Best. — Maori Forest Lore. 217 



imitate the cry of that bird, and so attract it to snare or pae 

 (perch). In the summer-time a filmy white substance is seen 

 on the leaves of this tree, which may be detached. It was 

 formerly used by women as an ornament, manufactured into a 

 kind of apron, and seemingly also as a pohoi, a bunch of the 

 material being suspended from the ear. This thin white film 

 is termed Jcahu raurekau. A yellow dye was sometimes prepared 

 from the scraped or pulverised bark of the manono by means 

 of the stoneboiling process. The fibre to be dyed was then 

 boiled in the liquid. This dye, however, was but little used. 

 The crushed bark is also applied to wounds, cuts, or bruises 

 by the Natives. The inner bark was squeezed or pressed in 

 order to express the sap, which was used in cases of skin-disease. 

 The bark has a bitter, pungent taste. It is inadvisable to 

 handle this wood without cleansing the hands afterwards. Mr. 

 Strauchon informs me that if tobacco be rubbed in the hands 

 at such a time, and smoked, the result is a painful affection of 

 the throat and palate. A note on this bark, by Mr. W. Skey,* 

 does not contain anything remarkable. 



The manoao shrub is but seldom seen within the realm of 

 Tuhoe, it being a denizen of the plains' Nor is its absence to 

 be lamented, for a more dismal-looking thing we know not. 

 Natives say that if a branch of this shrub is broken by any 

 person raiii will soon follow. 



Of the manuka we have both the red manuka and white 

 manuka, as they are often termed by settlers. The former is, 

 I take it, Leptospermum scoparium, and the latter L. ericoides. 

 Both are termed manuka by the local Natives. The timber of 

 both is termed durable, but is not really so when exposed to 

 wet. Manuka fence-posts of L. ericoides have a fife of but 

 three years in this district. The timber lasts longer as rails. 

 The wood of -white manuka was formerly used by Natives for 

 manufacturing into weapons and agricultural implements. The 

 long fighting-spears were made of this timber. The bark of this 

 species is much used by the Maoris for roofing their huts, as it 

 is pliable and can be stripped off the tree in long pieces. Hence 

 these trees were valued in former times, and woe betide the 

 person who presumed to take bark from trees on land to which 

 he had no right. The outer bark is stripped off without causing 

 any injury to the tree. The fragrant leaves of L. ericoides were 

 formerly used wherewith to scent toilet-oil. Some Natives hold 

 the erroneous belief that this latter is the male tree and the 

 red manuka the female tree, possibly on account of the con- 

 spicuous and abundant flowers and capsules of the latter. A 



* Trans. X.Z. Inst., vol. ii, p. 152. 



