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Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 18911, 28 January 1927, Page 9

A Maori canoe, known as Urukaraka, which was launched ou tho Wanganui river in the eighteenth century, before the arrival of .Captain Cook, was remanned last year after lying idle for over a quarter of a century. At the last Wanganui regatta it upheld its reputation by beating allcomers iu the Maori events. Under a new name, Kaiwhaiki, it will acain compete with the canoes of the other Native settlements on the Wanganui river. Urukaraka is not a very big canoe, as war canoes went in the (lavs when it was built, but much work "had to be put into it before it was ready to go into the water. It figured in many tribal wars, borne swiftly along by the strong arms of its duskv crew of warriors. Hewn oui of heart of totara, this sturdy shell saw vears of Eervice. and many a valiant fighting man was taken to the scene of jzrim battle in it. TV hen other canoes were sunk, lost, or captured, Urukaraka remained with the tribe, sharing its victories and its reverses, a usefulfunifc of the river fleet And bo, some 70 years ago. it was at Eaonkia, That is as far back as its present owners can, in detail, trace its history. Forty years ago it passed into the. possession of the Natives at Kaiwhaiki.