
 the command of Captain George Vancouver, 
 who had formerly accompanied Cook, and the 
 " Chatham," Lieutenant Broughton, engaged on 
 an expedition to survey and explore the north- 
 west coast of America. In September, 1791, 
 King George the Third's Sound was discovered 
 on the south-west coast of New Holland ; and 
 on the 2d November following they anchored 
 in Dusky Bay. This was Vancouver's fifth per- 
 sonal visit to New Zealand. In this bay they 
 encountered a terrific gale, accompanied by 
 a heavy snow-storm, that entirely changed the 
 appearance of the surrounding country. The 
 " Discovery" drove from her moorings, and 
 was in danger of being lost : the " Chatham" 
 was more fortunate. Vancouver explored this ca- 
 pacious sound, which has two channels, having 
 a large island, called Resolution, in the entrance. 
 An arm of this harbour Cook had no time to ex- 
 plore ; he called it " Nobody-knows-what ;" but 
 Vancouver surveyed it, and, in conformity with 
 the title given by his precursor, named it " Some^ 
 body-knows-what." On the 22d the ships quitted
 
 FLAX. 47 
 
 the station, and encountered a gale similar to the 
 one they had already experienced, which caused 
 the separation of the vessels. 
 
 On the 24th the " Discovery" came in sight 
 of the Snare's Islets, in lat. 48° 3' south, long. 
 166° 20'. Cook had not been within ten leagues 
 of these barren islets. The " Chatham" disco- 
 vered a group of islands in lat. 45° 54' south, 
 long. 176° 13', which Lieutenant Broughton 
 named after the celebrated Pitt, Earl of Chat- 
 ham. A quarrel that ensued with the natives, 
 caused the death of one of the latter. They 
 appeared to the Englishmen to be a cheerful 
 race of people, and burst into fits of laughing 
 when spoken to by the former. The ongi, or 
 native salute of touching noses — the war im- 
 plements, and general manners of the people — 
 immediately proved they were of New Zealand 
 origin. The islands, though small, are much 
 diversified with hill and dale ; and at the present 
 day, some European residents have established 
 themselves on the principal island. 
 
 From the period of Vancouver's visit to the 
 present day, an uninterrupted intercourse has 
 been kept up with New Zealand — some thou- 
 sands of vessels, of every description, having 
 touched on every part of the coast, from the 
 North Cape to the land furthest south. Flax,
 
 48 THE D^DALUS. 
 
 the vegetable Phormium Tenax (see Appendix, 
 No. 4), was the principal, if not sole, object of 
 barter among the European visitors and the 
 natives. This article was in such demand at 
 one period, that a number of shipping were 
 employed trading from Port Jackson, whose 
 tonnage, exports, and imports, formed import- 
 ant items in the statistics of that colony. The 
 " Dasdalus," storeship to Vancouver's expedi- 
 tion, touched at New Zealand, after the murder 
 of her unfortunate commander. Lieutenant Her- 
 gest, at the Sandwich Islands. This vessel was 
 put in requisition to convey the free settlers 
 from Port Jackson to Norfolk Island. She was 
 also directed to touch off the coast of New Zea- 
 land, to procure some natives to dress the flax, 
 a similar plant to that of the latter country being 
 found to abound in that beautiful island. But 
 the plan failed, as the dressing of this article 
 is confined to the females and slaves, or men 
 of low condition. The two men that accom- 
 panied the vessel on her return were respectable 
 chiefs of the Napui tribe, named Tamawe and 
 Tui, whose accomplishments consisted in carv- 
 ing, planting, and the military tactics of their 
 country. 
 
 It appears they rendered themselves useful 
 by drawing a chart, on a large scale, for the
 
 SEALING GANGS. 49 
 
 colonial governor (King), and there are very few 
 persons of the superior class who are unable to 
 draw a tolerably correct chart of the island, 
 principally from personal travel and descriptions 
 received from their friends. 
 
 Many whaling-ships also touched on various 
 parts of the coasts ; but the Bay of Islands was 
 principally preferred on account of its locality 
 and excellent harbour ; and, from continual in- 
 tercourse with Europeans, the manners of its in- 
 habitants became civilised, who, after the revenge 
 taken by the French for the treacherous massacre 
 of Marion and his people, perceived that the su- 
 periority of their numbers, did not screen them 
 from chastisement. 
 
 During the first twenty years of the nine- 
 teenth century, the southern parts of the coun- 
 try was overrun by sealers in every direction, 
 who caught many thousands of those amphibious 
 animals every season ; their skins were subse- 
 quently sent to the China market. On one of 
 these sealing expeditions in a vessel called tlie 
 '' Pegasus," about the year 1816, the land at the 
 southern extremity was found to be divided by 
 a dangerous strait from the district of Te Wai 
 Poenamu ; the newly discovered island was 
 called after the discoverer, Stewart's Island. 
 The hardy adventurers did not follow their 
 
 VOL. u E
 
 50 THEIR CAPTURE. 
 
 dangerous pursuits without molestation from 
 the natives. Many parties of sealers were cut off 
 by the savages. In 1821, a vessel, called the " Ge- 
 neral Gates," left Boston, in the United States of 
 America, on a sealing voyage. On the 10th of 
 August following, five men, and a leader, named 
 Price, were landed near the south-west cape of 
 the district of Te Wai Poenamu, for the purpose 
 of catching seals. Within six weeks, the success 
 of the men amounted to 3563 skins, which had 
 been salted and made ready for shipment. One 
 night, about eleven o'clock, their cabin was sur- 
 rounded by a horde of natives, who broke open 
 the place, and made the Americans prisoners. 
 The flour, salt provisions, and salt for curing 
 skins, were all destroyed, as their use and value 
 was unknown to the savages. After setting fire 
 to the cabin, and every thing else that was 
 thought unserviceable, they forced the sealers to 
 march v/ith them for some days to a place known 
 by the name of Looking-Glass Bay, from a re- 
 markable perforation in a rock, a distance of 
 one hundred and fifty miles from whence they 
 set out. The only food they had was roasted 
 fish. After resting a day at this place, they 
 were made to travel a further distance of two 
 hundred miles in a northerly direction, until they 
 came to a large sandy bay. The natives then
 
 ESCAPE OF SURVIVORS. 51 
 
 took John Rawton, and, having fastened him to 
 a tree, they beat in his skull with a club. The 
 head of the unfortunate man was cut off, and 
 buried in the ground ; the remaining part of the 
 body was cooked and eaten. Some of this 
 nauseous food was offered to the sealers, who 
 had been without sustenance for some time, and 
 they also partook of the cooked body of their 
 late comrade. The five survivors were made 
 fast to trees, well guarded by hostile natives, and 
 each day one of the men was killed by the ferocious 
 cannibals, and afterwards devoured ; viz. James 
 White and WiUiam Rawson, of New London, in 
 Connecticut, and Wm. Smith, of New York. 
 James West, of the same place, was doomed to 
 die also ; but the night previously a dreadful 
 storm, accompanied by thunder and lightning, 
 frightened the natives away, and the two remain- 
 ing Americans found means to unfasten the flax 
 cords that bound them. At daybreak next 
 morning they launched a small canoe that was 
 within reach, and put to sea, without any pro- 
 visions or water, preferring death in this way to 
 the horrid fate of their comrades. They had 
 scarcely proceeded a few yards, when a number 
 of natives came in sight, who rushed into the 
 water to catch their prey; but the Americans
 
 52 JAMES CADDELL. 
 
 eventually eluded their grasp, despair lending 
 them strength to paddle beyond their reach. 
 They remained in this exhausted state three 
 days, and were then taken up by the *• Margery," 
 a flax trader and sealer of Sydney. 
 
 In 1823, a young Englishman, named James 
 Caddell, visited Sydney, after residing nearly 
 twenty years among the natives on the south- 
 west coast of New Zealand. He stated that, in 
 1806, or thereabouts, a sealing ship, called the 
 " Sydney Cove," left Port Jackson for the sealing 
 ground on the coast of this country. On the 
 ship arriving there, a boat landed Caddell, who 
 was then a lad of thirteen years, and a crew of 
 men, in pursuit of skins in the vicinity of the 
 South Cape. All the men were immediately 
 murdered and eaten ; and such would have been 
 Caddell's fate, had he not ran up to a chief, 
 named Tako, who happened accidentally to be 
 tapued at the time, and, catching hold of his gar- 
 ment, was saved in consequence ; his life was 
 further granted him. After remaining some few 
 years with the people, he married the daughter 
 of the principal chief, and was himself raised to 
 that dignity, and tattooed in the face. He visited 
 Sydney, as above stated, in the colonial schooner 
 '' Snapper," accompanied by his wife ; and after-
 
 '' ASTROLABE." 53 
 
 wards returned, with renewed pleasure, to the 
 precarious hfe of savage hordes. He had nearly 
 forgotten the English language, and had often 
 accompanied the natives in their wars. 
 
 The next discovery ship that visited the coast 
 of New Zealand was the French corvette, " La 
 Coquille," commanded by M. Duperrey, in 1824, 
 during his circumnavigation of the globe. His 
 charts, afterwards published by the French go- 
 vernment, have added to the geographical know- 
 ledge of the country. {See Note 5, Apj)endix.) 
 
 Further knowledge of the coast was obtained 
 by the visit of the French discovery ship, " As- 
 trolabe," Captain Dumont D'Urville. On the 10th 
 of January, 1827, this celebrated navigator came 
 in sight of Cape Foulwind, on the west coast of 
 the Island of Victoria, in lat. 41° 46' south. To 
 the southward of this cape, he remarks that he 
 had seen an immense ravine, from which issued 
 a river or mountain-torrent, whose effluence was 
 so rapid as to discolour the water for many miles 
 around ; the ship being surrounded with limbs of 
 trees and decayed vegetable matter. This torrent 
 was in lat. 42° 2' S. They hove the lead with 
 some trepidation ; but were soon relieved of their 
 fears by perceiving they had full fifty fathoms 
 soundings. The ship rounded Cape Farewell, the 
 north-west corner of Cook's Strait, the south side
 
 54 " LA FAVORITE." 
 
 of which was carefully examined. They also kept 
 close in shore from Cape Palhser, in lat. 41° 17' 
 S., to the Bay of Plenty, from thence to the Frith 
 of Thames, examining the islands and the outer 
 Barrier Isles. These places were minutely sur- 
 veyed, and the observations of Captain D'Urville 
 will be found very useful to navigators. From 
 the river Thames, the " Astrolabe " kept close in 
 shore, up to the Cape Maria Van Dieman, and 
 thence back south, to the Bay of Islands. On 
 Captain D'Urville's return to France, his ob- 
 servations, maps, charts, &c., were published by 
 order of Admiral de Rigny, minister of marine, 
 in a style worthy of the subject and the govern- 
 ment by whom the voyage was patronised. 
 
 The French discovery-ship, " La Favorite," 
 Captain La Place, also touched at New Zealand 
 in 1831. The west coast of the north island was 
 made on the 10th of September in that year, and 
 the ship was anchored off the village of Korora- 
 rika, in the Bay of Islands. At this time it vmfor- 
 tunately happened that a malicious and unfounded 
 report was published in Port Jackson, stating that 
 Captain La Place intended to take possession of 
 New Zealand, in the name of his royal master : 
 an intention totally foreign to the purposes of 
 that able officer. This caused an irritable feeling 
 on the part of the individuals comprising either
 
 NEW ZEALAND ASSOCIATION. 55 
 
 nation that met in the Bay of Islands. Captain 
 La Place notices it, in the narrative of his voy- 
 age, with much bitterness. He says, " that 
 Rewa, a chief, and many other natives, were told 
 that the corvette had arrived to take revenge 
 for the death of Marion, committed in this bay 
 in a former century." 
 
 Many pertinent remarks are made by both 
 the above navigators on the naturels dupays, or 
 natives, the country, clime, &c. ; but the cause 
 of geography was not advanced by the latter 
 officer, as far as New Zealand was concerned. 
 Captain D'Urville met with Captain Jas. Herd, 
 who commanded a ship, the " Rosanna," in the 
 service of a society of gentlemen, who had fitted 
 out two ships for the ostensible purposes of colo- 
 nising the country ; but from causes, an explana- 
 tion of which would be irrelevant to this work, 
 the plan failed. Captain Herd collected much 
 data of nautical service, especially in a collection 
 of correct latitudes of various headlands. 
 
 At the present moment (1838) an expedition, 
 under the immediate sanction of Louis-Philippe, 
 King of the French, whose patronage has ever 
 been readily extended in the cause of scien- 
 tific research, is surveying the coast of New 
 Zealand. In the prospectus of the details of this 
 voyage, this portion of the intended labours of
 
 56 FRENCH SURVEYING EXPEDITION. 
 
 the expedition forms a primary object. Natu- 
 ralists of distinguished talent accompany the 
 vessels, who are invariably attached to discovery- 
 ships in the French service. 
 
 Another expedition, on a scale of magnifi- 
 cence hitherto unattempted by the parent na- 
 tions of Europe, has just sailed (1838), under 
 the auspices of the government of the United 
 States, consisting of the " Macedonian," 44-gun 
 frigate, a large ship, a brig, one crack schooner, 
 with an eight-horse steam-engine to fit into 
 the cutter of the frigate, to ply up the various 
 rivers whose powerful efflux or lofty headlands 
 often cause baffling winds at the most needful 
 moments, or sand-bars whose shallowness admit 
 not of larger craft. This expedition is princi- 
 pally to survey places already known, and to 
 explore such regions as have been only hastily 
 noticed hitherto by discoverers. The prosecu- 
 tion of discoveries towards the South Pole is 
 also intended. 
 
 This peaceable armament is under the com- 
 mand of Commodore Catesby-ap-Jones. To an 
 American, this name is a sufficient guarantee for 
 the efficient performance of the many arduous 
 duties that have devolved on this well-tried 
 officer : to an Englishman, who will be less 
 acquainted with the name, from a continual
 
 AMERICAN EXPLORING EXPEDITION. 57 
 
 accession of candidates, in both the naval and 
 miHtary services of his country, who are daily 
 fast filling the vacancies in the immortal roll 
 of fame, it is perhaps sufficient to state, that this 
 gentleman has already protected the interests of 
 British individuals in the islands of the Pacific 
 Ocean, against the aggressions of even his own 
 countrymen. 
 
 Several men of known scientific abilities, na- 
 tives of the States, professors in various branches 
 of science and natural history, are also employed ; 
 so that our transatlantic brethren are determined 
 to shew, that, as early as the fledged eagle can 
 expand her wings, she will leave her eyrie, ani- 
 mated with the same inquiring spirit as her lion- 
 like relative. 
 
 The dollar and cent policy of the govern- 
 ment, as Brother Jonathan has thought proper 
 to designate his own pecuniary conduct hitherto, 
 has been entirely repudiated in the fitting out of 
 the present expedition ; as, up to December last, 
 the expenses incurred amounted to near 700,000 
 dollars, or 140,000/. sterhng. The survey of the 
 country of New Zealand, interior as well as ex- 
 terior, forms a prominent feature in the labours 
 of this expedition. The mineralogy of the coun- 
 try will be particularly attended to. Reynolds, the 
 able historian of the voyage of the " Potomac "
 
 58 RUSSIAN NAVIGATORS, 
 
 to Qualla Battoo, on the coast of Sumatra, has 
 the same appointment in this expedition, to 
 whose unwearied exertions for the last ten years 
 the world is greatly indebted. Professor Silli- 
 man, whose name {luciis a non lucendo) is a 
 sufficient testimony, has enriched the scientific 
 corps with his invaluable advice. 
 
 The civilised world is not only indebted for 
 its geographical knowledge of the South Seas 
 to our own gallant countrymen, whose names, 
 blazoned by hardy achievements, form a host of 
 themselves ; but to our scientific neighbours, also 
 distinguished for ability and perseverance, and 
 well known among us : viz. Bougainville, Perouse, 
 D'Entrecasteaux, Baudin, Freycinet, Duperrey, 
 D'Urville, and La Place ; and, among the Rus- 
 sians, Krusenstern, in 1804 and 1805 ; Kotzebue, 
 inl816; Billinghausen, in 1818 and 1822; Lutke, 
 from 1826 to 1828, &c.
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Journey to Kaiparii — Proceed clown the Hokianga — 
 Arrive at Moperi — Waiiiga, Priest of Araitehuru — 
 Joined by an aged Chief, who accompanies us — Defile 
 through a Native Plantation and Village — Descend to 
 the Sea Shore — Arrive at Waimemaku — Method of 
 producing Fire, and the Operation of Cooking — Monu- 
 ments — Alarm of the Natives — Waipoa, Fortification 
 and Valley — Manners, Habits, Customs — Appearance 
 of the Villagei's — Native Dances and Lamentations — 
 Transactions in the Village — Difficulties arising at our 
 Departure. 
 
 Within an early period after my arrival in New 
 Zealand, in 1831, I performed a jom'ney to 
 Kaipara, an extensive district on the banks of 
 an important river of the same name, on a com- 
 mercial speculation ; principally to ascertain if 
 its river, which was known to have several 
 shifting bars at its entrance, had a channel of 
 sufficient depth for the navigation of large 
 vessels. 
 
 I undertook a second journey, in 1832, to 
 the same settlements, on a similar investigation, 
 in conjunction with commercial objects, in- 
 cluding the purchasing of spars for shipping, 
 and the flax, as dressed by the natives, both of
 
 60 JOURNEY TO KAIPaRA. 
 
 which commodities for exportation abounded in 
 that neighbourhood. 
 
 In the latter excursion, I was accompanied 
 by ten native young men, principally sons of 
 respectable chiefs, who did not regard it as de- 
 rogatory to their rank to perform menial 
 offices, such as carrying provisions on their 
 backs, which are prohibited from bearing any 
 weights, otherwise than in the service of Eu- 
 ropeans. My native servant, Puhi, invariably 
 followed me in all my journeys. He subse- 
 quently accompanied me twice to Port Jackson. 
 Many of the young chiefs joined my suite pur- 
 posely to see their relations, and exult in a little 
 pride before them, knowing the envy it would 
 excite in the bosoms of their young friends, by 
 being in the pay and employ of a Rcmgatira no 
 Uropij or gentleman of Europe, who was ac- 
 counted a 7'ara avis in terris in the settlements 
 we proposed visiting. We left the settlement 
 of the Horeke, situated at the head of the navi- 
 gation, some thirty miles from the entrance of the 
 river Hokianga, furnished with several articles, 
 valuable in the eyes of the natives, as presents 
 to such friendly chiefs as we might have occa- 
 sion to visit during our travels, who were un- 
 able from their locality, at that period, to have 
 the benefit of trading with Europeans.
 
 PROCEED DOWN THE HOKTANGA. 61 
 
 We started at 4 a.m. in a wliale-boat, with 
 the ebb-tide in our favour, quickly gliding down 
 that beautiful river; and arrived, at 9 a.m., at 
 Moperi, the settlement of the pilot of the 
 Hokianga, within a short distance of the south 
 head of the mouth of the harbour, formed by a 
 mass of black granite rock ; on which side is the 
 deepest water. The north head is formed of 
 sand-hills. Here we hauled up our boat, and, 
 having been welcomed by JNIr. Martin, the pilot, 
 took our breakfast previously to commencing 
 our journey. We were soon joined by Wainga, 
 a priest of great celebrity at this station, who pos- 
 sessed an infinity of names, on which he prided 
 himself with the self-sufficiency of an hidalgo. 
 Seating himself on the floor, aside of my chair, 
 he took peculiar delight in my pronouncing after 
 him the variety of cognomens this dignitary 
 possessed, and which included all the letters of 
 the alphabet some three or four times over. 
 He soon learned from the natives who accom- 
 panied me, that I had not been long a 
 resident in the country : he, therefore, felt it 
 necessary that I ought to be made acquainted 
 with his merits ; and, accordingly, held out his 
 hand to me, whicli I accepted without hesita- 
 tion, though an imperfect glance was sufficient to 
 shew that its acquaintance with water (soap was
 
 62 WAINGA, PRIEST OF ARAITEHURU. 
 
 out of the question) appeared to have been of 
 ancient date. He then surveyed me, cap-d-pie, 
 with an intended affable smile of infinite re- 
 gard, and, giving a familiar nod of his head, 
 proceeded to tell me that he was a priest of 
 Araitehuru, the Taniwoa, or aquatic deity of 
 the headlands of the harbour, whose abilities 
 were wantonly displayed in upsetting canoes and 
 raising awful storms. "And see," added this 
 disciple of Baal, " how the Atua foams at the 
 mouth, because I have not preached my kcm- 
 wau (prayer) to him to-day," pointing to the 
 high and heavy surf, that eleven months out of 
 the year, breaks furiously across the bar of the 
 harbour, distant about two miles from the en- 
 trance to the river. " If you had not shaken 
 hands with me," continued my oracular com- 
 panion, " I would have raised such storms that 
 the sands on the sea-shore would have been 
 hnpassable, your canoes should have been mati 
 (sick or dead), and you would have bitterly 
 repented any shght you might have put upon 
 me." I returned thanks to this imposing cha- 
 racter with a serious air, as if his speech had 
 carried conviction. This behaviour pleased the 
 old gentleman, who hastily jumped from the 
 ground and began to dance a hdkd ; in which, 
 if the priest was not remarkably agile in his
 
 WAINGA, PIjLIPST OF ARAITEHURU. 63 
 
 pirouettes, no fault could be assigned from his 
 limbs being under any undue restraint, as the 
 sole article of dress that enwrapped the outer 
 man of this modern antique, was a piece of 
 tattered something, that might originally have 
 been a blanket; but it had lost this distinction 
 as such, either in colour or texture ; and, from 
 frequent rents, had dwindled to the size of an 
 ordinary pocket-handkerchief, which was cast in 
 a style, quite degage, over his shirtless back. 
 The appearance of his body, as exposed to the 
 view of the beholder, as his apology for a skirt 
 dangled in the air, was not (in my opinion) 
 enhanced by the saving method employed by 
 these islanders, of conveying the phlegm con- 
 tracted in the nasal orifices to the hand ; the 
 palms of which, contents included, are trans- 
 ferred by gentle friction to the thighs, legs, &c. 
 of this economical people. 
 
 Wainga then broke forth with a cantatory 
 impromptu, composed for the occasion, descrip- 
 tive of the journey we had undertaken ; and, 
 when he had finished, he tuined to me, and in- 
 quired if he was not a tangata jjai, or excellent 
 fellow, to which I assented. He then conscien- 
 tiously demanded payment of me, for having 
 tranquillised the ocean on my account. This 
 was carrying the jest too far ; but I gave, as a
 
 64- JOINED BY AN AGED CHIEF. 
 
 tithe, a head of tobacco ; which he, at last, 
 admitted was compensation enough. We left 
 our boat with the hospitable pilot, who had 
 married the only daughter of Wainga, who also 
 exchanged with us our unwieldy ship's compass 
 and lead-line for similar articles more portable. 
 A respectable old chief also joined us, who was 
 father to Parore, the head chief of Waipoa, a 
 settlement that lay in our route. My com- 
 panions, who were all in excellent spirits (a 
 most needful point to travellers in this land), 
 having passed on before me, well loaded with 
 comestibles, we took our departure, pursuing a 
 path across the hills, hollowed in the clayey soil 
 by the continual repassing to and fro of the 
 natives, amid the high varieties of the fern that 
 covered the country in every direction. 
 
 The boys had pushed on some distance 
 before me, when I was attracted by a sudden 
 shout, which induced me to hasten onwards. 
 On coming up with them, I found them all con- 
 vulsed with laughter. It appeared that one of 
 the eldest, who possessed much solemnity of 
 aspect, was upset in the path by a wild bush- 
 pig, at full gallop, running against him with its 
 utmost force ; the basket of potatoes on his 
 shoulders weighed full 70 lbs., and was so well 
 fastened to his back as to incapacitate him from
 
 A NATIVE VILLAGE. 65 
 
 rising without assistance. This mishap was soon 
 rectified. On advancing to the summit of the 
 hill, a beautiful view presented itself, bounded 
 by the precipitous mountain-headland of Maun- 
 ganui. The base is continually washed by the 
 sea, whose dashing sprays at stormy periods are 
 elevated to the height of full one hundred feet. 
 It appeared in the horizon, distant about twenty 
 miles ; but the road along the indented and 
 circuitous beach, is double that length. On our 
 right was the vast Pacific, whose turbulent 
 waves, rushing in heavy rollers, burst with 
 stunning noise and violence on the beach, which 
 was covered, as far as the eye could discern, 
 with foam and small remnants of wreck. Below 
 us, at the foot of this elevated hill, was a fertile 
 valley ; in the bosom of which was situated a 
 romantic native village. The many wutas, or 
 platforms raised on trees, to protect the pro- 
 visions of the people from the rapacity of the 
 dogs and rats, were loaded with seed potatoes> 
 ready for planting. The villagers were absent 
 at the time, preparing the land for their 
 plantations. 
 
 The sole human occupant of the village 
 was an old lady, employed in beating fern root 
 on a stone with a wooden pounder. She was 
 surrounded by those abominations of the 
 
 VOL. I. F
 
 66 ANTIPODAL CERBERUSES. 
 
 country, the dogs, principally curs of the lowest 
 degree in the scale of animal creation. These 
 harpies no sooner espied our party descending 
 the hill path that led through the village, than 
 they commenced the most discordant yells con- 
 ceivable, which continued while they had us in 
 sight. In vain the old lady exerted her feeble 
 voice to still the clamour. A few of them made 
 some abortive attempts to bite at our heels, or 
 graze them, like the serpent of old ; but an 
 uplifted arm sent them running in every di- 
 rection ; in which they displayed extraordinary 
 agility. 
 
 I have been induced to lay some stress 
 on these quadrupeds, as every traveller will find 
 them to be the greatest pest in the country. 
 These brutes are met with in the best New 
 Zealand society. They have the enviable si- 
 tuation, when young, of sharing the bed and 
 board of most of the unmarriageable young 
 ladies, serving to make up a coterie; and are 
 equally petted as that happy race of Bologna 
 extraction (famous for sausages and lap-dogs), 
 who domicile in the neighbourhood of certain 
 unmentionable squares, in the antipodes of this 
 country. These animals were a disgrace to the 
 kaingd, or village, of which they formed part and 
 parcel; being without the slightest pretensions
 
 DEFILE THROUGH A NATIVE PLANTATION. 67 
 
 to obesity, had the entire thirty-four, which I 
 counted of them, been reduced by a cuhnary 
 process, they could not have rendered an ounce 
 of unctuous matter. 
 
 The elderly dame had a cestus round her 
 waist, made of twisted grass. She politely wel- 
 comed us, as we marched through her planta- 
 tion of Indian corn and kumeras, which were 
 nearly ripe and in fine condition : unfortunately 
 for us, the place was strictly tapued, or pro- 
 hibited from being touched by any person, until 
 the approaching harvest ; and, on requesting 
 the dame to allow me to purchase some of the 
 much esteemed edibles for my company, who 
 eyed asquint the pleasing food with the most 
 affable recognition, the guardian of this Hes- 
 perian fruit pointed to a small bunch of human 
 hair made fast to a ti, or cabbage palm-tree, 
 denoting the strictness of the tapu. 
 
 We passed on our way, ascending other 
 hills, on the summits of which we could only 
 see an interminable succession of hills and 
 mountains, rising above each other, separated by 
 fertile valleys, and clothed with the evergreen 
 verdure of this beautiful land. Nature, unde- 
 stroyed by the arts introduced by mankind, is 
 here beheld in all her beauty and grandeur. 
 The erect erito, and other umbelliferous palm-
 
 68 DESCENT TO THE SEA-SHORE. 
 
 trees, wave their broad leaves proudly amid the 
 varied foliage of the surrounding trees. The 
 polypetalous kaikdtoa, covered with sweet odor- 
 ous flowers throughout the year, of many tints, 
 cover the hill sides, where the bleak atmosphere 
 will only admit of stunted vegetation. 
 
 The descent from these mountains led us to 
 the beach, composed of fine sand, reaching about 
 four hundred feet from low-water mark to the 
 bank which skirted the shore; on this was 
 strewed dead birds, small fish, and pieces of bone 
 belonging to the cetaceous fishes that abound in 
 the vicinity of these shores. In walking along 
 the beach, we kept as close to the low-water mark 
 as the spreading surf would permit us, the sand in 
 such places being most indurated ; but close to 
 the shore we were buried to our ancles at every 
 step we took. My escort amused themselves 
 by imitating my manner of walking, exaggerating 
 each step as much as was possible, and adding 
 ludicrous imitations of many of their European 
 friends they had left behind at Hokianga. 
 
 We passed several streams of water that 
 descended from the mountains, and flowed on 
 idly into the sea. These rivulets are composed 
 of the freshest water, and are met with, on an 
 average, within every quarter of a mile on the 
 coast. On passing such streams as were of
 
 ARRIVE AT WAIMAMaKU. 69 
 
 some depth, and rapid in their effluence into the 
 sea, I was carried over by the natives, who were 
 often vociferous as to whose back should bear 
 my weiglit ; each of them striving for the 
 preference, aUhough well loaded with provi- 
 sions ; the old chief was as clamorous in this 
 repect as the youngsters. 
 
 After pursuing our route for some dis- 
 tance, we halted on the bank of a rivulet, 
 descending from a mountain valley, called 
 Waimamaku. The sea flows at hisch-water 
 into the rivulet. Some remains of sheds, made 
 of nikau, or palm leaves, indicated that some 
 travellers had put up at this place previously 
 to our arrival. This, I thought, was a very 
 pleasing circumstance ; as I was enabled to take 
 advantage of the shelter thus afforded from the 
 fierce rays of the sun, that shone particularly 
 bright, and was almost unbearable on the white 
 sand. I composed myself to rest, and was very 
 comfortably reclining, when I was speedily 
 ejected by a myriad of fleas, that took entire 
 possession of my person. I was only relfeved of 
 these tormenting insects by instantly stripping 
 and bathing. In lying within these huts, I little 
 reflected, that the natives seldom or ever leave 
 a house or shed untenanted by these minute 
 depredators. I employed the only effectual
 
 70 METHOD OF PRODUCING FIRE, 
 
 method of getting rid of them. In the mean- 
 while my companions had hghted a fire ; one of 
 them taking a musket, and placing some priming 
 in the pan of the lock, closed up the touch-hole ; 
 against which he applied a piece of his flaxen 
 garment, previously made soft by friction ; he 
 then pulled the trigger of the piece, which, com- 
 municating some sparks to the flax, produced a 
 flame by being gently waved to and fro. Some 
 of the lads had applied themselves to scraping 
 potatoes and kumeras, which they prepared with 
 much celerity with the aid of a mussel-shell ; 
 others had collected stones, and deposited them 
 in a hole, previously dug in the ground, near 
 the beach, over some firewood which had been 
 ignited. The stones having been made red- 
 hot, the provisions, which consisted of fish pro- 
 cured at Moperi, after being cleansed and bound 
 up in the leaves of the kaha, or wild turnip, 
 which almost covers every spare surface of 
 vegetable soil in the country, together with the 
 potatoes and kumeras, were all placed in a 
 basket on the hot stones, which were arranged 
 so as to surround the food. Some leaves and 
 old baskets were placed over the first that had 
 been deposited within the hole, and pouring 
 some water from a calabash, the steam that 
 arose in consequence was speedily enclosed, by
 
 AND THE OPERATION OF COOKING. 71 
 
 earth being thrown over the whole so that the 
 steam could not escape, — every gap being 
 carefully closed up. Within twenty minutes 
 the provisions were excellently cooked, and fit 
 for eating. 
 
 I invited the old chief to dine with me, who 
 complied with my request ; the cooks had given 
 us a plentiful supply. When, we finished our 
 repast, preparations were made to depart from 
 this happy valley. On the north bank were 
 placed, among the bushes, three raouis, or carved 
 monuments, painted with red earth. These had 
 been erected here to prevent native travellers or 
 strangers from grubbing in the sand for a 
 favourite large cockle, called toi-roa, which are 
 steamed and dried by the natives, and taken as 
 portable food for a journey. 
 
 We soon pursued our route to the south- 
 ward, passing many fine mountain - streams, 
 bearing different names. The hills between 
 Hokianga, and some dozen miles to the south- 
 ward, are clothed with dark fern and kaikatoa 
 bushes ; and scarce a sandy speck is to be seen ; 
 but after this distance, our hitherto pleasing 
 walk was suddenly arrested by immense masses 
 of large round stones, loosely thrown together ; 
 these are easily disturbed by the action of the 
 waves every flood tide. These pudding-stones
 
 72 COAST SCENERY. 
 
 rendered our walk tedious and unsafe. They 
 were spherical and oval ; some about two 
 hundred weight : we stumbled on them in large 
 beds, and so very compact in a line with each 
 other, that none were strewed singly on the 
 beach, though many were not above the weight 
 of a single pound. Their locality was the more 
 singular, as we never found them but in the 
 vicinity of low land, far from the many reefs of 
 rocks that line the western coast of the country. 
 The nearer we approached to Waipoa, the 
 hills of evergreen disappeared from the coast, and 
 were only visible in the interior of the country. 
 Masses of sandstone, whose upper stratum had 
 long since crumbled into loose sand, flew about 
 in the direction of the wind, and gave this part 
 of the coast a barren and cheerless appearance ; 
 large detached masses of black rocks lined the 
 shore, on which the gannet, curlew, pelican, 
 and gulls, together with an innumerable quantity 
 of other sea-fowl, sat perched, eyeing us as we 
 passed, acknowledging our presence by a dis- 
 cordant shriek, but not stirring from their 
 apparently comfortable quarters at our near ap- 
 proach. The obstreperous noise uttered by 
 some of the gulls, — the boisterous surf lashing 
 the cavernous rocks, as the flood-tide was mak- 
 ing, and jetting its spray in showers over the
 
 ALARM OF THE NATIVES. 73 
 
 beach around, gave the place an aspect, dreary 
 and repulsive in the extreme. One remarkable 
 jet (Veau was occasioned by the sea advancing ; 
 and as each rolling wave made towards the 
 beach, it was arrested in its progress half way by 
 a submarine trou, or cave, hollowed in the dark 
 dismal-looking rocks ; and, from the force with 
 which the waves were propelled, burst upwards 
 in spray to the height of full thirty feet. 
 
 Early after, we perceived the sand-hills that 
 led to Waipoa ; and on the shore was visibly 
 imprinted the footsteps of two men and a dog. 
 The insecurity felt by these people was now 
 exhibited by my companions, every one of 
 whom was anxiously alarmed ; and, to judge by 
 their change of countenance and demeanour, 
 they appeared to feel as horrified as if expecting 
 a violent death. I did my best to satisfy them 
 that the footsteps had probably been impressed 
 by two messengers, who had left Hokianga some 
 days before us ; adding, the strangers evidently 
 were two only, and travelling the same route as 
 ourselves ; but I was overruled by the terrified 
 lads, who said that, doubtless, the rest of the sup- 
 posed enemy were in the bush. I was obliged to 
 assume a fierce aspect, desiring them, if they felt 
 discouraged, to leave me with the old chief, whom 
 I would accompany alone. I felt no sensation
 
 74 WAIPOA, FORTIFICATION AND VALLEY. 
 
 of fear ; certain that ray mission as a trader was 
 of too much importance to the tribes in the 
 vicinity, to permit them to attempt any harm 
 on me or my people, however inveterate their 
 feehngs might be towards them. 
 
 We soon reached the sand-hills leading to 
 the village of the chief; and, in ascending them, 
 sank in the loose sand at least a foot, at every 
 step we took. These hills were very steep. The 
 old chief and myself, as soon as we arrived 
 among the clayey mountains, left our compa- 
 nions, who were all heavily laden, some distance 
 behind us. These heights were intersected 
 with winding paths, which are discernible at a 
 great distance, though only a foot broad, from 
 the yellow clay trodden by the villagers, appear- 
 ing amid the dark fern. We ambulated these 
 mountain-tops for seven miles, when suddenly 
 the deep valley of Waipoa opened to our view, 
 in the centre of which a large native settlement 
 appeared. The valley was irrigated with a 
 stream of water. We had a mile still to walk 
 before we reached the kaingd, but were no 
 sooner seen winding our way down the hills, 
 than we could hear the distant shouts resound 
 through the valley, and a discharge of muskets 
 commenced, to greet our arrival. 
 
 Those harbingers of joy and grief, the dogs.
 
 RECEPTION AT A VILLAGE. 75 
 
 of \vliose fraternity I have already inade ho- 
 nourable mention, were here in their element. 
 As we approached, thirty stout fellows, entirely 
 naked, rushed forward to meet us, with muskets 
 in their hands, hallooing and roaring to the 
 utmost extent of their lungs. Every one of 
 them came up to press noses, which I enacted 
 with a few of the foremost; but respect for 
 the shape and position of this ornamental 
 member, made me abridge the ceremony, or 
 I should never have retained its pristine form, 
 so eager were these new friends to greet and 
 welcome my arrival. 
 
 To get rid of the ceremony, I pressed 
 the tallest of the villagers into my service ; 
 and, jumping on his back, I was carried 
 down the steep hills ; two other men press- 
 ing forwards, clearing the path, and sup- 
 porting my feet. They were all exceedingly 
 pleased with *' Ko te pakeha pai, kaore ano 
 redi e na tangata maori," (the excellent white 
 man, who permitted the natives to do what 
 they pleased, without being angry in return). 
 We had to cross and recross the little rivulet, 
 which pursued its devious way in circular 
 meanderings throughout the valley. 
 
 Previous to our arrival at the Pa, or 
 fortified village, I halted for my companions
 
 76 APPLAUSE OF THE VILLAGERS. 
 
 in a deep glen, from which the settlement was 
 not visible. The lads soon came up, but 
 instead of moving onwards, I was given to 
 understand, that here it was necessary that 
 the business of the toilet, *' wakapai pai," should 
 be arranged, as such fashions were indispensable 
 in the interchange of visits. As I had neither 
 power nor inclination to stop their proceedings, 
 I let them follow the bent of their inclina- 
 tions, and proceeded to the village with the 
 inhabitants, who now flocked about me in 
 large numbers, uttering, with deafening shouts, 
 "Airemai! air^mai!" — welcome! welcome! which 
 was also echoed from the village, as soon as 
 we sighted it, accompanied by a continual 
 discharge of artillery, waving of mats, and 
 other expressions of applause, which are so 
 liberally bestowed by these islanders, on those 
 whom they may choose to honour. 
 
 I was too much fatigued with the day's 
 travel to proceed further, though the promised 
 land was in sight, within a very short distance. 
 I, therefore, again deliberately mounted the 
 lengthiest biped I perceived, who good hu- 
 mouredly carried me to the fence of the pa, 
 ^vhen etiquette obliged me to dismount. On 
 entering the fence, I was surrounded by full 250 
 men, entirely denuded of dress, with the sole
 
 THE COURT OF A CHIEF. 77 
 
 accoutrement of a cartridge-ball made fast 
 round the waist, with a belt of leather or flax. 
 
 Most of these men were at least six feet in 
 stature; and their ample chests, brawny hmbs, 
 and altogether martial appearance, presented a 
 fine specimen of savage nobility. It was an in- 
 teresting spectacle. On my entering the /;«, 
 a lane was formed by these retainers of the 
 chief, who sat at the head, surrounded by a 
 circle of venerable sages, attended by a few 
 of his wives and his mother, a venerable 
 old lady, and other relatives, who all sat in 
 a recumbent position against the house, devoted 
 to the use of the chief. 
 
 Parore, who, conformably to the custom of 
 the country, sat in state to receive me, was 
 in the prime of life, possessing a countenance 
 remarkably pleasing; his stature was tall and 
 commanding, and, although not outwardly dis^ 
 tinguished from his companions by any pe- 
 culiarities in dress, yet he had an air at once 
 noble and dignified, from the habitual exercise 
 of authority. He was immediately to be distin- 
 guished, as holding the most elevated rank in 
 the pa. I bent towards him, and we pressed 
 noses for the space of a few seconds ; not an 
 unpleasing salutation in summer, when the 
 native hand is scarcely touchable. Parore was
 
 78 COMMERCIAL PROPOSITIONS. 
 
 not much tattooed at the time, which to a 
 European, long resident in the country, does 
 not appear repulsive. The chief introduced 
 me to his several wives, whom I also saluted 
 after the courtesy prescribed by the native 
 ton. 
 
 This chief, after silence could be obtained 
 from the Babel of tongues, commenced a dis- 
 course on the subject of my journey, regretted 
 that his agricultural pursuits prevented him 
 from the satisfaction of accompanying me, as 
 his heart was set upon having commercial 
 Europeans residing in his various settlements ; 
 that, unfortunately, his people had nothing to 
 employ their thoughts or hands, after planting, 
 but themes of w^ar and renewing old grievances ; 
 but, if commerce was instituted among his 
 tribe, they would be employed in working for 
 articles that would prove most serviceable to 
 them, by dressing the korar'i, or flax, felling 
 timber, and planting provisions for other 
 markets. I assented to all the chief advanced. 
 By this time my brigade of companions had 
 arrived, and were received with cries of 
 laughter, welcome, and endearing terms of 
 recognition, so lavishly bestowed on each other 
 by these people ; which were as liberally re- 
 sponded by my trusty few, who had decorated
 
 FESTIVAL FANCY DRESSES. 79 
 
 their persons in the dernier mode introduced 
 by Europeans. A glance at them may not be 
 deemed uninteresting. 
 
 The countenances of all were entirely be- 
 daubed with a solution of the red kokowai earth. 
 A few had dipped their heads within a large cali- 
 bash containing this rouge dissolved in water, 
 which formed a plaster, whose brilliancy was 
 enhanced by a broad stain of the blue earth, 
 called pdrdkdwdhia, which was used to encircle 
 the right eye and half of the temple. The 
 effects of this latter pigment was best visible 
 in the dance, when at intervals the white of 
 the eye only is displayed. Feathers decorated 
 the heads, which had been carried in a carved 
 box by one of the party, who had collected 
 a large quantity on the sea-beach, from the 
 dead tara, or gannets, we had passed in our 
 route. All the finery that had been bestowed 
 on them by Europeans, such as cast - off* 
 clothing, which are not repudiated too hastily 
 by their wearers in New Zealand, were sported 
 on this occasion. The sole article of dress 
 on one of these exquisites, was a tattered brown 
 waistcoat, that just reached a foot and some 
 inches below the throat of the wearer, the 
 nether man being entirely exposed, in puris 
 naturalibus. Another had put on a shirt.
 
 80 NATIVE FASHIONABLES. 
 
 whose original hue had been, from times re- 
 mote, unclistinguishable ; this was fastened 
 round the loins by the sleeves, forming an 
 apron for the wearer ; a native mat covered 
 the shoulders. One youth had inserted him- 
 self into the body of a woman's gown, which 
 served as a jelick, his extremities being incased 
 in an old red baize shirt, the sleeves of which 
 answered the purposes of trousers for the 
 legs. A pair of duck trousers was tied round 
 the throat of one young chief, whose extreme 
 delicacy was attested by an old worn-out red 
 nightcap being placed in the identical spot 
 assigned for the northern philibeg. This sub- 
 stitute was made fast by a piece of green 
 flax, that indifferently well supplied the place 
 of the article of dress referred to. A few other 
 long since faded articles of apparel, shrunk 
 to almost nothing, by repeated ablutions when 
 in former service, completed the dress of the 
 rest of my unique equipage ; and with the ex- 
 ception of a single shoe, and an odd top-boot, 
 placed in contrast with a Hessian, both worse 
 for wear, which only served to lame my servant 
 Puhi, all were without coverings for the lower 
 extremities, except the old chief, Parore's father, 
 who had gleaned among other contributions, 
 a single long black worsted stocking, which
 
 NATIVE DANCES. 81 
 
 might have been serviceable had it not been 
 minus 07ily the foot. The old gentleman did 
 not fail to expose it to the best advantage. 
 
 As our number was now ascertained, the 
 labours of the cooks were put into requisition ; 
 two large pigs were killed and cleaned, the 
 hair being singed over a large fire. The 
 pigs were drowned in the river, that the 
 blood should not be lost ; but sympathetic 
 jjeople charitably prefer sticking them with a 
 knife. A plentiful supply of potatoes, Indian 
 corn, kuneras, taro, and wild turnips, under- 
 went the same culinary process as described 
 at Waimamaku. 
 
 After each of my retinue were presented 
 to the chief, partaking of the honour of the 
 ongi, or salutation, the haka, or dance of 
 welcome, was performed ; this was commenced 
 by our entertainers, who placed themselves in 
 an extended line, in ranks four deep. This 
 dance, to a stranger witnessing it for the first 
 time, is calculated to excite the most alarming 
 fears ; the entire body of performers, male and 
 female, free and bond, were mixed together, 
 without reference to the rank they held in the 
 community. All the male performers were quite 
 naked, except the cartouch-box around the 
 body, filled with ball cartridges. All were 
 
 VOL. I. G
 
 S^ NATIVE DANCE OF WELCOME. 
 
 armed with muskets, or bayonets put on the 
 ends of spears or sticks ; the young women, 
 including the wives of the chief, joined in 
 this dance of rejoicing and welcome ; the 
 females had left exposed their budding charms 
 to the waist, from which was appended two 
 stout handsome garments of the silken flax. 
 
 In the chant that accompanied the dance, 
 proper time was kept, as was equally well 
 displayed in the various performances of agility 
 exhibited in these hakas, especially in the 
 perpendicular jump from the ground, which 
 is often repeated in a simultaneous manner, 
 as if the whole body of performers were ac- 
 tuated by one impulse. Every person tries 
 to outvie his companion in these volitary 
 movements. The implements with which they 
 arm themselves are brandished at the same 
 moment, and the distortion of countenance, 
 with the long tresses of hair that often 
 adorn either sex, give them the appearance 
 of an army of Gorgons, with snakelike locks, 
 as was represented on the aegis of Pallas. The 
 ladies performed their utmost, in adding to 
 the singularity of the scene, wielding spears 
 made of the kaikatoa-tree, and paddles of the 
 same popular wood. The countenances of all 
 were distorted into every possible shape per-
 
 NATIVE DANCES. 83 
 
 mitted by the muscles of the human face divine ; 
 every new grimace was instantly adopted by all 
 the performers in exact unison : thus, if one com- 
 menced screwing his face with a rigidity, as if 
 the appliance of a vice had been made use of, 
 he was followed instanter by the whole body 
 with a similar gesticulation, so that, at times, the 
 whites of the eyes were only visible, the eye-balls 
 rolHng to and fro in their sockets. Altogether, 
 their countenances, aided by the colours with 
 which they had bedaubed themselves, presented 
 so horrible a spectacle, that I was fain glad to 
 relieve myself, by withdrawing my gaze. The 
 tongue was thrust out of the mouth with an ex- 
 tension impossible for a European to copy : early 
 and long practice only could accomplish it. The 
 deafening noise made in joining chorus, added to 
 the resound produced by the blow the performers 
 struck themselves with the flattened hand on 
 the left breast, gave a lively picture of the effect 
 these dances must produce in times of war, in 
 raising the bravery, and heightening the anti- 
 pathy that is felt by the contending parties 
 against each other. 
 
 My companions returned the compliment in 
 similar style, although they mustered few in 
 number ; the old chief whose gray beard floated
 
 84 NATIVE LAMENTATIONS. 
 
 in the wind, acquitted himself on our side to 
 perfection, as nimbly as the youngest. 
 
 After the haka had ceased, the usual tangi, or 
 lamentation, commenced. The first couple that 
 paired off in this singular manifestation of social 
 feelings, was the ancient chief, and companion of 
 my journey. As soon as he recognised the old 
 lady, his wife, mother to Parore, and she per- 
 ceived in return her liege lord, an affecting scene 
 took place between those loving relatives. The 
 old lady made room for the chief, who sat him- 
 self down by her side, on a part of the bushes of 
 fern that had been spread for his wife. They 
 pressed noses for some time together (rather an 
 unpleasant coalition in winter), and both ap- 
 peared too much absorbed in grief to utter a 
 word to each other for some time. They hid 
 their heads within one garment ; and, entwining 
 each other, burst forth into a violent flood of 
 tears, giving vent to the most dismal moans, and 
 weeping bitterly. At intervals, when their tears 
 permitted, each sung, or chanted, in doleful 
 strains, the occurrences that had taken place 
 during each other's absence. 
 
 This chant was taken up by turns : at the 
 conclusion of each sentence they groaned in 
 duetto; they were certainly much affected.
 
 NATIVE DANCES AND LAMENTATIONS. 85 
 
 These Jeremiads are such a luxury to the natives 
 of the country, that I have seen, in the middle 
 of a takaro, or play, a person suddenly rise and 
 propose a '' tangi," and the play has been imme- 
 diately abandoned for this doleful substitute. 
 Nor was this all ; that an additional zest might be 
 given to the entertainment, sharp mussel-shells 
 were used to excoriate the body ; and, in a short 
 time, streams of blood trickled down the face, 
 arms, and every part of the body of each per- 
 former. The tangi was not confined to the two 
 old people ; as each of my retinue had been appro- 
 priated by some quondam relative — one having 
 found a sister, another a wife, some a matua 
 kjxka, or relation and parent by adoption, a 
 common practice among these people. Their 
 scanty garments were soon soaked through with 
 tears, and some were almost saturated with the 
 blood of themselves and their companions. 
 Mussel-shells were principally in request among 
 the ladies, whose bodies also streamed with 
 blood. To attempt to prevent such copious 
 bleedings would have been ineffectual: yet, often 
 a single drop from the arm, breast, or forehead, is 
 deemed satisfactory ; however, it was not so on 
 the above occasion. 
 
 This mournful chorus was kept up for a full 
 half hour, which reminded me much of the
 
 ob NATIVE SATIRISTS. 
 
 idolatrous practices of the ancient nations around 
 Palestine, whose names are blotted out from 
 mankind, and of which, a merciful dispensation 
 forbade the practice. 
 
 Puhi, my domestic, had told me he was too 
 manly, and too much of a pakeha, or white man, 
 to cry as he had formerly done, and join in these 
 native ebullitions of grief; but he followed the 
 example of his countrymen as heartily as his 
 comrades had done. 
 
 Those natives who could not boast of rela- 
 tionship with the new comers, and felt that they 
 had nothing to cry about, flocked around, and 
 made me the subject on which to exercise their 
 wit, by sly jokes, &c. ; and, when their innu- 
 merable comparisons became stale, the corps who 
 were mutually lamenting, came under the lash of 
 these satirists. One genius, who sat opposite to 
 me, created incessant laughter among the throng 
 around us. I afterwards discovered he was 
 amusing his friends and himself, by imitating 
 every action that escaped me ; and, notwith- 
 standing the necessary exaggeration which gave 
 point to his performances, he was far from in- 
 correct. 
 
 Supper was announced, which was served up 
 in green baskets made of the undressed flax 
 and kierakiki plant. A large quantity of the
 
 APPROPRIATE PRESENTS. 87 
 
 provisions were allotted to my share of the feast, 
 a little of which I partook. I also presented 
 some savoury morsels of pork to the wahine ran- 
 gatira, or chief lady of Parore, who received 
 those 7?ieet-of[eYmgs most graciously. The old 
 lady mother, who had not yet recovered from 
 the tangi, sat like Niobe, in tears : though the 
 latter lady grieved for what was irrecoverably 
 lost to her ; the former, for what she had re- 
 covered and found. 
 
 However dissimilar the cause of grief, the 
 effect, in this instance, spoiled the appetite of the 
 dame. She paid me but little regard on my first 
 introduction, but, on my presenting a pipe and 
 tobacco for her acceptance, I rose above par in 
 her estimation. 
 
 This narcotic affords a visitor an appeal to 
 the good graces of a New Zealander of either 
 sex, that is found, in general, to be irresistible. 
 
 The ladies of Parore vied with each other in 
 doing honour to the guest of their husband. One 
 of them possessed one of the most prepossessing 
 countenances I had seen for some time ; her form 
 was shght and graceful; her age might have 
 been eighteen, with a natural colour, and ex- 
 treme delicacy, that spoke much for the con- 
 summate taste of my entertainer. This lady's
 
 88 NATIVE HOSPITALITY. 
 
 task was to select a cabin for me to pass the 
 night; and she dispatched some servants to 
 collect the tender fern, as a mattrass for my bed. 
 The elder wife was a personification of health, 
 mirth, and kindness. My house was soon 
 pitched, upon which these ladies took posses- 
 sion. A thousand repartees passed among them ; 
 and, doubtless, the wit was particularly well 
 adapted to the locality, as repeated sallies of 
 laughter burst from them, that shook my in- 
 tended camp to its foundation. As to my com- 
 rades who accompanied me, they enjoyed them- 
 selves at supper. Their appetites were truly 
 insatiable. A casual bystander would have ima- 
 gined they had not broken their fast for, at the 
 least, a week ; whereas they had contrived to 
 devour three previous meals during the day. 
 A native can always find a corner to place his 
 food at any time ; nor will he ever feel affronted, 
 when roused at any hour of the night from the 
 deepest sleep, if baited with something in the 
 shape of eatables. They can masticate ever- 
 lastingly; and the only valuable code in their 
 spiritual enactments, in a medical point of view, 
 is the prohibition whicli excommunicates any 
 person from touching food while under the tapu ; 
 this system, which is rigidly adhered to, renders
 
 TRANSACTIONS IN THE VILLAGE. 89 
 
 nugatory the use of medicines to which, other- 
 wise, these people would continually have to 
 resort. 
 
 As early as I had finished supper, a rush was 
 made at the baskets which contained the food 
 I had not finished. The night was spent in 
 dancing, and the game of ti, which consists of 
 counting on the tips of the fingers, in which 
 each person must place his digitals in certain 
 positions on the instant the chosen word is re- 
 peated by an antagonist. The people are very 
 dexterous at this game, which requires unwearied 
 practice from childhood. It is well known 
 among the peasantry on the continent of Europe. 
 Many of the villagers imitated the voice of birds ; 
 this, together with songs and tales^ concluded 
 the evening's amusements, and I repaired to my 
 bed about nine p.m., and soon fell asleep. 
 
 In the morning, I arose much refreshed ; and, 
 on waking, perceived the natives had formed a 
 line, reaching some distance from my house, 
 which was open to public inspection, and regard- 
 ing what I was doing in silence. 
 
 The chief and his ladies, finding I was awake, 
 entered the house, followed by some of the 
 superior chiefs, and as many of their wives as the 
 tenement would conveniently hold. Some of 
 the latter sex were eminently handsome, with
 
 90 BUSINESS OF THE TOILETTE. 
 
 complexions similar to the inhabitants of the 
 southern portion of the Spanish peninsula. My 
 friends, within the house and without, were wait- 
 ing with eager anxiety to see me turn out and 
 dress. I do own, I felt much abashed, to per- 
 sonally administer to the curiosity of so many 
 persons. I whispered to Parore, for him to re- 
 quest the multitude to withdraw for a short time, 
 but he pretended he had no such authority. I 
 spoke to the high-priest who was close to my 
 side, but he was remarkably deaf that morning; 
 and even the bribe of a piece of tobacco (which 
 he nevertheless pocketed) had no effect on him : 
 he certainly did go out, but after one or two 
 pirouettes up and down the circle, and uttering 
 some nonsense at my expense, which caused a 
 universal laugh, he reseated himself alongside the 
 bed, saying, the hearts of the villagers were 
 like stones, as they only laughed at him, their 
 pastor, appealing to me, if I had not heard 
 them. 
 
