ch Maui had laid down.

Tuna-roa came towards her, and began to slide down the skids.

Maui sprang out from his hiding place and killed Tuna-roa with his axe,
and cut him in pieces.

The tail became the conger-eel. Parts of his body became fresh-water
eels. Some of the blood fell upon birds and always after marked them
with red spots. Some of the blood was thrown into certain trees, making
this wood always red. The muscles became vines and creepers.

From this time the children of Maui caught and ate the eels of both salt
and fresh water. Eel traps were made, and Maui taught the people the
proper chants or incantations to use when catching eels.

This legend of Maui and the long eel was found by White in a number of
forms among the different tribes of New Zealand, but does not seem to
have had currency in many other island groups.

In Turner's "Samoa" a legend is related which was probably derived from
the Maui stories and yet differs in its romantic results. The Samoans
say that among their ancient ones dwelt a woman named Sina. Sina among
the Polynesians is the same as Hina--the "h" is softened into "s". She
captured a small eel and kept it as a pet. It grew large and strong and
finally attacked and bit her. She fled, but the eel followed her
everywhere. Her father came to her assistance and raised high mountains
between the eel and herself. But the eel passed over the barrier and
pursued her. Her mother raised a new series of mountains. But again the
eel surmounted the difficulties and attempted to seize Sina. She broke
away from him and ran on and on. Finally she wearily passed through a
village. The people asked her to stay and eat with them, but she said
they could only help her by delivering her from the pursuing eel. The
inhabitants of that village were afraid of the eel and refused to fight
for her. So she ran on to another place. Here the chief offered her a
drink of water and promised to kill the eel for her. He prepared awa, a
stupefying drink, and put poison in it. When the eel came along the
chief asked him to drink. He took the awa and prepared to follow Sina.
When he came to the place where she was the pains of death had already
seized him. While dying he begged her to bury his head by her home. This
she did, and in time a plant new to the islands sprang up. It became a
tree, and finally produced a cocoanut, whose two eyes could continually
look into the face of Sina.

Tuna, in the legends of Fiji