The Tomahawk

 “No! It’s no good, and I’m not paying for it!”        In old New Zealand, before the Treaty, there were many people from Britain and Europe who washed up on these shores for one reason or another. One of them was a rather pedestrian oil-painter from Poland who went around the country painting commissioned portraits and landscapes to make ends meet.        While up in the far north he persuaded a very dignified and elderly Maori chief to have his portrait painted. As the artist was obviously in straightened circumstances, the chief was able to bargain the fee down to five guineas.         The chief sat still for several days in the local pub while the artist worked busily with brushes and paint. At last the work was finished and the chief was invited to look upon his likeness. He picked up the canvas and examined it for some time with a critical eye before pronouncing “No! It’s no good, and I’m not paying for it!”         The painter was mortified. “Why?” he demanded, “What