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[The writiir of the following letter, having at a late meeting of the S.P.Q. made a statement on the interesting 8ul)joct to which it refers, was aslccd to put the substance of it in writing: and we have much pleasure in complying with a request which has been made to us for its insertion.] Rbyerexd and dear Sir, — I regret very muc!. that I have been prevented from forwarding sooner to you the information you desired, and thought miglit prove useful to you in promoting " the establishment of a Mission on Vancouver's Island, whose operations should ultimately extend to the other British possessions." I hope, however, the information which this letter may convey will prove available on another occasion in aiding you to carry out this bene- volent design. In the arrangement of the remarks which I am about to make, I shall first sAte what I have learned by my own observation, and from the testimony of others well acquainted with and long resident in these territories, relative to their natural productions and local advantages, which I beHeve to be so great as must inevitably and shortly attract thither a great influx of trade and colonization, and (if these be not accompanied with and leavened by Christian know- ledge and principle) will prove destructive to the native Indian population, as they have done to their brethren on the east side of the Rocky Mountains and to the tribes of New Holland. Secondly, I shall state some particulard of the present religious, moral, and social condition of these people, and the prospect which it presents as a field for carrying on «ucces8ful missionary efforts; and, lastly, I shall venture to make a few suggestions ns to the mode in which these may be, in my opinion, most efficiently directed. The island of Vancouver lies between 48° and 49° of north latitude and 123° and 129° of vest longitude; its length may be estimated at 290 miles, and its average breadth at 55. This must be considered as only an approximation to its actual extent, as no complete and accurate survey has been made, either of it or of the other possessions of the Crown on these coasts. Of these it is the largest and by far the most important to England, because of its agricultural and mineral wealth, of its proximity to China and the East, and its consequent advantages as an emporium for trade, of its position at the ter- mination of the United States boundary line, and of the projected railway across the continent of America . — a project which, however remote its execution may appear to some, American enterprise, by the aid of borrowed British capital, will eventually and quickly accom- plish through their own territories, should England continue to be insensible to the superior facilities afforded by hers for such an under- taking, and to the incalculable advantages which would result there* from to herself and to her North American colonies. no Vancouver anil Queen Charlotte's Island. In this island is found the only safo liarbonr lictwccn llic 40" of ii'iitli latitude and Saa Francisco ; and there liave lately been dis- euveied most extensive fields df coal, not inferior in quality to tlic best Newcastle, and these are now partially worked by tlie Ilud- i^on's 13ay Company by Indian labour, and sold at a large profit in California ; and doubtless, if the enterprise be carried on vigcrously from this source, the coast of the Pacific and all the steamers which trade on that ocean will ultimately be supplied, since the distance of transit is so much shorter, and the expense of carriage will be so much less than from England, Granite, limestone, and slate of the finest description, as well as lead and copper of the purest quality, are found. Not less bountifully has tliis beautiful island been endowed with agricultural wealth ; it now produces, with a more grateful return, all the farm products of Great Britain, and as the climate is as genial as some parts of France in which the vine thrives, there is reason to expect that it would flourish here, and likewise many fruits and vegetables which have not yet been introduced. A great portion of the land in tlie southern part of the island consists of extensive prairie plains, covered with the most luxuriant gras^and beautiful wild flowers, and dotted with oak, cedar, fir and mai)Ie trees of tiie finest sort, reminding one of our English parks ; it is neither over- grown with brushwood, nor so tliickly interspersed with large trees as to prevent tlie immediate upturning of tlie soil by tlie plough. This description of ground, I have been informed, pervades the island pretty generally, and great portions of the mainland. The view from Cedar Mount, at the back of Fort Victoria, is one of the most com- manding a;id beautiful that can be found anywhere, not yielding, as I think, in these resjiects to the