 I was fain glad to hasten through the cere- 
 mony of dressing, as covertly as possible ; every 
 article of apparel with which I clad myself 
 caused a universal shout, each person delivering 
 some remark on the variety made use of by 
 Europeans. 
 
 On leaving the cabin, which I left in charge of
 
 TRANSACTIONS IN THE VILLAGE. 91 
 
 Puhi, a crowd of children flocked around me, 
 anxious to touch the white man. Most of these 
 urchins were quite naked. 
 
 The New Zealanders often rise before day- 
 break; and, in consequence, seldom want for 
 health or appetite : the latter I had cause to 
 know, without any fear of mistake, as I bore the 
 expense of my companions. Among the villagers 
 I observed several venerable men, whose hoary 
 heads were amply supplied with hair, and beards 
 tiTily patriarchal, white as snow with age. To 
 these ancients I presented many trifles that 
 highly pleased them, and set them capering, like 
 young kittens, with delight. 
 
 Parore led me through the fortification : it 
 consisted of many huts, and three hundred and 
 fifty inhabitants. Some of the houses were well 
 built, but similar in construction to those I had 
 formerly seen. The house occupied by the chief 
 was much the same in size and appearance to 
 those inhabited by the common people, most of 
 the house-tops being arcuated by hands, or sup- 
 plejacks, found pendant in the forest. Apowdkd, 
 or hut raised on poles, with some elaborately 
 carved facing boards, on which was executed 
 several figures of an indelicate nature, stood in 
 the centre of the village. In these powakas 
 (literally boxes) are deposited all the little trea-
 
 92 wai-tApu, or cemetery. 
 
 sures of a tribe, consisting of elegant mats, or 
 native garments, fowling-pieces, and esteemed 
 Em'opean implements, trinkets, powder, and 
 other articles of public utility. The carving of 
 this hut had been fi*eshly painted with the koko- 
 wai, or red earth. 
 
 The chief then led me to see the Wai-tdpu, or 
 consecrated cemetery of his ancestors and people. 
 This was situated amid a cluster of the karaka 
 fruit-trees, whose poracious appearance produced 
 a pleasing effect. This tree being perennial, and 
 the fruit, when ripe, a bright yellow, contrasted 
 well with the raoui's, or carved monuments, 
 painted red, that told the tale of those departed. 
 One of these sepulchral posts was nearly thirty 
 feet high ; the upper part carved out into the re- 
 semblance of a man, with the ancient Egyptian 
 sameness of expression standing on the head 
 of a figure below with a grotesque face ; the 
 tongue, as is usual in the gravings of the native 
 artists, was stretched as far as the material would 
 allow the member to be extended ; the eyes were 
 formed of pieces of the pearl, paua, or mutton 
 fish-shell, and were of suflfiicient dimensions to 
 have supplied a host of figures; the knees were 
 formed projecting outwards, and the feet were 
 brought into one mass. Parore pointed out to 
 me a small box, made from an old canoe, w^hich
 
 SACRED GROVES. 93 
 
 contained the remains of a deceased child of his, 
 whose bones had been scraped and washed from 
 the outer flesh, and deposited within. This box 
 was placed in the branches of a tree. 
 
 Any slave eating of fruit, growing in these 
 sacred groves, would be sacrificed. Should a 
 chief be guilty of such impiety, superstition 
 would soo-n work his punishment ; and were 
 a stranger to commit the sacrilege, war with 
 his tribe would ensue in consequence. No 
 quarrel is accounted so just, in the opinion of this 
 people, as when undertaken in defence of their 
 sacred groves. Many deadly feuds have been 
 caused by these tapued places being invaded 
 by ambulating pigs belonging to an obnoxious 
 neighbour. 
 
 By the time we returned to Parore's house, 
 our breakfast was ready, which was served up in 
 the usual manner. The native baskets for food 
 are seldom made use of a second time. This 
 repast consisted of three different kinds of shell- 
 fish, the large muscle, or uru rod ; cockles, or 
 the toi ; and iwi rou ; in addition to the potatoes 
 and Indian corn of the last season. This latter 
 food cannot be masticated by these people when 
 cooked in its crude state ; it is therefore kept 
 soaked in water for some days to soften it ; but 
 the nauseous effluvium arising from it in that
 
 94 THE DEPARTURE. 
 
 state, is more than sufficient to satisfy the palate 
 of the European. My lads, who were never 
 backward in discussing a hearty meal, did ample 
 justice to that set before them : these cormorants 
 left but a small portion for their hosts. 
 
 The morning, which had been very hazy, now 
 became damp and foggy, heavy clouds settled 
 over the hills, and the repeated peals of distant 
 thunder reverberated among the mountains, now 
 hidden from us in mist, which damped the ardour 
 of my escort. They requested me to pass this 
 day in the valley, and to pursue our journey early 
 on the morrow. I would willingly have acceded 
 to their request, but each day was of too much 
 importance to me, and I was obliged to insist on 
 their packing up the provisions, &c., and making 
 ready. At this they demurred. Apprehensive of 
 a revolt among these obdurate followers, 1 mus- 
 tered them together with some difficulty, half of 
 them having hidden themselves in several places, 
 and told them I would not employ force ; any of 
 them that so pleased might remain behind, as I 
 could procure plenty of assistants. This had the 
 desired effect : they had no excuses to make ; 
 but, requesting some trifling presents for their 
 friends, I gave each some fish-hooks and tobacco, 
 that soon put them into good-humour. Two of 
 them requested that their wives, whom they had
 
 OBJECT OF MY JOURNEY. 95 
 
 met with at this village, might jom-ney with them 
 to Kaihu, which I permitted. 
 
 Previously to taking leave, Parore shewed me 
 a puka-puka, written in English by a European 
 residing on the Hokianga, announcing his inten- 
 tention, together with a company of commercial 
 men in Sydney, to take the trade of flax and spars 
 into their own hands. I bade the chief dismiss 
 any fears as to the object of my journey, as it 
 was intended to benefit natives and Europeans 
 generally ; that, if the river was found to be navi- 
 gable for shipping, his lands would be rendered 
 as valuable as the soil in the vicinity of those 
 rivers inhabited by Europeans. 
 
 The chief was much pleased with my answer, 
 which carried conviction. He gave me his 
 nephew, Tamaroa, a smart active young chief, 
 and a young friend, as companions in my journey, 
 desiring them to use their influence in procuring 
 me canoes, to accelerate my mission in descend- 
 ing the rivers Kaihu, Wairoa, and Kaipara. 
 
 The chief then presented me with additional 
 provisions for the journey, also a pig which had 
 originally belonged to Tamaroa, and now fol- 
 lowed him with the fidelity of a dog. An in- 
 crease to our stock of vegetables was added, with 
 some bundles of fern-root and dried fish. I, then, 
 made my troop pass on before me, and hastened
 
 96 OUR DEPARTURE. 
 
 to bid adieu to my kind friends, promising to 
 visit them on my return. I pressed noses with 
 the ladies, bade adieu with a wave of my tra- 
 veUing-cap to the gentlemen, and followed the 
 footsteps of my companions, in time to avoid the 
 '* tangi," which diagnostic was on the eve of com- 
 mencing by this singular people (who really 
 laugh and cry at the same instant), as a token of 
 sorrow at our departure. 
 
 Parore bore me over the rivulet that circuit- 
 ously meandered the valley, and we parted at the 
 foot of the mountains, after affectionately saluting 
 me with tearful eyes.
 
 97 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Pursue our Journey in a Storm — Effect a Purchase on the 
 Road — Examine a stupendous Headland, that alters the 
 Course of our Journey — The dead Shark — A Woodland 
 Concert — Arrive at Kaihu Village — Alarm of its De- 
 fenders — Transactions at the Village — Amusements of 
 the Villagers — Rumours of Wars — Preparations formed 
 against an Assault — The Envoy — European Sorcery and 
 Native Incantations — Superstitions of the People — Our 
 Departure. 
 
 The rain now descended in torrents, my clothes 
 were quickly saturated, and clung to my body 
 without the aid of belt or brace. The hill paths 
 were of a slippery clay, and difficult enough to 
 ascend. The rain poured down these steeps 
 like so many rivulets, that scarcely enabled me to 
 keep on my feet, from the rush of water. I 
 joined my people, who had taken off their native 
 garments, a goodly supply of which had been 
 plentifully bestowed on them, in exchange for 
 their worn out rags. These they had carefidly 
 
 VOL. I. H
 
 98 JOURNEY IN A STORM. 
 
 folded up in as small a compass as possible, and 
 had them carried beneath their provision-baskets 
 safe from the rain. We found the ascent to the 
 mountains very difficult and tedious ; the valleys 
 below were becoming swamps from the heavy 
 torrents that were falling. Had we waited 
 another day, this road, which was the nearest 
 track to the sea, would have been impassable. 
 After a long, tedious travel, every foot of which 
 was attended with danger, from the mountain- 
 path not being a foot broad, which wound along- 
 side steep declivities, as slippery as could well 
 be, we were gratified with a view of the sand- 
 hills, which announced the sea-shore to be with- 
 in the distance of half a mile. These hills were 
 found more pleasant to pass than when we first 
 travelled among them ; the rain had rendered 
 the sand more tenacious. 
 
 A cold southerly wind now struck up, and, 
 wet as I was, almost benumbed me. The storm 
 now ceased on the coast ; but the rain still fell 
 in abundance at Waipoa, which we beheld de- 
 scending among the distant mountains. My 
 comrades, who had hitherto walked in perfect 
 nudity, except the two females, now put on their 
 clothes, on the rain having ceased, laughing at 
 the saturated mass that weighed heavily on me ; 
 but, after a quick walk on the beach, my gar-
 
 A SUPPOSED FOE. 99 
 
 ments soon dried in the wind and sun which 
 now presented itself; and saved me the delay 
 of stopping to change my suit. 
 
 Tamaroa, who kept by my side, pointed out 
 to me three men at a distance, who were shortly 
 withdrawn from our sight by an indent in the 
 beach ; and not perceiving any footmarks im- 
 printed in the sand as having passed our way, 
 concluded they were coming towards us. My 
 troop, which consisted of fourteen persons, 
 made up to me with terrified looks, and begged 
 I would not proceed further, or we should be all 
 murdered. I laughed at their fears, and bade 
 them not to be afraid of three persons, when our 
 party numbered so many ; but my arguments 
 had no effect, and I was allowed to proceed 
 alone ; and, instead of the company straggling 
 as they had hitherto done, they huddled to- 
 gether as close to the edge of the bank as 
 they could conveniently walk. 
 
 The supposed foe advanced nearer, and 
 proved to be an old sage, uncle to Parore, on 
 a visit to his nephew, accompanied by two 
 servants, who carried an entire pig, well roasted, 
 as a present. This savoury animal, appeared 
 greatly to retard the progress of these travellers ; 
 I, therefore, purchased it of the old gentleman, 
 who then pursued his route. This ancient felt
 
 100 SWINISH BEDFELLOWS. 
 
 a great inclination to tang'i with Tamaroa, who 
 was nearly related to him ; but I hastened the 
 latter, who had also, as well as myself, lost all 
 taste for the display. The roasted pig gave a 
 further respite to the living one, who trudged 
 on, grunting right merrily, after us. These 
 amiable animals lead a much pleasanter life 
 in New Zealand than in any other portion t)f 
 the globe I have seen, except in the principal 
 cities of the United States (1838), where these 
 " tarnal critturs" grace the most fashionable 
 streets of the capitals. Among these primitive 
 natives, the pigs often share the beds of their 
 owners ; and, perhaps, few things struck me as 
 more unique in its way, than when entering (by 
 mistake) the dormitory of two native ladies, who 
 were locked in the embraces of the drowsy god, 
 I perceived the lengthy ears and snout of a 
 sleek black pig, who was covered to the throat 
 by the blanket that also served to enwrap the 
 young ladies, who were lying upon either side 
 of him. This interesting brute was " sighing 
 like a furnace," either incommoded by tic doulou- 
 reux or over repletion. 
 
 In our travel along the beach, we passed 
 over several beds of stones similar to those we 
 had seen to the northward ; also the pleasant 
 runs of water at Waikara, Herito, and Tariri.
 
 THE DEAD SHARK. 101 
 
 We had travelled several miles from Waipoa, 
 and had approached within three miles of the 
 hlufF headland of Maunganui, when we halted 
 on the beach, opposite to a valley that led to 
 the mountains inland. The bluff appeared in 
 frowning majesty, surrounded by mists that at 
 times enveloped and hid it from our sight. 
 Notwithstanding its distance, I was determined 
 to view its base more closely, as we had the 
 advantage of the ebb-tide. This projecting pre- 
 cipice prevents the communication along the 
 beach to the southward. Tamaroa alone accom- 
 panied me. Immense rocks and stones were 
 strewed along the shore. On approaching to- 
 wards the mountain, my olfactory nerves had 
 been for some time discomposed ; I now found 
 the cause to proceed from the dead body of 
 a shark, which had been cast on the beach 
 full a month previously ; and stormy tides had 
 washed it high and dry on the beach. This 
 offensive object was in the last state of pu- 
 tridity and decomposition ; and on Tamaroa 
 approaching it, myriads of gad-flies issued from 
 the body, which was about seven feet in length. 
 My companion eyed it much, I rather thought 
 wistfully, and observed, that the mango, or 
 shark, was a rich treat to the New Zealanders. 
 I assented, when it was to be had in a fresh
 
 102 HEADLAND OF MAUNGANUI. 
 
 state, but not in the disgusting condition of the 
 fish before us. 
 
 The nearer we advanced towards the bluff, 
 the more stupendous it appeared. I calculated 
 the height between 2500 and 3000 feet. The 
 coast was lined with immense rocks that, from 
 their position, were doubtless hurled about the 
 beach during the prevalence of heavy storms, 
 which cause the flood-tide to burst on the shore 
 in long heavy rollers, at once astounding from 
 their headlong force and magnificence. The 
 foot of the bluff was imbricated into several deep 
 subterranean caverns, whose gorges are eter- 
 nally hollowed by the continually returning 
 waves ; the effects from the spray of these seas 
 were visible on the precipice, at a distance of 
 near 300 feet perpendicular above the mountain 
 base. 
 
 Even on this day, when the sea was unusually 
 calm, the hollow moaning of the waves, dashing 
 among the submarine excavations formed in the 
 black craggy rocks, which spurted up the spray 
 to a great height, made me pause, lost in awe 
 and wonder. I was entranced in this spot of 
 solitary horror, and will acknowledge, I most 
 fervently prayed to the great and merciful Father, 
 Creator of the universe and its various inha- 
 bitants, whose utmost power and skill were as
 
 RETRACE OUR ROUTE. 103 
 
 nothing placed in competition with the stupend- 
 ous works around me, that had never before 
 been so nearly approached by civilised man. 
 
 We now retraced our steps, passing again the 
 offensive shark, which appeared to attract the 
 attention of my comrade very much. Many 
 pieces of whalebone lay strewed about the beach, 
 bleaching in the sun. On our arrival at the 
 valley where we left our companions, none of 
 them were to be seen ; we supposed they had 
 passed on to Tangiari, where we had proposed 
 to encamp for the night. We accordingly turned 
 from the sea-shore and entered the valley. 
 Tamaroa soon distinguished the path our pre- 
 cursors had taken, from the crushed leaves of 
 the trees on either side the road, and the fallen 
 leaves of the kaikatoa-tree, which had been 
 brushed off in passing by the garments of our 
 friends having come in contact. 
 
 We continued our path through the valley 
 until we came to a rising hill, up which we 
 ascended. This travelling Avas very fatiguing, 
 from the clayey slipperiness of the soil, and the 
 rain which rested on the surrounding bushes and 
 fern, growing here to the height of ten feet ; 
 these had become so matted, as to render fur- 
 ther advance almost impossible, beside plen- 
 teously sprinkHng us with the moisture which
 
 104 SWAMPY COUNTRY. 
 
 the leaves had arrested. After ascending several 
 high hills which adjoin the elevated lands of 
 Maunganui, we descended into a deep flat valley, 
 covered with the korari, or flax plant. The 
 greater portion of this place was covered with 
 water, from the rains that had fallen, and was, in 
 winter, one of those flax swamps that abound in 
 New Zealand, which only require the agricultural 
 tact of civilised man to convert into the richest 
 land, by draining. The soil of the surrounding 
 mountains is washed down in these valleys by 
 the rains. 
 
 Tamaroa, who was as sprightly as could well 
 be, requested to carry me over. He would 
 admit of no refusal, but, previously to my ac- 
 cepting his offers, we heard a native kuhi, or 
 halloo, which came from two of our comrades 
 who had halted here, to relieve Tamaroa carrying 
 me. This swamp extended five miles. Some 
 parts were barely passable. It was surrounded 
 by an amphitheatre of hills. My companions 
 were of essential service, and we crossed this 
 swampy pampas much quicker than I had pre- 
 viously expected. I dismounted from the back 
 of these relays, having arrived at the foot of a 
 steep hill, whose path was as difficult to get 
 through as those we had previously encountered. 
 
 After some delay we arrived at the summit.
 
 INLAND SCENERY. 105 
 
 which consisted of a wide extended plain, some 
 miles in circumference. The soil was arid and 
 gravelly ; the vegetable mould was but a few 
 inches in depth, on a tough argillaceous earth. 
 The rourou, or plain, was covered with the roi, 
 or fern, and the ever-flowering kaikatoa, which 
 emitted a fragrant odour. The native path 
 ran its narrow circuitous course as is usual in 
 all the roads. The plain was terminated by a 
 forest of much less elevation. 
 
 There is scarcely a more splendid sight to 
 behold than a New Zealand forest. In the one 
 we now entered, we did not perceive any kouri, 
 or yellow pine-trees ; but the totara, or red pine, 
 grew in vast abundance. Some of these trees 
 were of immense size, from twenty to thirty feet 
 in circumference, growing to a height of sixty 
 feet. The rito, and innumerable other palm- 
 trees, were in great quantity. 
 
 As we emerged from the forest, we entered 
 on a small plain, that had the handsome ap- 
 pearance of an English park ; it was beauti- 
 fully picturesque; and it was with difficulty 
 I could acknowledge to myself, the hand of man 
 had not planned the scene. The clematis, cam- 
 panula trachelium, or bell flower, whose hues, 
 white, red, and yellow, with the convolvulus, or 
 bind-weed, and innumerable indigenous liands.
 
 106 BIVOUAC AT TANGIARI. 
 
 hung around in pleasing disorder. After pass- 
 ing this lovely little territory, we again entered 
 a forest which extended about two miles. This 
 latter route was particularly fatiguing, from the 
 immense spreading roots of trees which rose to 
 a gigantic height, cutting the feet and tripping us 
 at almost every step. The loose soil around was 
 also annoying from the late rains that had fallen, 
 which rendered the place quite a quagmire. Se- 
 veral purling streams gently meandered through 
 this forest ; and heartily glad were we on 
 emerging once more to the plains, which were 
 distinguished as belonging to the district of 
 Kaihu, which joins those of the Kaipara. 
 
 We pushed on some five miles further, much 
 fatigued, from the last forest we had travelled 
 through ; and soon reached Tangiari, and were 
 pleased to find our friends encamped. Sheds 
 had been erected for the night, covered with 
 the kaikatoa bush, and a plentiful supply of fire- 
 wood, calculated to serve for the night. The 
 necessary operation of cooking was soon effected, 
 and the repast served up. Some provision was 
 also cooked for the breakfast of the ensuing 
 morning. After supper, the young men, not- 
 withstanding the fatigues of travelling, com- 
 menced a haka, with the usual gesticulations 
 accompanying the dance ; and concluded their
 
 CHACUN A SON GOUT. 107 
 
 amusements by wrestling matches, in which they 
 exhibited but Httle skill. I retired to rest early. 
 Tangiari is a pleasant resting-place, much 
 frequented by native travellers. It is situated 
 in a deep valley ; the hills around are covered 
 with stunted trees, affording fuel in plenty ; a 
 pleasant, murmuring rivulet, runs through the 
 valley. I arose the ensuing morning at five 
 o'clock, and was surprised to find the two 
 young women only outside the sheds ; I called 
 to the lads, who entreated for a respite of a 
 further half hour ; I granted the request ; but, 
 perceiving the young females laughing, I felt as- 
 sured there was some secret hidden from me. 
 It was with much difficulty I could get an ex- 
 planation, when they informed me the boys had 
 been absent all night, after I had retired to rest, 
 and had hastened to the sea-shore, regardless 
 of the distance, to devour the putrid shark ; 
 and, having filled themselves to repletion, they 
 had slept a short time near the scene of their 
 barbarous tastes, and had returned to Tangiari 
 an hour before daybreak. As early as they 
 arose, I spoke to them with angry feelings ; I 
 could not sufficiently censure their bestiality. 
 They listened with much apathy and patience ; 
 and, after packing up our apparatus, w^e pursued 
 our way up the steep side of the hills, which
 
 108 WOODLAND CONCERT. 
 
 plentifully sprinkled us with dew, and entered 
 the plains of Kaihu. 
 
 The numerous birds had, at the earliest 
 dawn of day, commenced their melodious war- 
 blings, while my companions were still buried 
 in sleep — " nature's sweet nurse ; " not a 
 sound disturbed the quiet repose ; every thing 
 in nature was still and at rest, save those 
 winged choristers of the bush, skipping among 
 the branches, whose musically sweet and varied 
 notes, echoed through the valley. On my ap- 
 proaching these birds, they did not betray 
 any fear, but perched themselves on the over- 
 hanging branches, in appearance wondering at a 
 being whose unusual garb and complexion had 
 never pierced these solitudes before. 
 
 Among the birds that distinguished them- 
 selves in this woodland concert, were the tui, or 
 mocking-bird, the korimaku, kohapiroa, and 
 tiaki. The little restless piwakawaka, a kind of 
 thrush, who is incessantly hopping from twig 
 to twig, put forth its single note. The wild 
 melody of the birds in a New Zealand forest, is 
 superior to any strains of the kind I have ever 
 heard. Their notes are so exquisitely clear, that 
 the stranger traveller is arrested in his progress, 
 and feels enchained to the spot. This melody 
 commences at the earliest dawn, gradually in-
 
 FOREST TREES. 109 
 
 creases with the addition of light, as the early 
 mists pass away, and ceases at sunrise. 
 
 We now arrived at the end of the plain, 
 which was bordered by the almost impervious 
 forest of Pamaki, which was densely studded 
 with splendid kouri-trees, many of which were 
 between twenty and thirty feet in circumference 
 at the base, and the trunk gently tapering, as 
 straight as an arrow, without a branch to ninety 
 feet. The heads of these trees were so um- 
 brageous as to cast a deep shade around, and 
 exclude from that part of the forest the sight of 
 the heavens. The base of these trees and tlie 
 earth around, was covered with the kapia, or 
 gum, that exudes in large quantities from their 
 trunks. Many other trees abounded in Pamaki, 
 such as the kaikatea, towai, rewa-rewa, totara, 
 puriri, rata, kahika, tipow, tanikaha, rimu, and 
 various kinds of akkas, all of which will be found 
 described in the Appendix (Note 7). The supple- 
 jack was found very annoying. This liand, of 
 the thickness of a stout rattan, entwined itself 
 among the trees, and much impeded our pro- 
 gress, by interlacing across our path ; it is very 
 elastic. On the branches of the rata and other 
 trees, where the soil had been raised by heavy 
 gusts of wind, or had arrested vegetable matter 
 in its fall, flourished the wild indigenous para-
 
 110 FOREST OF pImAkI. 
 
 sitical plant called tawara {Astilia angustifoUd). 
 The kukupa, or wild pigeon, often larger than 
 the European bird of the same genus, flocked in 
 numbers through these solitary wilds ; they were 
 easily distinguished by their whistling note and the 
 ruffling noise of their wings, while volitary among 
 the trees. Parrots and parroquets also fluttered 
 around. The plumage of these birds is truly 
 beautiful. We occupied four hours in passing 
 through this forest ; my companions keeping 
 pace with me, although heavily laden. 
 
 On emerging from Pamaki, we ascended an- 
 other plain of some miles in circumference, 
 covered with fern and bush, above which the 
 tupakihi, or native elder-berry, occasionally 
 shewed its bending stem, yielding to the w^eight 
 of the fruit, which hung in purple clusters. I 
 partook of some of those berries, which are very 
 pleasant to the taste, but crimson the lips and 
 hands of those who make use of them. The 
 natives, on perceiving me make use of this 
 berry, warned me not to swallow any of the 
 seeds, as the doing so would make me ourangi, 
 drunk, or mad. I abstained from doing so ; but, 
 at a later period of my residence in New Zea- 
 land, I neglected this precautionary measure, 
 and suffered severely for it, being obliged to 
 have recourse to powerful antidotes, to rid my-
 
 SCENERY. Ill 
 
 self of the noxious effects. On descending the 
 plain we came to a flax swamp, which was pass- 
 able, as the rains do not fall so heavily in the 
 champaign country. This swamp was in length 
 about three miles, and perhaps two miles in 
 breadth ; I crossed over without assistance. 
 Several water-runs and deep narrow gullets ex- 
 tended across the swamp. These places are 
 agreeable enough to the traveller in summer, 
 when dried up by the powerful rays of the sun. 
 This swamp was covered with a wiry kind of 
 tussuck grass, almost the consistence of small 
 reeds and sharp-pointed. 
 
 The raupo, or flag bulrush, was waving by 
 the gentle breeze in those spots that were still 
 undried ; these little oases appeared peculiarly 
 green amid the sombre-coloured reed grass, and 
 pointed to the traveller the places it was neces- 
 sary he should avoid. At the termination of the 
 swamp, we again ascended the hills, and pursued 
 our way over another elevated table land. Here 
 we had every variety of natural scenery : water- 
 courses, very deep and narrow, which we crossed 
 by native bridges, formed of a tree branch, flung 
 hastily across. 
 
 We pursued our route over a succession of 
 hill and valley, bush and plain, swamp and forest, 
 which presented continually something to please
 
 112 FASHIONS OF THE NATIVES. 
 
 the sight. We arrived near sunset on the borders 
 of a creek that gently wound its way through 
 the surrounding woods and fertile valleys. This 
 rivulet, which flowed into the Kaihu river, mean- 
 dered in so serpentine a form, as almost to join 
 itself in several places, having the appearance of 
 mixing its pellucid waters with another stream. 
 Here we rested, being within a short distance of 
 the residence of Kaka, an ancient chief, on whose 
 hospitahty I depended for getting some canoes, 
 to enable me to pursue the principal object I 
 had in view. 
 
 My people who had parted with their former 
 finery, now arranged their native dresses. Puhi, 
 who was an admirable native friseur, arranged 
 the hair of the gentlemen, placing, with the gout 
 of a connoisseur, the various feathers of the 
 uia and tara, sea-fowl, that assisted the decora- 
 tion. The red kokowai was abundantly made 
 use of. Puhi, anxious to attract the attention 
 of the native belles whom we expected to meet, 
 had painted one half of his countenance from the 
 forehead to the throat with this mixture, or sub- 
 stitute for rouge, and the other half with pow- 
 dered charcoal, mixed with rancid shark oil. 
 The line of black and red joined in the centre of 
 his forehead — continued down his nose to the 
 throat. The two females who accompanied us
 
 FEMALE ARRANGEMENTS. 113 
 
 were not a little solicitous as to the effect iheir 
 charms might produce among our assembled 
 friends. 
 
 They had simply decorated their hair, whicli 
 was beautifully dark and glossy, hanging witli 
 rich profusion in natural ringlets, with the pretty 
 yellow flower of the towai, which hung in heavy 
 clusters from that tree on the banks of the 
 stream, which reflected the flowers from the 
 bending branches. From their ears were ap- 
 pended the dried feathered skin of the little 
 tiwakawaha-bird, whose body, when living, is 
 scarcely larger than a walnut. They did not 
 make use of the paint. A couple of new check 
 shirts, put on with the bosoms behind, and red 
 dashing kerchiefs for the throat, which I had 
 presented to their husbands, served to aid their 
 wardrobe, over which they had gracefully placed 
 their native garments, made of the snow-white 
 silken flax, which descended in ample folds to 
 their feet. 
 
 As early as the preparations were completed, 
 the gentlemen discharged their guns, that were 
 no sooner heard in the Pa, which was situated 
 on an elevated plain within a trifling distance, 
 than a loud shout issued from the place. Every 
 body appeared in confusion ; women, with child- 
 ren in their arms, running about, wringing their 
 
 VOL. I. I
 
 114 ARRIVE AT A VILLAGE. 
 
 hands, and making hideous outcries. We were 
 joined by one of the inhabitants, quite naked, but 
 armed to the teeth, with his loaded musket, which 
 lie was ready to discharge ; his cartridge-box 
 filled, appended to his belt, in which was placed 
 a bayonet and tomahawk. He no sooner espied 
 me, than, with the dulcet sounds of a Stentor, he 
 roared forth "E'paheha! E'paheha!" (a white 
 man). This word was no sooner expressed 
 than it had the effect of magic ; it was echoed 
 a thousand times over by the good folks of the 
 village Pa above us. Shouts of " Airemai," or 
 welcome, followed, accompanied by the waving of 
 garments and boughs of trees, and by discharges 
 of ammunition, which were returned by my party. 
 Our new comer triumphantly bore me over the 
 river, which we had re- crossed nine times before 
 we quitted it. 
 
 Several old canoes, much the worse for wear, 
 were laid up in ordinary, high and dry, on the 
 bank. This place was so densely wooded, that 
 we could scarcely perceive our road at any dis- 
 tance before us. The bush grew close to the 
 water's edge ; immense fungi spread from the 
 decayed trees that had fallen, and intercepted 
 our path. The entire living contents of the 
 village came forth to meet us, except the old 
 chief and some of his ancient nobles, who
 
 OUR RECEPTION. 115 
 
 were debarred from following the stream, by 
 etiquette. 
 
 Men, women, and children — the latter prin- 
 cipally naked, the former clad in various native 
 dresses — came forward to meet us, shrieking 
 the salutation of welcome and hospitality. The 
 dogs, whose clamour I have formerly alluded 
 to, did not degenerate from their contemporaries 
 who were quartered to the northward ; with up- 
 lifted heads, they raised a howl long and con- 
 tinued, that, added to the yelling of the little 
 boys and screaming of the girls, with the self- 
 satisfied grunting of the hog, made *' confusion 
 worse confounded." 
 
 These people flocked about me, some feeling 
 my garments, others lifting up my trousers to 
 examine my boots, and to determine their 
 length. My jacket, waistcoat, hat, underwent 
 the minutest regard ; but few things gave more 
 diversion than my pulling off an elderly pair of 
 ci-devant black kid gloves. This comfortable 
 article, which I sported to protect me from the 
 irritable sand-flies, struck the circle in v;hich I 
 was enclosed with astonishment. Many of my 
 gazers had not seen a white man previously ; 
 though, at the present day, there are few who 
 are not well acquainted with Europeans : and, 
 as my countenance was a lusus naturce to them.
 
 116 NATIVE REJOICINGS. 
 
 as being more bleached than they had seen be- 
 fore, they readily imagined my hands might be 
 equally black as my face was white. The gloves 
 were handed romid to the assembled throng, 
 who repeatedly exclaimed, " A na na, E' roai te 
 pakeha/' accompanied by long-drawn sighs, indi- 
 cative of surprise among these people. 
 
 With difficulty I broke from the circle, and 
 made up to the old chief, who sat, accompanied 
 by his ancient warriors, fidgetting with anxious 
 impatience for my introduction. I saluted the 
 old gentleman, who pressed noses with me, ex- 
 pressive of affection and regard. 
 
 The discharge of artillery still continued ; 
 the din and bustle was now augmented by the 
 haka, or dance of welcome, accompanied with 
 yells of about two hundred stout and agile per- 
 formers. The convulsive distortion of counte- 
 nance and furious gesticulations were given with 
 the usual eclat, and returned by my people. A 
 sham fight was then commenced between both 
 parties, in which muskets, and bayonets fixed 
 on small poles, spears and paddles, came in 
 active colKsion. Some smart blows were ex- 
 changed, and knock-down arguments, as such 
 fierce play has been termed, were discussed in 
 the best possible humour. This was no sooner 
 concluded than they indulged themselves in the
 
 EXPRESSIONS OF AFFECTION. 117 
 
 luxury of the tangi, which was aided by the 
 mournful yells of some sickly dogs, who, it would 
 appear, felt it incumbent on them, for the 
 honour of the village, to lend their services in 
 giving effect to the general whining lamentation. 
 
 Those that did not partake in the chorus, 
 gave me a wink to express their contempt of 
 the ceremony ; but I knew they only wanted 
 partners in affliction to indulge themselves fully 
 as much as the rest. Tamaroa, who was related 
 to the chief, was fast locked in the embraces of 
 the old man, whose plenteous effusions, that fell 
 fast from his eyes and nose, gave me no little 
 satisfaction that I had saluted him before the 
 tangi commenced. 
 
 One of the females who had accompanied 
 us met with her father, whom she no sooner be- 
 held, not having expected to see him in this 
 village, than she fell upon his neck, and embraced 
 him with such marks of filial piety and tender- 
 ness as prevented me from being an unmoved 
 spectator. The parent, who was quite gray and 
 bowed down with old age, applied his nose to 
 hers, large tear-drops rolling in quick succession 
 down his aged face, which the duteous daughter 
 wiped away with her mat, that was soon satu- 
 rated with their united tears. 
 
 The mussel-shell, as usual, was made use of
 
 118 INVOCATIONS TO A DEITY 
 
 by the different groups, and their blood flowed 
 copiously. An old lady, who had appropriated 
 Watci for her share of the entertainment (she 
 was his aunt), remained some time after the 
 others had finished, excoriating herself with such 
 cruelty, that I was astonished at the quantity of 
 blood she had lost. A circle was then formed, 
 the chief Kaka, and a few of his wives, sitting at 
 the head. A tree-stump was brought for my 
 accommodation, on which I seated myself. An 
 elderly priestess then rose up, and commenced 
 a chant commemorative of the circumstances of 
 the visit ; imploring the Taniwoa, or divinity of 
 the deep, to stay his anger, if he felt disposed to 
 be disagreeable ; also to certain departed spirits 
 which she named, bowing her head and raising 
 her arms and hands as she pronounced the name 
 of each, and supplicated them not to wreak their 
 wrath on us as we passed the sacred shores where 
 their ossified remains lie buried. 
 
 The ancient crone then invoked the manes 
 of the illustrious dead who, in this existence, had 
 been enemies to the Hokianga tribes, with whom 
 my companions and I dwelt, to spare us, who 
 had not joined in the enormities committed by 
 those people. The wahine tohunga commenced 
 her cantatory prayers with a subdued cadence 
 scarcely distinguishable; but, as she entered more
 
 BY A PRIESTESS. 119 
 
 fully on the subject, she became animated with 
 fury. Her gray locks streamed in the wind ; her 
 eyes sparkled with peculiar brightness ; her coun- 
 tenance appeared to dilate ; and, from a quiet 
 old lady, as I supposed her at first to be, she 
 stood now confessed, like the Pythoness of yore, 
 dealing forth to the assembled multitude her 
 oracular inspirations, the truth of which none of 
 her audience doubted (save myself). 
 
 All listened with profound attention ; their 
 countenances below the eyes were hidden by a 
 garment that served to cover the entire body as 
 they sat on their hams. After this oration, she 
 sat down exhausted, and both parties seemed on 
 the most friendly terms ; Kaka promising me, as 
 early as I pleased on the morrow, three of his 
 best canoes. 
 
 The eager looks cast by my people behind, 
 told me the dinner that had been cooking in 
 that direction was being served up, as usual, in 
 little green baskets, made expressly for each 
 meal. This repast consisted of the usual fare, 
 a fatted pig having been killed for the occasion. 
 The lively grunter belonging to Tamaroa, who 
 had travelled with us remarkably well, I deter- 
 mined to leave, as I could not bring myself to 
 consent to the death of an animal possessing 
 such social habits and natural powers of pleasing.
 
 120 GRIEVANCES OF THE CHIEF. 
 
 I presented him, accordingly, to the senior 
 wife of the chief, first giving her a recommend- 
 ation, detaihng his accommodating disposition. 
 The present was received with many thanks, 
 and acknowledged by the substantial return of 
 two handsome garments of the silken flax and 
 kierrakiki plant ; the latter serving as a covering 
 impervious to the rain. 
 
 After the cloth was removed, i. e. the provi- 
 sion-baskets put out of sight, I entered on the 
 business that had procured me the pleasure of 
 visiting them ; which, if success attended the 
 result, a new mart would be opened for the 
 thousands of acres that abounded with flax on 
 the banks of the numerous estuaries that dis- 
 embogue themselves into the Kaipara. The old 
 chief, with a rueful visage, replied, that the term 
 of his existence was very uncertain ; that the 
 tribes that inhabited the Waikato river had long 
 since totally destroyed the people who inhabited 
 the banks ofManukou and Kaipara; that the 
 only safeguard he could have was in the Eu- 
 ropeans, who would sell him ammunition to 
 repel any invasion of his neighbours on his 
 plantations, w^hich would be more tenable as 
 early as it was known he possessed implements 
 of self-defence ; that the attention of his own 
 people would, in consequence, be otherwise
 
 HIS OFFERS. 121 
 
 employed in scraping flax and dragging out 
 spars. 
 
 The confusion, exhibited on my first arrival 
 among them, was caused by the fears they had 
 of a descent which was daily expected from a 
 tribe south of the Maungakahia river. He 
 added, few places could produce such an 
 abundance of flax, that grew in size to twice the 
 length of his own stature ; that in this staple his 
 resources were immense, whole plains, for many 
 miles in circuit, being entirely covered with the 
 article, that occupied the soil to the margin of 
 the rivers. He politely offered me the prefer- 
 ence to trade with his tribe, as I was the first 
 white man that had entered his village. 
 
 The women were ill, he said, to scrape flax 
 for the white men ; that the hearts of the natives 
 were darkened (pori) for want of employment ; 
 and when the planting of the soil was finished, 
 means were studied how to preserve the crop 
 from spoliation. 
 
 After the old man had unburdened his 
 numerous griefs, during which he was prompted 
 by many of the old sages, who now and then 
 thrust in a word to refresh the memory of the 
 aged speaker, he led me to his fences, which were 
 in an unfinished state. We were followed by 
 the whole posse of little children the village
 
 122 TRANSACTIONS IN THE VILLAGE. 
 
 possessed, some picking off the furze that abounds 
 in the plains of the country, and attaches itself 
 to the dress of the traveller. 
 
 Several of these urchins would touch my 
 arms, pull my coat, and then run away in all 
 haste to some distance. I threw among them 
 some trifles, that caused a universal scramble of 
 both young and old. I visited the several na- 
 tives, congregated together in groups opposite 
 their respective houses around little fires. All 
 felt gratified at the attention I shewed them. 
 My lads had collected a party around each of 
 them, where our exploits before and since leav- 
 ing Hokianga were minutely detailed ; not a cir- 
 cumstance being omitted which common deli- 
 cacy would demand the consigning to oblivion. 
 Similar to the usages of more polished society, 
 these tales lost nothing of their marvels by the 
 distance they had travelled ; and I was reported, 
 among many other miracles, to have performed 
 that of producing fire from a dry chip solely by 
 speaking to it. I had just joined the circle with 
 Kaka as this feat was announced to them. The 
 ladies were especially vociferous that I should 
 perform it before them. 
 
 Unconscious of what effect might result by 
 non-compliance, I accordingly consented, and, 
 with the aid of a box of lucifer-matches, which
 
 SURPRISE OF THE VILLAGERS. 123 
 
 always accompanied me on a journey, satisfied 
 the curiosity that had been excited. The simple 
 operation had no sooner been performed, by 
 drawing the match through the sand-paper, 
 than it drew forth a shout of astonishment 
 that brought all the natives around who were 
 within hearing. I was obliged to repeat the 
 operation several times, and none could con- 
 ceive how the fire could come without the 
 offering of a previous prayer to the divinity 
 supposed to be confined within the box. I 
 attempted to explain the natural causes which 
 produced the fire ; but I was not allowed to ex- 
 cuse myself from being a sorcerer, though the 
 ladies confessed I was not a very wicked one. 
 
 The night having advanced, I spake to Puhi 
 to ask from the chief a cabin to pass the night 
 in, and to clear the same from the fleas which 
 infest these domiciles in myriads. I was soon 
 put in possession of one open only in the front, 
 in w^hich my bed was spread. I then joined the 
 family circle of Kaka, who were stationed in 
 front of his house ; he very earnestly pressed 
 me to become a relative, by accepting his only 
 daughter as my wife, assuring me her rank and 
 station in the tribe, made her an object of much 
 contention among the chiefs, towards whom she 
 had not yet declared any affection.
 
 124) A chieftain's daughter. 
 
 This young lady, who was niece to Parore of 
 Waipoa, and principal chief in Kaipara, might 
 have been in her fifteenth year. She was dis- 
 tinguished from the females of the village by 
 her demeanour, which was dignified and grace- 
 ful ; her countenance was eminently beautiful, 
 which was worthy, as to complexion and feature, 
 of being put in competition with the beauteous 
 women of Spain. Her delicacy of appearance 
 was most prepossessing ; and I imagined her 
 disposition equally pleasing, from a succession 
 of smiles hovering round her mouth, displaying 
 teeth of unrivalled evenness and whiteness. Her 
 charms were much enhanced by the modest and 
 artless simplicity which evidently composed her 
 usual manners. Koruhana was the name of 
 this chieftess, whose extraordinary vivacity and 
 shrewd remarks first drew my attention. 
 
 Her dress consisted of the kaitakas, made of 
 silken flax, with deep, highly worked borders of 
 the same material, dyed red and black ; her pro- 
 fuse tresses were collected together in the native 
 fashion, which is particularly pleasing ; her ring- 
 lets pending on either side of her face, in which 
 the red and yellow honey flowerets of the flax- 
 plant were interwoven. 
 
 On the parent chief rehearsing the praises 
 the young lady so well merited, which he spoke
 
 HER MODEST RESERVE. 125 
 
 in a strain of affectionate compliment, she in- 
 stantly covered her head and face with her na- 
 tive garment, a modest reserve peculiar to tlie 
 females of the land ; but the old gentleman had 
 scarcely made the obhging offer of receiving 
 me into his family by the ties of the native mar- 
 riage, than she started up, and, with the swift- 
 ness of a young doe, ran to her house, situated 
 some short distance. I should have excused 
 myself from the honour of the alliance ; but as 
 Koruhana had left the circle, I felt there was no 
 occasion to make a reply that might have given 
 offence; 
 
 Dancing was now commenced by both sexes, 
 and was kept up until nine o'clock, at which hour 
 I had accustomed myself to retire to bed ; pre- 
 viously to which, as usual, I wound up my watch. 
 This piece of mechanism is called by the natives 
 an Atua, or a divinity : few of my present audi- 
 tors had seen one, the ticking of which struck 
 them with much surprise, which they evinced by 
 repeated ejaculations. It was now time to re- 
 tire, which I accordingly did. Puhi had pre- 
 pared the cabin as neatly as circumstances 
 permitted. 
 
 Early in the morning I felt quite refreshed 
 from the fatigue of the previous day, and, on 
 opening my eyes, observed my cabin, whicli I
 
 126 SURPRISE OF THE VILLAGERS 
 
 stated was entirely open in front, crowded 
 with the inhabitants of the village, anxious to 
 see me arise. My throat, which was uncovered, 
 and was less bronzed by the sun than my face 
 or hands, called forth universal remarks. The 
 works of a Phidias or Praxiteles could not have 
 elicited from the most devoted lover of the art 
 stronger terms of approbation. My readers will 
 not, I hope, imagine I am indulging in silly vanity 
 from the above expressions, made use of to ex- 
 press the surprise of the people which arose on 
 beholding a complexion so dissimilar to what they 
 had been accustomed to view. 
 
 I huddled on my clothes with all the delicacy 
 I could use ; which puzzled these people much, 
 from the continual habit they have been accus- 
 tomed to, since infancy, of seeing the males 
 work in nudity. I hastily stole from my sleep- 
 ing place, and desired Puhi to put my shaving 
 utensils in order. 
 
 At this operation, which was new to every 
 person present, fresh shouts of surprise were 
 raised. The lather from the shaving-box was 
 a source of wonder : it was compared to the 
 oupapa, or snow, which some of them had seen 
 to the southward ; and as I had as quickly pro- 
 duced fire from a box as ^'^snow" for shaving, 
 they inquired, with characteristic simplicity.
 
 AT EUROPEAN UTENSILS. 127 
 
 whether I was in the habit of keeping thunder 
 and lightning also by nie. 
 
 A tin washing-dish was brought by Puhi, 
 who performed his office of valet with looks of 
 ineffable importance. It was a proud day for 
 him. The people were delighted at the un- 
 common sight. The service of the comb was 
 readily understood ; this article, made from va- 
 rious woods, being an ancient ornament of the 
 country, called hearu. The tooth-brush had 
 never been seen before : this was an improve- 
 ment that never could have been imagined. 
 The looking-glass was handed round ; and 
 some of the ladies were so fascinated with 
 what they saw reflected in this indispensable 
 article of the toilette, that with much difficulty 
 they could be induced to return it. Among 
 the admirers of this luxurious piece of furni- 
 ture was Koruhana, who was delighted with it. 
 Wilhng to obhge her father, who had treated 
 myself and suite so hospitably, I readily gave it 
 to her at the old gentleman's request. 
 
 Kaka was highly gratified at the effect pro- 
 duced by the soap and towel, and requested me 
 to allow him the use of the utensils. Puhi, who 
 felt as if the duty of a prime minister had de- 
 volved on him, strutted about in consequence. 
 I had no objection to please the old man ;
 
 128 NATIVE CLEANSING. 
 
 curious, also, to observe the effects it would 
 have on a face tliat had not been washed, un- 
 less by a passing shower of rain, for perhaps 
 seventy years ; but, like to Icarus of old, he 
 had to smart for his experiment. The old 
 man had rubbed the soap with all his might 
 up his nostrils and within his eyes, without 
 using water. The unfortunate chief, blinded 
 by the pungent composition, stamped in agony. 
 I desired Puhi to lead him in that state to the 
 brink of the adjacent stream, where he had the 
 cleanest ablution he had doubtless undergone 
 since his birth. 
 
 Puhi dried and combed him ; and when 
 the old man returned, he looked twelve years 
 younger, and a couple of shades lighter, for the 
 immersion. My valet performed a similar opera- 
 tion on himself, as he piqued himself on being 
 Europeanised. 
 
 Several of the female nobility, delighted at 
 the miraculous change the soap had effected on 
 Kaka, were determined, in despite of the pain, 
 to try the experiment. Had Puhi paid atten- 
 tion to their requests, he would have found the 
 situation no sinecure. As it was, he turned a 
 deaf ear on his countrywomen. In vain they 
 coaxed and fondled him, patting him on the 
 face, until these artful girls hinted at the im-
 
 NATIVE ENVOY. 129 
 
 measurable improvement he had made over the 
 generality of native young men by travelling with 
 European society. This piece of flattery was 
 continued as long as the soap lasted, when they 
 laughed at him for the pains he had taken. The 
 young females are generally very cleanly in their 
 habits ; in summer, often bathing during the day, 
 in the sea or fresh-water creeks. 
 
 At this period a karere, or envoy, arrived from 
 Mangakahia, to advise the old chief to hasten 
 with the building of his fortification, as the tribe 
 of wdiom both parties were apprehensive had 
 given Terarau, chief of that district, intimation 
 they would make a tawa, or war, against Kaka, 
 while his pa was defenceless. This news stirred 
 the activity of the minor chiefs, who, with the 
 common people and their slaves, took their axes 
 to the adjoining forest to cut fencing for the pa, 
 to guard the village and property. 
 
 At this unpleasant news my people were 
 much afflicted, and felt so dispirited, that they 
 lamented, with bitter tears, having joined me. 
 The present quarrel arose from a circumstance 
 of frequent occurrence among the natives. A 
 celebrated chief, of the tribe of Terarau, had been 
 killed and devoured in a former battle by the 
 enemy, living on the banks of theWaima; peace 
 had been concluded between the parties by a 
 
 VOL. I, K
 
 130 , INCANTATIONS. 
 
 number of Terarau's people, who, some time 
 after, were determined to seek satisfaction : they 
 fell on a few of the Waima natives unawares, 
 killed some, and carried away the others as 
 slaves. The Waima people, unable to cope with 
 the Maungakahia warriors, determined it as best 
 to fall on the allies of their invaders, who were 
 weaker than themselves, and never gave them 
 cause of offence. 
 
 After the panic, occasioned by the ill news of 
 the envoy, had subsided, I requested Puhi to 
 hasten breakfast, as the day was advancing ; he 
 informed me that both fire and water was tapued 
 by the tohunga, or priest, who was busy at pre- 
 paring an incantation near the Wai-tapu, situated 
 among a grove of cabbage palm-trees without the 
 fence. I went and joined the old magician, who 
 was entirely stripped, as were five chiefs who 
 were also officiating. They all eagerly asked 
 me in a breath, if I had eaten of any thing; 
 to their evident satisfaction, I answered in the 
 negative. They then requested me to return to 
 the village, as the rites they had to perform were 
 forbidden to be seen by any person but the 
 priesthood. I told them I would willingly com- 
 ply with their request, but would not answer for 
 tlie irritabiUty of my appetite, which was not to 
 be thwarted when any thing was to be got. This
 
 ON WAR. 131 
 
 induced them to allow me to remain, on the 
 ground that I was a European. They then 
 applied themselves to fixing in the ground some 
 small sticks, ahout two feet each in length. I 
 was now given to understand the ceremony 
 was an oracular consultation whether my party, 
 including myself, was to perform our journey in 
 safety or otherwise. Each stick stood for one 
 person ; my representative was distinguished by 
 a small piece of raupo flag being attached to the 
 head of the stick. On the top of the stick was 
 placed a kirikiri, or gravel-stone ; these were to 
 remain on the stick for an hour ; and, if none of 
 the stones fell on the earth, our journey was to 
 be propitious, and whichever stone fell, death 
 would ensue in some shape to the person re- 
 presented. 
 
 Perceiving how matters were likely to turn, 
 and that the objects of my journey would be 
 frustrated, I told the priest and his assistants the 
 stones might remain above or below, but I would 
 not stay another day in the village ; that their 
 silly nonsense prevented me returning to them 
 at a future period ; but if they would throw down 
 the stones, and throw away the sticks, I would 
 spare them each a little tobacco. This tempting 
 offer was serviceable to my cause ; the stones 
 were carefully collected and placed in the Wai-
 
 132 SUPERSTITION OF THE NATIVES. 
 
 tapu ; the lads rushed in, attended by then* 
 friends, each with anxiety depicted on their coun- 
 tenances, to know the effects of the incantation, 
 on which it was imphcitly supposed their ultimate 
 fate and that of our mission depended ; every 
 person had some question to ask, and all was 
 demanded at the same moment with so much 
 vociferation, as to confuse the ancient ariolist. 
 At length the noise in some measure subsided, 
 and the old Druid gave them each a satisfac- 
 tory answer, that savoured of the tobacco I had 
 promised. All was gaiety and hilarity — every 
 person present relying fully in the promises of 
 the priest, who, from a long-continued practice 
 of his profession, began to think that he was 
 gifted with infallibility. Yet, notwithstanding the 
 decided effects of tobacco in this instance, the 
 superstition of the people held out in this village 
 even against that much valued narcotic. 
 
 It was requisite I should purchase some 
 paddles for propelling the canoes, which we were 
 to procure in the Kaihu river ; several were 
 offered to me, for which I tendered a certain por- 
 tion of tobacco. This was refused : double the 
 quantity being demanded. I in turn objected. 
 As I was inclining against the house I had slept 
 in, I pulled a piece of flax from the roof, and with 
 it fastened together the loose tobacco. Some
 
 NATIVE HOSPITALITY. 133 
 
 time after the men changed their minds who 
 owned the paddles, and told me they were willing 
 to take the payment I offered. I acceded ; but, 
 on their being told by a bystander that I had tied 
 up the tobacco with flax that was on the house 
 appropriated to my use, they refused to take it. 
 To try them further, I offered double the quan- 
 tity they had asked of me in the first instance ; 
 and, though I feel assured many of these people 
 would have travelled fifty miles, burdened with 
 a heavy load, for a single head of tobacco, not 
 one of those present would accept a single piece, 
 even as a gift, that had become thus prohibited 
 by contact with the flax. 
 
 Previously to departing from this apparently 
 honest people, I distributed presents to all the 
 chiefs around. E'Kahu, the eldest wife of Kaka, 
 put round my neck the tiki, or green jade breast 
 ornament, w'hich she had Avorii appended to her 
 own. The chief loaded our boys with provisions, 
 and entreated me as a favour to allow his 
 daughter Koruhana, together with a female at- 
 tendant, to accompany my escort to visit her 
 relative, the chief of Maungakahia, especially as 
 the village priest had predicted our safety. 
 
 Willing to oblige the old man, whose hospi- 
 tality had been unbounded towards us, I con- 
 sented, requesting that her brother, some few
 
 134 PREPARE TO DEPART. 
 
 years older than herself, might accompany us for 
 her fm'ther protection, which was also arranged. 
 The old chief then bade me open my hand, on 
 which he stooped downwards, and, picking up a 
 small portion of the soil, said, that he and his 
 people would as willingly receive Europeans 
 among them, and part with them the lands on 
 which they lived, as give me the little earth he 
 had put into my hand. He further bade me 
 bear in mind what he had said. 
 
 My companions packed up their different 
 loads ; Puhi, as usual, carrying my wardrobe. 
 After those trusty fellows had passed on in 
 review before me, I saluted the old chief and his 
 venerable councillors, including the priest. 
 
 Instead of making use of the usual salute 
 with the chief lady E'Kahu, I substituted the 
 native fashion of my own country, on the lady's 
 hps. This feat astonished Kaka and the sur- 
 rounding nobility; the priest admitted his in- 
 cantations had been various, but this was alto- 
 gether new to him. I told them it was the 
 E'ongi no Uropi, or European salutation. The 
 chief who already supposed he had passed the 
 rubicon of civilised fashions, by being washed in 
 the British mode, was determined to profit by 
 whatever he saw : he therefore followed this 
 example ; and, considering the years of the old
 
 A FASHION IMPARTED. 135 
 
 chief, was not so bad an imitation. My readers 
 may smile at this Httle incident ; but this im- 
 pressive token of affection was unknown until 
 introduced, among other follies or fashions, by 
 Europeans. The abominable tangi has been 
 hitherto the substitute. All the court expressed 
 their approbation of this new importation, and 
 shouted aloud with merriment at the amusement 
 it afforded them. 
 
