Best. — Maori Forest Lore. 285 



man. Even land possesses this quality, as we shall see anon. It is the 

 very essence of vitality. If lost or debased in any way, the person, or 

 tree, or forest, or land is in a truly bad way, and armourless against shafts 

 of magic or other evil influences. Broadly speaking, the above state may 

 be termed tapu; but there are many inner terms and definitions which 

 cannot be understood by the pakeha. 



Said Ngahooro te Amo, of Ngati-Mahanga. " Birds were exceedingly 

 numerous in former times, before Europeans came. In the days of my 

 youth, at Te Whaiti, when the multitude of birds were singing in the early 

 morn, a person's voice could scarce be heard in the forest, so great was the 

 noise. Birds were numerous so long as we cooked them in the ancient 

 manner — that is, in a hangi (steam-oven) ; but when we began to cook 

 them in the kohua (iron pots) obtained from Europeans, then it was that 

 the evils of the tmvhanarua came upon us. For it was unlucky and of evil 

 omen. Then it was that birds began to decrease in numbers." 



The word tawhanarua means '' to cook a second time." When cooking 

 birds, should they be found to be underdone when the oven was opened, 

 then the proper thing to do was to use them in that state, and not attempt 

 to recook them. If they were cooked again, then the birds of the adjacent 

 forest would surely disappear. So sayeth the Maori. 



Said Himiona Tikitu to the writer, " In olden times birds were always 

 cooked in the evening. If cooked in the daytime, then all birds would 

 desert the forest. They would be heard flying away in myriads in the 

 night-time, migrating to other parts. The tawhanarua or tao rua (second 

 cooking) would have the same effect, as also would the use of Euroj)ean 

 cooking-vessels. Because the forest and its denizens became tamaoatia 

 (defiled) by these things. Hence the birds would disappear, even as we 

 Maori people did after we became noa (defiled, free of tapu) by washing in 

 water heated in the cooking-vessels of the white men. But remember that 

 the above restrictions only obtained during the busy part of the bird-taking 

 season — that is, while the birds were being potted down for future use. 

 When this labour was ended, then the above restrictions were removed." 



In the above remarks we see how the life principle, the vitality, of man, 

 birds, forest, and land were seriously affected and endangered by certain 

 simple acts of omission or commission. 



The scarcity of birds now so remarkable in this forest district became 

 most marked about the middle eighties, though they had been gradually 

 decreasing in numbers for many years before that time. 



When forwarding my first contribution of these notes on forest-lore, 

 I remarked that the balance must lie over for another year. Alas for human 

 hopes ! — for there is still a balance, and a bulky one, I ween. Peradveii- 

 ture we may prepare that balance ere the sun again returns to Hinetakurua, 

 the Winter Maiden, and send it forth as an amonga to the modern whare 

 takiura, whose priests are the men of the linotype. 



It was Kuha-tahi, the husbandman, who cried, " Hoatu, hoatu ! He ra 

 tapahV^ 



