﻿CoLENSo. 
  — 
  On 
  a 
  better 
  Knowledge 
  of 
  the 
  Maori 
  Race, 
  101 
  

  

  § 
  3.— 
  Fables. 
  

  

  1. 
  — 
  The 
  Fable 
  of 
  the 
  Shark 
  and 
  the 
  Large 
  Lizard 
  — 
  (Guana). 
  

  

  In 
  days 
  of 
  yore 
  the 
  large 
  lizard 
  and 
  the 
  shark 
  lived 
  together 
  in 
  the 
  sea, 
  

   for 
  they 
  were 
  brothers, 
  boih 
  being 
  of 
  the 
  children 
  of 
  Punga.* 
  The 
  lizard 
  

   was 
  the 
  elder 
  and 
  the 
  shark 
  the 
  younger. 
  After 
  some 
  time 
  they 
  fell 
  out, 
  and 
  

   as 
  the 
  quarrel 
  was 
  great 
  and 
  protracted, 
  the 
  lizard, 
  vexed 
  at 
  the 
  conduct 
  of 
  

   his 
  younger 
  brother, 
  determined 
  to 
  leave 
  off 
  dwelling 
  in 
  the 
  sea, 
  and 
  to 
  

   reside 
  on 
  the 
  dry 
  land, 
  so 
  he 
  left 
  the 
  water, 
  f 
  But 
  just 
  as 
  he 
  had 
  got 
  on 
  the 
  

   shore, 
  his 
  brother 
  the 
  shark 
  swam 
  up 
  to 
  where 
  he 
  was 
  on 
  a 
  rock, 
  and 
  

   wished 
  him 
  to 
  return, 
  saying 
  — 
  " 
  Let 
  you 
  and 
  I 
  go 
  out 
  to 
  sea, 
  to 
  the 
  deep 
  

   water." 
  The 
  lizard 
  replied, 
  with 
  a 
  bitter 
  curse, 
  saying 
  — 
  " 
  Go 
  thou 
  to 
  the 
  

   sea, 
  that 
  thou 
  mayst 
  become 
  a 
  relish 
  of 
  fish 
  for 
  the 
  basket 
  of 
  cooked 
  roots. 
  | 
  

   On 
  this, 
  the 
  shark 
  retorted 
  with 
  another 
  curse, 
  saying 
  — 
  " 
  Go 
  thou 
  on 
  shore 
  

   that 
  thou 
  mayst 
  be 
  smothered 
  with 
  the 
  smoke 
  of 
  the 
  fire 
  of 
  green 
  fern."|| 
  

   Then 
  the 
  lizard 
  replied, 
  with 
  a 
  laugh, 
  " 
  Indeed, 
  I 
  will 
  go 
  on 
  shore, 
  away 
  up 
  

   to 
  the 
  dry 
  land, 
  where 
  I 
  shall 
  be 
  looked 
  upon 
  as 
  the 
  personification 
  of 
  the 
  

   demon-god 
  Tu,§ 
  with 
  my 
  spines 
  and 
  ridgy 
  crest 
  causing 
  fear 
  and 
  affright, 
  

   so 
  that 
  all 
  will 
  gladly 
  get 
  out 
  of 
  my 
  way, 
  hurrah 
  !" 
  

  

  2. 
  The 
  Battle 
  of 
  the 
  Birds.— 
  {A 
  Fable 
  of 
  the 
  Olden 
  Time.) 
  

  

  In 
  ancient 
  days, 
  two 
  shags 
  met 
  on 
  the 
  seaside. 
  One 
  was 
  a 
  salt-water 
  

   bird 
  and 
  the 
  other 
  was 
  a 
  fresh-water 
  bird 
  ; 
  nevertheless, 
  they 
  were 
  both 
  

   shags, 
  li'^dng 
  alike 
  on 
  fish 
  which 
  they 
  caught 
  in 
  the 
  water, 
  although 
  they 
  

   differed 
  a 
  little 
  in 
  the 
  colour 
  of 
  their 
  feathers. 
  The 
  river-bird, 
  seeing 
  the 
  

   sea-bird 
  go 
  into 
  the 
  sea 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  of 
  fishing 
  food 
  for 
  itself, 
  did 
  the 
  

  

  * 
  According 
  to 
  the 
  Maori 
  mythology 
  (in 
  which 
  eacli 
  portion, 
  or 
  kingdom, 
  of 
  Nature 
  

   had 
  a 
  different 
  origin 
  or 
  progenitor), 
  Punga 
  was 
  the 
  fatlier, 
  or 
  former, 
  of 
  fishes 
  and 
  

   reptiles. 
  

  

  t 
  Darwin, 
  in 
  his 
  "Naturalist's 
  Voyage" 
  (ch 
  xvii.), 
  writing 
  of 
  the 
  large 
  aquatic 
  lizard 
  

   [Amblyrliynchus 
  cristatus), 
  has 
  some 
  curious 
  remarks 
  very 
  applicable 
  here. 
  

  

  I 
  " 
  Eoots 
  " 
  is 
  not 
  in 
  the 
  original, 
  which 
  has 
  merely 
  " 
  kete 
  maoa 
  " 
  — 
  basket 
  of 
  cooked 
  

   (food, 
  understood) 
  ; 
  but 
  the 
  meaning 
  is 
  fernroot, 
  or 
  sweet 
  potatoes. 
  Our 
  common 
  

   potatoes 
  were 
  not 
  then 
  known 
  to 
  the 
  New 
  Zealander, 
  otherwise 
  I 
  should 
  have 
  preferred 
  

   that 
  word. 
  " 
  Sweet 
  potatoes" 
  (or 
  kuinara) 
  would 
  not 
  answer 
  well, 
  as 
  this 
  food 
  was 
  not 
  in 
  

   use 
  all 
  the 
  year 
  round 
  ; 
  and 
  "vegetables 
  " 
  would 
  mislead, 
  as 
  such 
  were 
  never 
  alone 
  cooked 
  

   save 
  in 
  times 
  of 
  great 
  scarcity. 
  The 
  allusion 
  is 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  Maori 
  manner 
  of 
  serving-up 
  and 
  

   setting 
  food 
  before 
  men, 
  each 
  basket 
  having 
  a 
  bit 
  of 
  fish 
  or 
  flesh, 
  as 
  a 
  savour, 
  placed 
  on 
  

   the 
  top. 
  

  

  II 
  I 
  had 
  often 
  heard 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  mode 
  of 
  capturing 
  tliis 
  (the 
  edible) 
  lizard, 
  which 
  lived 
  in 
  

   holes 
  (bmTows) 
  at 
  the 
  foot 
  of 
  trees, 
  and 
  was 
  made 
  to 
  appear 
  by 
  smoking 
  them 
  out 
  ; 
  forty 
  

   years 
  ago 
  this 
  animal 
  was 
  still 
  being 
  eaten 
  by 
  an 
  inland 
  tribe 
  named 
  Eangitane. 
  {Vide 
  

   ante, 
  extract 
  from 
  Cook, 
  p. 
  83, 
  and 
  from 
  Nicholas, 
  p. 
  84. 
  

  

  § 
  Tu 
  was 
  the 
  name 
  of 
  the 
  New 
  Zealand 
  god 
  of 
  war, 
  

  

  