 This noise brought out the ladies from their 
 houses, where they were engaged making flax 
 dresses, to discover the cause of the commotion, 
 and I left them, while the gentlemen were in the 
 act of explaining the reason, accompanied by the 
 family of Kaka placed under my protection. 
 
 jNIany of the villagers followed us, exclaim- 
 ing, " Ire atu ra," or " Go in health ;" to which 
 we shouted in return the compliment, '' Eko- 
 nara," or " Adieu ! good bye." The dogs gave 
 us a howl at parting. Two of these brutes could 
 not be induced, by word or blow, to quit their 
 mistress, Koruhana ; they were therefore per- 
 mitted to follow in our wake.
 
 136 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Continuation of our Journey — Native Cemetery — Arrival 
 at Tetaita — Flax Houses — Sojourn in a deserted Village 
 
 — Pursue our Route — The Scenery — Arrive at the 
 Banks of the River Kaihu — Embark in three Canoes — 
 Meet with adverse Weather — One of the Provision 
 Canoes upsets — Sojourn for the Night on a Bank of 
 Mud — Singular Alarm— -Pursue our Voyage in the dark 
 
 — Ai'e taken for Enemies — Meet with a Sacred Embassy 
 
 — Native Superstitions — Arrive at Maungakahia — 
 Amusements in the Village — Curiosity and Manners of 
 the Natives. 
 
 We then repassed much of the ground we had 
 travelled over the preceding day, recrossed several 
 times the river which runs up to the foot of the 
 village, and several streams that were new to me. 
 The soil in these parts was a deep rich black 
 mould, covered with decayed vegetable matter. 
 Unwilling to lose the benefit we might derive 
 from passing these woods, I gave muskets, shot, 
 and powder to two of our best marksmen, Tama- 
 roa and Parre, the latter a native wit, who kept
 
 NEW ZEALAND CEMETERY. 
 
 137 
 
 his comrades in continual good-humour ; he was 
 very clever in imitations, affording us all much 
 merriment by the smartness of his replies. 
 
 The bush abounded with pigeons of splendid 
 plumage and delicious flavour ; the rivers were 
 prohfic with wild ducks, the summer being the 
 season they are found in greatest number. The 
 sportsmen took their own paths, previously ap- 
 pointing Tetaita, a flax village belonging to Pa- 
 rore, as our head-quarters. 
 
 We passed an extensive grove containing a 
 Wai-tapu. In this place was deposited the bones 
 of a male and female chief of Kaipara. 
 
 WAI-TAPU, OR CEMETERY. 
 
 The house which enclosed these remains of 
 mortality was built of old canoes, that, having 
 belonged to the deceased, were not allowed to be
 
 138 SUPERSTITIOUS FEELINGS 
 
 used after their death. It was much in shape of 
 a large watch-box, with a shelving roof, slanting 
 like a skilhng, which it resembled. It was sur- 
 mounted with a }naihi, or frontispiece, which 
 was decorated with feathers. 
 
 The house was enclosed with a compact 
 fence, on which was fastened, with wooden pegs, 
 large pieces of canoe boards. With hieroglyphics 
 denoting the tattooed marks on the body of the 
 deceased. 
 
 This was the largest Wai-tapu 1 had seen ; 
 the whole was painted with kokowai. My natives, 
 on passing this sepulchre of the departed, closed 
 near to each other ; at this moment a little kori- 
 maku bird struck up its vocal powers with its 
 tone as clear as a musical glass. Wata turned 
 to me and said, " That is the god of the New 
 Zealanders ; he warns us not to come near the 
 Wai-tapu ; let us walk quick, and avoid his 
 anger." I acceded to his wish, determined, as 
 far as lay in my power, to comply with the cus- 
 toms of this singular people. I attempted by 
 argument to prove the erroneous ideas he enter- 
 tained of a merciful Creator. I inquired, who 
 were the native gods ? " Gur chiefs," replied my 
 informant ; *' who have been renowned men in 
 this hfe ; whose spirits become immortal, and who 
 busy themselves in the affairs of their descend-
 
 OF THE NATIVES. 139 
 
 ants while in this existence." I inquired how the 
 chiefs had died who were mouldering in the 
 Wai-tapu we had passed ? Wata stated the 
 chief had fallen in battle, but his body had been 
 recovered by his friends, who had severed it in 
 several pieces, and conveyed it home in baskets ; 
 his wife, on hearing of his untimely fate, had im- 
 molated herself by hanging. 
 
 We continued our route amid high jungles of 
 liax bushes, and soon arrived on the borders of a 
 forest, whose densely covered soil produced the 
 various trees common to those parts. Some were 
 of the largest magnitude, their branches covered 
 with umbrageous foliage, the soil being im- 
 pervious to the sun's ray ; but little herbage 
 grew on the land, which was rank from the con- 
 tinual moisture of decayed vegetation. 
 
 We passed some sheds covered with nikau, 
 or palm-leaf branches, that had been erected for 
 the night by some native travellers. The under- 
 wood and high straggling tree-roots rendered the 
 paths almost impossible to pass. On emerging 
 from this wood, we were dazzled for some time 
 after quitting its darkness, by approaching the 
 plain, where the sun shone with splendour. 
 Wata pointed out a bush, from which he pro- 
 duced a small iron trypot, that had been secreted 
 there, and purchased from the Europeans.
 
 140 PURSUE OUR ROUTE. 
 
 The plain we next passed over was perfectly 
 levels containing many thousand acres, and was 
 much more extensive than I was led to believe 
 at first view : it was covered with ferns (kaikatoa) 
 and elderberry bushes. Some clumps of trees 
 gave the place the appearance of beautiful 
 shrubberies. The hills on each side were distant 
 and irregular, but apparently well covered with 
 useful timber. Another swamp terminated at 
 the end of the plain : this was literally filled with 
 flax ; which, being in flower, produced a pleasing 
 effect. 
 
 We soon gained another plain, on which the 
 flax leaves were so high, as to render it almost 
 impenetrable. We soon arrived at Tetaita, a 
 village belonging to Parore. In this place was 
 erected three large flax-houses, filled with scraped 
 flax of various qualities. One house contained 
 some tons of hungahunga, or silken flax ; the 
 others with muka maori, or common native flax. 
 We met with a few natives in this village who 
 testified much surprise at seeing me : they were 
 related to my party. I congratulated myself 
 they did not appear in a crying humour, so I was 
 saved the discord of the tangi, though one old 
 dame commenced whimpering : she was a slave. 
 On perceiving Koruhana, who was her master's 
 niece, she would fain have cried, but gave it up.
 
 FLAX HOUSES. 141 
 
 as she met with no encouragement, and none felt 
 inclined for the luxury of being miserable. 
 
 A party of mongrels who appertained to these 
 people, who were principally slaves, commenced 
 with the usual vociferation of their tribe ; but 
 our two Achates, who brought up the rear, soon 
 silenced these degenerate curs. A pretty wind- 
 ing stream ran past the village, which was early 
 vacated by the party who preceded us, who took 
 to their canoes, and were soon out of sight. 
 Here we encamped for dinner. Our two marks- 
 men did not join us here, which did not give me 
 any uneasiness, as they knew where we intended 
 passing the night. The iron pot was found to 
 be serviceable ; and, after it had cooked the ne- 
 cessary provisions, was placed in a basket and 
 reserved for my especial use. The flax-houses 
 in this village were nearly eighty feet in length, 
 and thirty feet in breadth. They were put to- 
 gether by poles and raupo, and the lower parts 
 were open, with only poles placed across. The 
 whole of the prepared flax was tapued, and of 
 course safe from depredation. 
 
 After resting an hour, including dinner, we 
 resumed our travel. The scenery, as we con- 
 tinued our route, was very similar to that we 
 had previously passed ; the only variety we saw 
 was on a particularly elevated plain, where no
 
 142 KAURI GUM. 
 
 forest was in view ; and the nearest that ap- 
 proached the vicinity of the plain was at least 
 one hundred and thirty feet lower in descent 
 than the plain ; yet we saw large masses of Kauri 
 gum buried in the earth. What revolution of 
 the elements could have brought the bitumen to 
 these elevated plains, where it was strewed in 
 abundance, it is impossible to conceive. The 
 natives could give no account of its having been 
 brought there. Patches of low forest-land were 
 observable in various parts of these plains, and a 
 number of swamps abounding in flax. The sub- 
 stratum of the hills was sandstone, which was 
 here found in large quantities. The marshes 
 were filled with a wiry grass called hiwi. 
 
 At sunset we arrived at Otapanihu, where 
 we found our absentees, who had killed fifteen 
 large pigeons, and a quantity of parrots, hawks, 
 &c. The birds had been well plucked and 
 cleaned ; fires were kindled, and three houses 
 erected, — one for the retinue, one for Kaka's 
 family, and a third for myself. Hastily as these 
 houses had been constructed, they were imper- 
 vious to wind and rain. 
 
 This station had been formerly a flourishing 
 village, where the navigable part of the Kaihu 
 river commences ; now, every place in the vici- 
 nity is deserted, the former tribes that existed
 
 NIGHT BIVOUAC. 143 
 
 ill this spot having been entirely destroyed. 
 Their name is yet remembered, but none now 
 Hving bear it. 
 
 In addition to the fare set before me at 
 supper, a quantity of rito, or hearts of the pahn- 
 tree, were also included. This vegetable, which 
 is eaten uncooked, makes a salad unequalled for 
 its excellent flavour, and is held in much esteem 
 by the people. The parasitical fruit tdword was 
 also produced. It was a matter for astonish- 
 ment, how so much could have been procured 
 by our two foragers in so short an absence. 
 The birds, which were excellent, drew upon our 
 sportsmen unqualified applause. I distributed 
 biscuit and tobacco to the party, which added 
 to the general satisfaction that was displayed by 
 every one. 
 
 Supper was not hastily discussed ; and after 
 all had enjoyed themselves to repletion, which 
 my people invariably did whenever the chance 
 offered, a haka commenced, in which the four 
 females in our party acquitted themselves to per- 
 fection. Wrestling matches followed, wherein 
 the men displayed much strength, but little of 
 the tact which so much aids these encounters ; 
 and I fell asleep during one of the drawling nasal 
 songs peculiar to the people. The words were 
 composed for the occasion, in which our adven-
 
 144! EVENING AMUSEMENTS. 
 
 tures formed the theme. Komhiina was the im- 
 provvisatrice ; wherein she described the white 
 man sailing over the boundless ocean, who would 
 have been swallowed up by the waves but for 
 the shielding arm of the New Zealand Taniwoa, 
 who had conducted him to these shores. Our 
 journey was then described in this chant, 
 which, if it possessed any melody, arose from 
 the sweet tones of Koruhana, whose voice re- 
 quired but cultivation to become both rich and 
 powerful. She was joined occasionally by the 
 group around her, in a chorus so much in uni- 
 son, that I perceived it was an old chant to a 
 new subject. 
 
 The appearance of these people gave a highly 
 romantic effect to the scene. They had seated 
 themselves in a circle round an immense fire, 
 that glared on their expressive countenances, 
 some of which yet displayed the red marks of 
 the kokowai put on in the morning. Koruhana 
 stood erect in the circle ; and, as the subject 
 animated her, accompanied the song with action. 
 Thus, in describing the waves of the sea — its 
 effect on a ship — she reeled her body, to typify 
 the uneasy motion of a vessel. When her song 
 had ceased, Puhi struck up his vocal powers in 
 the chorus common among the people. This 
 piece is invariably sung in a whining, drawling.
 
 ENTER OUR CANOES. 145 
 
 disagreeable tone ; the soporific effect of which, 
 as I have stated, soon composed me to sleep. 
 
 At the earliest dawn, I was awakened by the 
 sweet voices of the many beautiful birds, that 
 literally filled the bushes, whose varied notes 
 echoed throughout the adjacent bush until sun- 
 rise. It was a lovely morning : the heavy dews 
 that had fallen during the night gave a freshness 
 to every thing in nature. At 5 a.m. we started 
 from our resting-place ; and, after a short travel, 
 soon arrived at the place where the canoes lay 
 anchored amid a quantity of reeds alongside the 
 banks of the Kaihu. 
 
 These native boats had nothing particular to 
 recommend them. The largest was appropriated 
 for me, and a seat was constructed in the centre. 
 They were without topsides, and, when loaded, 
 were within two inches of the water, so that the 
 least restlessness of any sitter within filled them 
 with the fluid. For my own part, I had been 
 much used to this sort of conveyance, being 
 similar to the pirogues in which I had formerly 
 made passages within the island of Madagascar. 
 As soon as we were all seated in our places, 
 the three canoes started in company, and were 
 steered down the river with great rapidity. 
 
 Our helmsmen commenced the usual boat- 
 chant, which, with trifling practice, enables every 
 
 VOL. I. L
 
 146 NATIVE BOAT RACE. 
 
 person to keep exact time with his paddle ; the 
 singer is joined occasionally in a chorus by those 
 who keep stroke, at which time additional force 
 is given to the paddle. The celerity with which 
 a canoe is made to pursue its course often 
 astonishes the stranger. 
 
 We soon left Otapanihu behind us. The 
 river took a devious course, and was at this place 
 very narrow ; our canoes were also much im- 
 peded in their progress by the many branches 
 and stumps of trees that had fallen in the water, 
 and blocked the course of the unfrequented 
 river. In one place an immense rata tree had 
 fallen across, and caused us all to quit the canoes, 
 and draw them over this broad impediment. 
 After we had passed the distance of a few 
 miles, we got clear of these annoyances ; and 
 the stream which had hitherto been but a 
 few yards in breadth, now expanded to some 
 width. 
 
 Here we commenced an animated race, in 
 which the females displayed equal agility with 
 the males, joining in chorus, and keeping the 
 necessary time required. I also amused myself 
 by paddling, which is fatiguing at the com- 
 mencement ; but a little practice accustoms 
 any person to the exertion. 
 
 Hitherto the banks on either side presented
 
 DESERTED VILLAGES. 147 
 
 solely flax bushes, whose tall waving leaves rose 
 to the height of twelve feet ; the shale growing 
 between the tufts, which bear the flowers and 
 seed, rising to the height of twenty feet, which 
 overhung the sides of this silent river. Here 
 was an article growing in wild, luxuriant abund- 
 ance, amply sufficient to employ the energies of 
 thousands of a civilised, industrious people ; but 
 this place was deserted, and not an inhabitant 
 was to be seen. The very names of many tribes, 
 originally belonging to the soil, had passed away 
 from human remembrance. 
 
 Several places we passed were pointed out to 
 me as having been particularly populous. The 
 only remembrance left of human beings having 
 tenanted the place, were a few rotten sticks and 
 decayed rushes, and, in various spots, pieces of 
 old canoes standing perpendicular and solitary, 
 grotesquely carved, as a monument to an illus- 
 trious man departed. These deserted spots — 
 villages no more — from the lone, unbroken 
 silence around, gave me sensations undefinably 
 unpleasant. '' Where," I inquired, musingly, 
 " is the stirring haka, the tangi of affection, 
 the agile dance, and shout of merriment ?" I was 
 answered by the plaintive ti-ti-ti of the Kori- 
 maku bird, who sat perched on a raoui, whose
 
 148 SPIRITED DIVERSIONS. 
 
 original carving had long since been obliterated, 
 and covered with ivylike moss. 
 
 The canoes were hastily paddled past this spot, 
 as the poor Korimaku was instantly recognised 
 as the Atua, or spirit, of the chief, whose bones 
 had been buried long since in the sepulchre 
 below. I was told by Tamaroa, who was well 
 learned in the traditions of these parts, that the 
 monument we had just passed had been erected 
 to the memory of a great warrior chief of Kai- 
 para, named Tamiteri, who had fallen in battle, 
 fighting the tribes of Waikato. His body had 
 been recovered, but the head had been purloined 
 by the enemy, who had preserved it after the 
 native fashion. It was added, he had become a 
 river-god, and kept at this station, upsetting 
 canoes, and playing divers feats of a similar na- 
 ture, such as causing the river at times to be 
 impassable, by raising heavy swells, as some sa* 
 tisfaction for the detention of his head. 
 
 It reminded me of the civilised traditions of 
 those veritable saints, St. Denis and St. Patrick* 
 Our companions in the canoe listened with the 
 most eager attention to the truths uttered by 
 this chorographer. 
 
 When this object was no longer in view, the 
 paddling suddenly ceased, and a consultation
 
 SUPERSTITION. 149 
 
 was held as to what the departed Tamiteri had 
 said in the form of the korimaku. The con- 
 clusions of these people were various ; some 
 construed the communication into an approach- 
 ing storm ; others were divided on the opposite 
 side of the question, conceiving it signified a 
 calm : so that either course of weather would 
 give just pretensions to the Atua's predictions. 
 I congratulated myself that the bird had carolled 
 with its usual clear note ; for I verily beheve, 
 had his throat evinced any hoarseness, it would 
 have caused us no little delay. I became con- 
 tinually fearful of the croaking of frogs, who con- 
 gregate in the adjoining marshes in great num- 
 bers, from the ridiculous superstitions of these 
 people. 
 
 After paddhng about five hours, we landed 
 at a deserted village called Nagnereri. During 
 the progress we had made in our travel, the 
 banks of the country were covered with dense 
 flax bushes, which apparently flourished as luxu- 
 riantly in the most exposed as well as sheltered 
 situations — in marshy or alluvial soils — the most 
 argillaceous or tophacious spots. The dinner 
 was soon prepared, and I sat down with an 
 appetite that bade fair to rival that of my mess- 
 mates, who did ample justice to the repast. 
 After our packages were ready to be placed in
 
 150 COMPLACENT FEELINGS OF THE DOGS. 
 
 the canoes, a deputation waited on me, request- 
 ing I would stay at this place for the night, 
 though the ebb-tide was in our favour. This 
 petition arose from the fears engendered by the 
 lay of the Korimaku ; I arose from the tree I 
 sat upon, and ordered them to make ready to 
 depart immediately. 
 
 I was reluctantly obeyed ; but it was sup- 
 posed, as the Europeans had never given Tami- 
 teri cause of offence, when living on earth, it 
 was unlikely his spirit would trouble them ; we 
 accordingly took our places in the canoes. Koru- 
 hana, her brother, and the kuri dogs, who ap- 
 peared to thrive well on the expedition, occu- 
 pied places in my canoe. These faithful animals 
 had never been so well fed before ; instead of 
 the prickly husk of the Indian corn, which de- 
 fied mastication, they now fattened on fish and 
 meat ; and their former perquisites, consisting of 
 the thin parings of the potato and kumera, was 
 supplanted by the vegetables entire, on which they 
 flourished with evident marks of self-satisfaction. 
 
 We again hastened on our course, leaving 
 the long river of Wairoa to our right, which led 
 to the mouth of the Kaipara, and entered with 
 our canoes the river of Mangakdhia, whose tor- 
 tuous course flowed full forty miles further, 
 trending to the northward. Here we met with
 
 A GROUND-SWELL. 151 
 
 a heavy ground swell, that tossed our canoes 
 about like rushes, and yet we were full sixty 
 miles from the sea. I felt surprised, as the day 
 was particularly calm; the natives were in a 
 fearful state, attributing this common occur- 
 rence, of what was perhaps an overfall, to my 
 obstinacy, in having disregarded the injunctions 
 of Tamiteri. 
 
 These people who, from practice, are very 
 expert in the management of their canoes, on 
 the least alarm become quite helpless ; it was so 
 in this instance. I was enabled to keep those 
 who were in my canoe from feeling dispirited, 
 but it was otherwise with the occupants of the 
 other canoes ; a heavy swell caused them both to 
 lurch and capsize, by which unpleasant accident 
 all our provisions went to the bottom of the river. 
 
 The natives, who generally swim exceedingly 
 well, soon righted their canoes, but the loss of 
 the provisions was a serious calamity ; few could 
 feel the accident more than these people. 
 Though the slight breeze was in our favour, 
 the swell now rose in topping seas, and made 
 it imperative we should land ; but the banks of 
 the river were of soft blue mud, that skirted 
 the shore full a half mile inland, covered with 
 mangrove -trees, and we could perceive no 
 place in view tenable even for the weight of
 
 152 MUDDY ENCAMPMENT. 
 
 a cat. To perch on the mangroves for the 
 night, without fire or food, was not a very in- 
 viting prospect; to remain in our canoes was 
 to court a watery grave ; however, by conti- 
 nually baling with our tiaru, a utensil for clear- 
 ing water from canoes, we managed to advance 
 another mile ; when, through a grove of the 
 aquatic mangroves, we espied a small spot a 
 trifle elevated above the surrounding banks. To 
 get to this place of safety was equally our object 
 and difficulty ; the natives, on landing, sinking 
 in the soft mud up to their knees at each step 
 they advanced; at last they effected to reach 
 the mud-bank ; the smallest of the canoes was 
 brought alongside the one I occupied, into which 
 I stepped, with the boxes containing presents, 
 bedding, &c. Some branches of the mangroves 
 were then placed on the bank, and the canoe 
 propelled over them by the natives, to the bot- 
 tom of the elevation, of which we took posses- 
 sion for the night. 
 
 The spot we occupied might have been six- 
 teen feet square, formed of mud and branches of 
 the young mangrove, which had originally ar- 
 rested the soil from distant banks ; it was sur- 
 rounded at high -water, and the spring- tides 
 covered it. At the lowest ebb, the largest canoe 
 was despatched, to enable our divers to search
 
 STRAITENED QUARTERS. 153 
 
 for the provisions lost by the upsetting of the 
 canoes, which had been carefully packed up in 
 baskets, after the native method. They returned 
 some time after, successful, all the baskets having 
 been recovered. 
 
 A quantity of palm-branches were procured 
 from the neighbouring bush, to make houses for 
 the night ; a large fire was also kindled, fur- 
 nished by the mangrove bushes around us ; and 
 the little trypot, which had sunk when the 
 canoes were upset, had been regained, and was 
 put in requisition, as the mud-bank we now oc- 
 cupied was too damp to admit of a native oven. 
 
 Our domicile was so small, that it was neces- 
 sary to dispense with the dance, as a false step 
 would have sunk the performer up to his chin, 
 in the soft aquose mud that surrounded us on 
 every side. One of our lads, named iMotuihu, 
 was an inveterate sleep-walker ; him I had fast- 
 ened to a stake, that partly served to support 
 the shed my natives occupied. A distribution 
 of tobacco put them all in good humour, and 
 the pleasures of native song were substituted for 
 dancing. The music of the country was pro- 
 duced, to while away the hours we had tediously 
 to pass in this singular and unhealthy place. I 
 was pleased in being able to add to their amuse- 
 ments, by the gift of that primitive instrument
 
 154 AMUSEMENTS OF THE GODS. 
 
 termed a jew's-harp, which was received as an 
 inestimable gift, and essayed upon by each of 
 the company : a recital of the day's adventures 
 was chanted in chorus. 
 
 Several tales of the relentless Tamiteri were 
 also related, and implicitly believed by these 
 simple people, as credenda not to be disputed. 
 Among other probable native facts, Tamaroa 
 told us that his father, who was a high-priest, 
 had been let into the confidence of the Taniwoa, 
 who had described the Reinga, or city of the 
 dead, to be a much pleasanter place than this 
 sublunary world ; that the spirits who were as 
 numerous as the sand (one pu) lived very com- 
 fortable ; that no fighting was allowed, but that 
 the native chiefs could not exist, without some 
 pleasurable excitement of the kind. To pass their 
 time comfortably, they accordingly returned to 
 this world at stated periods as deities ; the arch- 
 priest accounted for the failure of any of his pre- 
 dictions — by the absence of the Atua from this 
 world to the Reinga ; and as these vampires are 
 not gifted with ubiquity, it is impossible for them 
 to listen to incantations arising from earth at 
 such periods. 
 
 The food at the Reinga was declared to be 
 excellent. This latter remark gave universal 
 satisfaction. The quality, quantity, especes, &c.
 
 CAUSES OF ALARM. 155 
 
 rationed to each person in those blissful regions, 
 were next discussed ; during which, fatigued 
 from being pent in a small canoe all day, I fell 
 asleep. 
 
 I was suddenly awakened, about an hour after 
 midnight, by the confusion of the party, who, I 
 perceived by the flames from the fire, were look- 
 ing at each other with speechless horror de- 
 picted on their countenances. The cause was 
 soon explained; the two dogs, who had been 
 comfortably nestled among the natives, had un- 
 accountably commenced barking, which had 
 quickly roused these watchful people, who im- 
 mediately expected an attack from an enemy, 
 which our fire on this solitary bank might have 
 attracted. These people seldom meet each 
 other in these untenanted places, without trem- 
 bling at the encounter ; yet few people are more 
 disposed for gaiety, or sooner forget passing an- 
 noyances. 
 
 Each of the company was now attentive to 
 the dogs, who are the native safeguards ; but 
 these somnolent animals, unaware of the con- 
 fusion they had excited, composed themselves 
 very quietly for a nap, rested their heads on 
 their forepaws, gave a long-drawn sigh, and 
 gradually sank in sleep. The fires were now 
 about to be extinguished ; but this I overruled.
 
 156 TRICKS OF THE ATUA. 
 
 arguing that an enemy could never be aware of 
 our being in this place, as none of the nation 
 ever stir out after dark, a New Zealander being 
 fearful of his own shadow. 
 
 I again awoke before day-break, with a fit of 
 ague, from lying in so noxious a spot. The 
 people had sat up during the night, the barking 
 of the dogs having effectually chased sleep from 
 their dormitories. 
 
 We started up unrefreshed ; and, by the light 
 of our fires, placed all our materials in our 
 canoes. A thick dark fog had enveloped us 
 during the night. The dogs, who I expected 
 would have fared badly, from the fears they had 
 unwittingly imparted, were to my surprise much 
 caressed ; the cause of their barking was thrown 
 on the Taniwoa, who it was supposed had played 
 off some of his numerous tricks on the animals. 
 
 This conclusion was announced to me with 
 so serious an air, that I could scarce refrain 
 from laughter, which I avoided, being inclined 
 rather to convince them by reasoning and re- 
 flection, than by ridicule, which could furnish no 
 proof of the erroneous ideas they entertained. 
 
 Rangireri, or the waterfall of heaven, was the 
 inappropriate appellation of the mud-bank on 
 which we had encamped for the night. Previously 
 to leaving this place, a large fire was kindled.
 
 MEET WITH AN EMBASSY. 157 
 
 as a beacon for us, which proved serviceable, 
 while with difficulty we pursued the course of the 
 Maungakahia river, hidden from each other by the 
 heavy oppressive fog that arose from the marshy 
 lands and mud-banks on either side of the river. 
 
 Several times we got foul of the banks, and 
 it was not until the sun had risen high in the 
 heavens, that the nebulous vapour had partially 
 cleared away, which discovered to us that the 
 flax plant was as prolific on these banks as we 
 had hitherto seen on the Kaihu. 
 
 We passed several patches of splendid forest^ 
 whose lofty trees grew within a very few feet of 
 the river's brink. 
 
 On turning a bend in this serpentine river, 
 we suddenly came up with two large canoes ; in 
 one of them sat a venerable decrepit chief, full 
 dressed, and decorated in the native fashion ; his 
 hair was tied up in a bunch behind, and orna- 
 mented with the O feathers. The tattooing on 
 his face was scarce discernible, from the quantity 
 of kokowai with which he was bedaubed ; it had 
 also been made use of to sprinkle his garments ; 
 a tiki of green talc hung suspended from his 
 neck, and a large tc'dkci kai, or ear ornament, cut 
 from the downy part of the breast of the gannet, 
 floated in the wind. I judged this ancient noble 
 to have passed his eightieth year, yet he had the
 
 158 SACRED EMBASSY. 
 
 strength to steer the canoe he sat in, which was 
 a very large tewai of the red pine ; he was as- 
 sisted in paddKng by two young lads, who were 
 his grandchildren, and five old ladies, who, I was 
 informed, were the only surviving wives of the 
 venerable polygamist. The ladies were be- 
 daubed, cap-d-ine, with a mixture of kokowai 
 and shark's oil ; and the strong nature of the 
 latter was such that I was sensibly relieved by 
 being paddled to windward. 
 
 The second canoe contained males only, of 
 all ages, and by the particular attention paid to 
 their dress, I was convinced they were all chiefs ; 
 their hair had been neatly collected, and tied in 
 a bunch at the top of the head, decorated with 
 the feathers of the ula nui bird. Their ears were 
 garnished with handsome dried skins of the 
 piwakawaka bird, or the tooth of the sand shark, 
 pending from the lobe. Three of the chiefs 
 stood up erect in the canoe, brandishing a hcini 
 spear, or the tomahawk. Kokowai and shark's 
 oil had been lavishly bestowed on all the party : 
 their dresses consisted of the kaitaka and karo- 
 wai, made of the silky flax, and covered with 
 dog-skin mats, or neris' made of rushes, as pro- 
 tection against rain. 
 
 On perceiving our three small canoes, they 
 immediately flew to arms, but were agreeably
 
 CEREMONIOUS FEARS. 159 
 
 surprised to see a European among their own 
 friends. There was much greeting on both 
 sides. We learnt that the large canoe was 
 tapued, and all that was in it, consisting of 
 some old muskets, several paddles, garments of 
 all kinds, and a large fishing net, somewhat the 
 worse for wear. Among others of these sacred 
 trifles, was a fern-pounder and a stone, together 
 with several old sticks that had formed part of a 
 shed belonging to a deceased chief, and which 
 were also tapued. These several things, includ- 
 ing a large canoe, were to be deposited in a Wai 
 tapu, some short distance inland at Kaihu, as 
 offertories that would prove grateful to the 
 manes of the departed warrior, whose bones 
 were to be exhumated. 
 
 This ceremony was called a Haihunga. I 
 offered some presents to these people, but they 
 were rejected, as all these sanctimonious folks 
 were strictly tapued ; they doubted not, if any 
 of them touched food, or any thing else, while 
 under the interdiction, the Atua would destroy 
 them. 
 
 I was nevertheless informed, it would be 
 lawful to place a little tobacco in the canoe 
 that was untapued; and I did so accordingly, 
 with care, lest I should put the grateful nar- 
 cotic in the wrong place. We then saluted
 
 160 ARRIVE AT THE SETTLEMENT. 
 
 each other, took to our paddles, and a sudden 
 bend in the river soon hid us from view. 
 
 Our party struck out with their paddles man- 
 fully, and the canoes flew through the water in 
 quick style. We passed several rciouis, painted 
 red, which had a pretty effect amid the green 
 bushes. One district we passed was highly tapued, 
 from the cause of an accident that befel a chief, 
 in the act of giving help to some of his people, 
 while dragging out of the bush a log which was 
 to be hollowed to form a canoe. A branch of 
 some tree that had been previously severed, fell, 
 and struck him with much force on the shoulders ; 
 he was not long in recovering : but the forest 
 was tapued, and it had remained so some years 
 previously to our arrival. Had the country pos- 
 sessed its proportion of inhabitants, a tapu of this 
 kind could not have existed. We soon arrived 
 at Maungakahia valley. 
 
 A number of canoes, handsomely painted and 
 decorated with feathers at the stem and stern, 
 pendant in garlands, were lying off the settle- 
 ment. We approached unobserved; but no 
 sooner had my escort discharged their muskets, 
 than hundreds ran down to the beach in a tur- 
 bulent manner to know the cause. As soon as 
 friends were espied, with a European among 
 them, mats were waved, the " airemai," or wel-
 
 MODI-: or WKLCOMK. 1()1 
 
 come, was shouted and screamed from all quar- 
 ters by the inhabitants of this primitive capital, 
 the dogs adding their yells to the clamorous din. 
 Numbers swam off to us, to haul the canoes on 
 shore ; others threw small stones and sticks at 
 us, which is accounted another method of wel- 
 come. Our canoes had scarcely got to the shore, 
 when the men jumped into the water and rushed 
 to the beach, pursuing the natives of the village, 
 who amounted to about three hundred and fifty 
 persons ; both parties of the men were quite 
 naked, purposely. My people were then pursued 
 in turn by the opposite friends ; who, after some 
 mock fighting, rushed after each other into the 
 water, splashing each other, and interchanging a 
 few hearty duckings. After this had continued 
 some time, all rushed like madmen to the upper 
 part of the beach, and hastily formed themselves 
 into two separate bodies, taking opposite places. 
 As early as they had arranged themselves in 
 ranks, they wildly rushed each party against the 
 other, passing with great force. During this 
 melee they flourished their paddles and hanis, 
 some making use of taidpd, or rail-fence, in lieu 
 of spears : they each returned to their places. 
 The haka was then commenced, accompanied 
 with the usual yells in chorus, keeping time with 
 their volitary movements. Their bodies were 
 
 VOL. I. M
 
 162 OUR RECEPTION 
 
 thrown into attitudes that defied the tortuous 
 powers of a European posture-master to imitate. 
 They almost rolled their eyes out of their 
 sockets, distending their mouths, like hammer- 
 headed sharks, from ear to ear ; their tongues 
 rivalled the chameleon, who can conveniently 
 turn it to the back of his head. 
 
 Jumping in unison from the ground, each 
 tried to out-Herod his neighbour ; this was con- 
 tinued until nature could no further go, when 
 down they sat to make room for my followers, 
 who acquitted themselves admirably. As they 
 sported seven muskets among them, they were 
 made use of in the dance, each contriving 
 to shew the brass on the stock, which is kept 
 bright for such gala days as the present proved 
 to be. 
 
 After the haka was finished, all the natives 
 arranged their dresses. The chiefs were distin- 
 guished from the common class by their dog- 
 skin dresses ; the inferior portion of the aristo- 
 cracy were dressed in handsome mats of silken 
 white, or glossy jet, dyed by an infusion of the 
 bark of the henou-tree. Some of these large 
 mats were tied across the breast with strings, 
 and, descending to the feet, gave a lively idea of 
 the majesty imparted to the wearer of the ancient 
 toga. The effect produced by the many various
 
 AT A NATIVE VILLAGE. 1G3 
 
 dresses and ornaments, which were very becom- 
 ing, was extremely pleasing. 
 
 Each person wore a belt of leather, or matted 
 flax, from which was appended the stone meri, 
 or more modern tomahawk. Most of these 
 people had contrived to give themselves a daub 
 of kokowai rouge, which, together with the 
 feathers on their heads, and newest garments, 
 were brought from the houses by their nume- 
 rous wives in waiting, who arranged the out- 
 ward appearance of their husbands with seeming 
 pride and pleasure. 
 
 Terarau, the chief of the district, was absent 
 some short distance ; but a messenger was sent 
 to inform him of the arrival of a European within 
 his fortifications, the first who had ever visited 
 his village. 
 
 I was received by his relative Matte, who 
 dispensed the honours of the place during the 
 absence of his superior lord. The abomination 
 of the tangi commenced, in which the early sobs 
 rose to shrieks and outcries that were truly dis- 
 mal to hear — it reminded me of those unhappy 
 people whose prostrated imagination conceives 
 no hope. This howling lasted an hour ; and as 
 we had passed through many adventures (in the 
 ideas of a native), it took some time to chant 
 over. The women, as usual, were most out-
 
 164 BEAUTIES OF THE METROPOLIS. 
 
 rageous in the lament, and cut gashes in their 
 flesh with such ferocity, that I was fain glad to 
 quit their vicinity, and visit the " hons" of this 
 primitive metropolis with the complaisant Matte, 
 who politely proffered himself as cicerone. 
 
 The children, with accustomed curiosity, fol- 
 lowed me, feeling my legs and pockets at every 
 turn. The females exhibited the usual mixture 
 of bashfulness and curiosity of the dear sex, 
 screening their faces with extended hands, and 
 peering between their fingers. The modesty 
 and reserve of the young females of the coun- 
 try, in parts uncontaminated by obscene Euro- 
 peans, induce them to retire from the glances 
 of the stranger. It was so in this instance ; 
 but curiosity soon made them return. 
 
 I was introduced to one of the chiefs who 
 had not joined in the haka. He was lying in 
 a recumbent posture within a shed, undergoing 
 the painful process of tattooing, which pride 
 made him bear with much firmness. 
 
 His face was besmeared with blood, that had 
 partly dried on the skin ; and also streamed from 
 the punctures then making. The practitioner 
 of the art was a native of Wakatiwai, on the 
 banks of the Thames, and was accounted an 
 adept in this really difficult branch of the native 
 arts. I could scarce refrain from smihng at this
 
 NATIVE FASHIONABLES, 165 
 
 tyro. In giving any interesting touch to the 
 agonised impatient under his hands, he would 
 inchne his head on either side, with the self- 
 satisfied air of an academician when giving a 
 touch that '' tells/' according to the technical 
 term of connoisseurs. At every stroke given 
 by the operator, the victim to fashion winced 
 and writhed ; which will not excite surprise, as 
 each cut jagged into the flesh with the acuteness 
 of a sharp knife, blood flowing profusely at every 
 incision ; this w^as wiped away with a piece of 
 soft flax, that an extra tap might be given if the 
 flesh was not already cut deep enough. 
 
 We passed on from this prostrate chief, who 
 summoned all his fortitude to appear calm be- 
 fore us, though the quivering of his whole body 
 evinced the tormenting pain he was suffering. 
 I next espied some male exquisites in a small 
 shed, decorating each other for the occasion. 
 One was stooping down, having his hair combed, 
 feathered, and painted ; w'hile, in turn, he was 
 giving a touch of red ochre and shark's oil to the 
 legs of his coiff'eur. 
 
 I w^as next introduced to the chief lady of 
 the absent Terarau, who sat on a dais, or raised 
 platform, apparently without animation. I made 
 up to her, with the intention of giving the ongi ; 
 but an instantaneous " kdore," or, '' you must
 
 166 ORNAMENTAL EFFIGIES 
 
 not do it," burst from the lips of the bystanders. 
 The lady was tapued, on account of the absence 
 of her liege lord. There was nothing remarkable 
 in the countenance of this chieftess to cause any 
 superabundant fears in the breast of the absent 
 husband. In addition to a countenance of a 
 most unpleasant expression, she had added the 
 repulsive rancid shark-oil in such profusion, as 
 made her presence unbearable. I felt gratitude 
 to the priest for tapuing the dame ; and, unwill- 
 ing to break the prohibition, I hastily quitted 
 her presence. 
 
 I was introduced to that part of the enclosure, 
 where the heads of the enemy that had been 
 captured during the week were placed on poles, 
 in front of the house of the chief. I counted 
 nine : there were three more placed on poles in 
 front of the entrance-gate to this part of the 
 village, behind which was the cemetery. The 
 latter had been in that situation for a month 
 previous. They brought to recollection the re- 
 fined taste that prompted a more civilised people 
 to decorate the gates of their metropolis, the 
 emporium of the fine arts, with ornaments of a 
 similar nature, some " sixty years since ;" the 
 discontinuance of which has been destructive 
 to an itinerant profession ; for we are told by 
 Walpole, in his " Private Correspondence," that
 
 FORMERLY IN LONDON. 167 
 
 at a certain date he went to the Tower of Lon- 
 don, and passed under the neza heads at Temple 
 Bar, where he saw people making a trade by 
 letting spy-glasses at a " halfpenny a look." 
 
 These heads had chanted the war-song but 
 four days previously ; the bodies which had ap- 
 pertained to them danced the wild haka, and had 
 since been consigned to the oven, and nearly 
 wdiolly devoured by the natives. Curious to see 
 this abhorrent food, after it had undergone a 
 culinary process, I requested a minor chief to 
 shew me some ; he accordingly mounted a zadtd, 
 where the provisions are always kept, and 
 brought down a small flax basket, containing 
 the human viand. At first view I should have 
 taken it for fresh pork in a boiled state, having 
 the same pale, cadaverous colour. My informant 
 stated, it was a piece of the lower part of the 
 thigh, grasping with his hand that part of my 
 body, illustrative of what he advanced. It ap- 
 peared very much shrunk; and on my observ- 
 ing it must have appertained to a boy, the head 
 of its possessor, when alive, was pointed out to 
 me, apparently a man of forty-five years of age. 
 
 The sight of this piece of mortality afforded 
 the chief some pleasure, for he stretched out his 
 tongue, pretending to lick the food, and gave
 
 168 NATIVE GASCONADE. 
 
 other significant signs, indicative of the excessive 
 dehght he felt in partaking of human flesh. 
 
 The man ascended the notched pole of the 
 wata, and replaced the basket carefully. On 
 descending, and rejoining me, he entered largely 
 on the subject, pointing to many parts of my 
 body, such as the palm of my hand, shoulders, 
 and lower extremities, as being particularly deli- 
 cate, even to the most fastidious. In conclu- 
 sion, he suddenly gave a theatrical start, dis- 
 torted his countenance into the most revolting 
 gesticulations, darted forth his tongue, and rolled 
 his eyeballs until the whites only were visible. 
 He next writhed his body into the most tortu- 
 ous form that was possible for nature to admit 
 of, throwing forward his arm, as if in the act to 
 grasp me : but I had seen too many of such 
 freaks from his countrymen, during the period I 
 had sojourned among them, to feel any symp- 
 toms of alarm. I only laughed at him in reply ; 
 on which, perceiving the little effect his abilities 
 had produced, he resumed his usual manner, 
 and laughed also. 
 
 The preserved heads on the poles resembled 
 many natives I had seen ; a satanic grin ap- 
 peared in the countenance of each. I was par- 
 ticularly struck with the small size of these
 
 SURPRISE OF THE VILLAGERS. 169 
 
 heads, which appeared no larger than those of 
 httle boys ; the ages differed, the senior looked 
 fifty, the youngest seventeen years. 
 
 Puhi joined me, to say that provisions were 
 about to be served up. I requested a shed of 
 Matte, to be tapued for me, which he instantly 
 granted ; on which my trusty steward arranged 
 the place with palm-leaves into something like 
 decency, while every movement of both master 
 and man were watched by the surrounding na- 
 tives with surprise and amusement. 
 
 Nothing escaped their remarks. The iron 
 pot was now introduced, in which Puhi, who 
 piqued himself as a cuisinier, had stewed a fine 
 pigeon with vegetables ; a tree-stump answered 
 well the purpose of a chair, and one of the boxes 
 served for a table. The tin dishes were next 
 produced, which elicited unlimited praise for 
 their brightness. 
 
 Puhi, in answer to an inquiry of Matte, as 
 to the substance they were formed of, replied 
 they were formed of moni koru, or gold money. 
 Many of the chiefs who had heard of the value at- 
 tached to money by Europeans, now stared with 
 still greater avidity at the supposed riches dis- 
 played. Many were the questions put to Puhi, 
 but he was too self-satisfied with his own im- 
 portance, to return an answer to any one less
 
 170 SIMPLICITY OF THE VILLAGERS. 
 
 than a principal chief; and even to such, his 
 remarks were as brief and mysterious as he 
 could well form them. 
 
 A large circle of natives had flocked round, 
 composed of both sexes, all ages, and the dif- 
 ferent grades of native society, who always 
 socially mix together, anxious to see a white 
 man eat. My knife and fork, which my steward 
 brandished with solemn dignity before the eager 
 eyes of these primitive people, was next pro- 
 duced. The pepper and salt were past compre- 
 hension ; each of these articles in turn caused 
 the utmost surprise. They begged each other 
 to notice how I made use of the knife and fork. 
 A shout of merriment followed the necessary 
 occasion that constrained me to apply my 
 pocket-handkerchief to my nose. I have al- 
 luded to the less pleasing substitute for this 
 useful appendage among this unsophisticated 
 people. As every action I made use of was 
 faithfully copied by most of my audience, I need 
 scarce add, their gi'oss manners, in attempting 
 to give effect to my last action, was such as to 
 spoil all further appetite ; I therefore left the 
 utensils in charge of Puhi, to pack away at his 
 leisure.
 
 171 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Transactions in the Village — Cannibalism of the People — 
 A Council of New Zealanders — Native Orator)^ — Cere- 
 monies attending a Native Marriage — An Embargo on 
 the Canoes — Superstitions of the Fishermen — Arrival 
 at the Cemetery of a Divinity — The deserted Districts — 
 A Tapued Village — The Mountain of Tokatoka — 
 Traditions respecting it, and the adjoining Land — Sand- 
 banks — Land on the Sacred Beach of Taohara — A Land 
 Storm — History of Kaipara, and its former Inhabitants — 
 Our Arrival at the Harbour ; its Entrance and Dangers — 
 Return, and sail up the River — Sojourn on the Banks 
 of the Kaipara. 
 
 Shortly after dinner some muskets were dis- 
 charged, announcing the approach of Terarau, 
 who then made his appearance. This chief was 
 of a tall commanding figure, apparently about 
 thirty-five years of age, with a countenance at 
 once very expressive, features possessing Eu- 
 ropean regularity, and a complexion of light 
 bronze. He was entirely marked with the 
 mokoj or tattoo, and moved with the pride 
 and dignity which a New Zealand chief de- 
 lights in assuming. 
 
 He was accompanied by his brother (I be-
 
 172 A DIVAN. 
 
 lieve by adoption), whose countenance pre- 
 sented the most unpleasant and forbidding ex- 
 pression I had yet seen. The lower part of his 
 countenance, including his underlip to his chin, 
 was of a red-raw aspect, occasioned, it was said, 
 by the chief when in infancy, and left to himself, 
 falling on some burning embers. 
 
 Terarau led the way to his house, around 
 which was assembled some venerable men, and a 
 crowd of people of lesser note, anxious to listen 
 to the purport of a visit from the white stranger. 
 
 Terarau sat himself at the head, and the 
 group, in a circle, sat in profound silence. The 
 elders placed themselves also on the ground, 
 with their garments covering their mouths, and 
 appeared occupied in serious meditation. I 
 opened the conversation by saying, this was 
 the first time I had been in their district, and 
 that my coming, even personally unarmed — 
 a lone European, would tell best how much I 
 confided in them ; at a time, also, when the 
 natives of the land feared to move a mile distant 
 from each other ; that I came not as a spy, de- 
 puted by their enemies, but as a friend, willing 
 to sit down among them, and purchase the pro- 
 duce of the soil at reasonable rates ; whereby, 
 in a little time, they would be enabled to com- 
 pete with their neighbours to the north and
 
 AN APPEAL. 173 
 
 east, in possessing articles of clothing to protect 
 them from the wintry blasts, and implements of 
 iron to pursue the labours of agriculture ; that 
 industry would put them in possession of ammu- 
 nition to repel an invader ; who, aware of their 
 being in possession of such resources, would 
 themselves, in all probability, turn their atten- 
 tion to similar pursuits, and would after a time 
 perceive their interests promoted by peaceable 
 conduct, and would war no more. 
 
 I then requested the use of a large canoe, to 
 carry my party and self to the mouth of the 
 Kaipara, to ascertain the depth of the river at 
 the mouth of the harbour ; and, should I be suc- 
 cessful in finding a passage sufficiently deep to 
 admit the entrance of ships into the river, they 
 might be assured of being visited by them, similar 
 to their neighbours on either side of the country, 
 and that I was willing to pay the demand for 
 the use of the canoe. 
 
 I awaited in silence an answer from Terarau, 
 who sat listening with attention, the lower part 
 of his face covered with his mat. The venerable 
 portion of the company sat still, apparently un- 
 wiUing to lose a word I had to say. They looked 
 grave and dignified, contemplating what should 
 be the subject of their speeches ; they sighed 
 after the clothing and ammunition ; but they
 
 174 SPEECH OF A WARRIOR. 
 
 deplored the innovations Europeans would 
 cause, in lieu of their ancient usages, to which 
 they inclined themselves with singular perti- 
 nacity. One of these hoary ancients arose to 
 address the group ; his name was Motarou ; he 
 at first walked up and down the circle formed by 
 the people, to aid the orators in giving effect to 
 their arguments. After a short time employed 
 in collecting his thoughts, he took short runs to 
 and fro around the space allotted. 
 
 This veteran pretended to be highly indig- 
 nant at my coming among them. The Eu- 
 ropeans, he said, were overrunning the land, so 
 that wars must in a short time cease ; and what 
 were the pleasures left to the people, when they 
 should be restricted killing their enemies, and 
 preserving their heads, as undoubted memorials 
 of triumph ? (pointing with his short hani to 
 those placed on poles, that were opposite to us). 
 War was his delight ; it had been the sole plea- 
 sures pursued by his ancestors (tepuna) and 
 ought to be so of their children. And was it so ? 
 No ! the white men had come among them, and 
 the warrior was obliged to give way to women 
 and slaves, whose utmost ability consisted in 
 paddhng canoes, pounding fern-root, or scraping 
 flax (imitating those various employments). Yet, 
 but a little while, and not an enemy would be
 
 IRASCIBLE NOTIONS. 175 
 
 found to combat with — they would all become 
 women and flax-dressers. Who wanted fire- 
 arms ? For his part, he could not take aim, and 
 they were useless to him, and therefore ought 
 to be unserviceable to every body else ; they 
 did scarce any damage, in comparison to the 
 weapons of the nation, handed down to them 
 by the fathers of the land. He did not want to 
 see a white face ; he had heard to the north- 
 ward (pointing in that direction), that a chief 
 was made to feel ashamed in killing his own 
 slave, and that the bodies were obliged to be eaten 
 in secrecy and silence. He could scarcely give 
 credit to so foul a report, and attributed it to 
 the invention of persons who would impose on 
 the natural easiness of his disposition. It could 
 not, should not be ! No ! he would sooner eat 
 all the white men himself, than be reduced to a 
 state so truly abject. (Here he imitated the 
 action of gnawing his right arm.) 
 
 This sally created a general laugh, in which 
 I joined, and which heartily tickled the irascible 
 veteran himself, who continued : No ; he would 
 live to spite the white men, and break his fast 
 on a fresh slave every morning. The very 
 Atuas of the country were arrayed against the 
 new comers (instancing our adventures in con- 
 nexion with Tameteri). And where did the
 
 176 ARGUMENTS OF A POLYGAMIST. 
 
 party intend going ? Down the Kaipara river, 
 every spot of which was sacred, for a race of 
 chiefs who would never allow us to land on 
 those shores, without shewing their resentment 
 in a signal manner. For his part, no canoe 
 should leave Matakoki Wangare (the name of 
 the village), nor should any white man again 
 visit them. " They will, perhaps," he added, 
 " persuade us not to punish the tribes of 
 Wai ma, who have destroyed our Wai-tapus, 
 dug up our provisions, and stolen the property 
 of our people. Never ! let the flax grow, and 
 our forests stand ; if we want clothing, we 
 have our women to make them — (he had seven 
 wives, not including handmaids) ; if food be our 
 object, we have slaves to plant for us ; and of 
 them we shall never be deficient, as long as our 
 enemies exist. No canoe shall leave this vil- 
 lage ; and let the white man return to his resi- 
 dence. The tribes among whom he has taken 
 up his abode may be our friends now ; but have 
 they not been our enemies ? (Here he re- 
 counted a series of ancient feuds, that had ex- 
 isted in the times of his progenitors). No ! let 
 the white man go. Who sent for him ? He 
 came from beyond sea to us — he has seen us. 
 What does he further want ? Let him go back." 
 This old gentleman had not formed any
 
 A PRIMITIVE PARLIAMENT. 177 
 
 acquaintance with, or even heard of, the " school- 
 master abroad ;" his action was as changeable and 
 varying as the actual disposition of the warrior ; 
 he at times danced with great agility, his hoary 
 beard shaking in the wind. On describing the 
 feuds of his own tribes and those of my party, 
 he quivered with rage, and stamped with fero- 
 cious vehemence, as every fresh instance darted 
 across his brain. He then sat down amid mur- 
 murs of applause. 
 
 I was annoyed to perceive the influence his 
 harangue had perceptibly made upon the feelings 
 of these savage lords and commons. Another 
 old warrior harangued the assembly ; but, luckily 
 for us, he had a violent toothach, which soon 
 obliged him to sit down. This last delivered his 
 short speech, in which he sided with Motarou, 
 in tones of vehement declamation, shaking his 
 head and shoulders with the agility displayed 
 by those furniture-ornaments ycleped manda- 
 rins; and when he recounted the injury his 
 tribe and forefathers had received from the 
 Waima tribes, he brandished his spear with 
 so wild and menacing an air, that he really 
 appeared transported beyond himself; he tor- 
 tured his face into hideous grimaces, frightful 
 to behold ; his eyes almost started from his 
 head, glaring with unusual fierceness. I felt 
 
 VOL. I. N
 
 178 ORATORICAL DISPLAYS 
 
 sensibly relieved when he reseated himself. The 
 venerable sages of the assembly were apparently 
 satisfied with the style in which these worthies 
 had delivered their speeches, which coincided 
 with their own ideas on the subject. 
 
 Rapu, a chief of my party, then arose, and 
 replied to the surly orators in a manner at once 
 firm, concihating, and pleasing. 
 
 He strongly insisted on the services the Eu- 
 ropeans had rendered the natives by a thousand 
 acts, which could only be appreciated by the tribes 
 that resided around them. It was true, those 
 acts did not speak in a glaring manner, yet they 
 were not the less felt, (instancing several inven- 
 tions that had been introduced, tending to save 
 time and manual labour, unknown to the pre- 
 vious generation, especially the use of the chisel, 
 adze, the serviceable axe and tomahawk, which 
 had superseded the ancient stone instruments, 
 subjected continually to be broken.) These facts 
 were answered by a murmur from the audience, 
 expressive that they were invaluable. Rapu then 
 instanced the introduction of the pig, corn, and 
 potatoes, and other esteemed edibles presented 
 to the country by the white men. He also in- 
 sisted on their bravery, who had established 
 themselves among the natives ; whom war-cries 
 could not frighten, nor fury turn, from the tenour
 
 OF THE NATIVES. 179 
 
 of their constant conduct. The first speaker 
 had spoken disparagingly of the present youth 
 of the country ; he was sorry to have heard it, 
 as he, for one, though unwilling to join in an 
 unjust war, yet, to the enemies of his own 
 immediate tribe, and those of his relations and 
 friends (bowing to the assembly), his arm would 
 never be drawn back. He concluded, by re- 
 questing from Motarou the use of his large 
 canoe, for which he Avould not only receive a 
 handsome payment from the white man, who 
 had trusted to their hospitality, but would add 
 to the inducements of their finally settling among 
 them, whereby they would derive as much benefit 
 as the Hokianga tribes had gained. 
 
 Rapu made use of ambulatory movements, 
 similar to those of the previous speakers, and 
 enforced his arguments by action and gesture, as 
 is invariably the rule of New Zealand orators. 
 
 A chief of commanding aspect, named Paikia, 
 now arose, and, gently running round the arena, 
 spoke for some time in favour of our cause, 
 which entirely inclined the balance in our 
 favour. Several other chiefs addressed the 
 meeting, whose speeches similarly inclined to- 
 wards us ; and it was agreed that a canoe, lying 
 at a place called Haipara, dignified with a high- 
 sounding name, formerly borne by a deceased
 
 .180 INSTABILITY OF FRIENDSHIP. 
 
 warrior, should be lent to us, for the amount of 
 a blanket and some tobacco, for which I in- 
 stantly wrote a check (pukapuka), on the spot, 
 payable in Hokianga. 
 
