POLYNESIAN TRADITIONS. 345 



the air become covered with vegetation more or less rapidly, 

 according to the temperature and other physical conditions. 



The ISew Zealand Maoris and the Tahitians all connect the 

 creation of the world with a rock. In the Windward Islands of 

 the Society Group they used to say that the existence of the world 

 was due to the procreative power of their chief god who was called 

 Taaora, who embraced a rock which immediately brought forth 

 the earth and sea. After this stupendous birth, the heralds of 

 day, the dark and light blue sky, appeared before Taaora and 

 asked for a soul for his offspring the then lifeless universe. 

 The reply of the god was, ' It is done ;' and directed his son, 

 the sky-producer, to carry out the mandate. The son looked 

 up to the heavens, and they brought forth new skies and 

 clouds, sun, moon, and stars, thunder and lightning, rain and 

 wind. He then looked downward on the earth, and the soul of 

 the God being breathed into the mass, it soon became 'changed, 

 and earth, mould, mountains, rocks, trees, herbs, and flowers, 

 beasts, birds, and insects, fountains, rivers and fish, took their 

 rightful places in creation. The blueness of the sea and the sub- 

 marine rocks and corals, and all the inhabitants of the ocean, 

 were afterwards created by the same Eaitubu, or sky producer. 



The idea of development is apparent in both the Samoan 

 and Tahitian traditions, and in fact, as far as I know, is 

 universally shared by all races of mankind. 



I do not think that the Samoans ever heard of Dr. Darwin 

 or of Professor Mivart ; but it occurred to me, as a friend 

 leisurely retailed these native legends with that slight 

 American drawl which is rather common in the Pacific, that 

 the theory of evolution is at least as old as the native races of 

 the great South Sea; and in corroboration of this it may 

 especially be noted that the Samoans have a tradition that all 

 higher forms of animal life, even up to the human race, are 



