310 



Transactio?is. 



The Poha (Waitotara) or Powha (Whanganui). — The poha, or guiding-net, 

 is constructed of green flax split into about fin. strips and woven into 

 about a 2 in. mesh. The knot is the same as that used in the construction 

 of ordinary fishing-nets. The poha is always made by men, the women 

 being engaged in making baskets for holding inanga and kokopu. The mesh 

 is regulated by the first two fingers of the left hand. The net is commenced 

 at the small end, and as soon as possible it is suspended and worked down- 

 ward (Plate XXIV), gradually being enlarged to 4 ft. 6 in. or 5 ft. by adding 

 meshes (see fig. 4). The small end is about 9 in. or 10 in. in diameter, 

 according to the size of the hinaki for which it is being made, and the 

 length 6 ft. or more. The poha, when finished, is fastened to a hoop made 

 of a strong akatea vine (in modern days more often to a few strands of 

 fencing- wire), which is in turn fastened to a square of manuka poles lashed 

 together, with projecting ends to catch behind the two posts in front of 

 the pa-tuna (see fig. 5). When a fresh is in evidence the poha lasts only 

 about two nights, as it is quickly torn to pieces by the strong current and 

 odds and ends of timber forced against it. The small end is securely sewn 

 to the hinaki with green flax. 



Fig. 4. 



Fig. 5. 



Fig. 4. — Method of enlarging poha (whaJcatepa). 



Fig. 5. — Poha hoop (kaututu) attached to frame (tekateka) for holding in pa-tuna. 



The names of the poha parts are as follows : The vine hoop, kotuku 

 (Waitotara), kaututu (Whanganui) ; the manuka square to which the above 

 is lashed, tekateka ; the mesh, mala ; adding extra mesh, whakatepa ; the 

 small end, pihanga ; the large end, waharau ; the complete net before hoop 

 is put on, purangi. 



The Pa-tuna for a Large River. 



This pa-tuna is always built with the top end on the crest of a swift 

 rapid, and consists of l^wo parallel fences with cross-returns of a single post 

 facing each other at the foot to hold the hinaki. They are exceedingly 

 well built, and very strong considering they are erected in the middle of 

 swift waters from canoes that have to be held in position by poles, and 

 also where the river-bed is composed of boulders and large stones. I am 

 informed by the natives that the fence on the western side is always the 

 shorter, but no reason is obtainable why this is so. Reference to the 

 illustrations will enable the reader to see that this form of weir, com- 

 posed of two straightened parallel fences, differs widely from the V-shaped 

 weir employed in many rivers, and also from the lamprey-weir, which 

 extends from the civer-bank outwards at a right angle to the current. 

 (See Plate XXV, figs. 1 and 2.) 