far-famed harbour of Rio Janeiro. The impression made on my mind and that of my companions, when, on a beautiful day in summer we for the first time ascended the summit of this mountain, can never be forgotten by us as long as memory lasts. To seaward we beheld the Cascade Mountains, with their summits covered with perpetual snow, and glistening in the sun, rising to an average height of 7,000 feet, and washed at their base by the peaceful wattu's of the straits of San Juan de Fucm ; whilst to the right lay, in perfect calmness, the noble harbour of Esquimalt, embosomed in hills, and covered with timber to its water's edge, in which the IVietis lay at anchor, forming another beautiful feature in the scene ; at our feet clusters of the most verdantly wooded islands (through whose tall trees the smoke of the Indian fires, as they roasted their salmon, gracefully ascended) were scattered, and over the sur- rounding waters light and exquisitely made canoes glided. Turning our backs on this view, we saw an extcmsive tract of the finest meadow land, varied with avenues of the largest trees, such as could not be surpassed in beauty or size by any in our own country, and with two or three inland l.ikes, covered with water-fowl. One thing only seemed to be wanting to render the scene perfect; namely, the pre:-ence of neat Enj:lishliko coltagi'S, and a church with its spire, standing furlli aniid.-t naluie's loveliness, to testify that tlu' eternal ^, .. v._. Vancouver and Queen Churlolte's Inland. 411 ])OWoi' mid goodness of nature's God, which woru partially inanire.-'tcil by these his works, were fully revealed within its sacred walls; and this suggested the saddening reflection, that these regions have never yet heard '' the sound of the church-going bell," and that the native inhabitants of tlitin have not learned to worship, in spirit and in trutli, the Autiior and Giver of all these good gifts, and of that infinitely more valuable one, " life and immortality brought to light" by the Gosjxd of His Son. In the nortiiern extremity of the island, at Fort Rupert, the trees attain an immense size ; naval officers have declared tiint the spars made from tlicm are of the finest description ; they have been already tried in the Koyal Navy, and, I believe, so highly approved of, tiiat the supplying the dockyards from this source is under the con- sideration of the Admiralty. Fish of the greatest variety and best descri|)tion, and to an inexhaustible extent, abounds in the waters of these coasts, especially sturgeon and salmon ; the; curing and sale of this latter to the people of the Sandwich Islands is a rich source of profit; the whale, both bone and sperm, are also killed. The PrinceaS IJoyal I.>land and Queen Charlotte's Island are very little known, as they have scarcely ever been visited by any other than the Company's traders. Her Majesty's ship Thetis was the first vessel of war that ever visited the last-mentioned island: she arrived there in June 18.)2, to protect the newly-discovered gold veins from the rapacity of adventurers. I then saw pieces of tiiat metal pure, appa- rently cut or scooped out with a chisel from a larger mass, varying in weight from one ounce to twenty-two, bartered by the Indians with the Hudson's Bay Company's traders. When tested at San Francisco, it was found to be purer than Californian gold, and the quartz also more productive. There can be little doubt that if British capital be allowed free action, its outlay here will yield a large profit, and the island be much benefited thereby. Several of the agents of British mining and quartz-crushing companies at San Francisco expressed a desire to transfer the capital and machinery which they had been induced to bring there with them by delusive repre- sentations, to Queen Charlotte's Island. In having dwelt thus long on the natural resources of these regions, I feel that I may appear more intent on bringing them to your notice as regards these advantages, than on ejecting tht^t which is my more immediate object, tiie establishment of a Mission to endea- vour to rescue the natives from their state of heathenism and barbarism, by difiusing among them the knowledge of Him who came to be ''the Light" of the world, which is the sweet and most fruitful source from whence all the blessings of civilization and the development by nnui of all natural qualities How. But I have entered thus minutely into these points because I feel convinced that com- merce and civilization are, when carried on under Christian principle, its two most powerful temporal auxiliaries, as well as beneficial results, ami that commerce alone must soon develop, and is already develop, ing the resources of these countries. There is already a rapidly IGobHK 1 412 Vancouver and Queen Charlotte's Island. increasing trade with San Francisco, the tide of emigration from the