The Story of Ponga and Puhihuia Ponga Raua Ko Puhihuia

Te Ao Hou, December 1963, Page 19

This is the second instalment of the old story ‘Ponga Raua Ko Puhihuia’, which we are reprinting from volume IV of John White's ‘Ancient History of the Maori’ (1889). The English translation is based on White's one. The tribes concerned in the story are Nga-iwi at Maungawhau (now Mount Eden in Auckland) and Ngati-Kahokoka at Awhitu and Tipitai (on the South Manukau Heads). A summary of the story so far is given on the opposite page. The Story of Ponga and Puhihuia Ponga Raua Ko Puhihuia Heoi ano ko te iwi i uta ra, parau (raruraru) kau noa iho, i te kore waka mana hei whai (aru) i te tira tamariki nei. Ka hoe nei te waka o Ponga ma, he takaniti koa no aua tini tamariki ra kia wawe te puta ki waho ki te au o te awa hoe ai, kia mamao i nga tangata o te pa ra e tu mai ana ano i te tauranga, e rupahu noa ana, e kupu kino ana ki a Pongo ma. Koia ratou, aua tini tamariki ra, i kore ai e noho tika i ona wahi i ona wahi. Ko te tino ariki o ratou, i a ia nei te patu pounamu i homai ra e te matua o Puhihuia, i te ta o te waka a ia e tu ana, he whakahau tana i ana hoa kia maia, kia kaha te hoe. Ko Ponga te mea o ratou i noho mai i te hiku o te whati i te wa i oma mai ai a Puhihuia i muri i a ratou a, koia ko Ponga te mea i eke mutunga mai ki te waka, koia ra te take ona i noho ai i te kei (whakarei) o te waka, a, i a ia te hoe urungi; otira ko tera e tu ra te kaithotohu mo te waka. Ka hoe nei ratou, a, ka taka ki waho ake o te kokoru e tika mai ana i te Whau, ka hiko atu taua tangata e tu ra i te ta o te waka, ka mau ki te hoe roa, ka ki atu a ia ki a Ponga, ‘Haere koe hei kaituki i ta tatou waka’. Ka whakatika atu a Ponga. Kiano a ia i tae ki te wahi e tu ai te kaituki ka whakatika tetahi ano o nga uri ariki, ka tu hei kaituki mo te waka ra, a, ka noho noa iho a Ponga he wahi ke i te tangawai o te waka, me te mau ki te hoe hei hoahoa mo era e hoe ra. Ko Puhihuia i noho i te whakarei o te waka; i tana ekenga mai ano ki te waka, haere tonu atu a ia ki reira noho ai, he mea hoki he tino uri ariki a ia, a, ko to te ariki nohoanga ia ko te whakarei o te waka, no te mea i nga wa o mua, i nga ra o nga waka i whiti mai nei i Hawaiki ki enei motu, ko te whakarei o te waka tu ai Because of this (the fact that the lashings on their canoes had been cut), the men on the shore (the Nga-iwi of Mount Eden) were completely baffled, for they had no canoe in which to pursue the party of young people. Ponga and his companions paddled their canoe with great haste, so as to gain the open sea as soon as possible and escape from these people of Mount Eden, who still were angrily shouting abuse at them from the landing-place. Therefore the young people in the canoe did not take the seats to which their rank and birth entitled them. The young chief of supreme rank with whom Puhihuia's father had exchanged his mere was standing in the centre of the canoe, urging on his companions. Pongo, having stayed at the rear of the fleeing party when Puhihuia was escaping, was the last to board the canoe, so he was in the stern, and held the paddle which guided her according to the instructions of the chief, who stood in the centre of the canoe. They had paddled as far as the bay at the portage of Te Whau, when the chief who was standing in the centre of the canoe took the steering paddle, and said to Ponga, ‘Go and chant the songs to keep time for the paddlers’. Ponga started to make his way there, but before he reached the place another young man who was senior in rank stood up and began to chant the songs for the paddlers, so that Ponga sat down in the centre of the canoe at the baling place, took a paddle, and assisted the other rowers. Puhihuia was sitting in the stern. She had taken her place there as soon as she went on board the canoe, because she was of the highest rank and because the stern was where those of supreme rank usually sat. This was also where the wananga (the miniature

