the thumb-nail. This waste material was termed kaikaha. The two half-blades, freed by the removal of the midrib, were held together with the left hand whilst the right thumb-nail split them into even widths, of ⅜ in. to ¼ in. for baskets, and somewhat wider for mats. As the thumb-nail worked across the blade from right to left the right forefinger and middle finger followed through the openings made and separated the alternate divisions. Holding the butt end of the blade with the left hand, the right fingers were simply drawn along the blade to the tip and completely separated all the divisions. Holding the mid-part of the blade with the freed right hand, the fingers of the left hand were slipped between the divisions and ran them down to the butt-junction. As each blade was dealt with it was laid down neatly on the left of the worker with the butt end towards her. Wonderful accuracy was displayed in maintaining the even widths of the strips throughout. At Koriniti, during a display of plaiting by the older women, some girls joined in preparing the strips. Later on. whilst plaiting the baskets, the women expressed great disgust at the uneven strips preventing neat work, and took it as a sign that the art of plaiting would soon die out.

(b.) Removal of the strips from the butt (takirikiri): The object here is not only completely to separate the strips, but to remove as little of the butt with them as possible. Owing to the flax of the butt being thicker, stiffer, and narrower, its inclusion in the strip would result in uneven wefts, and cause harder work in manipulating them. The butt near the butt-junction was clasped firmly in the left hand, fingers at the back, thumb in front. The strips are in two rows, one above the other, corresponding to the two half-blades. The right upper strip was seized with the right hand and bent back along the line of the butt; the left thumb was pressed firmly on its junction with the butt, and creased it transversely. Keeping the firm pressure of palm and thumb, the strip was torn off with a quick, sharp pull of the right hand. The right lower strip was then turned back, creased and held against the butt by the left forefinger, and torn off. The remaining strips were treated in a similar way, working from the right and taking the upper and lower strips in turn. It is the quick, sharp pull that gives the name of takirikiri to this stage. Each removed strip has a tuft of fibre at the end which was torn from the butt. The strips were kept in the right hand until the blade had been finished, when the separated butt was cast aside and the strips laid down in a neat heap with the tufted ends towards the worker. The secret of this simple process consists in keeping the blade held tightly and pressing down firmly on the strip-junction. If held loosely the strip will run out to the end of the butt. My first efforts were the cause of much amusement to my instructresses.

(c.) Scraping the butt ends of the strips (kaku): Each strip was taken individually, and the tuft of fibre at the butt end scraped with one of the kinds of shell mentioned above, to remove the non-fibrous material, or tutae. It will thus be realized that one of the objects in doing the previous stage neatly is to leave as little scraping as possible to be done in this stage. Where too much butt has been removed, extra time and work are involved in scraping it off. The shell is held with its outer surface towards the body, and, in scraping, the movement of the hand with the shell is away from the body. The scraping of the ends in this manner to remove the epidermis and interfibrous matter gives the exact meaning of kaku. The scraped tuft of fibre will be referred to as the “butt-tuft.”

The strips having been treated in this way are ready for plaiting into the ordinary mats and baskets for common use. When they become dry they become stiffer, and the colour changes to brown. The two surfaces have a different shade, whilst that corresponding to the anterior (or inner) surface of the leaf maintains its smoother appearance.

(2.) White Wefts.—The term “white wefts” is used because the natural wefts are put through a further process to render them as white as possible. Here again the process may be divided into three stages, as follows:—

(a.) Treatment with hot water: In these days the rough wefts are boiled for a few minutes in a large pot or a kerosene-tin. In olden days the water was heated in a wooden vessel (kumete) by dropping in red-hot stones. The heat softens the strips and helps to get rid of the green colouring-matter in the leaf.

(b.) Light scraping (piahu): On removal from the hot water the strips are scraped along their whole length on both sides. Shells were used, but blunt knives are now more in favour. The scraping is done lightly, so as not to cut down on the fibre. A certain amount of epidermis and colouring-matter is removed, and the strips rendered softer and more pliable. The light scraping is accomplished by drawing the strip with the left hand back towards the body against the lower edge of the shell. The term piahu as sometimes loosely applied to the kaku process is incorrect. As each strip is done it is laid down on a heap with the butt-tuft towards the worker.

(c.) Drying (whakamaroke): The scraped strips are gathered up in small bundles, the tufted ends are tied together, and the bundles straddled over a line to dry. When dry they assume a whiter appearance. The surface corresponding to the anterior surface in the leaf has a whiter colour than the back, and maintains its smoother appearance. They are softer and easier to manipulate than the rough wefts. Kiekie strips are treated in this manner, and become whiter than flax. The bundles of white wefts, when dry, are often beaten against the ground or a stone to render them softer and more pliable.

For the best class of floor-mats the butt-tufts were not necessary. In preparing the wefts for them the takirikiri and kaku stages of the rough weft were omitted. After slitting the leaf down to the butt-junction the butt was cut off short, leaving a short piece of undivided butt linking the divisions of a half-blade together. In some cases, perhaps two or four strips were left united. These were then boiled, lightly scraped, and dried, and became white wefts without butt-tufts.

White wefts were used in plaiting the better class of floor-mats and baskets, burden-carriers, and some varieties of belts.

(3.) Dyed Wefts.—The dyeing process is continued on from the last. Though red, yellow, and black dyes are used with prepared fibre for weaving cloaks, so far as I know black was the only dye used originally in plaiting. Colenso, however, mentions that a blue-black, obtained from the bark of the tutu (Coriaria ruscifolia), was used in graceful little baskets for a beloved child. Yellow was obtained from the natural colour of the pingao (Scirpus frondosus). In these degenerate days European dyes of any shade are used. The stages in dyeing are as follows:—

(a.) Treatment with a mordant (waitumu): A mordant to fix the dye was prepared from the bark of the hinau (Eleocarpus dentatus). The bark was pounded on a flat stone with a beater and mixed with cold water in a wooden bowl (kumete). The white wefts were soaked in this infusion for about twelve hours and then hung up to dry. Besides hinau, the leaves