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Chapter XIX. Heta Wins His Wife Aramita.

All was now animation, cooking, laughing, playing, and talking. The evening meal having been eaten, and the sun set, all the people gathered together in the different houses of the settlement, and talked over the matters of the tribe.

Suddenly a voice was heard calling for attention, and every ear listened while Tupu said, “I do not wish any one to speak when I have done. I did not allow the bodies of our relatives to be eaten for the death of our children, because we may need all the power of our tribes, and I do not wish that our family quarrels should give power to our enemies. I took the land and am satisfied. Man lives by the fruits of the earth; his flesh is made of the fruits of the earth. I did not take the flesh of man and eat it for revenge, but took the earth which makes his flesh; I have, therefore, taken the flesh of man for the death of our children. You can cultivate the land I have taken, and when you eat the crops from it, eat them with sharp teeth, and by that act you can revenge your great rage.”

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Some one else was heard to cough, and again the people listened. Takaho called aloud the names of Namu and his wife, and waited for answer; again he spoke, “O my child, Namu, and you, my child, his wife, you have killed me; you did not come and look on the bodies of your brother and sister! What have I done that you should treat me so in my old age? Am I to lose two by death, and the other two through contempt? What is my sin? Truly, my dream and the omens are fulfilled in your act! In my youth I lost an eye by the blow of an enemy, and my head was broken, still I live; but now you have killed the eye of my heart, and broken the skull of my best image. I see nothing now! My god is dead, and I shall soon follow the setting sun!”

Another voice was heard to say, “Do not let our father think evil of Namu and his wife. While I was wrestling, just before the dead were taken to Tuakai, I saw Namu go in the direction of our inland settlement. Let a messenger be sent this night to see if he is there.”

“I will go,” said Kai; “I am strong, and not afraid to go in the dark, though the dead are so near. I am of another people; and if a spirit does kill me on the road, I am only a slave. I am gone.”

Again were the houses filled with laughter, joking, and sports. In one house were Aramita and Heta sitting with Moe, who had been left in their charge by Kai. There were also a number of girls who were playing with a poi or ball, which they threw round and round by a string. This game consisted in repeating page 278 a set of words, and throwing the ball round and round, catching the end of the string with one hand when let go by the other, and not allow it to fall to the ground or lose its rotatory motion.

Moe, who had been looking at them for some time, looked up, and heard Aramita whisper to Heta, “You must tell the people.”

“No,” answered Heta, “you must, for you are the child of this tribe, and you can speak to your people with more effect.”

Moe said, “Yes, those girls do not play the poi in such a good way as the old people; you teach them, Ara.”

Aramita rose, and saying to the girls, “Listen to me,” she walked out of the house and said: “Listen, O people! every one of you; I shall speak to the whole world. Of whom am I afraid, that I should not let my voice be heard? Hearken, O people! and you, our father, O Takaho! I was at the battle in which your two children died, and I then spoke to the other part of our people at that place. But no one was bold enough to say that I might have that which I have loved since my girlhood. I am not like some men who have great teeth, and who, when they say a number of words, bite off that part of them in which a promise or a threat is given and swallow it, and then forget that they taught any one to rely on their word, O father! I did say that I would be my own master. You are a big man, and are as strong as you are tall, yet you were young once, and had your love. You page 279 know that the heart and the eye are one; the eye looks, and the heart lives on the beauty seen. You have felt the pleasure I have had in looking at the one your eyes feed on. I am his wife, and have been so ever since we came here. I made a promise, and have kept it. I said that I would please myself, and I have done so. If there is any evil to come because of my act, I will stand and die. I will not shrink from any evil that my rejected ones may bring upon me. You, O people! can act as you like; mine he is now, and mine he shall be for ever. I know that he has been looked on by some, and words have been spoken to him by them; but my bird did not sing to them, he sings only to me. If you like to join against me, my rank and pride shall keep me from your sneers. Of two deaths I have chosen the least bitter; I feel shame in telling you that I have not been given by you all to him, but that I stole him, and did not tell you until I had committed the theft. This is an evil. But if I had found that I was not to call him mine, I should have hung myself; and after my death some one else would have called him hers; this would have been a double death. I can die now that he is mine. I do not want my ears filled with the noise of your talk; if you act, do so soon, but do not talk. I am now going to sit by him. My words are ended.”