 My antagonist, Motarou, came up to salute 
 me by pressing noses, which I could not refuse ; 
 but his face was bedaubed with kokowai and 
 shark's oil, which was transferred to my visage. 
 The effect of this abrasion gave much amuse- 
 ment to the natives, who requested me to allow 
 it to remain some time longer. 
 
 I gave the veteran warrior some tobacco, 
 which made him caper with delight ; he patted 
 my face with a pair of hands that had been 
 tapued from the use of water for many months 
 previous ; and, finally, he was now more in favour 
 of the white men settling at Kaipara, than he had 
 formerly declared himself against the motion : 
 so infantine are the minds of these people, that, 
 had I refused the proferred salute, he would have 
 been my declared enemy. 
 
 Another instance of the mutability of the 
 native mind occurred during this same afternoon. 
 An inferior chief had put his hands in my coat 
 pocket without my perceiving it, and drew forth 
 my snuff-box, the contents of which I was 
 habituated to at that period. An exclamation of 
 surprise from the bystanders caused me to look
 
 MUTABILITY OF THE NATIVES. 181 
 
 round, and, seeing the cause, I hastily snatched 
 it from the man, giving him, at the same moment, 
 a smart push, that sent him reehng backwards ; 
 he no sooner recovered his position, than he ap- 
 proached me with a face swollen with rage, but 
 I laughed at him, which had the effect of instantly 
 turning his anger, his friends observing it was 
 hangereka no te pdkeJid, or a jest of the white 
 man, and it was accordingly received as such : 
 had I shewn a frown, a serious quarrel would 
 have ensued, by which my existence might pro- 
 bably have been endangered. 
 
 These little traits of the instability of the 
 friendship of these people are of continual occur- 
 rence, though possessing unbounded affection 
 towards each other and their visitors, when 
 nothing displeases them. 
 
 I spent the twihght that remained in viewing 
 the plantations, which were laid out in the 
 neatest order. Few farms in civilised countries 
 could be planted with greater attention to neat- 
 ness. The soil was of the richest quality ; and 
 the different edibles flourished with extraordinary 
 vigour. The potatoes and kumeras were planted 
 in rows of small hills, laid out with strict regu- 
 larity ; between those hills the large broad lotus 
 leaf of the farinaceous tarro appeared ; large 
 broad patches of the culmiferous Indian corn
 
 182 AMUSEMENTS IN A VILLAGE. 
 
 grew in neat order to the right of us ; and the 
 herbaceous land was cleared of weeds, piled above 
 the walls of stone that had been collected from 
 the grounds, which I calculated occupied about 
 twenty acres in extent. Among the vegetables 
 deposited in the soil, in addition to the above- 
 mentioned, were cabbages, shallots, garhck, 
 turnips, and the kaipakeha, a species of yam, but 
 infinitely superior to that ingustable vegetable, 
 which it resembles in size and general appearance 
 only. 
 
 By the time we returned to the village, night 
 had thrown her dark mantle around, and I 
 repaired to the house of Terarau. Flambeaux 
 were lighted, large fires kindled, and provisions 
 served up, this being the hour of the native 
 supper. I felt hungry and fatigued, and partook 
 of the hospitality of my host with great satisfac- 
 tion ; he had ordered a large hog to be killed 
 for the occasion. 
 
 After supper, the haka commenced, danced 
 by at least three hundred and fifty performers, 
 whose exact uniformity of motion with hands 
 and feet produced a pleasing effect. A variety 
 of dances succeeded the haka. The spears were 
 flourished as usual, but none of the confusion and 
 noise of the dance, with which we were received 
 in the morning, was now used; the chanting
 
 AMUSEMENTS IN A VILLAGE. 183 
 
 was equally subdued, and far from inharmonious, 
 though inexpressibly wild ; the chorus, in wliich 
 so many performers joined during this still night, 
 might be heard some miles distant. 
 
 After the hakas, the party separated into dif- 
 ferent groups, each of which I visited in turn to 
 ensure their good feeling towards me; as the 
 veriest trifles, I well knew, might turn the scale 
 against me. On my approach they formed 
 themselves into circles around me, each anxious 
 to touch and see the white man. They struck 
 up effusions, composed extempore on the occa- 
 sion of my visit ; and, as my party had given a 
 copious account of my history and adventures, 
 every minute action I had performed was re- 
 hearsed in chants, in which those composing the 
 circles joined ; nor were certain items omitted, 
 which the delicate muse of a more refined 
 society would have blushed to sing. 
 
 In these native lays, I figured under the un- 
 classical appellation of waiwairoa, or long-legs; 
 not that I am distinguished by any remarkable 
 amplitude in my nether formation, but it is a 
 native custom to give a distinctive cognomen to 
 each other : nor do they omit bestowing on 
 Europeans a similar patronymic. 
 
 My comrades omitted nothing which their 
 inventive geniuses could furnish that would
 
 184 ACCESSION OF RANK. 
 
 redound to my honour, which they naturally 
 imagined would shed a lustre on themselves; 
 and, having once casually mentioned to them 
 that my place of birth was the British metropolis, 
 which my people represented as the Kainga no 
 Kingi Ordi, or Village of King George, my i^anh 
 immediately rose full five hundred per cent ; as 
 these simple people imagined, as with them- 
 selves, that tribes only reside together related by 
 blood and marriage. 
 
 It was immediately granted that my veins 
 were filled with royal blood, and it was pre- 
 sumed, at least, I was a z&inoungd, or cousin, to 
 the great potentate who then swayed the sceptre 
 of the British empire. I cannot say this raised 
 my character in the estimation of these people. 
 A white man to them was every thing ; and, 
 provided he made presents and was inclined to 
 trade with them, it gave them but little concern 
 whether their visitor was an emperor or a tinker. 
 
 A few musicians among these light-hearted 
 groups entertained themselves with the native 
 flutes, made generally of the thigh-bone of some 
 poor wretch who had been devoured by these 
 anthropophagi. These bones, or iwi tangata, 
 were carved at the lateral ends, and played upon 
 similar to the European instrument. The sounds 
 are annoyingly inharmonious.
 
 FILTHY HABITS. 185 
 
 After some time spent among them, I left the 
 groups engaged in the game of fi and the amuse- 
 ment of drafts, which my party introduced, having 
 made themselves acquainted with the game by 
 residing among Europeans. 
 
 I returned to the house of Terarau, and took 
 my place under his veranda. The filthy habits 
 of these people were soon apparent ; and I felt no 
 little annoyance at being surrounded by them, 
 since they freely imparted to me some of the 
 disgusting vermin that abundantly filled their gar- 
 ments. These Ucentiows crawlers gave me much 
 trouble ; but it was not etiquette to move away 
 from the seat of honour that had been cleared 
 for me between the superior chiefs and levites of 
 the place, who were as amply supplied with these 
 ^' creeping things " as the inferior canaille, 
 
 I inquired of the chief the cause of the pre- 
 sent war in which he was engaged. He replied, 
 that the enemy had set fire to some land for the 
 purpose of burning off the brush and fern pre- 
 paratory to planting, as is invariably the custom 
 of the people ; that, unfortunately, a change of 
 wind took place, which caused the fire to turn in 
 a contrary direction, whereby a wai-tapu had 
 been destroyed, and every thing within it had 
 fallen a prey to the flames. It was admitted that 
 the fire was purely accidental, but the laws of the
 
 186 A WARM BIRTH. 
 
 New Zealanders must be enforced ; and, con- 
 tinued the chief, pointing to the decapitated 
 heads, " yonder is part payment." 
 
 The chief and his intimates entered the 
 house, into which I also crept, with the labent 
 movement of a snake, on all fours. The space 
 within side might have been about eight feet by 
 twelve, with a temperature not unlike a baker's 
 oven ; a fierce fire burnt in the centre, and there 
 was sufficient smoke to have choked any person 
 of less accommodating habits than I possessed. 
 I v/as only blinded by it ; which misfortune was 
 in some measure less to be lamented, as it pre- 
 vented me from seeing the kutus* that filled the 
 indelicate mats of my friends. 
 
 The gentlemen who had encircled themselves 
 round the hut felt the effects of the heat in some 
 degree, as they simultaneously doffed the only 
 garment they possessed, and lay perfectly naked. 
 I complained of the heat, when it was observed, 
 that if I followed the maniere degage of the com- 
 pany, I should find the hut very comfortable. 
 
 Without attending to the suggestion, I kept 
 my post for a half hour longer, and then jerked 
 my body out of the small hole that served as an 
 apology for a door, window, chimney, &c., and 
 was scarcely large enough for a respectably sized 
 mastiff to have put his head through. I bade
 
 A HAPPY VALLEY. 187 
 
 adieu to the company for the night, and betook 
 myself to my sohtary pillow. 
 
 The night was still and beautiful, such as is 
 often presented to the traveller in this land : the 
 moon also added her light, to aid the beautiful 
 effect of the natural scenery. 
 
 Maungakahia is situated in a pleasant valley, 
 fruitful in the extreme, with a depth of black, 
 hederaceous soil, in some places perhaps twenty 
 feet deep. The river of the same name flows 
 past this village — of some depth, and many feet 
 in breadth ; the surrounding lands are high, 
 covered with indigenous vegetation ; and large 
 patches of soil, furnished with flax, or forest, are 
 continually met with, producing every descrip- 
 tion of tree that is valuable in the island. 
 
 Small creeks, interfluing the high banks of 
 mud, were covered with juncous productions. 
 The mangrove flourishes in profusion ; the peri- 
 cardium of its seed spreads over the banks. The 
 omniform character of many of the trees, shrubs, 
 &c., give a pleasing variety to the scenery of 
 these woods. 
 
 Early in the morning, I was awakened by the 
 natives running about in great confusion, some 
 with muskets, and cartridge-boxes belted round 
 their waists, others with spears and paddles, 
 fighting in flying groups with each other ; dur-
 
 188 MATRIMONIAL CEREMONIES. 
 
 ing which several severe blows were given. I 
 soon learned this was a preparative to the cere- 
 mony of marriage^ in which two parties con- 
 tested for the lady, who was some time after 
 pointed out to me. I could not applaud the 
 taste of either combatant ; this animated hone 
 of contention having scarce a pound of flesh on 
 her body. 
 
 The skirmish lasted about half an hour, but 
 I had not the curiosity to rise to trouble myself 
 as to whose share this " hon7ie femme'' had fallen. 
 An entertainment, or hakari, was afterwards 
 given by the parents of either party, in honour 
 of the hymenean rites, during which some fes- 
 cennine verses were chanted by the partakers of 
 the feast, that savoured of the lax strains the 
 CaUiope of New Zealand is wont to indulge her- 
 self in. Some of these lyrics afforded much 
 amusement ; the old nobles fought again the 
 amorous fields, wherein they had been hailed as 
 victors ; one venerable senator was especially 
 obstreperous, in recounting his pathian glories : 
 he squinted with an obloquy of vision almost 
 approaching to caricature. 
 
 After these satyrs had filled themselves with 
 a voracity that could no further go, I paid a 
 visit to the givers of the feast, a large share of 
 which had been kindly placed before me.
 
 ANTIPODAL MARRIAGE ACTS. 189 
 
 The two rivals sat in the same circle, appa- 
 rently friends. These native Tarquins shewed 
 marks of the affray, but all was now good 
 humour. I presented a pipe and some tobacco 
 to the unsuccessful lover, and the fortunate 
 bridegroom added a few fish-hooks, made of 
 bone and mother-of-pearl shell ; at which he was 
 delighted, and owned he had made a fair ex- 
 change. 
 
 To the bride I presented a jew's-harp, which 
 enabled her to dry her tears, and give a dif- 
 ferent tone to her hitherto sorrowful expres- 
 sions. Marriages are seldom formed in the 
 country, without both the lovers receiving a 
 liberal beating ; and the solemnisation would be 
 accounted as imperfect, if this indispensable ope- 
 ration were forgotten. 
 
 I had the packages removed, and, accom- 
 panied by several of the chiefs and people, set 
 out on our way to Haipara, where the large 
 canoe was stationed, in exchange for the three 
 tewais'. Our direct and nearest road would have 
 been to pass a beach that lay before us, but that 
 was strictly tapued ; a party being engaged 
 making a kupenga, or seine ; on which account 
 the waters and the land in the immediate neigh- 
 bourhood were also under the law of the priest- 
 hood. I was given to understand that a canoe
 
 190 SUPERSTITIOUS OBSERVANCES. 
 
 could have been obtained at Matakoki wangare, 
 but we should not have been allowed to pass 
 this portion of the river. 
 
 Fearful of having a much longer walk than I 
 required, I promised Terarau, if he would let 
 me have one of the canoes opposite that settle- 
 ment, it should be paddled as close to the off- 
 shore as practicable ; but I could not obtain my 
 wish, the chief observing, he could not answer 
 for the conduct of his people, if I set at nought 
 their customs and usages. As I entertained 
 no such intention, we pursued our route, dis- 
 coursing with the chiefs as to the expense of 
 flax and timber in their district. 
 
 Terarau pointed out to me several pieces of 
 forest land and plain, whose eligibility, he said, 
 would be worthy of my purchasing. I excused 
 myself from so doing at the time, but they have 
 since become the property of Europeans. 
 
 The observations of this chief were ex- 
 tremely shrewd ; among an infinity of questions, 
 he required to know the why and wherefore of 
 every thing. He inquired how it happened that 
 Europeans left a superior country for a savage 
 land, and, in despite of the natives, spread so 
 fast over the face of the country ; also as to the 
 perceptible decrease of the aboriginal popula- 
 tion. I gave him satisfactory answers to all his
 
 ARRIVE AT HAIPARA. 191 
 
 inquiries ; and as to the latter, observed, that 
 the white people in New Zealand avoided fight- 
 ing battles ; that the many native supersti- 
 tions causing death never troubled the new 
 comers ; and such occurrences as would pa- 
 ralyse a native with silly fears, caused only 
 laughter among the white men. I gently hinted 
 at polygamy, for Terarau had his harem pretty 
 well stocked, adding, that one wife was found to 
 be fully as much as a European could well 
 manage ; at which this heartless Turk laughed 
 heartily at my apparent simplicity, as a piece of 
 unpardonable barbarism. 
 
 Haipara was not so very far distant, and we 
 soon arrived there. The path to the beach led 
 through an enchanting valley; on each side of 
 which the shrubbery was most exuberant. The 
 canoe appointed to convey our party was seventy- 
 two feet in length. The top sides were joined 
 to the body, by a long narrow piece of wood 
 lashed by scraped flax, passing through the 
 holes which were bored in the upper and lower 
 plank ; between the lashings were inserted fea- 
 thers, that gave a handsome appearance. The 
 pitou, or head, and ruppa, or stern-post, were 
 carved in the usual handsome style ; the whole 
 was painted with kokowai, and ornamented with 
 garlands, hanging pendant from head and stern.
 
 192 DEPART FROM HAIPaRa. 
 
 In the inside was a raised floor of wicker-work, 
 six feet in breadth. The garlands were formed 
 of feathers. 
 
 The packages were soon placed in the canoe, 
 together with two native sails of a triangular 
 shape, made of the raiipo. The tackling was a 
 plaiting of common flax. 
 
 When all my party had entered the canoe, 
 several yomig chiefs requested me to allow them 
 to join us, which I readily assented to ; as, from 
 the large size of the canoe, my party would have 
 been insuflicient to propel the vessel. Koruhana, 
 with her brother and slave, also wished to join 
 lis, as her father would be anxious for her return. 
 I was not unmindful of the old man's hospitality, 
 and was gratified in being enabled to shew proofs 
 of it. 
 
 On calling forth the muster-roll, which duty 
 devolved on Puhi, who enacted his part with 
 the demure gravity of a gentleman-usher, we 
 found our party amounted to forty persons. 
 Terarau, Paikia, and other friends, supplied us 
 with provisions. 
 
 Our sails were hoisted with a fair breeze, and 
 the ebb-tide in our favour ; and we took our de- 
 parture amid discharges of artillery, blowing of 
 conches, adieus from the ladies, a haka from the 
 gentlemen, and loud prayers from the priest-
 
 SAIL DOWN THE WAIROA. 196 
 
 hood : the children were not voiceless, who, to- 
 gether with the dogs, barked and yelled an 
 aclio in chorus. We took in four passengers 
 of the latter fraternity, besides Koruhana's two 
 faithful brutes, who kept aloof from the last 
 intruders. 
 
 We sped gaily before a strong breeze, which 
 did not last a very long time, and it soon fell 
 calm ; this was perhaps in our favour, as the 
 windings in the river brought the wind as often 
 for as against us. 
 
 The rays of the burning sun caused the heat 
 to be intense ; an awning, made by a blanket, 
 was therefore raised, to protect me from the 
 chance of a coiip-de-solell. 
 
 This river was Mterally crowded with wild 
 ducks, whose tameness enabled us to catch 
 several, principally killing them with our pad- 
 dles. Wild pigeons flew about in great num- 
 bers, as also several parrots, parroquets, hawks, 
 and singing birds. The banks of the river were 
 covered by forests, filled with splendid timber 
 of magnificent height and fohage ; and where 
 the forest patches ended, the flax supplied its 
 place on the rourou, or plains. 
 
 We entered the Wairoa river (or long water), 
 an appellation it well merits, and landed at a 
 desolate village called Warepohuhi. There 
 
 VOL. I. o
 
 194 A SACRED ENCAMPMENT. 
 
 were only two fathoms water off this decayed 
 settlement. 
 
 To map these rivers would take equal time 
 and patience, as their serpentine courses wind 
 round the compass. Before entering the branch 
 that led to the Kaipara river, we had paddled, 
 including the Kaihu, &c., one hundred and thirty 
 miles ; the stream principally flows on a line 
 with the west coast. Our present quarters were 
 pleasant enough ; the village that had been, was 
 covered with ruins of dilapidated huts, the rotten 
 rafters of which were strewed about the ground, 
 and would have answered for fuel : but all these 
 things were tapued. 
 
 When the Tui bird uttered one of his musi- 
 cally clear notes, every one of my natives trem- 
 bled with alarm. The hooting of the owl was 
 regarded as ominous ; the very dogs crouched 
 together, evidently with an uncomfortable feel* 
 ing ; and a rotten branch falling from a tree, 
 caused universal trepidation. Tired with these 
 superstitious fears, and desirous of putting an 
 end to them, I requested they would dance a 
 haka. This was regarded with mute horror ; 
 doubtless, had a native made the request, he 
 would have been excommunicated by the first 
 priest that could have plucked something from 
 him. It was now approaching towards evening;
 
 A PROSPECT OF FASTING. 195 
 
 the sun had already set, and I inquired of Puhi 
 if the supper was in progress ; he answered me, 
 with a torvous countenance, that no cooking 
 could be allowed in a tapued place. 
 
 This was sufficient ; I felt determined not to 
 be starved for all the gods in the country, and 
 ordered all to take to the canoe, which was 
 lying high and dry on the beach, the tide having 
 ebbed to some distance ; none were willing to 
 move ; on which I desired the person nearest to 
 me to procure some rollers, to place under the 
 canoe, fetching a few myself. The tone with 
 which I issued the command, shewed I was not 
 to be trifled with ; I was obeyed, and in a few 
 minutes we were once more afloat, in search of 
 an encampment for the night. 
 
 It was proposed by Tamaroa, to return to a 
 small glade we had passed, about a mile distant 
 astern ; but I was in no humour to go backward 
 at any time, still less at the present moment. 
 We continued our course, and about two miles 
 further we landed on a small beach composed of 
 a slimy mud and pebbles. Sheds were soon 
 erected of the branches of the Nikou palm, and 
 also a bed of the same leaves. The oven was 
 soon prepared, the ducks well cleaned and spit- 
 ted, a stick being thrust through the body, and 
 forced in the ground by the side of a large fire :
 
 196 AURORA AUSTRALIS. 
 
 the provisions tasted excellent, and all agreed 
 that the exchange I had caused to be made of 
 our situation for the night was the best. 
 
 As we had met with some difficulty in push- 
 ing off our canoe from the last place we had 
 stopped at, I had the vessel anchored off by filling 
 a basket with heavy stones, attached to a native 
 warp made of flax. The night was spent in 
 dancing by torchlight, and in telHng tales re- 
 lating to this place of the metempsychosis of 
 departed chiefs. 
 
 This evening I perceived a luminous appear- 
 ance in the heavens, which, some time after I 
 first observed it, spread in a splendid manner 
 around the heavens. This was an Aurora Aus- 
 tralis, which the natives attributed to the opera- 
 tions of their Atuas, burning their grounds pre- 
 viously to planting the uwhi, or winter potato. 
 The Aurora continued nearly an hour in dura- 
 tion, in which time it shot forth several brilliant 
 corruscations of hght. 
 
 Early the next morning I arose, but none of 
 the natives were in a humour to follow my ex- 
 ample, as it is contrary to custom for these 
 people to be in a hurry when most needed. 
 These thoughtless fellows, as long as the pro- 
 visions lasted, were perfectly satisfied to remain 
 where they were comfortably domiciled. For
 
 LEAVE TAkOPURU. 197 
 
 this vexation there was scarcely a remedy. With 
 difficulty I called them together, and said with 
 decision I would leave the place as early as the 
 tide ebbed ; if they wanted breakfast, I bade 
 them hasten about its completion, for I would 
 not stay for one of them. On this they bestirred 
 themselves, and provisions were soon served up. 
 
 At the early ebb we left this beach, which 
 was called Takopuru. The weather was very 
 beautiful, but the wind scant for us. The sea- 
 breeze set in about ten o'clock, which retarded 
 our progress, as it rendered the labour of paddling 
 still greater. The canoe made but little way. 
 We turned towards the shore and put into a 
 small gravelly beach, white with bleached cockle- 
 shells, where we landed. Near to this beach 
 was a long bank of mud and sand, on the centre 
 of which was a small hill ; the name was Hiataki 
 Island, or Motu. On the opposite shore the 
 hills were high, but one in particular had a sin- 
 gular appearance. It rose up in the shape of a 
 cone, its bosom forming a deep dell, covered with 
 bush and stunted trees. This mountain, which 
 towered above the hills around, bore north dis- 
 tant five miles, the depth of water opposite was 
 five fathoms, with a muddy bottom and shells. 
 
 As the wind now blew from the S. S. W., 
 I had the dinner prepared, and sheds erected to
 
 198 SUCCESSFUL IN PROCURING EATABLES. 
 
 protect us from the sun, whose glowing heat 
 was intense. Wata and Rapu repaired to the 
 canoe, which was anchored off, and commenced 
 fishing; Tamaroa, and our jester, Parre, took 
 their ammunition, and scoured the hush for wild 
 pigeons, and I despatched two others in search 
 of the delicious cabbage palm and korou; a 
 few went in search of eels ; those that remained 
 procured firewood, and ignited a fire for the 
 oven. Some were employed scraping vegetables, 
 such as potatoes and kumeras, the natives never 
 cooking these edibles without previous paring, 
 regarding them as kaua, or bitter. Our foragers 
 returned within an hour ; the fishermen had been 
 successful, producing nearly one hundred lbs. of 
 snapper fish, and the kawai, a species of colour- 
 less salmon. A string of large eels were also 
 brought in : these latter were spitted before the 
 fire. The fowlers had also been successful, and 
 had made sad havoc among the pigeons and 
 parrots. 
 
 The sportsmen recounted over again their 
 tales of yore in these very localities, and all the 
 party were in good humour. After the repast 
 Tamaroa sat himself beside me, and related the 
 history of the place. The conical mountain was 
 called Tokatoka.
 
 MOUNTAIN OF TOKaTOKA. 
 
 199 
 
 The cone is called the Matua wahine, or 
 mother of the surrounding land ; a bluff rocky 
 hill adjoining is the Matua tane, or father; a 
 small hillock on the opposite side of the cone, 
 is said to be enceinte, and likely to produce 
 a " something" in time. This tradition was 
 descriptive of a volcano, but of ancient date, as 
 the fires are not only extinct, but no lava is now 
 visible. 
 
 This place would be an invaluable spot as a 
 settlement for Europeans. It is situated at the 
 head of navigation, and will be the seac of the 
 principal town in this part of the country. The 
 splendid land in the vicinity of the Wairoa river 
 will be a favourite resort of the future colonist. 
 This place is but a trifling distance from the
 
 200 RIVER KAIPaRA. 
 
 river Thames, and a glance on the chart will be 
 sufficient to shew its advantages. It is not above 
 a few hours' walk from the confluence of rivers 
 that lead to either coast of the island. The 
 Wairoa is from eighty to one hundred miles from 
 the mouth of the Kaipara. The land on the north 
 side of the latter river is very inferior, rising in 
 abrupt hills, covered with high ferns, or a har4 
 clayey stratum, over sandstone. Large plains 
 are covered with the same useless herbage on 
 hard cold ground, for some miles in extent, with 
 a poor thin covering of sandy soil, giving but 
 little nourishment to the indigenous vegetation, 
 which is useless. Large swamps extend to a 
 great distance ; the juncous produce is made use 
 of in building native houses. 
 
 The wind abating in the afternoon, we again 
 took to the canoe. At sunset we landed at 
 Tikanai. Here we found, for the first time, a 
 scarcity of fresh water. We were now on the 
 Kaipara river, which was brackish at this distance, 
 some sixty miles from the head. 
 
 On the ensuing morning, after the flood had 
 finished making, we embarked in our craft, and 
 paddled at the rate of six miles an hour. We 
 passed a long mud bank, said to be crowded 
 with eels. The fish, about these parts, leaped 
 in shoals : several jumped into our canoe. The
 
 ARRIVE AT TE TAOHaRa. 201 
 
 west side of the river was barren in the extreme ; 
 headlands denuded of vegetation, and shingle 
 beaches, with swamps extending far inland, closed 
 the sterile scene. 
 
 On the east side, the country rose in high hills, 
 with a chain of mountains in the distance, called 
 Hukateri. We kept close to the western shore, 
 which runs even with the coast, and passed a 
 large bight formed by two headlands, called Ko- 
 murrima ; between this place and Titupu, a long 
 sand-spit extended a mile from the shore. 
 
 We now encountered a heavy swell and 
 discoloured water ; another annoying sand-spit, 
 extending some distance from the sandy shore, 
 increased the length of our voyage. 
 
 These banks stretch out some distance under 
 water, our canoe grounding when we were ap- 
 parently a great distance from them. At sunset 
 we put into Te Taohara. This spot was very 
 barren ; the sand-stone had long since mouldered 
 away into loose sand that flew about in every 
 direction. This gave the place a barren and 
 desolate appearance. The north-west head of 
 the river was about three miles distant. The 
 sandy soil produced a long spear-grass, and a 
 trifle of stunted vegetation. The valley of Te- 
 Taohara was strictly tapued. Here was fought 
 the last battle with the unfortunate tribes of this
 
 202 VILLAGE OF THE DEAD. 
 
 river, the remnant that was saved being taken 
 for slaves. The groves that formed the Wai- 
 tapu, for the bones of the miserable slain, lay in 
 front of us as we landed. On this beach the 
 vanquished were devoured. 
 
 On my advancing near the Wai-tapu, the 
 natives, in a piteous tone, begged me not to go 
 near, as the spirits (wairua) of the place would kill 
 them, or at least make them ill, for having brought 
 a white man to this village of the dead. I moved 
 away from the place, which from its solitary and 
 dreary aspect, together with the details given me 
 of the former unhappy people, and the treache- 
 rous manner in which they were murdered, gave 
 me a great dislike to the spot. The clear notes 
 of the little korimaku bird, hopping among the 
 branches of the Wai-tapu, struck on my ear like 
 a primitive requiem to the departed, of whom 
 not a descendant existed in the broad lands of 
 their birth containing the treasured cemeteries of 
 their ancestors. 
 
 My natives had now discovered a suitable 
 spot for pitching our camp. I sat myself on 
 the sand, reflecting on the beautiful world a 
 bountiful Father of Mercy had placed us in, and 
 yet how wayward are our actions ! Alas ! if He 
 was as implacable to us as xve are to each other, 
 how hapless would be our lot ! What scourge
 
 RUINED VILLAGES. 203 
 
 can equal the warfare these people are continu- 
 ally waging- against each other, accompanied by 
 the horrid rites of cannibalism ! 
 
 On the banks of this river we had met with 
 several villages deserted, and not a living soul to 
 own an interest in the place. A few mouldering 
 rcmds, notatory of a former people, lost to exist- 
 ence, alone remained. 
 
 By the lurid appearance of the sunset, and 
 other indications to the westward, we perceived 
 a heavy storm would arise before the ensuing 
 morning. 
 
 The natives procured a quantity of nikau 
 leaves for our separate houses, to make them 
 water-proof; an extra quantity of provisions 
 was also cooked ; an embankment was raised 
 around the houses, and a fosse to let the rain 
 drain off. Every thing, indeed, was arranged to 
 give sohdity to our humble tenements against the 
 approaching gale. 
 
 Several of the people took their lines, and 
 contrived to procure sundry large snappers, 
 nearly two hundred lbs. weight of fish. At night 
 the wind blew strongly from the south-west in 
 tremendous gusts, that would have soon scattered 
 our houses and selves before it, but we were 
 sheltered from that quarter by high sandhills.
 
 204 A SAND STORM. 
 
 The storm raged with the utmost fury during the 
 night. Rain fell in torrents ; the thunder, fol- 
 lowing fierce flashes of lightning, that cast a 
 pale quivering light on every object around, 
 brake in heavy peals, reverberating among the 
 hills ; while the raging sea, impelled by the gale, 
 drove into the outer valley in heavy rollers, burst- 
 ing with stunning violence on the surrounding 
 shores. 
 
 Unable, from the stormy violence of the con- 
 tending elements, to compose myself to rest, I 
 called to Tamaroa and Rapu, who came to me. 
 They were unable to take repose. They gave me 
 an account of the battle that had taken place about 
 1826 in this place. It appeared that an alliance 
 had been formed between the Napui chiefs, under 
 E'Ongi, of the Bay of Islands, their friends of the 
 North Cape, and Hokianga. These tribes then 
 proceeded against the people of Kaipara, who 
 acted on the defensive, and kept within their 
 fortifications. Repeated assaults were made on 
 the pa by the former, but proved unsuccessful. 
 
 This stronghold was invincible to the north- 
 ern natives, whose repeated attacks proved 
 fruitless. They despatched a karere, or messen- 
 ger, to request a cessation of hostilities ; and, 
 after much native diplomacy, it was ultimately
 
 AN " UNTOWARD EVENT." 205 
 
 agreed that a principal chief of the Hokianga 
 tribe should wed the daughter of the principal 
 chief of the Kaipara people. 
 
 A mutual exchange of visits followed, the for- 
 tifications were thrown open by the besieged to 
 their late invaders, feasts were given, and all the 
 tribes on either side were apparently delighted at 
 the discontinuance of hostilities. 
 
 The bride was wooed, won, and the nuptials 
 consummated. This calm was succeeded by a 
 fearful tempest. On the second day after the 
 marriage, a preconcerted signal was given by the 
 alhed tribes, and an indiscriminate massacre of 
 the inhabitants of the place ensued ; neither sex 
 or age wars spared, except such as were reserved 
 as slaves to these treacherous conquerors. Dur- 
 ing the carnage, an '' untoward event" occurred 
 to one of the head chiefs of the Bay of Islands, 
 uncle to the since celebrated Titore,* who also 
 took part in this butchery. 
 
 This relative, " on pilfering thoughts intent," 
 was busily engaged searching the deserted houses 
 for plunder, when he espied a female chief, in 
 frantic grief, near one of the huts ; he instantly 
 pounced upon her as his slave ; with many 
 threats, he commanded her to tell him where 
 
 * Titore died in September last, of consumption.
 
 206 A BITER BIT. 
 
 her valuables were placed ; without speaking, she 
 pointed to the hut, whose door-place, for the 
 sake of warmth, was made so diminutive as 
 just to admit a person crawhng on his knees. 
 
 The chief entered, and found some mats, 
 fish-hooks, and lines, and other httle native 
 valuables, and threw them outside. Unfortu- 
 nately for this hero, he had got i?i the house, 
 and had now to get out in the same prostrate 
 manner. In order to eject himself the easier, he 
 also threw outside with his captures the toma- 
 hawk which had done him service during the 
 battle. He had just protruded his head and 
 shoulders, when the woman seized the deadly 
 weapon, and in a few blows severed his head 
 from the worthless body. 
 
 Numerous minor occurrences of a similar 
 nature, that took place during the battle, were 
 related to me by Tamaroa, who, with many 
 others of our party, were present, actively en- 
 gaged in the fight on the side of the allies. 
 
 The next morning the storm continued to 
 rage with similar violence to the night previous^ 
 and we were fortunate in having cooked suffi- 
 cient provisions, as no fire could have burned 
 outside the houses. We found it impossible to 
 move beyond our enclosure, around which the 
 drift-sand had risen three feet. Towards noon
 
 VISIT THE HEADS. 207 
 
 the weather cleared up ; the sea was yet bois- 
 terous, but the heavy rain had caused it to 
 subside much. 
 
 On the opposite shore, distant fifteen miles, 
 were two fine rivers, called Otamatia, and Oru- 
 auhorro, their estuaries about a mile distant from 
 each other. 
 
 I much wished to visit those rivers, which 
 were described to me as abounding with pine- 
 trees, in thickly wooded forests, and swamps 
 covered with the flax plant. These rivers are 
 said to be about thirty miles each in length ; but 
 no promises could induce the natives to paddle 
 the canoe over. The principal fears they enter- 
 tained were, that the Waikato tribes, or those 
 of the river Thames, were always in the adjoining 
 woods in scattered parties, seeking whom they 
 may devour ; also, a very small remnant of the 
 former owners of the country still existed, wan- 
 dering about the forests, in continual fear of 
 surprise, where they once had possessed un- 
 limited sway and control. Both rivers are de- 
 scribed as forming excellent harbours for ship- 
 ping, possessing deep water, and firm-holding 
 ground for anchorage. 
 
 I visited the north head of the river with a 
 number of the natives ; our route was pursued 
 with difficulty, sinking deep into the sand at
 
 208 MOUTH OF THE RIVER. 
 
 every step. We ascended the sand-hills with 
 great difficulty. From this point we distin- 
 guished the deep water of three channels, of 
 apparently sufficient depth for a vessel of four 
 hundred tons. The breakers were dashing on 
 several sandbars in an awful manner, about three 
 miles from the land. The late westerly gale 
 caused the fearful commotion of the rolling waves 
 to bound on these sea sand-spits, dashing the surf 
 to an unusual height. No. vessel, of any size or 
 shape, could at this time have entered the 
 Kaipara ; instant shipwreck, into a thousand 
 pieces, would have been the result. Sandbanks 
 appeared in every direction within the harbour's 
 mouth. 
 
 I mapped as much of the coast and river as 
 I was enabled to do, and made several sketches 
 about the heads of the river, but with great diffi- 
 culty, the drift-sand beating against my face, 
 and causing the most painful sensations, not- 
 withstanding Tamaroa and Puhi stood to screen 
 me as much as they were able. My ears, nose, 
 eyes, and mouth, were so filled with it, that I was 
 obliged to desist ; my dress also was entirely 
 covered with arenose particles. 
 
 Early next morning the canoe was launched, 
 and we made preparations for departing for the 
 mouth of the river, to note the sandbars from
 
 EMPLOYED SOUNDING. 209 
 
 Rangatira, the south-west head of the river. 
 None of the natives of Terarou would accom- 
 pany me, and had previously hidden themselves 
 in the bush. To search for them was in vain ; 
 I therefore departed with my own people, who 
 had originally joined me at Kaihu. 
 
 We had a light air from the south-west at 
 5 A.M. I sounded as far as we went, marking 
 down with care the various bearings that pre- 
 sented themselves as most requisite for the future 
 mariner in this river. I had fortunately just 
 time to accomphsh the principal object of my 
 visit, when the sea-breeze fi'om the south-west 
 blew into the harbour with much force, every 
 minute increasing in strength. We were obliged 
 to put back hastily. I directed the canoe to be 
 paddled as close to the shore as possible. 
 
 We had expended five hours thus early, and 
 I felt inclined to take some refreshment. I ac- 
 cordingly drew a biscuit from my pocket, and a 
 roasted pigeon from a paper, and seated myself, 
 as comfortably as I was well able to do, on the 
 raised floor of the canoe. I was unconscious I 
 was doing wrong ; but the vessel receiving some 
 violent concussions from the waves, I raised my 
 head to perceive the cause, when I found the 
 canoe had been paddled far from the shore, and 
 steered the contrary way I had ordered. I 
 
 VOL. I. p
 
 210 PURSUE OUR ROUTE, 
 
 quickly desired them to paddle the vessel close 
 in shore, as I felt no inclination for a watery- 
 grave ; but they refused to do so. I now learned 
 the reason of this strange conduct, which was 
 caused by my having eaten in the canoe near the 
 shore, which was tapued for the dead who had 
 been devoured there. In vain I told them, a 
 white man had nothing to do with a water-god ; 
 they told me I might have, nevertheless. I was 
 therefore obliged to desist from eating, or have 
 the certainty of being capsized in the element of 
 the divinity, as an expiatory sacrifice. 
 
 On returning to Te Taohara, I had every 
 thing instantly placed in the canoe, determined 
 they should suffer for want of food, as they had 
 piously made me. Many of the gentlemen began 
 to demur at this " general order ;" but I was in 
 no humour to be thwarted, and, with the strangers 
 who now thought proper to join us, departed. 
 After we had hoisted sail and proceeded some 
 distance, we put into a place called Manghutara ; 
 here we landed and took breakfast. On the 
 opposite shore, the hills of Hukateri appeared 
 well clad with verdure and forest. We soon 
 left this place, and sailed at a rapid pace north- 
 erly. At ten o'clock at night, we sighted the 
 conical mountain of Tokataka. 
 
 The weather was very cold and rainy, and
 
 HOMEWARD BOUND. 211 
 
 the night too dark to distinguish objects a few 
 yards distant. At 5 a.m., we again made the 
 shore, after being pent up in the canoe twenty- 
 three hours, with the exception of staying a half 
 hour at Mangutara. 
 
 It had rained for the last seven hours ; I 
 was saturated to the skin, and felt so benumbed 
 with cold, fatigue, and sleep, that I was carried 
 out of the canoe, and placed on shore. I had a 
 shed made, and an immense fire, where I nearly 
 roasted myself without any benefit accruing ; 
 and, in taking to my bed, found it impossible to 
 close my eyes from excessive lassitude.
 
 212 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Dismiss the Canoe — Pursue our Journey to Maunganui — 
 Arrive tliere, and erect Huts for the Night — Meet with 
 a Partj^ of Pleasure — Ascend the Maunganui Mountain 
 
 — Joined by a Party of Fishers and a Clan of Robbers 
 
 — Continue our Journey to Waipoa — Grand Feast of 
 Exhumation — Customs and Habits of a Native Festival 
 
 — Sojourn for the Night, and pursue our Route — 
 Arrive at Waimemaku — Leave for Hokianga — Death 
 of Pakanai — Lamentations for the Deceased — Our Re- 
 turn to the Settlement. 
 
 After breakfast, I sent the strangers home with 
 the canoe to Maungakahia, making them pre- 
 sents, and then dismissed them. 
 
 Instead of returning to Kaihu, I determined 
 on visiting Waipoa. My companions were now 
 reduced to ten in number ; we crossed the coun- 
 try in a north-west direction. As we were scant 
 of provisions, I sent four of the party in advance, 
 to purchase potatoes and other comestibles ; ap- 
 pointing them to meet us at the foot of Maun- 
 ganui, or the hill bluff between Kaiparii and 
 Hokianga.
 
 ENCAMP AT MAUNGANUI. 213 
 
 We afterwards passed through the usual 
 quantity of forest, plain, and lagoon, which was, 
 even at this season, almost impassable. After 
 quitting Mungohorahara and Koripiro valley, 
 we arrived on the sea-shore. At 5 p.m., we 
 made the bluff headland, on the south side of 
 which we proposed to pass the night. 
 
 Here I found my old friend Kamura, who 
 had formerly sold us the roasted pig on the 
 beach north of this mountain. He had already 
 encamped in a valley at the bottom of the 
 precipice. 
 
 I had huts erected at this place, and waited 
 with some impatience for the men I sent in 
 advance early in the morning, as I had not 
 tasted food for twenty-four hours, and my old 
 friend had not even a morsel of fern-root. I 
 fell asleep, but about midnight was awakened by 
 the shouts of my people, laden with provisions, 
 a portion of which was instantly cooked, and, 
 though the hour was late, I joined the festive 
 board. The night was bitterly cold and rainy. 
 
 The bluff being greatly elevated above the 
 adjacent land, attracts the humid clouds, so that 
 this place was always damp with rain or mist. 
 I went to rest a second time, and my senses 
 were soon wrapped in oblivion. 
 
 Both parties arose early the next morning.
 
 214? BASHFUL LADIES. 
 
 ushered in by the harmony of the feathered race, 
 ^vho sang their earlv matins with melodious sweet- 
 ness. On the ground near my hut, a skull was 
 lying, whose thickness was full half an inch. I 
 now learnt from Kamura, that himself and 
 party were on their return to Waipoa to a hai- 
 hunga, or annual feast, given on the exhuma- 
 tion of the mortal remains of distinguished chiefs ; 
 that he had brought with him a retinue of 
 fifteen persons, to carry away the share of the 
 provisions that would be probably allotted to him. 
 A few ladies were with him, who had con- 
 cealed their heads within their garments on my 
 approach — an invariable rule, indicative of the 
 bashfulness and timidity which the New Zealand 
 women feel on the appearance of a stranger, 
 foreigner or native. 
 
 After some conversation with the venerable 
 chief, over whose shoulder the two heads of his 
 infant children were peering, covered with the 
 blanket that formed the sole article of their 
 father's dress, the ladies gathered courage, and 
 slowly unveiled themselves. The trouble they 
 had been put to was quite unnecessary ; for there 
 was nothing in their charms that could have 
 attracted the most wanton eye, and certainly not 
 mine. 
 
 The youngest had passed her fiftieth year;
 
 THE SOLE SURVIVOR OF A TRIBE. 215 
 
 and the kokowai and shark's oil, which they had 
 lavished on themselves in careless profusion, 
 would never have had the power to shake my 
 constancy to single blessedness. 
 
 One old gentleman-retainer was pointed out 
 to me as being the sole survivor of his tribe, 
 which had in times of yore flourished in great 
 numbers on the now deserted banks of the 
 Manukou river. It appeared that, during a 
 battle, in which his tribe was wholly extermi- 
 nated by the tribes from the river Thames, he 
 had fled for safety into the bush, where he 
 wandered some months, subsisting on fern-root 
 and flsh. While engaged one day in procuring 
 a supply of the latter food, he was surprised and 
 captured by a small party of the enemy, who 
 had arrived on a similar employment. He was 
 thrown down in the scuffle that ensued ; and, 
 as the native meri, or tomahawk, was uphfted 
 to deprive him of life, a daughter of a chief of 
 the captors threw her mat over him, which was 
 a tapu not to be broken. The poor fellow be- 
 came first the slave, and afterwards husband, of 
 his deliverer, which raised him to the power of 
 a chief; and from that period he became incor- 
 porated as one of the tribe. I approached this 
 ancient worthy, who was in his dotage — at 
 least, he had numbered eighty years ; his faith-
 
 216 ARIOLATIONS. 
 
 ful partner sat beside him, palsied by age ; and 
 the affectionate manner wherein they seemed to 
 regard each other^ reminded me strongly of 
 Burns's beautiful verses^ " John Anderson, my 
 joe." I made a present to each of them. The 
 old man, whose name was Paura, first eyed 
 his present and then me, in stupefaction : he 
 did not appear to understand why I gave any 
 thing to him : his senses were decayed by 
 extreme age. 
 
 He nodded his head several times, trying 
 evidently to recall his scattered ideas ; and I left 
 him, still bowing, to return to my shed and break- 
 fast; my friend Kamura aiding me to consume 
 the repast. The native cooks had been obliged 
 to procure fire by the rapid friction of two dry 
 pieces of wood, which had been procured with 
 some difficulty, owing to the rains that had fallen 
 during the night. The fires of the last evening 
 had not been extinguished ; but some charred 
 sticks had been taken out of it on the preceding 
 evening by Kamura, who was a druid of these 
 parts, for the unhallowed purposes of incanta- 
 tion, as to whether we should have a fine day 
 to pursue our journey, or otherwise. 
 
 The night had set in stormy ; he had there- 
 fore prophesied bad weather on the morrow, 
 which had turned out contrary ; whereupon he
 
 THEIR EFFECTS. 217 
 
 attempted to convince me it ought to have 
 heen as he had said, and succeeded in gaining 
 my simple natives over to his opinion, in spite 
 of the conviction of their senses. Nature was 
 taxed for deceiving the priest ; and every one 
 confessed he saw something, either on the earth, 
 in the air, or in the hollow moaning of the waves, 
 that would certify the truths uttered by this ne- 
 cromancer, though a lovelier day, as it proved 
 to be, never broke from the heavens to dehght 
 mankind. 
 
 These soothsayings would never have given 
 me a moment's uneasiness, if my natives, who 
 placed impUcit confidence in these ariolations, 
 had not determined to remain where we had 
 comfortably encamped, until the threatened 
 storm had passed over ; and if such had hap- 
 pened, the bluff mountain would have been im- 
 passable. 
 
 To have spoken soothingly to any of them 
 while in this mood would have been giving way 
 to them, and confirming their notions of staying 
 on the spot. To argue the matter with the chief 
 was equally futile ; but I commanded Puhi to 
 pack up his load and walk on before me. This 
 he flatly refused ; accordingly, I applied a piece 
 of supplejack that I carried with me to his
 
 218 CANOES MADE OF RUSHES. 
 
 back, as the best possible argument, whose co- 
 gent force soon enabled us to continue our 
 route. His friends attempted to take his part, 
 but I gained the ascendency, as they perceived 
 I was not in a scrupulous humour whether or 
 not I applied the lash to them. 
 
 On the shore, half buried in drift-sand, lay 
 an ancient canoe, made solely of the raupo bul- 
 rush. It was about forty feet in length, and had 
 been neatly put together. These vessels of the 
 olden time are not to be found in use at the pre- 
 sent day, though a bundle of these rushes are 
 often tied together, to enable a person to cross 
 a stream. These latter are called mokis', are 
 very buoyant, and resist saturation for some 
 time. We pursued our journey along the 
 beach, passing several painted raouis, carved 
 in the usual style, principally placed to tapu 
 the shell-fish on the adjacent beaches, or wild 
 fruits flourishing in the adjoining forests. 
 
 We shortly after struck into a deep valley at 
 the foot of the bluff, which we began to ascend. 
 The path, if any such was to be found, led over 
 Craggy, steep rocks, of volcanic formation ; and, 
 from the frequency of large stones rolling down 
 below, being dislodged from their shallow beds by 
 the natives who preceded me, together with the
 
 ROBBERY, AN ACT OF FRIENDSHIP. 219 
 
 slippery nature of the soil, rendered this route 
 very dangerous. I was glad to cling to every 
 small tuft I could grasp, and had more than 
 once nearly fallen headlong down the precipice, 
 whose abruptions had casually fallen, and pro- 
 jected from the steep sides of the mountain. 
 This ascent to me would have been imprac- 
 ticable, but for the numerous roots of trees 
 that spread in every direction. We occupied 
 five hours in ascending the summit of this 
 wearisome mountain. 
 
 Here we met two several parties, one of whom 
 had come from some distance to attend the 
 Haihunga at Waipoa ; the others were congre- 
 gated together, on a stripping excursion, to rob 
 some of their friends who resided at the south- 
 ward, whose chiefs had been changing their soli- 
 tary celibacy for marriage bliss; and, conse- 
 quently, had rendered themselves fit objects for 
 plunder by the laws of their country. Such are 
 the inconsistent customs of the New Zealanders. 
 
 I afterwards heard this party were too late, 
 as the married men had been robbed of every 
 article of property the day of their espousals. 
 All my property was perfectly safe among them. 
 This party were unconscious of doing otherwise 
 than an act of justice; and entered on this duty 
 with the self-satisfied feelings of a respectable
 
 220 DESCEND THE MOUNTAIN. 
 
 body of civilians, who exert their uncompro- 
 mising services in carrying the municipal enact- 
 ments of their city into execution. Every per- 
 son of the party had " suffered the law" at 
 earlier periods, and the pleasing duty of the lex 
 talionis had now devolved on these sympathetic 
 folks. 
 
 After our repast we commenced our descent, 
 in company with our new acquaintances. The 
 dangers of this part of our travel could only be 
 compared with our morning ascent. During our 
 sojourn on the summit of the mountains, which 
 is covered with a dense forest, several heavy 
 clouds enveloped us in mist. When the air be- 
 came clear, the view presented to us was splendid 
 in the extreme. The breakers off the coast and 
 harbour of Kaipara ; the long extent of beach on 
 either side of the headland, with the boisterous 
 waves of the Pacific dashing in white foam on 
 the iron-bound shore, but whose sound at this 
 remote and elevated distance could not be dis- 
 tinguished by the ear, amply repaid the fatigue I 
 had undergone to arrive on this spot. 
 
 Inland, hill upon hill, elevated table-lands, 
 and dingy swamps, were observable to a great 
 distance; also fires arose from the natives clear- 
 ing the land for cultivation ; but the still air, in 
 this calm scene, was so light, as to keep the thick
 
 A DIVINITY DEPRIVED OF HIS TAIL. 221 
 
 dark smoke apparently stationary. On the beach, 
 several specimens of red jasper lay strewed about; 
 Hands, lichens, mosses, and fungi, of immense 
 size, were lying in endless variety on the decayed 
 trees that filled the forest patches bordering on 
 the sea-shore. Specimens of each, especially of a 
 deep brown ocrementous earth, not unlike tierra 
 de lienna, I gave in charge to Puhi, who left 
 them behind. This was attributable to the 
 operation of the supplejack. 
 
 On the edge of the bank I caught a small 
 lizard, or tuatara, beautifully striated with bright 
 green lines. At this the priest interfered, as the 
 preservation of this innocuous little reptile was 
 included in his spiritual functions. To kill a 
 dozen slaves was a common event of no im- 
 portance; but a lament in chorus was set up, 
 when I gave the poor frigid thing its liberty, 
 minus half its tail, which it thought proper to 
 leave in my custody. Kamura, in consequence, 
 began to rave, and I do not know where his 
 transports would have ended, had I not put a 
 gun-flint in his hand, unperceived by our com- 
 rades, which produced a tranquillising effect. 
 
 We soon came in sight of Waipoa. The 
 whole troop I sent forward by the hill road to 
 the village, but a small canoe had been despatched 
 by Parore for my use, which I got the old priest
 
 222 PLANTATIONS. 
 
 to assist me in paddling, after the wdhdpai-pm, 
 or beautifying his person, was accomplished. 
 
 This sexagenary sacrificer to the Loves and 
 Graces, with a jauntee air, handed me into the 
 shallow tewai, and took the steering paddle. We 
 soon made our way through the intricate stream- 
 let that led to the village. The canoe was 
 painted in figures, made use of as a pattern for 
 tattooing those parts of the human body below 
 the waist of the men. A tiaru for baling the 
 water, curiously carved, was provided, not with- 
 out its being much needed, as we were within a 
 half-inch of the fluids which streamed into the 
 little punt. 
 
 The surrounding scenery possessed the 
 sublimity and beauty so conspicuous in the 
 mountain valleys of the island. The hills were 
 steep and picturesque. 
 
 The situation of the village in the valley was 
 highly pleasing; the smoke from the various 
 native ovens, towering above the hills, added to 
 the effect. 
 
 We passed the plantations before we entered 
 the pa. Potatoes, kumeras, Indian corn, melons, 
 pumpkins, vegetable marrow, the uamaori, kai 
 pakeha, tarro, and turnip, were here planted with 
 a regularity and neatness that astonished the 
 travelling European at the advanced state of
 
 TRIUMPHAL ENTRY. 223 
 
 improvement wherein agricultural pursuits are 
 carried on by these people, who are so far behind 
 the arts in every thing else. Ataiapa, or fence, 
 surrounded each plot of ground to prevent the 
 dogs and pigs from following the natural bent of 
 their inclinations. 
 
 Here we landed : some of the villagers came 
 forward to carry me over the rivulet, which in 
 parts was bordered by deep soft mud. I mounted 
 on the back of one of these bipedal steeds, who 
 enacted his part with pleasantry, much to his 
 own amusement and the crowd that followed at 
 our heels. 
 
 He several times pretended to slip and tumble 
 me into the stream. This freak told best when 
 we had to cross a muddy place, which often 
 buried this high-mettled racer up to his knees in 
 a blue shme. I had no fears of the kind, but 
 joined in the merriment. 
 
 Old Kamura did not escape so well. Anxious 
 to copy my triumphal entry into the capital, he 
 begged hard for some person to carry him. None 
 were inclined to undertake the task, for to carry 
 a white man was esteemed an honourable per- 
 formance for a principal warrior ; but one of 
 their own breechless countrymen was really quite 
 another affair. However, he laid hold of a 
 slave of his own, who had now joined us, and
 
 224 RECEPTION IN THE VILLAGE. 
 
 mounted his back, but the heavy obesity of the 
 priest, compared to my lighter proportions, ill 
 agreed ; and, in a slimy spot, down went the 
 horse and his rider. I did not stay for the re- 
 sult, but the luckless Kamura did not make his 
 appearance for a full half hour, as he had to 
 commence a fresh toilette, and send an express 
 to the village for a fresh stock of feathers, his 
 own being spoiled in the mud. 
 
 The usual discharge of artillery and cries of 
 welcome attended my return to the village, to 
 which this was my fourth visit. The men, 
 women, and children, flocked, with their usual 
 impatience, around me, as if they had never be- 
 held me previously. The various breed of dogs, 
 who were located in this quarter, with a pene- 
 tration that did them honour, immediately re- 
 cognised me, coming up in a body, projecting 
 their noses towards my person, so as not to be 
 imposed upon as to my identity ; then returned 
 to their several stations, with a canine sagacity, 
 and a peculiar twirl of the tail, indicative that 
 " all was right." 
 
 The village was crowded with strangers, 
 who had arrived to partake of the feast of the 
 Haihunga. Cooks were engaged at their ovens, 
 around the skirts of the village ; while the 
 assembled multitude waited, with voracious
 
 FEAST OF EXHUMATION. 225 
 
 patience, the conclusion of these culinary opera- 
 tions. The haihunga is a feast, instituted by- 
 various tribes, to commemorate the actions of 
 the illustrious dead. The bones of the defunct 
 warriors are scraped clean, with mussel shells, 
 from all superfluous flesh, washed in a tapued 
 stream, and placed in the cemetery. From this 
 place they are brought forth by the clergy of 
 the district, who undertake this sacred office in 
 procession, joining in an antistrophal chant, 
 during which the actions of the departed are 
 elaborately dwelt upon and exaggerated, whose 
 spirits are supposed to have become apotheosised. 
 
