54 Transactions.— Miscellaneous. 
the Rev. Robert Pargiter, who for many years has been living in Ceylon, 
and who is thoroughly conversant with the Tamil and some other oriental 
languages; and although that gentleman was not able to pronounce the 
figures in question to have the exact form of any single Tamil character, he 
thinks that there is some resemblance between No. 6 of Waikari rock 
paintings and the sixth character, T H E of the inscription upon the 
ancient Tamil bell, and of No. 21a, with the tenth letter, K U, of the 
same inscription, counting both from the left. Mr. Pargiter makes, 
however, another important suggestion, that the inscriptions, Nos. 6, 
21, and 21a, may be the signatures of the artist, as, according to his 
experience, the Tamil natives have a peculiar way of combining two or 
more letters in one character, which is very difficult to decipher except by 
the writer himself and those best acquainted with him. Thus, for instance, 
in their signatures, the natives combine generally the initials of their names, 
and in this ease, No. 21a, for instance, might be taken for M and S 
combined, being, i in fact, a monogram. 
Mr. Pargiter also informs me that No. 21 has some resemblance to one 
of the Cingalese characters, which are generally formed by the combination 
of circles, | 
Norz.—During the discussion as to the probable ages of the rock paintings 
in the Weka Pass Ranges, I observed that the expression applied to them 
by me, as being of great antiquity, gave rise to misunderstandings. In 
using such expression I never dreamt to do so in the sense it is used in 
the northern hemisphere, but only in reference to the short space of time 
of which we have reliable traditional evidence in New Zealand. 
Appenpix No. 1. 
Extract from a paper on the History of the South Island Natives. 
By the Rev. James W. Sracx. 
Maori traditions trace the first occupation of this island back to Te Kahui 
Tipua (the monster herd or ogre band), a purely mythical race. They are 
described as giants, who could stride from mountain range to mountain 
range, swallow rivers, and transform themselves into anything animate or 
inanimate that they chose. They were succeeded by Te Rapuwai or 
Ngapuhi, who spread themselves over the greater part of the South Island, 
and who have left traces of their occupation in the shell-heaps both along 
the coast and far inland. It was in their time that the country around 
Invercargill is said to have been submerged, the forests of Canterbury and 
Otago destroyed by fire, and the moa exterminated. The traditions relating 
to these people are so vague and fragmentary that very little reliance 
can be placed upon them. It is with the Waitaha that the first reliable 
