earth, then the haka a Tane-rore is seen. The following is the haka of Raumati:—

E whiti te ra, paroro ki te kiri
Ka haramai koe, ka ruru i aku iwi
I te hinapouri kerekere
I taia iho nei ki raro ra i au e
Pai aha ha!

The following is the original haka, the first one known in the world:—

Aue! Te ra, te whetu, ka rere mai i te pae
Ko Kopu koia kapokapo mai e i te tautara
Kia auroroa i au e.

If in summer-time you look upwards you will see the haka of Raumati flashing and twinkling in space. That is the origin of the haka of the world.

The following is an old-time haka:—

Ka tito au, ka tito au, ka tito au, kia Kupe
Te tangata nana i hoehoe te moana
Tu ke a Kapiti, tu ke Māna, tu ke Aropawa
Ko nga tohu tena a taku tupuna a Kupe
Nana i whakatomene Titapua
Ka toreke ia te whenua—e.

When performing haka the performers always vie with each other as to who shall give the best rendering, and many traditions are extant as to young women being captivated by the grace of movement displayed by men in these dances. For the whare tapere was the place where the young people met together in former times to pass the evening in various amusements, after the labours of the day were over. Elderly people would also be present, and some of them would take part in games or haka. I have seen an old native of seventy unable to resist the fascinations of a haka, and throw off his blanket and join in.

The words of a haka are either sung by all the performers, or, in some cases, the fugleman leads off for a line or two and the others join in as a kind of chorus, as we have shown. The term “haka,” is applied to both the dance and the song which accompanies it. The time for the various motions appears to be taken from the song.

The following haka is one of a type known as a manawa wera, which were sung and danced on the return of an unsuccessful war-party. As the defeated warriors marched into the village home they were met by a band of people, principally women, dressed in old disreputable garments (the sackcloth and ashes of the Maori), who pranced before them and indulged in those violent energetic movements termed “whākapi” or “pikari,” the emitting of most distressing grunts, and the exhibiting of the whites of the eyes. They would

perform and sing the haka, which, with the above performances, denoted grief for those slain and anger against the hapless who had lost the day and returned alive. Such is the manawa wera, or seared heart.

Te kotiritiri, te kotaratara, o tai, o huki, o hope—e
Whakatitaha rawa te waha o te kupenga ki uta
Kia tairi—a-ha-ha!
Hoki mai, hoki mai—e
Kia kawea koe ki tera whenua
Ki era tangata,
Nana i ki mai
Uhi! Uhi!—e-e
A—ha-ha!

Another class of haka are those repeated while playing certain games, as we shall see anon. Others, again, are juvenile jingles repeated by children for their own amusement. The following are samples of such:—

1.

2.

3.

The following are specimens of modern haka. They were composed and sung, with the usual wild gestures, by the Tuhoe Tribe when the Land Commission first sat at Te Whaiti and the long battle commenced for the possession of that land:—

Te tangi mai a te ika nei, a te poraka
Ku-ke-ke—e!
Ku-keke-keke a Tuboe ki Te Whaiti!
Kai a Raharuhi te paenga mai o te ure putete
Te huruhuru a e apu ra i te kirikiri tai—e-ha!
Titiro ki runga! titiro ki raro!
Titiro ki te mana motuhake e rere mai nei—e!
Hihi ana mai te pene a te Komihana!
A hihi ana mai! Aue!

In the above Tuhoe compare their descent on Te Whaiti, in order to establish claims by conquest and mana, with the appearance and rapid increase of the frog, which has only of late reached these parts. In the sixth and seventh lines they call upon their old-time serfs to look up and gaze upon the flag of Tuhoeland, across which runs the legend: “Te mana motuhake mo Tuhoe” (The special mana for the Tuhoe Tribe).