 This ceremony is regarded with peculiar awe, 
 as the new divinity is expected to watch over 
 the proceedings of the haihunga. In former 
 commemorations of this feast, it was the prac- 
 tice to sacrifice slaves as a native offering to the 
 manes of the departed ; but from the scarcity in 
 the slave-market of late years (their services 
 being at a premium), the multitude are re- 
 stricted from this much-esteemed food, and are 
 now obliged to felicitate themselves on 07ily a 
 bit of pork. 
 
 On entering the village, there arose such a 
 Babel of sounds as my ears had never before 
 encountered. Some groups were dancing all 
 the hakas that had ever been invented, from the 
 
 VOL. I. Q
 
 226 HOLYDAY AMUSEMENTS 
 
 flood to the present day, inclusive ; others were 
 singing the various choruses, with countenances 
 " from Hvely to severe," that had lately come 
 into vogue. A few, who had been among the 
 Europeans, were giving exaggerated imitations 
 of those people, ** catching the living manners 
 as they rose," before the natives. 
 
 The ladies, of course, were not apathetic 
 spectators of the scene ; they were performing 
 their utmost endeavours to render themselves 
 dehghtful and agreeable (and when do they 
 not ?) in this rout. They had a thousand things 
 to discuss, — the character of the last new belle, 
 the gracefulness of such a dancer, the tones of a 
 vocalist, the form of some Adonis in general 
 esteem and request, the cannibal ferocity of cer- 
 tain warriors, softened by these fair apologists, 
 into an agreeable " es]3rit ;" then their likings, 
 longings, &c. added not a little to the general 
 uproar. Squalling brats were running their dea?', 
 tender, little, bare feet among the stumps and 
 cockle-shells, that were carelessly strewed about 
 the place, the refuse of many a meal, squabbling 
 with each other ; or were beaten by their mo- 
 thers, for occasional misdemeanours among the 
 ladies' garments. 
 
 But the above was "music of the spheres," 
 in comparison with the terrific yells of the
 
 AT THE ANTIPODES. 227 
 
 " tangi," which was duly performed by the thou- 
 sand and one assembled on the arrival of every 
 new comer. My appearance was announced by 
 a general discharge of artillery, in which one 
 man received a wound in the forehead, from 
 having overloaded his piece, of which he was in- 
 stantly robbed (deprived I should say), together 
 with every article of clothing, as utu, or pay- 
 ment, for having committed so much disrespect 
 to me, as to hurt — himself. 
 
 This singular custom is always strictly ad- 
 hered to ; the chief could not complain, as 
 the law was open to him to serve any person 
 in a similar manner, on the occasion of a like 
 accident. 
 
 My arrival formed a new theme of conver- 
 sation for the ladies; some openly contended 
 that my stature was too tall ; others expressed 
 a decidedly contrary opinion, which satisfied me 
 there were none particularly displeased with me. 
 These observations were kept no secret from 
 me, as, from the stunning noise around, each 
 female was obhged to screech forth her opinions 
 so as to be heard. All were agreed in admiring 
 my complexion, which was well insolated, from 
 long travel, under a scorching sun. 
 
 Towards evening, nearly two thousand per-
 
 228 A FAIR IN NEW ZEALAND. 
 
 sons were collected from villages situated within 
 fifty miles distant around. Among others, my 
 old friend Kaka welcomed me, who, together 
 with his wives, had arrived in the morning. I 
 was particularly glad to see him, as I was 
 enabled to restore his children, whom he re- 
 ceived with the usual sensibility, agreeably to 
 native custom. In his train I also perceived the 
 rivals, who had contended for conjugal happi- 
 ness, in lieu of solitary loneliness : the lady was 
 also here, seated among a coterie of matrons. 
 Marriage had certainly not improved her con- 
 dition, for she had become quite a transparency. 
 
 The dresses of the company were of motley 
 appearance ; the elders had their hair and beards 
 daubed over with kokowai, and blue clay, with 
 touches about the face, similar to the characters 
 in a pantomime. Dog-skin mats were plenti- 
 fully sprinkled among the crowd ; and one vener- 
 able warrior could scarcely contain his self-satis- 
 faction, at sporting a cloak made of the skins of 
 the kiwikiwi birds, a dress unobtainable by a 
 European, from its rarity. 
 
 The garments and ornaments of the ladies, I 
 possess not sufficient discrimination to criticise ; 
 they were in appearance very neat, and as pleas- 
 ing as their primitive boudoir would admit of.
 
 LOVE IN THE VILLAGE. 229 
 
 My servant Puhi discovered his wife among; 
 the throng ; he did not exhibit, at the rencontre, 
 any of those overpowering emotions that the 
 poets allude to, in an absent husband again re- 
 joining this '' heaven's best gift, without whom 
 we had been brutes;" her appearance was cer- 
 tainly unexpected by him. They, of course, sat 
 down to have a tangi, the lady crying in ecstasy 
 at having recovered him ; his tears also flowed, 
 in hdiVmg found her. 
 
 The trousers I had formerly given to this 
 trusty steward, encircled the nether parts of the 
 lady, to whom this complacent husband pre- 
 sented some other articles that I had given to 
 him, as renewed indications of his love to her. 
 
 The feast was laid on the plain, outside of 
 the village fences, in two rows, about thirty feet 
 apart, forming a lane, in which the visitors 
 amused themselves by promenading to and fro. 
 The provisions consisted of about three thou- 
 sand baskets of potatoes, kumeras, water melons, 
 steamed kernels of the karaka maori, tarro, pre- 
 served kou, or turnips ; tawa, or dried codfish, 
 and shell-fish : the baked roots of the Ti palm, 
 &c. graced the festal scene. 
 
 A number of live pigs had also been brought 
 to the stake, fastened by the hinder leg to the
 
 230 SKETCHES FROM THE LIFE. 
 
 fencing of the pa ; these added their tangi to 
 the general uproar, from the incommodious 
 situation that had been assigned to them, being 
 exposed to the noisy barking of the dogs, who 
 received additions to their corps on the fresh 
 arrival of every family, and to the glaring heat 
 of a scorching sun. 
 
 The circle to which I attached myself, was 
 that occupied by Parore and Kaka, who thanked 
 me, in pleasing terms, for the care I had taken of 
 their relatives. A large space was formed inside 
 the circle, sufficiently large for the native orators 
 to run back and forwards. Many chiefs rose up 
 singly, and gave their sentiments on political 
 affairs, future wars, fishing parties, or fresh 
 occupation of alluvial settlements for the pur- 
 poses of planting. Many of these orators were 
 loudly applauded; some met with disdain and 
 murmurs, others excited peals of laughter, and 
 conjugal allusions were addressed to some lately 
 married chiefs, that would never have escaped 
 the lips of an ascetic. As is the wont on these 
 occasions, many spoke for war against tribes, 
 who were either declared enemies, or neutral 
 friends. Against the former, one chief, who had 
 lost a promising son in the cause, trembled with 
 frantic passion ; and every time he mentioned
 
 OLD GRIEVANCES RENEWED. 231 
 
 the name of his lost child, he quivered with 
 madness, hoping yet to cook the heads of those 
 pukdkohnas, or mm'derers (literally boiling their 
 heads). The maranatha he uttered against them 
 savoured of the enormities committed by can- 
 nibalism. 
 
 On this sage reseating himself, an old Sybil 
 arose, declaring that all her children had been 
 devoured by the enemy ; and if she was not 
 avenged by the audience before her death, in 
 after hfe she would haunt them and their chil- 
 dren, until their hearts should melt away for 
 fear, and so fall easily into the power of their 
 most rancorous enemy. " I am fit for nothing 
 now," she cried, wringing her aged hands in 
 hopeless despair, " but to dig the ground, and 
 plant food for my enemies. Had Te Roraha 
 lived, (her husband, who had been a chief of 
 consequence,) it would have been avenged long 
 ere this." While speeches of a similar nature 
 were introduced on the tapis, I beckoned Puhi, 
 and requested him to look out a lodgement for 
 the night, which he promised to do ; but shortly 
 after returned, to inform me that all the houses 
 were let to distinguished strangers, and that 
 the rents were advanced fifteen hundred per 
 cent on those that belonged to the villagers. I 
 spoke to Tamaroa on the subject, who made
 
 232 OSSIFIED REMAINS. 
 
 his slaves build me a shed, which was soon 
 done. 
 
 While the twilight lasted, I went with Pa- 
 rore to see the desiccated bones of the chiefs, in 
 whose honour the feast had been given. These 
 bleached remains were placed on a raised plat- 
 form, and consisted of the various ossifications 
 that form the human body. The skulls were 
 entirely denuded of flesh, and placed on a mat 
 powdered with kokowai. 
 
 In front of these remnants of mortahty were 
 placed, on small poles let into the earth, nine 
 human heads. These had been preserved and 
 stuffed with flax, and were decorated with fea- 
 thers. The countenances had a sardonic grin, 
 which gave them a frightful appearance ; all 
 were much marked with the moko, and were 
 garnished with bushy beards. The flax project- 
 ing through the eyes, added to the ferocity of 
 their appearance. One head had a large gash 
 across the forehead lengthways ; another had 
 the lower jaw nearly severed. Some circlets of 
 twisted gi'ass were placed above seven of the 
 poles. These were called wakaou's, and were 
 said to have been picked up near tapued places, 
 and had been left by the spirits of the dead, on 
 their way to the hades of the country. 
 
 On returning to the circle, I inquired of
 
 " HUMOURS OF A FAIR." 233 
 
 Kaka news of the war that was to have been 
 made on him. He answered, that the enemy 
 did arrive, but not before he had finished his 
 fortifications, and had safely ensconced himself 
 and tribe behind it. That several speeches had 
 passed between both parties, which had amicably 
 settled matters, and the feast that followed ce- 
 mented a good understanding. His amiable 
 head-wife related to me, with a sigh of anguish, 
 how many pigs had been killed, to satisfy the 
 appetites, and propitiate the ire, of the enemy ; 
 and, fearful I should forget, counted the number 
 on her digital members. I commiserated the 
 indiscriminate butchery of those pleasing ani- 
 mals, whose sleek, jetty forms, rose to my recol- 
 lection, as having been promised to me. This 
 reminiscence afforded the good lady some con- 
 solation. 
 
 In vain I tried to get any rest during the 
 night : the everlasting haka, — singing, wrestling, 
 squabbling, fighting, and quarrelling, were abo- 
 minable, and I much repented having joined 
 the village at a time like this. In addition, I 
 had not enjoyed the society of the aristocracy 
 for nothing, for I was covered with the villanous 
 kutusj who have license to crawl where they 
 list among the natives ; the fleas, also, were in 
 shoals, and the namu, or sand-fly, who never
 
 234 SECURITY AMONG NATIVES. 
 
 leaves his victim until overgorged with blood, 
 made sad havoc on my person. The mosquitoes, 
 or long-legs of the natives, were in myriads, from 
 an adjacent swamp. 
 
 In vain I had my cabin, six feet square, 
 smoked, to get rid of these intruders ; it only 
 served to suffocate myself. Each of these in- 
 sects had faithfully clung to us during our jour- 
 ney, but this night they were insupportable. I 
 arose at midnight, and threw myself amid the 
 fern, covering my head from the ill effects of the 
 moon with a new mat. As to my blankets, the 
 fleas and kutus' had taken full possession of 
 them ; and as it was impossible to contest the 
 point, I had them made fast to a large stone, 
 and anchored off in the stream. 
 
 These coverings are invaluable to the na- 
 tives, but I had no fears of losing them ; they 
 were known to belong to me ; and the village of 
 the chief was not to be sullied in name by a 
 robbery on so distinguished a guest as any 
 European would have been accounted. 
 
 My bales were among them, and I had not 
 seen them during this afternoon ; yet they were 
 as safe among two thousand natives as under my 
 own surveillance. 
 
 In the morning I awoke unrefreshed, and 
 amused myself by taking a sketch of the pa.
 
 A SPECTACLE. 235 
 
 Being somewhat near-sighted, I put on a pair 
 of spectacles. At sight of this, nothing could 
 exceed the astonishment of the people, with this 
 addition to my visage. I gratified the chiefs 
 with a peep through them ; but, possessing ad- 
 mirable vision, the glasses impeded, instead of 
 assisting, their sight. The news of this pheno- 
 menon quickly spread like wildfire ; the people 
 ran in crowds to behold this new wonder. 
 Their importunities became so great, that, fear- 
 ing my glasses would be broken, I was obliged 
 to secure them in my pocket. 
 
 The old priest Kamura was delighted with 
 them, and implored me to send him a pair, as 
 he knew of nothing that would sooner advance 
 his consequence among his countrymen. 
 
 I returned to the camp, and finished my 
 negotiations with the chiefs respecting Kaipara. 
 I then produced the map I had made, which 
 pleased the people much ; many of the chiefs 
 present pointing to certain spots which were 
 their own peculiar property, shewing me the 
 boundaries of their allotments, which were dis- 
 tinguished by a particular creek, tree, or other 
 landmark, whereby no mistake could arise in the 
 future disposal of their possessions. 
 
 1 then ordered the pikaus', or packages, to 
 be shouldered, and bade adieu to my many
 
 236 AN ADULTERER RENDERED 
 
 friends, whose embraces covered me with koko- 
 wai, and the offensive shark's oil. 
 
 We then wound our way among the moun- 
 tains, followed by a number of the chiefs, who 
 accompanied us to the beach. Parore would 
 suffer no person to carry me over the river and 
 swamps but himself. 
 
 Of the feast, a large quantity had been pre- 
 sented to me, as well as some live pigs ; but our 
 party were few, and I left each portion with the 
 friendly chief. 
 
 Previously to leaving Waipoa, I requested 
 Puhi to purchase some hog's lard, to serve for 
 a lamp to write by, if I encamped at night in 
 the bush. He spoke to some of the people, one 
 of whom, belonging to Kaka's tribe of Kaihu, 
 presented a calabash for sale, containing an adi- 
 pose matter. I was about to purchase it, when 
 my faithful lad told me, in broken language, 
 " He man fat." I refused to become a pur- 
 chaser, but had the curiosity to take the cala- 
 bash, and examine the contents. The unctuous 
 grease was neither the fat of dog, pig, nor bird ; 
 it could only be the article named by Puhi. I 
 inquired of the vendor if the substance was hu- 
 man fat ? he answered, it was, " Nd ! te tahi inu 
 no nd tangdtd maori, no te tahi tourekdkekd " — 
 " It was the fat of a native man — of a slave."
 
 INTO LAMP OIL. 237 
 
 I further demanded the cause of his violent 
 death : " No tona mai jmremu pea, e net wdhine 
 maorV — " for his adulterous intercourse with 
 native women." This crime is punishable with 
 death in the country, to one of the parties at 
 least. I had not the slightest hesitation as to 
 the certainty of the calabash containing the 
 unctuous remains of the unhappy wretch. It 
 was added, that the body had been devoured. 
 
 Once more on the sandy beach, we pushed 
 forwards briskly. 
 
 The flood-tide was near its height, and many 
 portions of the shore were impassable, as the 
 flooding waves dashed their surf against the pre- 
 cipitous banks, which rose to a towering height, 
 curiously hollowed by the stormy action of the 
 sea. We were, in such cases, obliged to alter 
 our course, steering often in the tracts exca- 
 vated by the heavy rains. In other places we 
 were obliged to make our own paths. This latter 
 travelling was execrable ; the long fern, strongly 
 intermatted, prevented our egression ; its wiry 
 fibres cut to pieces the legs and feet of my com- 
 rades, who pioneered the way before me. After 
 some hours, nearly exhausted, we again turned 
 to the beach. 
 
 Pleased at being able once more to rove at 
 large, we pressed on at a rapid rate across the
 
 238 SACRED FOOD. 
 
 many water-runs that intersected the path ; but 
 the sun had set by the time we arrived at Wai- 
 memaku. Here we had our bivouac, and erected 
 sheds for the night. A party of seven natives 
 had already encamped here ; they were fisher- 
 men from the northward, and had come to this 
 place to spear flounders (patiki,) by torchhght. 
 We made up to them, and were soon on friendly 
 terms, exchanging our southernly news for that 
 extant whence they came. The night was passed 
 pleasantly, our new acquaintance proving very 
 communicative. In the morning, the strangers 
 presented us with some of the flounders they 
 had caught ; the capture was effected by pla- 
 cing a lighted flambeau on the banks of the 
 streamlet ; the glare of its flame attracted the 
 fish ; and the moment they appeared the fishers 
 speared them with a sharp-pointed stick.. They 
 had been very successful ; and a large quantity 
 were hung up in bunches on the branches of 
 trees, to dry in the wind and sun. 
 
 After a hearty meal, we took our departure, 
 homeward-bound. On the road, we met with a 
 man who was carrying some poapoa, or sacred 
 food, consisting of some tapued pigeons, which 
 were intended to be eaten by a chief near Kaihu. 
 The bearer, being tapued, was not allowed to 
 break his fast until he had deHvered the provi-
 
 CONJUGAL AFFECTION. 239 
 
 sion, of which it is accounted an honour to par- 
 take, being reserved for the principal chiefs of 
 the country. I offered the man food, but it 
 was refused with horror ; for the fellow was 
 assured the Atua would devour him if he broke 
 his fast before he had delivered his errand. 
 
 At mid-day we arrived at Moperi, where we 
 received every attention. When we arrived at 
 Pakanai, a few miles up the river, our ears were 
 assailed by dismal shrieks and groans, and the 
 discharge of musketry. On entering the village, 
 a scene of wretchedness and wo burst upon our 
 view. On a raised settle, or bed, we beheld the 
 tupapaku, or corpse of an interesting female, 
 named, after the village, Pakanai. She had 
 been married some time to a young chief, with 
 whom she had lived in terms of endearing affec- 
 tion ; sickness had attacked him, and he had 
 died the week previously. Pakanai had at- 
 tempted to hang herself, but had been dis- 
 covered and prevented by her fiiends, who 
 frustrated her intentions. 
 
 The unhappy girl was determined not to 
 survive her lost husband ; she had therefore 
 refused all sustenance, and had died the night 
 before. The countenance of this victim to con- 
 jugal affection was calm and placid ; her head
 
 240 
 
 VICTIM TO AFFECTION. 
 
 was decorated with feathers of the gannet, and 
 encircled by a band of green flax. 
 
 A CHIEFTESS LYING IN STATE. 
 
 The body was covered with a silken kaitaka- 
 mat. Her head was supported by a European 
 pillow ; at the head of the bed a carved figure 
 was placed, painted red. 
 
 The frantic mother was covered with blood, 
 flowing from the deep scars or gashes she had 
 inflicted on her face and body, as an attestation 
 of her grief. The relations around were agitated 
 with the most intense grief, wailing, howling, 
 and fining the air with their impotent lamenta- 
 tions. It was a distressing spectacle.
 
 GRIEF IN THE VILLAGERS. 241 
 
 I waited on a European lady, who, with her 
 husband, resided on the banks of this river, near 
 the village. Every kindness had been shewn by 
 this excellent family to poor Pakanai, but the 
 hapless girl was not to be led away from her 
 determination. 
 
 I visited the village in the afternoon ; the 
 distracted mother was still sitting close to the 
 inanimate body, her countenance undistinguish- 
 able from matted blood and filth. Her hair was 
 dishevelled, she was tossing her arms in the air, 
 and uttering cries so wild, that I felt assured she 
 had lost her senses. 
 
 I met with my old friend Wainga, the priest 
 of Araitehuru ; he would fain have nosed me, 
 but he was scarcely discernible from the blood 
 and dirt on his countenance. Notwithstanding 
 he was a sly rogue, he was withal an affectionate 
 one ; and, as the head of the clerical profession, 
 he had come to solace the afflicted mother. 
 
 He tried to summon before me a look of im- 
 portance ; but the attempt was useless : the 
 afflicted old man pointed to the corpse, and burst 
 into a torrent of tears. I distributed some pre- 
 sents to the mother, who received them without 
 knowing their import : old Wainga came in for a 
 share also. I now procured a boat from the 
 kind European family I have mentioned, and in 
 
 VOL. I. R
 
 242 MERCIES OF THE CREATOR. 
 
 a few hours landed at the Horeke, from whence 
 I had taken my departure, returning thanks to 
 my Heavenly Father for his protecting care in 
 many mn-ecorded dangers, for whose innumerable 
 mercies I could only humbly return earnest faith, 
 love, and confidence.
 
 243 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Harbours, and general Description of the Islands of New Zea- 
 land — North Cape — Reinga and its Tradition — Three 
 Kings' Islands — Cape Maria Van Diemau' — Columbia 
 Ileef — Rangounou River — Mount Hohora — Doubtless 
 Bay — Maunganui — Oruru — Wangaroa — Cavalhoes 
 — Bay of Islands — Wangaruru — Wangamurau — Tutu- 
 kaka — Poor Knights — Bream Bay — Barrier Isles — Frith 
 and River Thames — Mercury Bay and Isles — Bay of Plenty 
 and Islands — Rivers and Ports of Warre Kahika — Wai 
 Appu — Tokomaru — Uwoua — Poverty Bay and Rivers 
 — Maihia — Table Cape — Hawke's Bay and Rivers — Coast 
 to Cape Kawa Kawa — Inland Scenery — Cook's Straits, 
 North Side — Port Wanganui-atera — Cape Egmont — 
 Rivers and Ports of the West Coast of Ainomawi — Mu- 
 kou — Morakupo — Kawia — Autia — Waingaroa — Wai- 
 kato — Manukou — Kaipara — Hokianga — Wangape — 
 Herekino — Summary of Observations on tlie Island — 
 District of Kai Kohura — South Side of Cook's Straits — ■ 
 Coast to Banks's Peninsular — Chatham Islands — Port 
 Otago — Foveaux Straits — District of Te Wai Poeuaum 
 — Coast and Harbours of Stewart's Island — Southern 
 Port — Trap Rocks — Snares' Islands — Cable Island — 
 South-western Bays and Sounds — Summary of Observa- 
 tions on the Southern Portion of New Zealand. 
 
 The north, or Cape Otou, is situated in 34° 25' 
 30" S. lat., 173° 9' 48" E. long., according to
 
 244 CAPE REINGA. 
 
 Captain Herd, commanding the New Zealand 
 Company's ship " Rosanna," who possessed the 
 best means for determining the position in 1827. 
 
 The country terminates here in barren rocky 
 precipitous sand-hills, called by the natives the 
 Reinga, or Flight. 
 
 This part of the coast, whether viewed from 
 the shore or from a distance at sea, has a dreary, 
 forbidding aspect. Travelhng is here found to 
 be particularly fatiguing and disagreeable from 
 the loose sand, in which the foot of the traveller 
 sinks deeply every step he advances. 
 
 Within the vicinity of this coast, peat coal is 
 found under the vegetable soil. A long spear- 
 grass, that runs up the sand-hills, and a liand, 
 called akka, compose the sole vegetation on this 
 part of the coast ; showers of minute sandy par- 
 ticles destroying every thing that might otherwise 
 flourish. 
 
 The foaming Pacific (a misnomer for the 
 ocean on this coast) unceasingly dashes, with 
 overwhelming force, against the towering black 
 rocks that skirt the shore, imbricated into caverns 
 by the mighty element. Naught human is dis- 
 cernible from this spot, save and except the in- 
 numerable wild sea-fowl, screaming, while voli- 
 tary, amid this scene of solitary desolation. From 
 the nature of the situation, the mind can easily
 
 AERIAL LADDERS. 245 
 
 conceive why the aborigines should have fixed 
 on this identical place as their Styx, leading to 
 the " country of the dead," for the spirits of their 
 departed chiefs. The twigs of akka above-men- 
 tioned are regarded as ara wata, or ladders, to 
 assist the departed in making their way to the 
 regions of future existence ; and the wrath of the 
 natives would be unbounded, were these re- 
 doubtable steps cut away by the wantonness of 
 Europeans. 
 
 The slippery spear-grass has also its uses, as 
 the spirits of the elders are supposed to make use 
 of this vegetation for shding down the Reinga : 
 it is always, therefore, in requisition for this 
 labent operation. 
 
 If the spirit belonged to a village in the inte- 
 rior, it is supposed to carry with it some tufts or 
 leaves of such shrubs or branches of trees as 
 flourish most on the place where they took up 
 their residence on earth. These tufts are called 
 wakaous, or remembrancers ; and the spirits, it 
 is said, leave one of the " cards" in every place 
 they may have rested, according to custom, on 
 the way to the Reinga. 
 
 The peninsula that divides the east from the 
 west coast is scarcely above five miles in width in 
 some parts, but the walk is of difficult accom- 
 phshment, from the loose sand.
 
 246 DESTRUCTION OF TRIBES. 
 
 The tribes formerly inhabiting this coast 
 have long since been annihilated by continual 
 wars, whose destructive effects have unpeopled 
 this part of the country : an insignificant remnant 
 alone remains. A portion of these tribes took to 
 flight many years since, and crossed over to 
 Manawa tawi, or Three Kings' Islands, some forty 
 miles distant, to the north-west of the North 
 Cape, carrying with them seed potatoes and 
 other native edibles, and have subsisted well 
 there, from the innumerable shoals of the various 
 fish that are abundantly proHfic on those shores. 
 These people have often been solicited to return 
 to the main, but have not been induced to do so. 
 
 The North Cape is separated from Cape 
 Maria Van Dieman by a deep sandy bay, afford- 
 ing no anchorage. About six miles off the latter 
 cape, lying N. N. E., is a reef of dangerous rocks, 
 called the Columbia Reef, having been first dis- 
 covered by a ship bearing that name. The 
 westerly winds cause the surf to rise to a great 
 height, but in fair weather they are unseen. To 
 the southward of the North Cape is a deep 
 sandy bay, called, from a small river flowing into 
 the bight, lying due S., Rangaunou. This bight 
 is open to the N. and N. E. winds, which often 
 blow with great violence. The high mount of 
 Ohoxira, or Mount Camel, so named from its
 
 DOUBTLESS BAY. 247 
 
 form, rises from the centre of the bight, and is 
 equally discernible from either coast. About 
 fourteen miles to the southward from Camel 
 Mount, a reef extends from the land about two 
 miles, the sea breaking heavily over it, forming 
 the south-east head of Rangounu, called Knuckle 
 Point, or Katikati. The distance of six miles S. 
 commences the harbour of Doubtless Bay, called 
 Lauriston by the French, and Pairoa by the 
 natives. Some rocks lie on the south side of the 
 entrance. On the S.W. corner of this bay lies 
 Maunganidy a small harbour, with a bar before 
 its entrance, of three feet and a half water : the 
 harbom' deepens after passing the bar. Oruru, 
 or Odudu, lies about W. S.W. in Doubtless Bay, 
 a small shallow river, leading across the country 
 towards Hokianga. The interior of this part of 
 the island is pleasing ; but Doubtless Bay affords 
 too little shelter to become a resort of shipping. 
 The Cavalhoes, or Cavahers, are a group of small 
 islands and rocks, lying within a short distance 
 of the coast. Opposite the most northern island, 
 about three miles from the shore, is situated the 
 harbour of Wangaroa (hterally. Long-bay). 
 The entrance to this port is scarcely distinguish- 
 able to a stranger from sea, being barely beyond 
 eight ships' length in width. The water is very 
 deep around the entrance. Wangaroa is a
 
 248 WANGAROA HARBOUR. 
 
 beautifully romantic place. Near the north 
 head, a large perforation in the rock presents 
 the appearance of a Gothic entrance : the 
 swell of the sea rolls heavily through it in bad 
 weather. This harbour gradually extends as 
 the mariner enters it, and a wide deep bay 
 presents itself, capable of affording shelter, 
 entirely land-locked by high hills, for a nu- 
 merous fleet. There are no dangers to be appre- 
 hended in running in from sunken rocks ; but 
 the high headlands cause a lull in the breeze that 
 renders the port unfit to be attempted on the ebb 
 tide, without a strong wind from the N. N. E. 
 This splendid harbour is surrounded by lofty 
 hills, verdant with patches of forest and luxuriant 
 vegetation. On the western side of the bay high 
 towering rocks, having the appearance of anti- 
 quarian ruins, cause a diversion in the scenery ; 
 and many cascades fall from these heights, that 
 are lost to the sight of the spectator amid the 
 shrubbery which clothes the base of these towers. 
 The mountain, on which the old native fortifica- 
 tions were situated, lies on the east side of this 
 harbour : in some parts it is almost perpendicu- 
 lar — about three hundred feet in height; deep 
 water runs close to it. Several small rivers run in 
 this bay ; the banks, to some extent, have been 
 purchased by Europeans. Anchorage is found
 
 BAY OF ISLANDS. 249 
 
 within the Cavalhoes Islands, outside the bay. In 
 calm weather many of the paper Naiitihis fish 
 are found, subnascent between them and the 
 main. 
 
 Thirty-five miles southward is situated the 
 Bay of Islands f called by the natives Tokirau, or 
 Hundred Islets. The entrance of this splendid 
 bay is formed by two headlands ; the northern, 
 called Point Pocock, or Wiwika ; the southern, 
 Caj^e Bluett, or Rakou, distant ten miles from 
 each other. The anchorages are various ; many 
 shipmasters, preferring such coves, as may be 
 in the vicinity of their friends, European or 
 native. 
 
 The anchorage of Tipimd, on the north-west 
 side of the entrance, is unfit for a place of shelter, 
 though sometimes made use of. In sailing for 
 the Bay of Islands from the westward, the 
 North Cape should be first made. The course 
 is then E. S. E., if the wind blows from the 
 land ; half a point to the southward will bring 
 the mariner, after sailing thirty leagues, abreast 
 of Point Pocock ; if the wind is from the west- 
 ward, out of the bay, there is sufficient sea 
 room, from point to point, for the largest-sized 
 ships to beat their way in. The lead must be 
 kept continually sounding until the ship is in 
 seven fathoms water, when she must be put
 
 250 BAY OF ISLANDS. 
 
 about to avoid the shoal on which the whale- 
 ship " Brampton" was lost in September 1823, 
 by running between two reefs that extend from 
 the western shore. 
 
 The Missionary Station, Paihia, should be 
 kept open with Motu Roa. In coming from the 
 northward or north-east. Cape Brett must be 
 made, on the south-east side of the bay, off which 
 lie two islands, called Motu Kokoko, one of 
 which has a remarkable perforation, called Piercy 
 Island. On sailing in with a fair wind, by keep- 
 ing the left-hand shore aboard, there is to be 
 found the deepest water. After passing the 
 Point of Kororarika, sail should be taken in, 
 anchoring in six or seven fathoms off that village, 
 about half a mile distant, the shore gradually 
 shallowing. 
 
 Paroa, to the east within the islands, was for- 
 merly the favourite anchorage. The Bay of 
 Islands is navigable at least twenty-five miles 
 from either cape at its entrance. Several rivers 
 lead into the interior, the banks of which are 
 beautiful and romantic. The Kaua haua and the 
 Kei'i keri, situated furthest distant from each 
 other, are the lengthiest rivers. The Waikeri is 
 a fine sheet of water ; and the narrow, but rapid 
 Waitangi, running from an interior lake, is a 
 pleasing stream,
 
 COMMERCIAL TOWN. 251 
 
 The Bay of Islands has been, for the last 
 thirty years, the favourite resort for the many 
 whale-ships that congregate in shore and on 
 the middle ground, as the ocean between New 
 Holland and New Zealand has been termed. 
 Upwards of thirty vessels have been at anchor 
 at the same time from the ports of Great 
 Britain, America, France, Port Jackson, Ho- 
 bart Town, and South Australia, besides several 
 traders, expressly engaged in commercial pur- 
 suits from the colonies, and vessels from Sydney 
 bound to England with colonial produce — such 
 as wool from New Holland, and oil, flax, ship- 
 timber, &c., from New Zealand. All these ves- 
 sels procure ample refreshment — such as hogs, 
 and potatoes ; of which esteemed vegetable the 
 natives plant sufficient to supply all the shipping 
 that visit the bay, who take upon an average five 
 tons each ; the European residents ; their own 
 consumption ; and many tons that are shipped 
 yearly to supply the stinted market of New South 
 Wales. The favourite anchorage, possessing the 
 best holding-ground, sea room for beating in or 
 out of the bay and out of a strong tideway, is 
 that opposite the village of Kororarika, which is 
 the only locality for a commercial shipping-town 
 in the Bay of Islands. The opposite side of the 
 bay, called the district of Waitangi, will also
 
 252 VISITORS TO THE BAY. 
 
 become a township; but it is dangerous for 
 shipping to approach, from the many sunken 
 rocks.* 
 
 Paroa Bay was formerly the principal anchor- 
 age, but that has been but little frequented of 
 late years ; the back of Kororarika Bay has a 
 deep beach in Paroa. Within thirty miles south, 
 about ten miles from each other, are situated the 
 bays of Wangaruru, Wangamumu, and Tutu- 
 kaka. In all these bays are to be found safe 
 anchorage for a large number of vessels of 
 burden. Opposite to Tutukaka are the islands 
 called the Poor Knights, or Tawiti Rai. These 
 
 * Summary of all the vessels which have visited the Bay 
 of Islands during the year 1836 : 
 
 British ships of war 2 
 
 ■ whaling ships 25 
 
 •— trading vessels 2 
 
 New South Wales whaling ships 35 
 
 New South Wales trading vessels, including 
 
 vessels owned at New Zealand 25 
 
 Van Dieman's Land whaling ships 4 
 
 Total British and British Colonial — 93 
 
 American whaling ships 49 
 
 ■ trading vessels 5 
 
 French whaling ships 3 
 
 Tahitian trading vessel 1 
 
 Total foreign vessels —58 
 
 Total of vessels 151
 
 RIVER THAMES. 253 
 
 rocks rise precipitously from the sea, and are 
 inhabited by the pilfering people of Wangaruru. 
 
 Five miles off the latter bay lies a reef of 
 rocks, with deep water between them and the 
 main. The interior of the country is hilly, but 
 beautiful ; many fresh-water creeks and valuable 
 forests are to be met with, especially at a small 
 boat-harbour called Wananaki, the banks of 
 which are clothed with splendid timber of the 
 pine tribes. 
 
 Wangdre, or Bream Bay, is the next harbour 
 south. This port has a sand-bar and banks in 
 the river, which nearly joins the Maungakahia, 
 after flowing full one hundred miles, and then 
 empties itself into the sea, after joining the 
 Wairoa and Kaipara rivers on the west coast. 
 Many islets lie to the south of Wangare. 
 
 The Island of Ot'ia, or the largest of the 
 Barrier Islands, has two harbours on its eastern 
 side, open to the winds from that quarter. This 
 island, about twenty miles in length, is very 
 fertile, and possesses large timber. 
 
 The Frith of Thames and its river will be a 
 favourite locahty for the future colonist. This 
 portion of the country is much encroached on by 
 the sea. This coast, being separated from the 
 western side of the island by narrow isthmuses, 
 is in many places not five miles in breadth, and
 
 254 FRITH OF THAMES. 
 
 twq of the rivers of either coast nearly join, 
 being scarce above half a mile from each other. 
 The Frith of Thames is only a roadstead, but 
 shelter may be obtained under the lee of the 
 many islands within it. 
 
 Mahurangi Bay is situated at the west side, 
 and has several small creeks flowing into it. The 
 port for anchorage is called Kaihu, and is well 
 sheltered. There are two passages leading to 
 it : that to the southward is accounted best ; the 
 northern, or lesser entrance, having many sunken 
 rocks. The forests of the river Thames has sup- 
 plied the British government with a quantity of 
 fine spars, and other ship timber. The country, 
 in the vicinity of the Thames, yields to none other 
 in the land ; and, if the place had possessed a 
 port similar to the Bay of Islands, the Thames, 
 or E'Horeke (hterally, the Launch), would have 
 been the head-quarters of the invaluable colony 
 this country must become. Almost innumerable 
 acres of rich alluvial soil invite the labours of the 
 industrious civilised man. The climate and soil 
 may be compared with that of the south of 
 France. 
 
 Some fine islands He in the Thames — such 
 as Waikeke, Motutajiu, Pokomu. The latter is 
 openly situated. 
 
 The rivers are abundantly supplied with
 
 BAY OF PLENTY. 255 
 
 shoals of fish, iiickiding small sharks : oysters 
 and other shell-fish are also to be found in 
 abundance. 
 
 Off Point Rodney, at the entrance of the 
 frith, some dangerous rocks lie under water, or 
 just discernible above the surface. From Cape 
 Colville, or Moio, to the head of the Thames 
 river, the distance is about seventy miles direct, 
 north and south ; but not navigable for small 
 craft. 
 
 The next harbour is that of Mercury Bay, or 
 Witianga, off which lie some isles and rock, 
 called the Mercury Islands. This is a safe har- 
 bour, but not very desirable ; the entrance being 
 rocky, and the ingress and exit not attainable at 
 all times. Anchorage may be obtained in the 
 river at the head of the bay : high water full, and 
 change at nine a.m. ; rise of tide eight feet. 
 
 The deep bight of the Bay of Plenty lies to 
 the southward, which consists in general of low 
 land, with a few high elevated hills. The first 
 river is called the Katikati, which leads into the 
 river Tauranga, forming an island of the low- 
 country on the coast. The latter harbour has a 
 bar at sea across the entrance. The Bay of 
 Plenty has many similar rivers — at Makdtu, 
 Onroou o te Atua, Wdkd tdne, Opotiki, Mart
 
 256 BAY OP PLENTY. 
 
 nui, Tordri — the entrances of which are guarded 
 by sand-spits and bars, which in summer are 
 often too shallow to admit a schooner. These 
 rivers require a favourable wind from the east to 
 enter; and it is equally requisite to get a fair 
 wind to " take at the flood the tide that leads" 
 to — getting out. These rivers divide them- 
 selves into branches; are generally rocky, nar- 
 row, and often dangerous. Tauranga is easily 
 known by the high hill of Maunganui. The 
 islands in this extensive bight will be found 
 described in the geological position of the 
 country. The part of Warre Kdhiha, or 
 (Hick's Bay), is open to the north winds ; the 
 small bight of the East Cape, or Wai appu; the 
 bays of TolcomdrUi Uwoua, Turunga, or Poverty ; 
 the Maihia, north of Niihitourua, or Table Cape ; 
 and Waikaiikdpu, to the south of the latter, are 
 all open to the easterly winds, which often blow 
 with tremendous force. The extensive Bay of 
 Wairoa, or Hawke's Bay, is also less unfit for a 
 vessel to lie in; and, from the latter place to 
 Cajie Palliser, or Kaua kaua, the shore is scarcely 
 indented. 
 
 The country from Cape Runaway, or the 
 Kaha, to that of Cape Palliser, is beautifully 
 fertile. Small rivers irrigate the country in
 
 POVERTY AND HAWKE's BAYS. 257 
 
 every direction ; and, similar to (it may be stated) 
 all the streams in the land, they are bordered 
 with extensive mud-banks. 
 
 The country around Poverty and Hawke's 
 Bays is formed of alluvial soil. These places, 
 which contain the most fertile land that may be 
 imagined, lie useless among the natives, appre- 
 hensive, as they are, of meeting with an enemy 
 before they can finish the labours of planting ; 
 and, if they have succeeded in planting, are fearful 
 of being deprived of the fruits of their toil. 
 
 The fresh-water streams are invaluable to the 
 farmer, but not of sufficient size or depth to be 
 separately named. The natives of the East Cape 
 are noted for their abilities in the New Zealand 
 fine arts ; the natives of Hawke's Bay, for their 
 ingenuity in making large canoes ; the inter- 
 mediate tribes, as traders between either party. 
 Most of these tribes have different character- 
 istics, and are distinguished as such among each 
 other. Small lagoons, or lakes, are situated in 
 the interior of this line of coast, and a chain of 
 mountains, some of which are still in volcanic 
 ignition. About fifteen miles due east of Gable- 
 end Foreland, called Parre nui te ra, a remarkable 
 white chalky cliff, lies a rock about seven feet 
 below the surface of the water. The situation is 
 dangerous, being in the track of shipping sailing 
 
 VOL. I. s
 
 258 cook's straits. 
 
 north or south. A brig, the " Martha," of 
 Sydney, struck on it in 1835, but received no 
 injury. The northern coast of Cook's Straits, or 
 Rau Kawa, is, during eight months of the year, a 
 lee-shore, the south and south-west winds blow- 
 ing with great violence. These winds generally 
 give but little warning. 
 
 The harbour of Wanganui Atera, or Port 
 Nicholson, bears from Cape Palliser 74° N. W. ; 
 by compass, distant twenty-three miles. The 
 course up this harbour is N. 6° 30' W. for nearly 
 nine miles. Here all the ships of Europe might 
 anchor, in perfect security. At the entrance there 
 is twelve fathoms water. Viewing the coast, says 
 Captain Herd, on the eastern side of Cook's 
 Strait, when off and within a few miles of Cape 
 Campbell, from Cape PalHser to Terdwitt, it 
 forms in three table-lands : Cape Palhser being 
 the first, the table-land forming the east ; the 
 entrance of Wanganui Atera, the second ; and 
 Cape Tierrawiti, the third. Between these 
 table-lands, at this distance, there appears to 
 be two deep bights ; which is not the case, but 
 low land, nearly level with the water. This 
 harbour will be easily discovered, as it is close 
 under the north part of the middle table-land. 
 Having described the entire coast from the 
 North Cape, the eastern shore, and the south-
 
 WESTERN COAST. 259 
 
 ern of E' ainomawi, an account of the western 
 coast of the same island will complete the cir- 
 cumnavigation. The north-west extremity of 
 the strait has the unusual landmark of the 
 Haupapa, or mountain of the snowy wind. 
 Mount Egmont ; this cape commands an un- 
 interrupted view of the coast to the south and 
 north. 
 
 The river Muhou, or Mookou, is situated 
 half way between the district of Taranaki and 
 Kawia, is the first river on the south-west coast. 
 The entrance is narrow, and the sand-bar at its 
 mouth, in the summer, has scarce a fathom 
 water at the ebb, in spring-tides. 
 
 The river oi Morokupo is scarcely known, but 
 has always been seen with foaming breakers 
 across the bar ; the entrance yet more shallow 
 than that of the preceding river. 
 
 The river Kdwia is best known by the small 
 island of Karizvoa, or Gannet Island ; with a 
 landing-place on its west side, about twelve 
 miles from the main. Kawia has a bar across 
 the harbour. This river is full of large mud- 
 flats, that are uncovered at the ebb-tide. Simi- 
 lar to all the rivers in New Zealand, it has 
 several tributary fresh-water streams flowing 
 into the main branch ; the entrance is half a
 
 260 WESTERN COAST. 
 
 mile wide, with three and a half fathoms over 
 the bar. 
 
 Ten miles further north is the Autia river, 
 whose entrance is three-quarters of a mile in 
 width. The bar outside the heads is less deep 
 than that of the preceding river. There are 
 many tribes residing on the banks, but the har- 
 bour has been but little frequented. 
 
 Waingaroa is situated ten miles further north 
 of the Autia ; it has two and a half fathoms 
 water on its bar, and deep water within. The 
 banks are cultivated by the natives, and several 
 coves are indented on either side of this river, 
 which is distant, south from the Waikato, about 
 thirty miles. 
 
 The latter river is supposed to be the most 
 extended in New Zealand ; creeks from the 
 main river reaching nearly to Mount Egmont. 
 The bar at its entrance is very shallow in sum- 
 mer : it is an inexhaustible district for flax. 
 The natives on its banks are accounted as 
 warlike as are to be found in the country, 
 and are here congregated in largest numbers. 
 The river is said by native travellers to have 
 its source from the lakes of Roto Rua, in the 
 interior. Eighty miles from the coast, the Wai- 
 kato divides itself into two noble rivers, called
 
 OF e' AINOMaWI, 261 
 
 the Waipa, on which is the principal fortifica- 
 tions, and the Horotii. There are many ver- 
 dant islands in those rivers, which, together 
 with the mainland, possesses a soil inferior to 
 none in the country, which is singularly beau- 
 tiful. Waikato, from its commanding water- 
 communications, must be an important depot 
 as an agricultural district. It is distant twenty- 
 five miles from Manukou, which is the only har- 
 bour on the west coast of this island that is not 
 barricaded by a sand-bar at its entrance, which 
 is divided by a triangular-formed reef of rocks, 
 called Kiipenga e xoatUy or net of stones. The 
 harbour may be called an arm of the sea ; it is 
 almost twenty-five miles in breadth, from north- 
 west to south-east. Off the north head is the 
 Sugar-loaf Rock — a pinnacle rising from the sea, 
 with deep water around it. The south channel 
 has deepest soundings — say, ten fathoms. Se- 
 veral tributary streams join the Manukou ; the 
 source of one of them, called the Waroa, is with- 
 in a half mile of Waikato, over which isthmus 
 the natives of the latter river haul their canoes. 
 The Waitemata river on the opposite coast, with- 
 in the river Thames, adjoins so nearly, that in 
 still weather the surf may be distinguished by 
 the ear, lashing either coast. Manukou is also
 
 262 kaipAra and manukou. 
 
 separated from a branch of the Kaipara river by 
 a similarly narrow isthmus. 
 
 In 1836, one of the Wesleyan missionaries 
 attempted a settlement in this place ; but not a 
 native family could be induced to remain, fearful 
 of the many inimical tribes in the vicinity. This 
 part is subjected to very bleak weather. The 
 northern side is extensively wooded ; the southern 
 is less inviting. 
 
 Kaipara has been already described : it is 
 situated about thirty miles to the northward of 
 Manukou, and sixty miles from the Hokianga. 
 This river had been attempted for several years, 
 but tempestuous weather, for which this coast is 
 remarkable, deterred vessels from entering the 
 harbour. The entrance is six miles in width, 
 with shifting sand-banks trending some six miles 
 to the westward. The south channel, which is 
 well over to the south shore, is the deepest, 
 varying in soundings according to the season 
 of the year ; its breadth is two miles. 
 
 The Otamatea, Oruauhorra, Wairoa, Kaihu, 
 and Maungakahia rivers, are each of great length, 
 whose banks are bordered with noble timber and 
 flax, not exceeded in value by any in the country. 
 Kaipara Bay, from which the harbour is named, 
 is situated on the south-west.
 
 THEIR DEPOPULATION. 263 
 
 Manukou and Kaipara were depopulated in 
 the wars of E'Ongi. The Maungakahia river, 
 which trends northerly from the Kaipara, nearly 
 joins the heads of the creeks flowing into the 
 Hokianga, the Kaua Kaua of the Bay of Islands, 
 and a river flowing into Wangari, or Bream Bay. 
 
 The river Hokianga is the nearest to the 
 Cape Maria van Dieman of any importance. 
 This harbour has a bar, distant two miles out 
 at sea, on which several vessels have been lost. 
 This harbour may be distinguished by a suc- 
 cession of sand-hills on the northern shore, 
 terminating in Tawu, a sand-hill. The south 
 head, and some distance in that direction, is 
 known by shrubby vegetation and dark rocks. 
 The soundings on the west coast are very re- 
 gular, without any hidden dangers lying off to 
 sea, and may be approached by the coast to 
 thirty fathoms, at a convenient distance from 
 the shore. Captain Young, a person who has 
 entered this harbour with several vessels under 
 his command, gives the following directions : — 
 " Hokianga (Cook's Disappointment Harbour), 
 is situated twenty-four leagues south-east from 
 Cape Maria Van Dieman. About seven leagues 
 to the southward is the bluff headland of Maun- 
 ganui. This, kept open, will clear the whole 
 coast about Hokianga, which is generally flat ;
 
 264< HOKIANGA. 
 
 the harbour is narrow and intricate, and not to 
 be attempted with a ship drawing more than 
 fourteen feet water, unless well acquainted with 
 the harbour. In running in, approach no nearer 
 than two miles, and the bluff of Maunganui, well 
 open of the land, until the south-east cape of 
 the harbour bears E.N.E., or E. by N. li N. ; 
 then steer in E.N.E., or N.E. by E. 4 E. ; 
 which course will carry you over the bar in three 
 and a quarter fathoms, low spring-tides. After 
 you are over the bar, steer E.N.E., and pass the 
 South-east Cape at half a cable's length, gradually 
 hauhng in for the entrance of the harbour, being 
 careful to avoid a rock lying two cables' length 
 north-west from the south-east entrance, with 
 only two fathoms water on it. About a quarter of 
 a mile from this rock, or three-quarters of a mile 
 from the South-east Cape, lies a bank called the 
 Middle-ground, with a fathom and a half low- 
 water upon it. It bears north and south two 
 and a quarter miles, and one third of a mile 
 broad ; there is a channel on both sides of it. 
 Over the above rock, at the south-east entrance 
 above-mentioned, the tide sets with great velo- 
 city, therefore great precaution is necessary. 
 After you are within the south-east head, haul 
 over to the east shore, until you bring One-tree 
 Point, or Kotai Manero, with a high conical hill.
 
 DIRECTIONS OF THE PILOT. 265 
 
 inland, at the centre of the upper part of the 
 harbour, then the channel is open, and the vessel 
 may be steered up N. and by W. for Direction 
 Head. After you are over the bar, which lies 
 at least a mile and a half from the South-east 
 Cape, you will gradually deepen your water be- 
 tween the South-east Cape and the rock lying off 
 it : there is from seventeen to twenty fathoms." 
 
 The port should not be taken with an ebb- 
 tide. The best time to cross is last-quarter 
 flood. Mr. Martin, whose name has been al- 
 ready mentioned, has issued, " to whom it may 
 concern," the following " Directions." 
 
 " This is to give notice, to all captains of 
 ships or vessels bound to the river Hokianga, in 
 New Zealand, that there is a flag-staff erected 
 on the south head, under the direction of Mr. 
 John Martin, the pilot, with signal-flags to sig- 
 nalise to any ship or vessel appearing off the 
 bar ; and the undermentioned signals are to be 
 attended to. Mr. Martin will be in attend- 
 ance with his boat also at the entrance of the 
 heads. 
 
 " Flag No. 1. Blue Peter. — Keep to sea; the 
 bar is not fit to take. 
 „ 2. Red. — Take the bar ; there is no 
 danger.
 
 266 HOKIANGA. 
 
 " Flag No. 3. Blue, with a white St. Andrew's 
 Cross. — Ebb-tide ; and the 
 bar not fit to take. 
 „ 4. White. — First quarter flood. 
 
 '^ It is necessary, when these flags are shewn, 
 that they should be answered from the ship, if 
 understood, by a pendant, or flag, where best 
 seen. 
 
 *' The flag-staff works on a pivot ; and when 
 a vessel is too far to the southward for entering, 
 the flag-staff will droop to the northward ; if too 
 far to the northward, will droop to the south- 
 ward. Vessels to be particularly guided by the 
 drooping of the flag-staff; for whatever way the 
 flag-staff droops, the ship must keep that direc- 
 tion, and by no means take the bar until the 
 flag-staff bears E. J N. per compass. 
 
 " Time of high-water, full and change, at 
 the bar, half-past nine o'clock a.m." 
 
 The ebb flows between the heads at the rate 
 of five or six knots per hour. 
 
 Hokianga river is navigable nearly thirty-five 
 miles from its entrance. A number of rivers 
 and creeks of fresh water join this noble estuary. 
 
 The principal rivers are the Waimii, Wiri- 
 naki, Orira, Waiho, of which there are two bear- 
 ing this name ; the Waireri, from a waterfall at
 
 NEW ZEALAND COMPANY. 267 
 
 its source ; the Omiinaia, Utakina, Wakarapa, 
 and the Toromiro. 
 
 In this river Captain Herd, in 1827, pur- 
 chased a large tract of land, known to Euro- 
 peans as Herd's Point, for an association of 
 gentlemen called the New Zealand Company. 
 
 This land is acknowledged as the property of 
 the company; and neither the natives or their 
 visitors have felt disposed to dispute their right, 
 obtained by lawful purchase. 
 
 There are about one hundred Europeans 
 settled at Hokianga, including the missionaries. 
 Several of the settlers are married to European 
 females, who, without exception, have set an 
 example to the native women, that has in no 
 minor degree aided the usefulness of the Wes- 
 leyan brethren, who have been particularly suc- 
 cessful in their missionary exertions throughout 
 their districts. 
 
 Wanga-pe is situated fifteen miles north of 
 Hokianga. The entrance is somewhat narrow, 
 and a small rock called Mata Ka, near the north 
 head; the soundings at the entrance are three 
 fathoms, the water deepening to five and a half; 
 the channel leading to the village has four 
 fathoms. On entering within the heads, a large 
 bay presents itself, about six miles wide from 
 north to south. The entrance is not visible a
 
 268 WESTERN COAST. 
 
 few miles from sea ; the hills rising above each 
 other. This harbour has never been visited by 
 vessels from Sydney. The chief of this district, 
 Papahia, has a number of warriors under his 
 command ; the population may amount to eight 
 hundred souls. 
 
 The land around, and back of Wanga-pe, 
 has a dark appearance at sea, from the covering 
 of fern, which has occasioned this harbour to be 
 taken for that of Hokianga. 
 
 A small boat-harbour, called Hereldno, with 
 a few feet water on its bar, lies nearer to Cape 
 Maria van Dieman. The land from the latter 
 river forms a lee shore, when the wind blows 
 from the west up to Cape Maria. The beach is 
 called Waharo, and is to be avoided by vessels 
 making any harbour on the west coast. 
 
 The rivers of this coast are all shallow on 
 the bars, and ought never to be attempted by 
 any vessel at the ebb tide. Doubtless, at Kai- 
 para, Manukou, and Waikato, much of the 
 future agricultural productions of those places 
 will be exported from the east coast. In all 
 these rivers, innumerable tributary streams lend 
 their aid to augment the vast body of water that 
 disembogues itself, with great rapidity, into the 
 ocean. Many of these smaller rivers are thirty 
 and forty miles in length, meandering round the
 
 LAND PURCHASERS. 2G9 
 
 compass. The banks of all the rivers^ or then* 
 vicinity, are clothed with splendid timber of the 
 pine tribe ; this species of forest terminates on 
 the north shores of the Manukou. 
 
 From the Kaipara to Cape Egmont, the flax- 
 plant exists in immense patches, for many miles 
 in every direction. Further north, this plant 
 is found very abundant ; in the interior of the 
 island it is found equally prolific. 
 
 All the rivers of this coast deepen their water 
 within their bars, some of which lie three miles 
 out to sea : thus we find ten fathoms almost im- 
 mediately within the bar off the Hokianga. 
 
 Many sand-banks exist in all the rivers, some 
 of which are dry at half-ebb tide. The villages 
 of the natives are mostly situated at the head of 
 the tributary streams, and seldom on the banks 
 of the main rivers ; convenient places for agri- 
 culture and defence are selected. Scarce a village 
 is found on the sea-shore ; and the only smoke 
 the mariner will perceive, arises from firing land 
 previously to cultivation. Europeans are settled 
 on the banks of all the rivers ; and even those 
 rivers (such as Kaipara and Manukou), which 
 are almost wholly deserted by either tenants of 
 the country, are principally the property of the 
 new-comers. Large tracts have been purchased ; 
 one settler on the Hokianga has bought a tract
 
 270 GEOGRAPHICAL POSITION. 
 
 of eight miles in extent on that river ; and the 
 entire north side of Manukou belongs to the 
 family of another European. 
 
