54 Transactions.— Miscellaneous. 



concealing the same. Sometimes the player who holds the 

 end in his mouth will draw in the string until he has it all 

 concealed in his mouth, but the hands of the others are kept 

 in position as though still grasping it. This is baffling to the 

 guesser. The following ngeri, or chaunt, is recited during the 

 game : — 



Kura, kura 



Kura winiwini, kura wanawana 



Te whaia taku kai Dei 



Ki te kai patiti, ki te kai patata. 



Ka rawe taua ki hea? 



Ka rawe taua ki pahu nui, ki pahu roa 



Hai tako titi, bai tako tata 



Haere pakiaka 



To reti kai whea. 



Tatau Tangata. 



The children form in a circle and one repeats the following 

 doggerel. It is repeated in a jerky manner, as shown by the 

 placing of the commas, and at each of the latter the reciter 

 points his forefinger at one of the ring of children, and keeps 

 on thus round the circle. The player at whom he points at 

 the final word falls out, and so on until onlv one remains, who 

 is said to have won : — 



Tokotahi, tokorua, e ka, kurupatu, 



Te oia, te kotiti, te kowhewhe, i waiho, i reira, 



E wbewhe, tikina, toetoea, he karaka, 



Hai wero, mo to, iwi, tuarua, taro, pahaba, 



Ki runga, i te karaka, toro, pahaha, 



Te mea ao, to whaea, koro houa. 



Tatai Whetit, or Tatau Manaica. 



The following doggerel was repeated by children, the 

 object being to see who could go through it in one breath. 

 But it was also used as a tatai whetu. The latter was a 

 singular act performed in former times in order to kill a frost 

 — i.e., to stop a frost and cause the night to become warm, 

 thus saving the crops. A person would take a firebrand and 

 proceed to the urinal of the settlement, where he would walk 

 round, waving the firebrand so as to light up the ground. 

 Then, throwing the firestick away, he would face to the east 

 and repeat the following two effusions, holding his right arm 

 up, and with index-finger point from one star to another as 

 he kept repeating his jerky lines, as a person does when 

 counting a number of objects : — 



Katahi, ka ri, ka wara, ka tikoki, 

 Manu ki, manu ka toro, kai o, tungongo, 

 Kai te, koata, raua riki, tara kama, e hi, 

 Tarera, e tika, ra wabo, tikina, 

 Kapohia, te arero, o te rangi, 

 Wivvi, wawa, heke, heke, 

 Te manu ki, ki taikeha. 



