plentiful. Mr. W. H. Skinner, of the Survey Office, New Plymouth, informs me that the great place for the kokowai-deposits in the middle of that province is towards the headwaters of the Waiwakaiho River, among the spurs of Mount Egmont and the Patua Ranges. He also describes a place in the Mokau district where the work of collection was one of considerable difficulty and even danger. At the north side of the mouth of the river, he says, there are two or three caves worn out by the action of the sea. The floors of these caves are covered to a good depth by water, and away in their innermost recesses the deposits of kokowai are found. To obtain this the Maoris were obliged to swim, and in one place to dive under a depression of the roof, coming out in an inner chamber where the deposits lie. This field has long since been abandoned, and twenty years ago when Mr. Skinner visited the spot only one old Maori knew the secret of diving under the rock. Altogether there must have been an immense quantity of kokowai used, and an incredible amount of labour expended in the preparation of it. Most of the old writers speak of the prevalence of the “red ochre,” and it seems to have been in universal use throughout the whole of the Maori-inhabited country. The grinding-slab was usually a flat piece of hard coarse-grained sandstone about 2 ft. long by 12 in. to 15 in. wide, the same kind as that used for sharpening the stone implements. * Though I have inquired of many of the old natives in the district, I have been unable to obtain the specific name for the grinding-slab. One Maori told me that each slab had its proper name. This, I think, is not improbable.—P. W. All those found about the Bay of Islands appear to be of the same quality as the specimen before us, which has evidently been used for both purposes, as, though each surface bears marks of abrasion, only one shows traces of the red pigment. A favourite place for obtaining these stones is situated near Waimate North, where the rock naturally splits off into flags of the required thickness. The rubbers (autoru) were generally smooth beach- or riverworn pebbles, about 6 in. long, of hard basalt or volcanic stone. They were often brought long distances, especially in the northern peninsula and in inland districts where no suitable stones are to be found. A favourite place for obtaining them was the Little Barrier Island, but it is not improbable that on their more distant excursions down the east and west coasts the Maoris would keep a look-out for good specimens, which they would bring back with them on their return to their homes. It is to be hoped that in time some of these will find their way into the Museum, when geologists will, no doubt, be able to locate their places of origin, and perhaps