 Many of the sand-bars shift their position, 
 and all have deepest water over them in the 
 winter season. 
 
 The outline of the position of the coast was 
 first given by Cook, after his visit in the " En- 
 deavour ;" and, since that period, but little alter- 
 ation has been made by succeeding navigators 
 (except in Cook's Straits), fi'om the original 
 chart first published in 1771. 
 
 From the North Cape, in 34° 25' south lati- 
 tude, the land trends to the South Cape in 
 47° 19', a distance of nearly nine hundred miles. 
 Cook lays much stress on the attention paid by 
 every one of his people in their departments, in 
 ascertaining the correct position of those parts 
 of the island he surveyed ; he says, " the figure 
 and extent has been distinctly proved to be cor- 
 rect ; the western line of coast has been drawn 
 from strong supposition, but certainly not to 
 alter the figure of the land." The coasts of the 
 largest island was surveyed with less attention, 
 as the seasons of the years rendered it both diffi- 
 cult and dangerous to keep near the shore. 
 
 On the western coast of this latter island, 
 from Cape West to lat. 44°, a narrow ridge of hills
 
 SOUTHERN ALPS. 271 
 
 rises almost precipitously from the sea, and are 
 bomided inland by stupendous mountains, bar- 
 ren of vegetation, and covered in many parts 
 by snow, that appears to have covered these 
 rocks for centuries. 
 
 From the sea, the aspect of the above land is 
 desolate and repulsive in the extreme ; the coast, 
 trending north for two hundred miles, is lined 
 with hills and valleys, thickly covered with vege- 
 tation ; in the latter, patches of forest are often 
 met with. The country hereabouts, from the 
 nature of the hills, contains many swamps, 
 marshes, and many small lakes, some of which 
 are very elevated. The land from this part, up 
 to Cajje Farewellj may be said to rise precipi- 
 tously from the sea. 
 
 This coast has been much visited by sealers 
 from the United States and Port Jackson, who, 
 some few years back, were remarkably fortunate, 
 at a period when the skins were less profitable 
 than at present. By these adventurers, the 
 many noble harbours that indent the west coast, 
 received names after such of the profession, 
 whose superior tact, or adventurous exploits, 
 elicited the applause of their comrades. In the 
 centre of the island, a lofty chain of mountains 
 ranges throughout the entire extent, the tops of 
 which are covered with eternal snow ; and often
 
 272 EASTERN COAST. 
 
 with nebulous clouds, which hide them from the 
 navigator, as he approaches these shores. A 
 few leagues from the land, these mists hang 
 (like Mahomet's remains) half way up the moun- 
 tain, concealing the sterile rocks, as craggy and 
 rude as the mind can well conceive. Yet, near 
 the coast, abundance of splendid timber is found, 
 fitted for every purpose; from the erect tree, 
 whose trunk is one hundred feet in height, with- 
 out a branch protruding, to the more dimi- 
 nutive, but useful, ornamental woods adapted 
 to the joiner. 
 
 The eastern coast of this island, has scarcely 
 a more attractive appearance from sea, as the 
 summits of the mountain-chain are also barren 
 and rude, where jetting precipices have arrested 
 large patches of snow. These precipices are 
 disjoined, not by valleys, but by deep gorges and 
 ravines, whose dark sides are covered with im- 
 penetrable thickets ; and deeper chasms that, 
 Erebus-hke, appear awfully fearful. 
 
 Large plains are found elevated, far above 
 the level of the sea, covered with similar pro- 
 ductions as are found on the Northern Island. 
 The soil in most of the valleys, some of which 
 are of great extent, is of a depth and richness 
 that will (some not far distant day) amply repay 
 the labours of the colonist. In Cook's Straits,
 
 cook's straits. 273 
 
 the land on either side, in the interior, is gene- 
 rally of a mountainous character, rising often 
 precipitously from the sea into high hills, di- 
 vided by fertile valleys, bounded on the sea-side 
 by beaches of sand or shingle. In all the val- 
 leys are found pleasant runs of the most pellucid 
 water. 
 
 Cloudy Bay is a straight, low coast, between 
 two high lands. At a distance it has the ap- 
 pearance of a deep indent : a shallow river flows 
 in the centre. 
 
 Nearly three miles to the northward of this 
 place is Mau?iga7iui, an excellent harbour, well 
 sheltered from every wind. The hills of these 
 parts are well wooded, and the forests of this 
 large island flourish with a vigour equal to any 
 thing of the kind further north. 
 
 Cape Campbell is distant fifteen miles from 
 Maunganui, 35° E. by compass. All these shores 
 are covered with wild cabbages, cress, turnips, 
 &c., &c. 
 
 The land named by Cook Banks's Island, 
 supposed at the time to be insulated, was 
 discovered, some years since, to be joined to 
 the main by a low neck of sand ; it was re- 
 named, after the scientific philosopher, Banks's 
 Peninsula. The promontory is somewhat cir- 
 cular in form ; its circumference approaches to 
 
 VOL. I. T
 
 274 GEOGRAPHICAL POSITIONS. 
 
 seventy miles, sufficiently elevated to be dis- 
 cernible at sea, forty miles distant, in favourable 
 weather. It possesses two excellent harbours ; the 
 most capacious is situated to the eastward, called 
 Wangaroa, and Waka Raupo on its northern 
 side. The appearance of this land has an irre- 
 gular, hilly surface ; it is somewhat barren ; but 
 an acquaintance with the shore proves it to 
 be well wooded, and the soil favourable to 
 vegetation. 
 
 The largest island of the Chatham Group lies 
 due east of this peninsula, distant one hundred 
 and twenty leagues. (See Note 6). 
 
 Otdgo, or Otako, is an inlet or arm of the 
 sea, running in a S.S.W. direction, about nine 
 miles ; it forms a peninsula of the southern land, 
 the cape of which is named Cape Saunders. 
 This port is well sheltered ; the entrance has a 
 bar running across, with three fathoms and a 
 half of water ; within the harbour it deepens to 
 nine fathoms. The course in is S. by E,, keep- 
 ing (according to Captain Herd) the larboard or 
 east shore aboard, until a mile and a half within 
 the heads, when a vessel is well land-locked. 
 The bar of this river differs from those on the 
 west coast, it being within the heads ; and, in 
 consequence, there is never any sea on it ; high- 
 water, full and change, twenty minutes past
 
 Stewart's island. 275 
 
 three, p.m. ; tide rises nine feet. In lat. 45° 24' 
 46" S., and long. 170° 50' E., lies a reef nearly 
 level with the water, about three miles from the 
 shore ; this is very dangerous. 
 
 In the year 1816, a strait full of dangers was 
 discovered by some sealers, and also by Captain 
 Stewart, commanding a small sealing vessel out 
 of Port Jackson, which divided the southern ex- 
 tremity of the largest island ; the strait was 
 named Foveaux, in honour of the lieutenant- 
 governor of Van Dieman's Land. The island 
 was named after the master, who was the first 
 to publish the discovery, Stewart's Island, by 
 which name it has since been known. 
 
 Singular to relate, the centrical island, has 
 existed hitherto unnamed. As a distinguishing 
 mark, it has been called Te Wat Poeudmu, or 
 the waters of green talc (rather an anoma- 
 lous name for terra finiui), from the time of 
 Cook's survey : but that navigator repeatedly 
 observes, this name is appropriated to a very 
 small proportion of the country, on the south- 
 west, where the lake of green stone is situated. 
 D'Urville has placed it to the south-east. The 
 country in the vicinity of Cook's Straits is called 
 Kai Kolmda; the strait is also known as Wai 
 Koua. 
 
 The immense area that occupies the central
 
 276 ISLAND OF VICTORIA. 
 
 portion between those two districts, is wholly 
 unnamed ; I have, in consequence, with a pre- 
 sumption that may in some measure admit of an 
 excuse, arising from dutiful feelings inseparable 
 from a loyal subject, bestowed the appellation of 
 Victoria, after her most gracious Majesty the 
 Queen of these realms, on this largest island, in 
 the widely extended Polynesian Pacific, with as- 
 sured certainty, that no modern Cook, be he 
 subject or foreigner, will feel disposed to deprive 
 this extensive country of a name, additionally 
 endeared to an Englishman abroad, without the 
 pale of the protective laws of the dearly cherished 
 country of his birth. I have found it imperatively 
 necessary, so as to be intelligible to my readers, 
 to give a distinctive appellation to this country, 
 that within a very few years will become as 
 common " in men's mouths as household words," 
 from its fast-increasing occupation by Europeans. 
 Several bays, affording good anchorage, may 
 be found on the north side of Stewart's Island ; 
 but the southern part, first surveyed by Captain 
 Stewart, and afterwards by Captain Herd, yields 
 to few harbours in any part of the globe. This 
 sound has three safe entrances, secure from 
 every wind : excellent trees for topmasts also 
 abound here. The fresh water, it is stated, 
 is not so excellent as is otherwise invariably
 
 FOVEAUX'S STRAITS. 277 
 
 found in New Zealand; it has a reddish tinge, 
 and an astringent effect, occasioned, it is sur- 
 mised, from running through debris of vegeta- 
 tion in a state of decomposition. 
 
 All navigators agree as to the boisterous 
 and rainy weather experienced on this coast and 
 its vicinity. 
 
 The west coast of the islands has anchorage 
 under the lee of the small islands only. Stew- 
 art's Island abounds in ship-timber : the country 
 partakes of the mountainous aspect of the Island 
 of Victoria. The soil is admirably adapted to 
 the agriculturist, especially the valleys : it has 
 many large plains, and densely furnished forests. 
 This island has been well known to Europeans 
 for the last thirty years, and originally did not 
 possess aboriginal inhabitants ; some small ves- 
 sels have been built on its southern part. 
 
 The navigation across Foveaux's Straits is 
 very dangerous for the native canoes, from strong 
 currents, tide rips, eddies, &c. These parts 
 have been the head-quarters for sealers, a hardy 
 race of men, many of whom have settled in 
 various places, especially the small island of Cod- 
 fish, or Sola7ider''s Island, in lat. 46° 31' S., long. 
 192° 49^ W.; named in honour of the celebrated 
 naturalist who accompanied Cook, and also in 
 the islands in various parts of the strait.
 
 278 ADJACENT ISLANDS. 
 
 Stewart's Island is studded with small islets, 
 especially on the west coast. Solander's Island 
 is fifteen miles distant from the main of the 
 district of Poenamu ; the land is remarkably 
 high. 
 
 The Snares Islands were discovered by Van- 
 couver on 24th November, 1791. They lie in 
 two groups, bearing S. 38° W., and N. 38° E. 
 (according to Herd), from each other. They 
 are divided by a channel nearly three miles 
 broad, in the centre of which the sea breaks in 
 several places. The northern group is high, 
 covered with trees and verdure. The north-east 
 side is inaccessible ; the south-west side of the 
 group presents a dreadful precipice, on which 
 the swell beats with great violence. The south- 
 west group consists of six barren islets, covered 
 with the excrement of sea-fowl. Many sunken 
 rocks are in the vicinity of these solitary isles. 
 
 The islet reefs, called the Traps, are dis- 
 cernible from Cahle Island. The following bear- 
 ings, taken by Captain Herd, will be serviceable 
 to the mariner ; from the summit of Cable 
 Island, in 47° 12' 55" S., long. 167° 26' 30'' E. 
 South Ccq^e, S. 33° W., distant seven miles ; the 
 South-west Cape, S. 49° W., nine miles ; North- 
 ern Traps, S. 64° E., fifteen miles ; South Traps, 
 S. 38° 30' E., eighteen miles : all compass bear-
 
 SOUTHERN PORTS. 279 
 
 ings. In the latitude of Cable Island, Stewart's 
 Island is not above five miles broad. 
 
 The south-west end of the Island of Victoria 
 is bounded by elevated chalky cliffs, indented 
 with several valuable sounds and harbours ; fur- 
 nished with coves ; affording safe anchorage to 
 shipping from every wind. The principal of 
 these ports are named Chalky Bay, Preserva- 
 tion Harbour^ and Dusky Bay, which has two 
 wide entrances, occasioned by the Island of 
 Resolution, named after the discovery ship of 
 Cook. 
 
 In all these ports, innumerable anchorages 
 for large fleets of shipping are afforded, safe 
 from all winds. Fish abound in great variety, 
 as is usual on these coasts. The bosom of these 
 waters is studded with islands, under whose pro- 
 tection excellent anchorages are found : water, 
 wood, and antiscorbutic grasses abound. These 
 remarks are equally applicable to the many har- 
 bours on this coast, which are found to imbricate 
 the whole line of the western side, on an average, 
 within every seventy miles. Many of these ports 
 are very extended at the entrances ; some have 
 openings between the headlands, several miles 
 in width ; most of them are distinguished by a 
 peculiarity in the local scenery, of certain rocks, 
 islands, or perforations.
 
 280 ROMANTIC SCENERY. 
 
 In these uninhabited places fish of delicious 
 flavour abound in shoals, undisturbed by man. 
 
 Cascades, falling from stupendous heights, 
 are innumerable, disappearing from the beholder 
 in the dark abysses of the mountain-ravines, 
 whose depths are unknown. Few countries will 
 supply the enthusiastic admirer of the awfully 
 sublime with more romantic scenes of nature, 
 untrodden by man, than the Island of Victoria.
 
 281 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Climate — Soil — Botany, indigenousand European — Forests, 
 Timber-trees, and other Productions — Edibles — Lichens 
 — Mosses — Liands — Ornithology — Tropical and Land 
 Birds — Sea Fowl — Quadrupeds — Amphibious Ani- 
 mals — Reptiles — Entomology — Piscivorous Tribes — 
 Shell-Fish — Lithophy tes — Corallines — Polypae — Zoo- 
 phytes — Madrepores — MoUuscae — Fuci, &c. 
 
 The climate of the country is even and genial. 
 In winter, the thermometer rarely descends be- 
 low 45*^ ; and, during the height of summer, sel- 
 dom rises above 85°. This agreeable weather 
 contributes much to the unsurpassing vigour 
 of the vegetable kingdom, composed principally 
 of evergreens ; retaining in winter the verdant 
 clothing of summer ; the autumnal fohage being 
 deciduously cast off by the more vigorous re- 
 newal of the vegetation of spring. 
 
 The peculiar position of these islands, lying 
 north and south, gives almost a different tem- 
 perature to every mile of country ; and to the 
 average narrow width of the land, in comparison
 
 282 MILDNESS OF TEMPERATURE. 
 
 with its length, and an almost undivided chain 
 of mountains running the whole extent of each 
 island, draw from the surrounding ocean those 
 mists and exhalations that, afterwards falling in 
 pluvial showers, gives a continual genial humidity 
 to the surrounding land, pushing forth the indi- 
 genous vegetation to an almost unexampled de- 
 gree, serving to keep in uninterrupted flow the 
 streams and rivulets that are plentifully found 
 in every mountain-valley, and the innumerable 
 cascades that are lost in the gorges and ravines. 
 
 Some of our earlier navigators have signified 
 the surprise they felt at the mildness of a New 
 Zealand winter. 
 
 Cook, on his return to Queen Charlotte's 
 Sound, in the district of Kai Kohuda, was asto- 
 nished in finding a garden he had planted with 
 vegetables flourishing during his absence, not- 
 withstanding the quantity of indigenous weeds, 
 that served to choke up the effects of his 
 labours ; and states his conviction that, with 
 moderate attention, every known European ve- 
 getable would thrive superior in this country 
 to many others : his anticipations have since 
 been realised. A similar exposure of garden- 
 herbs, &c., in the British Isles, during winter, 
 would soon annihilate them. 
 
 This bland and healthy temperature allows
 
 GENIAL CLIMATE. 283 
 
 the agriculturalist as many crops of certain 
 legumes as he may think proper to raise. The 
 rains throughout the year fall in moderate, re- 
 freshing showers, particularly in E'ainomawi. 
 In the winter season, rainy weather predomi- 
 nates in the Island of Victoria-. 
 
 Cook, who was at anchor forty-six days in 
 Dusky Bay, experienced only seven days' fine 
 weather ; but, in general, it is peculiarly agree- 
 able to the natives of Great Britain, who soon 
 became acclimated to a temperature not uncon- 
 genial to their own. 
 
 The spring, summer, and autumn, are ex- 
 tremely pleasant ; totally the reverse of the 
 overpowering and prostrating heats of New 
 South Wales, and the rapid change towards 
 night to bitter cold. At those seasons the 
 rains fall heavy, but seldom above two days 
 together. In winter, the winds from the east 
 or south-east quarter seldom blow unsiccom- 
 panied by rain. The westerly winds are most 
 prevalent ; which commence about 10 a.m., and 
 increase almost to a smart gale, but subside at 
 sunset to a placid calm. The whole range of 
 coast exposed to its fury becomes a lee-shore ; 
 and the surf breaks across the bars which bar- 
 ricade the rivers, dashing to a great height, 
 and rendering the approach impossible. From
 
 284 WEATHER ON THE COAST. 
 
 these causes, if a vessel enters one of the 
 western rivers, it may be some weeks before 
 a favourable opportunity occurs of being able 
 to leave those ports. The westerly gales are 
 attended with heavy squalls, that render it al- 
 most impossible for a vessel near the land to 
 preserve an offing. The sea rises in proportion 
 to the wind ; and yet these violent storms are 
 accompanied with fair weather overhead. In 
 Cook's Straits, these heavy gales are of frequent 
 occurrence. The neighbouring mountains of 
 Kai Kohuda are overloaded with vapours ; and 
 not only increase the furious force of the blasts, 
 but alter their direction in such a manner, that 
 no two puffs follow each other from the same 
 quarter; and the nearer the shore the more 
 their effects are felt. 
 
 Not one navigator ever made these shores 
 without experiencing the overpowering force of 
 these heavy gales, which often blow with equal 
 violence from the most opposite quarters within 
 a few minutes. In the short coasting-voyage 
 from the Bay of Islands to Hawke's Bay, or 
 Wairoa, in 1836, I experienced five heavy gales 
 from different points of the compass, each of 
 which threatened us with the worst conse- 
 quences. One gale blew with all its force from 
 the north-west some ten hours, when suddenly
 
 SPLENDOUR OF THE FORESTS. 285 
 
 it ceased ; a dead calm ensued, our sails flapping 
 against the masts from the mountainous seas we 
 had to contend with. In the space of twenty 
 minutes, we were driven back from our course 
 with as heavy a gale from the south-east, which 
 had as suddenly sprung up, as its precursor from 
 the opposite quarter had caused us to expe- 
 rience. The winds from the south and south- 
 west blow, almost without intermission, from 
 May to September. The wind from the north 
 blows the least throughout the year ; and seldom 
 above four gales of any import are felt from that 
 quarter during the season. At another time, 
 in the short trip from the Frith of Thames to 
 Cape Runaway, I experienced three several gales 
 from various points, which raised a cross sea, 
 that wellnigh threatened to bury our vessel 
 (contents included) in the raging deep. 
 
 Among the most distinguishing characteristic 
 of this noble country, are the splendid forests, 
 that challenge the admiration of every traveller 
 possessing any goiU for the most wild, majestic, 
 and picturesque scenery in nature. 
 
 Trees, of which there are many varieties^ 
 are often met with of an amazing girth at the 
 base, all flourishing with a luxuriant vigour 
 throughout the country. 
 
 Among the most noble of these trees, those 
 of the pine tribe command the principal atten-
 
 286 FRUCTIFEROUS VEGETATION. 
 
 tion, from their towering height, without a 
 branch protruding to destroy these models of 
 symmetry. Among the many valuable trees, 
 the uses of which will be found in the Appendix, 
 Note 7, the following are best known. The 
 kouri, totarra, puriri, rata, pohutokawa, rohito, 
 kahikatea, kaikatoa, towai, rimu, maidi, torairi, 
 tanikaha, kowai, rewarewa, maioi, tipou, touwa, 
 kawaka, miro, koikoi, hinou, tiaki, akki pirou, 
 angi angi, patu, koihiu, &c., and various akkas', 
 or liands. 
 
 The palm tribes exist in great variety, and 
 are very numerous. Supplejacks grow to an 
 immense length, and render the dense forests 
 almost impassable ; these are so very elastic, 
 that some precaution is necessary that the tra- 
 veller does not too hastily quit their hold, when 
 placing them aside to make his way through 
 the forest, as they will strike the person walking 
 after him with no httle force. 
 
 The fruits indigenous to the country are few, 
 and scarce worthy the attention of Europeans. 
 Kardkd is the general name for fruit. The prin- 
 cipal is called the kardkd maori, or native fruit, 
 which grows in clusters about the size and form 
 of the Spanish olive, of a bright yellow, when 
 ripe. The seed and pericarpium occupy two- 
 thirds of the fruit. The flavour is feeble, but 
 pleasant ; which custom renders grateful to the
 
 INDIGENOUS FRUITS. 287 
 
 taste. The seed is said to be poisonous in its 
 crude state, but is much esteemed by the natives, 
 when cooked after their method. The seeds in 
 this state taste of oil only, and are called hojn. 
 The wood of the karaka is very handsome ; it 
 grows to forty feet in height ; the leaves very 
 poraceous. 
 
 Vegetable poisons are not known to exist in 
 the islands by the natives, or the last man would 
 have ceased to exist long since. The heart of 
 the delicious pabns, called E'Rito, is highly 
 esteemed. The Icorou, which the branches of 
 another of these umbelhferous trees afford, is 
 equally prized, together with the saccharine 
 roots of the ti, cabbage-tree. The korou has 
 the flavour of a baked apple. 
 
 The idward (Astilia angustifolia), is a para- 
 sitical fruit, growing among the branches of the 
 rata, and other trees, phoenixhke, from the de- 
 cayed branches. This fruit, which has never 
 been planted by man, is somewhat difficult to 
 describe, as it bears no resemblance to any fi-uits, 
 European or tropical. It has the whiteness and 
 appearance of the head of a cauliflower ; eight 
 inches in length, extremely narrow, surrounded 
 by flaglike leaves ; of a sweet, yet acrid taste, 
 when perfectly ripe ; otherwise, exceedingly 
 bitter.
 
 288 ARUMS AND OTHER LEGUMES. 
 
 The taro (Arum esculentum) is a well-known 
 legume ; various species are planted in the 
 islands, especially southward ; it is very fari- 
 naceous. The taro oia, or soldier taro, has a 
 blue cast, within a thin, atramentous skin ; it 
 requires six months' growth after being planted 
 to arrive at perfection. Another espece requires 
 a longer period. It has a remarkable, lotuslike 
 leaf, and thrives best on a swampy soil, or in the 
 loose black mould on the borders of a stream. 
 It is very nutricious. 
 
 The korai, koutu utu, miro, and piituhutu, are 
 wild forest-fruits, prized only by the elder na- 
 tives. The tu pakihi (Coriaria sarmentosa), or 
 elder-berry, is a very pleasing fruit. The stem 
 of this elder is pithy ; the weight of the thick 
 clusters of mulberry-coloured berries causes it 
 to droop. The natives are very fond of the juice 
 extracted from these berries, which they express 
 through their fingers ; the seeds are deleterious. 
 It grows in the most exposed situations, indige- 
 nous to the whole country. In a sheltered 
 place, open to a northerly aspect, the berries 
 grow large and sweet. 
 
 The kumera (Convolvulus battata), or indi- 
 genous sweet potato, is accounted the most in- 
 valuable food possessed by the New Zealander. 
 This is the sole edible that has been handed
 
 EDIBLES, &C. 289 
 
 down by tradition, as having been coeval in the 
 country with the remotest of its aborigines. It 
 is supposed to have been brought from Tou- 
 wahai, or distant regions, by the earhest native 
 colonists. There is a much larger variety of this 
 esculent, called leal pakeluiy or white man's food. 
 The latter grows to the size of a large yam, but 
 inlinitely more valuable, possessing the rich 
 flavour of the custard-apple. 
 
 The kumera has many varieties; probably 
 caused by the united influence of climate, soil, 
 exposure, &c. : some of them are very fari- 
 naceous. Another species exists, less valuable. 
 This food has many superstitious legends at- 
 tached to it, and is regarded with veneration. 
 The harvest of this esteemed vegetable is usually 
 accompanied by a hakari, or harvest-home 
 (literally, a feast). On planting the kumera, the 
 land becomes tapued, as also the planters engaged 
 in sowing the seed. 
 
 The potato was first brought from the Cape 
 of Good Hope to New Zealand by Cook. They 
 had greatly improved by the change of soil 
 during the space of time occupied between that 
 navigator's first and second visits, though no fur- 
 ther care had been taken of them after they had 
 been planted, and were choked up with rank 
 
 VOL. I. u
 
 290 VARIETY OF ESCULENT 
 
 vegetation. The potato of this country does not 
 command so higli a price as those raised in Van 
 Dieman's Land ; not that the soil and chmate of 
 that island is superior for the culture of this 
 valuable food, but hitherto the New Zealander, 
 anxious to receive payment for the produce of 
 his farm, digs up his potatoes while unripe, often 
 before they flower. The consequence is, the 
 vegetable soon rots, besides tasting of the acridity 
 inseparable from unripe food. At present very 
 few of the commercial settlers in the country 
 cultivate an acre of land, except the missionaries, 
 who naturally allow their crops to arrive at per- 
 fection. The fault is also caused by the compe- 
 tition of the traders, who are anxious to supply 
 whale-ships, and are continually putting into 
 port for a supply of this valuable antiscorbutic 
 refreshment. The natives possess the seed of 
 several varieties of the potato, all of which are 
 distinguished by various names. Among other 
 European esculent roots cultivated by the natives 
 for their visitors, the following are prized most : — 
 shallots, onions, garlick, beet-root, endive, celery, 
 leeks, piirslain, radishes, Spanish radish, Spanish 
 oniofi, cabbages, broccoli, greens, artichokes, cu- 
 cumbers, &c. Nasturtiums, capsicums. Chili pep- 
 pers, mustard, kc, are grown in European gar-
 
 FOOD CULTIVATED. 291 
 
 dens. The turnip is found in a wild state over 
 the entire country, as also wild radishes, gar- 
 lick, celery, cress, &:c. 
 
 The turnip and kumera undergo a desiccant 
 preparation in the oven, wind, and sun, by which 
 they shrink much from their natural size, but 
 are very pleasantly tasted ; and, when thus pre- 
 served, will keep for a length of time. In this 
 state it is called kao. 
 
 The well-known vegetable, the pmnplci7i, is 
 much cultivated ; it grows to a very large size ; 
 and, if paid proper attention to in culture, would 
 attain fully the size, as well as flavour, of those 
 raised in the United States of America. 
 
 The vegetahle-marrozo and Calabash are of 
 much use for containing the liquids of the natives; 
 and gourds of every description are now found in 
 all the plantations. The Indian corn (Holcus In- 
 dicus) equals in value to the New Zealander any 
 food yet described. This edible grows to a large 
 size ; the furfuraceous part is small, and the 
 seeds full and plump. This food, when scarcely 
 perfected, is nutritious and full of saccharine ; 
 but, when entirely ripe, it becomes difficult of 
 mastication. At present (1838), grapes are 
 largely cultivated to the northward of the river 
 Thames; strawberries and raspberries overrun 
 the soil on which they are planted ; olives, pome-
 
 292 FOREIGN FRUITS AND EXOTICS 
 
 gr ana tes, Jigs f quinces, nectarines, peaches, apples, 
 Cape gooseberries, pears, are thriving in abund- 
 ance. On a small farm I possess in the Korora- 
 rika Bay, two peach-trees had been planted on 
 the place by an early missionary. These had 
 been allowed to grow wild for many years^ but 
 yet produced, in 1837, thousands of this fruit, 
 almost unequalled in size and flavour. This farm 
 contained at one period nearly one hundred 
 small trees, growing spontaneously from seed 
 carelessly strewed about without having been 
 planted. 
 
 The sugar-cane flourishes in Hokianga, and 
 several tropical exotics at the Horeke settlement. 
 Flowering shrubs, that seek the shelter of the 
 greenhouse in England, are not affected by ex- 
 posure to the open air throughout the seasons of 
 New Zealand. Thus the graveolent szi^eet briar, 
 China and other roses, wall-Jloxoers, Cape bulbous 
 roots, become, with trifling care, perfectly accli- 
 mated to the soil. Among other vegetable 
 fencing, the Cactus IficUctcs, in its various forms 
 or species, has been introduced. The banana 
 and mango do not flower. The latter fruit I 
 presented, in 1831, to the Botanical Garden in 
 Sydney, on my return from the Mauritius, where 
 it flourished remarkably well. Kitchen herbs 
 thrive equally well, together with the fruits and
 
 ADVANTAGEOUSLY TRANSPLANTED. 293 
 
 vegetables I have enumerated; the flavour equals 
 decidedly any thing of the kind raised elsewhere. 
 
 The horticulturist and farmer are alone 
 required in this country, to shew its valuable 
 capabihties as a South Pacific garden. 
 
 The roM, or fern, flourishes in an infinity of 
 species — upwards of sixty distinct varieties have 
 been noticed by botanists. It is found growing 
 to the height of twelve feet. Plains and ac- 
 clivities are often impassable from its entangling 
 fibres. The root is the part made use of as an 
 article of food by the people. It is baked in an 
 oven or the embers of a fire, and then beaten 
 with a wooden pounder, or stone, until it becomes 
 capable of mastication. It is ingustable to a 
 European on first tasting this food, but a little 
 custom renders it more acceptable ; perhaps 
 from a similar cause why water and bread seldom 
 satiate us — from possessing but little taste. 
 
 There are many shrubs with myrtle-leaves. 
 The tea-plant, haikdtoa^ covers the plains, not 
 excepting the jutting headlands exposed to the 
 fury of every gale. 
 
 The ground in the vicinity of the roots of 
 trees, which extend to a great distance in the 
 forests, is carpetted with mosses and lichens, of 
 beautiful varieties, which flower twice during the 
 year.
 
 294" INDIGENOUS VEGETATION. 
 
 Fungi, of an immense size and hardness, 
 cover the decayed trees that block up the forest 
 paths. 
 
 The barks of trees are covered with Hands 
 and flowering convolvuluses. The harbatus, or 
 bearded hchens ; pUcatus, or stringy species, hang 
 from the trees, especially the manawa, or man- 
 grove ; lichofadmm, or club-mosses ; the Lilium 
 perennw, or common ray grass ; hedera, or native 
 ivy, are often met with. A rheum, or rhubarb, 
 is common and wild, doubtless introduced by 
 Europeans, together with several of the genus 
 Gynandria. The bignonias and Campanula trac- 
 heliums, and other indigenous amentaceous 
 plants, add to the shrubbery-like appearance of 
 the groves. 
 
 Many species of the laurel (laurus) exist, 
 especially the jjliilanthus, or sea-side laurel, and 
 a species of the retiring mimosa, or sensitive 
 plant, sheltered by the drooping leaf-branches of 
 the chamerops, or dwarf palm. 
 
 The crithmum, or samphire, is met with in 
 abundance near the shores washed by the tides ; 
 and fuci in great variety, the most common of 
 which is the Fucus Jilum, or threaded sea-weed, 
 which strews the coast, and has deep root in the 
 corals and rocks below deep water. 
 
 Nightshade and various nettles grow ex-
 
 ORNITHOLOGY. 295 
 
 tremely large. SpeedzveU, sow, and melon thistles 
 (coetus), virgiiis bower, vanilloe, or willow, 
 euphoi'bia, cudxveed, crane's-bill, junchous rushes 
 in all the swamps, and arundinaceous vegetation, 
 which are matted together by the araneous nest 
 of the native spider ; the common bulrush, or 
 raupo, which is invaluable to the natives for 
 covering houses, and forming sails for their 
 canoes ; knot-grass, brambles, eye-bright, ground- 
 sell, and minor herbaceous vegetation, supposed 
 to be solely indigenous to New Zealand, abound 
 throughout the country. These well-known 
 names have been given to these indigenous 
 plants that represent those flourishing in 
 Europe, and the name oi supplejack to a number 
 of Hands of various genera. To the southward 
 a species of long pepper is found, of little value ; 
 and the kaiid kaiid, or kava (bitter), of the 
 Friendly Islands, is also abundant. 
 
 The minor vegetation has the same undying- 
 appearance in winter as the forests. Fresh 
 leaflets push forth with a renewed vigour, eject- 
 ing, with the strength of spring, its autumnal 
 predecessor. 
 
 The Birds of New Zealand are numerous, 
 but generally of small size. The musical voices 
 of a few of them equal, in delicacy of tone, the 
 English songsters of the woods ; many of these
 
 296 ORNITHOLOGY OF THE COUNTRY. 
 
 feathered tribes appear almost congenerous with 
 each other. The concerts given every morning 
 at daybreak, and ceasing at sunrise, have been 
 described. 
 
 The tid, or mocking-bird, is best known to 
 the stranger in the country. The natives vend 
 these birds, in wicker cages, to their transient 
 visitors : it is called tui, from the resemblance of 
 its note to that sound. It is in size similar to a 
 thrush, with a plumage of jetty black ; under its 
 throat are pendant two tufts of pure white fea- 
 thers ; the flesh is delicate, and may be regarded 
 as a luxury ; its food is a portion of insects and 
 worms ; it imitates various sounds that arrest its 
 attention. 
 
 A similar bird exists to the southward, with 
 as silvery a note as the one above mentioned ; it 
 is about the size of a sparrow, clothed with fea- 
 thers of a beautiful blue, except its throat, which 
 is enwrapped with a mantle of silver gray, and a 
 few white feathers on the wing-joint ; two tufts 
 of feathers, also, are pensile from the throat. 
 The plumage is only equalled by its sweet 
 melodious tones. It is very restless, and but 
 short-lived. 
 
 There are various kinds of pcarots, some with 
 brown, green, and purple-feathered heads, the 
 bodies clothed in black and brown feathers;
 
 ORNITHOLOGY OF THE COUNTRY. 297 
 
 these have their habitations in trees ; they are 
 noisy in the bush, and incessantly moving to 
 and fro. 
 
 ParroquetSj with crimson-feathered heads and 
 breasts, with silver gray, purple, and green 
 bodies : these differ but little from those that 
 inhabit New Holland, but the latter are preferable 
 in beauty and size. 
 
 Wood-pigeons are very numerous in the 
 woods, from January to April ; they are deli- 
 cious nutriment. The plumage is various ; 
 golden green is the common clothing of these 
 birds, which animate the bush by their transi- 
 liency. A mass of an adipous nature is found 
 near the extremity of the body, when in good 
 order. They feed on the bacciferous mairo. 
 These birds are in much request by both natives 
 and Europeans, as an article of luxurious food. 
 The bellies are often white, bill and feet of a 
 reddish hue ; the other parts, a beautiful blue or 
 golden green. 
 
 Cuckoos, that " mock married men," are also 
 found, with various plumage ; many of them en- 
 tirely clothed in an atramentous covering, others 
 variegated with green, white, and yellow ; some 
 may be seen beautifully attired in golden green 
 annulets, mixed with black, adding a richness
 
 298 ORNITHOLOGY OF NEW ZEALAND. 
 
 to the verdant green, common to the birds of 
 Java. 
 
 The Piwakd-wakd is the Musicapa flabelli- 
 fera, or fan-tailed fly-catcher. There are several 
 varieties ; and though it spreads its tail to the 
 radius of full six inches, its little body is scarcely 
 larger than a walnut. It is incessantly on the 
 wing, and is very beautiful. The plumage is 
 black and white ; it feeds upon small insects. 
 These birds wage incessant war with sand-flies 
 and mosquitoes. 
 
 The Qiirimgiru (Parus macrocephalus), or 
 great-headed titmouse, is very common in the 
 country. Its clothing is black and white ; and it 
 feeds upon insects. 
 
 The kotdritdriy an alcedo, or kingfisher, sup- 
 posed to feed on worms ; its plumage is less bril- 
 liant than those above mentioned ; its head is 
 large, with a lengthy beak, legs short, and feet 
 small. The head is covered with feathers of a 
 green hue, the body and wings are of a Prussian 
 blue, intermixed with white. It seeks for shelter 
 in decayed trees. 
 
 Tuturi wdtu (hirundo) is a swallow, of a 
 small size ; its plumage is dark, with an admix- 
 ture of brown feathers : it is a pretty bird, with 
 short shanks, black.
 
 ORNITHOLOGY OF NEW ZEALAND. 299 
 
 The Iconmdku is about the size of a thrush, 
 covered with dark-coloured feathers, and golden 
 green on the edges ; its incessant note keeps the 
 bush quite animated. 
 
 The wattle-hird, so termed from having wat- 
 tles under its beak of a dark yellow, exists to the 
 southward, about the size of a blackbird ; the 
 feathers are of a deep lead colour. 
 
 The pareira, or ducks, are principally found 
 up deserted creeks, or unfrequented rivers ; they 
 soon become shy, when a river is much resorted 
 to. The largest to the southward are about the 
 size of a Muscovy duck, with a plumage of va- 
 riegated colours. The general hue is dark 
 brown, with bright green feathers in the wings ; 
 and it is of the size of the English farm-duck : 
 some are found in the middle island, or about the 
 strait, of a blue-gray plumage, with a soft carti- 
 laginous substance at the end of the beak. These 
 make a peculiar whistling cry. A few others 
 exist, much in shape and general resemblance to 
 the English teal. 
 
 The tdtaidto is a small bird, with a forked 
 tail, very long ; its plumage is of a dusky brown. 
 
 The kdkd is the most common of the parrot 
 species. This bird is the largest of its kind ; its 
 plumage is dark brown ; it is very miscliievous, 
 and its voice is very unmusical.
 
 300 ORNITHOLOGY OF NEW ZEALAND. 
 
 There are many varieties of the laterostrous, 
 or broad-billed species, transcurring in the forests 
 and bushes. Hawks, or tikakci, of various kinds, 
 as also the mournful kciokdo, or owl : these saga- 
 cious-looking birds inhabit, in plenty, the clefts 
 of decayed trees ; and their interminable hoot- 
 ing in the waitapus' add a solemnity to those 
 places, even to the feelings of the reckless 
 European. 
 
 The koliapiroa : this little fellow is remark- 
 able for taking particular care of itself, never 
 leaving its retreat until the cold winds from the 
 south have ceased to blow. It fills the bushes 
 with melodious notes, only equalled by musical 
 bells : its sweet tones are so varied, that, similar 
 to the tui, the traveller imagines he is surrounded 
 by a choir of vocal sounds, almost unequalled by 
 the feathered tribe. 
 
 The matdU'i is a kind of thrush ; plumage 
 brown, with feathers intermixed of a reddish 
 tinge. 
 
 The pioliiohl is a species of " poor cock- 
 robin," equally fitted to " point a moral, and 
 adorn a tale," as his antipodal species. This 
 bird is variously plumed, brown and white, or 
 black and red, as in England. It is frequently 
 seen hopping among the fern. 
 
 The kauaua is similar to our sparrow-hawks.
 
 ORNITHOLOGY OF NEW ZEALAND. 301 
 
 The riroriro is a kind of swallow, not much 
 unhke those in Great Britain. 
 
 The toiitouwai is also of the swallow species. 
 
 The purourou agrees with our lark ; but with 
 a plumage of glossy black. 
 
 The jmipiri is also like to our swallow. 
 
 The Jmhu is of the hawk species ; and, like 
 the tikaka, are very destructive to the farm- 
 yard ; and those interesting manufactured arti- 
 cles, called scarecrows, have not yet been intro- 
 duced into the country. 
 
 The uia is a bird resembling the nightingale, 
 entirely clothed in black ; its tail is composed of 
 four distinct black feathers, tipped with white, 
 which are held in much esteem, as ornamental 
 additions to the head. The beak is long and 
 circular, which enables it to grub for its food 
 with astonishing rapidity. 
 
 The kakako is a species of crow, not unlike 
 its European prototype. 
 
 The kizoikiwi, or Apteryx Australis, placed 
 under the head of Struthionidae, by Mr. Gould, 
 who has admirably figured the male and female 
 in his splendid work on Australian birds, is the 
 most curious specimen of ornithology in New 
 Zealand. It is covered with a hairy feather, 
 similar to the clothing of the cassowary ; and, 
 like the Rhea genus, is destitute of the accessary
 
 302 KIWIKIWI. 
 
 plume. Its beak is similar to that of the cm-lew, 
 of a yellowish horn colour, its base possessing 
 numerous long hairs. This shape is of especial 
 service to the bird for thrusting into the earth 
 for worms, on which it feeds. According to Mr. 
 Gould, " the face and throat is grayish brown ; 
 the remainder of the plumage, consisting of long 
 lanceolate hair like feathers, of a deep brown 
 colour ; on the lower part of the breast and belly, 
 the feathers are lighter than those that are more 
 exposed, and become of a gray tint. Length of 
 the bird, thirty inches ; bill, six and a half; tarsi, 
 three." The legs of this bird are short, but pos- 
 sessing much force ; they run exceedingly fast ; 
 the flesh is worthless and tough. 
 
 The usual method of entrapping the kiwi- 
 kiwi is, by parties who sojourn for the night in 
 unfrequented forests, near swampy grounds, 
 where these birds delight to congregate ; a large 
 fire is kindled, and a crepitating noise is made, 
 by breaking small dried sticks or twigs, which, 
 from the similarity to the unmusical voice of 
 these birds, induce them to leave their nests, 
 which are formed in the boles of trees, or under 
 deep, imbricated roots. Attracted by the fire, 
 they make towards it ; the sudden glare con- 
 fusing them, renders them of easy capture. 
 
 Dogs have been often sent in pursuit of this
 
 METHOD OF CAPTURE. 303 
 
 bird, by the aid of large fires, but the animals 
 have mostly fared but ill, from the powerful 
 talons of the bird ; they are found in the forests 
 throughout the northern island. That a species 
 of the emu, or a bird of the genus Struthio, for- 
 merly existed in the latter island, I feel well 
 assured, as several large fossil ossifications were 
 shewn to me when I was residing in the vicinity 
 of the East Cape, said to have been found at the 
 base of the inland mountain of Ikorangi. The 
 natives added that, in times long past, they re- 
 ceived the tradition, that very large birds had 
 existed, but the scarcity of animal food, as well 
 as the easy method of entrapping them, had 
 caused their extermination. 
 
 The present kiwikiwi, so named from the 
 note of its voice, is about the size of a large 
 duck, and burrows in the ground; the power- 
 ful spur on its leg assisting the bird in this 
 operation. 
 
 The natives employ various methods in 
 catching birds. 
 
 The pigeon, or kukupa, is caught by the 
 fowler placing a leaf, similar to the spear-grass, 
 between his lips, and whistling, imitates the pe- 
 culiar note of the bird ; which, attracted by the 
 sound, gradually approaches nearer to the sif- 
 fleur, hopping from twig to spray, till, resting close
 
 304 METHOD OF ENTRAPPING BIRDS. 
 
 to him, it is gradually lulled asleep by the note ; 
 this is soon perceived, by the bird nestling its 
 head under its wing : it is then easily killed, by a 
 pointed stick of hard wood being thrown at it. 
 
 Another method in use by the people, is to 
 erect, with palm-leaves, a small hut, to conceal 
 the person of the fowler, who takes a female 
 bird of the kind he wishes to capture, which he 
 secures from flight, by making a string fast to 
 her leg : he then allows her to fly through a 
 hole made through the roof, and he imitates the 
 cooing note of the species. This soon attracts the 
 feathered race around, and, by dint of patience, 
 a good voice, talent at imitation, and the decoy- 
 bird, the fowler may capture as many birds as 
 he pleases, who follow the decoy within the 
 hole, and are then entrapped. 
 
 The iiekdpelid, or bat, and various small bat- 
 lets, are very common in the land, but none of 
 the vampire species. These animals do not 
 differ from those in Europe, and are inoffensive; 
 cleaving the air at dusk, in volitary solitude : 
 they are among the smallest of the Australian 
 species. These " leathern-winged" creatures, 
 and the self-satisfied owl, take undisputed pos- 
 session of the forest territory as early as night 
 spreads her dusky awning. 
 
 The European poultry-yard has been long
 
 TROPICAL ORNITHOLOGY. 305 
 
 since introduced into New Zealand. The pipipl, 
 or turkey ; the pareira, or duck ; the hen and her 
 mate ; the kuhihi, or goose ; are well-known colo- 
 nists at the present day among the natives, who 
 seldom make use of them as food, preferring to 
 dispose of them to masters of ships for such prices 
 as they can obtain, which competition has raised 
 to as high a standard as in any civihsed market. 
 
 Tropical birds of the palmipede genus abound 
 in vast numbers on the coasts of New Zealand, 
 especially the family of anseres, ethereus, &c. 
 To enumerate each does not come within the 
 compass of this work. 
 
 Shags, with black plumage, the extreme edges 
 of the feathers tipped with green, abound ; the 
 pakou, or wings, are spotted white. Some are 
 of a leaden colour ; also white spots, and heads 
 crested with brown feathers. 
 
 The various gulls are similar to the species 
 in general. Small red-billed birds, called sea pies 
 by nautical men, and blue petrels abound, shel- 
 tering themselves in holes underground, among 
 craggy crevices in the sea-beaten rocks, or in the 
 holes of trees that are washed by the tide at the 
 flood. These birds flock together in vast num- 
 bers, and cause much animation on the sterile 
 beaches. Their notes partake of the melodious 
 croaking of the frogs, whose vocal powers are 
 
 VOL. I. X
 
 306 ORNITHOLOGY 
 
 exerted for their own satisfaction in the adjacent 
 swamps and morasses. 
 
 Blue herons, auks, sand larks, sand plovers, 
 terns, and the procellaria genus of jyeirels, are 
 met with in multitudes ; as also black divers, 
 rails of various kinds and variegated colours. 
 
 The gafinefs, pelicans (both pellicafius aquilus 
 and hassamfs), are met with on the western coasts 
 in numbers. These several birds permit the 
 traveller to approach closely to them before they 
 take to flight, bestowing a look of " infinite 
 regard " to the passer by. 
 
 The albatross (diomedaea exulans) are of a 
 very large size, some of them measuring, between 
 the tips of the extended wings, eighteen feet. 
 Many of them are perfectly white ; others, white 
 intermixed with brown and pink feathers. I 
 once was on board a ship with thirteen of these 
 large birds on deck, that had been caught with a 
 hook and line, bated with linen. The capture 
 of one of these birds is accounted a great prize 
 to a New Zealander. The bird, when skinned, 
 is soon devoured. The large feathers are made 
 use of to decorate the head, stern, and sides of 
 a canoe ; the soft down of the breast serves to 
 hang from the ear in tufts, which have a curious 
 appearance from the contrast of the dark face 
 and head of the native.
 
 OF THE PALMIPEDE GENUS. 307 
 
 Cormorants, and a white heron, are found; 
 said to have formerly existed in England, ac- 
 cording to Pennant. 
 
 The small noddies (sterna solida) abound in 
 large flocks, as also the oyster-catchers and 
 zvater-hens, whose excessive tameness has nearly 
 annihilated them. 
 
 Storms-birds (procellaria pelagica), and the 
 penguin (Fr. nuance), a link between the orni- 
 thological and piscivorous tribes, as their feathers 
 have a scaly appearance, and the wings are 
 serviceable only to propel their bodies through 
 the water, also exist. 
 
 The sea affords food in plenty for these 
 birds, especially such medusa? and marine gelatine 
 that is thrown in animated masses on the rocky 
 shores. 
 
 Many of the various birds in New Zealand 
 are disappearing from the country ; some from a 
 difficulty in their volitary powers, caused from 
 the spareness of their wings, whereby they be- 
 come of easy prey to the natives. Yet, doubt- 
 less, the future ornithologist will be suprised by 
 discovering, among the hidden mountain-gorges 
 and wilds of the Island of Victoria, many birds 
 at present supposed to be no longer in existence. 
 
 I feel assured, from the many reports I 
 received from the natives, that a species of
 
 308 QUADRUPEDS. 
 
 strutliio still exists on that interesting island, in 
 parts which, perhaps, have never yet been trodden 
 by man. Traditions are current among the elder 
 natives, of Atuas, covered with hair, in the form 
 of birds, having waylaid former native travellers 
 among the forest wilds, vanquishing them with 
 an overpowering strength, killing and devouring, 
 &c. These traditions are repeated with an air 
 of belief that carries conviction to the younger 
 natives, who take great delight in the marvellous 
 and improbable. 
 
 Of quadrupeds, indigenous to the country, there 
 are none. The karcirdhe, or dog (Canis Aus- 
 tralis), which, when young, is known as kuri, has 
 been an inhabitant some two or three centuries. 
 A tradition yet exists of his having been given to 
 the natives, in times remote, by a number of divi- 
 nities, who had made a descent on these shores. 
 
 This sagacious animal has dwindled down to 
 the lowest grade of his interesting family, which 
 may be easily accounted for from the stinted 
 allowances that has come to his share for many 
 generations. 
 
 Yet ill usage, and unusually short commons, 
 have not changed the nature of these truly faith- 
 ful and grateful friends of mankind. In New 
 Zealand, he is the safeguard of the village — the 
 Cerberus who snores, as sentinel, within that
 
 CANIS AUSTRALIS. 309 
 
 empyreum, the arms of his young mistress — the 
 constant compagnon du voyage in the canoe with 
 his masters, viewing, with head and forelegs 
 erect, the passing scenery (which, Hke a pano- 
 rama, opens to his watchful view), for the sole 
 purpose that no enemy to his human friends lurk 
 in ambush on the shores adjacent. 
 
 In the village, should the slightest cause of 
 alarm exist only in appearance, in vain he turns 
 his lank body, from which the bones almost 
 protrude through the skin, four several times 
 round the points of the compass, previously to 
 taking a nap, similar to the wont of his brethren 
 in every portion of the globe. He even per- 
 forms an extra periphrasis with as little effect, 
 doses unrefreshed, with his sudatious nose re- 
 clining on his forepaws, a position pandemic to 
 his race, until self-satisfied that all is right. 
 
 In gala days — such as a hakari, haihunga, or 
 interchange of visits — the native dog is fully 
 alive to the pomp and circumstance ; and each 
 visiting family is duly announced by these primi- 
 tive major-domos. On sucli days these sagacious 
 animals feel their pre-eminence. The seniors, 
 who never lack in voice, however senescence 
 may affect their agility, are admirably seconded 
 by the younger fry, who make towards the new- 
 comer, and, projecting their noses, a single sniff
 
 310 CANIS AUSTRALIS. 
 
 from one of these avant-coiiriers serves to inform 
 the master of the village who it is that ap- 
 proaches, and the intended bark of alarum is 
 instantly changed to a deep gape, indicative of 
 its only one of us. 
 
 The former name of a dog in the country 
 was pero, which in some measure substantiates 
 the supposition of Juan Fernandez having visited 
 the country, pero signifying a dog in the Spanish 
 language. 
 
 The degenerate appearance of the present 
 representative of the European dog arises solely 
 from his treatment, alike unkind and cruel. 
 
 The young curs are excessively pugnacious. 
 It must be admitted the natives make as much 
 of their dogs as they are well enabled to do, 
 sharing in some degree both bed and board, as 
 far as the skin of vegetables and well-picked fish- 
 bones may be classed as nutritives. These ani- 
 mals are often killed for their hide (tallow is not 
 among the ingredients of their composition), of 
 which dresses are made, cut in curtilinear stripes. 
 The lean body is also accounted right pleasant 
 food ; no unctuosity interfering to cause dyspep- 
 sia, or indigestion, to their oscivorous masters. 
 
 These quadrupedal dietetics exist some years, 
 vegetating on the soil of their parents ; and, 
 from their course of diet, are naturally flatulent,-
 
 THEIR FIDELITY. 311 
 
 which renders them in their general conduct 
 morose and unamiable to strangers. They are 
 generally curtailed of existence by their unre- 
 lenting masters, who, as a reward to their 
 fidelity, become themselves the living mauso- 
 leums of the defunct. 
 
 Some few, whose toughness defy the powers 
 of mastication, are allowed to live until removed 
 from a troublesome existence by a cachexy or 
 epilepsy, but never any illness caused by 
 exsudation. 
 
 These animals well deserve honourable men- 
 tion in the annals of their country, for to their 
 watchful anxiety whole tribes have been warned 
 in time to save themselves by flight, or take to 
 their arms in self-defence against the incursions 
 of predatory bands. The skins of these animals 
 look well on gala days, ornamenting the backs of 
 the chiefs. 
 
 The piiorlca (so pronounced for pork or pig) 
 is especially well acclimated to the country ; the 
 soft loose mould of the valleys forming no ob- 
 stacle to the snout of this ruminating animal, in 
 procuring for himself the radule of the fern and 
 the succulent thistle, on which he loves to feed. 
 
 It is in this country that the peculiar sensibili- 
 ties of this pleasing quadruped shew themselves 
 with that stern independence which its enemies
 
 312 QUADRUPEDS. 
 
 have proverbialised into " as obstinate as a pig :" 
 it follows the uneven tenour of its walk amid the 
 mazy bush, acquiring such a delicacy of flavour, 
 that, if it is worthy of a voyage to Bengal to 
 taste of the Mango fish, as some gourmands have 
 vaunted, the task would be infinitely more pro- 
 fitable to expatriate oneself to New Zealand to 
 partake of the flesh of this gustable quadruped. 
 
 The education and personal appearance of 
 these animals are well attended to from their 
 earliest years. 
 
 It must be confessed that their connatural 
 quaintness is not entirely quelled ; but, in case 
 of any unruly conduct, the " offending Adam" 
 is speedily whipped out of them. 
 
 The historian must confine himself to assured 
 facts, and it must be admitted that they are not 
 taught numerals " according to Cocker," like the 
 sapient scion of their race who delighted an 
 enlightened nation some years back ; but they are 
 taught to calculate when the village meals take 
 place, and the ebb and flow of the tide, to grub 
 for shell-fish on the sea-shore. 
 
 To follow their friends on a journey is to 
 these animals a pleasing task, and is very com- 
 mon ; they answer to the names that have been 
 bestowed on them with a dutiful submission that 
 renders the adage nugatory in New Zealand.
 
 PIG OF AUSTRAL- ASIA. 318 
 
 These enviable brutes are fed by the soft 
 hands of their mistresses, and caressed by them, 
 before whose adamantine hearts principal war- 
 riors sigh in vain ; and (;;ro/i puclor /) these ani- 
 mals, when young, are allowed to partake of the 
 same sustenance from the human breast which 
 nature provided for infant bipeds only. 
 
 They are not given to the somnolent indul- 
 gences for which their contemporaries in Europe 
 are justly noted ; the latter being locked up in 
 styes of five feet square, left to chew the cud of 
 cabbage-stalks and reflection. Here, on the 
 contrary, the Australasian pigs rove amid the 
 bushes and plains, free as air, until their pre- 
 sence is requested to conclude a peace with an 
 enemy; when a feast follows, in which these 
 unfortunates are butchered wholesale, retail, and 
 often for exportation, as portions are sent to 
 distant friends. 
 
