o 



116 Transactions. — Miscellaneous. 



whakciata ; parera apu paru " ("The beautiful white crane 

 feeds daintily ; the duck gobbles up the mud " — A man is known 

 by his tastes). " Euia tai tea; kia' tuko taikaka anaice " 

 ("Shake off the sap-wood; let only the heart stand"— Get rid 

 of the lialf-hearted and depend only on the sound-hearted) 

 (Hearts of oak). " Homai te kaeaea kia toromahangatia ; ko 

 te kahu te whakaora, waiho kia rere ana " (" Take the little 

 mischievous sparrowhawk, but leave the large hawk alone ") : 

 Said of a man of inferior rank, as being more wicked and dan- 

 gerous than the chief of high rank. 



Making use of a friend's services and neglecting to serve 

 him when it is in your power to do so : " He karanga taua, 

 ka karangatia Paeko ; he karanga kai, te karangatia Paeko " 

 ("A call to the tight — Paeko is called ; a call to the feast — 

 Paeko is not called " — ^One good turii deserves another, but is 

 not always remembered). "He kuku ki te kainga, he kaka 

 ki te haere " (" A dumb pigeon at home, a screeching kaka 

 [parrot] abroad " — does not welcome the traveller to his village, 

 but when travelling himself blusters about expecting every- 

 body to minister to his wants). " Maramara nui a Main kei 

 riro i a Nolio " (" Let the big slice go to Worker, lest Loafer 

 get it "). 



Proverbs teaching promptness : " Kei te kamakama te 

 tikanga " (" Promptness carries the day "). " Mata, whiwhia ; 

 maoa, riro ke " (" Uncooked, and secured ; cooked, and confis- 

 cated " — Eaten underdone, you get it ; fully cooked, somebody 

 else may. Bird in the hand worth two in the bush). " Hohoro 

 te kai ma tatou ; akuanei tu ana a Eaeroa noho ana a Eae- 

 poto " (" Hasten your meal : presently Eaeroa [High-brow — 

 the superior] will stand up here, and Eaepoto [Low-brow — 

 the inferior] will have to sit down or give place [take a back 

 seat] , and we shall lose our meal "). " E mua, ata haere ; e 

 muri, whatiwhati waewae " (" Those before — first on the road 

 — may travel leisurely; those behind, who start later, must 

 hurrv u}) at the risk of breaking their legs ") (The early 

 bird)'. 



Provei-bs showing the advantage of self-reliance and inde- 

 pendence : " He kai tangata. he kai titongitongi kaki ; he kai 

 na tona ringa, tino kai tino makona noa " (" Food, the product 

 of another man's labour, sticks in the throat ; food, the product 

 of your own labour, is partaken of with /est and eaten to the 

 full"). 



In praise of energy and perseverance : " Tohea ! ko te 

 tohe i te kai" ("Be strenuous — persevere! it is a struggle 

 for food"). " Tnkua kia eke ki te paepae poto a Hon" 

 (" Hold on; wait till he [the enemy] touches the threshold of 

 Hou's house "). 



There are proverbs condemning rashness and premature 



