NGA PATUPAIAREHE OR FAIRIES.
One day while Ruarangi was absent from his house a Patupaiarehe or Fairy came to it, and finding only the wife of Ruarangi within, carried her off to the hills. When the husband returned home his wife could not be found. He, however, traced footsteps to the hills where the Fairies dwelt, but saw nothing of his wife. Then he felt sure she had been carried off by the Fairies, and returned sorrowing and thinking of some plan to recover her. At length, having thought of a plan, he summoned the tohunga of the tribe—those skilled in bringing back love—those skilled in makutu—in short all the tohunga. When these all assembled before him, he said to them “The cause of my calling you is this. My wife has disappeared.” The tohunga replied “When it is night, all of you leave your houses.” So when night came every one came forth from his house as the tohunga had ordered. Then the tohunga skilled in restoring love stood up, and after some while discovered that the lost woman was with the Fairies. So he commenced a karakia to make her love for her Maori husband return.
What wind is this blowing softly to your skin:
Will you not incline towards your companion,
[pg 48] To whom you clung when sleeping together,
Whom you clasped in your arms,
Who shared your griefs.
When the wind bears to you this my love,
Incline hither thy love,
Sighing for the couch where both slept.
Let your love burst forth,
As the water-spring from its source.
When the tohunga had ended this karakia he said to the husband “Go, fetch your wife. When she meets you, be quick to rub her all over with kokowai (red-ochre).” So the man went, and when night came he lay down to sleep by the way side. While he slept he saw his wife coming to meet him. With this he awoke knowing well that the tohunga had spoken truly. At day-light he went on his way, and after some time came in sight of the Pa of the Fairies. No one was within the Pa. All had gone forth to look at the Maori woman. Now a great desire towards her Maori husband had come to the woman borne to her by the karakia of the tohunga, so the woman said to her Fairy husband “Let me go and visit my new brothers-in-law.” This she said deceitfully; for when her Fairy husband consented, she went straight away to meet her Maori husband, who, as soon as she came near, rubbed her all over with kokowai, and hastened home with her.
Meanwhile the Fairy husband awaited her return. He waited a long while, and at last went to look for her: at length he discovered footsteps of a man and woman, then he knew she had gone off with her husband. So the war-party of the Fairies assembled, and went to attack the Maori Pa. But they found the posts of the Pa daubed over with kokowai, and the leaves used in the [pg 49] ovens for cooking, thrown on the roofs of the houses: the Pa too was full of the steam of cooked food. As for the woman, she was placed for concealment in an oven. So the Fairies feared to come near; for how could they enter the Pa in their dread of the kokowai, and the steam of the ovens which filled the court-yard. So great is their dread of cooked food.
Then the tohunga Maori all standing up sung a karakia to put to sleep the Fairies.
Thrust aside, thrust afar,
Thrust aside your sacredness,
Thrust aside your tohunga:
Let me, let me mark[33] you,
Let me mark your brow,
Give me thereupon your sacredness,
You mana, your tohunga,
Your karakia give me,
To place beside the oven-stones,
To place beside the cinders,
To place beside the kokowai.
Now these rest on your head,
On your sacred places,
On your female Ariki.
Your sacredness is undone.
By the time this karakia came to an end, all the Fairies were seated on the ground. Their chief then stood up, and sung thus:—
Alas! for this day
Which now oppresses me.
I stretched out my hand
To the mate of Tirini.
Followed were my footsteps,
And charmed was returning love,
[pg 50] At Pirongia there.
This the dreaded tribe is undone,
And Whanawhana[34]
And I Rangi-pouri:[34]
I carried off the woman,
I the first aggressor:
I went to enter the house of Ruarangi,
To stretch out my hand,
To touch the Maori skin.
The boundary is oven-marked,
To prevent its being moved aside,
To guard the wife in safety.
He thought the power of his karakia would appear; but it could not conquer the devices of the Maori tohunga; for how could it prevail against the cooked food, and the oven-stoves, and the kokowai, and the many other devices of the tohunga. Hence it was seen that the power of karakia was not possessed by the Fairies. The only power given to them was to smother men.
[pg 51]