The author of _Old New Zealand_ tells of an unlucky slave who unwittingly ate the remains of a chiefs dinner.

When the knowledge of this frightful crime was flashed upon him, he was seized with internal cramps and pains and, though a strong man, died in a few hours.

The weapons and personal effects of a chief were, of course, sacred even in the opinion of a thief, but _tapu_ went further.

Even the fire a chief had lit might not be used by commoners.

As for priests, after the performance of certain ceremonies they for a time had perforce to become too sacred to feed themselves with their hands.