OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS COLUMN

Otago Daily Times, Issue 15788, 12 June 1913, Page 2

OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS COLUMN

FOR SENIORS AND JUNIORS.

(Canduoted by Magibtee, to whom all communications must be addressed.) [Hagihteu wilt be glail to receive Nature notea, marked paper# containing educational articlM, diagrams, avails ot experiments, etc., ol lohotutio Interest to teachers and pupils. Correspondents must use only DM SIDK ol (lie pa(*r, and whether u»ing a pen name or not, mult wad until .N'illX aud lDliniSS.]

lIINEMOA AND TUTANEKAI, Many of the pupils of the Otago public schools had tho pleasure of taking a trip to H.M.S. New Zealand in these boats. They looked to me as if they belonged to the Royal Yacht Club, with their graceful lines and white paint. Isn't it' a fact that the Hinemoa is Lord Bnusoy's pleasure yacht Sunbeam transformed into a lighthouse tender? Many changes, of course, have been made .in her internal arrangements to 6iiit her utilitarian uses. _ What does her figurehead represent? Hinemoa? If so, it must have been added or renamed afteil our Government took it over.

But I ti6ed my heading to introduce tho legend or true story, which ever it may be, of Hinemoa and Tutanckai, which I am sure most of you will read with added interest.. The island to which Hinemoa swam is Mokoia, in Lake Rotorua, and you will get a most interesting article on the island in the Daily Times of Juno 2, written by James Cowan. It i 6 headed "An Isle of Ghosts: Mokoia and some Memories." It is delightfully written, and only one in love with the Maori and his lore could have written an article so sympathetically, and I was almost adding, lovingly. But you want the legend, jot any words of mine. Here it is, but I must add hero that I am taking it from "Fairy Tales: New Zealand and the South <! Seas," by E. Tregoar, F.R.G.S., F.R, Hist. S., and published at Is 6d. . It appears under the title of "The Maiden Swimmer."

On an island in Lake Rotorua lived a chief who had four sons; three of these were men of rank in the tribe, but tho tourth was of poor position owing to his mother having broken through certain social observances before his birth. The name of this fourth son. was Tu. _ 'the inferior position which ho held did not prevent his growing up to bo a great lavourito with everyone, strong, handsome, aritl winning in his ways. About the timo that Tu reached manhood there was noised about a report of the great beauty of a certain maiden named Ilino Moa, whose parents did not .ive on the island, but on tho mainland not far away. So famous were the alarms of this unusually lovely girl that .lmost every chief and warrior in the neighbouring country was desirous of possessing her as his wife, and especially was ,:iis the case with Tu's cider'brothers. Tu himself also was deeply in love, and when iie met Hino Moa at any of the assemblies of the pooplo ho was unable to prevent his affection from glowing in his eyes as he glanced shyly at the prizo he so dearly wished to win. Yet lie did not dare to utter his love, for Hine Moa was looked on as a family treasure to bo kept sacredly separate until she could mate with somo powerful noble. Tho fair ono was not untouched in heart; tho handsome presence and silent devotion of her lovor filled her with many tender thoughts, although for a long time neither dared to allow the passion they felt to declare itself in words. At last Tu sent (in the native manner) a secret mossenger to tell his princess of the passion which was consuming -liim, and when tho message wa6 told the maiden said, "Ah, then wo have each thought alike." After this declaration Tu built himself a little tower just above the lake, and in this tower ho and his friend Tiki used to make music iiv tho summer evenings; Tu with his flute and Tiki with a trumpet of wood. Over the quiet water the melody would steal to Hint Moa, and then she ivould say softly, to herself, "My darling is thinking of me and sending his sweet voice to touch my heart." 'So she was comforted.

