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Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la m6thode. 1 2 3 32X 1 2 3 4 S 6 Kir I f \ fe- |)u!)Ufatio«!3 of tfje OTIjurc!) ilEiiSBionari) Societj) BOOKS, PAMPHLETS, &.c. The Churoh Missionary Atlas. New ami Enlarged Elition. TlioAth? contaiiis Tliirty-oiio SIa|H, nil prop iruil ccpro.-isly for tlio Woric, tho mijority buint? uewl drawn by Messrs. Stanford, and 150 pages of k'ttor-pross, gi vinj? tliu inr)!i^ rocoiit Ouoj^raphii; and Missionary inCorniation, with cjuipluto la licoi. CloDIi lijards, gilb and buvollcd, prit lO.J. Od. •(N.O. — Tho Atlas Volume will be sent, post free, to members of tho Society, on receipt of P.O.O. for 83. Uil.) The Lost Continent : its Re-discovery and Recovery ; or Africa ami the CMS. Hy BuWAiiu HUTUlliNsox, P.U.O.S., F.S.A., Lay Secretary, C.M.S. I'liee Is. Japan and the Japan Mission, liy Eitoexe Srouic, Editorial Secretary, C.M.S. 140 pages in coloured wrapper. Price Is. (Kl. The Story of the Che-Kiang Mission. By the llov. A. E. Moule, B.D. Second Edition, revised and enlarged. Illustrated, clocli, gilt, 3s. (id. The Story of the Fuh-Kien Mission. By Eugene Stock, Editorial Secre- tary, C. M.S*. With 31 Engravings and a Map. Cloth, gilt, 4s. (id. Day Spring in the Far West. Sketches of Mission Work in Nortli-West Ameiica. Uy M. E. J. 24 Illustrations and a Map. Cloth, giit, -Js. 6il. Sketches of African Scenery, from Zanzibar to the Victoria Nyanza : beiiif; a series of < oloure I Lithograph Engravings from Pencil and Water-colour Sketches, by tho late Mr. T. O'i^KiLL, oi the JSy.inza Mission of the C.M.S. With accompanying letter-press. Trice Is. A Plea for the Hill Tribes of India. A Short Account of tho Sant.ll'i, GOnds, Kols, iic, and of the C.M.S. Missions among them. With Map. Price (id. A Journey up the Niger in the Autumn of 1877. By the Rev. Henry Johnson, n >w Archdeacon of the Upi3er Ni^er. With Map. Price (id. Faith Nando : a True Story of Secundra. Glazed Wrapper, 16ino., 24 pages. Price 3d. (Twelve copies may be had for 2s.) The Mombasa Mission of the Church Missionary Society. C jntaining Letter.^ from Bishop ROYSrox, of .Mauritius ; Mr. J. II. Stuektkii, &.c. Price iid. The Church Missionary Text Book, containing a Text for every day in the year. Suitable for Missionary Baskets, &c. Price (Id. Church Missionary Tracts and Leaflets :— NcLO Scries of Church Missloiiiry Tracts. (\ 1.) The Church Missionary Society. 8 pp. 3(i. per do-zin. (A ?.) Tho Day of Intercession in the Mission field. 12 pp. 4(i. par dozan. (A3.) Independent Testlmmles concernin? .Mi3 THE NORTH PACIFIC MISSION UF THK TV Cburrlj Ultssionarn Sntietn. WITH A MAP. ^ I 5b" " If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there shall Thy hand lead me, and Thy right hand shall hold mo." — Ps. cxxxix. 9, 10. Shores of the utmost West, Ye that have waited long, Unvlsited, unblest, Break forth to swelling song. High raise the note that Jesus diei, Yet lives and reigns, the Crucified. 5(f ILontion : CHUECH MISSIONARY HOUSE, SALISBURY SQUARE. SEELEY, JACKSON, & HALLIDAY, 54, I LEET STREET. 1880. I: ■ /'■ wmmm e. -^^ ^^^^ N T E I lis* p+v.;q little book a^e substan- TBK thi.-d,fourth, and fifth ^''P'^" ""^ ^^^^ j, . Metlakahtk, or «.Uy a reprint of parts '>^ ^^^Z^^r V^^^^^^^' "^ Ten Years' Work among the T nnshea ^^^ ^^^ ^^^^^ ^^ the Church Missionary Soc.ey:nl86a^^^_^^^^ ^^^^ .^^ .^ ^ three-fourths of the whole .s "^^ ,ed at various times ..arate form, for the grater p^tas^app^^^^^ ^^^ ^^^^ in the Society's periodicals. U _, ^^^^^ ^i^n the Bev. J. J. Halcomhe's --^;" ^^ J^ «,, Metlakahtla ,,tion." which - -;:,:^:il^ation Xam indehted Mission known, l^ornincu ^.a to Admiral Prevost. E. b. u0i. ! 1 C N T E N T S. ftllAP. I. II. III. IV. V. VI. VII. VIII. IX. X. XI. XII. XIII. XIV. TiiK Field of Labour • ' * • • • • • I Tub Call, and the Man ... ••• ••• ••• , ., Beginning Work ••• ... ..I First-Fruits ... *'• ••• ••• ••« ,,^ ^ ^ ^ The New Settlement •"• ••• *•■ ,,, Metlakahtla— Spiritual Results **" ••• *•• „ Material Progress and Moral Influence „ Two Christmas-Seasons •»• ... ,,, Outlying Missions— Kincolith " ^ Queen Charlotte's Islands >. Fort Rupert ... ... ,., Lord Dufferin at Metlakahtla ••• '•• ■•« ,,, Admiral Prevost at Metlakahtla The Diocese of Caledonia PAGE 1 12 18 29 34 44 55 72 79 87 ^7 102 110 123 m EllBATA. On page 36, eighth line from top, for 1863 read 1862. »> tenth »» »i METLAKAHTLA AND THE NORTH PACIFIC MISSION. — i into these arts that employ numbers, and excite and interest all, during the winter months. This year I think there must have been eight or ten parties of them, but each party seldom has more than on^ pupil at once. In relating their proceedings I can give but a fainC conception of the system as a Avhole, but still a little will show the dense darkness that rests on this place. " I may mention that each party has some charactciistics peculiar to itself; but, in a more general sense, their divisions are but three, viz., those w ho eat human bodies, th^ dog eate rs, and those who h ave no custom ol:' ilic kind. Iliarly in me rirornmg the pupiia WUUlfl T)e"ouF on the beach, or on the rocks, in a state of nudity. Each had a place in front of his own tribe ; nor did intense cold interfere in the slightest degree. After the poor creature had crept about, jerking his head and screaming for some time, a party of men would rush out, and, after surrounding him, would commence singing. The dog-eating party occasionally carried a dead dog to their pupil, who forthwith commenced to tear it in the most dog-like manner. The party of attendants kept up a low growling noise^ or a whoop, which was seconded by a screech- ing noise made from an instrument which they believe to be the abode of a spirit. In a little time the naked youth would start up again, and proceed a few more yards in a crouching posture, with his arms pushed out behind him, and tossing his flowing black hair. All the while he is earnestly watched by the group about hiin, and when he pleases to sit down they again surround him and commence singing. This kind of thing goes on, with several different additions, for some time. Before the prodigy finally retires, he takes a turn into every ( Metlaltahtia and the North Pacific Mission. house belonging to his tribe, and is followed by his train. When this done, in some cases he has a ramble on the tops of the same IS houses, during which he is anxiously watched by his attendants, as if they expected his flight. By-and-bye he condescends to come down, and they then follow him to his den, which is marked by a rope made of red bark being hung over the doorway, so as to prevent any person from ignorantly violating its precincts. None are allowed to enter that house but those connected with the art ; all I know, therefore, of their further proceedings is, that they keep up a furious hammering, singing, and screeching for hours during the day. " Of all these parties, none are so much dreaded as the cannibals. One morning' I was called to witness a stir in the camp which had been caused bj tliis set. When I reached the gallery I saw hundreds of Tsimsheans sitting in their canoes, which they had just pushed away from the beach. I was told that the cannibal party were in search of a body to devour, and if they failed to find a dead one, it was probable they would seize the first living one that came in their way ; so that all the people living near to the cannibals' house had taken to their canoes to escape being torn to pieces. It is the custom among these Indians to burn their dead ; but I suppose for these occasions they take care to deposit a corpse somewhere, in order to satisfy these inhuman wretches. " These, then, are some of the things and scenes which occar in the day during the winter months, while the nights are taken up Avith amusements — singing and dancing. Occasionally the medicine imrties invite people to their several houses, and exhibit tricks before mem of varioMS kinds. Some of the actors appear as bears, while others Avear masks, the parts of which are moved by strings. The great feature in their proceedings is to pretend to murder, and then to restore to life, and so f ^th. The cannibal, on such occasions, is generally supplied with two, three, or four human bodies, which he tears to pieces before his audience. Several persons, either from bravado or as a charm, present their arms for him to bite. I have seen several whom he has thus bitten, and T hear two have died from the effects." One of the most curious and characteristic customs of the the Indians of British Columbia is the gimng away of 'property at feasts. Mr. Duncan gives the followino- account of it : — " These feasts are generally connected with the giving away of pro- The Field of Labour, perty. As an instance, I will relate the last occurrence of the kind. The person who sent the aforementioned invitations is a chief who has just completed building a house. After feasting, I heard he was to give away property to the amount of four hundred and eighty blankets (worth as many pounds to him), of which one hundred and eighty were his own property and the three hundred were to be sub- scribed by his people. On the first day of the feast, as much as possible of the property to be given him was exhibited in the camp. Hundreds of yards of cotton were flapping in the breeze, hung from house to house, or on lines put up for the occasion. Furs, too, were nailed up on the fronts of houses. Those who were going to give away blankets or elk-skins managed to get a bearer for every one, and exhibited them by making the persons walk in single file to the house of the chief. On the next day the cotton which had been hung out was now brought on the beach, at a good distance from the chiefs house, and then run out at full length, and a number of bearers, about three yards apart, bore it triumphantly away from the giver to the receiver. I suppose that about six hundred to eight hundred yards were thus disposed of. " After all the property the chief is to receive has thus been openly handed to him, a day or two is taken up in apportioning it for fresh owners. When this is done, all the chiefs and their families are called together, and each receives according to his or her portion. Thus do the chiefs and their people go on reducing themselves to poverty. In the case of the chiefs, however, this poverty lasts but a short time ; they are soon replenished from the next giving away, but the people only grow rich again according to their industry. One cannot but pity them, while one laments their folly. " All the pleasure these poor Indians seem to have in their property is in hoarding it up for such an occasion as I have described. They never think of appropriating what they gathei to enhance their com- forts, but are satisfied if they can make a display like this now and then ; so that the man possessing but one blanket seems to be as well off as the one who possesses twenty ; and thus it is that there is a vast amount of dead stock accumulated in the camp doomed never to be used, but only now and then to be transferred from hand to hand for the mere vanity of the thing. " There is another way, however, in which property is disposed of even more foolishly. If a person be insulted, or meet with an accident, or in any way suffer an injury, real or supposed, either of mind or ;"? 8 Metlakahlla and the North Pacific Mission. body, property must at onoc be sacrificed to avoid disgrace. A number of blankets, shirts, or cotton, according to the rank of the person, are torn into small pieces and carried off." The relifjion of the Tsimsheans is thus described : — " The Tsimsheans, I find, believe in two states after death : the one good, and the other bad ; the morally good are translated to the one, and the morally bad are doomed to the other. The locality of the former they think to be above, and that of the latter is somewhere beneath. The enjoyment of heaven and the privations of hell they understand to be carnal. They do not suj.pose the wicked to be desti- tute of food any more than they were here, but they are treated as slaves and are badly clothed. " The idea they entertain of God is that He is a great chief. They call Him by the same term as they do their chiefs, only adding the word for above — thus, * shimanyet ' is chief, and * lakkah * above : and hence the name of God with them is Shimanyet Lakkah. They believe that the Supreme Being never dies : that He takes great notice of what is going on amongst men, and is frequently angry, and punishes offenders. Thoy do not know who is the author of the universe, nor do they expect that God is the author of their own being. They have no fixed ideas about these things, I fully believe ; still they frequently appeal to God in trouble ; they ask for pity and deliver- ance. In great extremities of sickness they address God, saying it is not good for them to die. " Sometimes, when calamities are prolonged or thicken, they get enraged against God, and vent their anger against Him, raising their eyes and hands in savage anger to Heaven, and stamping their feet on the ground. They will reiterate language which means • You are a great slave ! ' " A very curious tradition respecting the first appearance of ■white men on the coast was related some years ago to Mr. Duncan by an old chief : — " A large canoe of Indians were busy catching halibut in one of these channels. A thick mist enveloped them. Suddenly they heard a noise as if a large animal was striking through the water. Imme- diately they concluded that a monster from the deep was in pursuit of them. With all speed they hauled up their fishing lines, seized the The Field of Labour. paddles, and strained every nerve to reach the shore. Still the plung- ing noise came nearer. Every minute they expected to be engulfed within the jaws of some huge creature. However, they reached the land, jumped on shore, and turned round in breathless anxiety to watch the approach of the monster. Soon a boat, filled with strange- looking men, emerged from the mist. The pulling of the oars had caused the strange noise. Though somewhat relieved of fear, the Indians stood spell-bound with amazement. The strangers landed, and beckoned the Indians to come to them and bring them some fish. One of them had over his shoulder what was supposed only to be a stick : presently he pointed it to a bird that was flying past ; a violent poo went forth ; down came the bird to the ground. The Indians died. As they revived again, they questioned each other as to their state, whether they were dead, and what each had felt. The