Here the ceremony terminated, and the assembly, as if inspired, jumped up, and rushed to the fight, while the priest repeated the following karakia, standing on some elevated spot, from which he could command a view of the battle: “The god of strength, let him be present; Let not your breath fail you.” After the battle was over the priest called those who survived, and enquired of each if he had killed anyone, or taken any prisoners. All who had been in battle before delivered up their weapons to him, who deposited them in the house where they were kept. Those who had fought for the first time were called and asked if they had killed anyone. If the person addressed replied in the affirmative, the priest demanded his _mere_--stone battle-axe--and broke it into pieces. This was the invariable custom with young warriors when they had imbued their hands in the blood of their enemies. The priest having afterwards assembled them together, used the following words, which were called the _Haha_: “This is the wind, the wind is feeding; The wind descends, The wind is prosperous, The many sacred things of Tu. The wind descends, The wind is prosperous, The living wind of Tu.” The natives regard the wind as an indication of the presence of their god, if not the god himself. After this ceremony the youths were considered as men, though they were narrowly watched for some time by the priest, and they were liable to be put to death if they broke any of the sacred rules of the tapu. They could not carry a load, cut their own hair, or plait a woman’s. If one of them was discovered by the priest doing any of these things, he assumed his authority, and pronounced the sentence of death by saying “Go away, go away.” This so affected the person to whom it was addressed, that it was quite sufficient to kill him. There was another ceremony performed after fighting, which was supposed to confer a benefit on all who had been engaged in the battle, and were successful in killing or making slaves. It was called _he pureinga_, which means a taking off of that sacredness which had been put upon them before the fight, or, in other words, the taking off the tapu: “There is the wind; The wind rests; The wind is feeding; The wind which gathers-- O wind subside! O living wind! O sacred wind of Tu! Loose the tapu, The god of strength; Let the ancient gods dismiss the tapu, O ... o ... o ... the tapu is taken away!” When they went to war, they were separated from their wives, and did not again approach them until peace was proclaimed. Hence, during a period of long-continued warfare, they remarked that their wives were widows.