288 
POLYNESIAN RESEARCHES. 
with long white sticks, which they strike in the water 
with a great noise, and by this means drive the fish 
towards the rafts. On approaching these, the fish dart 
out of the water, and in attempting to spring over the 
raft, strike against the raised fence on the outer side, 
and fall on the surface of the horizontal part, when 
they are gathered into baskets, or canoes, on the out¬ 
side. In this manner, great numbers of these and other 
kinds of fish, that are accustomed to spring out of the 
water when alarmed or pursued, are taken with great 
facility. 
- Among the reefs, and near the shore, numbers of fish 
are seized by preparing an intoxicating mixture from the 
nuts of the hutu, betonica splendida, or the hora, another 
native plant. When the water is impregnated with these 
preparations, the fish come from their retreats in great 
numbers, float on the surface, and are easily caught. 
The favour of the gods was formerly considered essen¬ 
tial to success in fishing. The gods of fishermen were 
numerous, though Tahaura and Teraimateti were the 
principal. Matatine was the deity of those who manufac¬ 
tured nets. 
Fishing-nets were various in size and kind; all were 
remarkably well made and carefully preserved. Their light 
casting-nets were neatly made, and used with great dex¬ 
terity, generally as they walked along the beach. When 
a shoal of small fish appeared, they would throw the net 
with the right-hand, and enclose sometimes the greatest 
part of them. The nets used in taking operu, or her¬ 
rings, were exceedingly large, and generally made of the 
twisted bark of the hibiscus. Several nets were used at 
the same time, the meshes of the outside net being very 
large, and those within smaller, for the purpose of de- 