United States has already overrun its proper limits, and is urgent to pass beyond them ; unprincipled adventurers from the gold diggings of California, and other parts of the world, allured by their riches, are swarming to these coasts, whose only claim to be called "pioneers of civilization" is, that they introduce all its low vices amongst the natives, and clear tliem oflF the surface of the land by the bowie knife, the revolver, and the " fire water." It is to counteract thesa evil agencies, already in active operation, and which I have endeavoured to show m-jst increase, that I invoke the aid of this Society. The amount of the British Canadian and half-breed population at Vancouver's Island, may, including the miners lately sent out to work the coal mines, amount to 500, dependents, for the most part, of the Hudson's Bay Company ; in tlie other forts along the Sound, there may be 100 more souls. The Rev. J. Staines lias resided as chaplain at Fort Victoria, receiving 100^. per annum from the Company as such, besides the income granted to him in remuneration for the instruction of the children of their chief factors; and in the early part of 1853, a teacher for a school for the poorer classes was sent out. This will, perhaps, be considered hardly sufficient provision for the religious care and instruction of the white population, con- sidering how widely it is scattered, but there are besides on the islands and mainhmd somewhere about eighty tliousand native Indians. The Jesuits, with that indefatigable zeal which characterises them, have had missionaries in these countries for some years past ; they first arrived at Fort Vancouver, in the river Columbia, in 1838, and found American Methodist and Presbyterian missionaries established there ; from thence they visited different tribes in the interior and on tlie coast; and in 1852, a Bishop, a Canadian and British subject, with a staff of Belgian priests, arrived at Fort Victoria, and was tlien in treaty for the purchase of some ground near it, for the purpose of building a cathedral, &c. The success of this mission, however nume- rically great it may be reported to be, is virtually nominal ; for I have been informed by persons whose testimony, if at all partial, may be more justly suspected of inclining to its favour than otherwise, that the Indians first cume to the Jesuits in crowds, attracted by the novelty of the ceremonial, so calculated to catch the fancies of savages and infants, the ringing of bells, and possibly by the additional in- ducement of some trifling presents ; but, that as 3oon as the novelty wore off, or the presents were discontinued, they withdrew, retaining no more valuable proof of conversion, than the paltry copper medal which was given them, to sling round their necks as a token of their having been baptized. I am convinced their profession of Christi- anity is thus merely nominal, because, in my intercourse with them, I never conversed with, or hetird of one who had the most general knowledge of its doctrines, or any idea whatever of revealed religion. This is substantially admitted by one of the Jesuits themselves, who, when describing the hundreds whom, without having previously pre- pared or even seen them, he baptized on one day, on the occasion of yancoHver and Queen Charlotte'^s Island. 413 his first visit to Vancouver's Island, thus writes in a letter of the 15th February, 1844, to his superior. •• Vous voyez Monsieur par cette relation, que les suuvage? de Bale de Duget, montrent assez de zele pour la religion. Cependant ils ne comprennent guere I'etendue de ce mot ; s'il ne s'ngissait que de savoir quelques pri^res et de chanter des cantiques pour ctre Chretien, il n'y en aurait pas un qui ne voulut de le devenir: mais il est un point cupital qui les retient — c'est la reforme de moeurs. Aussitot que Ton touche cette corde, leur ardeur se change en indifference." It is clear then, that the field for protestant missionary effort, bringing wi.u it the change from barbarism to civilization, with all its comforts, as the result of the reception of those Scriptures which are " able to make wise unto salvation," is unoccupied to all intents and purposes. The fact that these people are not idolaters, is a great encourage- ment to undertake missionary labours amongst them : they believe in two invisible spirits, the one benevolent, the other malevolent ; the latter they reverence, or, more properly speaking, fear, more than the former ; they do not, however, offer sacrifices to either of them, and they are so little influenced by the belief in their existence, that they can scarcely be said tu have any religion. Corresponding to these two deities, they fable that there are two places to which departed spirits go, one of rewards, the other of punishments ; the excelk'ncea of the former consist in the enjoyment of the