One night, in the house wherein --the young men of tho tribe gathered together, conversation was going oil as to the cliancc which each man had of gaining the hand of Iline Moa. One said that ho had the best chance, others disputed this and said that her favours were' for the speaker then boasting, but Tu was the only, one speaking truly when he declared that her affection was pledged to him. The others all laughted bitterly at this, saying,." It is likely that a low-born churl like -you. would bo tho favoured lover iof such a haughty beauty as Hinc." But Tu told his father to romember hereafter what ho had said, and in what manner his ■ brothers and his friends had mocked him. For ho had secretly made arrangements with the girl for her elopement to him, and agreed that he would sound a trumpet at . a certain time every night so that she might guide her canoe in tho direction of . the sound. This promise was carried out by Tu, but iline..was unable to fulfil her part, for her friends had suspected something unusual was intended and the canoes wero kopt hauled up. on the beach ■at night. As the time passed and she found herself unable to obtain a canoe, her feelings grow more impassioned, and, reckless with intense desiro for iier lover's presence, she determined to try and swim across the broad belt of water separating her from her beloved. Casting herself into the lake sho swam fearlessly on in the darkness, sometimes floating for awhile to rest, till she reached tho 6tump of a tree standing in the water, whereon she waited to recover her strength. Then sho swam on again, guiding herself toward the sound of tho music rippling softly to her over the little waves. Finally, she reached the shore, and sought the waters of a hot spring only separated from the lake by a narrow ledge o£ rock; into this spring she -dipt' and lay awhile, that the warmth of her body, chilled by tho long swim in the cold water, might bo restored. Just at that timo Tu happened to feel thirsty, so ho said to his slave, "Bring me some water," and the servant went down to fill his calabash in tho lake. The girl got frightened, and with a voice as gruff as she could mako it said, "For whom is that water?" The slave answered, "Tu." The maiden said, "Give tho calabash (o me." The vessel was handed to her and she, throwing it to tho ground, broke it in pieces. The patient slave went back and got another calabash, which Hine treated in tho samo manner. So the servant wont to Tu and said, "Thero is a man down there in the bath, and ho breaks your calabashes when I go there for water." "Wlio is the fellow?" said Tu. "I don't know; ho is a stranger," answered the slave. "Is he?" said Tu. "Does he dare to destroy my calabashes? Oh, I shall die with rage." So saying he put on his clothes, took up his ciub, and prcceedcd to tho bath, his anger increasing at every step as ho thought upon the impertinence of his wretched vagrant visitor. When he got to tho shore ho called out, "Where is this breaker of calabashes?" Hine heard the voice of her lover, but sho coyly hid herself under tho overhanging rocks and Tu searched vainly for a long time, feeling about in the dark and trying to find his enemy. Full of glee was tho heart of the maiden as she mischievously kept quiet under the ledges of the rock, wonderin" how long it would be before she was caught. At last he grasped her hand eayinct "Wiho is it?." And she answered, ".Myself." He said "Who is 'Myself?'" upon which sho replied very sweetly and softly; "It is Hine Moa." Tu said, "It cannot really bo you." Then Hino Moa rose from the water, beautiful as the wild white hawk_ and graceful as tho shy white crane that is seen only once in a hundred years. Tu flung his garment over her; led her to his house, and she bccame liis bride.

When tlio brothers of Tu heard of- his great good fortune they refused to believe it, but lie sooil proved the truth of the report by producing- Hine herself before tliem all, reminding his father of what he had previously told them and how Jig had been scoffed at- Poor Tiki, the bosom friend of Til, felt very downcast when he found that lie had lost, his companion, and that the duets would bo heard no more at night upon the lake; but Tu went to his father and said, "My friend has no wife; will you not allow my little sister Tupa to marry liim and make him forget hie loneliness? Lot my friend have my sister." His father consented, and Tjipa was given to Tiki, who was no longer mournful.

