105 
It may be here mentioned that the Maoris excel in the manufacture of feather robes, many of 
which are very beautiful. The robe itself is formed of hand-prepared Pliormium- fibre, soft and 
silky, which is woven and plaited into a thick fabric, over which the feathers are tastefully laid, 
with the webs overlapping, the shaft of each being doubled back and tied, thus imparting strength 
and durability to the garment. The pattern varies according to the kind of feather used, and some- 
times much artistic skill is displayed in the grouping and arrangement of the colours. The kahu- 
Icereru is composed of the bronzy-green feathers of the Wood-Pigeon, quite resplendent in the 
sunshine, and relieved with stars and stripes of snow-white tufts taken from the breast of that bird ; 
the kahu-kaka is a mass of scarlet of different shades, from under the wings of Nestor meridionalis ; 
the kahu-kakariki displays the brilliant green plumage of the Parrakeet, with which is usually mixed 
the feathers of the Tui and other birds, in squares or crosses or other fanciful designs ; but far more 
valuable than any of these is the kcthu-kiwi, covered entirely with the soft back-feathers of the 
Apteryx, and having a peculiarly rich effect when held against the light. One of special beauty, for 
which some forty adult birds were placed under contribution, was presented many years ago by the 
loyal Wanganui tribes to Her Majesty the Queen. There is a very fine one in the ethnological 
collection at the British Museum, and another in my own collection, in both of which there is a 
broad margin of bright Tui and Pigeon feathers, to heighten the effect. Far and away more precious 
than any of these must have been that mantle of golden yellow of which old Topine had so vivid a 
recollection ; and one can only compare it, in imagination, with that gorgeous coronation-robe of 
costly yellow plumes worn by the kings and queens of Hawaii, of which mention is made by the early 
writers on Polynesia*. 
Mr. F. H. Meinertzhagen informs me that in the spring of 1871 he observed a pair of 
Hihi nesting in a clump of blue-gums at Waimarama, near his own pretty homestead (Paparewa) 
about thirty miles from Napier. He at first mistook the female bird for a Green Linnet ; but dis- 
covered his error the moment he saw the male and observed its peculiar flight. Hoping to retain 
these rare visitants, he allowed them to hatch out and rear their brood without molestation ; but he 
never saw anything of them afterwards. The nest, which Mrs. Meinertzhagen fortunately preserved, 
is now in the Canterbury Museum. 
A nest was discovered many years ago in the bush above the Kai-warawara stream, in the 
vicinity of Wellington, and is still preserved in the Colonial Museum. It is a shallow structure, 
with thin walls, and measures 4’75 inches across the top, with a cavity of 2-35 by 1*35. It is built 
of sprays, above which are laid fibres and dry rootlets of tree-fern ; and the cavity is formed of fine 
grass, lined with cow-hair. This nest contained a single egg, of a narrow ovoid form, measuring 
•75 inch in length by -6 in breadth, of a yellowish-white colour, thickly spotted and clouded with 
pale rufous. 
The assumption of the female plumage by the young of both sexes, as described above, is very 
singular, being the only instance of the kind we have among the Passeres in New Zealand. According 
to Reischek’s observations on the Little Barrier, the brood generally numbers three, and the young 
birds keep together till the change of plumage has been effected. He met with four broods in all, 
and out of those shot, no less than five young males were in transitional plumage. Fie generally 
shot the adult male first, then attracted the female by imitating the cry of the young birds, and after 
securing her, the rest of the family fell an easy prey to this insatiable collector. 
* These Hawaiian rohes are made with the beautiful rod feathers of the Hehiwi ( Vestaria coccinea) mixed with the golden- 
yellow plumes of a rare species of Nectarinia. “ A cloak of yellow feathers could only be worn by the king ” (see Lord Byron s 
‘ Voyage of H.M.S. Blonde ’ in 1826). “A feathered cloak which in point of beauty and magnificence is perhaps nearly equal 
to that of any nation in tho world” (Cook’s ‘ Third Voyage,’ 1783, p. 127). Mr. Fernander states that such cloaks, “ irrespective 
of their value as insignia of the highest nobility in tho land,” represent, in feathers alone, at their present price, apart from the 
cost of manufacture, from five to ten thousand dollars each (‘ Polynesia,’ vol. ii. p. 186). 
P 
