INHABITANTS OF NEW ZEALAND. 443 



the surface to be covered with ornamental tattooing, while for young women the 

 operation was limited to the lij)s, whence the term Blue-lips applied to them by the 

 English. No Polynesian nation rivalled the Maori in this art of embellishing the 

 human form with harmonious designs following the contours of the body and 

 bringing its proportions into fuller relief. The Maori artist knew how to give 

 endless variety to the curves of his drawings ; all was calculated so as to produce 

 a happy blending of the lines ; the natural furrows, the movements of the coun- 

 tenance, the play of muscles, everything was made to enhance the charm of the 

 design, and a hale young man certainly presented a fine sight, draped only in this 

 delicate network of blue lines on the ruddy brown ground of his skin. Whoever 

 refused to undergo the protracted tortures of tattooing required at every important 

 event of his life was regarded as a person by his own consent foredoomed to slavery. 

 On the other hand the tattooed native could never be enslaved. " Liberty or Death " 

 was his motto. 



Proud and skilful pleaders, the Maori have always commanded the respect of 

 the English ; in the political conferences they have even frequently proved them- 

 selves superior in logic and eloquence, just as in field sports, such as cricket, they 

 excel in strength and skill. Even in the schools they stand at least on a level 

 with their masters, and when called upon to defend their native land, they proved 

 themselves fully as valiant as their pakeha (European) invaders. Near the present 

 town of Tauranga a farmstead occupies the site of the great |jr/, or fortress of earth 

 and palisades, which General Cameron at the head of four thousand British ti'oops 

 failed to reduce, the siege ending in the utter rout of the assailants. At the same 

 time this warlike spirit was associated with cannibalistic and other ferocious 

 practices. The Maori ate the heart and eyes of the foe in order to acquire their 

 courage and intelligence. In the old kitchen middens occur human remains 

 associated with those of dogs and birds, and tradition speaks of a memorable 

 victory celebrated by a banquet of one thousand of the fallen enemy. 



In their few national industries the Maori displayed remarkable skill. They 

 tilled the soil with extreme care ; as carvers and decorators the}^ were unrivalled 

 in the Oceanic world, and displayed great originality in the design and perfection 

 in the execution of the rock-paintings and in carving the ornamental figures of 

 their dwellings, their boats, and sacred enclosures. Many of these objects are 

 still carefully j)reserved in the local museums, or in places still regarded as 

 tabooed by the natives. 



Like that of other Polynesians the Maori religion was concerned with the wor- 

 ship of the natural forces, always associated in their mind with the spirits of their 

 ancestors. The memory of their forefathers was so interwoven with their every- 

 day life that friends on meeting, instead of saluting each other with signs of joy, 

 gave wa}^ to groans and lamentations over the departed. All are now at least 

 nominal Christians, and have forsaken the stone idols brought with them from 

 Havaiki at the time of the exodus. One of these effigies was given by the people 

 themselves to Governor Grey, and the other, which had been buried in the sacred 

 lake Roto-rua in the island of Mokoia, formed the subject of a law-suit between 



