WAKATAUKI; QR PROVERBS. 
295 
The slightest movement of the reed waving in the wind is per- 
ceived by man’s eye, but not that of the heart. 
14. Ka mate koe i te paoa ; kahore, he kauta. 
Yon will be stifled with smoke ; no (said ironically), it is a 
cooking shed, which makes all the difference. 
15. Ma tini mano ka rapa te wai. 
A great number will easily accomplish what a few cannot. 
16. He aha mau ma te kotahi. 
What can a single person do. 
17. Ko te uri o pani. 
The house of the orphan. — A saying for a person without 
family or friends, who has no power or influence. 
18. Kotahi te koura a wetaweta, tutakina te hiku. 
Don’t divide the cray fish, give it whole (a little thing). Simi- 
lar to our saying, Don’t make two bites at a cherry. 
19. Ka mau ta Maui ki tona ringaringa e kore e taea te ruru. 
What Maui has hold of he will not give up. — What is given 
cannot be taken away. 
20. Rere i te omanga, wai marire. 
What has been given don’t seek to get returned. 
21. Ka kotia te taitapu ki Hawaiki. 
The road to Hawaiki is cut off. — An expression used by a 
desperate character who braves the laws and usages of his 
country. He has passed the Rubicon. 
22. Ko turanga o Potaka. 
Potaka was a lazy fellow, who laid in bed when others worked, 
and got up to work when they were coming away. — A say- 
for a lazy man. 
28. Ko te kai rapu, ko ia te kite. 
He who seeks finds. 
24. Ko ia kahore nei i rapu, te kitea. 
He who does not seek finds not. 
25. He koura kia we te whero. 
Spoken of a person easily overpowered. — It does not take long 
to turn a cray fish red by boiling. Another meaning, an 
angry man soon turns to fight. 
26. He aruhe kia we te papa. 
Fern root is soon cooked. — Papa, to crack or burst, as it does 
when sufficiently roasted. 
27. Ko te koura kei te upoko te tutae. 
