and very carefully tied the bush up again. Having once had my 
attention directed to tin's peculiar Maori custom, I found similarly 
inscribed Phormium bushes in the most different parts of the 
country. We might be inclined to laugh at this harmless folly of 
the Maoris; but in fact, in Europe such folly is carried out to a 
still greater extent , by cutting names or initials into the bark of 
trees, and by scribbling on ruins, rocks, caves and the like, with 
the idea of immortalizing oneself. 
Soon afterwards we met the mail-carrier on his way from 
Taranaki to Auckland. He was a robust Maori , who carried the 
mail-bag, bearing the royal seal, upon his back; a glowing slow- 
match in one hand , and a powerful stick (turupou) in the other. 
Upon my asking for what purpose lie carried the heavy stick , he 
replied defiantly, “to defend himself against Pakchas,” and passed 
on. After a walk of three hours we descended to the beach; 
and proceeding along the strand in a southerly direction two or 
three miles farther, we soon arrived at the locality previously pointed 
out to us. 
While the strand consists of fine magnetic iron-sand, the higher 
rocky coast-banks present instructive sections. The deepest layers 
visible, consist of greenish-gray conglomerate and sandstone. In it 
are embedded a great many short, but thick, logs entirely silicified. 
In other places chunks are found with their bark turned to coal, 
thin layers of bituminous 
These coal-seams lie just at 
the high-water line with an 
inclination of 10 to 15 de- 
grees westward to the sea; 
and at several points the 
heads of the strata are seen 
to rise above the sand of 
Section on the West coast. 
1 . Strata with coal and fossil ferns. 2. Tertiary lime-stone. 
3. Tertiary sand-stone. 4. Sand-hills. 
i, o, u are designated by 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Then follow the consonants of the Maori 
Alphabet, h = 6, k = 7, m = 8, n = 9 etc. 6, c, d, f, g are not found in the 
Maori Alphabet, which consists of only 14 letters. 
