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Women's Belts: Tu.
These consist of several plaited strands, as against the single wide band in the men's belts. The available information was collected by Mr. Elsdon Best (3) from the Tuhoe Tribe. He was fortunately able to get samples made for the Dominion and Auckland Museums, and thus save this class of belt from being irretrievably lost. The strands are plaited after the manner of cords (whiri), and are quite distinct from the plaited bands of the tatua whara class, which is true plaiting, or raranga. The tu are worn by women only. Best distinguishes three varieties, from the material used—viz., karetu (Hierochloe redolens), maurea (Carex lucida and C. comans), and muka or prepared flax-fibre.
(1.) Tu-karetu.—These consists of a number of plaited strands (kawekawe or kawai), which have a tau, or plaited cord of dressed flax-fibre, attached to each end for tying round the waist. The strands are plaited with wefts of the leaves of the karetu, which are from 1½ ft. to 2 ft. in length. The midrib (tuaka) is removed from each leaf, as it becomes very brittle when dried, and thus breaks easily. The wefts are about ⅕ in. in width. The length of the many-stranded part of the belt varies. In those obtained by Mr. Best for the Auckland Museum they are 29 ¼ in., 34 ¼ in., and 49 ½ in. respectively. The number of strands varies, being usually about ten. In the three belts mentionrd they are eleven, ten, and five.
The karetu wefts are plaited into a continuous braid, the length of which depends on the length of the belt and the number of strands required. Thus in the ten-stranded belt above the plaited karetu braid is 28 ft. 9 in. in length. The number of wefts is twelve, and they are usually plaited in the rauru pattern, the technique of which will be described when dealing with ropes and cords. It forms a neat flat braid about ¼ in. wide. Fresh wefts are added during the course of the plaiting. The requisite length having been attained, the cord is looped backwards and forwards so that when the ends of the loops are stretched apart the total length of the braid is divided up into a number of strands of the required length for the belt.
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The tau, or flax-fibre cord, is attached in the following manner: The length of flax-fibre sufficient for plaiting the cord is doubled on itself. The loop or bight so formed is passed through one of the loops formed by the doubling-back of the karetu strands, and the two ends of the fibre passed through the bight, as in tying a single lark's-head knot. The bight is drawn tight round the loop of strands, and thus the flax-fibre is fixed, and one end of the belt sharply defined. The two ends of fibre are divided into three equal portions and plaited into a three-ply braid. It is usually about 2 ft. in length. As it thins out towards the end the three-ply braid may be changed into a two-ply twist and finished off with an overhand knot. The same process is repeated at the other end of the belt. When, the belt has an uneven number of strands an end of the continuous karetu cord will be at each end of the belt. They are usually incorporated in one of the divisions of the tau, and plaited in with it for an inch or so to fix them. With an even number of strands both ends of the karetu braid will be at one extremity of the belt. They are then usually knotted together with a reef-knot. The tau are usually of black-dyed fibre. Red-dyed fibre is sometimes used in addition to the black, in which case a length of one colour is looped round all the strands, whilst the other is looped round some of the
Fig. 10.—Tu. Fastening of tau.
strands, and usually crossed over the first loop. The plaiting of the tau is then of the rauru pattern. The black or red-and-black tying-cords lend contrast to the yellowish karetu strands, improving the appearance of the belt. The karetu has a sweet-smelling odour, which recommended it to the women. (See Plate 35, fig. 2.)
(2.) Tu-maurea.—This belt was sought after by women on account of the reddish-yellow colour of the maurea leaves when dry. It is made in exactly the same manner as the tu-karetu. The wefts are much narrower and more brittle. According to Best (3), they were strengthened by the addition of some flax-fibre. The maurea braid is about ⅕ in. in width. The specimen in the Auckland Museum is 34 in. long, with black flaxfibre cords of 20 in. each, and it has eleven strands.
(3.) Tu-muka.—This is made altogether of muku (dressed flax-fibre). The one in the Auckland Museum has twelve strands, an equal number being red, black, and white. The strands are composed of round, thick cords about ¼ in. in diameter, and form a heavier, stronger, and better-looking belt than the previous two. The strands are prepared in a peculiar manner and, though not really coining under the heading of plaiting, Best's (3) description of the technique is included for the sake of completeness. The strands are composed of two cords, each of which has been prepared from
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two threads twisted together by the miro process on the bare thigh. These two cords are then twisted together in a similar manner for a short section. “The operator then holds tightly the end of one of these cords and pushes the other back until, instead of enveloping the held cord in a long spiral, it appears to be seized round it at right angles.” The same result would be achieved if one cord were stretched tight and the other twisted round and round it to make a close continuous whipping, but of course the Maori method is much quicker and simpler. The operation is carried on in sections. A section is twisted on the thigh (miro), and then pushed down (koneke or pahuku); the next section is then twisted and pushed down, and so on until the required length is obtained. At the finish the pushed-down cord is knotted round the held cord. Each strand is prepared separately. The length of each strand is about 42 in. At either end of the seized strand there is a continuation of the two constituent cords. All those at one end are united by simply plaiting them on in a square plait to form the tau, or tying-cord. In the belt described the white cords are concealed under the red and black cords so that only the latter two colours show in the tau. Each tau is 26 in. long. As the tau thins out, the square plait is changed into a flat rauru plait, and the last 4 in. is finished off with a two-ply twist ending in an overhand knot. (See Plate 35, fig. 3.)
The many-stranded belt of the tu variety must be an old type, as it is found in Polynesia. The Niuean kafa is a belt composed of many strands of fine braid plaited from human hair. One in my possession contains sixty-nine strands, and is 35 ½ in. long. The hair-braid is continuous, and looped at either end of the belt to take the tying-cords. Percy Smith (5) mentions some as containing over a hundred strands. Similar belts are described from Tahiti.