Disc Throwing, pua.

The game of pua is played with a wooden disc made of iron-wood, toa. It was played in Aitutaki and Atiu, and other islands of the Lower Group, with the exception of Mangaia. In Mangaia there was a local game called tupe. The object of the pua game was to throw it as far as possible.

The disc, pua. The average disc was 5½ inches in diameter. The thickness at the centre was l¾ inches, and at the edge, 1 inch. It was smoothed and polished and fairly heavy. The weight was about 1½ pounds.

Throwing strip. The disc was thrown with a strip of hau bark, about half an inch wide and 7 or 8 feet long. One end was placed on the periphery of the disc and the strip was wound carefully and closely round the circumference for several turns. The free end was then twisted round the right forefinger and the disc grasped between the forefinger and thumb, with the palm upwards.

The throw. The thrower took quite a long run, and as he approached the mark, drew back the right arm. As he reached the mark, the right arm was thrown forward, underhand, with all the force the player was capable of. The bark strip, being fixed to the forefinger, was given an upward jerk as the disc left the hand. The rapid unwinding of the bark strip gave the disc a forward top spin. The straight direction had to be maintained. The disc struck the ground some distance ahead of the mark and bounded on with extraordinary velocity. It simply whizzed through the air, making a humming sound in the first part of its course. If it ran off the course and struck any object, it would leap high in the air, sufficient to carry it over the top of adjoining houses.

The score. The object was distance, but as in the case of the teka, this depends largely on good direction being maintained. The course is usually a stretch of road, and any departure from its narrow width means running into trees and other obstacles. In a game all the players have a throw, and the furthest throw counts a point. The side that reaches ten wins. The score is kept by prefixing tu to the ordinary numerals:

1.	Tutahi.
2.	Turua.
3.	Tutoru, etc., up to
10.	Tungahuru.

Competitions. Competitions were formerly held between the various villages, as many as 40 men a side taking part. In the competition arranged to demonstrate the game for the purposes of this work, the seven villages were represented by teams of five each. There were thus 35 men lined up, and each man had his own disc.

The course and officials. The course was along the same stretch of read used in the teka competition. Owing to loose sand and the narrowness of the road, it had its drawbacks. A starting line was drawn across the road and marksmen appointed to see that it was not crossed during the delivery of the pua. Crossing the line before the pua touched the ground disqualified the throw.

Half way along the course, two men were stationed to keep the course clear. They had to keep their wits about them to keep clear themselves of the whizzing discs. At the far end were two judges to decide on close throws and keep the score. Two markers marked the longest throw with cocoanut leaflet midribs. Some distance in front of the judges was a crier, who signalled for the next throw. This was to protect the judges and the markers, when extra time was required in registering a good throw or deciding on the better of two.

The game. The officials decided the order of the villages. On commencing all the members of one team followed on, and their farthest throw was registered. The excitement of supporters grew as the game proceeded. When a team was leading with the longest throw, its supporters and the team itself watched the subsequent throws with audible excitement. As a good disc bounded down the course the cry was raised, "Haere ki uta," or "Haere ki tai"; "Go inland," or "Go coastward." It mattered not which, so long as the dangerous disc quitted the course. When the 35 throws had been made, the longest throw registered a point for his village. If two or more members of one team threw further than any of the others, their team counted the two or more points. With seven teams, it was rarely that a team scored more than two points on one head. When all had thrown, the players and the officials changed over. So the game went on until one team had scored ten.

If there were some more players of the same side to follow, the crier would call, "Homai hoki tetahi aho ei kauhono"; "Send down another scoring disc to add to the other."

Figure 294.
Spectators during pua competition.

The longest throw during the competition between the seven villages was 253 yards. Fig. 294 shows the people on the sides of the course during the competition.

Remarks. The pua was the best Polynesian game the author has seen. It requires strength, skill, and accuracy. The manner in which the discs bound along the course has to be seen to be believed. Every now and again a disc left the course and spectators scurried behind trees and houses to escape. At the end of a good throw, the disc rolls slowly along on its edge, as if seeking the furthest mark, whilst crier and markers dash along in its wake yelling at the crowd to get out of its way and not spoil a good throw. On one occasion a buggy full of women, who thought they were well in the rear, stopped a good throw. Amidst shouts and laughter the buggy was seized and run back another 20 yards, to the great disgust of the occupiers of this temporary grandstand.

The game is one that should be encouraged by annual competition amongst the villages.

In Percy Smith's ¹ brief account of the game, as described to him by Lieut.-Colonel Gudgeon, for the neighbouring island of Mauke, he states that the object was to reach a certain point in the fewest number of throws. If this is correct, it seems a curious variant of the game as played in Aitutaki.