Chap. V. WAR CANOES. 139 
Tokerau on her adoption of a new flag. This is the 
native name of the Bay of Islands, and signifies lite- 
rally " the hundred rocks." 
We found that during our absence a barque had 
been here from Sydney, with an agent sent to purchase 
land for Messrs. Cooper and Levi, merchants in that 
place. The whalers told us that he had purchased 
Kapiti y which we knew to have been purchased 
already so many times, that we omitted both that and 
Mana from the list of places to which we had 
bought the natives' rights. This agent had also bought 
a piece of land on the main near Tf^aikanae ; and he 
had, although informed by every one that the natives 
had made the whole of their rights over to Colonel 
Wakefield a few days before, declared that he would 
buy any land in order to prevent the Tory from ob- 
taining it. He had accordingly promised to give a 
small schooner for the Ohiere, or Pelorus River. 
We were detained a week here by a succession of 
light baffling winds and calms. 
During this interval, fFarepori and several other 
chiefs from Port Nicholson, who had joined the muster 
at Pf^aikanae, came across in their war- canoes to see us. 
On one occasion, three, well manned and armed, bearing 
together nearly one hundred men, came alongside. They 
look very pretty when at full speed. The finely-carved 
head and stern of the canoe are ornamented with feathers 
of the pigeon and albatross ; and bunches of the latter 
plumage, or of that of the gannet, are disposed along 
the batten which covers the joint of the bottom and 
top side of the canoe. The men are placed at equal 
intervals along either side to paddle ; and they keep 
excellent stroke to the song of two leaders, who stand 
up and recite alternate short sentences, giving the 
time with a taiaha or long wooden spear. Two ex- 