SOME NATURE NOTES. Inez Mayo's (Wairoa, Ilawko'a Bay) letter is one of those I have so often expressed a desire of getting in numbers. But observers who are writers seem few and far between, especially among young folk. A oovcrin-g letter draws attention to the taildropping referred to in "A New Zealand Naturalist's Calendar," by G, M. Thomson, F.L.S., F.C.S., and M.P. It appnars in tlio notes for July, and I am tempted to quote it. In one of liis many walks, Mr Thomson unoovercd a number of greyish-brown lizards, in a GCmi-torpid state—probably the common Dacfcyloenemis maculalus. " I'liey woro carried home and deposited in a dry aquarium case, fitted with pieces of wood

and stone, and covered ■with a loosely tilting lid. . . Two of them lost or shook off their tails at the timo of capture, but neither of them seemed to be tile worse of the lots. I kept all of tlieni until tho beginning of November, though they ato hardly anything. But with the advent of warm weather a remarkable change came over them. Between the 6econd and tho

seventh of th<> month they got rid of their old skins, which peeled off them liltf pieces of very thin worn glove, and they emerged bright and clean as consisted with their former dirty grev appearance. They also ate small pieces of moat and liver freely. But the most remarkable thing about them was their activity. . . . Young people here do not go in for pets us is done in ilie Old Country—inore's tlio pity. For those who do, if their mothers will let them, I recommend a case of lizards as a very interesting object lesson. Only remember tho cat is rather fond of lizard." '

Ah! but will your mothers let you? Of course they will, if you promise very faithfully to see they do not" get loose. I had some beauties sent to mo one time, from Otago Central. Middlemarch— I think, — and I had them safolv boxed. One day when I was out some visitors of the gentler sex, curious to see them opened the box, and forgot to fasten tho lid securely and they got out! What consternation followed ! I and my specimens were blessed. Where did they get to? In the bed? Under it? In the hoots? Stockings? Pofs and paas? Excepting one, all had disappeared for good, but it was some time bofore the gentler folk of the houso gave up expecting to see or feel the runaways in some place at an unexpected time.

Front my experiences you "ill see tho danger there is of upsetting the feminine side of the household, so have the lizards where folk can see them and not let them loose. Put some live flics in and you may bo fortunate enough to see how stealthily at first, and how swiftly at last, the lizard acts; and you might watch, too, to see them drinking. Again, you may bo fortunate enough to be able to chronicle the advent of young ones. Just you try. Did you know that some lizards can make .1 noise—tho Geckos, for instance? The following is taken from " Animals of New Zealand" : "Sir W. Buller says that this lizard [green gecko, living on shrubs, and in open fern country], on being molested, emits a peculiar chattering sound, which the Maoris term laughing, and of which they have a wide-spread superstitious dread. The laugh of the groen lizard was enough to terrify the bravest warrior, aud its'occult power for evil was strangely believed ill by all (Im. tribes in every part of the country, The reptile itself, whether dead or alive, was an object of universal fear among them. Mr Colenso says that he never heard its crv."

HUNT FOR CHRYSALIDS. This :is not the deadest month of tho year, says Mr Thomson, for July has a lower mean temperature and in August the ground is colder. and wetter, but for all that, it is a good time to hunt for chrysalids. Get as many different kinds as you can, and keep them under observation in conditions as closely resembling the natural as possible, and you Will see interesting developments. Can you find a bumble-bee's nest? If so, take one or two of tiic cocoons out and examine them. Sny you get a dozen, and open up one a week to see the developing 6tagcs. Perhaps, too, you may find a few chrysalids of the big beetle, Prionus reticularis—you know the big fat grub, as big as you little finger, or bigger, don't you? WHAT ABOUT FUNGI? Can you look for those, too? This is preeminently. the month for these, says Mr Thomson, "One of the commonest is a