 Many wild bush pigs have been brought to me 
 weighing three hundred pounds. This animal is 
 regarded as sterling property to the native farm- 
 ers, who are ever anxious to improve the breed, 
 and pride themselves on possessing a stock supe- 
 rior to their neighbours. Exchanges are often 
 made on board ships from the Friendly Islands ; 
 two and three large pigs being given for a single 
 breeding animal by the natives. A new import-
 
 314 QUADRUPEDS 
 
 ation is accounted a valuable present. The 
 same remark applies to seeds and fruits, which 
 are cultivated with sedulous care and attention. 
 
 The More, or rat, has been introduced at an 
 early period by European vessels ; when caught, 
 they are made to undergo a culinary process, 
 as these natives do not despise domestic eco- 
 nomy, and deem that to allow these animals to 
 escape their ovens is mdomdo, or waste. They 
 are thus cooked to some account, and in about 
 fifteen minutes are " done to a turn." 
 
 The jiuhihi, the pronunciation for pussey-cat, 
 has been introduced within the last twenty-five 
 years. This animal is looked upon with much 
 affection by these kind-hearted people, for the 
 delicacy of its flesh when cooked, and its skin ; 
 it is accounted as very nutritious food. A large- 
 sized cat, belonging to a European, is not likely 
 to preserve its situation for a length of time, as 
 it is almost sure to be stolen by the natives, who 
 pay but little attention to that code of morality, 
 meum et tuum. 
 
 Sheep have been introduced into the country, 
 but have in general been hunted down, and 
 destroyed by the native dogs. 
 
 One of the missionaries has been enabled to 
 keep a small quantity untouched ; the wool pro- 
 duced has been very fair : but these animals are
 
 INTRODUCED IN THE COUNTRY. 315 
 
 not adapted to the country, otherwise than as 
 food ; and any attempt to rival those of New- 
 Holland, whose arid climate is favourable to 
 their increase, would be found futile. 
 
 Cattle have been introduced, and thrive well ; 
 and as early as future colonists plant the neces- 
 sary provender for them, they will flourish well 
 in the country. 
 
 The same may be said of the horsey of which 
 the natives are particularly fond. One of these 
 animals was introduced by a ship-master for his 
 own use, in Hawke's Bay, some years back ; the 
 natives, on the owner quitting the country, would 
 not part with the animal : and he yet remains 
 with Apatu, the chief of the district. The young 
 foals born in this country are very strong. 
 
 The patient ass has also become a colonist ; 
 but hitherto his abilities have not been brought 
 into practice ; but he has passed the pons asi- 
 norum — that is, become acclimated to the soil. 
 
 The mule and ass, together with the pony of 
 Timor, or the sturdy Batavian, will become espe- 
 cial favourites in the country, for which they are 
 much adapted from its hilly formation. The 
 ass amuses himself with the melody of his voice, 
 which affords a subject for imitation among the 
 natives. 
 
 While the quadrupeds are daily on the in-
 
 316 AMPHIBIOUS ANIMALS 
 
 crease, the amphibious animals are on the de- 
 crease, in a much greater ratio. 
 
 Some fifteen years back, seals were very pro- 
 lific on the southerly parts of the country, many 
 shore parties procuring one hundred thousand 
 skins in a season. So few are now procurable, 
 that a single vessel, employed solely in this trade, 
 would make a losing speculation. The favourite 
 grounds frequented by these animals was the 
 whole of the west coast of the Island of Victoria, 
 from Cape Farewell to the South Cape, includ- 
 ing the rocks called the Traps, the Snares Islands, 
 Antipodes Islands, Boimty Rocks, Auckland Isles, 
 and the Chatham group. All these places were 
 infested by the various phoc^e, which have since 
 been annually cut up. (Note 6.) 
 
 The seals in New Zealand included all that 
 were diversified in the genus phocge, called by 
 the general name of kararahe kikino by the 
 natives. 
 
 A bottle-nosed seal (phoca econina) was 
 caught in Uwoua, when I was there in 1836; 
 it had arrived from the southward, and had 
 entangled itself in the surf on the beach ; it 
 was soon killed by the natives with paddles. 
 This was accounted a rich treat to them. The 
 amphibious sea-lion and lioness (phoca leonina), 
 have been often met with on the coasts by the
 
 AND REPTILIA. 317 
 
 sealers who have been residents on the southern 
 island and islets to the south-west of the Island 
 of Victoria. 
 
 The sea-hear (phoca ursina) was formerly 
 the largest seal ; but these animals are so well 
 known, that they require no further description. 
 The sealers applied many of the inferior skins 
 for dresses ; the fat, for their culinary purposes 
 and lamps. The flesh of some was accounted 
 little inferior to pork or beef. 
 
 The country is happily void of reptiles or 
 noxious animals, a few harmless Ihards only fre- 
 quenting the sunny spots of the groves ; these 
 are seldom above four inches long. They are 
 variously clothed ; the principal portion are co- 
 vered with scaly, curvilinear stripes of virent 
 gold, or brown scales, that protect the frigid 
 reptile. Many of those whose outer cuticle is 
 not scaly are gifted with ability to change their 
 colour like the chameleon, adopting a similar 
 hue to that presented in its vicinity. 
 
 The gigantic lizard, or guana, exists princi- 
 pally in the Island of Victoria. Some are 
 found in the isles of the Bay of Plenty. The 
 natives relate ogre-kilHng stories of this reptile, 
 but doubtless it is harmless. In New South 
 Wales, the guana has been found ten feet in
 
 318 REPTILES, &C. 
 
 length, proportionably large in circumference, 
 and is harmless. 
 
 The late Mr. Fraser, colonial botanist, men- 
 tioned to me having met with one this size, and 
 harmless. These pedaneous reptiles are seldom 
 seen. 
 
 In 1837, three snakes, entwining a piece of 
 wood foreign to the country, were cast ashore in 
 the river Hokianga. When discovered by the 
 the natives, they were greatly alarmed, and sup- 
 posed the divinities of another country had 
 arrived. They were of the species Pelamys 
 bicolor. 
 
 There are no serpents, or snakes, of any de- 
 scription. A native, in 1775, shewed Cook a 
 drawing of a guana and a snake, as inhabitants 
 of the country. The former was represented as 
 devouring men ; the latter was doubtless the 
 conger-eel, which grows to a large size, and 
 is plentiful in these islands. 
 
 The leech (Hirudo medicinalis), toads, frogs, 
 with their barometrical croak! croak! abound 
 in the swamps. These subsultive reptiles do not 
 differ from the species in Europe, each being 
 animated with a similar determination to subjoin 
 their remarks with open throat on approaching 
 rain ; and, near to mountainous districts, the
 
 ENTOMOLOGY. 319 
 
 situation of these hydromcancers is no sinecure, 
 from the frequency of the falling fluid. 
 
 The entomology of the country is somewhat 
 spare. The most disagreeable, in their acquaint- 
 ance, is the ndmu, or sand-fly ; these little in- 
 sects are mischievously troublesome ; they have 
 no particular choice as to what part they alight 
 on the human body — the forehead or the ankle. 
 They contrive, with their minute invisible feelers, 
 to make a small puncture, which soon swells, 
 causing an itching almost intolerable. These 
 diminutive flies are easily killed, but are seldom 
 caught, until gorged with the blood of their vic- 
 tims. The namu are most numerous on the bor- 
 ders of streams or marshy places, and appear in 
 myriads before rain. These insects are absolutely 
 cruel to the ladies, whose apparel is of a less 
 guarded nature to that worn by the opposite sex. 
 
 The mosquito, or waiwai roa, abound amid 
 the innumerable swamps of the country ; they 
 are troublesome enough, but not equal to their 
 Indian prototypes, which I have been made to 
 remember in a residence among the Eastern 
 islands. 
 
 Various papelias, or butterflies, are to be 
 found, but of very minor pretensions to beauty. 
 Several gryllce, or locusts, whose chirping makes 
 the woods resound ; grashoppers, dragon-files,
 
 320 ENTOMOLOGY. 
 
 black ants ; beetles, of many varieties ; scorpion- 
 flies ; the coxnmow flesh-fly ; and the disagreeable 
 oestrus, or gad-fly, whose practice of ejecting its 
 larvae over the smoking viands of the table, ren- 
 ders it an intolerable nuisance. This filthy in- 
 sect is less bearable in New Holland. 
 
 Some species of the common Blatta Ameri- 
 cana have been introduced by the whale-ships, 
 which are often filled with these unpleasant 
 beetles. The most disgusting insects in nature 
 exist among the spear-grass, called toi toi, of 
 the swamps and plains ; it is called Mkdrdnt. 
 Its odour is disgustingly offensive, and it is often 
 found in rush and other dwelling-houses. 
 
 The insect that contends for mastery with 
 the namu is the heha, or flea. Who is not alive 
 to the volitary propensities of this pragmatic in- 
 sect, which may pass muster in comparison 
 with the kutu, known to the filthy ancients as 
 the pedicuhis hiimanus 9 This " abomination 
 unto the Egyptians," or to any other people 
 possessing ideas of common decency and clean- 
 liness, crawl in numbers about the person and 
 apparel of the natives. Notwithstanding the 
 fact that the houses are kept in good order, 
 yet the habits of the people are quite con- 
 trary. It is an unpleasant duty ; but a tra- 
 veller is bound, by the promises he sets forth.
 
 REPTILIA. 321 
 
 to give a description of the manners of the 
 people, whose history he proposes to narrate. 
 It is the sacred function of the native barber, 
 after cutting the hair off his sitter, to place 
 the quantity he has polled in a Wai tapu, or 
 sacred place. In the discharge of this office, 
 not a few of the ** creeping things" above men- 
 tioned are exposed to the light ; the barbarous 
 discoverer, ever alive to the " kaore maomao, 
 or never waste," immediately places them be- 
 tween his teeth, and swallows these obnoxious 
 vermin principally from '' the having a taste that 
 way" and the most effectual method of depriving 
 them of future liberty. 
 
 Snails of various kinds exist in the forest, 
 many of a very large size ; griihs, earth-zcorms, 
 caterpillars, in many varieties, which supply the 
 numerous birds with provender. 
 
 Several species of the apterus genus are met 
 with. The wandering spider (Aranea viatica), is 
 met with continually ; and it has been already 
 stated that the innumerable spider-webs (Aranea 
 calycina), have the resemblance, when the morn- 
 ing sun shines on them, loaded with the dew of 
 the preceding night, of so many hyads, or watery 
 stars. 
 
 The scorpion is found within the bark of 
 
 VOL. I. Y
 
 322 ICHTHYOLOGY 
 
 trees, but liarmless ; and also the centipede (Sco- 
 lopendra), which is equally innocuous. Both 
 these latter insects have the same repulsive 
 form as they are found to possess in India, 
 but are of much smaller size. 
 
 In ichthyology, few coasts in the globe pos~ 
 sess a greater abundance and variety than the 
 shores, rivers, creeks, &c., of New Zealand ; 
 these are equal in taste and flavour with those 
 of Europe. 
 
 Large shoals of various species visit the 
 coasts at certain seasons ; at which period the 
 natives take advantage, and procure for them- 
 selves, with gigantic seines, a sufficiency of this 
 favourite food for the winter season. 
 
 Some deep banks lie off the east coast, on 
 which the kauai, or mullet, wcqmka, or cod-fish, 
 and the kdlidwcu, or colourless salmon, abound. 
 All visitors to these shores are unanimous in 
 their praises of the flavour and variety of the 
 finny tribes of this section of the Pacific, which 
 are only found in salt water. 
 
 The pdtikl, between the large flounder and 
 the sole, is equally excellent with the European 
 fish, as are also the mackarel, of which there are 
 several varieties. Many other fish are equally 
 numerous, answering to our hakes, tench, bream,
 
 OF NEW ZEALAND. 323 
 
 snap2)er, hacldock, elephant-fishy polloclc, salmon, 
 gurnards, pipe-fish, parrot-Jish, leather-jackets, 
 cole-fish, John Dorijs, sword-fsh, cod; various 
 kinds oi skate and cat-fish, sting-ray and dog-fish. 
 
 Many of these, in flavour and weight, yield 
 to none of their kind in any part of the world. 
 
 Among the leviathans, who sport in shoals 
 around these shores, the para paraua, or sperm- 
 whale (Physeter macrocephalus) ; the tohora, or 
 right-xvhale (Bal^ena mysticoetus) ; the mungu 
 nui, or hlack physeter ; the sun-fish (Diodon 
 mola) ; fin-hack (Bal^ena physalis) ; the miis- 
 cuhis, or large-lipped whale ; frequent the coast 
 in vast numbers (Note 8, Appendix). The 
 mango, or shark (Squalus); inlot-fish (Scomber 
 dMQ,toY');fiying-fish (Exocoetus volitans); hammer- 
 headed shark (Squalus zygoena) ; frequent the 
 coast, especially the River Thames, in vast 
 shoals, and are preserved by the natives as 
 winter food. 
 
 The banks off Cape Brett produce shoals of 
 cod-fish in the season, which also form a variety 
 for the winter provision, together with a quan- 
 tity of small flounders. 
 
 In testaceous and crustaceous fish, this coun- 
 try will also compete with any other. The 
 beaches on the whole line of coast, however 
 rocky, afford sufficient space for clams, mussels.
 
 324 CRUSTACEA. 
 
 limpets, wilks, cockles, sea-ears, sea-eggs, star- 
 Jisli, cuttles, craijs, and oysters. Some gigantic 
 mussels grow to a foot in length : these latter 
 are found in an upright position, m mud-banks, 
 at low ebb-tide. 
 
 Between the rocks are found a great variety 
 of shell-fish, principally univalves, either tur- 
 binated or cockleated. The fish within them 
 are of excellent quality ; many of them possess 
 a small mass of acrid matter, which is easily per- 
 ceived by its extreme blue colour when boiled. 
 The banks of most rivers and creeks are formed 
 of mud of the yellow sandstone, from whose ex- 
 tremiC brittleness it is easily abrupted from the 
 neighbouring hills by the rains, and becomes 
 converted, by the action of the salt-water, into a 
 blue mud. These banks often extend some 
 miles, and are well filled with clams and cockles 
 of great variety ; and large oysters, but of very 
 strong taste, from their beds being in the vicinity 
 of the roots of the mangrove-tree, whose bitter 
 leaves and seed afford some nourishment to the 
 fish. Of course none but bivalves take up their 
 quarters in the luxuriant mud, which is of the 
 most fattening quality. Many varieties of the 
 oyster cling to the rocks, whose taste is deli- 
 cate. The pawa, or mutton-jisli, also clings to 
 the rocks.
 
 CORALLINE FORMATION. 325 
 
 The natives make use of this pearly univalve 
 to ornament the carvings of the human face ; 
 small pieces being inserted for the eyes. 
 
 Various vermes testacea and corallbies, ve- 
 siculaied, celUferoiis, tiibidar, and articulated, 
 cleave to small portions of rock, forming, in ap- 
 pearance, part and parcel of their structure. 
 
 The vermes mollusca, such as species of the 
 terehella, actinia, &c., who derive an existence 
 by feeding on their neighbours, also abound in 
 great variety. Coral pohjjxe also make free, 
 similar to the piiceron, on forest leaves. 
 
 To the naturalist, who takes delight in the 
 mysterious wonders of our mercifully beneficent 
 Creator, a vast field lies here before him of un- 
 trodden ground, in the variety of zoophytes, ma- 
 drepora, medusce, mollusca, which are found in 
 large glutinous masses on the edge of the tide. 
 
 Corallines, and various spongiant formations, 
 abound on the coast. 
 
 The forms of the gelabrous molluscae, respir- 
 ing through their bronchine, are as various in 
 form as the most inventive mind can well 
 conceive. 
 
 The sand-banks and sandy beaches are 
 equally prolific in shell-fish. The sea-horse 
 (Hippocampus sygnathus) are very plentiful, as
 
 326 NATURAL HISTORY. 
 
 are also various ecJmiij or sea hedge-hogs; 
 pennatulas, or sea-pens, and sea-mosses. 
 
 Thefttci hne the shores in infinite variety. 
 
 Among the crustaceous genus, a large ko- 
 huda, or cray-Jishj equal in flavour and size to 
 our lobsters, is found in plenty among the rocks 
 below the tide ; the natives feel for this fish 
 with their feet, and, with a sudden jerk, eject 
 it from its quarters into a basket. The com- 
 mon crab exists in numbers, and the quantities 
 of shrimps and their family are unbounded. The 
 sepia, or cuttle-Jish, also forms an article of native 
 food. The natives evince an intelligent spirit, 
 by being conversant with the above species of 
 the natural history of their country, which they 
 have also distinguished by various appellations 
 well known among them.
 
 327 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Mineralogy — Volcanic Origin — Boiling and Bituminous 
 Springs — Mayor Island — Motiti — Whale Island — 
 Sulphur Lakes — Hot Baths — Lakes Rua, Ma, Iti, 
 Ihu, and Kiihi — Subjection of the Tribes — Taupe 
 Country — Rocky Fissures — Snowy Mountains — Tou- 
 niiriro — Ruapahu — Mounts Edgcumbe, Egmont, Iko- 
 rangi, Tokatoka — Local Traditions — Geologic Forma- 
 tion of the Country — Minerals — Fossils — Fungitae — 
 Arborigations — Ostracites — Caverns, Marine and Sub- 
 terrane — Cascades — Rivers — Fresh Water Streams, &c. 
 
 This important branch of natural history has 
 hitherto been much neglected. The chain of 
 mountains stretching almost uninterruptedly in 
 the northern island, from 38° to 41° 30' south 
 latitude, and in the centre island, from 42° to 
 46° 30' S. running north and south, doubtless 
 contain, beside a vast quantity of iron ore and 
 bituminous matter, a variety of minerals, that 
 will amply repay future investigators for their 
 researches. 
 
 Shells, principally bivalves, are found within 
 the outer soil of the highest mountains, some of
 
 328 VOLCANOES. 
 
 which tower to the majestic height of fourteen 
 thousand feet above the level of the ocean. 
 The appearance of these mountains is consider- 
 ably enhanced in grandeur, by their being skirted 
 with hills of inferior height, clothed to their 
 summits with the beautiful forest-trees of the 
 country. 
 
 Volcanic evidences of the primeval origin of 
 the country are visible in every part, especially 
 at some distance from the sea. 
 
 Off the Bay of Plenty is situated White 
 Island (Wakari), about thirty miles N.N.W. of 
 Cape Runaway, or Te Kaha. This island is in 
 continual ignition. At dusk, the flames issuing 
 from the crater, situated in a centrical part of 
 the mountain, are distinctly visible for some 
 miles ; and long after the mariner has lost sight 
 of the island from the horizon, the ascending 
 smoke of this natural furnace suffices to point 
 out its locality. 
 
 Wakari is about six miles in circumference, 
 high, and well covered with perennial verdure ; 
 and except the continual fire and smoke emitted 
 from the crater, the mountain, from the sea, has 
 not the cineritious resemblance of a volcano. The 
 beach is formed of shingle, somewhat steep, and 
 is almost alive, with the subsultive leaping of 
 the innumerable shoals of fish, of unequalled
 
 WAIIARI ISLAND. 329 
 
 variety. The bursting fury, the effects of vol- 
 canic ignition, that agitates this sohtary isle, has 
 often been described to me by the natives, who 
 have felt the effects of earthquakes on the main, 
 communicated by Wakari. 
 
 I was at one time becalmed off this island 
 for six days, during which period the crater 
 emitted a vast volume of black smoke during 
 the day, and at night the flames were glaring. 
 
 The natives haul up their canoes above the 
 steep banks, when they visit the island, which 
 parties of them are often in the habit of doing, 
 for the purpose of fishing. 
 
 From Wakari, few portions of the very low 
 land of the Bay of Plenty are visible. The lava 
 {pimgd rea) ejected from the mountain, which is 
 of some magnitude, is carried by currents to the 
 adjacent shores, and is made use of by the natives 
 for polishing their muskets. 
 
 Wakari is situated from the river Opotiki 
 north thirty miles. A reef extends three miles 
 in length, between it and the mainland. The 
 island is stated to have arisen from the deep, 
 after Mawe, the paternal deity of the New Zea- 
 land theogony, had first touched fire, when, 
 taking up the new element with both hands, he 
 was so greatly tortured by the insufferable pain, 
 that he instantly dived under water to assuage
 
 330 VOLCANIC ISLANDS 
 
 his agony ; and in the place where he shook the 
 fire from him arose Wakari. 
 
 All the islands in this deep bay have indubit- 
 able marks of recent ignition. Boiling springs, 
 sulphm', and obsidian, or volcanic glass, are 
 found in all of them. 
 
 The sulphur may be remarked as having 
 less dross than is generally found in similar 
 European volcanic matter, and as possessing 
 a brilliant colour similar to the pigment king's 
 yellow. 
 
 Tiihia, or Maijor Island, hes twenty miles 
 due north of Touranga, the northern harbour in 
 this bay. The mountain is very high, and it has 
 also hot springs : it is situated S.E. and N.W. : 
 it has but one landing-place, the island bound- 
 ary rising precipitously from the sea in granitic 
 rock. 
 
 Obsidian is found here in large masses : this 
 mineral fusion abounds here. The small islet 
 of Karizooa lies N.N.W., seven miles distant 
 from Touranga, and is of similar formation. 
 
 Motiti, or Small Island^ lies eight miles 
 north from the Tumu river, and is eight miles 
 in length and three in breadth. This isle is flat, 
 covered with stunted trees, and decayed veget- 
 able soil, above the mouldering lava. About 
 half a mile west lies a flat rock, one mile in
 
 IN THE BAY OF PLENTY. 331 
 
 length, about two hundred feet high, with seven 
 fathoms water close to it. 
 
 Motu Tohora, or Whale Island, lies N.N.W. 
 to the entrance of the river Wakii-tane, which is 
 distant seven miles. This island is high, and 
 somewhat conical, about one thousand feet ; it 
 possesses on the west side three beaches, but 
 little fresh water. The anchorage in the vicinity 
 is good ; the north end of the island is steep ; it 
 is composed of the usual volcanic matter. 
 
 The former tribes that possessed this island 
 were partly killed and devoured, and the sur- 
 vivors made slaves by the native hordes from 
 Waka-tane. The former were in the act of 
 scalding some pigs, in one of the boiling springs 
 that are numerous on this island, when they were 
 surprised, cut off, and broken as a tribe. These 
 islands have been the scenes of many depopu- 
 lating wars, where man, in his most savage state, 
 has not been deterred from following the evil 
 propensities of his lieart by the thundering vol- 
 canic eloquence of nature around teaching him 
 his insignificance and nothingness. 
 
 A series of widely extended plains, very ele- 
 vated above the coast, lie some few miles inland, 
 E.S.E. from Touranga, and S.W. from Makatu. 
 
 The principal in size is called Roto Rua. 
 Its eastern shore is lined by a number of ex-
 
 332 BOILING SPRINGS 
 
 tensive boiling-springs, in continual agitation ; 
 and small lakes of sulphur, bubbling up in thick 
 masses, accompanied with mephitic vapours. 
 On jetting any stone, or weighty substance, 
 into any of these lakes, the thick matter spurts 
 up to some height. 
 
 For the space of perhaps a mile, the ground 
 is composed of this bituminous matter. It is 
 damp and foetid ; and so very infirm, that, tread- 
 ing on many portions, the sound is reverberated 
 by the ambulation. Many places in the sur- 
 rounding plains resound with a hollow echo, 
 indicative of its in solidity. At the principal 
 spring of Roto Rua, a very heavy body of 
 steam arises from the sulphuric acid, of so 
 overpowering an odour, as to incapacitate the 
 spectator from approaching closely. 
 
 The principal residence of the tribe occupy- 
 ing the largest lake is on an island within the 
 Roto Rua. 
 
 This is also the residence of the surrounding 
 tribes in times of war ; but the fortifications were 
 taken in 1818 by the Napui tribe of the Bay of 
 Islands, who, possessing a greater quantity of 
 fire-arms and ammunition, became conquerors. 
 The invaders would have found the enterprise 
 pregnant with many difficulties, had they not 
 captured a slave of their enemies, who be-
 
 AND SULPHUR LAKES, 333 
 
 trayed to them the private approaches. The 
 canoes of the Napui were hauled across two 
 narrow isthmuses of land, saving otherwise a 
 distance of ten miles, and thus suddenly ap- 
 peared before the surprised people of Roto 
 Rua. The Napuis made sad havoc among these 
 tribes, killing and eating some hundreds, and 
 carrying away with them a large number of 
 slaves, most of whom were afterwards killed, 
 and baked in the ovens of these sarcophagi, 
 when rations became scarce in their commis- 
 sariat. On the island, there are many hot- 
 springs bubbhng continually close to the edge 
 of the lake ; and it is somewhat singular that 
 food cooked in these springs does not partake 
 of any foetid or mineral taste. 
 
 The Roto Rua is about fifteen miles in 
 breadth. 
 
 The natives are particularly delighted with 
 these springs ; whose temperature in winter is 
 such, that the people sit immersed for hours to- 
 gether, to keep themselves comfortable. When 
 the springs are of too high a degree of heat, cold 
 water is let into the baths from the lake adjoining, 
 until they are sufficiently accommodating. 
 
 The usual method of cooking food in these 
 parts is to dig a hole in the ground in the 
 vicinity of a boiling-spring, placing within the
 
 331 INTERIOR LAKES AND PLAINS 
 
 cavity their provisions, covered over with some 
 baskets and the surrounding soil ; in half an hour 
 the food is well cooked, without any unpleasant 
 taste attaching itself to the edibles. 
 
 The houses of the natives are to Europeans 
 insufferably hot, from the warmth of the soil on 
 which they are erected. 
 
 There is one cold spring remarkable for its 
 peculiar softness to the touch. This water will 
 cleanse the filthiest of the native garments much 
 better than even an apphcation of soap, or any 
 other alkali. The lake in its immediate vicinity 
 does not possess a similar property ; and it is 
 also cold, a somewhat rapid stream flowing in 
 the centre of it. Another stream possesses on 
 its border a spring excessively cold. The water 
 of the latter, when agitated, is tinged with a red 
 earth, which, taken up, and the watery solution 
 dried, leaves a precipitate that is in much re- 
 quest by the elegantes of the tribes for painting 
 themselves with. 
 
 In these extensive plains there are other 
 lakes. The principal are Roto Kahi ; Roto 
 Md, or White Lake, so denominated from its 
 having several white, sandy beaches on its 
 shores ; Roto Ihti, or Nose Lake, from its join- 
 ing Roto Rua by a small river ; and Roto Iti, 
 or Small Lake, separated from Roto Ihu by a
 
 ON THE EAST COAST. 335 
 
 neck of land about two miles long. Roto Iti 
 is also separated by a neck of land eight miles 
 in width from the R'lver Walld, which latter dis- 
 embogues itself about two miles south-east of 
 the river Touranga. Roto Iti has a boiling 
 spring where the lake becomes shoal, emitting 
 much steam from the ignition beneath. 
 
 Another spring flows within a hollow, which 
 is lost underground. The borders of these lakes 
 are well peopled, considering the scant popula- 
 tion of the country ; and these tribes can muster 
 three thousand fighting-men to bring into the 
 field. In the luxurious amusements of bathing, 
 all ages and both sexes congregate promis- 
 cuously in the warm baths. 
 
 At a place called Taupo, some few days' 
 travel south-west from Roto Rua, are a series 
 of extensive and magnificent lakes and boiling 
 springs. These inland tribes are the most wicked 
 and brutal cannibals that, perhaps, exist on the 
 face of the globe. They are not very friendly to 
 Europeans, being fully aware of their security 
 from retaliation in the present state of the 
 country, in case of wantonly sacrificing to their 
 cupidity the lives or properties of such Euro- 
 peans who might at any time reside or travel 
 among them. 
 
 Few places in the country exhibit the vio-
 
 336 RIVER THAMES. 
 
 lent effects of former volcanic concussions in so 
 great a degree as the district of the Horake, in the 
 River Thames, from 36° to 37° south latitude. 
 
 In the numerous islands situated beyond the 
 frithj large, shapeless masses of granite-formation 
 are perpended vertically from the roofs of the 
 caverns which abound in all these lonely and 
 deserted isles, astonishing the traveller how 
 such ponderous weights can hang by apparently 
 the slenderest hold. 
 
 In many places piles of black-cindered lava 
 are found, lying in wild confusion, representing, 
 in a picture presented by nature, the sublime and 
 awful chaos before the earliest creation. Im- 
 mense detached masses, torn by the convulsion 
 of the elements into shapeless fragments, shew 
 the operose action of extinguished volcanoes of 
 antecedent ages. 
 
 Many of these islands present deep fissures, 
 the depths of which are undistinguishable for 
 the brush and liands covering the face of the 
 cindered lava. 
 
 Many curious effects have been produced in 
 several sections of the country, by the liquid fluid 
 having suddenly cooled, as the mass of matter 
 had been driven onwards in yeasty waves. In 
 this state it has been suddenly arrested, giving a 
 geological representation of a troubled sea lashing
 
 MOUNTAIN HEIGHTS. 337 
 
 in headlong breakers an iron-bound coast ; in 
 other parts representing the cume, or dross, 
 from a furnace. 
 
 In such places, on the mainland, rivers have 
 forced their way through this yielding wreck of 
 matter ; also large chasms have been formed in the 
 land, which suddenly break upon the traveller. 
 These deep gullies are particularly dangerous, 
 the openings being hidden by the thick copse and 
 brushwood. The fissures are found to descend 
 suddenly to a perpendicular depth, from fifty to 
 three hundred feet, the sides of which shew in 
 curtilinear lines the various strata composing the 
 land around, surrounded by pumice-stones of 
 small size. 
 
 The high mountain of Toiindriro, in lat. 39° 
 10' S., and long. 176° E., situated nearly due 
 north of Cape Palliser, is still in continual igni- 
 tion. The cloudy and snow-capped summit is 
 observable from many localities, especially from 
 Waikato river. The gigantic mountain of Rtid- 
 pdkci is covered with eternal snow. This tower- 
 ing elevation is situated in nearly lat. 39° 35' S., 
 and long. 175° 30' E., and rises in frowning 
 majesty above a chain of mountains, extending 
 from near Putdwdki, or Mount Edgcumbe, in the 
 Bay of Plenty, to Cape Terrawiti, in Cook's 
 Straits, a distance of one hundred and forty miles. 
 
 VOL. I. z
 
 338 REMARKABLE MOUNTAINS, 
 
 The highest elevation, and which towers by 
 itself, is the mountain of Haupdpd, or Mount 
 Egmont, situated at the north-west entrance of 
 Cook's Straits, in lat. 39° 24' S.,long. 174° 5' E., 
 in the district of Taranaki. 
 
 This mountain must have been formerly the 
 site of a very active volcano : it is calculated to 
 be upwards of fourteen thousand feet from the 
 level of the adjacent ocean : the base commences 
 about three miles from the beach. The French 
 navigators have hkened it in form and appear- 
 ance, from sea, to the Pic A9ores, or Peak of 
 TenerifFe. This immense mountain answers the 
 purpose of a barometer to the prescient natives : 
 if any nebulous cloud rests on, or shadows 
 the lofty summit, bad weather is predicted ; but 
 if it be clear in the zenith, the fishermen take 
 to sea in their canoes. 
 
 The mountains most celebrated in the songs 
 of the New Zealanders are Hoxvdrd, or Mount 
 Camel, in lat. 34° 49' S., long. 170° 48' E., situ- 
 ated near the North Cape, and are discern- 
 ible on the east and west coasts of the island. 
 Putawaki, or Mount Edgcumbe, on the south- 
 ern edge of the Bay of Plenty, between Makatu 
 and Wakatane ; Tokdtolid, at the junction of the 
 Wairoa, and Kaipara rivers on the west coast, in 
 lat. 36° 30' S., long. 174° 12' E. ; Ikorangi,
 
 AND LEGENDARY LORE. 339 
 
 bearing west-and-by-north from the East Cape, 
 in lat. 37° 55' 30" S., long. 175° 55' 25" E. ; 
 
 Tonguariro, south-west from Kawia ; Ruapahu 
 and Haupapa. These elevations, so superior to 
 the hills that surround them, afford an inex- 
 haustible subject of legendary superstitions, 
 which are more implicitly believed, in propor- 
 tion as they deviate from common sense. 
 
 Every hill that overlooks his less elevated 
 neighbour, has some distinguishing tradition, 
 giving evidence of the inventive talents of the 
 ancestors of the present race, who have long 
 since disappeared in the womb of time. 
 
 The hollow ground, covered over with a slight 
 crust of vesicular lava, in volcanic districts, re- 
 quires much circumspection, as a false step may 
 precipitate the incautious traveller into a deep 
 abyss beneath. The bases of the hills, in many 
 districts of the country, are formed of xvhimtoae, 
 surmounted by a stiff argillaceous earth, mixed, 
 in parts, with a white arenulous marl. Large 
 pieces of chert are found in making excavations 
 for wells, or digging some few feet in a mountain 
 wall. 
 
 Much of the mineral called steatites is found 
 in the country north of the Thames ; it is a prin- 
 cipal formation, found generally in a lamellated
 
 340 MINERALOGICAL PRODUCTIONS. 
 
 form, and is easily divided into flakes ; its many 
 veins are marked as if iron pyrites were in the 
 immediate vicinity. It is of a soft friable natm'e ; 
 and large masses are easily divided, with the aid 
 of a crowbar, from high rocks of this substance. 
 It has much the appearance of a petrified argil, 
 strongly tinctured by iron in an oxidised state. 
 Scmdstone is of course the substratum of the 
 sand-hills. I have had occasion to observe the 
 annoyance it causes to travellers in its mouldered 
 state. 
 
 Coal is, doubtless, plentiful in the country. In 
 the River Thames district there is no lack of this 
 invaluable addendum to European comforts ; and, 
 when the primeval formation of this article is 
 taken into consideration, it will not surprise the 
 geological observer should large tracts of this 
 useful bitumen be discovered. 
 
 Marcasite and hisimith are met with in the 
 interior ; also quarries of slate in various dis- 
 tricts. 
 
 Quartz is found in abundance. Cyan'ile is 
 met with in its usual bed of granite. Marbles 
 of a superior description are also to be seen in 
 large masses in many parts of the island ; and 
 Waiomio, in the district of the River Kouakoua> 
 a principal cemetery to the inhabitants of the
 
 MINERALOGICAL PRODUCTIONS. 341 
 
 Bay of Islands, has a tract of this invahiable 
 stone. 
 
 In Stewart's Island, furthest south, much of 
 this valued material is met with. Freestone is 
 common in the country, and will be of great 
 service to the future colonist. Basalt rocks are 
 met with in various districts. 
 
 In employing some labourers to excavate a 
 portion of ground on my settlement at Korora- 
 rika, several large pieces of aiigite was found. 
 This was the only indication I saw of volcanic 
 origin so far north. Large pieces oi jasper y red 
 and green, are found on the sea-coasts, very 
 heavy for their size. This mineral is mostly 
 found in a square form, with evident appearances 
 of having been exposed to the action of the 
 water for a length of time, the corners, or small 
 abutments, being well rounded. 
 
 Cornelians, an inferior species, small and 
 variously coloured, are found very plentifully 
 strewed among the sand-hills ; also, in the same 
 places to the north of the Bay of Islands, and 
 principally on the west coast, a kind of litnation, 
 or metallic dust. 
 
 The red ochreous earth, called I'okowai, I have 
 had frequent occasion to mention, and also a 
 protoxyde of manganese^ called by the natives 
 parakawahia. This pigment gives a blue ochreous
 
 342 GEOLOGICAL AND 
 
 precipitate, which is made use of to decorate the 
 uncivilised sons of the land. 
 
 Large indurated pieces o^ silica are seen in 
 excavating clayey hills ; also a species of argilla- 
 ceous ochreous geode, much resembling the well- 
 known tierra sienna in appearance. I found 
 much of this material on the west coasts. Iron 
 stone is somewhat abundant. 
 
 A peculiar mineral stone exists on the bound- 
 aries of a lake a few miles inland from Toko- 
 maru, in lat. 38° 5' S., long. 176° 8' E., forty 
 miles south of the East Cape. This stone is 
 called by the natives niodmod. They are per- 
 fectly spherical, studded with iron pyrites, and 
 are found from the dimensions of a pistol-ball to 
 that of the calibre of a cannon. These are made 
 use of by the natives for their ammunition. I 
 could procure no account of the origin of their 
 being found in this peculiar spot, but was in- 
 formed that the counterpart of these stones 
 are also to be met with on the borders of 
 the lake situated on the elevated mountain 
 of Ikorangi, some twenty miles N.N. W. from 
 Tokomaru. 
 
 Iron pyrites are found in the bed of rivers, 
 and mineral dust of a similar nature. If we take 
 the latitude of New Zealand into consideration, 
 and the most valuable of the mining districts of
 
 MINERALOGICAL PRODUCTIONS. 343 
 
 South America, we find them to accord ; and, 
 doubtless, time and investigation will discover 
 valuable ores in the former country as well as 
 in the latter. 
 
 On the shores of either coast are found vari- 
 ous stones, striated with mineral veins. Whole 
 districts are formed of a cretacioiis marl, or chalk, 
 extending from Warre Kahika, or Hick's Bay, 
 to the Mahia, due west of Nukutaurua, or Table 
 Cape. These coasts are entirely formed of 
 this material, slightly covered with a stunted 
 furze. 
 
 The poendmu, or green talc, jasper, serpent- 
 stone, and jade, for it is known by all these 
 names, has ever been held in high estimation by 
 the aborigines of the country. It is found in 
 the channel of a river lake, which has a distant 
 communication with the sea. This lake is 
 known as Te Wai Poenamu, or the water of 
 green talc. It is disposed in its natural bed, on 
 the banks of the lake, and, similar to flint, has a 
 whitish incrustation on its outer edges. It lies 
 in layers not of a large size. When first dug 
 from its bed, it is found to be of a soft nature, 
 but it hardens on exposure to the air. This 
 substance, when not formed too thick, is semi- 
 transparent, having the appearance of crystalite. 
 
 No European article of warfare has yet been
 
 344) NATIVE " FORGET ME NOTS." 
 
 introduced that is more affectionately regarded 
 than implements formed of this substance by the 
 natives : they are respected as the legacies of an 
 ancestral people, lost for ever. The meri, or 
 native implement, used in battle instead of the 
 tomahawk, is generally made of poenamu. A 
 thousand tales, bordering on the supernatural, 
 are attached to these deadly weapons ; the adults 
 are incited to acts of recklessness, the young to 
 deeds of precocious valour, by these mementos 
 of past struggles, 
 
 Mdndtimga, or " forget-me-nots," are made 
 of this valuable stone, and are appended from 
 the neck, ears, &c. Tikis, or breast ornaments, 
 representing the human form much exaggerated, 
 are also formed of the poenamu. 
 
 These mineralogical mementos are peculiarly 
 cherished, from the circumstance of having be- 
 longed to relatives whose appearance will glad- 
 den their descendants no more. I have fre- 
 quently desired to obtain some of these antiqui- 
 ties, but they were esteemed beyond any price ; 
 nor can I conceive any inducements that could 
 cause them to part with these remembrancers, 
 to many of which are attached tales of merri- 
 ment, or enduring affliction, that have been 
 associated with the memories of their former 
 possessors, long since mouldered in the dust.
 
 NATURAL HISTORY. 345 
 
 The natives have many superstitions respect- 
 ing this stone. 
 
 The priests, to whom I always applied for any 
 information relating to native polemics, always 
 said the poenamii was originally a fish, who, 
 naturally vexed at being unceremoniously taken 
 out of the water, transformed itself into a 
 stone. In relating this story, the narrator 
 generally enacts the part of the hapless fisher- 
 man, and, with a piece of stick to represent 
 the apocryphal fish, is in the act of taking 
 a bite, but finds himself bitten by the petri- 
 faction. 
 
 The onezvoa, a dark gray granite, was also 
 formerly made use of for hatchets, war imple- 
 ments, &c. 
 
 Fossils are found in those islands very 
 abundant. The Island of E' Ainomawi contains a 
 large quantity of these natural curiosities. On 
 the shores, fungitce, or fossil corals, are often 
 met with ; and various dendrites, or arborisa- 
 tions, in fossil substances. Petrifactions of the 
 bones of large birds, supposed to be wholly ex- 
 tinct, have often been presented to me by the 
 natives, who invariably expressed much pleasure 
 in beholding a European attracted by substances 
 that belonged to their country. On any subjects 
 connected with the natural history of the land
 
 346 NATURAL HISTORY 
 
 the people felt a pleasure in communicating in- 
 formation ; but it was rendered almost nugatory 
 from being clothed with the most abstruse and 
 ridiculous legends. 
 
 Many of these petrifactions had been the ossi- 
 fied parts of birds, that are at present (as far as is 
 known) extinct in these islands, whose probable 
 tameness, or want of volitary powers, caused 
 them to be early extirpated by a people, driven 
 by both hunger and superstition (either reason 
 is quite sufficient in its way) to rid themselves 
 of their presence. 
 
 A few petrified zoopliites came in my way, 
 but in small portions. The natives are aware of 
 the existence of all these natural phenomena; 
 they require only their memories shaken on the 
 subject, and will instantly commence the recital 
 of a number of superstitions bearing on the sub- 
 ject, in which some truth may be elicited, out 
 of a mass of absurd fiction. 
 
 The mountain of Ikorangi comes in for a 
 large share of applause in these tales. Ostra- 
 cites are found in various parts of the country — 
 inland and on the coast — in deep swamps and 
 elevated mountains — with the soil. 
 
 Na kdpia, or gums, exuding from forest-trees, 
 are met with in various parts of the country; 
 that of the kouri, or yellow pine, being most
 
 OF THE COUNTRY. 347 
 
 exuberant. This resin is not soluble in water ; 
 it has a strong odour of turpentine, and, when 
 freshly exuded, is much chewed by the natives ; 
 and a piece of this savoury article is handed 
 from mouth to mouth among them. Many tons 
 of this prolific bitumen have been taken to Eng- 
 land and the United States, but I have not 
 learnt the success that has attended the experi- 
 ments of its analysis. 
 
 It is very brittle, but a varnish, of a nature 
 and use similar to copal, might be made from it. 
 It flows from the tree in large quantities, espe- 
 cially if an incision be made in the trunk. With 
 trifling caution it may be gathered clear and 
 white, when in its Hquid state. It gives a bright 
 flame, when ignited, burning to the last, and 
 emitting a body of thick smoke ; the odour is 
 far from unpleasant, and, when chewed in its 
 semi-hquid state, acquires the consistence of 
 India rubber (caoutchouc.) The trees in the 
 native forests are full of similar resins, which 
 often exudes even from the tips of the leaves. 
 
 Few countries possess a greater quantity of 
 caverns than New Zealand, the inland parts 
 being disembowelled by volcanic eruptions, and 
 the coast cut into a thousand perforations by 
 the lashing surges of the Pacific Ocean. The 
 caves, excavated by the latter cause, have been
 
 348 CASCADES AND NATURAL SCENERY. 
 
 given in a description of Uwoua. Caves in- 
 land are mostly found either at the foot, or in 
 the close vicinity, of lakes ; the mouths of many 
 of these subterrane excavations are of immense 
 width, covered around with brush-wood and 
 campanula bindweeds, and may be accounted 
 monuments of the ravages caused by ancient 
 convulsions. 
 
 The soil of the country differs materially in 
 every mile of latitude ; the hills are formed of a 
 hard stiff clay, but the many valleys are filled, to 
 some depth, with a nutritious mould, or some- 
 thing very like it, which the rains wash down 
 from the adjacent hills ; that it must be of a 
 superior nature, the vigour and luxurious growth 
 of the various indigenous productions through- 
 out the country, will best testify. 
 
 The traveller will continually meet with 
 forests, perhaps unequalled for useful and beau- 
 tiful timber of a gigantic height, and surrounded 
 by shrubbery in natural beauty. The talents of 
 a Howitt could alone do justice to such splendid 
 scenery. 
 
 Cascades and waterfalls, dashing from a 
 towering height, abound in these islands, the 
 mountainous nature of which are calculated to 
 produce these natural curiosities in innumerable 
 forms, rife with sublimity and grandeur.
 
 CASCADES AND NATURAL SCENERY. 349 
 
 The Island of Victoria possesses these aquatic 
 beauties, accompanied with innumerable jets 
 d'eau, whose magnificence is enhanced by the 
 darkness of the surrounding almost impene- 
 trable thickets, adorned by the loveliest of the 
 umbelliferous tribe of palms. In Dusky Bay 
 there exists a cascade, thirty feet in diameter 
 and one thousand feet in height. 
 
 The awfully solemn stillness around, save the 
 dashing force of the high descending element, 
 attunes the soul to pay an intuitive homage 
 to the beneficent Author of all that is good and 
 beautiful. 
 
 Some of these charming efforts of nature 
 have even arrested the savage owner of these 
 wilds, and names, allegorical and poetical, have 
 been bestowed by the devourer of the abhorrent 
 food of his fellow-man. 
 
 Among a host of others, the Waiani wani- 
 woa, or fall of the rainbow, is very beautiful 
 in the vicinity of the mission station of the Keri 
 keri. It is about ninety feet, descending into a 
 deep natural basin, surrounded by indigenous 
 aquatic plants. 
 
 At Wirinaki, in the Hokianga, a noble cas- 
 cade also presents itself. A beautiful fall of 
 water, but from its locality an invaluable one, 
 disembogues itself, over a natural basaltic wall,
 
 350 THE RERI, OR TAIARURU, 
 
 about one hundred feet in length, and twenty 
 feet in depth, into the salt water of the Bay of 
 Islands. This fall is constantly jetting a heavy 
 body of water into the Waitangi, a river that has 
 its origin in a beautiful lake of fresh water, situ- 
 ated between Hokianga and the Bay of Islands. 
 This lake is about seven miles in average width, 
 nearly forming a circle, celebrated for large 
 conger eels, which are a food of much repute 
 among the natives ; from this inland water, the 
 stream of the Waitangi, or crying waters, flows 
 rapidly through deep valleys, dark on either side 
 with exuberant vegetation, until it enlarges it- 
 self, and glides down the fall. This river is 
 never flooded, flowing in a smooth and often 
 rapid manner. 
 
 Mr. Nicholas, an observant writer on this 
 part of the country, observes, " We found here 
 such a powerful fall of water as would, in the 
 event of the natives being civilised, be capable of 
 working the largest machinery, and which thus 
 might be made exceedingly valuable. A fall of 
 water like this, so admirably adapted for various 
 purposes, such as mills for grinding corn or saw- 
 ing timber, would be, at Port Jackson, a certain 
 fortune for its possessor. When the tide is at 
 its height, there is a depth of water from six to 
 seven feet, that rises close up to the wall, suffi-
 
 AT WAITANGI. 351 
 
 cient for large craft to come alongside." On the 
 north side, a few paces al)ove the fall, is situated 
 a beautiful flat of garden-land, that would be of 
 infinite service to any such establishment above 
 mentioned. 
 
 On all the table-lands of the country, lakes 
 of fresh water abound. The high mountains 
 contain beautiful large lakes in the bosom of 
 their summits ; one of the most sacred is that of 
 Ikorangi, some six thousand feet above the level 
 of the sea. Large eels abound in this lake, which 
 are honoured by the natives with the appellation 
 of atuas (gods). Some of the lakes in the larger 
 island are said to be near eighty miles in cir- 
 cumference. The many rivers that often take 
 their sources from inland lakes, render these 
 islands invaluable, by interflowing in every pos- 
 sible direction ; and but very rarely overflooding 
 their banks, and then seldom beyond two feet in 
 perpendicular height. 
 
 A New Zealand river, of thirty miles in a 
 direct course, meanders often in a serpentine 
 direction, full three times that length. The 
 salt-water rivers are joined, at their estuaries, by 
 limpid fresh-water creeks, many of them pursu- 
 ing their route; joined, by innumerable water- 
 runs in their course, for full forty miles of coun- 
 try. Thus amalgamating, the gentle creek is
 
 352 RIVERS, &c. 
 
 soon lost within the wide-foaming river, that 
 disembogues itself into the sea. I am induced 
 to refer to the pretty conceit of an Atlantic 
 poet, while dwelling on the beauties of his own 
 beloved rivers : — 
 
 " The sire of ocean takes 
 
 A sylvan maiden to his arms, 
 The goddess of the crystal lakes, 
 
 In all her native charms ; 
 She comes, attended by a sparkling train, 
 
 The Naiads of the west her nuptials grace ; 
 She meets the sceptred Father of the main I 
 
 And in his bosom hides her virgin face." 
 
 All the large rivers of the country are of salt- 
 water, but the entire country is delightfully irri- 
 gated with streams, descending from the moun- 
 tains, and meandering through the undulating 
 lands.
 
 353 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Origin of the People — Traditional Origin of the Country — 
 Traditions respecting the Earlier Settlers — Their Deri- 
 vation — Variety in the Appearance of the New Zea- 
 landers, Moral and Physical — East Cape Natives — The 
 Female Character ; Habits before and after Marriage — 
 Chastity — Domestic Manners — Temperament — Dis- 
 position — Self-Immolation — Devotion — Marriages — 
 Adultery — Tangi, or Lamentation — Children affected 
 by Rank — Parental Affection — Native Mummies — 
 Polygamy — Conduct of Children — Ceremony of Ma- 
 trimony — Affiancing — Puberty — Infanticide — Native 
 Conversations on the Subject — Concubinage — Methods 
 to procure Abortion — Chiefs, their Character. 
 
 Much has been said on the origin of the New 
 Zealanders, and also not a little written. From 
 the proximity of New Holland to New Zea- 
 land, it immediately occurs to the antiquary, 
 who delights in tracing, to its earliest source, 
 the advent of a nation, that the commigra- 
 tion of each people was originally from the 
 same race ; but the appearance, language, cus- 
 toms, habits, and manners, of the two people, 
 
 VOL. I. A A
 
 354 COMPARISONS INSTITUTED 
 
 are so essentially and totally different, as to 
 repudiate these ideas as early as formed. 
 
 The brutally abject condition of the New 
 Hollander, the expression of the features, form 
 of body, habits of recklessness as to social com- 
 fort, and dissimilarity of language, no two words 
 being of like tendency or sound, are alone suf- 
 ficient to prove the different descent of the 
 nations in question. 
 
 Captains Flinders, King, Cunningham, and 
 other voyagers and travellers of discernment 
 and penetration, agree in substantiating the 
 fact of the universal degradation and miserable 
 wretchedness of the inhabitants of New Holland 
 throughout the coasts of this continental island. 
 Migrating incessantly in small bands, " few and 
 far between ;" exposed to the most capricious 
 climate that is known, without clothing against 
 its inclemency, and in starvation ; like the 
 doomed descendant of Edom — his hand against 
 every man, and those in return against his ; is 
 additional evidence, if such were wanting, that 
 these people are not conterraneous with those 
 of New Zealand. It is equally certain that these 
 latter people are not indebted for their origin 
 to the now annihilated tribes that Spanish bar- 
 barism and cupidity swept away from South 
 America with the besom of destruction.
 
 WITH ISLANDERS ADJACENT. 355 
 
 Time has discovered what has been hitherto 
 buried in oblivion, that on various parts of the 
 western coast of South America the sea has 
 made considerable inroads on its steep shores, 
 especially in Peru, and has opened to view the 
 cemeteries of nations who have wholly passed 
 from existence, without a previous record or 
 notation ; who had probably passed from this 
 world before the wholesale massacres of the 
 Spaniards. Numerous urns, vases, and orna- 
 ments, originally interred with the people, have 
 been brought to light ; but, among the many 
 articles of this nature, not a single one bore the 
 slightest resemblance to the ancient utensils or 
 implements in use among the Polynesian race. 
 
 The relationship between the New Zealanders 
 and the innumerable tribes inhabiting the many 
 islands of the vast Pacific is past all doubt ; as a 
 marked similitude in institutions, civil polity, re- 
 ligion, habits, and conformity in a physical and 
 (with some exception, caused by cHmate), moral 
 point of view, are evidences that these islanders 
 are from a source congenerous with them all.* 
 
 That all these people are descendants of 
 
 the colonies originally emigrating from Asia, the 
 
 recent investigations of several travellers have 
 
 proved ; the same family, principally distin- 
 
 * See Note 9.
 
 356 ORIGIN OF THE ISLANDS. 
 
 guished in Europe as Malays, have gradually 
 multiplied ; and the increase has further spread 
 themselves from the boundaries of the Yellow 
 Sea to the Sandwich Islands, in the vicinity of 
 the north-west coast of America. The ac- 
 count of the deluge is preserved, among other 
 traditions. 
 
 The origin of the aborigines is variously 
 accounted for, even by themselves. The New 
 Zealanders are all agreed as to the origin of 
 the country : that Mawe, king of Heaven, was 
 one pleasant day amusing himself by practising 
 the piscatory art off the place now occupied by 
 Hawke's Bay, or Wairoa : his success for some 
 time had been doubtful, or, at most, not very 
 remarkable ; but, on the eve of despairing, he 
 suddenly " felt a bite," such as few anglers can 
 felicitate themselves upon, except through the 
 bait carrying a marriage-settlement. To be 
 brief ; after much hauling and exertion of manual 
 strength, aided by his divine powers, he fished up 
 the islands of New Zealand. Hence the name of 
 the north island, Ai no Mawe, or the begotten 
 of Mawe. This far exceeded the divinity's most 
 sanguine expectations ; for he is universally de- 
 scribed as being a man of very moderate preten- 
 sions ; in short, his fishing excursion is supposed 
 to have originated from being a married man,
 
 NATIVE TIIEOGONY. 357 
 
 whose comforts were in some measure abrid^'ed 
 at home by his dearly beloved wile, Innanui te 
 po, who, tradition further adds, wore that in- 
 valuable article of apparel, " unmentionable to 
 ears polite ;" a deprivation that has descended 
 to the present camisated sa/is culotte descendants. 
 
 Maw^ shortly after hastened back to heaven, 
 previously anchoring- his new discovery ; and, 
 like a dutiful husband, anxious to calm the 
 perturbations that his protracted absence would 
 naturally cause in the bosom of his " ladye love :" 
 but he again returned early after, accompanied 
 by Innanui te po, who, it would appear, was 
 apprehensive of the substance of Mawe's next 
 haul, and judged it best to superintend the next 
 baiting. 
 
 The gods (na Atua) of the natives, similar to 
 the idols comprising the theogony of the masters 
 of the world, are equally notorious for obscenity 
 of manners and " shocking behaviour ;" for we 
 soon after find the unfortunate Mawe despatched 
 by his wife during the prevalence of an amorous 
 fit, in which he made the unlucky hiatus of 
 mistaking another goddess for his wife. 
 
 The natives feel pride in pointing out, to 
 any European unbeliever, an islet off Ouridi, 
 in Hawke's Bay, near to Cape Kidnapper, in lat.
 
 358 LAMENTATIONS. 
 
 39° 40' S., long. 174° 48' E., which is called to 
 this day Muttou no Mawe, or Mawe's fish-hook. 
 The bait that Mawe used is supposed to have 
 been part of his own ear, which induced his fol- 
 lowers to suppose he was ornamented with a 
 pair similar in proportion to those presented to 
 the head of Midas. The islet is regarded as an 
 unerring " proof positive" of the story. 
 
