HOT SPRINGS OF NEW ZEALAND 107 



for she must be the most beautiful of all the girls in 

 the surrounding country, and beautiful Maori girls 

 are the rule, not the exception. The lucky maiden 

 is put in the bow of a small, very swift canoe, and 

 her brother or some other relative takes his place in 

 the stern to paddle her through the chase which en- 

 sues. As they appear on the course before the crowds 

 who throng the beach, a tremendous cheer goes up, 

 and it is not difficult to see that this happy little 

 wahine is popular as well as lovely. Hardly have 

 they taken their place near the starting-post when 

 the canoes of the chasers themselves shoot out to 

 their respective stations, each very fast and light, 

 and each paddled by five or six men with a vacant 

 place in their midst for the bride, in case she is cap- 

 tured before reaching the finish line. At the signal, 

 the bride's canoe dashes away down the course, fol- 

 lowed a minute later by her pursuers. The object 

 of the chase, as is soon evident, is to overtake the 

 maiden, lift her from her own craft into one of the 

 places left vacant for her in the canoes of the other 

 contestants, and carry her over the course to the fin- 

 ish line. Once captured by a competing crew, that 

 crew at once becomes the object of pursuit for the 

 others, who in turn try to overtake and capture the 

 bride. The crew which finally succeeds in carrying 

 her across the finish line are proclaimed the winners ; 



