CoLENSO. — On the Vegetahh Food of the Ancient New Zealanders. 21 



ago, travelling over an isolated hill of loose rich earth in the interior, which 

 had been long famed for its fine fern-root ; and for the occupancy and use 

 of that hill for digging the root, several battles had been fought. The fern- 

 root obtained fi'om hard ground, was, at the north, collectively called ■paetu : 

 while that got from soft, loose, red soils was called koauau. All fern-root 

 diggings and places of good fern-root, were rigidly preserved ; no tresx^assing 

 was ever allowed. 



(2.) As to the proper time of digging, and manner of drying it, etc. — 

 The old Maoris had their set fixed times of digging the root, in the 

 spring and early summer months ; they knew well when the roots were 

 abounding in nutriment, and woTild no more have dug them up in the 

 wrong season than we should our potatoes. They were also careful not to 

 burn off the fern plants from their digging grounds, save at the proper time 

 of the year, as such careless burning injured the roots ; but burning off the 

 fern in the proper season, in August, improved them. In doing so they 

 were ceremonially careful (at the north) to use the wood of two plants for 

 firing the fern, — the kareao ( Rhipogonavi scandens), and the mahoe (Melicytiis 

 ramiflorusj. In digging it, which was always done with their long wooden 

 sharp spade (kooj, they took care not to bruise or break it into pieces ; at 

 the same time they examined it by breaking, etc., — if it were dry internally, 

 then it was good, and they went on with their digging ; if wet, inferior. They 

 carefully put it up in loose stage-like piles, on wood, to dry in the wind, 

 shading it from the sun. And when it was quite dry, at the end of a fort- 

 night, they went over it, selecting and separating it into several kinds or 

 quahties, of which they had many (just as with us, the various kinds of 

 wheat, potatoes, etc.) ; some being for the chiefs, some for warriors, some 

 for visitors, some for common daily use, and some for the slaves.* Each 

 quahty was put up separately, and carefully stored away in large quantities 

 from both sun and rain for future use, — properly harvested, dried, and 

 stored, it would keep good for years. 



(3.) In preparing the fern-root for daily food, it was never used green. 

 The dried root was slightly soaked in water, roasted a little on the embers, 

 and beaten soft with a stone pestle, or short hard-wood club, or one made 

 from the bone of a whale (each properly made for the purpose), on another 

 large smooth waterworn stone ; this beating of the root was constant and 

 hard work. In the roasting and beating the black outer bark, or skin, 

 peeled off. The better quality root so prepared was as soft as a bit of 

 tough dough ; it soon, however, became stiff and hard, when it snapped like 

 glass or good biscuit. When it was prepared in large quantities, for taking 

 with them to sea in their coasting voyages, and also for going to fight, then 



* See Appendix D, 



