the left by defining the lower border of the band. Weft 2 is bent at right angles to its course by a half-turn backwards and passed under 4 and over 6. A half-turn forwards is just as good, but in the figure back-turns are shown. This weft must go under 4 and over 6 to continue the check plait. Weft 4 is now turned and passed under 6 (see fig. 13). The half-turns made define the lower border of the band. As there are no crossing-wefts for 6 to engage, some elements must be brought in from the upper set. The right one of the upper three, weft 5, commences the upper border just as the right one of the lower three commenced the lower border. Number 5 is given a half-turn forward and passed over 3 and under 1 as in fig. 13. Wefts 3 and 1 follow in a similar way, so that both borders and the width of the band are defined. The check plait is continued and the width of the band maintained as in the previous type described. Wefts reach the end in a point with an even number of wefts on either aide; these are tied together to prevent the band becoming undone. The other half of the band is commenced by plaiting the six wefts on the right in a similar way. These wefts, it must be remembered, are the other halves of the flax-blades already used. Fig. 13 shows them in position, on the reader's right, ready for the start. Commencing at the lower border, it must be remembered that we are going in the opposite direction, and diagramatically the processes are reversed. Weft 1 takes a half-turn forward and passes in front of 3 and behind 5. Weft 3 follows suit and passes in front of 5. Weft 6 above takes a half-turn backward and passes behind 4 and in front of 2. This has to be done to keep up the same stroke. I have described it theoretically so as to follow the diagram and interest the reader with a plaiting problem. What really does happen on commencing the second side is that the plaiter simply turns the work over, when the wefts lie in the same direction as in the previous half of the work, and the work is done in exactly the same way. Thus, turn fig. 12 over mentally, maintaining the same upper and lower borders: the wefts to be plaited now lie to the left, and weft 1 will correspond to weft 2 in the previous half. It will take a half-turn backward and pass behind the first crossing-weft, which will be 3, and in front of the next, which will be 5. When the second half is completed the ends are tied together to correspond with the circumference of the earth-oven. Reference to fig. 12 will show that the plaiting was worked from right to left, whereas the other direction is that usually adopted. The woman I watched plaiting a pae umu, as it is usually termed in the east coast, plaited it in this way, and my notes and rough diagram naturally followed it.

This method aims at getting a longer weft and ao avoid joining fresh wefts in, as in the usual west-coast method. The joining is done at the beginning, as it were, (See Plate 36, figs. 1, 2.)

A better class of band is plaited with narrower wefts which have been lightly scraped. The stroke used is often the kowhiti, where twilled twos and a check alternate. According to the plaiters, this thickens the band and assists it in standing on its edge. The twisted or braided band which follows was not used by the Ngati-Porou.