﻿112 
  Transactions. 
  — 
  Miscellaneous. 
  

  

  possibly 
  did 
  so 
  to 
  a 
  certain 
  poor 
  extent 
  ; 
  but 
  the 
  great 
  facility 
  with 
  which 
  

   they 
  very 
  soon 
  acquired 
  firearms 
  caused 
  them 
  to 
  set 
  those 
  missiles 
  aside. 
  

   What 
  they 
  might 
  have 
  done 
  and 
  perfected, 
  having 
  once 
  been 
  ]put 
  into 
  the 
  

   way, 
  had 
  they 
  remained 
  isolated 
  and 
  not 
  obtained 
  muskets, 
  is 
  another 
  

   matter. 
  

  

  I 
  have 
  been 
  led 
  to 
  make 
  all 
  these 
  almost 
  extra 
  remarks 
  through 
  noticing 
  

   what 
  was 
  said 
  by 
  a 
  Mr. 
  Grace 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  the 
  reading 
  of 
  Mr. 
  Phillips' 
  

   paper, 
  as 
  reported 
  (I 
  am 
  sorry 
  to 
  find) 
  in 
  the 
  "Proceedings 
  " 
  (Vol. 
  X,, 
  p. 
  527). 
  

   Mr. 
  Grace 
  might 
  equaUy 
  as 
  well 
  have 
  said, 
  that 
  because 
  he 
  had 
  always 
  seen 
  

   the 
  Maoris 
  playing 
  at 
  draughts, 
  or 
  growing 
  and 
  eating 
  melons, 
  peaches, 
  and 
  

   potatoes, 
  ergo, 
  such 
  were 
  indigenous 
  ! 
  Such 
  observations 
  tend 
  to 
  mislead 
  

   (being 
  wholly 
  erroneous), 
  and 
  will 
  mislead 
  still 
  more 
  in 
  the 
  future 
  unless 
  

   refuted 
  ; 
  hence, 
  in 
  great 
  measure, 
  I 
  now 
  write 
  to 
  such 
  an 
  extent. 
  It 
  is 
  from 
  

   such 
  superficial 
  remarks 
  that 
  the 
  works 
  of 
  Tylor, 
  Lubbock, 
  and 
  Herbert 
  

   Spencer, 
  and 
  others, 
  become 
  of 
  less 
  value 
  than 
  they 
  would 
  otherwise 
  be, 
  

   through 
  everything 
  being 
  gathered 
  and 
  admitted 
  as 
  of 
  equal 
  authority 
  ! 
  

  

  And 
  just 
  so 
  it 
  is 
  (I 
  regret 
  to 
  say) 
  with 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  remarks 
  made 
  by 
  Mr. 
  

   Phillips 
  himself 
  in 
  this 
  very 
  paper; 
  i.e., 
  in 
  my 
  estimation 
  they 
  are 
  

   deceiving, 
  because 
  they 
  assume 
  the 
  VQry 
  thing 
  we 
  are 
  in 
  search 
  of 
  — 
  "the 
  

   whence 
  of 
  the 
  Maori?" 
  — 
  a 
  problem 
  by 
  no 
  means 
  yet 
  proved. 
  Yet 
  Mr. 
  

   Phillips 
  says: 
  — 
  "I 
  have 
  often 
  wondered 
  how 
  it 
  is 
  that 
  the 
  aborigines 
  of 
  

   New 
  Zealand 
  should 
  have 
  made 
  so 
  little 
  use 
  of 
  the 
  bow 
  and 
  arrow, 
  this 
  

   being 
  a 
  weapon 
  peculiarly 
  suited 
  to 
  savage 
  tribes, 
  and, 
  moreover, 
  the 
  familiar 
  

   one 
  of 
  their 
  ancestors."' 
  (Where 
  did 
  Mr. 
  Phillips 
  get 
  this 
  ?) 
  Again, 
  

   speaking 
  of 
  the 
  toy-arrow 
  he 
  had 
  been 
  describing, 
  he 
  says 
  : 
  — 
  " 
  In 
  itself 
  it 
  is 
  

   a 
  harmless 
  weapon, 
  and 
  how 
  it 
  happens 
  that 
  the 
  Maoris, 
  a 
  section 
  of 
  the 
  

   Polynesian 
  race, 
  should 
  have 
  thus 
  allowed 
  so 
  useful 
  a 
  weapon 
  as 
  the 
  South 
  

   Sea 
  bow 
  and 
  arrow 
  to 
  degenerate 
  into 
  a 
  mere 
  toy,* 
  is 
  to 
  me 
  a 
  curious 
  circum- 
  

   stance." 
  (S. 
  Parkinson's 
  remark 
  on 
  this 
  very 
  potet, 
  already 
  quoted 
  by 
  me 
  

   at 
  p. 
  108, 
  made 
  a 
  hundred 
  years 
  ago, 
  is 
  far 
  more 
  rational 
  every 
  loay 
  ; 
  but 
  

   then 
  Parkinson, 
  although 
  he 
  had 
  seen 
  more, 
  had 
  no 
  preconception, 
  no 
  pet 
  

   hobby 
  to 
  support 
  !) 
  Further, 
  Mr. 
  Phillips 
  says 
  : 
  — 
  "It 
  is 
  well-known 
  (?) 
  that 
  

   in 
  olden 
  days 
  the 
  Maoris 
  launched 
  their 
  spears 
  against 
  a 
  hostile 
  fort 
  by 
  means 
  

   of 
  a 
  whip, 
  similar 
  to 
  the 
  one 
  above 
  described, 
  and 
  they 
  were 
  even 
  able 
  to 
  

   hurl 
  stones 
  a 
  long 
  distance." 
  (Whence, 
  too, 
  is 
  this 
  derived 
  ?) 
  Lastly, 
  Mr. 
  

   Phillips 
  winds 
  up 
  his 
  paper 
  by 
  saying: 
  — 
  "All 
  these 
  weapons, 
  however, 
  fell 
  

   into 
  disuse 
  after 
  the 
  introduction 
  of 
  fire-arms 
  some 
  sixty 
  years 
  ago, 
  which 
  

   may 
  account 
  for 
  the 
  disappearance 
  of 
  the 
  bow 
  and 
  arrow.^' 
  To 
  which 
  

   statement, 
  I 
  trust, 
  this 
  paper 
  will 
  be 
  found 
  a 
  complete 
  answer. 
  

  

  * 
  Vide 
  post 
  "Proceedings 
  H. 
  B. 
  P. 
  Institute, 
  ordinary 
  meeting, 
  September 
  9, 
  1878,'* 
  

   for 
  an 
  interesting 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  introduction 
  into 
  New 
  Zealand 
  of 
  this 
  " 
  toy 
  arrow," 
  by 
  s, 
  

   living 
  witness. 
  

  

  