 The defunct deity was metamorphosed into 
 a cynosure, whose situation is pointed out by 
 the astrographers and priests of the country. 
 Mawe is said to have been a very cannibal, the 
 revelling in human flesh bearing a prominent 
 place among his other unamiable propensities ; 
 and his descendants have certainly '^ followed 
 suits," in vieing with this acquired taste of their 
 progenitor. 
 
 The tangi, or luxury of prostrating themselves 
 in tears ; excoriating themselves ; and other con- 
 current practices of the Chaldean ancestors of 
 Abraham and the contemporary nations, before 
 the divine dispensation ; are practised with the 
 greatest exactitude by the modern New Zea- 
 landers. There are passages in the inspired 
 writings of the divine Isaiah, that proclaim 
 the day shall come when the scattered multi- 
 tude of the Assyrians, in whatever part of the
 
 ORIGIN OF THE PEOPLE. 359 
 
 globe they may be found, shall recover the ori- 
 ginal exalted state of their forefathers, tliough 
 their pristine rank be no longer remembered, 
 even by antiquarian tradiiion, or a dream that 
 has been. 
 
 The origin of the people is thus accounted 
 for by the natives inhabiting the Bay of Plenty : 
 that, at a very remote period, a large canoe put 
 into a river in that bay, which, in consequence, 
 was named by the appellation it yet bears, Ouwoa 
 o te Atua, or the river of God ; that tlie only 
 article of food they brought with them was the 
 kumera, which is yet regarded as food of divine 
 origin. The tradition assigns the powers of 
 divinity to the colonists of ancient days. The 
 marked difference in the complexion, stature, 
 and physical formation, of different tribes among 
 the New Zealanders, would give ample reason 
 to imagine this people were descended from 
 decidedly different ancestry. 
 
 Captain Crozet, in the '" Nouveau Voyage a 
 la Mer du Sud," classifies them as three distinct 
 races : white, or copper colour ; brown ; and 
 black. He adds a supposition, that these dif- 
 ferent shades had been caused by an admix- 
 ture with the people of New Holland, who, by 
 means which he feels unable to account for, had 
 arrived on these shores.
 
 360 COMPLEXION. 
 
 The natives of the East Cape are not sup- 
 posed, among the traditions of the country, to 
 have originated from the same ancestors as those 
 tribes who adjoin them within twenty miles on 
 either side of their locaUty. Those tribes are 
 small in stature, weaker in physical strength, 
 and some shades darker than their neighbours. 
 Their personal courage is below the reckless bra- 
 vado of the other islanders ; and their enemies 
 individually vaunt, with some shadow of truth, 
 that they can master two of the East Cape, or 
 Wai apu natives. This gasconading is not only 
 confined to the simple aborigines, as we find 
 highly civilised nations amuse themselves and 
 their neighbours with similar oratorical displays ; 
 and, as stories never lose much by travelling, on 
 another side of the Atlantic the two is often 
 multiplied to four. 
 
 The colour of the people, in general, is from 
 the olive tinge of the Spanish peninsula to a 
 brown black. 
 
 The olive, or copper-coloured race, are a 
 noble people, often above six feet in stature ; 
 active, muscular ; but, from the nature of the 
 sustenance they have hitherto been provided 
 with, cannot possess the substantial strength of 
 Europeans. 
 
 The higher classes are amply chested, re-
 
 PERSONAL APPEARANCE. 361 
 
 markably well formed, and of dignified appear- 
 ance. The countenances of this class are 
 often very pleasing ; the hair glossy, black, 
 and curling, and the features approaching to 
 the European. 
 
 The inferior class, and the generality of the 
 East Cape natives, are short in stature ; hair 
 lank, or frizzly ; complexion brown, approaching 
 to black, and the expression of the features often 
 insidious. The females of these latter people 
 differ but little from the males in outward ap- 
 pearance ; but the females of the superior race 
 are totally different, and tJiey knoxv It. I cannot 
 forego the satisfaction of adding such observations 
 as are founded in truth — nay, justice. 
 
 Many of the latter class would grace a page 
 in the " Book of Beauty." Of course, these are 
 '' Nature's ladies ;" and, despite of the abomi- 
 nable education, and the unpleasing scenes 
 with which they are impressed from their ten- 
 derest years, yet, even in these wilds, we find 
 a refinement solely appertaining to the sex, as 
 simple as New Zealand society can admit of, in 
 the absence, it must be admitted, of any thing 
 like decent training : and it is remarked, by 
 those Europeans who have intermarried with the 
 females of the land through the medium of the
 
 362 PHYSICAL CONFORMATION. 
 
 forms of the church, how agreeably surprised 
 they have been at the quick perception exhibited 
 by their native wives, who had doffed the cus- 
 toms of their ancestors with the same ease as 
 they had cast away their native garments, and 
 had conformed to the habits and manners of 
 the respectable English females in their vicinity, 
 whose conduct the native women admire, and, at 
 a humble distance, follow ; studying cleanliness 
 and neatness in dress after the English style, 
 and rendering their persons both pleasing and 
 various in the eyes of their husbands. 
 
 The females who reside far south possess 
 not the delicacy that may often be observed 
 in those who live in the north island. The 
 voices of all are feminine ; and, like the sex in 
 every part of the globe, they are distinguished 
 from the men by a greater flow of animal spirits, 
 cheerfulness of temper, enduring fortitude and 
 privations, that often totally prostrates the 
 stronger sex in physical conformation. 
 
 The difference of distinct races, that form 
 the population of the country, is more remark- 
 able among the females than in the opposite 
 sex : thus, the Malay is easily distinguished 
 from the Papuan descendant ; but the flat nose, 
 full lip, and projecting mouth, of the latter
 
 WOMAN — HER INFLUENCE. 363 
 
 people, are but rarely seen. In either race, the 
 female stature is less than that of the male. 
 The features of the women are regular ; the 
 hair often jet black, long, and profuse ; teeth 
 regular, whose extreme whiteness is enhanced 
 by the lips being often stained with blue — an 
 unpleasant fashion, that is fast decaying in the 
 vicinity of European settlements. 
 
 The forms of the young women are calcu- 
 lated to interest the traveller ; but marriage, 
 and the servitude with which it is accompanied 
 in all barbarous states of society, cause early 
 anihty, and consequent decay. It is to the 
 degraded state of the sex in these countries 
 that we must attribute the unsocial habits of 
 the people towards each other. 
 
 The example in New Zealand is not solitary ; 
 history has invariably taught us, from the deluge 
 to our own times, that civilisation has been de- 
 pendent on the influence which woman has had 
 on society ; and it may be even asserted, that 
 the absolute rise and decline of nations depend 
 much on her conduct in social life. 
 
 These truths are seldom admitted to their 
 full extent, or how much the very manners of 
 an age depend upon the behaviour of women. 
 We hastily admit this dependance of the weaker 
 sex on man, as far as physical force may be re-
 
 364 WOMAN HER INFLUENCE ON SOCIETY. 
 
 quired. A pleasing writer, whose name is at this 
 moment unremembered, observes, " Woman, 
 whose soul is as fine an emanation from the 
 great fountain spirit as tliat of man — who has 
 higher responsibilities, more important duties to 
 perform in the world, and pays a heavier tribute 
 to it — is the zoealcer sex." 
 
 Much may be said in favour of the New 
 Zealand females on the score of pudicity. Per- 
 haps the observation of Cook will be relied on, 
 whose unwearied exertions in the cause of eceo- 
 graphical knowledge did not permit him to in- 
 cline towards flattery, in speaking on this subject. 
 " I have observed, that our friends in the South 
 Seas had not even an idea of decency, with re- 
 spect to any object or any action ; but this was 
 by no means the case with the inhabitants of 
 New Zealand, in whose carriage and conversa- 
 tion there was as much modest reserve and 
 decorum, with respect to actions, which yet, 
 in then' opinion, were not criminal, as are to 
 be found among the pohtest people of Europe. 
 The women were not impregnable, but the 
 terms and manner of compliance were as de- 
 cent as those in marriage among us ; and, 
 according to their notions, the agreement was 
 as innocent. When any of our people made 
 an overture to one of their young women, he
 
 WOMAN — HER INFLUENCE ON SOCIETY. 365 
 
 was given to understand that the consent of 
 the friends was necessary, and, by the influence 
 of a proper present, it was generally obtained : 
 but when these preliminaries were settled, it was 
 also necessary to treat the lady for a night with 
 the same delicacy as is here required by the wife 
 for life ; and the lover who presumed to take 
 any liberties by which this was violated was 
 sure to be disappointed. One of our gentlemen 
 having made his addresses to a family of the 
 better sort, received an answer which, trans- 
 lated in our language according to the mode 
 and spirit of it, as well as the letter, would have 
 been exactly in these terms : ' Any of these 
 young ladies will think themselves honoured by 
 your addresses ; but you must first make me 
 a suitable present, and you must then come and 
 sleep with us on shore ; for daylight must by no 
 means be a witness of what passes between you.'" 
 Later travellers, who have been sufficiently 
 long in the country to understand the native cus- 
 toms and language, have invariably spoken in fa- 
 vour of these most enchanting behests in women, 
 reserve and chastity. It must be distinctiij 
 stated, the manners and habits of the natives have 
 become much vitiated, the nearer they may be 
 to the vicinity of FAiropean settlements ; but, 
 otherwise, reserve and timidity are distinguish-
 
 366 DOMESTIC HABITS. 
 
 ing traits in the character of the young female 
 of the country. " Some of us/' says Cook, 
 " happening one day to land at a small island 
 in Tolaga Bay, surprised several of the ladies 
 employed in the water catching lobsters, having 
 left their garments on the rocks. The chaste 
 Diana, with her nymphs, could not have dis- 
 covered more confusion and distress at the sight 
 of Actason, than these women expressed at our 
 approach. Some of them hid themselves among 
 the rocks, and the rest crouched down in the 
 sea, until they had made themselves a girdle and 
 apron of such weeds as they could find ; and 
 when they came out, even with this veil, we could 
 perceive that their modesty suffered much by 
 our presence." 
 
 A short acquaintance with any particular 
 female will, doubtless, soon annihilate this pleas- 
 ing bashfulness ; but even such conduct is to 
 be attributed to a natural, undisguised artless- 
 ness and confidence, which is far, perhaps, from 
 being confined exclusively to the New Zealand 
 female. 
 
 The domestic habits of the elderly matrons 
 correspond to the staid manners of European 
 females of a similar advanced age. Thus, when 
 the young ladies indulge themselves in frequent 
 explosions of laughter or giggling, which these
 
 WOMEN — THEIR DEVOTEDNESS. 367 
 
 young misses are much inclined to, the more 
 ed-perienced of the females take upon themselves 
 the almost hopeless task of what we significantly 
 term placing " old heads on young shoulders." 
 
 Fewer countries exhibit the ardour of woman's 
 strongest affections more than New Zealand. 
 Formerly it was accounted the most common of 
 occurrences for the native wife to commit suicide, 
 by hanging or drowning herself, on the decease 
 of her husband, either by natural decUne or in 
 battle. 
 
 Among many such occurrences as I have wit- 
 nessed, a circumstance of the kind took place 
 during my stay at the south-west coast, when the 
 report arrived that a certain chief belonging to 
 the village had been killed in battle ; a relative 
 immediately gave the head wife of the defunct a 
 rope made of flax, which she took, and instantly 
 went to some sacred bushes and hung herself: 
 no person attempted to prevent her. 
 
 I have selected this example, as it was after- 
 wards found the chief was only '^missing" in the 
 jiext bulletin. Within a few days he, \vith other 
 warriors, returned from the war, and, learning 
 the death of his wife, the slave who had brought 
 the news was instantly killed, cooked, and 
 devoured, as payment for the " returned killed." 
 
 These afiectionate feehngs of devotion have
 
 368 WOMEN — THEIR DEVOTEDNESS. 
 
 been transferred to European husbands, whose 
 treatment to these poor women has been much 
 kinder than what they have received from their 
 countrymen. I remember a native girl, who had 
 cohabited some time with an Enghshman, who 
 was nearly on the point of death from a debili- 
 tating illness. The afflicted girl scarce left his 
 bedside. Hearing from the natives of my coun- 
 tryman's illness, I called on him to offer such 
 assistance as I could afford. Entering the room 
 of the invalid, I perceived the poor wife sobbing 
 convulsively, with the sick man's hands fast 
 locked in hers. After remaining some time with 
 the man, I left the house, outside which several 
 of the girl's friends were congregated. They 
 told me that E'tari (the wife) had been engaged 
 during the morning making a rope of flax to quit 
 a burdensome existence, should her husband 
 die. The man recovered some time after ; but 
 I had not the slightest doubt at the time, had a 
 contrary conclusion taken place, she would have 
 put her intentions into practice, agreeably to the 
 customs of her people. 
 
 Major Cruise, who commanded a detachment 
 of soldiers in the '' Dromedary " store-ship, in 
 1820, which was loaded with spars for the British 
 government, mentions similar anecdotes, also 
 proving the devoted attachment of a New Zea-
 
 USAGES OF THE FEMALES. 369 
 
 land female. A native girl, daughter of a chief, 
 had lived for some months with the soldier who 
 was supposed to have caused the death of James 
 Aldridge (a seamen who had been stabbed). 
 As it appeared prudent to remove her from 
 the ship, she complied with the order for her 
 departure with much reluctance. From the 
 time the unfortunate man had been put in 
 confinement, she had scarcely left his side or 
 ceased to cry ; and, having been told that he 
 must inevitably be hanged, she purchased some 
 flax from the natives alongside the " Dromedary," 
 and making a rope of it, declared that if such 
 should be his fate, she would put a similar termi- 
 nation to her own existence : nor was it doubted 
 but she would have executed her intention. 
 
 Travellers, whose stay in the country has 
 been confined to a few months only, have been 
 very unjust in their remarks on the native fe- 
 males. They have reported, that their favours 
 may be obtained at the premium of any paltry 
 trinket : such observations are without founda- 
 tion. The favours of a married woman in New 
 Zealand are fully as difficult of attainment as in 
 any part of the world, the punishment of death 
 being awarded as the penalty for an infringement 
 of the nuptial bond, which is held by these 
 people in as sacred a light as in the most civil- 
 
 VOL. I. BB
 
 370 MARRIAGES. 
 
 ised states. Death is not alone the payment 
 exacted for a committal of this hateful crime, as 
 the horrid rites of cannibalism are added, anni- 
 hilating the enemy to public morals and de- 
 cency. This punishment is sometimes com- 
 muted by an utu, or " damages," by which the 
 native Lushingtons obtain their best fees, the 
 priests having power to do away with the stain 
 in some degree ; yet the guilty wife justly loses 
 caste, and, until her death, is known as a " puremu 
 kino," or wicked adulteress. 
 
 Unmarried female chiefs, of the highest class, 
 are equally difficult to be obtained ; love, not 
 money, generally rendering them propitious. 
 
 Among the middle classes, marriages are often 
 made-up affairs among the old folks, who look to 
 the wherewithal the inamorato may be possessed 
 of; and, should more than one swain languish 
 for the preference of the divinity (of course, 
 before marriage), it is fought out between the 
 parties and their mutual friends, and the victor 
 carries away the lady. In these cases, there are 
 as many winks and nods, flirtations, discussions 
 on " pin-money " or its substitute, as pass among 
 civilised families on a similar occasion. The old 
 gentlemen, in their converse, forget their moral- 
 ities, and are not particular to a shade in their 
 reminiscences; the ladies veil themselves with
 
 IMMORAL FEMALES. 371 
 
 their garments; and, " Now, don't!" and " Fie, 
 for shame ! " pass to and fro as in more civiHscd 
 CO mi tries. 
 
 The female slaves are often forced, by their 
 unrelenting masters, to dishonour themselves; for 
 such connexions are held in disgust by these 
 poor creatures, whose inclinations are not even 
 consulted : and in this case decency is not re- 
 garded, which in their general intercourse is 
 rarely violated. It must be readily admitted, 
 that a number of unmarried women are to be 
 found without the slightest delicacy, either in per- 
 son or conduct. This miserable portion of the 
 population is not alone confined to the Oceanica 
 or its antipodes ; and perhaps the proportion of 
 this class is more numerous here than elsewhere. 
 Yet these women mix without reproach among 
 the higher classes; which induces the casual 
 visitor, acquainted only with the surface of their 
 habits and manners, to imagine that a similar 
 feeling exists among all classes, the price being 
 raised in proportion to rank. This lax conduct 
 of unmarried women is not regarded by the 
 national customs in so vile a point of view as is 
 justly fixed by civilised people ; and a succession 
 of lovers is not regarded, by the native lawyers 
 and sages, as such " direful events" as they are 
 deemed to be by a people enlightened by a
 
 372 FEMALE COQUETRY. 
 
 bountiful dispensation ; from which emanate 
 those moral and religious ties which are the 
 indubitable basis of tranquillity and social 
 happiness in this life, and eternal bliss hereafter. 
 
 The ladies do certainly practice coquetry in 
 no confined degree. Their artillery of charms 
 are discharged at that miserable wretch, man, 
 apparently with uncommon success. The dances 
 of the country partake of the lascivious exhibi- 
 tions displayed in similar amusements by the 
 descendants of the Moorish ladies — smiles, ges- 
 tures, soft hints, and blandishments, are not 
 omitted. The songs that accompany the dance 
 are most abominably worded, the subjects being 
 extremely indelicate : the conversations would 
 not bear translation ; and these causes combined 
 have given the entire sex of these islands a 
 character for being as libidinous in habits and 
 manners as they are, perhaps, at times, in their 
 thoughts. 
 
 The temperance of the people is on a par 
 with the northern nations of Europe. Their 
 dispositions towards their friends and relatives 
 are gentle and affectionate, and cannot be more 
 sincere or ardent. Journeys are undertaken to 
 see each other, that very often occupy an ab- 
 sence of some months ; and alliances by these 
 means are formed, that render them one people.
 
 ARDENT AFFECTION. 373 
 
 speaking the language without those various 
 modes of pronunciation that are extant in most 
 other countries. 
 
 The people are delighted in meetings that 
 bring them together ; and parents, either natur- 
 ally so or connected by marriage, in their old 
 age reside with the children, and are rarely 
 treated with harshness. They inflict deep 
 wounds on themselves on the loss of relatives, 
 separation, or return of friends, and it is incon- 
 ceivable the quantity of blood they thus lose, 
 excoriating themselves with the mussel-shell ; 
 their tears, sobs, and moans, argue the most 
 affectionate regret, unequalled by any other 
 people. The return of a relative, after a pro- 
 tracted absence, causes similar emanations of 
 feeling ; and a chant, or antistrophe, in which 
 each person takes up the song or lament, com- 
 mences with as loud an utterance as the fast- 
 falling tears will permit. 
 
 This is called the tangi, or cry ; at the per- 
 oration of the chant, a moan, in chorus, is made 
 by all the persons engaged. 
 
 The children of either sex, at an early age, 
 are able to run about long before those belong- 
 ing to European parents can stand alone. Tiiey 
 are early initiated by their parents into all the 
 games, dances, and practices of their fathers.
 
 374 PARENTAL AFFECTION 
 
 The children of a chief are regarded by the 
 tribe with peculiar delight. They possess a 
 higher title of nobility than their immediate 
 parents, as the former can boast of another 
 branch to their genealogical tree. 
 
 A child born to a chief-father by a slave- 
 woman loses the attaint received of the mother, 
 the predominating rank of the sire rendering the 
 stain nugatory. The New Zealand father is 
 devotedly fond of his children, they are his pride, 
 his boast, and peculiar delight ; he generally 
 bears the burden of carrying them continually 
 within his mat, whose rugged texture must be 
 very annoying to the tender infant. 
 
 The children are seldom or never punished ; 
 which, consequently, causes them to commit so 
 many annoying tricks, that continually ren- 
 ders them deserving of a sound, wholesome 
 castigation. 
 
 The father performs the duty of a nurse ; 
 and any foul action the embryo warrior may be 
 guilty of, causes rather a smile than a tear from 
 the devoted parent. 
 
 Any little trifles in the way of a honne boucJie 
 are preserved for the child ; and often, when I 
 have been solicited for presents and have re- 
 fused, the child has been either sent to demand 
 it, or, if too young to walk, the request has been
 
 OF THE ISLANDERS. 375 
 
 repeated in the name of the infant : it being sup- 
 posed by the parents, in their overflowing affec- 
 tion to their offspring, that the latter could not 
 meet with a refusal. 
 
 The following instances of the delight these 
 people take in the society of their children, will 
 be scarcely credited in a civilised community. 
 
 A respectable chief, named Te Kuri, whose 
 residence is at Turunga, or Poverty Bay, had a 
 fine boy born to him, who died in his fourth 
 year. Poor Kuri was almost inconsolable, until 
 he hit upon a method, in fashion among his 
 countrymen, to preserve the best memento pos- 
 sible of the lamented child. He eviscerated the 
 body and head, and cooked the whole in the 
 same manner the head of an enemy is preserved, 
 stuffing the inside of the body with scraped flax ; 
 and at a distance it was impossible to perceive 
 the difference between it and a living child. I 
 had often seen Kuri carrying this apology for an 
 infant in his blanket behind his back, and re- 
 marked one day what a pleasing and remarkably 
 quiet child it appeared. This observation elicited 
 a laugh, in which this candidate for paternity 
 heartily joined. The body had been stuffed in 
 the state I saw it at least five years. 
 
 At Tokomaru, another chief, about forty 
 years of age, lost two children ; his immoderate
 
 376 POLYGAMY. 
 
 fondness for them had caused him also to stuff 
 those bodies in a similar manner; giving them, 
 hke Kuri, an airing now and then in the sun 
 and air, as a preservative against damp. The 
 children are such apt scholars at what is taught 
 them, that both sexes, at seven and eight years 
 old, are capable of performing the war-dance 
 and hakas, accompanied with all the frightful 
 distortion of countenance which the adults 
 make use of to inspire their enemies with fear 
 and confusion ; the infantine performers are 
 careful in keeping that regularity of action in 
 the feet, and changes of tone in the songs, that 
 give a zest to these performances. 
 
 Nor are the traditions of the renowned 
 achievements of certain chiefs forgotten, whose 
 superior prowess on earth has ranked them as 
 divinities in the theogony of the people. 
 
 Polygamy has existed in New Zealand from 
 the remotest period, a custom doubtless intro- 
 duced from Asia; yet, notwithstanding the an- 
 tiquity of the habit, the ladies often express 
 their dislike of it. So much unhappiness is 
 caused in a house by these several owners of 
 the same property, that many persons in the 
 country find one wife quite sufficient. A native 
 is allowed to marry sisters ; in such case the 
 elder becomes mistress of the family. When
 
 ITS EFFECTS. 377 
 
 the husband leaves his residence on a distant 
 excursion, one or two of his spouses generally 
 accompany him. The inferior wives lead often a 
 wretched life, deprived of the connubial enjoy- 
 ments of a husband's society, and not unfre- 
 quently becoming servants or handmaids to the 
 prima donna. The nuptial intercourse between 
 the nominal husbands and these poor degraded 
 women is but rare, as they are apprehensive 
 of the jealousy of the head wife. Koki, the 
 head spouse of Manu, a chief of the Bay of 
 Island, destroyed one of her offspring in a fit of 
 jealousy, in consequence of a slave presenting a 
 child to the chief, which she had recently borne 
 to him. 
 
 The affection of the parents is often ill 
 bestowed on the children, who are at times very 
 undutiful, when thwarted in any thing they may 
 want. Their pride and obstinacy have often 
 caused them, on meeting with any resistance to 
 their stubbornness, to hang or drown themselves. 
 
 A minor chief, in the bay above mentioned, 
 married a woman much his superior in rank, as 
 his own mother had been a slave. The import- 
 ance of the chief was advanced accordingly by 
 the connexion. The children, who had been 
 treated too kindly by him, often twitted their 
 father in my presence, on his being the son of a
 
 378 PRECOCITY OF CHILDREN. 
 
 slave ; reminding the old man to mark their dif- 
 ference in rank, as their parents were chiefs, and 
 not slaves, like his mother. 
 
 The obstinacy of the children exceeds be- 
 lief ; the son of a chief is never chastised by his 
 parent. The boys are brought up entirely by 
 the men ; and it is not uncommon to see young 
 children of tender years, sitting next to their 
 parents in the war councils, apparently listen- 
 ing with the greatest attention to the war of 
 words uttered by the chiefs. 
 
 One garment, or mat, serves for both father 
 and son ; and the precocity of the children may 
 be seen in young urchins, who have scarcely the 
 power to walk, steering large canoes without 
 aid. 
 
 This heedless mode of treatment renders the 
 children very hardy, morally and physically ; so 
 that a little native boy is half a man when a 
 European child is first placed at school. They 
 talk of, and with, strangers, without any feeling 
 of awkwardness or bashfulness. 
 
 Tn most cases, as soon as the children of a 
 village learnt my name, they would call to me, 
 wherever I went, Porake, Ko Porake, the native 
 pronunciation of it. These youngsters dance, 
 make grimaces, and gormandise with an avidity 
 only surpassed by their friends of less tender
 
 MARRIAGE CEREMONY. 379 
 
 years. They imitate every thing they see or 
 hear, — the walk, gait, action, speech, of every 
 stranger they behold, accompanied with the 
 most ridiculous gestures and exaggerations, 
 which are encouraged, and form a source of 
 amusement to the adults. 
 
 Little children of six years would boldly ask 
 me, how many wives I might have, and if I did 
 not feel inconvenienced (mate) deprived of their 
 company ? They also ask questions in the most 
 numerously attended assemblies of chiefs, who 
 answer them with an air of respect, as if they 
 were of a corresponding age to themselves. I 
 do not remember a request of an infant being 
 treated with neglect, or a demand from one of 
 them being slighted. 
 
 The marriage ceremony of the country is 
 very simple. When the proposed union takes 
 place, the lover conducts the lady to his cabin. 
 The wife, thus introduced into her domicile, 
 never leaves it but as mistress of the place. 
 
 The marriage is no sooner consummated, 
 than a party of friends arrive, who strip the 
 married pair of every thing they possess, be- 
 sides bestowing a sound drubbing on them. 
 No reason is assigned for the origin of so 
 abominable a practice. This ceremony differs
 
 380 INFANTICIDE. 
 
 from conciihinage, by the gentleman stealing to 
 the house of the female, instead of vice versa. 
 
 The reputation of a lady does not suffer in 
 the least, however propitious she may have been 
 in her liaisons ; but no sooner does she become 
 a wedded wife, than her person is tapued, or 
 prohibited. Affiances very often take place 
 among the parents of children. A young girl, 
 who had been tapued to an old village chief, 
 was wedded to a young man. As early as the 
 marriage was bruited abroad, a stripping party 
 arrived to rob the husband, and to take away 
 his wife. This poor creature had hidden herself, 
 but was quickly found out, and much beaten ; 
 the young man was a superior chief, and, as 
 such, escaped with a beating and robbery only ; 
 but had he been of a different caste, his life 
 would, doubtless, have paid for his temerity. 
 The old priest received the girl very compla- 
 cently. He might have passed for her grand- 
 father. 
 
 The females are marriageable at a very early 
 time of life. Mothers may be seen at the tender 
 age of eleven years, but such instances are of 
 rare occurrence. 
 
 Infanticide is often committed by the New 
 Zealand mother.
 
 ITS FREQUENT OCCURRENCE. 381 
 
 One of the principal causes is occasioned by 
 polygamy, where the women, occupied by eter- 
 nal jealousies, are striving, by the most malicious 
 inventions, to undermine each other in the af- 
 fections of the husbands. The poor babe often 
 suffers from these conflicts. I have reason to 
 believe that, at least, every fourth woman who 
 I was acquainted with, and had borne several 
 children, had been guilty of this unnatural crime. 
 On taxing some females with having committed 
 infanticide, they laughed heartily at the serious 
 manner in which I put the question. They 
 told me the poor infants did not know or care 
 much about it. One young woman, who had 
 recently destroyed a female infant, said that she 
 wished her mother had done the same to her, 
 when she was young ; *' For why should my in- 
 fant live ? " she added ; " to dig the ground ! to 
 be a slave to the wives of her husband ! to be 
 beaten by them, and trodden under foot ! No ! 
 can a woman here protect herself, as among the 
 white people ; and should I not have trouble 
 enough to bring up girls, when they can only 
 cry and make a noise?" Boys are seldom or 
 never destroyed, except in temporary fits of in- 
 sane passion, when the mother will destroy the 
 child to enrage the husband ; and if that does 
 not suffice, the unnatural woman will, out of
 
 382 INFANTICIDE DEFENDED. 
 
 despite, run to the nearest bush and hang her- 
 self : but, in the latter case, the husband shews 
 the self-satisfaction of his own disposition, by- 
 early repairing the void thus made in his affec- 
 tions. Various means are resorted to to extin- 
 guish life in the children ; such as pressing the 
 temple of the new-born child, strangling, drown- 
 ing in a small basket filled with stones, and 
 thrown in the adjacent river : but the most 
 common method is pressing the nose between 
 two fingers, until the infant is bereaved of life. 
 In vain I told the circle of women, to whom 
 I was addressing myself on the subject, that the 
 Creator was too just to allow a murderer to 
 escape, in any shape. My words fell on their 
 ears like the wind ; they burst into a shout, ex- 
 claiming, " Mea pai te romia," (squeezing the 
 nose was very good,) adding, that my mamma 
 would have acted perfectly right in so serving 
 me. I presumed to differ from them at this 
 personal allusion. A young girl, sitting by, 
 who had despatched her infant only the week 
 previously, said it was useless to try and change 
 their opinion ; that her own mother had several 
 times attempted to deprive her of life, having 
 often commenced the ^^ romia" on her nose, 
 (feeling that natural promontory, to be assured 
 of its position,) but that her father and uncles
 
 OTHER CRIMES. 383 
 
 always interfered. I asked her how she would 
 have admired the process, had it heen perse- 
 vered in by her affectionate mother? She 
 smiled, and said, " Au ! ea te an te oik ? " 
 What business is it of yours ? I politely told 
 her she was a fool (kuwari ano koe), and with 
 this obhging rejoinder, I turned on my heel and 
 left the party. 
 
 When a child is thus murdered, the lying 
 mother commences a lament over the dead 
 body, cutting herself with shells, and roaring 
 with all her might, making " night hideous." 
 
 The difficulty of procuring nourishing food 
 for the infant was formerly another cause for 
 the death of the offspring ; for when nature re- 
 fused its natural sustenance, there was nothing 
 in the country that could be swallowed by an 
 infant. 
 
 Abortion is often practised by the native 
 mother ; the methods made use of are various, 
 and certain in their effects, but admit not of 
 being committed to writing. Other practices, 
 that even render the above crime nugatory, 
 are indulged in ; but are rarely confessed by 
 these people to Europeans.
 
 384 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Tattooing — On Grades of Native Rank — Costume of the 
 Sexes — Provisions, and Methods of preparing it — Food 
 prepared for Journeys — Filthy Habits of the New Zea- 
 landers, &c. 
 
 The bodies of the males are marked with the 
 stains and incisions of the moko, or tattoo ; the 
 females are marked but rarely, with the excep- 
 tion of the lips, over and under which horizontal 
 lines are made and stained blue. 
 
 The process causes intense pain, as the in- 
 struments, though neatly made, are clumsy for 
 the purpose. The patient is generally placed in 
 a recumbent posture, the head resting against 
 the knee of the operator ; and the implement, 
 which is formed of bone, shaped hke a chisel, is 
 let into the flesh by a smart tap applied to the 
 handle. This causes the blood to gush out, 
 which is wiped away with the hand of the ope- 
 rator, or by any thing that may present itself. 
 
 The habit of staining and cutting the skin is
 
 TATTOOING. .385 
 
 of as ancient an origin as any custom we are 
 acquainted with. In Leviticus, the Divine law 
 states, " Ye shall not make any cuttings in your 
 flesh for the dead, nor engrave any marks on 
 you ;" a proof sufficient that this custom was 
 among the abominations of the Asiatics, from 
 whom these people are evidently descended. 
 
 The pattern of the moko is generally painted, 
 in lines of charcoal and water, on the face of the 
 patient. The skin, thus excoriated, becomes in- 
 durated by the practice. It is generally com- 
 menced on the face of a young man at the age 
 of eighteen, and is continued at various periods 
 in after life : this ruthless fashion is regarded as 
 the ne plus ?ilfra of facial embellishment. Some 
 old gentlemen, to insure additional beauty, have 
 the lines re-engraved at an advanced age. The 
 furrows are sufficiently deep to remain visible in 
 a Methusaleh. 
 
 The first attempt is generally on the lips, and 
 then each cheek is submitted to the process; 
 and so they proceed alike in embelhshment and 
 age. 
 
 The lines are drawn with an elegance that 
 cannot be surpassed, each side generally cor- 
 responding with the nicest exactitude. A 
 hieroglyphic, of peculiar fancy and taste, en- 
 graven with much care, is traced round the 
 
 VOL. I. CO
 
 386 TATTOOING. 
 
 thighs, and a posteriori. No two persons are 
 tattooed exactly alike. The females have some- 
 times a single line on the side of the nose, in 
 addition to the blue lines already stated ; also, 
 a few marks on the chin. The blue lips have an 
 unpleasant appearance until the stranger be- 
 comes accustomed to it. 
 
 The countenances of the men have a look 
 truly ferocious, from tattooing ; but habit also, in 
 this instance, renders it less unbecoming to the 
 practised observer. Tattooing on the face of a 
 white man has a disgustingly livid effect. 
 
 Tattooing is no sign of rank. Men and wo- 
 men, in a state of slavery, get marked equally as 
 much as chiefs or priests : many of whom may 
 be seen without even a single line on the counte- 
 nance ; whereas numbers of slaves, either born 
 bondsmen or taken in battle, are fully marked, 
 with scarce a portion of the countenance un- 
 touched by the chisel. In time of war, during 
 the great slaughter of an enemy, those heads 
 only are preserved that have been well tattooed, 
 unless belonging to superior chiefs. Among the 
 many heads which I have seen of slaughtered 
 prisoners, I do not remember to have beheld 
 one that was not tattooed, and many entirely 
 covered with marks. These permanent lines 
 and angles may be regarded as a coat of
 
 TO WHAT APPLIED. .387 
 
 arms, as each peculiarity of design indicates 
 the person. 
 
 In taking the portrait of Nene, a chief of 
 the Hokianga, the accuracy of the hkeness was 
 undisputed hy persons residing some four hun- 
 dred and twenty miles distant from the village of 
 the chief, and who had never seen him, but had 
 heard of the peculiar marks that ornamented 
 his face ; and by such a chief is known. 
 
 Every tribe has distinctive insignia. These 
 marks have the effect of adding a few years to . 
 the appearance of a young man, and the con- 
 trary on an elderly person. All classes get 
 tattooed when they please ; nor is there any cha- 
 racteristic in the country to distinguish a chief, 
 the feather, or O, being used often by the slaves. 
 Thus, in deeds of purchases of lands, or any re- 
 ceipts, the moko is made use of; that is, a fac- 
 simile of the peculiar mark whereby a native is 
 distinguished from his countrymen. The initials 
 on the seal attached to my watch was called my 
 moko, from the fact of its being applied to the 
 sealing of a letter. 
 
 Whatever may have been the original cause 
 for tattooing, it never, I would say, commenced 
 with the New Zealanders, as with them it is a 
 mark of beauty. Among the ancient nations of 
 Asia it doubtless originated, in accustoming the
 
 388 CAUSES OF ITS ORIGIN. 
 
 young men to bear, without blenching, the in- 
 tolerable anguish which accompanies the exe- 
 cution of this work on the tender parts of the 
 face, especially between the nose and eyes, and 
 on the hps. They are thus prepared for under- 
 going the tortures of an enemy. Many persons 
 do not commence tattooing until past thirty years 
 of age. 
 
 The bodies of some of these votaries of 
 fashion are marked over with small dots, re- 
 sembling the blue spots in a Guernsey frock, 
 and may be taken for that useful article at a 
 distance. Several chiefs, of either sex, favoured 
 me by sitting for their portraits with exem- 
 plary patience. In these sittings, the terms 
 in use by professional men were reversed ; for, 
 instead of my receiving a bonus, I was obliged 
 to present one, as a native never gives away 
 even his time without a consideration. I was 
 invariably requested to be particular in drawing 
 the peculiar figures my sitters possessed ; and 
 when the performance was finished, those parts 
 underwent the strictest scrutiny. 
 
 As the marks had been engraven at different 
 periods, every little circumstance connected with 
 my subject at the time was duly narrated to me. 
 Thus, the period when one of these Parises lost 
 his heart, was notated at the time by a mark
 
 NATIVE DRESS. 389 
 
 perhaps on his nose : the time he regained it 
 (after marriage, of course,) was well remembered 
 by another incision elsewhere. 
 
 The costume of either sex has no material 
 difference. The most valued native dress is 
 formed from the skins of the dogs, which cer- 
 tainly appear more respectable when thus cover- 
 ing the bodies of their masters, than they could 
 have seemed when in their former lank state. 
 They are made to tie round the neck of a chief 
 like a cloak appended, or similar to that worn 
 by a Spaniard. 
 
 The various furs are cut lengthwise in squares, 
 alternately white, brown, or black, according as 
 nature had furnished their late original proprie- 
 tors. These squares are sewed to a remarkably 
 strong-textured matting, similar in the arrange- 
 ment of the threads to our coarse canvass, but 
 infinitely stronger. This sine qua non of native 
 fashion is called pui ; and it is not deemed any 
 degradation by the warriors to sew this article 
 themselves in the seamstresses' apartments — 
 a somewhat rude representation of Hercules 
 placing aside his club, and similarly engaged at 
 the feet of Omphale, without the complaisant 
 motives attributed to the antique hero. 
 
 These mats are sent to the principal chiefs 
 as presents ; and no articles of apparel have yet
 
 390 TRIAL FOR ADULTERY. 
 
 been introduced that can compete with the native 
 pui in the estimation of its wearers. 
 
 I was at one time empannelled on a native 
 jmy (if it may be so termed), in a case of adul- 
 tery, committed to the southward by a chief 
 against the honour of a humbler native. This 
 subject for Doctors' Commons was made to pay 
 a large canoe, two axes, and a pui mat, which 
 was assigned over to the feudal chief: who would 
 have been but little affected by the want of 
 honour in his tribe, provided he got such a gar- 
 ment once per mensem. 
 
 In a case of this kind, the unfortunate hus- 
 band gets nothing for his share, as he is obliged 
 to make presents to all his advocates. I in- 
 tended to have proved my disinterestedness ; 
 but the chance was not afforded me, as the utu, 
 or damages, had been served out before I had 
 the means of attesting my generosity. 
 
 The kaJcaou maoriy or common native mat, is 
 made of the flax, simply scraped with the mussel- 
 shell. 
 
 The kaitdkd is made from the hunga hmgai 
 or silken flax. This garment is often produced in 
 an elegant manner : it is formed of a number of 
 threads placed close together, and bound cross- 
 wise half an inch asunder. These are often 
 striped within the cloth, of blue, red, and green
 
 NATIVE GARMENTS. 391 
 
 baize, beautifully interwoven, and purchased from 
 the Europeans. It has the glossy appearance of 
 fiake-white silk. 
 
 A mat is the work of many persons. Two 
 small stakes are placed in the ground, about six 
 feet apart, on which frame the work is made. 
 The size of these mats is generally five feet 
 long, and four feet broad. The performance is 
 tedious, as it is worked by the hand. This work 
 affords a vast deal of amusement to the ladies of 
 a village. As early as one of these mats is 
 undertaken by a wife for a husband, herself, or 
 relative, she gives notice to her neighbours, who 
 all promise their aid. It is the most useful in- 
 vention that could be found for them, as it em- 
 ploys their hands ; and, it may be affirmed, that 
 that little member called the tongue is not silent. 
 At these meetings, similar to the " quiltings" in 
 the villages of the United States of America, every 
 thing is discussed ; the younger people shaking 
 the little cabin to its centre with their jokes and 
 gaiety ; the elderly ladies exclaiming, with Mar- 
 ryat's ci-devant sultana, " The time has been." 
 To the kaitakas are appended borders, in stitches 
 similar to samplers with w^hich European young 
 ladies delight their papas at holidays ; and which 
 may be seen framed, exciting the admiration of 
 sitters in country parlours.
 
 392 GARMENTS OF THE ^NATIVES. 
 
 These borders are of various patterns, with 
 an elegance of design and abihty in execution 
 that the needle but rarely produces. 
 
 There are many other mats, each differently 
 named, but none superior to the kaitaka. Flax 
 garments, as above described, are handsome 
 summer dresses, but without warmth, the crude 
 flax striking cold to the naked body : for com- 
 fort, the English blanket is supposed by the 
 people to be unequalled, and is in universal 
 repute. It well becomes the generally tall sta- 
 ture of the natives : it is made fast over the 
 right shoulder, and hangs down in graceful 
 folds, that reminds the classical reader of the 
 pleasing negligence that was anciently displayed 
 by the haughty Roman in the ancient toga. 
 The resemblance is also much assisted by the 
 black curling hair, bushy beard, and commanding 
 figure of the southern islander. 
 
 The usual method of wearing the native dress 
 is by taking two corners of the garment over 
 the shoulders, and tying them with strings of 
 the flax across the breast. Around the waist 
 another mat is made fast with a wetiki, or belt, 
 of a similar manufacture. As a preservative 
 against rain, many large garments are worn, of 
 some weight, made of the kiakia, spear-grass, 
 which is impervious to the element. Another
 
 LADIES APPAREL. 393 
 
 sedgy plank, called k'lerakiki, is placed over the 
 person, as an outside covering. When sitting 
 down in such a dress, the native has a most un- 
 couth appearance, and might be mistaken at a 
 distance for a heap of rushes, or partly the re- 
 mains of a rush-cabin, if his black, shock, bullet 
 of a head did not challenge an extra examination. 
 
 Another outer garment is made from the 
 split reed of the swamps, and interwoven into a 
 stuff something resembling China matting, with 
 the ends projecting several inches on either side. 
 Two pieces of this manufacture serve for a 
 dress. There are garments variegated with the 
 handsome green and red feathers of the parrots 
 and parroquet birds, but these have become very 
 rare. The dress formed of the feathers of the 
 Kiwi are scarcely ever seen. 
 
 The ladies affect less handsome apparel than 
 the men, but they are delighted in lavishing 
 ornaments on themselves. The chemise, if the 
 nether garment may be so termed, is fastened 
 firmly round the waist. European female gar- 
 ments are much in request ; and the males may 
 be often seen strutting about in a cast-off cloth 
 jacket, without a single covering beside. 
 
 A civilised lady would not feel her extreme 
 modesty more outraged than the females of the 
 country by any act contrary to the dictates of
 
 394 PIGMENTS IN USE. 
 
 modesty, and any peeping Tom would be imme- 
 diately sent to Coventry by them. It is to be 
 regretted that an ample account cannot be fur- 
 nished of the ladies' dresses, a bachelor being 
 necessarily at fault in such descriptions. 
 
 The red, ochreous earth, called kokowai, is in 
 great request among the beaux and belles of the 
 land ; and, with deference, I beg to observe, that 
 the best Parisian rouge of Delcroix would fail to 
 meet a preference in the native market. This 
 material of embellishment is rubbed over the 
 body from the head, including often the hair, to 
 the feet. This rubrication is fixed by the oil 
 extracted from the liver of a shark, which rancid 
 perfume is gustable on either tack. A kiss can- 
 not be ravished from a lady who makes use of 
 this mixture, without a legible testimony being 
 imprinted of the felonious indiscretion. The 
 elderly matrons only make use of it ; and, con- 
 sequently, they are not often called upon to lose 
 much by such abrasions. 
 
 Both sexes bore the lobe of the ears suf- 
 ficiently large to admit such ornaments as are 
 supposed to add individual beauty, in which 
 various trinkets are placed — such as the dried 
 skins of parroquet birds, down of sea-fowl, human 
 bones carved, ossifications of large birds, cloth- 
 beads, bodkins of green talc, teeth of friends.
 
 ORNAMENTS, &C. 395 
 
 enemies, dogs, pigs, and ditto repeated of the 
 sand-shark, which, from their rarity, are in 
 much request, and are generally garnished at the 
 ends with a piece of sealing-wax. This simple 
 ornament fetches a high price. 
 
 Iron nails were formerly used as xodkd kais, 
 or ear-rings. 
 
 The ladies (tasty souls !) wear armlets, ring- 
 lets, necklets, and anclets, of any and every 
 thing that fashion dictates. But the most valued 
 ornament, that has stood the test of many gene- 
 rations, is the tiki, made of the poe namu, or green 
 serpent-stone, in the form of a distorted monster. 
 There is no reason given for the outre shape 
 in which this figure is invariably made. Gods, 
 or Lares, are not in the land, and they are equally 
 imlike departed friends ; for the resemblance is 
 neither hke any thing above the earth, or, per- 
 haps, beneath the waters. These ornaments 
 stand paramount in public estimation : the 
 original cause for their manufacture is forgotten. 
 
 Pieces of whalebone, cut into various shapes, 
 are also made use of. Imitations of the favourite 
 tooth of the sand-shark are made to the south- 
 ward from shells. These facsimiles are capitally 
 executed. The hearu, or comb, is now regarded 
 as indispensable to the females. In ancient 
 times, a similar article, about nine inches long, was
 
 396 ORNAMENTS IN GENERAL ESTEEM. 
 
 placed upright on the back of the head as an or- 
 nament. This has totally fallen into disuse, and 
 has been long discontinued ; but it is well re- 
 membered by the elderly people. The combs 
 are now very neatly carved, made of the kai- 
 katoa, or rowito woods ; pieces of pearl-shell are 
 let into the eyes to beautify the ornamental part. 
 Some few of the men (but very rarely) bore the 
 septum of the nose, for the purpose of placing an 
 ornament within it; but the public taste is de- 
 cidedly against the fashion : it is now but rarely 
 seen. Rings made of whalebone, and armlets of 
 the same substance, have been much in vogue. 
 
 The females of Uwoua and Tokomaru wear 
 an article peculiar to themselves only. It is called 
 a wetiki, or belt, formed of a grass producing 
 a delightful odour, equal to the most delicate 
 flowerets. This grass is plaited remarkably neat, 
 and is used in lengths of several yards : its uses 
 may not be mentioned, as this chevaiix defrise is 
 only arranged on the person of the female in the 
 innermost recesses of a lady's sanctum. 
 
 The hair of the males, on gala days, is 
 gathered together, and made fast on the crown 
 of the head with a pare, or top-knot, and care- 
 fully oiled with the abominable extract of shark's 
 liver. The blue mixture, containing manganese ; 
 black, furnished by charcoal; yellow, procured
 
 VEGETABLE FOOD. 397 
 
 from decayed wood, in appearance like chrome ; 
 and the red kokowai, are all put into requisition 
 to beautify a native Narcissus. The apex of the 
 head is decorated with sea-fowl feathers. 
 
 Flowers of various kinds are made use of by 
 the younger females, who weave them within their 
 hair, and invariably repudiate red ochre and 
 shark's oil, until arrived at a cerfai?i age : both 
 sexes are equally devoted to trifles and finery. 
 
 The various articles, vegetable and other- 
 wise, made use of by these people for food, have 
 already been enumerated. The principal suste- 
 nance, anterior to the time of Cook, was the roi, 
 or fern-root, answering the same purpose that 
 bread does with us. This food is very consti- 
 pating to the European, but is much liked by the 
 people of the country. The kumera is certainly 
 the principal favourite of the natives. To this 
 vegetable is attached a religious veneration, as 
 being the edible supposed to have been brought 
 from the country by their ancestors, in addition 
 to its sweet and grateful taste. In travelling ex- 
 cursions, food is generally prepared to avoid the 
 trouble of making an oven, and to carry much 
 in a small compass. For this purpose dried fish, 
 and a pudding, in shape resembling a wheaten 
 loaf, of baked shell-fish, or potatoes, mashed 
 together with dried shark or cod-fisli, is in much
 
 398 A WHALE-FEAST. 
 
 repute ; also a caviare of the roes of various fish, 
 together with a snail {narrdra) that is found on 
 the earth ; and the root of the Korou, with a 
 variety of the palm tribe. 
 
 The cetaceous fishes, especially the whale, are 
 accounted a luxury by these people, who vie 
 with certain northern nations in their unqualified 
 admiration of train-oil and other abominable 
 rancidities. The scraps, as pieces of the blubber 
 of these fish are called after the uliginous matter 
 is extracted, are regarded as bo?ines hoiiches. 
 These morceaux are recommended by the na- 
 tive faculty to those patients whose fastidious 
 stomachs will not endure the usual nutriments, 
 similar to civilised enmiieux, when at periods they 
 are only enabled to keep body and spirit on 
 comfortable terms by the interference of jelhes 
 and similar objects oi gout. 
 
 Many a battle has been fought by hostile 
 gourmands for the carcass of a whale thrown on 
 shore long after its death. 
 
 Agreements are often entered into by native 
 tribes residing on either coast of a river, that, in 
 the event of any monster of the deep drifting on 
 their respective shores, each shall partake of the 
 fish fairly. When I resided at Hokianga, a large 
 whale without its head (the body cut adrift by 
 some whaleman) was thrown on the southern
 
 METHOD OF COOKING. 399 
 
 shore of that river. The resident tribe deter- 
 mined to devour the fish among themselves, 
 without admitting their neighbour to a just 
 share ; but the goddess Muta was never acknow- 
 ledged by a New Zealander, and the people of 
 the opposite banks soon became acquainted with 
 the fact, and armed themselves for the fight ; but 
 a composition was entered into by the belli- 
 gerents, and they mutually gastronomised on 
 the fish in amity, contending only, with their 
 usual determination, which party could devour 
 the largest quantity. 
 
 When a shark is taken to the southward, the 
 liver is taken out, cut up into pieces, and boiled 
 in a small iron pot (purchased from Europeans). 
 The fat is relished exceedingly ; and a little 
 stinking oil, whose foetid exhalations reminded 
 me of high-kept venison, was accounted a de- 
 licious repast — a species of nectar the native 
 Ganymede reserves for his chief. 
 
 The only method of cooking formerly in use 
 was by the kdpd or angi jnaori, the native oven, 
 already described. Roasting by the fire is less 
 in use. 
 
 At present, iron trypots of small size are 
 much in vogue ; and the natives in the vicinity 
 of European settlements make use of our culi- 
 nary utensils, such as the frying-pan and similar
 
 400 METHOD OF FEEDING. 
 
 useful articles. The fern-root is placed among 
 hot ashes, and afterwards pounded on a stone, 
 until it becomes mashed and soft. It is then 
 chewed, and the fibrous stalks spat forth. It 
 certainly requires a continual use to discover its 
 peculiar beauties, but it improves on acquaint- 
 ance. 
 
 Fish of every kind form an important article 
 of diet ; and large heaps of shells are seen in the 
 vicinity of every native house. Hogs are prin- 
 cipally bred for the Enghsh settlers. On some 
 of the small islands, where these latter animals 
 are located, the flesh acquires an unpleasant 
 taste, from their piscivorous propensities. 
 
 The dogs are solely devoured by their friends 
 and masters ; but as their numbers are not too 
 great, they are reserved as a regale for holi- 
 days. 
 
 The method of feeding is similar to that of the 
 little dirty urchins among us, who shelter their 
 villanous habits under the adage of " fingers 
 were made before forks." This truism, which 
 will not admit of dispute, is in repute with the 
 natives ; and in cold weather the native digitals 
 are put in requisition, instead of knife, spoon, 
 or handkerchief. Among other digestibles pa- 
 tronised, the filthy vermin with which many of 
 their heads and bodies are sufficiently stocked.
 
 FILTHY HABITS. 401 
 
 are, as I have stated, among the most prominent. 
 The satisfactory explanation given by the natives, 
 for thus summarily disposing of these individuals 
 is, that they are decidedly cut off from making a 
 re-appearance. This brutality, which is not con- 
 fined to the native perruquiers, is much indulged 
 in by all classes ; and an escape formerly from 
 the dungeon of an inquisition, would have been 
 of easier performance than a kutu from the 
 ivory portcullis of a native mouth. 
 
 The elders of both sexes are very filthy in 
 their habits ; neither their bodies nor dresses 
 ever appear to undergo the luxury of a puri- 
 fication. When these latter are crowded with 
 kutus, they extract them by kindling a fire of 
 green kaikatoa, over the smoke of which the 
 mats are held, which incline the vermin to make 
 a hasty retreat ; but their attempts to escape 
 are rendered abortive, as the greedy fellows 
 around consign them to an early tomb. 
 
 The method of softening the much-valued 
 Indian corn, gives this food such a foetid odour 
 as would disturb the complacency of any re- 
 spectable quadruped, and cause an intestinal 
 embarrassment to any other biped than one 
 of these islanders. 
 
 Fish, as mute as the proverb assigns them to 
 be, by a death of six weeks previously, and thrown 
 
 VOL. I. D D
 
 402 HOSPITALITY. 
 
 on shore, are devoured with manifest delight. I 
 have been assured, by many persons who have 
 resided for years in the south island, that the 
 blubber of seals, killed full two months pre- 
 viously, was devoured by the natives with the 
 greatest eagerness, and that many of them were 
 not satisfied with emptying the lamps, but 
 actually swallowed the fragrant zmck. 
 
 Yet the natives will often repudiate such 
 articles as civilised nations hold in high esteem ; 
 cheese, called waihu kou paMke, or hard cow's 
 milk, is seldom eaten by a native ; the taste is 
 accounted nauseous. Salted meats, or fish, do 
 not please them ; and mustard, pepper, and simi- 
 lar condiments, grateful to the taste of an Euro- 
 pean, are repudiated with much aversion. Birds 
 are preserved by the natives, by first plucking 
 the feathers, extracting the bones, then pouring 
 their fat, melted, over them. 
 
 The New Zealander cannot be called in- 
 hospitable. Should a stranger, of either com- 
 plexion, pass a village during meal-times, or any 
 travelling party taking their food by the road- 
 side, he is immediately invited to partake of the 
 fare; a contrary conduct would be accounted 
 mean and unworthy, and would tell much against 
 tlie hospitality and honour of the party. On 
 such invitations, I invariably accepted a trifle of
 
 KUMERA HARVEST. 403 
 
 the proffered repast, such as a potato or ku- 
 mera, as no person can easily excuse himself as 
 having lately partaken of food. A native can 
 manage one meal per diem ; that is, masticating 
 from sunrise to almost sunset. The harvest of 
 the kumera takes place in the tenth month, at 
 which period a feast is made, and great re- 
 joicings take place ; the quantity devoured at 
 such times would necessarily puzzle a con- 
 juror. 
 
 END OF THE FIRST VOLUME. 
 
 LONDON : PRINTED BY JAMES MOVES, CASTLE STREET, 
 LEICESTER SQUARE.
 
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