Locke. — Historical Traditions of Tempo and East Coast Tribes. 451 



by Nukuhau and Hipapalma and on to the entrance of the race at the 

 Huka falls. Here his friend Eiriwai jumped ashore and was saved, but 

 Tamatea and his thirty companions continued on over the falls and there 

 perished. His canoe, in the form of a rock, is still to be seen at that 

 place. 



Ko Kahungunu. 



We will now return to the doings of Kahungunu, the ancestor from 

 whom the tribe is named, that, on the arrival of the European, owned the 

 large stretch of country reaching from the north of Mahia Peninsula to 

 near Wellington — some two hundred and fifty miles of the east coast of 

 this island. 



After remaining for a time at Tauranga (Bay of Plenty), on a certain 

 occasion, Kahungunu, with his sister Whaene and their people, were out 

 fishing; the net belonging to the sister being hauled in, Kahungunu ran 

 and sewed up the fish in the body of the net, at which Whaene was very 

 angry and struck him a blow, of which Kahungunu was so much ashamed 

 that he left the place. When he arrived at the forest he ate some paretas, 

 so the place was called by that name. Further on he ate a kaka, so the 

 place was called Kaka-Eai-a-mio, then on to Pauauehu and Ngarara, Wha- 

 kawae, then to Kohahu-Paremoremo ; further on he saw a cave, into which 

 he entered. After stopping here for a time he saw a man passing named 

 Paroa, who, seeing Kahungunu, and not knowing who he was, invited him 

 to the village, to which, ou the arrival of his companions, he proceeded. 

 After living there for some time Paroa said to his daughter, whose name 

 was Hinepuariari, " Girl, there is a husband for you." Paroa by this time 

 had found out it was Kahungunu, so they became man and wife. Shortly 

 after this one of the women said to Hinepuariari, " How do you like your 

 husband ? and she replied, " Ehara i te hang a, kahore e rupeke ana mai takoto 

 tome mai i waho i te tahu, ka haere te rongo mo te kuha o Kahungunu." 



When Kapa and her daughter Kongomaiwahine, who lived at Tawapata, 

 near Table Cape, heard the report, Eapa repeated the following proverb : — 

 " Kei te nui he aiva o tatapouri te tuhera atu nei." 



Kahungunu, on a certain occasion, requested his wife Hinepuariari to 

 comb and dress his hair : so she combed all day until evening ; and in the 

 morning she commenced again. She then was able to form it into a top- 

 knot, she rubbed it with oil that was held in a paua shell (Haliotis). After 

 using ten paua shells of grease, the hair was not limp, she could not bind 

 it ; so she held it fast between her knees, and was then able to get it 

 together so as to bind it with flax ; but the flax was not strong enough to 

 hold it, — it kept breaking. So Kahungunu told his wife to fetch his girdle. 

 The flax from which the girdle was made grew at Tauranga. With this 