pleasures of the chase, as the pains of the latter do in a deprivation of them. The similarity of these viewc with those of the Indians of Canada and the United States, clearly indicate their common origin. Their belief in the immortality of the soul may be inferred from the fact, that to the roots of the trees, in the topmost branches of which they place their dead, incased in coffins, the lower ones being cut off in order to pre- vent desecration, they fasten canoes, with the hunting and fishing gear of the deceased, so that, should they at any time desire food, they may have the means to provide themselves with it. The " medicine man," who unites the character of juggler with that of qunck, is one of the most important of the tribe ; he is chosen annually with great ceremony and much howling. At certain seasons he retires into the woods for several days, and then 'ssucs forth under tiie influence of a simulated frenzy, biting whomsoever he meet?, and the persons thus bitten consider themselves highly favoured ; but should any one be so unfortunate as to see him during hi3 seclusion, he, the spectator, is inevitably put to death, or to avoid this fate generally commits suicide. Should any of his patients die under the treatment of the medicine-man, his life is in danger, as death is sup- £i08ed to result, not so much from want of skill or efficacy in his charms, as from the absence of a wish to cure ; for this cause, I have been told, medical men are deterred from giving the sick natives the benefit of their attendance. Wars are of frequent occurrence, generally arising from the desire of enslaving captives. One occurred when I was at Queen Charlotte's Island, the cause of which I did not ascertain. It was a most striking 111. I'aiicotinr and Queen ('/lar/olfc's Island . picture til see tlio old womon, witli their frrcy liniiM flowinpj down their Imcks, tlieir shrivelled iirm.s moving witli tiio most violent jrestiins, h)udly harnn<^ning the men of the tribes, who li.sti ned with tiie great- est respect and attention, and urging them to Imttle. It is a rcmark- nblc fact, that among some of tlie northern tribes the females have greater influence and power than the men. Tiiey are po-sessod of numerous slaves ; of their surpassing ernelf y to whom, I n gret to add, I have heard the most harrowing accounts. On the death of a chief, or any important occasion, several of these slaves are kilUd, not .is n sacrifice, but from wanton and capricious cnu-lty ; and when a war has arisen from the wilful or accidental deatli of one member of ii tribe by an individual of another tribe, it is concluded genendly by the execution of a slave, whoso blood, together with some gifts to the friends of the deceased, make atonement for his death. There is reason to believe that, nlthougli not habitually given to cannibalism, yet that they occasionally indulge this propensity; whether urged to it by hunger, or resorting to it as an usage of war, is doubtful. Of this there is no (piestion, that they are "kunophngists," if not. '• antliropoi)hagi.>-ts ;" ' for at certain feasts they tie a dog to a stake, dance round, and cat him alive, shouting loudly at the same time. They are, moreover, addicted to the other vice:? usual among savages, — idleness, deceit, theft, fdth, polygamy, and great improvidence; yet even in these respects they are superior to mo.st other uncivilized nations, and manifest an encouraging readiness to lay them aside when pre|)erly instructed. IMaiiy of the tribes, too, display a marked sui)eriority in their moral and social habits, as w(ll as in their physical appearance over others; and all, when kindly treated, are said to be faithful and docile, exhibiting con.^ideialde ingenuity and powers of imitation. The Indiiins of IJiieen Clmrlotte's Islaml are, physically and mentally regarded, as fine a race of men as can be met with ;. their complexion is as fair as tliat of the P^iglish, their address most prepossessing and bold, free from that timidity or em- barrassment which seem to imply a sense of inferiority. ^Vhen they came on board the Tlieth, they made inepiiries to find out the use of everything which they saw: some helped the men to haul on the ropes, others listened to the band with evident signs of intense admi- ration ; others offered for sale flute, made out of stone or of slate, and pipes of the same materials with most curiou.s devices carved on them, displaying a degree of skill truly astonishing, when one con- siders the rude implements, a rusty nail or broken bhuh' of a pen- knife, with which they were wrought out. One of our lieutenants showed to a native a daguerreotype likeness of his father, wliich the latter immediately undertook to copy on ivory : for this purpo.?e a whale's-tooth was given to him, with which he returned in a few days, having carved out of it a bust, which, from its re.e