326 SABBATARIAN SCRUPLES. [PART II. 



ral baskets full of food. In the evening we reached 

 their pa, which was called Ahirara. It was situated 

 on the border of a splendid forest of totara, rimu, 

 and matai. The country here became more hilly, the 

 hills belonging to a range which rose into precipi- 

 tous and fantastic crests, and which may be said to 

 occupy the left shore of the Waikato after that river 

 issues from the lake of Taupo. The pa was sur- 

 rounded with high and rudely carved fences. It 

 appears that the feeling of security which in the 

 places near the coast has begun to exercise its influ- 

 ence has not yet extended so far inland. The na- 

 tives have some Christian catechists amongst them, 

 and are occasionally visited by the missionaries from 

 Tauranga and Roturua. Their number amounts to 

 about 400. 



Only three miles distant from this place is another 

 pa, the road to it leading through the hilly forest. 

 This pa stood on a pyramidical hill, which was na- 

 turally fortified by deep perpendicular chasms. It 

 contained only a few houses, and had lately been 

 established by a chief who was desirous of being at 

 the head of a tribe. Here we stopped on the 8th, 

 and were received with much kindness by the in- 

 mates, as they were relations of our guide : however, 

 a slight disagreement arose on the following day, 

 which was Sunday. They refused us food, saying 

 they had become missionaries of late, and had been 

 told it was the greatest sin to kill a pig or to cook 

 on Sunday. That we demanded it on that day was 



