112 Transactions. — Miscellayieous . 



similar words. It is curious to note how the popular senti- 

 ment, the wisdom gathered by experience, matured and 

 handed down through successive generations, has, as it were, 

 crystallized into proverbs so similar in form to those of other 

 races with whom they had no communication or connection. 



The life of the Maori in the olden time was so different 

 from what migbt be imagined by those who have seen him 

 only since the time of his coming into contact with the 

 l^akeha and civilisation, that it causes to persons who are 

 able, even imperfectly, to picture what that life was, a feeling 

 of surprise to find that his views regarding conduct in life and 

 the results of observation, his knowledge of human nature, 

 and shrewd perception of what makes for success in the 

 struggle for existence and the securing of a good position 

 among his fellows, are embodied in proverbial utterances so 

 similar to those of his more cultured brethren of the civilised 

 world. 



The Maori word for proverb or adage is " whakatau-ki " — 

 "ki," a word or saying; " whakatau," to meet, or, rather, to 

 go forth to meet, as an approaching visitor. The ' ' whakatau-ki 

 is the ivorcl put forth to meet your interlocutor — almost a chal- 

 lenge. You meet your man with a "whakatau-ki." In making 

 use of a proverb it is generally, or, at least, frequently, referred 

 to as "he wdiakatau-ki na nga tupuna'" — a saying of our 

 ancestors — and in the case of many such a saying is quoted as 

 the words of some particular ancestor- — e.g., words said to have 

 been spoken b}' Houmaitawhiti to the party of emigrants 

 leaving Hawaiki for New Zealand \\\ the Arawa canoe. " E 

 u ki uta kei man ki taiki Tu, puhia, he angina ! e mau ki 

 taiki Noho, ma te huhu e pepe hanehane." Freely rendered, 

 "When you roach your destination follow not Tu, the war-god, 

 or you will disappear as a cloud; but follow Noho, the peaceful 

 home-dweller, and you shall see old age." This is often quoted 

 as a proverb or ancestral saying, and used by way of warning, 

 and urging the advantage to be gained by seeking fame in the 

 field of industry rather than as a warrior. 



Dr. Trench, in his "Lessons in Proverbs," says that it is a 

 mistake to assume that "because proverbs are popular they 

 have therefore originated with the poj^ulace;" "that the sound 

 common-sense, the wit, the wisdom, the right feeling, which 

 are their predominant characteristics, alike contradict any 

 such supposition. They spring rather from the sound healthy 

 kernel of the nation, whether in high place or in low, and it is 

 worthy of note how large a proportion of those with the gene- 

 ratioii of which we are acquainted owe their existence to the 

 foremost men of the time." 



The conditions and necessities of life required the Maori to 

 be brave, alert, vigilant, fertile in resource, patient, and in- 



