2 Transactions. — Miscellaneous. 



or, rarely, ko-ano-ano. The whole was surrounded by a net- 

 work of flax, a sort of large open knotted network with the 

 various ends twisted together to form a handle. This flax- 

 work was called kete. 



The Maoris, having no knowledge of pottery, ingeniously 

 used these gourds to preserve the flesh of birds for eating. 

 Pigeons were plucked and dressed and then put into the 

 gourd, and the melted fat of the pigeons was then poured 

 into it until full to the neck, which was finally covered by the 

 broad leaves of the rangiora plant. Elsdon Best says the 

 gourd had often a wooden lid, but I have never seen one in 

 anv museum. Sometimes the calabashes were clothed in 

 closely woven flax covers, and some were planted on three 

 elaborately carved legs. The meat so preserved was known 

 as hualma. When pigeons wei'e scarce tuis or wekas were 

 made into hiialma. Rats were thus preserved — always with 

 their skins on. In the old cannibal days they were occa- 

 sionally filled with choice bits of human flesh. 



At Toka-anu I first saw a pair of tnkis. They were shown 

 to me by their owner, a great rangatira, and were among his 

 choicest possessions, and clearly he was extremely proud of 

 them. They were jet-black, and smaller than mine ; in fact, 

 the entrance was so narrow that former ancestors of his used 

 to call up a small boy whose hand used to fish out the dainties. 

 Best says that in consequence they were sometimes called 

 nguiu-iti. Best has seen them ornamented with feathers. 

 These tahas belonged to the chiefs, and at great feasts they 

 acted as choice centre ornaments. 



One of our greatest Maori authorities says they were 

 formerly common in the Urewera country, and were rarer 

 about Taupo. As far as I can discover they were rarely seen 

 south of this. They are now rare. Three or four specimens 

 are in the Auckland Museum, and there is one in tlie Maori 

 iiouse of the Wellington Museum. I have seen no others 

 except the pair at Toka-anu and my pair, and tukis are absent 

 from many collections. Mair has seen them weighing 1001b. 

 when full. Mair told me that none ai'e now being made — 

 kerosene - tins do as well and are less trouble to get. 

 Hamilton in his great work on Maori art figures one, but 

 has only a brief reference to it. Ilis pair of calabashes in 

 the museum are mimis the tukis. 



Neither Tregear nor Williams in their dictionaries have 

 the word, but Tregear gives a Mangarevan word puUiki, 

 " to draw together the mouth of a sack." These tukis cer- 

 tainly draw together the necks of the calabashes, enclosing 

 their meaty contents, which, in addition to the dainties above 

 mentioned, sometimes were filled witli dog-meat, of which 

 Best says the hind quarters w'cre most liighly esteemed. On 



