﻿CoLENSO. 
  — 
  On 
  a 
  helter 
  Knowledge 
  of 
  the 
  Maori 
  Race. 
  103 
  

  

  In 
  that 
  great 
  battle, 
  those 
  two 
  birds, 
  the 
  tiitii 
  ( 
  Haladroma 
  urinatriiv= 
  

   petrel), 
  and 
  the 
  taiko,'-^' 
  were 
  made 
  prisoners 
  by 
  the 
  river-birds; 
  and 
  hence 
  

   it 
  is 
  that 
  these 
  two 
  birds 
  always 
  lay 
  their 
  eggs 
  and 
  rear 
  their 
  young 
  in 
  the 
  

   woods 
  among 
  the 
  land-bu'ds. 
  The 
  tiitii 
  (petrel) 
  goes 
  to 
  sea, 
  and 
  stays 
  away 
  

   there 
  for 
  a 
  whole 
  moon 
  (lunar 
  month), 
  and 
  when 
  she 
  is 
  full 
  of 
  oil, 
  for 
  her 
  

   young 
  in 
  the 
  forests, 
  she 
  returns 
  to 
  feed 
  them, 
  which 
  is 
  once 
  every 
  moon. 
  

   From 
  this 
  circumstance 
  arose 
  with 
  our 
  ancestors 
  the 
  old 
  adage, 
  which 
  has 
  

   come 
  down 
  to 
  us, 
  "He 
  tiitii 
  whangainga 
  taJii 
  ;" 
  literally, 
  A 
  tiitii 
  of 
  one 
  

   feeding 
  ; 
  meaning. 
  Even 
  as 
  a 
  tiitii 
  bird 
  gets 
  fat 
  though 
  only 
  fed 
  well 
  once 
  

   now 
  and 
  tlien.\ 
  

  

  Appendix. 
  — 
  Note 
  to 
  p. 
  82. 
  

  

  This 
  is 
  an 
  astonishing 
  fact, 
  but 
  it 
  is 
  strictly 
  true, 
  though, 
  I 
  believe, 
  

   scarcely 
  known. 
  I, 
  therefore, 
  with 
  great 
  pleasure, 
  give 
  in 
  a 
  note 
  an 
  extract 
  

   or 
  two 
  from 
  an 
  interesting 
  letter 
  " 
  On 
  the 
  Native 
  Songs 
  of 
  New 
  Zealand," 
  

   written 
  nearly 
  twenty-five 
  years 
  ago, 
  by 
  a 
  talented 
  musician 
  and 
  author 
  of 
  

   several 
  works 
  on 
  music 
  (Mr. 
  J. 
  H. 
  Davies, 
  of 
  Trinity 
  College, 
  Cambridge), 
  

   which 
  letter 
  was 
  printed 
  as 
  an 
  appendix 
  to 
  one 
  of 
  Sir 
  G. 
  Grey's 
  works 
  

   on 
  New 
  Zealand 
  ; 
  and 
  though 
  highly 
  worthy 
  of 
  being 
  read 
  and 
  of 
  being 
  

   deeply 
  studied 
  — 
  especially 
  by 
  a 
  trained 
  musician 
  — 
  it 
  is, 
  I 
  fear, 
  but 
  very 
  

   little 
  known 
  among 
  us. 
  

  

  * 
  Of 
  this 
  bird, 
  the 
  Taiko, 
  I 
  have 
  formerly 
  often 
  heard, 
  particularly 
  at 
  the 
  northern 
  

   parts 
  of 
  the 
  North 
  Island, 
  but 
  have 
  never 
  seen 
  one. 
  It 
  is 
  scarcely 
  known 
  here 
  in 
  Hawke 
  

