The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1886-10-20
A MAORI TANGI.
FUNERAL CEREMONY OF THE
NEW ZEALAND NATIVES.
Profe sional Mourners Whose Grief
Entities Them to a High Place
Among Tear-Shcddcrs-
Merry-Making.

Very sincere and mournful must have
been the tangi held at Rotolua in New
Zealand, marking the inal laying to rest
| of the victims of che eruption of Tara
vera. Very, very different from the
, first of those curious and interesting
ceremonies that l had opportunity to
, , witness; one in which the element Of
fun largely exceeded that of grief. l
saw several more serious ones after that,
but the tangi of the present generation
must nearly always be more festival than
funeral, and especially 50 to the youth
full Maori, since it is the occasion of a
great 'gathrring of the clans;" draw
ing together of distant friends and rela-
| tives; a suitable time for tho exchange
OF gifts and souvenirs; a season of ex-
cessivc feasting and bibulating, and the
levelry that so often &olloweth such IL
duIgence.
This particular tangi, tho first in my
experience, was at hakarewarewa, u
native settlement in the very midst of
boiling water, kissing steam, volcanic
rumblings and earth tremors, that make
one fearful at first of falling through the
thin crust, which is all that separates one
from the scething, gurgling. sulphurous,
infernos, just beneath ones trembling
feet. The sight OF hundred or more
contentcd dark faces smiling in security
and welcome went for to convince us
that the country was safer than it looked,
and so onward event, picking our way
through series Of hot mud and hot
water holes with much care and atten-
tion to our steps. The whole settle
ment was in ferment of preparation.
Toilet preparations were progressing with
much merriment in the open air. The
dresses of the women were European in
fashion and were, in their brilliant com +.
bination of colors, so gorgeous and daz-
zling that we turned our eyes in graft
tude upon the clean white cotton suits
worn by the men. Yet there was pic
turesque and becoming effect in these
flaming hues in contrast with the rich
dark skins they set of. So much hearty
fun was going on that was fain to ask
an explanation.
II thought 'tangi' was the Maori word
for weeping"
"Yes," said my escort, $50 it is; but
the chief for whom this tangi is being
held has been dead and buried these foar
months. lie has already been incurred
extensively; this is final celebration ar
ranged for the convenience of some of
his tribe who live too far away to admit
of their getting here in time for the chief
ceremony. They have not arrived yet,
but they soon will, and then tie weeping
will begin. They are only getting ready
now; let's leave them to it and 60 and
sec the geysers."
We were attracted from the geysers by
loud cry from the settlement, and hur-
rying thither we saw approaching from
the distance q Struggling equestrian cav
alcade that we at once dlvincd to be the
expected mourners. Now the tapgi would
begin. Twenty or thirty st ;lwart Whak-
arewarewas rushed to the summit of a
small eminence, and sent long wailing,
yet musical cry of "llaere mail llaere
mai" C"Come hithcr! Come hither!!')
marking time with curious thud Of
their heels on the ground, and waving
shawls aud kerchiefs with strange
movement of invitation to the yet dis.
tant visitors. The latter presently dis
mounted, let their horses and entered
the settlement on foot, being met on the
way by the residents, when ensued mucn
rubbing of noses (the Maori manner of
kissing and loud, piteous wailing on
both sides. They all crowded together
in the middle of the village, divided into
two long rows, and there, standing face
to face, they wcpt and walled and shed
water enough from eyes and noses to wet
themselves to the very waist.
The weep ng and the wailing, the beat.
ing of Breasts and swaying of bodies con-
tinued until patience again grew weak,
and we inquired as to the probable du-
ration of this part of the ceremony, only
to learn that it was indefinite, depending 6
entirely upon the staying powers of the
mourners. BY the length and loudness
of their display their grief was measured
and spirit of emulation in the women
caused this grief t) be just two hours and
o quarter long, the last weeper in the
field being tall, blanket clothed female
She oozed grief from ever pore. All the
mou: ners wore wrcaths and s:reamers o.
fern and lycopodium, these being, as thu
cypress and myrtle to us, emblems ol
sorrow and death.
When finally the champion weeper
sank exhausted to the ground as she
found herself the last remaining member
of the two long lines she had commenced
with, there began another tedious pro-
cess that filled up quite another hour.
Every man of both tribes had something
to sly to the honor and glory of the de
parted. Each one rose in his turn and
recitcd-or rather intoned or chanted--
q lengthy panegyric, in substance and
truth corresponding very nearly, nc
doubt, with the legends so often in
scribed on the marble slabs that cover
the pakeha dead.
Well, at last the weary weeping and
praising ceremonies were finished, and
hey presto! for the feast and jubilee.
The women folk skipped and scrambled,
| laughed and chattered, as if tears and
lamentations were things unknown. Into
swiftly plated fax baskets they put
clean. .scraped potatoes, swinging the
baskets then in the boiling springs tt
cook. From holes in the steaming
ground the men drew forth whole pigs,
hot and odorous, but very black and
tough looking. The potatoes were de-
licious. We hungry wanderers full rcad
lily accepted the invitation to partakc,
but we had to pass by the pork, as al'c
another dainty edible, brought out fol-
our special dclectation, which looked and
smelt like stale broiled boots, but was,
i