MEETINGS OF SOCIETIES. 597 
Mr. Stack. If cultered Homeric man had a feeble colour sense, if 
green and blue had not then emerged from the pervading grey, then 
savage man of the present day will also most probably to some extent be 
colour blind. Mr. Stack, therefore, gives us the result of his 50 years’ 
experience of the Maoris in this matter. Unfortunately he looks at 
this experience in the light of the new discovery, and tries to make 
the two agree. The result is curious. He states decidedly that the 
Maoris have a very feeble colour sense in all colours, but though they 
are in advance of the besiegers of Troy in that they have a certain slight 
appreciation of green ; they were till lately quite blind to blue, the 
colour they use in tatooing ; also that on the arrival of the Europeans 
they all at once had revealed to them the entire scale of colour. This 
paper is not convincing, and is mainly interesting as being the cause of 
Mr. Colenso’s contributions. The conclusions arrived at were so much 
at variance with what he had been led to believe from his exceptional 
experience that he felt he must not let them pass uncontradicted. The 
result isa very valuable contribution to Maori anthropology. He shows, 
to me most conclusively, that so far from the Maoris being deficient in 
sensibility to colour, they are in advance of most of us in that respect. 
He gives us instances from his own experience of this, and he tabulates 
a list of over 80 words and phrases meaning red and its various modifi- 
cations. He is very far indeed from believing in the blue-blindness of 
Mr. Stack. Indeed one cannot read his paper and have any serious 
doubt as to the Maoris possessing, and having possessed before the 
advent of the Europeans, a fine perception of colour. In this they agree 
with other savage races—races whose very existence often depends on 
their ability to note minute variations of colour. Mr. Grant Allen, 
who in his interesting work on the evolution of the colour sense gives a 
careful adverse criticism of the Gladstone-Magnus theory, publishes the 
result of an extended inquiry into the colour perception of existing un- 
civilised races. He sent out circulars to competent persons, missionaries, 
Government officials, and others in all parts of the world, requesting 
answers to 12 questions regarding the colour sense of the savage people 
amongst whom they were living. The answers received ‘ bore out in 
every case the supposition that the colour sense is, as a whole, absolutely 
identical throughout all branches of the human race.” To complete our 
knowledge of the Maoris in this respact, and to make it more definite 
and exact, it would be well for someone to test a large number of them 
with some good colour test, such as Holmgren’s wools. This could 
easily be done by anyone. Nothing but care and patience are required, 
but the results would be well worth recording. Of the other Maori 
papers I do not feel competent to speak critically. They are numerous 
both in and out of the volumes of the “ Transactions.” The subject is 
certainly not written out yet, but one would hesitate to add anything to 
what has been written unless it was of assured value. But those who 
have personal knowledge and the literary ability are not now very 
numerous, and one regrets to see them pass and make no sign. One 
book or paper I should much have liked to see added to the list, if it had 
been possible, and I am sure no one would have thought it superfluous. 
You have all read and been charmed with “Old New Zealand.” Three 
years ago it was my pleasant Jot to be the travelling companion for six 
weeks of Judge Maning, the “ Pakeha Maori,” its author. Though 
suffering from the disease which proved fatal a few months later, he was 
