26 Transactions.— Miscellaneous, 



Shand observes that be need scarcely remark that the operation 

 was tedious in the extreme ; and one can easily see that such 

 was the case by the examples of ill-ground axes, especially some 

 of the smaller ones with round shoulders, " uma," unreduced, 

 like an ill-ground European axe. On the other hand, however, 

 there were a number of really beautifully finished axes, " toki," 

 that must have taken an infinite amount of time and skill to get 

 into such. a perfect shape. 



There are many unfinished axes lying about at the Chat- 

 hams in the rough state, evidently intended to be ground, but 

 afterwards thrown away. When not using them, the owner 

 generally hid his " tokis" to avoid their being stolen. Now and 

 again a number so buried are discovered in ploughing, or in 

 digging up old places of residence. Mr. Shand observes that he 

 has never seen, in fact doubts the existence of, any of the " tuki- 

 titaha" or large axes used by the Maoris, and common also to 

 New Guinea, used for chopping the top and bottom edges of a 

 cut, the ordinary form being used to cut out the chip by chip- 

 ping sideways like an adze. It may be of interest, Mr. Shand 

 continues, to state that the mode of making and tying a handle 

 on to the " told" or large stone axe was identical with that of 

 the Maoris, of which race the Chatham islanders evidently 

 formed a part in the original departure from Hawaiki. This is 

 shown also by their traditions, legends, and the causes assigned 

 for their leaving their so-called Hawaiki home. 



The Morioris also used flint " mata," which they split into 

 thin, irregular, wedge-like shapes, as knives, there being no 

 volcanic glass (" tuhua") obtainable in any quantity, although 

 a reef of it is known to exist under water at the south-east 

 corner of the island at Manukau. The micaceous clay-slates or 

 argillaceous schists, with layers of quartz, occurring on the 

 northern coast of the main island — of which specimens were 

 first brought to New Zealand by Mr. H. H. Travers in 1868, 

 and which I described in Vol. I. of the Transactions" — were 

 used for making the " patrn" and were also employed in the 

 same way as the "mata" (flint), though their edges cannot be 

 made so sharp as that of the latter. Both are used with or 

 without handles in cutting up grampus or any other variety of 

 whale for food, the blubber of which was considered a great 

 relish by the Morioris. 



Entering upon the main subject of these notes, it appears 

 that the Morioris, doubtless after looking in vain all over the 

 island for a suitable material for the manufacture of their war 

 weapons, which would take a fine polish, were at last compelled 

 to have recourse to the argillaceous schist before referred to, to 

 which the small layer of quartz, interlaminated with the argil - 



* "Trans. N.Z. Inst.," vol. i., p. 128. 



