SKETCHES FROM TUHOELAND.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CIII, Issue 12159, 24 March 1900, Page 4

SKETCHES FROM TUHOELAND.

THE WHARE-TAPERE. GAMES AND AMUSEMENTS OF THE ANCIENT MAORI. (By ELSDON BEST.) VL WiBJiSXUXCf (WHATDIO). This was a favourite pastime in former | times, not only wall die young 1 men, bub Hie young women also joined in Unit- form of wrestling known as Euru-whakawai. in this the svXts opposed each other, very often two girls being opposed to one male, winch - almost, mvariably ended in die ClisccmtLure of the hitler, the heavy-nmDed aboriginal lady being no mean adversary. Tills term Paiu-whakawai among some tribes was used lor tiie trail of skill between men aimed wun the old-tune weapons, sonistniug in the line ot the Old English ijuarterstalf. When a man stood- forth to wrestle his first act was to expectorate into his hand, then closing the hand he would repeat the karakul (invocation) known as trie uami, in order iliac ins uiuscks might be strengthened and braced up for tfie contest: Ta-nu uuua kO' to raugi e tu nei, Taku tuuui ko papa e ctikoto run, Winn katta, toio Kaha to uaua. Then opening his hand and extending same ho repeated Ule karakai, termed a Tuaunm whatoiu, to render his adversary powerless : ’i’o umu. a to ruin, a te nene (.ngengeg a. le pare, a tuicm iua mate, ±a uuiu tukit Umu ve iku kite Po, Te umu tuku touu, heke toau te ika ki le Kem a a, Karuu i te rango, totoro te iro, Kaki ■vviunuu. There wore many different holds, grips, etc., pertaining to wrestling. Among these were me Awmawin, Uru-toino, Tuna, Whiri, Whiu, ana the Kou, the last being to thrust a leg between those of the adversary in order to throw him. noons (niuuru). These were made of a lyrest creeper known as aha tea, the bulk being removed therefrom and lire two ends brought together aiiu ne-iuy uounti with flax nbfe. xiiese iioops Wcic about two feet, in diameter. ahe piuyers stand e.n opposite sines of piaygioiu,a, each with stick ill nand. Tut noop is thrown sc. as to roil across to the opposite players, who strike tile hoop with vueir sticks to drive it back again. Ehould the hoop not run straight but wobble in its passage, that is termed a tikoiohe-tu. 1 At page 58 ox Wi. V., White's “Ancient History of the Maori, is an account of how a certain old-time Maori, having slam a much-hated enemy, dm thereupon flay him and stretcu Ins skin on a hoop, wnn which those chivalrous warriors amused themselves after the manlier of their kind. Sometimes the hoeps were thrown so as to rebound from the ground and jump over high hurdles. STILTS (POUTOTI). Stilt-walking was another amusement of the young people. The stilts were often made with root rests, three or four feet from the ground. Mimic battles were waged by stilt-walkers, who tried to overthrow one another. ItKTI. The papa reti was a form of toboggan, being a piece of wood about four inches wide and three feet long, about an inch in thickness. The slide (retireti) was made on the slope of a hill and kept wetted with water. The children squatted on the boards, one lout behind the other, two ridges on the papa reti preventing the feet from slipping. SWINGS. Swings of various kinds were included among the amusements of ancient Maoriland. The most popular form was the moari. A tall post was set up, and from the top thereof hung ropes, each of which .supported a swinger. This post was often set tip near a clnf head or, still more desirable, near a deep river or lake, la this case the swingers would gain momentum by running' round the pole on the land side and then, holding tightly to the rope, swing off into space. If swinging over water they would release their hold of the rope and drop feet first into the water below, which is the Maori form of diving. Stout .poles were sometimes secured in a horizontal position over deep water, from which, the same form of diving was practised. Sometimes a tree growing on a cliff and leaning out over the water, is used in like manner. Such an one is a rata tree just above the settlement of Parikino on the Wanganui Rivet, from which the jump is about forty feet. Some time back a woman was there killed by falling Hat on the water instead of descending feet first, in the proper manner. Swings (tarere) were also made by utilising vines hanging from trees. OTTIEK AMUSEMENTS. Riddles (panga or kai) were merely games of guessing what a player might be holding in his hands, or between finger tips, etc. Or tne leader would take a small pebble in his hand and then draw both hands across his mouth. The others would then guess as to the whereabouts of the pebble, whether in either hand or the mouth. The one who guessed correctly would then become the leader. Taupunipuni was a game much resembling our “hide and seek.” ’ Poro-teteke was a boys’ game —standing on the head and walking on the hands. Long jumping (kai-rerere) was known. Te Rerenga-a-te rangihouhiri is a rock-strewn crossing of the Whakatane River, near Mutairangi. Te Rangihouhiri was in his time the most adept at crossing,here by means of jumping from stone to stone, hence the crossing is still known by his name. Bones (Tokere) were made by the Maori (not of Irish descent) of rnatai wood, or mapara, and used in the same manner as ours, a pair in each hand. The Porotiti was a small disc of the rind of a gourd, with a piece of wood in the cenere on which it was spun as a teetotum, by being twirled between thumb and finger.

The ancient flutes (Pu-torino and Koanau) were known in Tuhoeland, the nose flute resembling that used by certain tribes of the headwaters of the Amazon. The pukaea was a trumpet used in time of war, and the well-known shell trumpet was carried by chiefs in old times, but neither can be brought within the scope of the whare tapere. The game of ruru I have not sufficient notes of to describe properly, and that most amusing of games to witness, the mati, must be left for a future paper. With the above exceptions, the foregoing sketches comprise all the notes pertaining

to the Whare Tapere and the patron deities of the art of amusement, gatheied from denizens of Tuhoeland.

The gleaming ruAA - of {ires within the Whare Tapere have burned low doAvn, the children of Toi have dispersed, and we puss out again into the nineteenth century. Avhilc the sliding door closes behind us on the Whare Tapere for ever.