Best. — Maori Marriage Customs. 47 



" As we inarch into the marae, or plaza, we see that the 

 village people are drawn up in a mass by the side of the new 

 iiouse, the xvhare pakmvha (not in front of it), where they are 

 crying us welcome ; and in advance of them are some of the 

 old women, standing singly out in the marae or mounted on 

 shed-roofs or on the defences of the village, where each cries 

 ioudlv ill the doleful tones of the Maori a welcome to our 

 party. And each of them is waving a cloak or shoulder-cape, 

 waving us forward to our destination. This is the tatvhiri, 

 or poivhiri. It is the welcome of the Maori people, even from 

 the days of our ancestors. 



" Slowly we march forward until we are opposite the 

 column of the village people, and then we halt, with perhaps 

 a space of fifty yards separating us. The wild welcome of 

 our hosts still rings out, but no sound comes from our party. 

 We do not tangi'-'- unless some misfortune has lately afflicted 

 one of the parties, or my son-in-law has been long absent from 

 his people. At such a meeting there is no general hongi (the 

 native salute by pressing noses together). The priest of our 

 party alone might so salute a few of the village people in that 

 manner. 



" The next thing done is the rahiri ivhare — i.e., the lifting 

 of the tapu from the ivhare pakuwha. This is performed by 

 the priest of our party, who mounts the roof of the house and, 

 standing on the ridge-pole thereof, recites the invocation 

 known as a kaioa ivhare. This was an important rite to the 

 Maori of former days, but we will not go into that matter 

 now, it is too long. Leave it for the days that lie before. 



" The house is now free from tapu and may be used. Our 

 party enter and rest therein. Then, one after another, the 

 leading men of the village come and make speeches to us. 

 The speaker does not enter the house; he walks back and 

 forth in the front thereof as he delivers his speech, for this is 

 the ancient custom of the Maori. The speeches made are a 

 welcome to us — first to my daughter, who has married into 

 this clan, and also to us, her elders and relatives. The leading 

 remarks of all these speeches are a welcome to the young 

 wife, as, ' Haere mai taku taonga,' &c. (' Welcome, my treasure,' 

 and so forth). When the speeches of the village people are 

 over, then one of our party will go forth from the house and 

 make a speech, returning the greetings of the other party. 

 But all remarks centre round and upon the young couple. 

 After the first speaker finishes and retires to the house another 

 goes forth to have his say, and so on, until all who wish to 

 speak have done so. 



* Tangi = to wail for the dead, or as an affectionate salute to long- 

 absent friends. 