There was a great deal of hurrying to and fro of the young men into the different houses, and whispering among the young women, and all was again quiet. At midnight, when the old people slept, the young men page 280 and a number of young women quietly left their different places, and met where Namu was last seen sitting talking with Kai; they decided to go to Taheke, to which they at once proceeded, jealousy and disappointment keeping out fear which otherwise their dread of the dead would have inspired.

The day dawned; and the first glimmer of light awoke the korimako,¹ tui,² and toutowai,³ whose notes filled every valley round the settlement with echoes of their voices. Takaho issued from his hut, and went from house to house, standing about ten paces from the front doorway of each. He inquired if Namu and his wife were within; but neither Namu nor his wife could be found; he returned to his solitary hut and wept.

The morning meal being cooked, a slave carried a basket of food to the old priest, and sat waiting for his master to answer his question, “Shall I feed you?”

The old man regarded him not, but sat in a crouching posture, with his chin on his knees, weeping and singing in a low tone an ancient lament. Again and again the slave offered to feed him, but the old man's heart was lost in sorrow, and he moved not, nor spoke, nor opened his eyes. The slave took the food away, and threw it on to the taikawa⁴ for fear of evil. The food having been cooked for the priest it would cause the death of any one else who ate it. The slave lost his own meal through not being back in time. page 281 Suddenly there was a sound of trampling, a rush of many people, then a yell, and the people of the settlement were saluted with a war-dance. At the head of this party was Hani, who, spear in hand, danced with a fury that indicated a heart roused to fury with rage and jealousy.

This party consisted of the young men and women who had left the settlement during the night; all were clothed with a maro of leaves tied round the waist.

Hearing the noise, the inhabitants of the settlement rushed out to see the cause of it, and they soon collected in a body, and sat down silently opposite Hani's party, who during their dance turned round and round, making faces at those who had come out to look at them. Heta and Aramita kept out of the sight.

A young woman of Hani's party rose, and danced opposite the people, waving a piece of mat which she held in her right hand, putting her tongue out at them, rolling her eyes, and distorting her body into every possible shape; then turning to her own party she did the same to them, and when tired she sat down with her party.

Another young woman rose, and, after making faces and putting her tongue out at the people, said: “You may try to hide her, but she shall not be protected. Send her out, and let me beat her, that she may know she ought not to take a husband until we had all spoken on the matter.”

Another young woman rose and hissed at the people; then, while dancing up and down, said in such a frantic page 282 voice that she seemed mad, “Why did I only think to myself? Why did I not ask you, O fathers! to give him to me? I am dead, my rage will kill me! Come out, O you young thief! and I will try if I am not stronger than you are.”

An old woman rose from among the people, and paced up and down between the two groups; then she suddenly jumped up and screamed as from a severe attack of pain; then, after pacing up and down quietly and putting out her tongue at Hani's party, she said: “Do you see that?” Then grinning at them, to show a perfect set of beautifully white teeth, she asked, “Do you see those? You are young; I am old. You are girls; I am a woman. You are trees that have not yet blossomed; my fruit is full ripe. I have seen the summers and winters of these years; you have only seen the middle of this day. Did you ever know the pigeon-hawk refuse to take a bird if it was in want? Many of you would say yes if I were to offer you my son. What evil has my daughter Ara done to you? She told you at Otu she would die or have him. I admire a girl who does not tell a lie. She will not come out to you. You can get some of the other young men of the tribe. Some of your mothers did the same, and gave a feast afterwards. What evil is there in taking him after saying that she would do so? All the world knew that she would. Where is the theft then? And if you want a feast we can have one.”

“No,” answered a young man of Hani's party, as he jumped up; “let some one stand before me and see if page 283 I can be killed. Let me kill him; why should he be allowed to have a wife, and prevent others from first asking her if she does not love some other one better. If our ancestors have followed the custom of holding a council when young men may choose their wives and young women their husbands, why should he be allowed to do as he as done? Send him out, and let me spear him.” He danced up and down, putting out his tongue in the direction of the house in which Heta and Ara were sitting.

A young man from among the people jumped up and said, as he poised his spear, “You can take revenge for Heta on me.” The two young men looked at each other for a moment or two, they then stepped up to within three paces of each other, looking straight into each other's eyes, and holding their spears in an attitude of attack. Heta's champion, by a movement, offered a chance for a pierce, of which his antagonist took instant advantage, but the blow was warded off, and in return he received a blow on the right side. The people at once told the receiver of the blow to sit down.

Two other young men, one from each party, jumped up and faced each other, and warded each other's blows for some time, until one of them slipped, and was touched by his opponent's spear; they also sat down.