whites then made signs for a fire to be lighted. The Indians proceeded at once, according to their usual tedious fashion of rubbing two sticks together. The strangers laughed, and one of them, snatching up a handful of dry grass, struck a spark into a little powder placed under it. Instantly flushed another poo and a blaze. The Indians died. After this the new comers wanted some fish boiling. The Indians therefore put the fish and water into one of their si^uare wt)oden buckets, and set some stones in the fire, intending, when they were hot, to cast them into the vessel, and thus boil the food. The whites were not satisfied with this way. One of them fetched a tin-kettle out of the boat, put the fish and the water into it, and then, strange to say, set it on the fire. The Indians looked on with astonishment. However, the kettle did not consume \ the water did not run into the fire. Then, again, the Indians died. When the fish was eaten, the strangers put a kettle of rice on the fire. The Indians looked at each other and whispered, ^Akshahu, akshahn,' or 'Maggots, maggots.' The rice being cooked, some molasses were produced and mixed with it. The Indians stared, and said, * Coutzeo um tsakah ahket,' or * The grease of dead people.' The whites then tendered the rice and molasses to the Indians, but they only shrank away in disgust. Seeing this, to prove their integrity, they sat down and enjoyed it themselves. The sight stunned the Indians, and again they all died. Some other similar wonders were worked, and the profound stupor which the Indians felt each time come over them they termed death. The Indians* turn had now come to make the white strangers die. They dressed their heads and painted their faces. A nok-nok, or wonder- f4 10 Metlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission, W 1 working spirit possessed them. They came slowly, and solemnly seated themselves before the whites, then suddenly lifted up their heads and stared. Their reddened eyes had the desired effect. The whites died." Among the Indians of British Columbia no Protestant Missionary bad laboured prior to 1857. Some Roman Catholic priests, however, had been in the country, and of them Captain Mayne Avrites* : — " If the opinion of the Hudson's Bay people of the interior is to bo relied upon, the Roman Catholic priests effected no real change in the condition of the natives. The sole result of their residence among them was, that the Indians who had been brought under their influence had imbibed some notions of the Deity, almost as vague as their own traditions, and a superstitious respect for the priests themselves, which they showed by crossing themselves devoutly whenever they met one. Occasionally, too, might be seen in their lodges, pictures purporting to represent the roads to Heaven and to Hell, in which there was no single suggestion of the danger of vice and crime, but a great deal of the peril of Protestantism. These coloured prints were certainly curious in their way, and worth a passing notice. They were large, and gave a pictorial history of the human race, from the time when Adam and Eve wandered in the garden together, down to the Reformation. Here the one broad road was split into two, whose courses diverged more and more painfully. By one way the Roman Catholic portion of the world were seen trooping to bliss ; the other ended in a steep bottomless precipice over which the Protestants might be seen falling.t Upon the more sensible and advanced of the Indians, teaching such as this had little effect. I remember the chief of the Shuswap tribe, at Kamloops, pointing out to me such an illustration hanging on his wall, and laughingly saying, in a tone that showed quite plainly how little credence he attached to it, * There are you and your people,' putting his finger as ho spoke on the figures tumbling into the pit. **0f such kind was the only instruction that the Indians had received prior to 1857. Its influence was illustrated in that year at Victoria, * " Four Years in British Colianbia,'^ p. 305. f A fac-simile of a similar picture appeared in the Church Missionary meaner, of March, 1880. - wi;« The Field of Labour. II where a Roman Catholic Bishop and several priests had been resident for some time, and were known to have exerted themselves among the Songhie Indians who reside there. A cross had been raised in their village, and some of them had been baptized ; but when these were called before the bishop for confirmation, they refused to come unless a greater present of blankets was made to them than had been given at their baptism. The bishop was said to have been very angry with the priests when this came to his knowledge ; he having very possibly been deceived by them as to the condition of the Indians. I am informed that ho had a large heart painted upon canvas, through which he drew a blanket, and represented it to the Indians as symbolical of their con- dition," How the Indians were brought to know the way of God more perfectly, and to choose it for themselves, it will be the purpose of the following chapters to show. f II. THE CALL, AND THE MAN. The Rod Indian is in a pocnliar sense, the child of the Church Missionary Society. More exckisively so, indeed, than even the Negro. In those efforts for the evano^elisation of Africa with which the Society's name has, from the first, been so indis- solubly associated, it has but shared the field with other excellent societies. In the Far North and Far West of British America, it has laboured almost alone. Nearly sixty years have passed away since its missionaries penetrated into the then remote regions of the Red River, and since that time, nearly the whole of the vast territories, stretching northward to the Arctic Sea, eastward to the borders of Labrador, and westward to the Rocky Mountains, have been trodden by their untiring feet. Ii was fitting, there- fore, that when, in the providence of God, the day came for the Gospel to reach beyond the Rocky Mountains to the tribes on the shores of the Pacific, it should be carried thither by the Church Missionary Society. But long before that time arrived, the eye of the Committee, passing round the globe, had rested upon those distant shores. In their Annual Report for 1819-20, the following interesting passage is to be found : — * From the C. M. S. Bejwrt, 1819-20. " It has been suggested to the Committee that the Western parts of British America, lying between the high ridge called the Rocky Mountains and the North Pacific Ocean, and extending from about the 42nd to the 57th degree of North Latitude, offer a more extensive, promising, and practicable field for Missionary labours than any other 7 he Call, and the Ahui. K\ in that quarter of the globe. The climnto is, in genoral, temperate, the soil reasonably proiluctive, and tlio surface of the country level.* The people are not .savage, ferocious, and wandering, but settled in villi.vges, and in several respects somewhat civilized, though still in the hunter state ; with few arts, no letters, no general knowledge, but a great desire to be taught by white men, whose superiority they clearly ilisceru. Numbers of them are scattered over this groat range of country ; and it has hitherto boon very little known, that so great a portion of the North American continent is covered with a stationary, al)original people, still, however, very much in a state of nature. The ISorth-West Com pan} trades througli all the great space which lies between IMontreal and the North I'acific, a longitudinal distance of Jiot less than 4,000 miles ; and keeps up a direct communication, by sea, between London and the mouth of the river Columbia, on the North- West coast of America. A member of that Company, who is a highly respectable merchant in Canada, informs your Committee that he has been frequently among the Indians in question, and thinks the prospect of the introduction of Christianity very promising, while many of the principal persons in Upper Canada are anxious for the promotion of that object." The Society's work, however, among the Red Indians, which was begun in the following year, was concentrated on Red River, and thirty-six years passed away before the attention of the Com- mittee was again drawn to the more remote field on the Pacific shore. In the spring of 185G, the late Rev. Joseph Ridge way, Editorial Secretary of the Society, attended, as a deputation, the anniversary meeting of the Tunbridge Wells Ciiurch Missionary Association. There he met a naval officer, Capt. J. C. Prevost, R.N., who had just returned from Vancouver's Island. While in command of H. M. S. Virago, ho had been much im- pressed by the spiritual destitution of the Indians of the Pacific coast of British North America and the adjacent islands. They wero " scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd," and * Some of the information given to the Committee at that early date was not very accurate. The surface ot British CoUuubia is anything Lut level, and the soil is not too productive. 14 Metlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. ho, liko his Divino Master, was " moved with compassion on them." No Protestant missionary had ever yet gone forth into the wilderness after these lost sheep ; and in addition to their natural heathenism, with its degrading superstitions and revolt- ing cruelties, a new danger was approaching the Indians in the shape of the " civilisation " of white traders and miners, with its fire-water and its reckless immorality. Capt. Prevost earnestly inquired of Mr. Ridgeway what prospect there was of the Church Missionary Society undertaking a Mission on the coast. Tlie reply was not encouraging. The Committee had just determined to signalise the conclusion of the Crimean war bv planting a Mission at Constantinople, to extend their work in the Punjab by the occupation of Multan, and to accept Sir Robert Montgomery's invitation to Lucknow ; and there was little hope of their having men or money to spare for the " few sheep in the wilderness " to be found scattered over British Columbia. The Editorial Secretary's sympathies, however, were touched, and he, at least, did what he could. He invited Captain Prevost to write a memorandum on the subject for the Church Missionary Intelligencer. The offer was thankfully accepted ; and in the number of that periodical for July, 1856, appeared an article entitled " Vancouver's Island," in which Mr. Ridgeway briefly stated the case, and introduced Capt. Provost's contribution. After an interval of twenty-four years, and remembering what wonderful and blessed fruit has sprung from the seed thus quietly sown, it will be interesting to reproduce here the Christian officer's own words : — Captain Prevost's Memorandum, July, 1856, " The country within which the proposed Mission is designed to operate extends from about the 48" of north latitude to 56", and from the Rocky Mountains on the east to the Pacific Ocean on the west. It includes several beautiful and fertile islands adjoining the main- land, of which the largest, most important, and most populous, is Vancouver's, being about 290 miles in length and 55 miles in its average breadth. " The Government, impressed with a sense of its great commercial, and its growing political, importance, combining also great advantages l^he Call, and the Man. IS as a naval .station, erected it into a colony in 1838, and gave to tho Hudson's Bay Company a charter, conferring on them certain privileges on condition of their carrying into effect tho intentions of the Government. The climate of this island is more genial than that of England ; its soil is more productive, and its coasts abound with tho finest fish. It contains, too, tho only safe harbours between the 49*^ north latitude and San Francisco ; and there have been discovered lately fields of fine coal of immense extent, from which the entire coast of tho Pacific, and the steamers trading there, can be supplied. AVhat has been stated with regard to these natural advantages of Vancouver's Island applies generally to the mainland. " The seat of the Colonial Government is at Fort Victoria, where there is a chaplain, the only Protestant minister within the limits of the above-mentioned territories. About three years since a Roman Catholic Bishop, a British subject, arrived at the same place, accom- panied by a staif of Jesuit priests, and purchased a site for a cathedral there. Hitherto their success has been very doubtful. " It is difficult to ascertain, with any degree ol accuracy, the total amount of the native population : a mean, however, between the highest and lowest estimates gives 60,000,'* a result probably not far from the truth. It is a fact well calculated to arrest the attention, and to enlist in behalf of the proposed Mission the active sympathies of every sincere Christian, that this vast number of our fellow-subjects have remained in a state of heathen darkness and complete barbarism ever since the discovery and partial surveys of their coasts by Vancouver in 1792-1794; and that no effort has yet been made for their moral or spiritual improvement, although, during the last forty years a most lucrative trade has been carried on with them by our feUow-countrymen. We would most earnestly call upon all who have themselves learned to value the blessings of the Gospel, to assist * in rolling away ' this reproach. The field is a most promising one. Some nr val officers, who, in the discharge of their professional duties, have la\ ^.y visited these regions, have been most favourably impressed wi' X the highly intelligent character of the Natives ; and, struck by their manly bearing, and a physical appearance fuUy equal to that of the English, whom they also resemble in the fairness of their com- plexion, and ha'"ug their compassion excited by their total destitution of Christian and moral instruction, they feel it to be their duty to * Siuce 1856, many thousands have died of disease and from vicious habits (see p. 2). '^ i6 Mctlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. m endeavour to introduce among them the knowledge of the Gospel of Christ, under the conviction that it would prove the surest and most fruitful source of social improvement aud civilization, as "well as of spiritual blessings infinitely more valuable, and would be found the only effectual autidote to the contaminating vices which a rapidly- increasing trade, csjiecially with California and Oregon, is bringing in its train. "There is much in the character of the Natives to encourage missionary effort. They are not idolaters : they believe in the existence of two