a ha ha!” me “Te Kura Tiwaka Taua.” Ka tapiri atu ki enei ko te haka a Wairangi, ko “To Aea o ia Rangi.” Kua mutu tonu aku korero. He rangi poi taku patere, taku wai, me te tika ano i te mea e hangai ana ki enei momo korero. Ko te pi te Kuini katoa o a tatou kanikani. Titiro ki te poi a te Taihauauru, tapu ana tera, he mea karakia tonu te rangi, tau ana te tangi ki te taringa Maori, i whanau mai i nga paparinga o te maunga i te uru—i Taranaki. Ka tau ta Tapuika, he heriatorope te kakahu o te wahine, engari ka ta te Arawa he poi whakakotahi i nga iwi. E ono ona wakawaka, e toru rau wahine nga kai-poi, engari kotahi ano te unga atu. Me mihi tatou ki te “poi” ara, hoki i poipoi mai te Kuini i tona nohoanga tapu, porotiti tapara patu atu hoki te Tiuka. Kua noa, e Te Arawa, ou marae i to tatou Kuini, nau hoki i whakae kia tu mai ki te whakahoki i o mihi. “Kia ora koutou katoa,” tetahi o ana mihi, a, “Kia mau ki to koutou re, pupuritia kahatia to koutou Moaritanga,” etahi atu o ana poroporoaki. Ko te Aohou tenei, ko te ra o te rangatahi. Kua tui ahau i taku patere inaianei. Ko enei mea katoa i rangona e oku taringa, i kitea e oku kanohi, kati, kaore oku tikiti ki enei powhiri e toru. Kaore noaiho ahau i mohiotia mai e nga kai-whakahaere o tena marae, o tena marae. Engari, i pai noaiho taku kuhu haere, pahi atu ana i te rau o te pirihimana, Maori me te Pakeha, tae atu ana ki te taha o te manuhiri tuarangi, o te kotuku rerenga-tahi. Na toku Maoritanga ahau i puta atu ai ki mua tonu o te tini o te mano. Ina ra ona tohu: “He huruhuru kiwi kei oku pakihiwi. He piki huia kei taku tipare He piupiu taku rapaki, tatua rawa, Titia rawa ki te patu pounamu. Te rakau i taku ringa he pouwhenua.” Ko enei aku tikiti, i piri ai ahau ki te taha o Te Kuini. Tuia te wai: “Hei whakamutunga, Mo aku haere ruahine Ki te motu, ki te tonga, E poi, e!” “On to, The threshold, Of the lord Houmaitawhiti.” There but now remains the speeches of welcome, and the presenting of gifts, the lighter dances of the poi, and the haka by the visiting tribes, and thence the ancient custom of welcoming distinguished visitors will have been fulfilled in respect to the Queen and her husband, Philip. One could not help but recall the spirit of the late Sir Apirana Ngata who had for many years propounded the creed of Maoritanga. At Waitangi, the host tribes had danced the poi with the melody:— “You are just a flower To be plucked …” It was one of Sir Apirana's compositions, and in today's haka or posture dances by the East Coast tribes, in his day, if Sir Apirana were present, he would have invariably been the leader. Two very famous chants are those which he always led “Ka panapana,” and “Te kura tiwaka taua.” We must add to these two the haka by Wairangi, “Te Aea o ia rangi,” “It is Te Aea of every day fame.” My story is almost finished. My ballad was chanted to the rhythm of the poi ball, and this was appropriate for this type of story. The poi dance is the most queenly of all our dances. We beheld such a gem in the poi chanted by the Aotea tribes of the West coast, the melody was a ritual incantation, which is beautiful to Maori ears, and this classic was composed in the villages which have as their inspiration the snow capped peak of Taranaki mountain in the West. The Tapuika tribes of Te Puke danced in heliotrope blue, but the Arawa team aimed at combining six rows of dances into one … to symbolize tribal unity and a unified future. We greet the poi ball, Her Majesty twirled one in her hands, and even the Duke played with one too. The tapu has been lifted from all Arawa courtyards, as Her Majesty was graciously permitted to make a personal reply to the speech by the assembled tribes. “Greetings to you all,” she said, “Hold fast to your language, and preserve your Maori-hood,” was another of her parting instructions. This is the New-World, the world belonging to the youth of the Maori race. “Upon my shoulders a cloak of kiwi feathers, A huia fluttered from my head band, And around my waist was a piupiu skirt, Girdled firmly with a greenstone mere at the alert, In my grip was a taiaha with dog hair and sharpened blade.” These were my tickets, that enabled me to meet the Queen. My song continues:— “To complete, My travels, On the island, southwards, Twirl on, oh poiball, twirl.”