CoLENSO. — Beminiscences of tlie Ancient Maoris. 449 



by Professor Huttou. But Professor von Haast had only a 

 small yomig specimen (or, rather, its skin) to examine, whicli 

 two North Island Maoris, then engaged at Christchureh 

 Museum, pronounced to belong to a yonngmaho, and informed 

 him that this fish in its adult state %Yas about 12ft. long. 

 The animal to which the skin belonged was 4ft. lOin. long. 

 Professor von Haast also gives much information relative 

 to the teeth of his small specimen (differing widely from my 

 Maori friend's description given above), their number, form, 

 and size, the colour of its skin, &c. Still, as I take it, there 

 are reasonable doiibts as to that specimen being a true mako ; 

 I think it is highly probable that his two Maori informants 

 had never seen a real mako shark. 



Couch, in his celebrated work on "British Fishes," in his 

 account of the porbeagle shark, gives a drawing of it from 

 nature, and also others of its teeth and jaws, which appear 

 to be different from those of the mako, being much more 

 slender, and semi-terete, undulate, and sharply pointed (vol. 

 i., pp. 41-44). 



My object in writing this notice of the mako shark is 

 mainly to relate the ancient Maori mode of capturing it. 



§ II. Of the Preparation of Black Pigment for 



Tattooing. 



The ancient Maoris had more ways than one of obtaining 

 the black substance used in tattooing, which colouring-matter 

 also varied in quality, partly owing to what it was made 

 from ; that for the countenance being superior to that used 

 for the lower parts of the body. One way of obtaining the 

 best kind was as follows :— 



First, two proper careful men were selected for the work. 

 This, too, was done with ceremony, they being (for the time) 

 taint (/.c, under the laws of taboo) — rigidly set apart. A small 

 kiln-like furnace (ruangareliu) was excavated in the side of a 

 hill suitably situated. The substances to be used in burning 

 for their soot — ka^crl-vesin (kajna) and the resinous veins of 

 white-pine wood {kapara) — were got ready ; a net made from 

 the icharanui flax leaves finely split, composed of very small 

 and close meshes, and beaten well, so as to be rough and 

 scabrous from long broken fibres, in order the better to catcli 

 and retain the soot {awe), which was intended to adhere only 

 to the network : this net was fixed properly and securely 

 over the top opening or chimney of the kiln, and above it were 

 placed thick mats and suchlike, to prevent the escape of the 

 burning soot and smoke. All being ready, a very calm fine 

 night was chosen for the firing of the kiln — a niglrt in which 

 there should not be the least breath of moving air ; and, the 

 kiln being fired, those two men remained all night at their 

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