great Spirits — the one benevolent, and the other malignant ; and in two separate places of reward and punishment in another world. They are by no moans bigoted. They manifest a great desire and aptitude to acquire the knowledge and arts of civilized life ; and, although they are addicted to some of the vices generally prevalent amongst savages, they yet possess some virtues rarely displayed by them. Some of the servants of the Hudson's Bay Company, who have married Native women, bear the highest testimony to their characters as wives and mothers, and to the manner in which they fulfil all their domestic relationships. Drunkenness was almost wholly unknown, until lately introduced by increasing intercourse with Europeans; but it is now spreading with rapid and destmctive effect among the tribes. Loss of chastity in females was considered an indelible disgrace to the family in which it occurred, and Avas consequently uncommon. But here, again, European influence has made itself felt, and this is now far from being the case. Persons who are acquainted both with this people and with the New Zealanders, are of opinion that the former are mentally and physically equal, if not superior, to the latter ; and that, were like measures taken to convert and civilize them, they would be attended by similarly happy results. As to the medium of communication, although the number and variety of languages is very great, yet the necessities of trade have given rise to a patois generally understood, and easily acquired, Avhicli might be made available for missionary purposes, at least as far as oral teaching is concerned, " The expense of establishing and supporting a ^Mission would not, it is hoped, prove large. Eish and game are extremely cheap. Euel, both coal and wood, is cheap and abundant. It is proposed that the first missionary station should be at Eort Simpson, on the mainland, a3 it offers many advantages for prosecuting the objects of the Mission. There the Missionaries would enjoy the protection, and, it is hoped. The Call^ and the Man. 17 the cordial co-operation, of the Hudson's Bay Company ; cad, in return, the Company's servants would receive the benefit of the ministrations of the members of the Mission. The position is central to all the most populous villages \ and here, in the spring of each year, a kind of great national fair is held, where the tribes from the most distant parts of the coast and interior assemble, to the number of about 15,000, and receive the commodities of the Company in exchange for the skins collected during the preceding season. On these occasions valuable opportunities would be afforded to the missionaries of conversing with the natives, and giving them religious instruction. Here, too, a school might be opened for the Native children, where they would receive an industrial as well as religious and secular education, and be secluded from the prejudicial influence of their adult relatives." This earnest appeal was not long in eliciting a response. Shortly afterwards, in the lisf, of contributions published monthly by the Society, appeared the following entry : — Two Friends, for Vancouver's Island, >£500. Still the Committee hesitated ; but two or three months after- wards, Capt. Prevost came to them again with the news that he was re-appointed to the same liaval station, and was to proceed thither immediately in command of H.M. S. Satellite ; and, with the sanction of the Admiralty, he offered a free passage by her to any missionary the Society could send out. Here was the opening, here were the means ; but where was the man to go ? There did not seem to be anyone available ; but, at length, only ten days before the " Satellite " was to sail, a student, then under training, was thought of. Who -svas this ? A few years before, one of the Society's Missionaries had addressed a village meeting in the Midland Counties. It was a very wet night, and but a handful of people attended. The Vicar proposed to postpone the meeting ; but the missionary urged that the few who had come were entitled to hear the information they were expecting, and proceeded to deliver a long and earnest speech. Amon^ the listeners were three young men, and the heart of one of these was deeply touched that night. He subse» B I i8 Mdlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. M S. quentlj offered himself to tho Society, and was sent to the (then existing) Highbury Training College to be trained as a school- master, under the ilov. 0. II. Alford, afterwards Bishop of Victoria, Hong Kong. That young man's name was William Duncan, and it was he to whom now came the call of the Committee to start in ten days for British Columbia. William Duncan was ready. On December 19th, 1856, he took leave of the Committee, and on the 23rd, he sailed with Capt. Prevost from Plymouth in the Satellite.* The voyage to Vancouver's Island took nearly six months. It was on June 13th, 1857, that the SateUite cast anchor in Esquimault Harbour, Victoria. But Mr. Duncan had still five hundred miles to go. His mission was to the Tsimsheans, and for them Fort Simpson was the point to aim at. Unable, how- ever, to obtain a passage t^nther at once, he remained at Victoria thiee months, patiently pijparing for future work by studying the language. Meanwhile the officers of the Hudson's Bay Company raised some objections to his settling at Fort Simpson. The Indians, they said, could not be allowed to come into tho fort to him, and it would be quite unsafe for him to venture out- side ; and they recommended him to turn his attention to the tribes of Vancouver's Island, who, having been brought more into contact with v/hite men, were presumed to be on that account more accessible to Christian influence. Mr. Duncan, however, justly felt that the advantage was rather the other way -, besides which to Fort Simpson he was appointed, and to Fort Simpson he would go. The Governor of the Colony warmly entered into his views, and gave him letters to the officer in charge, directing that accommodation was to be found for him, and all facilities given him for the prosecution of his work. * An interesting notice of Captain Provost's offer, and of the valedictory dismissal of Mr. Duncan, appears in the recently published "Memoir of Henry Venn," p. 137. ^ |||». ; m i^^^- ^-■Av-.,^^ -'. m. BEGINNING WORK. On the night of October 1st Mr. Duncan landed at the Fort. Like other Hudson's Bay Company trading posts, this '' Fort " consisted of a few houses, stores, ind workshops, surrounded by a palisade twenty feet high, formed of trunks of trees. Close by was the Tsimshean village, comprising some two hundred and fifty wooden houses, well-built, and several of them of considerable size. A day or two after his arrival, Mr. Duncan had a significant glimpse of the kind of savages to whom he was presently to proclaim the Gospel of Peace : — " The other day we were called upon to witness a terrible scene An old chief, in cool blood, ordered a slave to be dragged to the beach, murdered, and thrown into the water. Ills orders were quickly obeyed. The victim was a poor woman. Two or three reasons are assigned for this foul act : one is, that it is to take away the disgrace attached to his daughter, who has been suffering some time from a ball wound in the arm. Another report is, that he does not expect his daughter to recover, so he has killed this slave ni order that she may prepare for the coming of his daughter into the unseen world. I think the former reason is the most probable. I did not see the murder, but, immediately after, I saw crowds of people running out of those houses near to where the corpse was thrown, and forming themselves into groups at a good distance away. This, I learnt, was from fear of what was to follow. Presently two bands of furious Avretches appeared, each headed by a man in a state of nudity. They gave vent to the most unearthly sound?;, and the two naked men made themselves look as unearthly as possible, proceeding in a creeping kind of stoop, and stepping like two proud horses, at the same time shooting forw.ard each arm alternately, which they held out at full 20 Metlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. I ■I t 4, length for a little time in the most defiant manner. Besides this, the continual jerking of their heads back, causing their long black hair to twist about, added much to their savage appearance. For some time they pretended to be seeking the body, and the instant they came where it lay they commenced screaming and rushing round it like so many angry w .ves. Finally they seized it, dragged it out of the water, and lai* it on the beach, where I was told the naked men would commence tearing it to pieces with their teeth. The two bands of men immediately surrounded them, and so hid their horrid work. In a few minutes the crowd broke again in two, when each of the naked cannibals appeared with half of the body in his hands. Separa- ting a few yards, they commenced, amid horrid yells, their still more horrid feast. The sight was tro terrible to behold." Just at the same time another feature in the character of the Indians was painfully illustrated. On October 7 th he wrote : — " Immediately after dinner the second officer of the Fort, who had not been absent more than a minute, came rushing back, to report that an Indian had just been murdered close to the Fort gates. On re- pairing to the gallery, I saw this shocking sight. Several Indians, with muskets in their hands, were hovering about the dying man, and one or two ventured to go near and assist him. He was shot in the right breast, and apparently dying, but seemingly conscious of what had happened^. In ••. few minutes two Indians, looking as fierce as tigers, carrying muskets, came bounding to the spot, and, after order- ing all away, one of them immediately fired at the poor fellow as he lay on the ground, and shot him in the arm. They then as quickly bounded away. The head chief was the murderer. Being irri- tated by some other chiefs while partly intoxicated, he vented his rage upon the first stranger that came in his way, and, after shooting him, ordered two of his men to finish the horrible deed." But the young missionary, though saddened, was not dis- couraged. The more barbarous and degraded he found the Indians to be, the more vivid was his sense of their need of the Gospel ; and was anything too hard for the Lord ? So he con- tinued vigorously his study of the language, assisted by an Indian named Clah. Taking an English dictionary, he succeeded, by unwearied industry, in ascertaining the Tsimshean equivalents .1 \ '^ III II . Beginning Work. SI this, the I hair to me time ey came ; like so b of the :ed men iro bands d work, h of the Separa- till more who had port that On re- Indians, nan, and ot in the of what fierce as ,er order- ir fellow then as for fifteen hundred of the most necessary words. At the same time he set about making friends with the people. During the winter, when the severe cold and the deep snow kept them much indoors, he visited every house in turn, and on Jan. 14th he wrote : — "To-day we have finished our calls. I have been inside 140 houses, all large and strong buildings. The largest would measure, I imagine, about sixty by forty feet. One house I was not permitted to enter, as they had not finished their sorceries for the season. How- ever they sent me out an account of their family. In all, I counted 2,156 souls, namely, 637 men, 756 women, and 763 childran ; and, making an addition for those away procuring fuel, and those at the Fort, I estimate the sum-total of residents to be 2,325, which is rather over than under the true number. The total number rendered by themselves, which of course ii eludes all that belongs to them, whether married into other tribes or living south, is 2,567. These are divided into nine tribes, but aU speak the same language, and have one general name — Tsimshean. So far ac I am at present able to make out, 1 calculate that there are seventeen other tribes, all living within fifty miles of this place, which either speak Tsimshean or something very near to it. " It would be impossible for me to give a full description of this my first general visit, for the scenes were too exciting and too crowded to admit of it. I confess that cluster after cluster of these half-naked and painted savages round their fires was, to my unaccustomed eyes, very alarming. Bu;. the reception I met with was truly wonderful and encouraging. On entering a house I was saluted by one, two, or three of the principal persons with * Clah-how-yah/ which is the com- plimentary term used in the trading jargon. This would be repeated several times. Then a general movement and a squatting ensued, followed by a breathless silence, during which every eye was fixed upon me. After a time several would begin nodding and smiling, at the same time reiterating, in a low tone, ' Alim, ahm ah ket, Ahm Shimauyet ' (* Good, kind person, good chief). My interpreter would then ask them to let us know how many they had in their family, which was instantly followed by a deafening clamour. Sometimes the vociferation was so general that it was really bewildering to hear it. Everybody was talking and trying to outdo the rest, and nobody was listening. This storm would be mmftmsmfmmm 22 Metlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. in; abruptly succeeded by a general hush, when I was again pleasantly but rigidly scrutinized. Of course the attempt of everybody to count was a failure, and so the business at last was taken up by one of the leading persons, who generally succeeded to the satisfaction of all. While this was going on, I managed to count and class the inmates of the house, and look at the sick. In some houses they would not be content until I took the chief place near the fire, and they always placed a mat upon a box for me to sit upon. My enquiries after the sick were always followed by anxious looks and deep sighs. A kind of solemn awe would spread itself at once." At length, after eight months' patient preparation, Mr. Duncan was able to make his first attempt to convey to the Indians, in their own tongue, the message of salva ..on through a crucified Saviour, by means of a written address, which he nad composed with infinite pains, and which he proceeded to deliver at the houses of the different chiefs : — " June 13, 1858 : LorcCs-clay, — Bless the Lord, my soul, and let all creation join in chorus to bless His holy name. True to His word, ' He giveth power to the faint, and to them that have no might He increaseth strength.' Bless for ever His holy name ! " Last week I finished translating my first address for the Indians. Although it was not entirely to my satisfaction, I felt it would be wrong to withhold the message any longer. Accordingly I sent word last night (not being ready before) to the chiefs, desiring to use their houses to-day to address their people in. This morning I set off, accompanied by the young Indian (Clah), whom I have had occasion- ally to assist me in the language. In a few minutes we arrived at the first chiefs house, which I found all prepared, and we mustered about one hundred souls. This was the first assembly of Indians I had met. My heart quaiied greatly before the work — a people fc^ the first time come to hear the Gospel tidings, and I the poor instrument to address them in a tongue so new and difficult to me. Oh, those moments ! I began to think that, after all, I should be obliged to get C?ah to speak to them, while I read to them from a paper in my hand. Blessed be God, this lame resolution was not carried. My Indian was so unnerved at my proposal, that I quickly saw I must do the best I could by myself, or Avorse would come of it. I then told them to shut the door. The Lord strengthened me, I knelt down in Beginning Work, 23 to crave God's blessing, and afterwards I gave them the address. They were all remarkably attentive. At the conclusion I desired them to kneel down. They immediately complied, and I offered up prayer for them in English. They preserved great stillness. All being done, I bade them good-bye. They all responded with seeming thankfulness. On leaving, I asked my Indian if they understood me, and one of the chief women very seriously replied, ' Xee, nee ' (' yes ') ; and he assured mo that from their looks he knew that they understood and felt it to be good. " We then went to the next chiefs house, where we found all ready, a canoe-sail spread for me to stand on, and a mat placed on a box for me to sit upon. About 150 souls assembled, and as there were a few of the Fort people present, I first gave them a short address in English, and then the one in Tsimshean. All knelt at prayer, and were very attentive, as at the other place. This is the head chief's house. He is a very wicked man, but he was present, and admonished the people to behave themselves during my stay. " After this I went in succession to the other seven tribes, and addressed them in the chiefs' houses. In each case I found the chief very kind and attentive in preparing his house and assembling his people. The smallest company I addressed was about fifty souls, and the largest about 200. Their obedience to my request about kneeling was universal, but in the house where there were over 200 some con- fusion took place, as they were sitting so close. However, when they heard me begin to pray, they were instantly silent. Thus the Lord helped me through. About 800 or 900 souls in all have heard me speak j and a great number of them, I feel certain, have understood the message. May the Lord make it the beginning of great good for this pitiable and long-lost people." m li'f Mr. Duncan v^as now beginning to feel bis way among the Indians, and the head chief, Legale, having offered him the use of his house for a schoolroom, he opened school on June 28th. Twenty-six children attended in the morning, and fourteen or fifteen adults in the afternoon. The head chief and his wife took great interest, and assisted in every way they could. Their house was made clean, and a seat was placed upon a mat for Mr. Dancan. The children also came neat and clean ; one boy only had nothing but a blanket to coyer him, and in his case it was »4 Metlakahth and the North Pacific Mission. r I I not poverty, but superstition, that prevented him from having a shirt on Hke tho rest. This poor lad had been initiated into the mysteries of medicine in the previous winter, and so was for- bidden by Jaw to wear any thing over him except a blanket or a skin for one year. If he had put on a shirt, death would have been expected to ensue. On Sunday, July 11th, God enabled him a second time to proclaim the Gospel in another carefully-written address. He went, as on the first occasion, to each of the nine tribes separately, and began and concluded with prayer. At the con- cluding prayer almost all knelt, or the exceptions were rare. One man, however, sullenly refused. It was Quthray, the chief of the cannibal gang, of whom we shall hear again. After a few weeks the school was suspended, in consequence of the absence of the chief in v/hose house it was held. It had been used sufficiently long, however, to show that it was appreciated by both parents and children, and thus encouraged, Mr. Duncan determined to commence to build a school-house. The wood had arrived in a raft, and a number of Indians were engaged to assist in the building ; but scarcely had they begun to carry the wood up the hill, when one of the Indians dropped dead. The spread on all ran through the camp. and great alarm news sides. Mr. Duncan at first feared that owing to the superstition of the Indians with regard to such events, the confidence which he had secured among the people would be greatly shaken, and his work amongst them retarded. But, through God's mercy, his fears were not realized. He deemed it prudent to suspend the work for a time, but, after repeat2d invitations from the Indians, he resumed it on Sept. 17th :— • glad. " Yesterday I spoke to a few on the subject, and all seemed heartily One old chief said to me, ' Cease being angry now,' thinking, I suppose, my delay was occasioned by anger. He assured me he would send his men to help. It was quite encouraging to see how earnestly they expressed their desire for me to proceed with the work, and I may safely say the feeling was universal. This morning I went to the raft at six a.m., but onl}'' one old man was there. In a little time came other two or three, then a few more, then two chiefs. By Beginning Work. 25 about half-past six wo mustered seven or eight workers on the raft, though several more came out and sat at their doors, Indian like, as though they wished only to look on. This seemed greatly in contrast with their expressions to me yesterday ; but such is the Indian. I knew it was of no use to push, so I patiently waited. About half-past six one of the Indians on the raft sprung to his feet, gave the word of starting, which is a peculiar kind of whoop, and he, with the few so inadequate to the work, determined to begin. At this I proceeded u]) the beach to the place for building upon, but what was my surprise when, on returning, I met upwards of forty Indians carrying wood. Tliey all seemed to have moved in an instant, and sprung to the work with one heart. The enthusiasm they manifested was truly gladdening, and almost alarming. Amongst the number were several old men, who wore doing more with their spirited looks and words than with their muscles. The whole camp seemed now excited. Encouraging words and pleasant looks greeted me on every side. Every one seemed in earnest, and the heavy blocks and beams began to move up the hill with amazing rapidity. When the Fort bell rang for breakfast they proposed to keep on. One old man said he would not eat till the work was done. However, I did not think it good to sanction this enthusiasm thus far, but sent them off to their houses. By three o'clock p.m. all was over, for which I was very glad, for the constant whooping, groaning, and bawling of the Indians, together with the difficulties of the work, from tho great weight of the pieces and the bad road, kept me in constant fear." But no sooner had Mr. Duncan set up his school, and com- menced work in it, than the opposition of the medicine men began. They saw that if the work progressed, "their craft was in danger of being set at nought." The chiefs of three tribes had already declared that they had made up their minds to abandon their sorceries. On November 19th the new school was opened, and it was soon attended by one hundred and forty children and fifty adults; but on December 1st Mr. Duncan was told by the manager of the Fort that the head chief, Legaic, was going to ask him to give up the school for about a month during the medicine season. Shortly afterwards he was told that they would be content if he would stay school for a fortnight, and after that 26 Metlakahila and the North Pacific Mission. they would all como to be taught j but if he did not comply, they intended stopping him by force, and had determined to snoot at the pupils as they came to the school. Mr. Duncan had a long talk to two of the officers about the matter, giving them plainly to understand that ho did not intend in the least degree to heed the threats of the Indians. " Go on with my work I would, in spite of all. I told them Satan had reigned long enough hero ; it was high time his rule should be disturbed (as it is)." On December 20th ho wrote : — i " This day has been a great day here. I have heartily to thank that all-seeing Father who has covered me and supported mo to-day. Tlie devil and wicked men leagued to overthrow me this day, but the Lord would not have it so. I am still alive. This morning the medicine party, who are carrying on their work near to the school, broke out with renewed fury. On going to school, I observed a crowd of these wretched men in a house that I was approaching. As soon as I got into the school, the wife of the head chief came to beg me to give up school for a little time. She was certainly very modest in her manner and request, but altogether unsuccessful. I spoke to her a little, and then she said (whai I knew to be false) that neither she nor her husband desired to go ..i -^V^ the medicine-work, for they often cried to see the state of thliigsi, but it was the tribe that urged them to do what they were doing. Wien she saw she could prevail nothing, not even so much as to pre; iit striking the steel (used as a bell), which they have a peculiar hatred lor, she left me. I then went up the ladder and struck the steel mj self, as I did not like to send a boy up. Very soon about eighty pupils were in the school, and wo went on as usual. " This afternoon a boy ran to strike he steel, and not many seconds elapsed before I saw the head chief (I egaic) approaching, and a whole gang of medicine men after him, dressed up in their usual charms. The chief looked very angry, and bade the boy cease. I waited at the door until he came up. His first effort was to rid the school of the tew pupils that had just come in. He shouted at the top of his voice, and bade them be off. I immediately accosted him, and demanded to know what he intended or expected to do. His gang stood about the door, and I think seven came in. 1 saw their point : it was to intimi- date me by their strength and frightful appearance ; and I perceived Beginning Work. 27 tho chief, too, was somewhat under the influence of rum. But the Lord enabled me to stand calm, and, without the slightest fear, to address them with far more fluency, in their tongue, than I could have imagined possible — to tell them of their sin faithfully — to vindicate my conduct — to exhort them to leave their bad ways, and also to tell them they must not think to make me afraid. I told them that God was my Master, and I must obey Him rather than them, and that tho devil had taught their fathers what they were practising, and it was bad ; but what I was teaching now was God's way, and it was good. Our meeting lasted for more than an hour. I saw a great many people at a distance looking anxiously at our proceedings, the school door being open. The chief expressed himself very passionately, now and then breaking out into furious language, and showing off his savage nature by his gestures. Towards the close of the scene, two of the confederates, vile-looking fellows, went and whispered something to him, upon which he got up from a seat he had just sat down upon, stamped his feet on the floor, raised his voice as high as he could, and exhibited all the rage and defiance and boldness that he could. This was all done, I knew, to intimidate me ; but, blessed be God, he did not succeed. Finding his efforts unavailing, he went off. " The leading topics of the chiefs angry conversation were as follows : — He requested four days' suspension of the school ; he promised that, if I complied, he and his people would then come to school ; but threatened if my pupils continued to come on the follow- ing days, he would shoot at them ; lastly, he pleaded, that if the school went on during the time he specified, then some medicine-men, whom he expected on a visit shortly from a distant tribe, would shame, and, perhaps, kill him. Some of his sayings during his fits of rage were, that he understood how to kill people, occasionally drawing his hand across his throat to show me what he meant ; that when he died he knew he should go down \ ho could not change ; he could not be good ; or, if I made him good, why, then, he supposed he should go to a different place from his forefathers : this he did not desire to do. On one occasion, whilst he was talking, he looked at two men, one of them a regular 'pupil of mine, and the other a medicine-man, and said, * I am a murderer, and so are you, and you ' (pointing to each of these men) ; * and what good is it for us to come to school ? ' Here I broke in, and blessed be God, it gave me an opportunity of telling the three murderers that pardon was now offered to them if they would repent, and amend, and go to Jesus our Saviour." 