CoLENSO. — Traditions of the Maoris. 53 



8, The Story of a Brave Boy, named Tautiniawhitia. 

 Once there was a chief, named Porouanoano, whose wife was called 

 Hurumaangiangi, They dwelt together for some time ; the woman be- 

 coming pregnant hungered after a bird, and said to her husband, "I am 

 very desirous of having a bird to eat." On hearing this he took up his 

 bird-spear and went away to the forest ; but he was unsuccessful in 

 spearing any of the birds commonly eaten ; notwithstanding, he brought 

 back with him two living birds, one was a huia {Heteralocha gmddi), and 

 one was a kotuka [Ardea flavirostris) ; these, however, the woman would 

 not eat, but kept as pets. After some time the man went away to his own 

 (other) place of residence, while the woman remained. By-and-by, at the 

 proper moon, she was delivered of a child, a boy, whom she fed and 

 nourished and brought up. When he became a big boy he played at the 

 sailing of canoes, at the whipping of tops, at the running of races on the 

 sandy beach, and at the catching of small birds, with the other boys of the 

 place. Then those other boys, who had fathers, would say, — " Those 

 (doings, actions) of the fatherless brat are the only ones which go ahead ! " 

 On hearing this, Tautiniawhitia was swallowed up with shame, through his 

 having no father ; and he went crying and complaining to his mother, 

 saying, "0 mother dear, mother dear, wherever is my father?" She 

 replied, " Thy father is not here, he is a long way off, at a very great 

 distance ; look towards the sun-rising, there away in that direction is thy 

 father." Then the boy went into the forest, and sought about, and brought 

 back with him a seed-pod of the rewarewa tree {Knvjhtia excelsa), this he 

 took to the water and tried it, and found that it remained upright very well, 

 and did not upset. Then he returned to their dwelling place to his mother, 

 and said, " My dear mother, I am going to the residence of my father ; " 

 saying also to her, " on no account will I remain here in this place, I am so 

 greatly overwhelmed with shame." The mother said to him, " My dear 

 child, at all events stay awhile until some food is cooked (and prepared 

 to take with you), that you may be strong and able to endure for your journey." 

 He said unto her, " Indeed I will not eat ; ' a wooden spear-thrust can be 

 parried, but a spoken spear-thrust cannot be warded off.' "* And so saying, 

 he went his way to his canoe (made like) a pod of the reicareicatvee ;f this he 

 dragged into the water, and entering on board of his canoe paddled away. The 

 mother cried affectionately after him, and he also cried back lovingly to his 

 mother ; he gave her his last words (to be remembered), and she did the 



* See "Trans. N.Z. Inst.," Vol. XII., p. 123; proverbs 58, 59. 



t Ka tae kei tona ivaka Ima reioareiva " ; — probably the meaning is, — after the model 

 of ; made like, in form and shape. 



