Page:Fairytales•Tregear•1891.pdf/71

 “Myself.” He said “Who is ‘Myself?’” upon which she replied very sweetly and softly, “It is Hine Moa.” Tu said, “It cannot really be you.” Then Hine Moa rose from the water, beautiful as the wild white hawk and graceful as the shy white crane that is seen only once in a hundred years. Tu flung his garment over her; led her to his house, and she became his bride.

When the brothers of Tu heard of his great good fortune they refused to believe it, but he soon proved the truth of the report by producing Hine herself before them all, reminding his father of what he had previously told them and how he had been scoffed at. Poor Tiki, the bosom friend of Tu, felt very downcast when he found that he had lost his companion, and that the duets would be heard no more at night upon the lake, but Tu went to his father and said, “My friend has no wife; will you not allow my little sister Tupa to marry him and make him forget his loneliness? Let my friend have my sister.” His father consented, and Tupa was given to Tiki, who was no longer mournful.