98 Mctlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. V li ip aft It was afterwards found out that Leoraic, at the moment of his most violent fury, had caught sight of Clah (who, unknown to Mr. Duncan, was watching over him with a revolver), and knew that, if ho touched the missionary, it would bo at the risk of his life. So it ever is: ** in some way or other, the Lord will provide I " This conduct on the part of Logaic was the more discouraging, inasmuch as ho had, in the first instance, as we have seen, given up his own house for the school. So persistent, however, was his hostility at this time, and so great wore the difficulties in the way of attending school, that Mr. Duncan was at length obliged to close the new building, and another chief having offered him the use of his house for a school, where the children and othera would not be afraid to come, ho readily availed himself of his kindness, and was soon able to report the steady progress of the work. On Christmas Day he wrote : — " Yesterday I told my scholars to bring their friends and relatives to school to-day, as 1 wanted to tell them something new. Wo numbered over 200 souls. I tried to make them understand why wo distinguished this day from others. After this I questioned the children a little, and then we sang two hymns, which wo also trans- lated. While ihc hymns were being sung, I felt I must try to do something more, altlji)'tgh the language seemed to defy me. I never experienced such an inward burning to speak before, and therefore f determined to try an extemporaneous address in Tsimshean. The Lord helped me : a great stillness prevailed, and, I think, a great deal was understood of what I said. I told them of our condition, the pity and love of God, the death of the Son of God on our account, and the benefits arising to us therefrom ; and exhorted them to leave their sins and pray to Jesus. On my enumerating the sins of which they are guilty, I saw some look at each other with those significant looks which betokened their assent to what I said. I tried to impress upon them the certain ruin which awaits them if they pro- ceed in their present vices. Very remarkably, an illustration corrobora- ting what I said was before their eyes. A poor woman wa3 taken sick, not four yards from where 1 stood, and right before the eyes of my audience. She was groaning under a frightful affliction, the effect of her vices." '■'*«« IV. FIRST FRUITS. From the extract last given wo can gather that, notwithstanding the opposition of some, and the frightful depravity of all, Mr. Duncan seemed to bo gaining the ear of the people just in pro- portion as he advanced in fluency of speech in their mother tongue. And during the following year, 1859, not a few tokens for good were granted him. In some parts of the camp open drunkenness and profligacy were diminishing, and the compara- tive quiet and decorum consequent on this made a great impression on the rest. In March a meeting of chiefs was held at Legaic's house, at which Mr. Duncan's arguments against many of their most degrading customs were discussed, and generally approved ; and a message was sent to him that they wished him to "speak strong" against the "bad ways" of their people. On April 6th, Legale himself appeared at the school, not now to intimidate the missionary, but to sit at his feet as a learner. Others followed his example ; and when, in August, one notoriously bad character, named Cushwaht, broke into the school with a hatchet, intending to shoot Mr. Duncan, and, not finding him there, smashed all the windows, the greatest indignation was expressed on every side, and Mr. Duncan had to implore the people not to shed the offender's blood. Nor were only outward changes visible. It was soon manifest that the Spirit of God was at work in the hearts of some. On October 10th a most encouraging incident occurred :— " I was iuformed, on coming out of the school this afternoon, that a young man, who has been a long time suffering in consumption I t 1 l> < I 30 Metlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. (brought on by a severe cold), and whom I have visited several times, Avas dying ; so, after a little reflection, some misgiving, and prayer, I started olf to see him. I found him, as his wife had said, dying. Over twenty people were about him ; some were crying, and two, lam sorry to say, were partly intoxicated. I looked on for some time in silent sorrow. When I wished to speak, silence immediately ensued. I rebuked the noise and tumult, and directed the dying man to fix his heart on the Saviour Jesus, to forget the things about him, and spend his liti'lo remaining time in praying in his heart to God to save him. His reply was, * yes, sir ; yes, sir ; ' and for some moments he would close his eyes, and seemed absorbed in prayer. He begged me, with much earnestness, to continue to teach his little girl. He wanted her to be good. This little girl is about seven years old : her name is Cathl. 8he has been very regular at school since I commenced, and has made nice progress. Much to my comfort, a young woman sat by his side, who has been one of my most regular pui^ils. She is in the first class, and can read portions of the Bible, ff er intelligence is remarkable, and I have observed her to be always listening io religious instruction. Thus, here was one sitting close to the dying man who could tell him, much more accurately than I, the few directions I desired to utter. "What a remarkable providence it seemed to mo ! With tears in her eyes, she begged him to give his heart to God and to pray to Him. I longed to pray with him, and watched anxiously a long time for the opportunity. The opportunity came, and the strength came with it. I knelt down by his side. All was hushed, and I prayed from a full heart to the Lord our God to have mercy upon the poor soul about to come into His presence, for the sake of His dear Son Jesus. I feel sure that the Lord heard my prayer, and I can indulge a hope ibr this poor man's salvation." There was much in the case of this young man which en- couraged Mr. Duncan in the hope that he was a true believer in Christ. He understood the main and leading truths of the Gospel, and he frequently prayed much to God. During his sickness he never permitted the medicine folks to operate upon him ; and this of itself showed a wonderful change in him. He died the following night, having reassured the people around him of his safety, and had a very solemn parting from his little girl. Thus, just two years after the solitary Missionary had landed First Fruits. 31 times, lyer, I dying, o, I am imc iu jnsued. fix liis end his e liim. 3nts he 5ed nic, wanted lame is jed, and 11 sat by s in the Tenco is rehgious nan who actions I to nio ! 3rod and nxiously and the J hushed, srcy upon His dear tnd I can hich en- Uever in s of the iring his ■ate upon aim. He ound him little girl. [1(1 landed on the coast as a stranger, the first fully ripened fruit of his labours Avas gathered ixito the heavenly garner. In January, 1860, the first Bishop of Columbia, Dr. Hills, arrived at Victoria. Observing the deplorable condition into which the Indians fell who flocked thither, and thus came into contact with the vices of an outlying colonial settlement, the Bishop invited Mr. Duncan to come down and organise some Christian work amongst them. He accordingly spent two or three months in the summer there, holding Tsimshean services, and opening a school. A good work was thus set on foot, which has since been successfully carried on by others. At this time Captain Prevost returned to England, and as a specimen of the results so far of the Mission which his own loving zeal had originated, brought home with him a httle journal kept, during Mr. Duncan's absence at Victoria, by one of the Tsimshean boys at Fort Simpson. Here are some fragments of it : — " Tuesday, Atr'U Ath, 18G0. — If will die my father, then will very poor my heart i my brother all die : only one Shooquauahts save, and two my uncle save. I will try to make all things. I want to be good, and I want to much work hard. When we have done work, then will please, Sir, Mr. Duncan, will you give me a little any thing when you come back." " April 17 : iSiihool, Fort Simpson, — Shooquauahts not two hearts — alway3 one my heart. Some boys always two hearts. Only one Shooquanahts — not two heart, no. If 1 steal any thing then God will see. Bad people no care about Son of God : when will come troubled hearts, foolish people. Then he will very much cry. What good cry ? Nothing, No care about our Saviour ; always forget. By and by will understand about the Son of God." " May 17. — I do not understand some prayers, only few prayers I understand; not all I understand, no. I wish to understand all prayers. "When I understand all prayers, then I always prayer our Saviour Jesus Christ. I want to learn to prayer to Jesus (jhrist our Saviour : by and by I understand all about our Saviour Christ : when I understand all Avhat about our Saviour, then I w'-i happy when I die. If I do not Jgarn about our Saviour Jesus, then 1 will very troubled my heart when 1 die. It is good for us when we learn about '9ci 32 Metlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission, our Saviour Jesus. When i understand about our Saviour Jesus, then I will very liapjiy when I die.'' Another encouraging case is that of an old man, of whom Mr. Duncan wrote : — " 'Jne night, Avhen I was cncaraping out, after a weary day, the su| per and the little instruction being over, my crow of Indians, ex- cepting one old man, (quickly spread theii j tt« r the fire, and lay down to sleep in pairs, each sharing his fello ,, 3 b;.,.jxet. The one old man sat near the fire smoking his ^ :pe. I crepe into my little tent, but, after some time, came out again to see that all was right. The old man was jus^ making his bed (a tliin bark mat on the ground, a little box of grease, and a few dry salmon for his pillow — a shirt on, and a blanket round him — another bark mat over all, his head too, formed his bed in the open air, during a cold, dark night in April). When everything was adjusted, he put his pipe down, and offered up, in his own tongue, this simple little prayer, ' Be merciful to me, Jesus.' Then he drew up his feet, and was soon lost to view." Mr. Duncan had now the joy of welcoming a fello w-livbourer. The Rev. L. S. Tugwell, who had been allotted by th Bociety to a Mission which looked so hopeful, arrived with f s. Tugwell in August, and at once throw himself wi; i -"j utmost earnestness into the work of preparailon for futuro : f ;ir Iness. But to his keen disappointment the health of both entire'} oroke down in the damp climate, where sometimes the rain falls for ten months out of the twelve, and he was obliged to return to England after fourteen months' residence on the coast. Before leaving, however, Mr. Tugwell had the high privilege of admitting into the visible Church its l^vst Tsimshean members. On July 26th, 18G1, fourteen men ^* e Wv'> nen, and four children were baptized. Others were dete^ <■ i by heathen relatives. Some candidates were not passed, iv-i of these, Mr. Duncan wrote, " We truly liope they are indeed children of God." But other fruit, though iiol so rij ^^ was now plainly visible, and had begun to attract public attention. In January, 1860, Mr. Duncan received a letter from the llev. E. Cridgo, the English First Fruits. 33 lan members, sn, and four )d children of chaplain at Victoria, conveying a message from the Governor, Sir James Douglas : — " I am requested by his Excellency the Governor to express to you the great gratification he has received from conversing with several of the Indians who have been under your instruction at Fort Simpson, and who aic now at Victoria ; and his pleasure at witnessing the great improvement in manners, bearing, and religion which you have suc- ceeded in efifecting in their condition. His Excellency trusts you -"ill continue to show the same energy, perseverance, and zeal which he is sure you must already have applied to the work, and that your labour will be rewarded by a still larger measure of success. His Excellency also wishes me to say that he would feel obliged by your reporting to him from time to time on the progress of your Mission. Any sugges- tions you may make with regard to measures which may occur to you as likely to prove beneficial to tlio Indians under your care, such as settling them in any particular locality, or setting apart a reserve of land for their use, will receive his Excellency's best attention ; who will also, if necessary, represent any such measures, with his favourable recommendation to her Majesty's Government. Commander Mayne, R.N., mentions in his interesting book, Four Years in British Columbia (p. 212), that Captain G. Y. H. Richards, of H. M. S. Hecate, who was in command on the coast at this time, was so much struck by Mr. Duncan's success, that he said to him, " Why do not more men come out ? Or, if the missionary socioties cannot afford them, why does not Government r^end out fifty, and place them up the coast at once ? Surely it would no', be difficult to find fifty good men in England willing to engage in such a work ; and their expenses would be almost nothing compared with the cost which the country must sustain to subdue the Indians by force of arms. And such," adds Commander Mayne, '* are the sentiments of myself — in common, I believe, with all my brother officers — after nearly five years' constant and close intercourse with the Natives of Vancouver's Island and the coast." I V. n t THE NEW SETTLEMENT. As early as July, 1859, Mr. Duncan had foreseen the neces- sity, if the Mission were not only to save individual souls from sin, but to exercise a Avholesonie influence upon the Indian tribes generally, of fixing its head-quarters at some place removed from the contamination of ungodly white men. " "What," he wrote, " is to become of children and young people under instruction when temporal need compels them to leave school? If they are permitted to slip away from me into the gulf of vice and misery which everywhere surrounds them, then the fate of these tribes is sealed." What that fate would be may be gathered from one of Bishop Hills' first letter** in 1860. He found tb".t of one tribe more than half I ad been cut off in a dozen years by drink and dissolute habits ; and the traffic in Indian females for immoral purposes was openly carried on, from £40 to £60 per head being paid for them. " Victoria," wrote Mr. Duncan, " although it is 500 miles from Fort Simpson, will always prove the place of attraction to these tribes, and to many even further away. There they become demoralised and filled with disease ; and frorn thence they return, laden with rum, to spread scenes of horror too awful to describe." The Tsimsheans who had come under Mr. Duncan's influence, themselves implored him to devise some way of escape from the ruin they saw impending on their nation. And he laid before the Society a plan for establishing a colony, where well- disposed Indians might be gathered together. His objects are mm The New Settlement, 35 thus succinctly stated in an official report presented by him to the Canadian Governnient some years afterwards : — " 1st. To place all the Indians, when thoy became wishful to be taught Christianity, out of the miasma of heathen life, and away from the deadening and enthralling influence of heathen customs. " 2nd. To establish the Mission where we could effectively shut out intoxicating liquors, and keep liquor vendors at bay. " 3rd. To enable us to raise a barrier against the Indians visiting Victoria, excepting on lawful business. " 4tli. That we might be ablt