large Boletus, a. big brown toadstool, which frequently occurs under pine trees. It matures throughout tho autumn and winter montlis, but they seem to be more abundant (luring June than at any other time. . . As it bccomes fully mature its upper skin acquires a slimy appearance while its stalk and underside turn yellow. It is not an Agaric like a mushroom, which lias its spore-organs borne on plates or ' gills,' but tile whole underside of its umbrella is made up of veiy numerous line tubes, os the walk of which the spores are developed. They are probably sot free by the liquilyiug of the tissues when they get washed away by the winter rains." Thcso are edible, like many other fungi, but I advise you to make sure before yßu try one. Then there is another edible fungus Clathrus eibarius, specimens ot wiiicii have several times been sent to me for identification. " This is a subterranean fungus something like the famous morels and truffles which fetch such a high price in Europe; and, being so, it is not possible to say beforehand where it may be looked for. ... At tho edible stage it is like a large soft potato, the rough brownish skin covering a thick jelly-like mass; but when mature and ready to distribute its pores tho insido is found to have developed a network of tubes as thick as little linger, and forming a large wliite bnekct-liko frame several inches in diameter. This expands so much that it not only bursts open the enveloping skin, but throws up the soil, and thus becomes exposed. If a little of the brownish slimo which occurs on tho white tubog is examined under the microscope it is seen to consist of innumerable oblong spores."

Then there are other fungi which, though prominent, arc not too plentiful. " Hygrophorus cvaneus is a bright 6ky-blue and rather rare specics; but Aseroe rubra, which is. not uncommon, is a red and very attractive 'form. It stands an inch or two off tho ground, and opens out like a fine red starfish, with several radiating arms. But handle it circumspectly, for its 6meli i 6 most offensive, just like putrid carrion. Evidently it is meant to bo visited by carrion ilies, which, cither themselves or by their maggots, help to disseminate their spores. But why should it develop te attractions in winter, and, indeed, why are bo many fungi brightly and often delicately coloured? These are questions I cannot answer satisfactorily."

By-thc-bye, there is another large fungus about) as big as one's head. How many havo tried frying this in slices? And so I could go on. Seeing I havo quoted so much from " A New Zealand Naturalist's Calendar," perhaps you may bo tempted to buy it. It is full of good things, In the June notes, not only is there botany, but there is zoology, and physiography. 'Take the book over to Lawyer's Head and read tho June Calendar there. You will instantly want to find a score or more of tilings found at Lawyer's Head, on the Sandhills—a sign of a rising coast, aren't they?—and on the margin of, and in, Tomahawk Lagoon.

" WHAT CATERPILLARS CAN DO." A friend the other day gave me an advertising booklet, '' Imperial Handbook" for 1913, thinking that an article in it with my heading would interest me. The writer of tho artielo urges photography as a fu'l hobby. And so it is. Further, it can mako Nature-«tudy permanently interesting. In the case of the writer, his photographs of tho fallen willow which had been attacked by the caterpillars of the goat moth brought liim a substantial cheque, and many of us know what bus been dbno by the Kearton brothers and others at Home. Thero is a good field for Nature photography in New Zealand, if young folk—'and older, too—will only explore it. Some time a<, r o, Mr Patrick, one of our teachers, took some fine photos of tho samd-submerged forest at Catlins; but if a set extending over a series of yours was taken the value educationally wou'd be much greater. A similar srt could bo obtained at the Maori Kaik. Then, a month or so ago >Ir Parr sent a unique set of photos showing the imported owls in their nesting places; but perhaps the most experienced photographer in the dominion is Mr Stead, of Chrstchtrclt, irlio has spared neither time nor money upon his hobby.

This introduction to an txtract or two is perhaps a trifle long, but never mind. The first paragraph'l am quoting is a portion ol one written by the editor, and the eucceeding ones are written by the enthusiastic photographer supplying the illustrations.

" We lhavo often urged that photography is not only a delightful hobby, but that it eduontrs end elevates the mind of the individual who practises the art. We walkabout, many of us, with our eyes shut to what :s going on around us, and consequently we miss much of the bj.auty and myst n ry of Nature; we look at things but we do not see them, or fail to understand their significance. This point is fenced home by ihp three illustrations below and by the notes which accompany them. Here is a row of willow trees, one of which has fallen do\vn. Why it has fallen would not trouble the majority of passers-by. Some few might wonder inl'dlv why a seemingly sturdy tree should ■ have been destroyed, while its neighbours should have been left standing, but it would occur to very few th"t it had come to grief through eaterpillars.

