[Gutenberg 54610] • Te Tohunga: The ancient legends and traditions of the Maoris

This historic book may have numerous typos, missing text, images, or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1907. Not illustrated. Excerpt: ... "Who is paddling my canoe along the river? It is Hine, who takes my heart away from me! O Rangi, send down thy dark clouds of rain, That my dear love may not depart from me!-- O, I wish the water were heaped into waves So my dear one will not go in haste from me." Honewaka is leader; standing in the middle of the canoe, in his hand the greenstone-mere, he is chanting mighty songs of encouragement to the oarsmen, and these are repeated by them whilst paddling to the music, and the canoe glides joyfully under chanting and merrymaking, between the cliffs with the overhanging tree-ferns and ratas. Honewaka is a leader of great mana; he knows every ripple in the river, and he knows men. He knows where the canoe glides onward whilst the spirits of his men are not in the paddles, and he knows how to incite their spirits by powerful songs so that, when the rapids are fighting their strongest, the spirits of men uniting to their greatest strength in the paddles will be victorious. There rushes a rapid. The eyes of the leader commence to roll; his weapon shakes; his breath is short, as he sings: "Who is paddling my canoe along the river?"--and the crew, putting force into the paddles, answer: "It is Hine, who takes my heart away from me!" The water rushes and foams around the canoe, and the singing, the chorus, and the paddling, follow the quick time-beating mere: quicker and quicker. Honewaka, with rolling eye, makes a sudden bound, shouting: "O, she is beautiful--beautiful !"--and half the crew changes the paddle with the strong and elastic tokos (punting-sticks)--one voice crying: "O, Hone, tickle her!" The crew laughs, but with the jest seems to come sudden life into the paddles, greatly assisted by the force of the holding and bending tokos. Hone, excited no...