Page:Fairytales•Tregear•1891.pdf/14

 and found that the beautiful white bird was exhausted and nearly overcome. Rata rushed forward and attacked the serpent with his axe. With a few mighty blows the hero succeeded in destroying the snake and rescuing the heron from death. It flew to a branch of a neighbouring tree and rested all day, watching Rata at his work as a third time he hewed away at his trees and a third time felled them. As soon as Rata had gone away the heron flew hither and thither among all the feathered creatures of the ocean and forest, collecting them to help in the work of assisting to make the canoes. They pecked away with thousands of beaks till the holds were hollowed out, and then came the more difficult task of joining the pieces together. Some of the sea-birds with their long bills bored holes through which the lashings were passed, and the land-birds with their strong claws hauled the ties fast and knotted them surely. They had not finished till near dawn, and they then resolved to bear the canoes to the sea near Rata’s dwelling, so they came in a great company, and each held on with its beak to some part of the canoe, then the cloud of strong wings was spread above, beating the air,