Taiaroa ki te mea o te taura" (Taiaroa does not know how to tie a knot). Kopi then took the rope, tied a slip-knot, and adjusted the rope about his own neck before Taiaroa pulled upon the rope tight, until he was dead. Kohi was buried at Koputai. By 1844 Koputai was deserted. Arrival of the Europeans In 1844 the schooner Deborah under the command of Captain Thomas Wing was chartered by Frederick Tuckett of the New Zealand Company to assist him in choosing a site for the projected New Edinburgh settlement. After sailing for the South on 31 March 1844 Tuckett left the ship at Moeraki on 23 April and made his way south by land in order to gaining a better appreciation of the land. The Deborah continued south independently and anchored near Koputai in the bay now bearing its name, and where the hulk of the vessel remains. It wasn't until 26 April that Tuckett rendezvoused with the ship. Tuckett explored the harbour and its environs, which he how considered more suitable for the purposed settlement than any site he had yet seen. He departed at the end of April to explore the inland countryside, before returning to Koputai on 11 June. By this date there was established at Koputai a makeshift jetty, two whares (Māori-style houses) and some tents. Mr. and Mrs. Lethbridge were in residence, David Scott and several others. As a result of his investigations Tuckett selected an adjoining block of land (the Otago Block) as the site for the Scottish New Edinburgh settlement and nominated Koputai as its deep-water port. The Deborah departed on 23 June leaving behind Tuckett, who was living in a small three-bedroom cottage made of loose bricks that he had built on the beach. On 15 July 1844 William Wakefield of the New Zealand Company visited accompanied by John Jermyn Symonds (representing the government) and George Clark. The sale of the Otago Block from Māori to the Otago Association was concluded at Koputai on 31 July 1844. In December 1844 Tuckett left and returned to England, with William Davidson taking over his cottage and position as the New Zealand Company’s local representative. In that same month Alexander and Janet McKay arrived with plans to establish a public house, to service the needs of the proposed settlement. It eventually opened as the 'Surveyors' Arms' on what is now Beach Street