SONGS. 
309 
felled a tree growing on the banks of the Wanga-ehu, the 
head of it would reach the river which he called Tura-kina 
(felled) , from turaki , to throw down, having to walk a con- 
siderable distance to the next river, he called it Tikei (a 
pace) from tikei , the action of the legs in walking, it is now 
called Rangitikei ; passing on, he came to a large river, 
which he feared he should not be able to cross : this, there- 
fore, he named Manawa-tu (the depressed spirit), as he pro- 
ceeded on his way, the wind whistled past his ears, and he 
called the place where he was at the time Hokio ; the next 
small creek he called Ohau, perhaps after himself ; he now 
carried his staff in a horizontal position, the next river was, 
therefore, called Otaki, from taki, to level a spear when 
making a charge ; when he strengthened himself by praying 
and repeating a karakia, he called the place Wai-mea, from 
meha-meha , to make sacred ; at the next river he looked out 
slyly from the corner of his eye to see if he could discover 
his wife, and called the place Waikanae, he breathed hard 
when he reached the place, where Wairaka was sitting with 
her paramour at Te Paripari, the termination of the Tararua 
range, he said to her, Wairaka, I am exceedingly thirsty ; 
fetch me some water, she got up and walked down to the 
sea with a calabash in each hand ; when she was up to her 
knees, she commenced filling them ; he called to her to go 
further ; she went in up to her waist ; he bid her go still 
deeper, and she went on again till the water nearly covered 
her shoulders, he then repeated a karakia, she became petri- 
fied, and has remained so ever since ; leaving her there, a 
rock in the sea, still bearing her name, he joyfully went on 
his way, and called the next place Wairarapa (the river of 
joyfulness), from rarajpa , the glistening of the eyes with 
delight. The poet then informs his daughter that it was 
the rejoicing of her ancestor. 
A reference is here made to the myth of Waitiri’s erection 
of a temple of Cloacina, which is a chief Maori constellation. 
“ Hanga te jpaepae ” means, literally, to form a barrier, but 
is here a large plank, for which the stake called meremere* 
* Meremere, the evening star. 