to assist the people thus gathered out to develope into a model community, and raise a Christian village, from which the native evangelist might go forth, and Christian truth radiate to every tribe around. " 5th. That we might gather such a community around us, whose moral and religious training and tent of life might render it safe and proper to impart secular instruction. ** 6th. That we might be abb; to break up all tribal distinctions and animosities, and cement all who came to us, from whatever tribe, into one common brotherhood. " 7th. That we might place ourselves in a position to set up and establish the supremacy of the law, teach loyalty to the Queen, con- serve the peace of the country around, and ultimately develope our settlement into a municipality with its native corporation." The Indians themselves pointed out the locality for such a settlement, a place called Metlakahtla,* occupyino; a beautiful situation on the coast, seventeen miles from Fort Simpson. It had formerly been their own home ; but they had removed their tents to Fort Simpson twenty years before for convenience of trade. Here they would be free from the influences of the Fort, which were decidedly adverse to the well-being of the Mission ; they would have more opportunity of social improve- ment ; they would have plenty of beach room for their canoes ; and they would have plenty of land suitable for gardens, which they did not possess at their present station, and a channel * Metla>'ahtla=the inlet of Kahtla. formerly settled there. Kahtla was the name of the triho I 56 Mdlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission, always smooth, and abounding with sahnon and shell-fish, while its beauty formed a striking contrast to the dreary country around. The project met with the entire approval of the Governor, and the winter was occupied in preparing wood for the buildings, in the expectation that the removal would be effected in the spring. But the departure of Mr. Tugvvell delayed the accomplishment of the scheme, and it was not until the summer of 1863 that Mr. Duncan found himself able to carry it out. On May 18th, 1863, he began taking down the large tem- porary school which had been put up at Fort Simpson, and three days later its materials were rafted, and were on their way to the new site. Just then a message from God of a most solemn kind came to the coast tribes. Only two days after the raft had gone away, canoes from Victoria arrived with the news that the small- pox had broken out among the Indians there ; and, worse still, it immediately became evident that the canoes had brought the fell disease with them. "It was," wrote Mr. Duncan, "evidently my duty immediately to see and warn the Indians. I had pre- viously determined to do this in a farewell visit to each tribe before my departure from Fort Simpson, but I now felt doubly pressed to call upon all quickly to surrender themselves to God. I therefore spent the next few days in assembling and addressino- each tribe (nine in all) separately. Thus all in the camp attain heard a warning voice ; many, alas ! for the last time, as it proved. Sad to relate, hundreds of those who heard me were soon and suddenly swept into eternity." Even at that moment of alarm very few of the Indians could make up their minds, when the time for departure came, to throw in their lot with the new colony. Nor can we be surprised at this, when we read the rules Mr. t)uncan had framed for its guidance, admirable in themselves, and now abundantly justified by their signal success, but still involving a radical change in the habits of the Indians, and the abandonment of some of their most cherished practices. They were fifteen in number : — 1. To give up their "Ahlied," or Indian devilry; 2. To cease calling in conjurors when sick; The New Settlement. 37 3. To 4. To 5. To 6. To 7. To 8. To 9. To 10. To 11. To 12. To 13. To 14. To 15. To cease gambling ; cease giving away their property for display ; cease painting their faces ; cease drinking intoxicating drink ; rest on the Sabbath ; attend religious instruction ; send their children to school ; be clean ; be industrious ; be peaceful ; be liberal and honest in trade ; build neat houses ; pay the village tax. Nevertheless, when the day of removal came, fifty Indians accompanied Mr. Duncan to Metlakahtla :— " On the 27th May, in the afternoon, we started oflF. All that were ready to go with me occupied six canoes, and we numbered about fifty souls — men, women, and children. Many Indians were seated on the beach, watching our departure with solemn and anxious faces \ and some promised to follow us in a few days. The party with me seemed filled with solemn joy as we pushed off, feeling that their long-looked- for flit had actually commenced. I felt we ;yero beginning an event- ful page in the history of this poor people, and earnestly sighed to God for His help and blessing. " The next day, the 28th May, we arrived at our new home about two p.m. The Indians I had sent on before me with the raft I fotmd hard at work, clearing ground and sawing plank. They had carried all the raft up from the beach, excepting a few heavy beams ; erected two temporary houses ; and had planted about four bushels of potatoes for me. " Every night we assembled, a happy family, for singing and prayer. I gave an address on each occasion from one portion of Scriptural truth suggested to me by the events of the day." And a much larger number were not long in following. On June ()th a fleet of thirty canoes arrived from Fort Simpson, bringing nearly three hundred souls ; in fact nearly the whole of one tribe, the Keetlahn, with two chiefs. Not many days. 38 Meilakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. however, elapsed before the dreaded cloud ovei'shadowed the coast. Small -pox broke out at Fort Simpson, and seized upon the Indians ; and although for awhile they were content to ward it off, as they thought, by incessant conjurinor, yet when some of the leading medicine men themselves fell victims to the disease, a great fear fell upon all, and they fled in all directions, but only spread the fatal scourge more widely by so doing. Many came to Metlakahtla, and though Mr. Duncan refused to receive some, he could not refuse all. " For the temporal and spiritual welfare of my own people," he wrote, ^' who now clung to me like timid children, I was kept in constant labour and pressing anxiety. Death stared us in the face on every hand. But God remembered us in the day of our calamity ; " and of the original settlers only five were cut off. One of these was Stephen Ryan, one of the first group baptized by Mr. Tugwell in the preceding year. A touching account is given of his end : 1 " He died in a most distressing condition, so far as the body is con- cerned. Aivay from everyone whom he loved, in a little bark hut on a rocky beach just beyond the reach of the tide, which no one of his relatives or friends dared to approach except the one Avho nursed him ; in this damp, lowly, distressing state, suffering from the malignant disease of small-pox, how cheering to receive such words as the following from him : ' I^am quite hap])y. I find my Saviou r very near to me. I am not airaid to die ; neaven (s^ open to receive me. GTve my thanks' to Mr. Duncan : he told me of Jesus. I Tiave Hold oT'tlie ladder that reaches to heaven. All Mr. Duncan taught me' I now feel to be true.* Then, saying that he wished to be carried to his relatives, his words were, ' Do not weep for me. You are poor, being left ; I am not poor : I am going to heaven. IMy Saviour is very near to me : do all of you follow me to heaven. Let not one of you be wanting. Tell my mother more clearly the way of life : I am afraid she does not yet understand the way. Tell her not to weep for me, but to get ready to die. Be all of one heart and live in peace Notwithstanding this heavy trial, the infant settlement grew and prospered ; and in the following March, 1863, Mr. Duncan, i\^^^: The New Settlement. 39 \ the upon ward was in a letter to the Society, summed up the results of the Mission so far in these remarkable words : — " The Lord has sustained His work, and given marked evidence of His presence and blessing. Above one-fourth of the Tsimsheans from Fort Simpson, a few Tongass, Nishkah, Keethrathla, and Kectsahlass Indians (which tribes occupy a circle of about seventy miles round Fort/ Simpson), liave been gathered out from the heathen, and have gone ".tirough much labour, trial, and persecution, to come on the Lord's side. About 400 to 600 souls attend Divine service on Sundays, and are being governed by Christian and civilized laws. About seventy adults and twenty children are already baptized, or are only waiting for a minister to come and baptize them. About 100 children are attending the day schools, and 100 adults the evening school. About forty of the young men have formed themselves into two classes, and meet for prayer and exhorting each other. The instruments of the medicine-men, which have spell-bound their nation for ages, have found their way into my house, and are most willingly and cheerfully given up. The dark and cruel mantle of heathenism has been rent so that it cannot be healed. Numbers are escaping from under its deadly embrace. Customs, which form the very foundation of Indian government, and lie nearest the Indian's heart, have been given up, because they have an evil tendency. Feasts are now characterized by order and good will, and begin and end with the offering of thanks to the Giver of all good. Thus the surrounding tribes have now a model village before them, acting as a powerful witness for the truth of the Gospel, shaming and correcting, yet still captivating them ; for in it they see those good things which they and their forefathers have sought and laboured for in vain, viz., peace, security, order, honesty, and progress. To God be all the praise and glory ! Amen and amen." To this may be added some extracts from a formal report which he sent t3 the Governor at the same time, and which gives a most interesting account of the material prospects of the settlement : — " MetlaMatlah, 6th March, 1863. "Sir, — The Tsimshean Indians, who have lately removed from Fort Simpson under my superintendence and settled here, are very 40 Metlckahila and the North Pacific Mission. I anxious to tender your Excellency their warmest thanks for the liberal and timely uid which you have rendered them in building their new village. The 150 window-sashes and 6001bs. of nails, wLirh came of your bounty of £50, arrived quite saiely in September last by the Hudson-Bay Company's steamer ' Labouchere,' and have been duly distributed and appropriated as follows : — To thirty-five houses (averag- ing about 34 feet by 18) four window -sashes and 131bs. of nails each ; and to tw) smaller houses two window-sashes and Gibs, of nails each. Five window-sashes and about 1301bs. of nails remain. " In obedience to your Excellency's kind wish, I will proceed to lay before you a few particulars respecting our new Indian Mission settlement. " Your Excellency is aware of the dreadful plague of the small-pox with which it pleased Almighty God to visit the Indians of this coast last year, and by which many thousands of thorn were swept away. Though no fewer than 500, or one-f fth of the Tsimsheans at Fort Simpson, have fallen, I have grp.t jfully to acknowledge God's sparing mercy to us as a village. A' o had only five fatal cases amongst those Avho originally left Fort Simpson with me, and three of these deaths were caused by attending to sick relatives who came to us after taking the disease. Yet so fearful was the amount of death and desolation on every side of us till about the end of September, that the Indians had but little spirit left for building, or even for the gathering necessary food for tho winter. Thus it was that they found inclement weather upon them long before they were properly housed. In addition to the great amount of labour and trouble attendant upon moving and building new houses, we have had to encounter great opposition from many of the Indians from Fort Simpson, who, in spite of the great warnings they have had, continue still to be steeped in drunkenness and heathenism. Nor has the conflict been one wholly outward, if indeed mainly so. For to many who have joined me, the surrendering their national and heathen customs performed over the sick — ceasing to give away, tear up, or receive blankets, &c., for display, dropping precipitately their demoniacal rites, which have hitherto and for ages filled up their time and engrossed all their care during the months of winter — laying aside gambling, and ceasing to paint their fticos —had been like cutting off the right hand and plucking out the right eye. Yet I am thankful to tell you that these sacrifices have been made ; and had your Excellency heard the speeches made by the chiefs and some of the principal men The Neiv Settlement. 4X at our Christmas evening meeting, alluding to these and other matters, you would, I am sure, have rejoiced. "On New- Year's Day the male adult settlors came cheerfully forward to pay the village tax, which I had previously proposed to levy yearly, viz., one blanket, or two and a half dollars of such as have attained manhood, and one shirt or one dollar of such as are approaching manhood. Out of 130 amenable we had' only ten defaulters, and these were excused on account of poverty. Our revenue for this year, thus gathered, amounts to 1 green, 1 blue, and 94 white blankets, 1 pair of white trousers, 1 dressed elk skin, 17 shirts, and 7 dollars. The half of this property I propose to divide among the three chiefs who are with us, in recognition of stated services which they will be required to render to the settlement, and the other half to spend in public works. "As to our government : all disputes and difficulties are settled by myself and ten constables ; but I occasionally call in the chiefs, and intend to do so more and more, and when they become sufficiently instructed, trustworthy and influential, I shall leave civil matters in their hands. I find the Indians very obedient, and comparatively easy to manage, since I allow no intoxicpting drinks to come into our village. Though we are continually hearing of the drunken festivals of the surrounding tribes, I am h:?ppy to tell you that Metlahkatlah has not yet Witnessed a case of drunkenness since we have settled here — a period of ten months. Still, not all with me are true men. Some few, on their visits to Fort Shnpson, have fallen ; and two, whose cases were clearly proved and admitted of no extenu »t>on, I have banished from our midst. " On Sabbath-days labour is laid aside, a solemn quiet presides, and the best clothing is in use. Scarcely a soul remains away fromDivine Service, excepting the sick and their nurses. Evening family devo- tions are common to almost every house, and, better than all, I have a hope that many have experienced a real change of heart. To God be all the praise and glory ! "We have succeeded in erecting a strong and useful building, capable of containing at least 600 people, which we use as church and school. "We held our first meeting in this building on the night it was finished, the DOth December last. I have about 100 children, who attend morning and afternoon, and about 100 adults (often more) in the evening. I occupy the principal part of the time in the adult school, in giving simple lectures on geography, astronomy, natural his - tory, and morals. These lectures the Indians greatly prize. 