THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 107 



those of valued chiefs, or sometimes of a beloved wife or 

 child. 



We have the testimony of those who were conversant with the 

 Maoris in the early days as to the methods pursued, and the best 

 accounts appear to be that quoted from Rutherford's Journal, in a 

 rather scarce work, " The New Zealanders," published in London 

 in 1830 by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. We 

 cannot do better than repeat the quotation here, as giving clearly 

 and precisely the details of the process : — " The skull is first com- 

 pletely emptied of its contents, the eyes and tongue being likewise 

 extracted, after. which the nostrils and entire inside of the skull 

 are stuffed with flax. At the neck, where the head has been cut 

 from the body, they draw the skin together like the mouth of a 

 purse, leaving, however, an open space large enough to admit the 

 hand. They then wrap it up in a quantity of green leaves, and in 

 this state expose it to the fire till it is well steamed ; after which 

 the leaves are taken off, and it is next hung up to dry in the 

 smoke, which causes the flesh to become tough and hard. Both 

 the hair and teeth are preserved, and the tattooing on the face 

 remains as plain as when the person was alive." These preserved 

 heads are now become very scarce. I have not seen specimens 

 in any of the colonial museums which I have visited, except in 

 the Auckland Museum ; but I have not been in any of the 

 museums of the South Island. 



A specimen in the Auckland Museum was curiously enough 

 procured from London for the Museum, within very recent years. 

 It may be of interest to give an incident regarding this specimen, 

 which was related to me by Mr. Cheeseman, of the Auckland 

 Museum. On the Upper Waikato River was one of the 

 numerous sacred caves used by the Maori as a place of sepulture 

 for the bones of the dead. Of course no one was allowed near 

 the spot. It was reputed that in this cave there was the pre- 

 served head of a very famous old chief. Some Europeans had 

 tried to get access to the cave for the purpose of exploring it, 

 but were unable to do so because of the stern refusal of the 

 Maoris to allow them near it. About this time it so chanced 

 that the Auckland Museum authorities acquired by purchase, in 

 London, a specimen of a dried head, which was duly deposited 

 in one of the show cases. Some Maoris, visiting Auckland from 

 the Waikato, happened to see the head in the Museum, and at 

 once concluded tliat the Pakeha had succeeded in eluding their 

 vigilance, and had taken the head from their cave. A hasty 

 examination of the cave was made, and no head being found in 

 it, the conclusion was deemed confirmed, and a great uproar 

 arose. It being against the law to disturb Maori burial-places, 

 the colonial Government had to inquire into the matter, and the 

 curator of the museum had some difficulty in showing that the 