   Bay, 
  save 
  by 
  name 
  to 
  a 
  few 
  of 
  the 
  oldest 
  natives. 
  An 
  old 
  chief 
  at 
  Te 
  Wairoa 
  told 
  me 
  

   that 
  he 
  had 
  known 
  of 
  two 
  which 
  were 
  seen 
  together 
  on 
  the 
  shore 
  of 
  Portland 
  Island 
  

   (Hawke 
  Bay), 
  many 
  years 
  ago, 
  one 
  of 
  which 
  was 
  snared 
  and 
  eaten. 
  From 
  another 
  very 
  

   old 
  chief 
  I 
  had 
  heard 
  of 
  two 
  having 
  been 
  once 
  cooked 
  in 
  a 
  Maori 
  earth-oven 
  as 
  a 
  

   savoury 
  mess 
  for 
  a 
  travelling 
  party 
  of 
  rank; 
  and 
  from 
  his 
  story 
  it 
  would 
  appear 
  as 
  if 
  the 
  

   bird 
  could 
  have 
  been 
  easily 
  taken 
  in 
  its 
  habitat, 
  at 
  the 
  will 
  of 
  the 
  lord 
  of 
  the 
  manor 
  ; 
  

   for, 
  on 
  that 
  travelling 
  party 
  arriving 
  at 
  the 
  pa, 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  chiefs' 
  wives 
  remarked, 
  

   " 
  Alas 
  ! 
  whatever 
  shall 
  I 
  do 
  for 
  a 
  tit-bit 
  to 
  set 
  before 
  our 
  guests 
  ?" 
  The 
  chief 
  said, 
  "I'll 
  

   get 
  you 
  some." 
  He 
  then 
  went 
  out 
  and 
  soon 
  returned 
  with 
  two 
  Taikos, 
  which 
  were 
  cooked 
  

   and 
  greatly 
  relished. 
  This 
  bird 
  is 
  said 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  large, 
  plump, 
  and 
  fat, 
  and 
  highly 
  

   prized 
  for 
  food, 
  and 
  only 
  to 
  be 
  obtained 
  on 
  exposed 
  oceanic 
  headlands 
  and 
  islets. 
  (There 
  

   are 
  small 
  rocky 
  islets 
  called 
  by 
  its 
  name, 
  Motutaiko.) 
  Possibly 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  a 
  large 
  species 
  

   of 
  petrel 
  or 
  puffin 
  ; 
  although, 
  if 
  the 
  imperfect 
  Maori 
  relation 
  is 
  to 
  be 
  depended 
  on, 
  its 
  

   beak 
  was 
  more 
  that 
  of 
  an 
  albatross. 
  

  

  t 
  This 
  proverb 
  would 
  be 
  used 
  by 
  the 
  New 
  Zealanders 
  on 
  various 
  occasions 
  ; 
  such 
  

   as 
  (1) 
  When 
  chiefs 
  of 
  lower 
  rank 
  would 
  bring 
  a 
  present 
  (annual, 
  perhaps, 
  as 
  of 
  sweet 
  

   potatoes 
  [kumara] 
  at 
  harvest-time) 
  , 
  to 
  their 
  superior 
  chief 
  : 
  (2) 
  When 
  a 
  traveUing 
  party 
  

   arrives 
  at 
  a 
  village, 
  and 
  something 
  particularly 
  good, 
  or 
  extra, 
  which 
  perhaps 
  had 
  been 
  

   stored 
  up 
  or 
  set 
  by, 
  or 
  just 
  obtained 
  with 
  difficulty 
  or 
  labour, 
  should 
  be 
  given 
  to 
  the 
  

   party 
  ; 
  on 
  such 
  occasions 
  the 
  proverb 
  might 
  be 
  used. 
  Much 
  hke 
  (here) 
  our 
  sayings 
  of, 
  

   " 
  We 
  don't 
  kill 
  a 
  pig 
  every 
  day 
  ;" 
  " 
  In 
  luck 
  to-day 
  ;" 
  " 
  Just 
  in 
  time," 
  &o. 
  

  

  