CoLENSo. — On the Moa. 90 



days, to lament when tliey heard it ; * so that I can well perceive how those two 

 words put together would form an appropriate name, among such a poetical 

 and imaginative race, for such a feather only so used, viz., the last melancholy 

 parting gift of the karoro. But still this may be fanciful on my part. 



2. That " one feather " is also plainly and fully described by Hawea as 

 closely resembling the tail-feather of the peacock. Now, here three things 

 are observable: — (1.) That such is not the case with any Struthious bird 

 known, especially with the remaining New Zealand one, the kiwi [Apteryx, 

 sp.) ; (2.) that, curiously enough, a similar glowing description is also 

 given of another extinct New Zealand bird of large size, viz,, the hokioi ; 

 which bu'd, however, had been really seen by the old Maoris of the 

 generation just passed away, and by them particularly described. It was 

 said, by an intelligent aged Maori, seven to eight years ago, when writing 

 of this bird : — " Our forefathers saw that bird of former days, the hokioi ; 

 we of this generation have never seen it, for it has become extinct, but 

 only of late. According to what om- forefathers have handed down to us, 

 the hokioi was a very strong bird, especially on the wing ; it was very 

 much bigger and stronger than the hawk, with which, however, it was 

 always at feud. Its habitat was on the mountains, never in the lowlands. 

 It was seen by our fathers when flying, on its days of coming down, or 

 flying abroad ; but this was not every day, because its home was in the 

 mountains. Its appearance or colour was red and black and white, having 

 plenty of feathers ; some of which were also bright yellow, like the coloiu: 

 of the flowers of the koivhai tree (Edwardda), and some were glistening 

 green, like those of the small parroquet ; it had also a beautiful tuft, or 

 plume of feathers on its head. It was a very big bird indeed." (3.) If 

 that "one feather" was not a stray feather from the recently extinct 

 bird hokioi, which also lived away in the mountains,!— it may have been a 

 feather from a Peacock, brought hither by those whaling ships from Sydney 

 or Tasmania, which came here often early in this century to refit, etc., and 

 who would have quickly known how very much handsome feathers were in 

 request, both in New Zealand and in the other South Sea Islands ; of 

 which, indeed, the barter had been commenced in the very time of Cook,| 

 and of which those who came after him in those seas, of course knew. 



Here I may also remark, that the old Maoris who first saw the Euro- 

 peans, as a rule, named the new and strange things (especially animals) in 



* It was the hearing the melancholy wailing of the karoro flying in the Upper 

 Eangitikei Eiver, that caused the chief Kahungunu to burst out into his passionate 

 lament. {Vide, p. 91, ante.) 



t Vide Hawea's statement of that " one feather" having been found in the mountain 

 district, blown down by the wind to the branches of a white pine tree. {Ante, p. 83.) 



I Vide " Cook's Voyages," second voyage, Vol. I., p. 318 ; and iu other places. 



