602 Tran sac tions . — Miscellaneous . 



ing Beach comprises, perhaps, twenty acres of ground vs'ithin 

 the hmits of which objects are found. This beautiful spot was 

 evidently thickly peopled, and must have been the aristocratic 

 quarter of the district. Eemains of burnt whares are found 

 all over the flat ground. Warrington, too, w'as thickly 

 populated ; and it is not difficult even now to dig the remains 

 of old whares out of the sand. The great variety of stone 

 hammers, anvils, and cutting-tools found there shows that it 

 was a regular manufacturing centre. 



In Mr. John White's collection are two singularly beauti- 

 ful spindle-shaped chisels, each 6in. long, and a small axe, all 

 made out of a stone of rare colour. I have never seen stone 

 at all like it. The colour is cream-colour, with patches, 

 streaks, and spots of inaiiga-green sparsely dotted over it. 

 These three pieces were found together, and it may be as- 

 sumed with certainty that they were worked there from one 

 block. In the same way there are in the same collection 

 four hei-tikis of a very peculiar streaky asbestos-like stone, 

 answering to that described in the latter part of Question 11. 

 These three were found at Murdering Beach, which lies 

 between the Otago Heads and Purakanui. The finding of 

 these three, apparently made from one block of stone, seems 

 to indicate that they were made there, though, as will be 

 seen, the evidence of the Maori authorities consulted by my 

 correspondents leans to the conclusion that they were never 

 made on this Island, though not conclusive on the point. 



One of the most remarkable objects in this collection is an 

 unfinished liei-tiki found at Waikouaiti. All that remains to 

 be done is to finish off the parts which have to be rounded — 

 e.g., nose, arms, legs, and abdomen. Its lowest edge is at 

 present as sharp as the edge of a chisel. This has to be rounded 

 off and notched so as to form that curious semilune which 

 represents the lower part of the legs and the meeting toes in 

 a well-ordered hci-tiJci. There is also a very remarkable Jiei- 

 tiki in the Christchurch Museum. It has evidently been a 

 large one, the bowed legs of which have been broken off hy 

 accident. The artist has then set to work to change the 

 design. He has commenced by obliterating the face by neatly 

 grinding it flat. 



No doubt greenstone is still worked in many places in the 

 North Island. Mr. J. B. Eeid, of Dunedin, tells me that when 

 he visited Lake Waikaremoana some years ago he saw 

 numerous Uriweras working it. They generally worked with 

 a sandstone rubber on the side of a canoe, which had in the 

 bottom a little water, used for wetting the stone. 



A collector tells me that, obtaining large numbers of objects 

 by digging in sandhills at Warrington, Purakanui, and other 

 places, he finds most of them in the remains of old whares or 



