84 Transactions. — Miscellaneous. 



taining their remarks on this subject. Captain Cook says, — " A song, not 

 altogether unlike their war- song, they sometimes sing without the dance, 

 and as a peaceable amusement. They have also other songs which are sung 

 by the women, whose voices are remarkably mellow and soft, and have a 

 pleasing and tender effect ; the time is slow, and the cadence mournful, but 

 it is conducted with more taste than could be expected among the poor 

 ignorant savages of this half-desolate country ; especially as it appeared to 

 us, who were none of us much acquainted with music as a science, to be 

 sung in parts ; it was at least sung by many voices at the same time." (First 

 Voyage, Vol. III., p. 468). And Mr. Anderson, who was the surgeon in 

 Cook's ship on his third voyage to New Zealand, thus writes : — " The 

 children are initiated at a very early age into the keeping the strictest time 

 in their song. They likewise sing, with some degree of melody, the tradi- 

 tions of their forefathers, their actions in war, aiid other indifferent subjects, 

 of all which they are immoderately fond, and spend much of their time in 

 these amusements, and in playing on a sort of flute. Their language is far 

 from being harsh or disagreeable, though the pronunciation is frequently 

 guttural ; and whatever qualities are requisite in any other language to make 

 it musical, certainly obtain to a considerable degree here, if we may judge 

 from the melody of some sorts of their songs." {Anderson, in Cook's Third 

 Voyage, Vol. I., p. 163.) But far beyond all, as I take it, is the scientific 

 testimony of Dr. Forster, who was with Cook in his second voyage to New 

 Zealand, — already, however, given by me in a former paper, with some 

 interesting additions from Sir G. Grey's work.''' 



Art. IV. — Notes on the lest Method of meeting the Sanitary Bequirements of 

 Colonial Towns. By Edward Dobson, C.E., President of the Philo- 

 sophical Institute of Canterbury. 



[Read before the Philosophical Institute of Canterbury, 5th Augiist, 1880.] 

 In the following notes I propose to lay down certain propositions, which 

 may be termed sanitary axioms, applicable alike to all towns, whether 

 built on hill-sides, on table-lands, or on low-lying plains ; and which may 

 serve as standards, by which to test how far the sanitary arrangements, 

 which are being carried out in our Colonial towns, fulfil, or fall short of, the 

 conditions necessary for the due maintenance of the public health. 



I refer especially to Colonial towns, because the conditions of sanitary 

 work are very different in the irregularly laid out and closely built cities of 



* See "Tj'ans, N,Z. Inst.," Vol. XI., pp. 103-106. 



