632 Proceedings. 



Fourth Meeting : 18th August, 1896. 



Eev. W. Colenso, F.E.S., F.L.S., in the chair. 



Paper. — "John Eutherford, the Pakeha- Maori," by Taylor 

 White. 



In the course of discussion the Chairman stated that shortly after 

 his arrival in New Zealand he had made inquiries into the story in the 

 places described by Eutherford without being able to discover any trace 

 of him or of the events narrated by him, and had come to the conclusion 

 that the story was largely mythical. The present Bishop of Waiapu had 

 made similar inquiries, and had arrived at a similar conclusion. 



Mr. H. Hill stated he had met a half-caste near the East Cape who 

 passed as Rutherford's son, and bore his name. 



Fifth Meeting : 14th September, 1896. 



Eev. W. Colenso, F.E.S., F.L.S., in the chair. 



Papers. — 1. "New Lights on Old Egypt," by T. C. 

 Moore, M.D. 



2. " The Maori : To-day and To-morrow," by H. Hill, 

 B.A., F.G.S. {Transactions, p. 150.) 



Mr. Norris exhibited some trays of New Zealand Cole- 

 optera, containing a large number of specimens beautifully 

 mounted. 



Sixth Meeting: 12th October, 1896. 



Eev. W. Colenso, F.E.S., F.L.S., in the chair. 



Papers. — 1. " University Extension in New Zealand," by 

 H. Hill, B.A., F.G.S. 



2. " Artesian Water in Gisborne and Poverty Bay," by 

 H. Hill, B.A., F.G.S. {Transactions, p. 567.) 



3. " The Poua and Other Extinct Birds of the Chathams," 

 by Taylor White. {Transactions, p. 162.) 



[The following note was sent by the author, but too late for insertion 

 with the paper. — Ed.] : — 



" Ee the word koho : I have from the first and future readings of this 

 sentence always felt a doubt as to whether ' the grass floating on the 

 water, named koko ' — i.e., duck-weed — is here meant in the Chatham 

 Islander's narrative ; or may we suppose the narrative to run thus : ' He 

 eat grass ' — i.e., green food or plants—' he swim on waters of the lagoon ; 

 he call or say, koko.' To support this idea is the following quotation from 

 ' Language and Languages,' by Canon Parrar, page 24 : ' Yet in the 

 following cases also, where the Sanskrit root runs through the whole 

 Aryan family of languages, he cannot avoid referring the names to simple 

 imitation.' . . . ' Koka, a sv/a.n: imitative of the cry kouk ! kouk ! ' 

 Quoted from Pictet, ' Les Origines Indo-Europ6enne8, ou les Aryas 



