THE TRUE MAORI DOG.

Taranaki Daily News, 28 December 1929, Page 17 (Supplement)

THE TRUE MAORI DOG.

SPECIES NOW EXTINCT.

(By

C.M.H.)

To speak of a Maori dog of the present day is usually to refer to an animal of uncertain breed and a mongrel of little worth and certainly no ornament. This species, of animal, however, is not the true Maori dog.

Long before the white man came to New Zealand, the Maoris-had a breed of dogs that was distinguished from all the later introduced species. Upon these the old chiefs set great value, both from a food point of view and also because the skin could be turned info handsome robes to be worn on special occasions. There were, too, in the far off days, a great number of ceremonies indulged in by the Maoris in which the Maori dogs played a part. Some of these were of so sacred a character that a sacrifice was necessary. Oftentimes that sacrifice would be a human slave, but on very special occasions a dog would be the victim. The true Maori dog of old was called “kuri ruarangi.” It has now entirely disappeared, and authorities state that it is- highly improbable -that even the earliest white settlers ever saw the real animal, although perhaps many of the dogs ‘seen up to sixty years ago had ■ some of the blood of the original kuri. Captain Cook mentions that the Maoris possessed a small dog not unlike a degenerate sheep dog, with large head, a flowing tail and sharply-pricked ears. Crozet, an early authority, described native dogs as being like domesticated foxes. They would destroy poultry and such birds as the weka and the pukaka (swamp hen). Their owners fed them on fish. They were not friendly disposed to the few white men, such as whalers, with whom they came in contact. In fact if the occasion came to get a sly nip at the pakeha they took the advantage and scuttled to cover. The late Mr. W. J. Gray, of Oka to, informed the writer that when a youth he had' seen a dog of the true Maori ■breed at Puniho. This was an old ahiiinal, and it was certainly unlike all other mongrels that infested the Puniho and other native villages half a century ago.

The skin of the ancient dog was looked upon as of great value. Should a chief have sufficient skins to make a robe, he became the envy of all. In the public museum at New Plymouth are two splendid examples of these preserved garments. Skins were prepared by being stretched on a frame and dried, away from the effects of sun and rain, A dog with white hair was much favoured, and the long hair from the flowing tail may frequently be seen as an ornamentation on the taiaha (ceremonial spear) to be found in many of our museums. When an important gathering of natives assembled for a

conference the principal chiefs would array themselves in their finest robes (topuni) for the speechmaking. Armed with his 'taiaha, which would be used as a staff, a chief would walk up and down in front of the seated assemblage. Holding his taiaha at arm’s length, with one end resting on the ground, he would then harangue his hearers. At the top of the staff would be tied a bunch of the white dog hair plumes which waved in the wind and created much admiration.

The flesh of the kuri was tapu (forbidden), and could only be eaten by men of very high rank. When the animal was slain the tohunga (priest) did so with much ceremony, chanting the appropriate karikia (song) during the operation. The traditional references to the.dog indicate that the ancient Maori -regarded it. as a very valuable possession. Each animal would be given a name, .usually a long, high-sounding one. The

better specimens would be claimed by the priests and held in veneration for sacrificial purposes. - ~

Tho late Rev. T. G. Hammond tells a story which centres round a topuni. A war party from the north attacked the Maori people that occupied the pa on the banks of the Waingongoro River, near the present Hawera electric light power-house. The invaders failed in their attack and had to beat a hasty retreat. Among the fleeing invaders was a mother with a baby girl. The father, fearing they would be overtaken and the child killed, wrapped the youngster in his topuni and left it behind. A warrior in hot pursuit heard the child cry and turned to find the cause. When he saw the dog-skin robe he knew that the child was of high rank, and he spared its life. Subsequently the little girl, now grown to womanhood, was returned to her parents and tribe, and eventually she became the ancestress of notable Taranaki chiefs.

The Maori dogs were evidently fairly intelligent, and numbers of them were used for hunting. Formerly the kakapo parrot (a night feeding bird) was very common in the coastal districts of South Taranaki. These birds were very fond of the young shoots of the mamaku and ponga fern trees. When the birds came out to feed in the evening, one kakapo would remain on guard up in a tree to give warning of any danger.' If there was no cause for alarm the sentinel would climb down and commence feeding. The old natives knew the habits of the bird, and used to lurk out of sight with their dogs. As the sentinel bird reached the ground the dogs were liberated, and being taught to rush the bird, they speedily caught and killed it. The Maori kuri was not a native of New Zealand. It is claimed that the dog was part of the precious freight brought by the last great migration of the Maoris from Tahiti about the year 1350. It is claimed th. t the Aotea canoe, commanded by the renowned navigator Turi, had dogs as part of the chief’s live stock, when he settled his tribe at the mouth of the Patea River at the date above stated.

During the progress of a battle of the old warfare days, when a chief was hard beset by overwhelming odds, he would take off his dog-skin topuni and, throwing it into the midst of the fray, exclaim to his followers:.-“Let us die round this!”