te wananga, a, he tapu taua wahi o te waka. E kore te tangata teina me te tutua e tae atu ki reira noho ai. A ko te kaiurungi o te waka hei te tino ariki rawa a ia, no te mea ki taua wahi i te wananga a ia e noho urungi ana, na reira a Puhihuia i haere ai ki reira: nei koa ko nga waka o enei ra, ara, i nga wa i a Ponga ma kua kore te wananga e mahia ki nga waka i te mea hoki, i mahia ai te wananga ki nga waka tu ai, he mea mahi ki nga waka anake e hoe ano i te moana nui, a, ma nga whati, ma nga tangata e heke ana i o ratou whenua tupu, e hoe noa atu ana i te moana nui ki te rapu whenua ke atu ma ratou; ka tu ai te wananga ki te waka, ko te atua o te heke ki roto ki te wananga noho ai, ki te ai atua ia te heke; ki te kore he atua, ko taua wananga ra te kaitohu aitua, a ko te karakia a nga tohunga o te heke ka anga atu ki te wananga hirihiri atu ai. I noho a Ponga i te whakarei o te waka ra i a ia e urungi ana i te waka, tena e unga (tonoa) e tana hoa, i ki mai ra kia tukua te hoeroa ki a ia, ka haere ke atu a Ponga, a, ka mahue a Puhihuia i te taha o te tangata i a ia ra te patu pounamu. Ka taka te waka nei e hoe ana i waho ake o te awa i Paruroa, ka nanao (toro) iho te tangata e urungi ra ki taua patu pounamu. Ka whakaaria (whakaaturia) atu ki a Puhihuia ka mea atu a ia, ‘E ko tena to patu, te patu a to matua i whakahekea mai ki a au ta tatou manatunga mau ai, tena to patu hei koha mau ki o tatou ariki i Awhitu’. Ka mea atu a Puhihuia, ‘He tane au kia mau i tena patu? Hua atu mau, ma te uri tane, tena mea te manatunga e mau, kei riro ki a au ka kiia a ona ra e aitua ai, i poke i te ringa wahine.’ Ka mea atu te tangata ra, ‘Ano ra hei koha mau, mou i whati mai nei, i haere mai nei koe i enei teina ou. Oti me haere ringa ware koe ki te aroaro o o tatou kaumatua ki te pa e hoe atu nei tatou?’ Ka mea atu a Puhihuia. ‘Kia rua hoki he hokohoko? Kati ano ra ki a au; ko taku e mau i a au nei. He tangata te tangata i te mea e kore ana ona popo, ka popo, ma toke tena, ma weriweri.’ Ka mea atu te tangata ra, ‘I a wai ia nei nga hinu rautangi i maua atu ra e te ope nei?’ Ka ki atu a Puhihuia, ‘He taonga i tukua ki te tahua, a, i whiwhi i te tokomaha, i marara noa atu, kaore i a au tetahi.’ temple of the sea-god, in whose care seafaring people place themselves) was situated in the days when the great canoes came here from Hawaiki. This part of the canoe was therefore sacred, and no one of junior rank or of low birth could go and sit there. The steersman of the canoe would have to be a chief of the highest rank, because he would sit and steer at the place where the shrine of the god was; therefore Puhihuia went there to sit. However, later canoes, in the days of Ponga, ceased to have the wananga placed in them. It was placed only in those which went out to sea, in those in which people were escaping for some reason, or in those canoes in which people were migrating from their own lands and voyaging across the open sea to seek new lands. In these the wananga was placed, with the god of the migration inside it, and here the priest chanted the incantations. If there was not a god in the wananga the incantations were chanted to the temple itself. Ponga sat in the stern of the canoe while he was steering; but when, at the request of the young chief who told him to give the steering-paddle to him, Ponga went to a different place, Puhihuia was left in the stern beside the young man who had the greenstone patu. When the canoe was off Paruroa this young chief who was steering took the greenstone weapon in his hand. He showed it to Puhihuia, saying, ‘O young woman! there is your weapon, the weapon of your father, which he gave to me. It is an ancient heirloom, and as such, it was given into my charge: accept it as your gift to our high chiefs at Awhitu.’ She replied, ‘Am I a man, that I should hold such a sacred thing? I would have thought that it would be for you, in the male line of supreme chiefs, to hold such an heirloom. I will not take it, lest, when misfortune arises, it be said that the cause of it was that this sacred thing was contaminated through being held in the hand of a woman.’ He answered, ‘Accept it; and let it be a gift to our chief at Awhitu for your having run away from there, and having come here in the company of us, who are your juniors in rank. Will it be right for you to go into their presence without a gift in your hand? Will you go with the empty hand of a poor person into the presence of the chiefs at the pa to which we are now paddling?’ She answered, ‘Should an exchange be twice repeated? No: I shall take with me only that which I now possess. While he lives, a man is a man; but then, he is food for worms

Ka mea atu te tangata ra, ‘Ano ra i uia atu ai, hua noa kei a koe na e mau ana, koia na to kupu hokohoko’. Ka mea atu a Puhihuia, ‘Tae to pakiki, kite atu ano koe i a au, e haere mai ana maua ko Ponga; a, i noho tahi nei maua i te waka nei, a ka ui ano koe?’ Heoti ano ka whakatika te kotiro ra, ka haere, ka noho rawa atu i te taha o Ponga i te waka ra. Ka hoe nei, a, ka taka ki waho ake o Puponga te waka nei e hoe ana, ka ngahau noa iho te waha o etahi i te waka nei ki ta ratou wahine ariki e mau atu nei, a, ko te kaituki koa nana ano tana tuki i tito hei whakamohio ma te pa i Awhitu. Kua tu-a-ahiahi koa te ra, a, he marino noa iho te moana, hore he hau, hore he aha, a, e rangona atu ana ano te reo tangata o Tipitai e enei e hoe atu nei i Puponga. Ka tuki te tangata ra, a, ka penei na etahi o ana kupu: Toia, tiaia, Kapakapa tu ai Te tau o taku ate; Rarapa mai ai O karu e Puhi. Toia! Ko tetahi tuki tenei: Nui noa au rongo, Ki Maungawhau ra; Ka noho tenei Ki Tipitai nei e. E hoe ana te waka ra, a, ka taka ki te au o Puponga, ka mea atu ano te tangata i te hoe roa ki a Puhihuia, ‘E ko, tenei to patu, ko te patu a o tupuna, ko te patu rongonui nei ko Kahotea.’ Ka mea atu a Puhihuia, ‘Ki a koe ano ra mau ai tau patu’. Ka ki atu te kaiurungi ra, ‘Kati rapea taku koha ki a koe, penei rawa ake e kore tatou e u ki Tipitai’. Ka mea atu a Puhihuia, ‘Nau au whakaaro; naku aku whakaaro’. Ka mea atu ano a ia, ‘Kati hoki ra ta taua tohe ki te patu a o tipuna i maioha ai; e kore te ringa ware e mau i te patu nei, hei koha mau ki enei matua ou, hei maungarongo mau me o matua o Maungawhau ki enei matua ou. He rongo te rongo o mua, he mau te mau o te moana e hoea nei e tatou, a, ehara koe i te moho e ngaro ai i a koe nga mate o te iwi ki nga ika o te moana nei te kati i era ko tenei e ko, nau to haere ki enei o tou iwi, koia ahau i mea ai ki taku oha ki to ringa mau ai, kia ai he mea, maku koe e awhina.’ and an object of disgust.’ He asked, ‘Who received the oil scented with rautangi which was taken by our young people to your pa?’ She replied, ‘It was placed on the marae and many people received some, and it was widely shared; but I did not take any.’ He said, ‘I asked my question, as I thought your remark concerning a double exchange referred to the scented oil.’ She said, ‘You are impertinent and inquisitive. You can see, and have seen, that I came here with Ponga, and am going with him; also, I sat next to him in his canoe. Yet you ask questions.’ She rose, and went and sat down next to Ponga. The canoe went on; and when they were off Puponga those in the canoe were glad at heart because they had in their canoe Puhihuia, the highest-born of all the tribe; and in his joy, the man who chanted the time for the rowers sang a song of his own composing to tell the news to those in the pa at Awhitu. It was early evening; the sea was quite calm and there was no breath of wind, so that the voices of people at Tipitai could be heard by those paddling along off Puponga. The man who chanted the time sang, these being some of his words: Pull on! Dig the paddle deep! How my leaping heart bounds As brightness Shines from thy eyes, Puhihuia! Pull on! And this is another of his songs: Though thy fame at Maungawhau Was spread aboard, and heard in distant lands, Thou deignest to live at Tipitai! They paddled on, and when they were halfway across the harbour from Puponga, the young chief who was steering said again to Puhihuia, ‘O young woman! accept this, your weapon; it is the weapon of your ancestors; it is the famous weapon called “Kahotea”.’ She answered, ‘The weapon is yours, and you must keep it’. The steersman said, ‘I shall be forced to end my overtures of kindness to you; and we will not land at Tipitai’. Puhihuia said, ‘You may think your thoughts, and I will think mine’. He said, ‘Let us end our contention over the weapon of your ancestor, which has been handed down through many generations. The hand of a low-born person shall not touch this weapon. It was offered to you as a gift

Ka mea atu a Puhihuia, ‘Ko koe o taua te mohoao, te kite koe na Ponga ahau i awhina i a tatou i oma mai ra ki Onehunga, nau te kite i a au i neke mai nei i te wahi e nohoia na e koe, ka noho ahau i te taha o taku i mohio ai, o ta taku ngakau i mea ai, i ta taku hinengaro i manaaki ai hei awhina i a au.’ Ka mea atu ano a ia, te kaiurungi ra, ‘Kati, e mea ana koe ko Ponga hei ariki mou?’ Ka mea atu a Puhihuia, ‘Apaia’. Ka mea atu ano te tangata ra, ‘Ae, e pai ana; waiho i tau’. Ka mea atu a Puhihuia, ‘He aha koe, he aha a ia te pai noa ai au hei ariki a ia moku, nau ko te aha? He tapu koia koe te kite ai i te uaua ngaki kai, i kiia ai te pena me koe, “Ko te toa taua he toa paheke”, a, i kiia ai a Ponga u a Ponga, “Ko te toa ngaki kai te toa paheke”. Naku, na taku ngakau, taku i kite, a, penei rawa ake, kia mate ra ano ahau, ka wehe ai maua ko Ponga.’ Ka mutu te tautohe a te hunga nei i konei, a, kua tata te waka nei ki Tipitai. He mea koa ko nga kupu a te kaituki ra kua rangona e te tangata whenua i te pa i Awhitu, kua heke katoa iho ki raro ki tatahi ki te matakitaki i te kotiro ra, kua mohio noa ake nga kaumatua ki te rongo o te pai o te kotiro nei, o Puhihuia o Maungawhau, a, na nga kupu nei o taua kaituki i mea nei, Nui noa o rongo, Ki Maungawhau ra, Ka noho tenei, Ki Tipitai nei e. I mohio ai ratou kei te waka e hoe atu nei taua puhi nei e kawea atu ana, koia ra te take i heke katoa iho ai te iwi ra ki tatahi matakitaki ai. Hui mai te iwi, te koroheke, te kuia, te tamariki, hui mai, hui katoa mai, ka tata noa ano te waka ra ki uta, ka kite mai a uta i te kanohi o te tangata o te waka nei, ka pa te powhiri a tera i uta, ka mea, ‘Haere mai-i-i,

