Little pigs may be seen tottering about the houses, and the natives, especially the women, pet pigs exactly as European women pet dogs and cats. They carry them in their arms, fondle and pet them; and nothing is more common than to see a young girl unfold her mantle and discover a pig nestling under its folds. Such a girl, for example, as the one who is represented in the [illustration No. 2], on the preceding page, would be very likely indeed to have a pig in her arms under the shelter of her mantle.
The [figure] in question is the portrait of the daughter of a chief. Her name is Tienga, and she is the daughter of a very powerful and celebrated chief. Her costume is, like her character, an odd mixture of civilization and nature. Her mantle is the native flax mat, under which she may probably wear a muslin, or even silken, garment, articles of dress of which the young lady in question was, when her portrait was taken, exceedingly proud. On her head she wears a common straw hat, purchased from the trader at some five hundred per cent. or so above its value, and round it she has twisted a bunch of a species of clematis, which grows with great luxuriance in the forests.
It is a curious study to note the different characteristics of the human mind. An Oriental would turn with unspeakable disgust from the very touch of a pig, and is scarcely less fastidious concerning the dog. Yet the inhabitants of that wonderful group of islands which stretches from Asia to America have a wonderful affinity for both these animals, and especially for pigs, displaying, as we shall find on a future page, their affection in a manner that seems to our minds extremely ludicrous.
Pigs are now fast becoming acclimatized to the country, just like the mustang horses of America. When a tribe has suffered extinction, as too often happens in the sanguinary and ferocious wars in which the people engage, the pigs escape as well as they can; and those that evade the enemy have to shift for themselves, and soon resume all the habits of the wild swine from which they were originally descended. Those which now inhabit the country are easily to be distinguished from their immediate ancestors, having short heads and legs and round compact bodies.
The native name for the pig is “poaka,” a word which some have thought to be derived from the English word “pork.” Dr. Dieffenbach, however, differs from this theory, and thinks that the native word, although of European origin, is derived from a source common both to England and New Zealand. He thinks that the New Zealanders had some knowledge of the pig previous to its introduction by England, and that they derived their knowledge from Spanish voyagers. He is strengthened in this opinion by the fact that the name for dog, “perro,” is likewise Spanish.
Pigs and dogs are not the only pets, the natives being in the habit of catching the kaka parrot, which has already been mentioned, and keeping it tame about their houses. They make a very effective and picturesque perch for the bird, covering it with a sloping roof as a protection against the sun, and securing it to the perch by a string round its leg. Mr. Angas mentions that he has brought these birds to England, but that the climate did not agree with them, and they all died.
Many of the New Zealanders, especially the women, are dexterous ball-players, throwing four balls in various ways so as always to keep them in the air. Some few of them are so skilful that they surpass our best jugglers, playing with five balls at a time, and throwing them over the head, round the neck, and in various other ingenious modes of increasing the difficulty of the performance.
Most of their sports are accompanied with songs, which, indeed, seem to be suited to all phases of a New Zealander’s life. In paddling canoes, for example, the best songster takes his stand in the head of a vessel and begins a song, the chorus of which is taken up by the crew, who paddle in exact time to the melody.
Respecting the general character of these songs Dieffenbach writes as follows: “Some songs are lyric, and are sung to a low, plaintive, uniform, but not at all disagreeable tune.... E’ Waiata is a song of a joyful nature; E’ Haka one accompanied by gestures of mimicry; E’ Karakia is a prayer or an incantation used on certain occasions. In saying this prayer there is generally no modulation of the voice, but syllables are lengthened and shortened, and it produces the same effect as reading the Talmud in synagogues. Most of these songs live in the memory of all, but with numerous variations. Certain Karakia, or invocations, however, are less generally known, and a stranger obtains them with difficulty, as they are only handed down among the tohunga, or priests, from father to son.
“To adapt words to a certain tune, and thus to commemorate a passing event, is common in New Zealand, and has been the beginning of all national poetry. Many of these children of the moment have a long existence, and are transmitted through several generations; but their allusions become unintelligible, and foreign names, having undergone a thorough change, cannot be recognized.”