4t Metlakahtla and the Notth Pacific Mission. t I li' \ "On the 6th February we commenced our first works, viz., making a road round the village. This will take us some time to complete, as the ground is very uneven, and much of it wooded. I propose, after the road is conveniently finished, to set about building, out of our public fund, two good-sized houses for the accommodation of strange Indians when they come to trade with us, and thus prevent the interference to domestic comfort and improvement arising to the villagers from these visits under the old system. I have other public works in view, such as fixing proper rests for canoes when unemployed, laying slides for moving canoes on the beach and into the water at low tides; also sinking wells and procuring pumps for nublic use, &c., &c. " I feel, also, that it {?>■ of vast importance to seek out p ble employment for those with me, and thus keep them away from those labour markets which exhibit temptations too strong and vices too fascinating for the Indian, in his present morally infantile condition, to withstand. Hence, I have already measured out and registered over 100 plots of ground for gardens, situated in various parts of the channel in which we are octtlcd. These, the Indians are anxious to cultivate, I have also desired them to prepare salt and smoked fish, fish grease, and dried berries, which, with furs, will form our first articles of exportation. Other branches of labour will arise in due course. But in order to set about thus much, we need seed (especially the potato), salt, direct means of communication with Victoria, and an agent there. " I am anxious that even the trading vessel should be in our own hands; first, because the Indians would, on that account, feel a deeper interest in her, and exert themselves the more to keep her well and profitably employed ; secondly, the profits of the vessel would redound to the village ; and, thirdly, it is necessary to avoid having intercourse with that barbarous class of men who are employed in running the small vessels up the coast, which, by trading in intoxi- cating drink, are all doing a work not easily described, and not readily believed by those who do not witness it. Their visits to the Indian camps are invariably marked by murder, and the very maddest riots. To purchase the A^essel we need, I suppose from £100 to £150 will be required. I therefore propose that 100 Indians shall subscribe £1 or £1 10s., or the equivalent in furs. The Indians are willing to do their utmost, and I expect to have to render them little help, beyond seeking out the vessel ; and I 1' The New Settlement. 43 do not intend to give them any pecuniary aid, except to procure such things as, through ignorance or inexperience, they despise, but such as are, nevertheless, essential to their well-being and prosperity. *' Trusting, by God's blessing upon us, we shall go on improving, and continue to merit your Excellency's favour and good-will, *' I have the honour to remain, with warmest gratitude, " Your Excellency's humble and obedient Servant, <* W. Duncan. " To His Excellency, James Dcniylas, Esq., C.B , " Oovermr of Vancouver's Island and BiUish Columbia" VI. METLAKAHTLA — SPIRITUAL RESULTS. While the work at Motlakahtla was thus prospering materially, and increasing in general moral influence, under the blessiucj of Kim without whom nothing is stronor, nothinor jg holy, higher spiritual blessings were not withheld. Fresh classes of candidates for baptism had been formed during the last winter at Fort Simpson, and were continued diligently at the nevv settlement; and in April, 1862, the Bishop of Columbia, hi Mr. Duncan's requei^t, took the journey to Metlakahtla to baptize as many as might be found ready. But before this, one of the most interesting converts, c miracle of grace indeed, had been baptized, in the urgency of his special ciise, by Mr. Durban himself. This was Quthray, a cannibal chief, one of the two men whose horrible orgies had met the eye of the newly-arrived missionary, at Fort Simpson, four years and a half before, and who has also been already mentioned as the one ma^. who sullenly refused to kneel at Mr. Duncan's second service. Ho had, however, become one of the most regular and earnest attendants at the services and classes, and gave unmistakable evidence that Divine grace had indeed changed his heart. lie joined the Met^akahtla party, but had not been there long before he fell ill. In October he passed away, a ransomed soul, to be a jewel in His crown who came to seek and to save the lost : — " Sahirday, IStJi Odohir^ 1862. — Just as I was rising this morn- ing I received intellif^ence that poor Qathray, the young cannibal chief, was dying. I have frequently visited hira during his illness, and was with him for a long time a few nights ago. As he haa long and I Metlakahtld — Spiritual Results. 45 I earnestly desired baptism, and expressed in such clear terms his re- pentance for his sins, and his faith in the Saviour of sinners, I told him that I would myself baptize him before he died, unless a minister from Victoria arrived in time to do it. He always appeared most thankful for ray visits, and, with the greatest force he could command, thanked me for my promise. Accordingly this morning I proceeded to the solemn work of admitting a brand plucked from the burning into t^io visible Church of Christ by baptism. Though I was not sent here to baptize, but to preach the Gospel, yet I had no fear but that I was doing what was pleasing to God in administering that sacred rite to the poor dying man, as an officially-appointed person was not within several hundred miles of him. I found the sufierer apparently on the very verge of eternity, but quite sensible, supported by his wife on one side, and another woman on the other, in a sitting posture on his lowly couch spread upon the ground. 1 addressed him at once, remind- ing him of the promise I had made to him, and why. I also spoke some words of advice to him, t,o which he paid most earnest atten- tion, though his cough would scarcely permit him to have a moment's rest. A person near expressed a fear that he did not understand what I said, being so weak and near death ; but he quickly, and with great emphasis, exclaimed, */ hear; 1 understaniV While I was praying his expression of countenance was most lovely. With his face turned upward, he seemed to be deeply engaged in prayer. I baptized him, and gave him the name of Philip Atkinson. 1 earnestly besought the Lord to ratify in heaven what He had per- mitted me to do in His name, and to receive the soul ofthe poor dying penitent before Him. He had the same resignation and peace which he has evinced throughout his si kness, weeping for his sins, depend- ing all upon the Saviour, confijent of pardon, and rejoicing in hope. " This is the man of whom I have had to write more than once to the Society. Oh the dreadful and revolting things I have witnessed him do ! He was one of the two principal actors in the first horrid eccne I saw ub Fort Simpson about four and a half years ago, an account of which I sent homo, namely, that of a poor slave woman being murdered in cold blood, thrown on the beach, and then torn to peices and eaten by two naked savages, who were supported by a crew of singers and the noise of drums. This man was one of those naked cannibals. Glorious change ! See him clothed and in his right mind, weeping — weeping sore for his sins — expressing to all around his firm belief in the Saviour, and dying in peace. Bless the Lord for all His goodness." I 46 Metlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. It was on April 21st, 1863, that tho Bishop baptized at Motlaktihtla fifty-nine adults and some children. On the 19th, Sunday, he landed from the *' Devastation ; " and for two days ho was incessantly occupied in examining the candidates. His account is deeply interesting : — " We were met by the whole village, who stood on the bank, in a long line — as fine a set of men and as well-dressed as could anywhere be seen where men live by their daily toil — certainly n^ country village in England would turn out so well-clad an assemblage. "At three the bell was rung, and almost instantly the whole j'opulation were wending their way to church. There \/ere hymns and prayers in Tsirashean. They repeated the answers to a catechism in Tsimshean. I addressed them, and offered prayers in English, which were interpreted by ^Ir. Duncan. There Avas much earnest response. The service lasted one hour and three quarters. There was an evidence of devotion. Mr. Duncan plays the accordion. ^^ Monday, April 20th. — Got to the IMission-house at eight lo break- fast. Afterwards engaged the whole day seeing catechumens till one o'clock next morning. One after another the poor Indians pressed on to be examined. They had been under training for periods varying from eight months to three years. They had long been looking for a minister to admit them to baptism. It was a strange yet intensely interesting sight in that log cabin, by the dim glimmer of a small lamp, to see just the countenance of the Indian, sometimes with uplifted eyes, as he spoke of the blessedness of prayer — at other times, with downcast melancholy, as lie smote upon his breast in the recital of Irs penitence. The tawny face, the high cheek-bone, the glossy jet- black flowing hair, the dark, glassy eye, the manly brow, were a picture worthy the pencil of the artist. The night was cold — I had occasionally to rise and walk about for warmth — yet there were more. The Indian usually retires as he rises, with the sun, but now he would turn night into day if he might only be allowed to ' have the sign,* and be fixed in the good ways of God. "2\iesday, April 2lst. — Immediately after breakfast, having had prayer, the work again began. Catechumens came in, and, one by one, were sifted ; some, to their gi'ief, were deferred, One man came and begged he might be passed, for he might not live till the next visit of a clergyman. Another brought a friend, and said, if I would only admit his wife to baptism, they would promise for her she should I Metlakahtla — Spiritual Results. 47 porsevere aud live to God. Another, a fine child of fourteen, I had thought too young to answer for herself — one who had always shown remarkable love for instruction, ard had stood by the school when the many were its foes. She came with tears of entreaty which were irresistible and beautiful, and lovely was the sensitive intelligence which beamed upon her devotional features when afterwards she received the waters of baptism. Till four o'clock was I' thus engaged, an hour after the time appointed for the baptisms. " The peculiar suitableness of the questions in the Baptismal Service to thf! case of converts from heathenism was very remarkably illus- trated throughout the examination. Converts from heathenism can fully realize renunciation of the world, the flesh, and the devil. Amongst these Indians, pomp of display, the lying craft of malicious magic, as well as all sins of the flesh, are particularly glaring, and closely connected with heathenism : to them these things are part and parcel of heathenism. So are the truths of the Creed in strongest contrast to the dark and miserable fables of their forefathers ; and heartily can they pledge thomsolves to keep the holy will of God all the days of their life, seein;. i Him a loving and true Father, of whom now so lately, but so gladly, liiey Imve loarnt to know. ** I first drew forth their views of the necessity ol i peutance, its details, and their own personal acquaintance with it. I then ques- tioned them as to the Three Persons of the Trinit v, and the special work of each, with allusion to the Judgment, and th' state of the soul hereafter, inquiring into their private devotion, lo loam their personal application of repentance and faith I (j[uestioned their anxiety for baptism, and demanded proof of tiieir resolution to keep the will of God for their guide, to speak for God, and to labour for God's way all their life long. I sought to find out ' e circumstances under which they first became seriously incline nd to trace their steps of trial and grace. Admitting them to the promise of baptism, I exhorted them to earnest prayer and devotion, as a special prepar- ation, until the time came. "The examination concluded, the candidates, to the number of fifty- six, were assembled in the church, and ranged in a large circle, in the midst of which the ceremony was to take place. " The impressiveness of the occasion was manitesit in the devout and reverent manner of all present. There were no external aids, sometime!!) thought necessary for the savage mind, to produce or increase the solemnity of the scene. The building is a bare and 48 Metlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. i ! unfinished octagon of log3 and spars — a mere barn — sixty feet by sixty, capable of containing 700 persons. The roof was partly open at the top ; and, thoagh the weather was still cold, there was no fire. A simple table, covered with a white cloth, upon which stood thvGc hand-basins of water, served for the feat, and I officiated in a surplice. Thus there was nothing to impress the senses, no colour, or ornament, or church decoration, or music. The solemnity of the scene was produced by the earnest sincerity and serious purpose with which these children of the Far West were prepared to offer themselves to God, and to renounce for ever the hateful sins and cruel deeds of their heathenism \ and the solemn stillness was broken only by the breath of prayer. The responses were made with earneetross and decision. Not an individual was there whose lips did not utter in their own expressive tongue their hearty readiness to believe and to serve God." The foUowri^ are some of the Bishop's notes of the exami- nt.,tion : — "Legale (principal chief), aged 40, — Answers: — We must put away all our evil ways. I want to take hold of God. I believe iu God the Father, who made all things, and in Jesus Christ. I constantly cry for my sins when I remember them. I believe the good will sit near to God after death. Am anxious to walk in God's ways all my life. If I turn back it will be more bitter for me than before. I pray God to wipe out my sins; strengthen me to do righij pity me. My. prayers are from my heart. I think sometimes God does not hear me, because I do not give up all my sins. ^My sins are too heavy. I think we have not strength of ourselves. " Neeash-lakah-noosh (called 'tiie Lame Chief ; he is blind also of an eye ; fine old man), aged 7(J. — Answers : — When ask.yd if he wished to become a Christian, said — For that object I came here with my people. I have put away all lying ways, which I have long followed. I have trusted in God. We want the Spirit of God. Jesus came to save us. He compensated for our sins. Our Father made us, and loved us because we are His work. He wishes to see us with Him because He loves us. When asked about the judgment, said. The blood of Jesus will free those who believe from condemnation. Remarkjs. — Under regular instruction for a year, and before that for some time by his daughter. Is most consistent, trying to do 1^ Mdlakahtla — Spiritual Results. 