movements of the moon through space, the bubbling of Taupo Moana. If the composer is a tohunga, his words turn to the customs of old and he calls upon his gods:— Rongomai Haranui Uenuku wareware E uia mai koe hea te marama He Tangaroa mua, he paunga korekore Ka hutia te tohunga ki runga ki a Rona Ka whakairia nei, e. Should you be asked at what stage is the moon She is in her last quarters: The Tohunga is lifted up to Rona And left there suspended. There are many references to the devastated land or to a people left forlorn. Papahia says: Ka timu tai, ka mokai hoki. e. The people are enslaved and I am left in loneliness. Rangi-whakahaerea says of Okataina:— O kame! Ka waiho noa i te ao To whenua kura ka mahue. All that you have owned is now left lying tenantless Your beloved land is quite deserted. Words of regret are also attached to the personal attributes of the subject of the song. Thus Papahia:— Ko te pakipaki o te ao ka maunu mai nei Ko te taroi o te riri. The safeguard of the world has been taken from us The peacemaker has gone for ever. Tairawhiti thus laments its chiefs:— Ka ngaro hoki, ra e Nga waha ki, nga hautu o te waka I hoea ai te moana Hei whakapuru atu ra, e Mo nga tai kino, mo nga tai marangai Ka puta ki waho ra. You also are lost to us The mouthpieces of the people, the captains of the canoe, Which sailed upon the deep. You, who were our barrier Against the angry tides and fierce gales And enabled your people to venture without. The singer follows this by proclaiming the ancestors and the tribal canoe of the deceased. Then come the eulogies of the dead—a mighty chief, a kakahi (porpoise) a tohora (whale), a tuatara (lizard), a school of whales, a right whale. His skin is likened to that of a new leaf, to the resin of the Kauri; his skin is decorated with the charcoal, he is the murau a te tini—the one murmured at by all; te wenerau a te mano—the object of everyone's censure; the whatiwhati ki—the one who dares to interrupt a chief's speech; a fruit tree growing in a sacred grove, a rata affording shelter from the wind, he is a giant in stature and a great strength, his features gleam with marvellous tattoo. The dead chief is adorned with the famous heir-looms of his ancestors such as Kaukaumatua or Te Ika a Ngahue, he is called the plume of the birds from far Hawaiki, the plume of the canoe, the mooring post of the canoe, the great totara of the forest. In many respects the tangis for the dead chieftain have elements in common. This offers a good opportunity to those who wish to discover the art of each tohunga composer to compare verse by verse the manner in which each arranges his lines. Then it will be seen that, though the composers live in various districts, their methods have a great many similar characteristics.