" The larvto or caterpillars of the goat moth hatch out from cegs laid by the female moth in the bark covering the lower portions of tbo trunks of trees, snob as tho oak and willow. The catfrpi'lars are vorv minute itt size when hstcliM, are! foot be-rip to attack the wood near them. They spend their existence in the lan® state boring and 'xcavating untii they reach a length of three or four inches, when they are of a pinkish colour, with smooth soft bodies arxl black, flat heads furnished with powerful jiws. These injects secrete a brownish evil smelling liquid, wh'ch they eject when alarmed, and which also serves to softon thr wood a! tacked.

"After three yea'-? in .the larva! state t.liev spin n cocoon composed of silk thread and ground-un wood, and change into the chrysnlid stage. The chrysalis is about li'n lons and of a slatish colour. In three o v four weeks' time the moth emerges, eats it' way through on-e end of the eoooon, and emerges into the open air by means of a disused boring. Four of these exit ho'es may be »een in the photograph of the stump. When at rest on a tree trunk til" moths nre difficult to dWngnisb s'rcc they ere marked tn resemble the bark of a tree. Their undorwin<rs nre n gorgeous red fringed with a wide black band."

CORRESPONDENCE AND NOTES.

"Makihini" has kindly lent me "Tho Emu" for April last year. It contains part IV of an article, "Bu?h Bil'ds of New Zealand," by J. C. M'Lean, M.8.0.U. Can any reader lend mo the numbers containing the three preceding parts? I may have to keep them a month or so, as my purpose is to give extracts.

Only one letter, appears to-day—a girl's. I havo some other correspondence, to which I hope to attend next week.

Wairoa School, H. 8., May 27,

Dear "Magister."—As I was roaming over tlio hills on 'Saturday at eomo distance from my home, wandering through valleys and small clumps of bush, and enjoying flic scenery around me, I went to jump over a little clilf, In doing so I caught hold of a little tree, when, to my astonishment, I disturbed a little green animal which seemed to resemble a green frog. It hopped from tho tree. It was a lizard. .Although I lost it several times amongst tho vegetation, I searched till I found it. As I was holding it, my sister touched its tail and it dropped off. I hunted for tho tail, but could not find it. It must have wriggled away. The lizard's body is covered with a. kind of horny scales. Its eyes are brown, with littlo streaks ot black in the centre of each. As I searched farther I found another a fewyards away. I had a difficulty in catching this one, for it darted through amongsi trees and ferns. We took the lizards to school, and we have them in a glass box. All the time we havo had them in the school we have not not-iced them blink. Their cars are little 6lits in about tho same place as the fish's gills. The tail is longer than tlw body. The legs are short, and their feet are very like littlo hands on which are five toeti, but instead of -nails they have littlo sharp claws; those help them to crawl up trees or anything steep. Mr Bowie, our schoolmaster, to whom 1 took tho- lizards, and who placed them in the school, took great _ interest in them. Fresh grass is piaoed in tho box every morning. Wc do not see ilie lizards till tho room gets warm by the fire; then they crawl out. They seem to eat very littlo. They like to cuddle up amongst the grass and go to sleep. The tongue is very long and black, When tlie.v touch anything new to them they lick it as if trying to taslo something. Hut it seems to mo that- that 16 their way of telling whether thero is danger or not. The\ arc not in the least bit timid, crawling up one's arm and neck without sign of fear.— I remain, yours sincerely, ; Inez Mayo. (

Messrs Duncan and Simpson, booksellers, inform us that (hey have a good supply I of Dent's Cyclopedia, which was recom- I mended recently in our columns. Pros- ! poptuses will lie posted on application — j Advt.