456 Transactions. — Miscellaneous. 



the parrot is a noisy screamer, and flies about, making the 

 forest resound with its loud cries. This proverb is applied to 

 an inhospitable chief : he does not raise the cheerful cry of 

 " Welcome ! " to travellers nearing his village; but when he 

 travels, then, on approaching any place, he sounds his trumpet 

 to get food prepared, and afterwards finds fault with the 

 victuals given him. 



" He kuukuiL tamjae nui " = A pigeon bolts its food. Used 

 of a greedy fellow never satisfied. 



" He kaakaa kal honihoni " =^ A parrot eats leisurely, bit 

 by bit. Said to a person who eats moderately and slowly. 



The fourth of their pets was a sea-bird, a large gull = 

 ngoiro, also toroa (Lams dominicanus) . This one fared better 

 than any of the others, as it had its liberty, and ran about, and 

 into the sea, and so (in part) fed itself with its own natural 

 food, and back again to the village, which it seemed to take up 

 with — more so than with the people of the place the dogs and 

 the cats. It was only found in the sea-coast villages, and 

 was kept merely for sociality and companionship. The bird 

 was taken away young from its parents, and fed by hand ; 

 having had its pinions broken oif, it could not now fly. It 

 often emitted a mournful cry when wandering about in the 

 village, which, to me, was not pleasant to hear, as I always 

 fancied it w^as bewailing its hard lot. Of this bird, too, they 

 had their proverbial sayings, one of which is very neat and 

 pleasing — " Me he toroa nguncjunu " = Like a gull folding its 

 wings up neatly. Used of a neat and compact placing of one's 

 flowing mats or garments about one's person, especially by 

 orators when making a speech a la Maori, running" up and 

 down. 



Their true pet, however, was the tuuii = parson-bird (Pros- 

 tlicmadera novcB-zealandiai) . This bird was taken great care 

 of, and kept in a decent rustic cage, entirely for its Maori 

 song, which it was diligently taught. I have known some to 

 live several years in captivity, to look well in their fine plu- 

 mage, and to sing or repeat words and sentences parrot-like, 

 but with more of life and energy, as if the bird delighted in 

 being noticed, and was showing off. The old Maoris had an 

 especial Maori song which this bird was brought to rej^eat. 

 Some of its sentences were very quaint — e.g., (in English) 

 thus : " Lo ! hast thou heard? Here is the welcome visitor. 

 Where from ? Draw nigh. Call hither the dog. Come 

 hither, welcome visitor. From the south is this welcome 

 visitor ? From the north is this welcome visitor? " &c. These 

 words were extremely applicable to a party of friends arriving 

 at a village ; and if the tuuii in the olden time Avas so well 

 taught by its owners as to rattle them out on the arrival of 

 visitors it must have been very pleasing to them. At all 



