Ropes.—The main drag-rope is tied to the pouwaenga. The side ropes tied to the punga uprights are called tangitangi, the same name as the second set of uprights. They join the main rope about 4 ft. from the pouwaenga.

The net of the paepae has no special name. The one I saw had a 2 ¼ in. mesh. The opening of the net-was fitted to the framework of the paepae and whitiwhiti. From this opening the net gradually narrowed down to a point about 10 ft. 10 in. away. To this point was attached a piece of rope 7 ft. long, which carried the punga, or koremu (the stone sinker).

Fig. 2.—Paepae, or dredge-net.

I saw Ngati-Uenuku-Kopako at Mokoia Island with a paepae of which the arch, or whitiwhiti, was composed of thick, plain wire. The paepae bar was 10 ft. 8 in. long, and extra uprights were inserted between the punga and tangitangi uprights These were called whitiwhiti, the same name as the arch.

Naming.—As in the case of other nets, good paepae, which caught large catches, were named after ancestors or near relatives.

Method of Dredging.—When collecting these notes we went hauling on the Moari grounds off Mokoia. The first procedure was to plant a long pole, called a turuturu, firmly into the bottom of the lake, on one edge of the rather shallow fishing-ground. A fairly long rope of whanake leaves was tied near the bottom of the turuturu before it was thrust down. It takes a skilled man to plant the turuturu. On touching bottom it is gently twirled with one hand, and gradually insinuated more and more deeply

until it is considered that it can stand the strain of having the canoe drawn towards it from the end of the rope. It will be noticed that the rope is tied to the bottom of the turuturu so as to take the strain and prevent leverage. If not skilfully and firmly planted, when a strain is put on it the turuturu comes up. This was considered an ill omen, and was called he take maunu (a loosened support), and in olden days the man who planted such a turuturu would promptly be struck with a taiaha or club. If he were man enough he would guard the stroke, leap overboard, and swim ashore, no matter how far.

The turuturu having been securely planted, the canoe paddled away from it. The whanake rope was paid out until the end was reached. As the canoe paddled towards the end of the rope a landmark was taken to keep the line of the canoe. The net was now put over the side. The sinker was lowered first and allowed to tighten up before the net left the hand. If this were not done the net would be liable to get twisted and the arch go under, causing the paepae to be dragged along upside down. This accident was called karitutu, and resulted in no fish being caught. On hauling up an empty net the disappointed fishermen would say, E, i karitutu ta taua kupenga (Alas, our net was upside down).

Enough rope was paid out to ensure the paepae resting on the bottom. The drag-rope of the net was then tied to the canoe. The canoe was hauled by the whanake rope towards the turuturu, and the dredge-net, tied by its rope to the canoe, was dragged along the bottom. The man hauling on the rope had the opportunity of “putting on side” by stretching out with full-arm reaches to grasp the rope and then straightening his back in a spectacular manner. This was the correct thing to do : Kia maro te tuara (Straighten the back). Either hand was used alternately, and the bight of the rope as it came in was dropped in a figure-of-eight coil—not in a single coil, as with Europeans. The canoe was not hauled too close to the turuturu, lest it should be loosened. When near enough, the rope was tied to the canoe and attention directed to the net. The experts could always tell as they hauled in whether there was a good catch. The weight of the crayfish caused the paepae to lift and the net to roll about. Ka tahurihuri te kupenga, he tohu kua mou te koura (When the net rolled about it was a sign that koura had been caught). As the net came up, the pouwaenga was grasped and the framework lifted clear of the sides of the canoe; the other parts were then drawn in.

If the net was filled with koura more than the span of the two arms it was an evil sign—he iro tangata. The tale would be whispered round the village, Ko te kupenga a mea, na te waha o te paepae i whakahoki te koura (The net of So-and-so, it was the mouth of the net that stopped the koura). This was a sign of death—an aitua, an inati.

The crayfish having been emptied out of the net, the canoe was paddled back to the end of the rope; but by carefully observing their landmark a spot was made for a few yards to the right or left of the last drag. This was done on each drag, so as to ensure the same ground not being gone over twice. In the old days a couple of drags would secure a quantity equal to the contents of a sack or two. Often there would be a dozen canoes on the same ground competing one against another.

Sometimes a canoe was tied to the turuturu and remained stationary whilst another canoe worked backwards and forwards to it with the drag-net. In this case there were two ropes tied to the base of the turuturu. One was drawn taut and tied to the bow of the stationary