from you to your elders at Tipitai, as a gift to bind the peace which has been made between them and those of your elders at Mount Eden. Peace was made in days of old, and there is food in the fish of the sea which we are now crossing; and you are not ignorant of the fact that because of these fish, death has come to many of both our tribes. I had thought that you would wish that such deaths and the cause of them should for ever cease; and now, O young woman, that you have come to this branch of your tribe, I had wished to put this heirloom into your hand, that I might have the honour of protecting you.’ She answered, ‘Of us two, you are the more ignorant. You have seen that I was in the protection of Ponga when we ran to Onehunga; and you could not help but see that I came from where you now sit, and am sitting beside Ponga, he who is known to my heart, he whom my spirit embraces. He will be my protector. The steersman said again, ‘Then, do you say Ponga is to be your lord?’ She answered, ‘Certainly I do’. He said, ‘Very well; let it be as you say’. She answered, ‘Who are you? And what is he, that I should not take him as my lord? And what can you do? Are you so sacred that you cannot work in the plantations? Of such as you it is said, “The path of the warrior is a slippery one”; and of such as Ponga it is said, “Those who cultivate the soil have also a dangerous life”. My heart and I have found ourselves a man, and only death shall part me from Ponga.’ The dispute between the young chief and Puhihuia was ended, and the canoe was approaching Tipitai. The songs of the chanter who sang to keep the time had been heard by the people of the pa at Awhitu, and all of them came down to the beach to see this young woman, for the elders had already heard of the noble and beautiful Puhihuia of Mount Eden. This is the song of the chanter who sang to keep the time: Though thy fame at Maungawhau Was spread abroad, and heard in distant lands, Thou deignest to live at Tipitai!’ They realised that this nobly-born girl must be aboard the canoe that was approaching, and that is why they all came down to the beach to watch. All of the people had gathered there, old

haere mai-i-i’. Ka ta te manawa o te kaihoe, ka titiro ki uta, katahi ra ano ka whakatika te kaiurungi ki runga, karanga atu ki era i uta, ‘Ko wai anake ena e noho mai na i uta?’ Ka oho mai era, ‘Ko matou katoa, ko o matua, ko o tupuna.’ Ka mea atu ano a ia, ‘Kati mai i kona, kia rongo koutou katoa i taku kupu. Ko au tenei, ko ta koutou potiki, i oraiti mai au i o tatou whanaunga i Maungawhau; na Ponga te kohuru i a au. I noho pai te huinga katoa o te tira tamariki nei i te aroaro o era o o tatou whanaunga; ko Ponga i kohuru i a au. E noho atu nei te kotiro puhi nei, te tino o te uri ariki o Maungawhau, na Ponga i kahaki (mau) mai, te kiia e ia tana ki ki a au i te wa i kohuru ai a ia i a au, kia mea atu ai au, “Kati; kaua e murua te marae o to tatou tuakana; waiho ano tana potiki ki a ia”. Nei ra, ka taka mai matou ki te nuku o te ara, ka tata mai ki Onehunga, tena rawa a Ponga kei te kahaki (mau) mai i te puhi nei i muri o matou. Te ohonga i oho ai te pa ra ka whaia (aru) mai matou, he ohorere no taku mauri, koia au i ki ai i tenei, “Whatia te turi, poua ki te ara, kopere taua”. Te tino rerenga o matou ki te waka, pa rawa mai te kaiwhai (aru) i a matou, kua puta ke mai matou ki te moana, ka to te iwi ra i ana waka, a, na te mea kua tau tini te wa i noho pai ai koutou ki a ratou, me ratou ki a tatou, kua pirau nga herehere o nga rauawa o nga waka; toia ka toia, papahoro noa nga tangata ki te whenua, koia na te take i kitea oratia mai ai au ki a koutou. Ka hoe mai nei matou, a, ka ta taku manawa, katahi au ka pouri ki taku takaniti mai i te iwi ra, te noho atu, ka tuku atu ano i te kotiro nei ki ana matua. He ao te ao i enei ra, ko tenei kua pouri kerekere, penei rawa ake, apopo, tu ana te hoariri i te one o Tipitai, a, mau ka maia e maia, mau ka ngohe ka ngaro koe i te ngaro a te moa.’ He noho ki raro te noho o te iwi e whakarongo mai ra i uta, mutu kau ano te kupu a te tamaiti ariki nei, katahi ra ano te tino tangata o te pa nei o Awhitu ka whakatika ki runga; ko ia anake i tu ki runga, ka uhi te kakahu o te mano e noho ra ki te mahunga, ka ahua taua. Ka ki mai te kaumatua ariki o Awhitu, ‘Haere mai, haere, hoea ano te kotiro na ki tana kainga. He tika to kupu na te tau aio i he ai te tuitui o nga rauawa o nga waka o to iwi na i ora ai koe. Ko tenei, e kore au e pai kia takahia a runga o te rongo taketake e te kotiro na. Haere mai, haere e hoki ki Maungawhau, a, nau ka patua i te ara, na Ponga tena, ehara i a au.’ men, old women, and children; everyone had gathered there. When the canoe was quite close to the shore and those on land could distinguish the faces of those on board, the people on the beach called in loud chorus the welcome—‘Come, Oh come!’ The rowers in the canoe stopped paddling, and as they all looked at those on shore, the young chief who steered the canoe rose and asked, ‘Who are those who are sitting on the shore?’ He was answered by the crowd on shore, ‘We, your elders and parents are all here’. He said, ‘Stay where you are, so that you may hear what I have to tell you. I, your child, have had a narrow escape from the hands of our relatives at Mount Eden, and my death or my murder, if it had taken place, would have been caused by Ponga. All the young people of our party conducted themselves in a quiet and peaceable manner towards our relatives at Mount Eden, but Ponga acted like a murderer toward me. Here with us is that young woman, sacred and of most supreme rank, the daughter of the lord of Mount Eden, who has been kidnapped by Ponga. He did not tell me at the time that he intended to commit a theft, or I would have said, ‘Do not do this; do not rob the home of our senior relative, but let his child remain with him’; but when we had travelled some distance, and had come near to Onehunga, unknown to us, Ponga was in the act of taking the young woman from her home. All the warriors rose, and with their weapons followed us. I was bewildered by the suddenness of the fright that came on me when I saw that we were pursued by an enemy, and therefore I gave the order, “Bend your knees, bow your heads, and let us flee”. ‘We fled on till we reached our canoe, and by the time our pursuers had got to the beach we were far out in the water. The enemy at once rushed to drag their canoes to the sea; but because you and they have been living so long in peace, the lashing of the top-sides of their canoes had become rotten, so that in attempting to pull their canoes to the sea the side-boards came away from the bodies of the canoes, and those who were attempting to move them fell over on the ground; otherwise, you would never again have seen me alive. When we had paddled some distance towards home, and I had time to think, I felt angry with myself for running away from those people, instead of staying and sending this young woman back to her parents. Daylight is light, but now darkness is deadly gloom, and

Te tino whakatikanga o te kotiro ra, o Puhihuia ki runga, ka powhiri ki ana ringaringa, a, roa rawa e powhiri ana ki era i uta, ka mau ki ona, ka unuhia, ka mau ki te kakahu o waho, ka whiua e ia ki te aroaro o Ponga, kei to roto atu, ka peratia ano. Ka tae ki te roto rawa, ki te kakahu muanga ki tana kiri, ka mau a ia ki tana whitiki karetu, whatuia iho a runga o te kakahu kotahi e mau ra i a ia, ka tatuatia ki tana hope, ka tu kiri kau ana ringa me tana uma. Katahi ra ano ka toro tana ringa matau ki era i uta, ka karanga a ia, ‘E te iwi e, titiro mai ki a au’. I te wa ano i tu ai te kotiro ra ki runga, kua titiro mai te iwi ra ki a ia, me te mihi a ratou ki te tu rangatira o taua kotiro ra. He wahine pai taua kotiro nei, he roa a ia, he mawhatu te makawe, he kiritea; ko te tinana, koia ano kei tetahi koare nei te pai me te ngohe noa. Ka karanga atu ano a Puhihuia, ‘E tika ana to riri, e he ana to riri. To tika, ko te mate mou i a au te ngaki; to he, ko to whakapae teka ki a Ponga. Naku ano taku haere mai; nou tenei he, te titiro koe ki te pai o te tamaiti, o Ponga, ka pupuri kia noho i konei i to kainga, kaua e tukua ake ki taku pa. Mei tukua ake ko ana hoa anake, penei e noho mai ana ano au i taku marae; nei koe, nou te kohuru i a au, tukua ake ana e koe te whakangaoko i taku ngakau, a, rere kino ai au ki te pai o to tamaiti. Ehara i a au te he; nou tena kohuru i a au.’ Mutu kau ano te kupu a te kotiro ra, tahi ano te pekenga o Puhihuia, tau rawa atu i roto i te moana, e kau ana, a, u noa ki uta. Ko te iwi ra tena e noho mai ra i uta, ka rere he wahine, ka rere he wahine, poto katoa nga wahine e noho mai ra i uta ki te wai, ki te whai (aru) mai i te kotiro ra. Ko te hunga ra tena i te waka parau kau, noho hu noa iho, kihai i oho, i aha. Ka kau te kotiro ra, a, u noa ki uta, u kau atu ano ki uta, tu ana ano a ia i roto i te wai, to nga turi te wai ki a ia, ka tu atu a ia, ko te tini wahine ra haere tonu atu ki uta noho noa mai ai ko ratou, ropu ano, i ko mai o te ope tane. Ka karanga atu ano a Puhihuia, ‘Ko au tenei, ko Puhihuia. Naku taku i kite, e kore au e taea e te tangata te ki e, “Penetia, peratia”; mau ka pono i a koe to kupu kia hoki au ki Maungawhau, penei rawa ake, a te po by tomorrow your enemy will stand on the sandy beach of Tipitai; and if you are brave, well and good, but if you are weak you will be lost, even as the moa.’ All the time he was speaking the crowd who were listening on shore were sitting down, but as soon as he had ended his speech, the head chief of Awhitu rose, but not one of the crowd followed his example. All sat in silent dread, each covering his head with his cloak. The old chief said, ‘Welcome, welcome! but you must leave! Take the girl back to her home. Yes, you are right; it is because of the years of peace that the lashings of the canoes of our Mount Eden relatives have become roten, so that you escaped. I will not allow the girl to break the bonds of peace between us. Come, welcome, but you must now go back to Mount Eden, and, if you are killed on the way there, that will be Ponga's fault, not mine.’ Straight away Puhihuia rose and beckoned with her hands towards the crowd on the shore. After beckoning for a long time, she took off the outer garment she had on and put it down beside Ponga, and so with the next. Readjusting the inner garment which she wore next to her skin, she doubled the part which covered her shoulders down in a fold around her waist, bound it round her with a karetu belt, and stood there with her arms and breasts uncovered. Then she stretched out her right arm towards those on shore, and said, ‘O people! look at me.’ All the time she was standing there the people had been gazing at her and expressing their admiration of her noble figure and attitude. She was a fine-looking woman, tall, with curling hair, light skin, and supple as a sapling of the forest. Again she called, ‘Your anger against me is right, yet it is not just. You are right in blaming me, as I may be the cause of the evil which may fall on you; but you are not just in falsely accusing Ponga. I came here of my own accord, but I blame you for this: why did you not see how handsome this young man Ponga was, and keep him here at your home, and not let him come to my pa? If you had allowed his companions to come to my pa without him, I should have still been there; but you dealt treacherously with me, so that I could not restrain my feelings: because of his beauty I rushed recklessly into love. I am not to blame. It is you who have behaved badly towards me.’ She stopped speaking, and with one bound Continued on page 38