THE SOUTH-SEA ISLANDER AND SPEAKING CHIP.

Maori Messenger : Te Karere Maori, Volume 1, Issue 26, 20 December 1849, Page 4

THE SOUTH-SEA ISLANDER AND SPEAKING CHIP.

"As I had come to work one morning without my square, I took up a chip, and with a peice of charcoal wrote upon it a request that Mrs. Williams would send me that article. I called a chief who was superintending his portion of the work, and said to liira : " Fiiend, lake this, go to our house, and give it to Sirs. Williams." lie took |it, and asked, " What must I say ?" I replied, '• You have nothing to say, the chip will say all I wish." With a look of contempt, he held up the piece of wood and said,- " How can this speak? has this n mouth i" I desired him to take it immediately, and not to spend so much time in talking about it; On arriving at the house, ho gave the chip to Mrs. Williams, who read it, threw it away arid went to the tool-chest, whither the chief reselling to see the result of this mysterious proceeding, followed her closely. On ibceiving the square Ironi her he said, " Stay, daughicr, how do you know that this is what Mr. Williams ..I? ?" " Why," she icplicri, "did you not bring me a chip just now ?" " Yes," said the astonished warrior, '• hut I did not hear it say anything." " (■ yon did nut, I did," was the reply, " for it made knotvu to me ivhut ho wanted ; nml all yon lmvo to do is to return with it us quickly as possible," With this, the chief leaped out of the house, sind catching up the mysterious piece of wood, he run through the settlement, with the chip in one hand nnd the square in the other, holding tlicm up as hig'.' aa his arms would reach, nnd shouting as he went, " See the wisdom of thi. so Knglith people ! t!icy can make chips talk I they can make cbipstnlk!''—lVilliaxts's Missionary Enta prise.