MAORI GALA DAY

Chronicle (Levin), 18 April 1947, Page 3

MAORI GALA DAY

| NATIVE ARTS AND CUSTOMS REVIVED ! The main attraction. on the j Maori committee's programme in 1 the present Fire Brigade Carnival j will be held in the local domain on Saturday afternoon, and it promises to be a very interesting attraction. The committee will be reviving the haka and poi championships l which were a feature of Shannon 's I annual fixtures some years back. ! It will be remembered that it was i the privilege pf this town to stage I the New Zealand haka and poi I championships and the last fixture ! of this nature was held in 1929, 1 when the local Whakatere tribe, j who are recognised far and wide , as great performers of the haka, ; won the championship shield. This j tribe also won the New Zealand haka championship challenge cup I at Wanganui in 1931, when they defeated six of the country'sTeadI ing teams. This feature alone 'should be one looked forward to by i botli Maori .and oakeha alike. f j Another feature" of the' day Will be the cooking demonstration by ; local Maoris rn the earth-oven or | hangi, in which food is cooked on j heated stones in small pits exca- ' vated in the earth. The method adopted in this form of cooking is 1 quite simple. A fire is krndled in ; the pit and dry fuel piled on, ' Stones are then placed on top of ; the fuel and when the fire is burnI ed down, green leaves are placed i on the hot stones. On this bed ! the food is placed, a covering of ! more leaves placed over it and ! water sprinkled over all. Some wet i sacks are then used to cover the , oven and the earth is heaped over I the sacks to confine the steam. ; In about two hours an ordinary j mcal will be cooked. 1 The programme of tomorrow ! afternoon will commence with a ! procession of decorated vehicles j leaving the post office at about I 1.30 p.m.. headed by the pipes and } drums of the Horowhenua Pipe ' Band and girls' marching teams i from Levin and Shannon. Gn the ' arrival at the domain a full sports : programme has been arranged, i and displays by the marching t teams will be presented. ! Provided the weather conditions ! hold, this should be an outstand- | ing attraction and a record crowd is expected.