CHAP. III.] INCANTATIONS. 29 



exactly with the whole of the ceremony before 

 attempting to decipher the sense of these incanta- 

 tions, or to translate them. There were some dis- 

 crepances in the accounts I received of this custom : 

 I was told that the baptism is carried on by girls 

 or women, who lay the child upon the mat. Per- 

 haps the two accounts can be reconciled, as the 

 incantation may be said alternately by the priest 

 and by the girls in the form of a dialogue. This 

 seems to be probable from what I can decipher of 

 it. The whole has evidently a symbolical meaning, 

 as indeed all customs of the kind have, even among 

 the most savage nations. 



Incantation used at the Baptism of Boys. 



Tohia te tama nei kia riri kia ngiha, kaui otu me te nganahau 

 ka riri ki tai no tu ka nguha ki tai no tu, Koropana ki tai no tu. 

 E pa te karanga ki tai no tu : me te nganahau ki tai no tu : taku 

 tama nei kia tohia : koropana ki tai no tu : pa mai te karanga ki 

 tai no tu : ko te kawa o karaka wati : o riri ai koe : e nguha ai 

 koe : e ngana ai koe : e toa ai koe : e karo ai koe : ko tu iho uhia : 

 ko rongo i houhia. 



Incantation used at the Baptism of Girls. 



Tohia te tama nei kia riri : kia nguha te tama nei : kani o tu : 

 me te nganahau : ka riri ki tai no tu : ka wakataka te watu : kania 

 kania ma taratara : te hihi ma taratara : te hau o uenuku puha ka 

 mama tauira o tu : ka mama tauira o Rongo. Ho : ka kai tu : ka 

 kai Rongo : ka kai te wakariki. He haha : he hau ora : he hau ran- 

 gatira : kei runga kei te rangi : ka puha te rangi. E iriiria koe ki 

 te iriiri : hahau kai mau tangaengae haere ki te wahie mau tanga- 

 engae : watu kakahu mou tangaengae. 



The following is an attempted translation of the 

 incantation used at the baptism of girls ; but several 