While this was taking place, Heta said to Ara, “I shall have to face one of them; but do not fear, I shall not be killed.” Ara answered, “If they kill you, I will page 284 die with you; you know the custom, and if some one of my relatives meets you, if he can he will kill you, and no one will help you; we have broken the custom. Hani, who is a distant relative of mine, proposed to me, and I again and again refused him. I can hear from the tone of his voice that he will try with his utmost power to run his spear through you. His is a double revenge; I refused him, and you obtained me.”

Hani was heard to say, “I am here, O people! I come to take revenge for the manner in which my sister has been insulted before all our tribe. What a great chief must that boy have thought himself to act as he has done. Come, my child, and let me kill you. My heart will not sleep unless I have revenge.”

Heta now came out of the house, followed by Ara, and was greeted by a loud yell of rage from Hani's party. The people of the settlement called Ara to come and sit down with them, which she did quite unconcernedly, looking as if she did not know any one of those who were staring at her. Heta, who had tied round his waist a small finely-plaited mat that Ara had given him, immediately stepped up to Hani, and said, “My spear is in my hand. I am not a dog to bark and run away. I have broken a custom of our fathers, and you can kill me.”

Hani lifted his spear as if to strike, but Heta stood perfectly still; his fine form never appeared to such advantage, while his deep black eyes flashed and indicated the mind of one who would rather die than page 285 submit to live in dread of any man. The young women remarked to each other, “Heta is so beautiful! that ugly Hani cannot hurt him. Hani could not stand long before Heta, if it were not that he is bound not to kill Hani, but only to wound him, while Hani may kill Heta if he can.”

Hani had forced Heta to give way by making several thrusts at him, which the latter had not attempted to return, for he stood on the defensive. Hani, enraged from want of success, now made a desperate dart to pierce Heta through the chest, who, warding the thrust, in return put his spear through the thick part of Hanis's arm, at the same time saying, “You can sit down and pull it out.”

Hani turned round and walked towards his party, the spear sticking out on both sides of his arm; when he reached them, he pulled out the spear, and said to them, “He is brave, and can keep her.”

Ara now rose and said, “My bird cannot only sing to me, but can cause you to sing, and make wry faces for the amusement of children. Had I not told you before that I would have him, I would have given you some garments now, but you did know; and as Heta is still alive, you may sing, dance, laugh, or cry; and that is the end of our talk.”

“No,” cried out a young woman of Hani's party. “I was one of those who went away last night at mid-night. I did not know of your words, O Ara! which you spoke to the people at Otu, or I would not have been one of a party of seagulls to fly from our nest page 286 in the dark, expecting upon our return to the nest at daydawn that I should obtain something good if I made a great noise.” Turning to her own party, she said, “You are a coward, O Hani! you are a male, but your fingers are as stupid as an old woman. Your tongue can talk of spears and fighting, but your arms are as ignorant of their use, or of the art of war, as the fins of a fish. Why was I told that we should be able to make Heta and Ara pay us for their misdeed of living together before the people knew and agreed to their wish? Why were the words of Ara kept from me when you persuaded me to go with you last night? Ara has not done wrong; but you have done wrong, and I must be paid for the untruth you have acted.”

Hani was sitting with his head bowed to the ground, and covered with a fine new mat, which he had kept wrapped up until now. He had intended to have made a great speech when robed in it, after having nearly killed Heta; but his defeat forced him to make a different use of the mat, for he sat wrapped in it, nursing his arm.

The last speaker stepped furiously up to him, snatched the mat from him, and put it on herself, and said, “I am no coward, O Heta! although I wear a mat once owned by a coward. You are a brave man, and your wife is as brave as you are. You did right, you took the one you loved; I will do the same. I never proposed to you; but your body looked like the body of a chief when that coward was trying to kill you. page 287 There” (throwing the mat to him), “take that as a gift on account of your brave heart. A coward has no right to wear such a mat.” She sat down.

All the women of Hani's party called out, “Right, right, O Heta! Keep the mat as from all of us; for you are brave. We now know the truth, and you did right to take Ara, and she is right to have you. You are both of you brave.”

Hani rose, and, without speaking, walked towards the door of a hut, into which he entered.

One young woman said aloud to another, “Who can love a man who has two mouths in his arm?”

Another one answered, “If any woman would listen to him now, he could make love to her with threefold power.”

“No,” answered another; “he has but one mouth and that is dumb. But he has four eyes; he can see a little out of two. The other two have no pupils, and are quite blind. He has gone in the dark to have a chat with the god of revenge, Rango (the eavesdropper).”