AIeeson. — Newly-opoicd Cave near Siauner. (i^ 



mostly aquatic, fragments of skin of different kinds of Phocidie, 

 with the liair still attached, and a large quantity of shells of 

 apparently the same species as are now found on the beaches 

 in this neighbourhood. Besides these there are many frag- 

 ments of wooden implements, all very brittle with age, the 

 precise nature and purpose of which it will be difhcult to 

 decide. But all are evidently of Maori manufacture— nothing 

 whatever of European origin has been found ; clearly showing 

 that the cave gives us, so far as it goes, a faithful photograph of 

 the original Maori life. Some of the articles have apparently 

 been intended for ornament, as certain little articles shaped 

 like the cJielcB of a crab or lobster, and others of the shape 

 and size of a penny-piece with a hole through the centre, and 

 a beautiful greenstone pendant, with a hole bored through it. 

 How this was perforated it is difficult to conceive, for even 

 now lapidaries can only bore greenstone with diamonds, as 

 the metals will not mark it. 



One article would almost lead to the belief that the Maoris 

 made toys for their tamariki, or pickaninnies. It is a fairly- 

 well-carved image of a dog, about 4in. long. Its tail is so 

 curled up as to form a ring, by which it could have been sus- 

 pended either as an ornament or charm. It may, however, 

 have been only the handle of some implement or weapon, for 

 there are few articles in this collection bespeaking a frivolous 

 existence. Most of the things were such as would be de- 

 manded by hard necessity, and bespeak a life that " scorned 

 dehghts and lived laborious days," though not in the poet's 

 sense exactly. Of such would be the firesticks (kawcahi), 

 apparatus for lighting fire by rubbing one piece of stick in tlie 

 groove of another (of which there are several specimens), the 

 fern-root beater (patuanthe) aforementioned, pieces of spear, 

 fragments of the parts of a boat, and so forth. Many of the 

 fragments are more or less charred, and there is other evidence 

 that in different parts of the first chamber of the cave, and at 

 different times, cooking was usually done, and fires often kept 

 burning. 



It o}ily remains for me to say that the entrance to the 

 outer chamber is easy enough, scarcely involving stooping. 

 Inside, above the debris, the roof is arched, and at least KJft. 

 in the clear. To explore the middle chamber it is almost 

 needful to glide snakewise ; but once in, and in the centre, 

 and you have a space above the floor 15ft. in the clear. As 

 for the third chamber, that practically is unexplored. The 

 approach to it is 10ft. long, and very narrow and circum- 

 scribed, and an arch of rock is before the entrance. It is 

 almost filled with drhris ; yet it was evidently once nmch 

 frequented, for the lava stone which forms the doorway is 

 worn perfectly smooth at all exposed points, as if by human 



