1920.] 
Andersen.—Maori String Games. 
141 
7. Catch the former far little-finger string—now the nearest string of 
all—on the first joint of the hooked index fingers, and carry it with those 
fingers down between the strings going left and right from the lips. Return 
the index fingers the way they came, under all the strings, back to their 
original position. 
8. Release the strings from the lips, and extend the figure, spreading 
the little fingers well away, but keeping the thumb and index finger of each 
hand fairly close together. The waka appears extended between the palms. 
(Fig. 15.) 
Among the Tuhoe Tribe, states Mr. Elsdon Best, the following verse 
was repeated over the design 
Hoea, hoea te waka a Tama-rereti 
Ki te take harakeke 
Hoea ! 
Another karakia was as follows :— 
Hoea, hoea te waka a Tama-rereti 
Ki waho ki te moana 
Hon parati, hou parati, lion. 
Fig. 15 .—Waka a Tama-rereti. The finished figure. 
Comparison. 
With this figure may be compared one given by Mrs. Jayne (pp. 85 
et seq.), from Mabuiag, in Torres Straits, where it is known as gul (the 
canoe). 
1. Opening A. 
2. Keeping the strings taut, turn the palms slightly away from you. 
Bend the index fingers down into the little-finger loop, and, turning the 
palms towards you, turn the index fingers towards you up under the near 
little-finger string and the index loop, which loop slips off the index knuckles 
as the movement is made. Release the strings from the little fingers. 
(There are now two twisted loops on each index, and a wide loop on each 
thumb.) 
3. With the tips of the middle, ring, and little fingers, press down on 
to the palm the two far index strings. Insert the middle fingers from below 
into the thumb loop and withdraw the thumbs, leaving the loop on the 
middle fingers. 
4. Insert the thumbs from above into the middle-finger loop, and put 
them under the string that comes down diagonally from the index finger 
