24 Transactions. — Miscellaneous. 



influence. Unless property inherited be from the mother 

 alone, it might be said that the order of succession of in- 

 heritance was from father to the eldest son, perhaps later 

 to the younger children, but always with the tendency to 

 revert to the offspring of the eldest son. In the work above 

 quoted is a statement to the effect that, under European 

 influence, the Maori of New Zealand have adopted agnatic 

 filiation, " but this new system still jars against ancient 

 usages, which formerly harmonized with the maternal 

 family." I quite fail to see how agnatic filiation can be said 

 to be new among the Maori, when for centuries past rank 

 and mana (prestige, power) have been transmitted through 

 both the male and female lines of descent. Uterine filiation 

 is of undoubted importance among the Maori, especially when, 

 conveying rank ; but the male line appears to have been 

 equally important, and the ara tane, or male line of descent 

 from a noted ancestor, is looked upon with pride by the 

 descendants of such ancestor. Given the fact that both 

 parents were of equal rank, it is possible that greater weight 

 would be given to masculine filiation ; but if the mother 

 was of higher rank than the father, then their children would 

 prefer to trace their descent through the mother, witb whom 

 their increased rank and prestige originated. 



In claiming land in the Native Land Courts of the colony 

 a native may claim through either or both parents, the latter 

 course being adopted when he has a claim through both. If 

 his mother only held an interest in the land, then he would, 

 of course, claim it through her alone, and give his genealogical 

 descent through her. The same process would be adopted if 

 only his father had an interest in such lands. 



There is no evidence to prove that the matriarchate system 

 prevailed among the Maori, whose system of filiation may 

 appear somewhat peculiar, inasmuch as, as we have seen, 

 rank, property, and mana (prestige, power, authority) was 

 transmitted by both the male and female lines. It is per- 

 haps needless to state that the group - marriage system was 

 unknown among the Maori. Polygamy existed to a certain 

 extent, but only among men of rank. If ever the matri- 

 archate existed among the Maori, then it must luive been 

 in times long passed away, though possibly the estimation in 

 which the maternal line is licld when endowed with rank may 

 be a survival of that ancient system. 



The Maori recognised a difference between real filiation 

 and adoption. A man could niarry the adopted daughter of 

 his parents, provided that she was not nearly related to him. 



In regard to consanguineous nomenclature, it may be 

 stated that degrees of relationship are not by any means 

 clear as used among the Maori, as will be seen anon. 



