Merson.—On a Plague of Rats. 205 
although some of them are aged men.* About one thing they are perfectly 
agreed; the Kiore Maori was good to eat; “ bettern rabbit.” As to all 
else pertaining to the native rodent, they are about as ignorant and indiffer- 
ent as the average Englishman is to the facts of natural history in his own 
island. 
But there is a third species of rat, for which Professor Hutton proposes 
the name Mus maorium. (Trans., vol xi, p. 944; vol ix., p. 848.) 
Does our animal belong to this species? I think it does, and I will, 
with your permission, give my reasons for saying so. The Professor found 
in Maori cooking places at Shag Point, on Mount Benger, and I th'uk else- 
where, at various times and under circumstances which show that they had 
lain where gathered for many years, certain collections of bones, principally 
of birds, amongst which, however, were the remains and in some cases the 
complete skeletons of a species of rat. He has given us exact measurements 
of these skeletons, and his figures and accounts are extremely interesting ; 
for after careful consideration he entertains no doubt that this animal was 
the true Maori rat, and perhaps identical with the black rat of Polynesia. 
Now in comparing Professor Hutton’s measurements of the Shag Point and 
Mount Benger rat skeletons, with the figures that I have given above of 
the dimensions of our rats, it will be found that the two sets correspond 
marvellously closely. The animal recently killed gives dimensions slightly 
larger than the desiccated skeleton, and we should naturally expect that this 
would be the ease. My opinion is that our rats and Professor Hutton's 
ch is that of the true and probably 
Mus mova-walandis ? What was it? Are we right in supposing that 
there was only one species of Kiore Maori before the settlement of the 
British in New Zealand in 1839-41 ? I do not see why we should suppose 
so. It is possible that there are at least two species—both varieties of the 
Mus rattus, both frugivorous and dwelling in trees—but one of large size 
inhabiting the lower country and the other smaller occupying the highlands. 
It is in that case to the former that Dr. Buller's specimen, the one found in 
Tinakori Road and several others described—would belong ; and to the 
latter, our visitor. Perhaps one rat was @ Moriori animal, the other a 
genuine Maori, and if that supposition cannot be accepted—perhaps the 
larger variety of Mus rattus came over with Captain Cook in 1769, or with 
In that case the small rat Mus maorium must be 
d of the Polynesian variety of 
some earlier navigator. 
accepted as the original Maori animal an 
* One old Maori believes that in his youth there were three rats in. yer Zeal 
, latter. 
Maori, the Norwegian, and the English—whatever he may mean m : 
