INSENSIBILITY OF A MAORI TO PAIN.
[To THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."] SIR,—Some years ago, when living in New Zealand, I wit- nessed the vanity of a New Zealand Maori young man. He was breaking-in horses for one of my friends who had a large run (tract of land) in the North Island. My friend had given this Maori a pair of boots, but they were too short for him. For some time he endeavoured to force them on, but this was impossible, so he seized a small tomahawk (hatchet) and cut off his large toe to the length of his other toes, and then
applied some juice of the flax-plant (Phormium tenax) to the cut, to stop the bleeding, and pulled on the boot, which was not removed until the toe healed. He put on the other boot alter a similar operation. I have known several instances which appear to prove that the Maories are less sensible to pain
than Europeans.—I am, Sir, &c., C. S. BRACEY.
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