Goldie. — Maori Medical Lore. 71 



He hurumai ra, 

 He pa ko rirerire, 

 Hae tahi ki te mata, 

 Watitiri rua ki te 

 Mata Watitiri 

 Titiromai ra, 

 Kakanomai ra, 

 Ki te mata ora, 

 Ki tu mata o Rehur. 



Which may be translated thus : — 



Wave before your eyes, wave before your eyes. 



Thou smitten blind, thou smitten blind, 



Be your eyes bright 



Like the sun that rises there, 



Since you are so greatly afflicted, 



Once to the eyes of Waititiri 



Twice to the eyes of Watitiri. 



Look this way, 



Glance this way, 



With your healed eyes, 



With your star-like eyes. 



This was the incantation repeated by the god Tawhaki in response 

 to the appeal of the blind Wai-tiri, or Waititiri. She said to 

 him, " Perform the ceremonies and cure my eyes." He at once 

 complied. Taking clay and kneading it with his spittle, he 

 rubbed it in her eyes, repeating meanwhile the above incanta* 

 tion. The result was highly satisfactory, the patient remark- 

 ing, " Aye, aye, my eyes are cured, my grandson." 



Another method of curing matapo is thus recorded by White 

 in his lectures on " Maori Customs and Superstitions " : " The 

 priestly physician ties round his own waist the twigs of kawa- 

 kawa (Piper excelsum) and karamu (Coprosma, var. species) 

 as an apron, and, standing in front of his patient, who is sitting 

 up, he waves a branch of one or other of the same shrubs before 

 the man's face, saying : — 



Thou sun now coming, 



Red in thy coming— give light here. 



Thou moon now coming, 



Iu thy flight look on this man. 



Now dimly seeing the gods are moving. 



Welcome, come ye forth, 



From the eyeballs the red waters come, 



Give light, give strength, 



Give life — life now come. 



Toothache. 



The teeth were classified into cutting-teeth, or incisors (niho- 

 tapahi), eye-teeth (niho-kata), and double teeth (niho-pu, or niho- 

 purakau). Milk-teeth were named niho-kaiu ; uneven or over- 

 lapping teeth, niho-tapiki ; and a broken tooth, niko-hawa. 