49 simply what is right. The other day was benighted on Saturday, on his Avay to spend the Sunday at Metlakahthi, seven miles off. Would not come on, nor let his people gather herring-spawn, close under their feet ; he rested the Lord's Day, according to the commandment. "Lappigh Kumlee,aged 30. — Answers: — I havegivenup the lucrative position of sorcerer. I'een offerer' bribes to practise my art secretly. I have left all my mistaken ways. My eyes have been bored (en- lightened). 1 cry every night when I remember my sins. The great Father Almighty sees everything. If I go up to the mountains He sees me. Jesus died for our sins upon the cross to carry our sins away, llemarks. — Dates his change from seeing a convert reading a book, and he felt ashamed that he knew nothing, and he determined to learn, and soon he found his own system false. In one case, when his spirit said there would be recovery, death came ; in another, when he foretold death, life remained. "Thrak-sha-kawn (sorcerer), aged 50. — Ansn rs : — I wish to give up all wicked ways. Have been a medicine-man, and know the lies of heathenism. I believe in the great Father who made us, in Jesus who died on the cross that God would pity us. I want the Spirit of God to touch my heart. We must all stand before God. God will measure our ways. No one to be his master but God. I Avill not keep my eyes on the ground any more, but will look up to heaven all my life. Remarlcs. — He has had to bear much scorn, and to go through much struggle. " Wahthl (wife of Legaic), aged 40. — Ansioers : — I wish to put away evil and have a clean heart. Feel the pain of the remembrance of sin so bad I would sometimes like to die. I want to seek God's face, but feel little hope ; still I determine to persevere, though miserable. Loss of relatives, and finding no peace and rest, and feeling in darkness, led me to look to God. I know that God sent His Son Jesus to die for our Remarks. — About nine months under regular instruction. She is snis. evidently anxious for her soul ; knows the truth, but her sins are such a burden that she has not found peace. She has been anxious her husband should go forward in good. " Luosl (widow of the cannibal chief who died penitent), aged 25. — Answers'. — I know how blind I have been. Was first turned to God by the news of the Saviour. AVas struck that He came down amongst us. God is a spirit full of love. C^hrist came to carry away our sins. We must pray for the Spirit to help us. I confess my eins to God and cry for pity. I pray for my friends. After death the J) judgment. A\''o must stand before God. Jesus will answer fo? those who trust in Hira. liomarhs. — Upheld her husband in his wickednesa. Was turned by his turning at his death. " ^ishah-kigh (chieftainess of the Nishkahs), aged 45 — Ansi'mrs ; — I must leave all evil ways. I feel myself a sinner in God's sight. 1 believe in God the Father Almighty, and in Jesus Christ, who died for our sins. Goil sends down His Spirit to make us good. Jesus is in heaven, and is writing our names in God'a book. I feel God^a Word is truth. Have been lor some time accustomed regularly to pray. Remarks. — Two years ago she was found giving Cliristian instruc- tion to a sick and dying person. Her husband tells me slle passed much time in devotion. When she lirst heard the Word of God her sorrow was great, and her penitence more than she could bear. Some live years she has been earnestly seeking God. "Nayahk (wife of Lapplighcumlee, a sorcerer), aged 25. — Answers'. — Answers well and clearly u})on the sepjirate work of each Person of the Trinity. Prays for pardon — for the Holy Spirit. Remarhs. — Suffered much fiom tho mockery of her husband. At her earnest demand he gave up devilry. Beeu consistent in the midst of opposition ; adhered to tho Mission when many were against. Has been a blessing to her family, all of whom have renounced heathenism. Her husband, the sorcerer, laments his past life, aud would be the first to I)ut his foot upon the evil system. "Ad-dah-kippi (wife of a Christian Indian), aged 25. — Afiswers : — I must put away sin. I know I have been making God angry, but must put away all my old ways,, lies, and the evil of my fatliers. God gave us commandments. God would not hoar us till we put away our sins, Jesus would make peace for us and add His Spirit. Am resolved to endeavour to live to God all my life. Was much moved last fishing at my sinfulness, and then repented strongly, and resolved to walk with God. I pray morning, noon, and night for pardon and God's Spirit. Remarks. — Had opposed her husband, who is a Christian." One of those baptized, it will be seen, was the famous head- chief himself, Legaio, the same who had threatened Mr. Duncan's life four years before. He had been a ferocious savage, and had committed every kind of crime. After he first began to attend the school, ho twice fell back ; but tho Sj)irit of God was at work in his heart, and when the removal to Metlakalitla took place, he Metlakahtla — Spiritual Results. 51 deliberately gave up his position as head-chief of the Tsimshean tribes in order to join the colony. Constant inducements were held out to him to return ; and on one occasion he actually gave way. He gathered the Indiai s together, on the Metlakahtla beach, told them he could hold out no longer, and was going back to his old life — that he could not help it, for he was being pulled away — that he knew it was wrong, and perhaps he should perish for. ever, but still he must go. In tears he shook the hand of each in turn, and then stepping alone into his canoe, paddled rapidly away from his weeping friends. He went a few miles along the coast, and then, as darkness came on, put the canoe ashore. The nigiit was one of such misery, he afterwards said, as no words could describe. "A hundred deaths would not equal the sufferings of that night." On his knees he wept and prayed for pardon, and for strength to return ; and next day he again appeared at Metlakahtla, to the joy of all. Leo-aic, who before was " a blasphemer, a persecutor, and injurious," was baptized by the name of Paul. In him indeed did " Jesus Christ show forth all lon^-suffering, for a pattern to them who shall hereafter believe on Him to life everlasting." The Rev. R. J. Dundas, who visited Metlakahtla six months later, and baptized thirty-ninf :nore adults and thirteen children, thus wrote of Paul Legaic and his daughter Sarah : — (( I paid a visit to the wife of the chief Paul Legaic. He it was who nearly took Mr. Duncan's life at the head of the niediciue-band attacking the school. They were both baptized by the Bishop last April. Legaic was the wealthiest chief of the Tsimsheans at Fort Simpson. He has lost everything — has had to give up everything by his conversion to Christianity, it was with many of them literally a * forsaking of all things to follow Christ.' His house is the nicest and best situated in the village. A very little labour and expense in way of internal fittings would make it quite comfortable. He and his wife have one child only, a young girl of fourteen. She was a modest-looking, pleasing child — very intelligent — one of th** first class in the school. She did not look like one who had ever been * possessed with a devil ; ' and yet this is the child whom, three years ago, her teacher saw naked in the midst of a howling band, tearing and 52 Metlakahtla and the North Pacifie Mission. devouriug the bleeding dog. How changed ! She who * had the unclean spirit ' sits now at the feet of Jesus, clothed, aud in her right mind." On the occasion of ii visit paid soon after this by Mr. Dnncan to Fort Simpson, Lcgaic, again like his great namesake, boldly- preached the faith which once he destroyed. Mr. Duncan wrote : — " Feh. 6, 1864. — I have just returned from a visit to Fort Simpson. I went to proclaim the Gospel once more to the poor unfsoling heathen there. I laid the Gospel again distinctly before thein, and they seemed much affected. The most pleasing circumstance of all, and which I was not prepared to expect, was, that Paul Legaic and Clah (the one in times pasta formidable enemy and opposer, and the other one among the first to hear and greet the Gospel) sat by me, one on either side. After I had finished my address on each occasion they got up and spoke, and spoke well. / " Legaic completely shamed and confounded an old man, who, in ' replying to my address, had said that I had come too late to do him and other old people good ; that, had I come when the first white traders came, the Tsimsheans had long since been good ; but they had been allowed to grow up in sin ; they had seen nothing among the first whites who came amongst them to unsettle them in their old habits, but these had rather added to them fresh sins, and now their Isius were deep laid, they (he and the other old people) could not [change. Legaic interrupted him, and said, ' I am a chief, a Tsimsheaii Khief. You know I have been bad, very bad, as bad as any one here. Jl have grown up and grown old in sin, but God has changed my /heart, and He can change yours. Think not to excuse yourselves in / your sins by saying you are too old and too bad to mend. Nothing / is impossible with God. Come to God ; try His way ; He can save I you.' He then exhorted all to taste God's way, to give their hearts to Him, and to leave all their sins ; aud then endeavoured to show them what they had to expect if they did so — not temporal good, not health, long life, or ease or wealth, but God's favour here and happiness with God after death." Leg'.iic had been well known to the traders and others on the coast, and the change in him caused the greatest astonishment ' "fa Meilakahtla — Spiritual Results. 53 amonof thorn. " Mr. Duncan's Grand Vizier " they called him. One visitor wrote in the Victoria paper : — " Take a walk near the church, and you may see the mighty chief of Fort Simpson (Le^'aic) standing under the porch of his well-, built house, ornamented with fancy casing around where the gutters sliould he, but are not, and also around the windows. Legale ! why, I remember him myself, some ten years ago, the te rrifying mu rderer of women as well as men, now lamb-led by the teRTperate handoruliris^ tianT!y^=^a 'CTTuffnT^ou exainpTe— "M "aWeTally" or Hie Temperance" Society, though not having signed the pledge." For seven years this once dreaded savage led a quiet and consistent Christian life at Metlakahtla as a carpenter. In 18(59, he was taken ill at Fort Simpson, on his way homo, after a Journey to Nass River. He at once sent this short note to Mr. Duncan : — " Dear Sir, — I want to see you. I always remember you in my mind. I shall be very sorry if I shall not see you before I go away, because you showed me the ladder that reaches to heaven, and I am on that ladder now. I have nothing to trouble me, I only want to see you." But Mr. Duncan, to his great sorrow, was quite unable to get away from his incessant duties at Metlakahtla, A second and third summons followed in quick succession, and presently came the news of his death, accompanied by a few unfinished lines : — My dear Sir, — This is my last letter, to say I am very happy. I am going to rest from trouble, trial, and temptation. I do not feel afraid to meet my God. In my painful body I always remember the words of our Lord Jesus Christ." Well may we say, " Is anything too hard for the Lord ? " Reverting to the history of the Mission, -we find that in 1866 the Bishop of Columbia paid a second visit to Metlakahtla, and after careful examination, baptized sixty-five adult converts on Whit Sunday in that year. " I truly believe," he wrote, " that 54 ^fetiakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. most of thoso are sincere and intolligc^nt believers in Christ, as worthy converts from heathenism as have ever been known in the history of the Church." And in the autumn of the foHowino: year Mr. Cridge, then Dean of Victoria, who had from the first . manifested the deepest interest in the Mission, stayed for some weeks at the settlement, and on September 8th baptized ninety- six adult Indians and eighteen children. Dean Cridge was struck by the advanced age of the candidates presented to liim. Twenty-six were over fifty ; and one man, who was sixty-five, said, " I feel like an infant, not able to say much ; but I know that my heart is turned to God, and that He has given His Son to wash away my sins in His blood." " When he entered the room to be examined, he knelt down and offered a silent prayer. While speaking of his sins he showed emotion, and covered his face. Among^st other answers, these are some ot his words : • I repent very much of my past sins before Jesus.' I asked why Christians were not afraid to die ; he said, * Faith in God will make us not afraid to die.' I baptized him Jeremiah ; he is about forty years of age. His wife was not less satisfactory in the testimony she gave of a true conversion to God, and was aaded by baptism at the same time with her husband to the told of Christ." What can wo say to such tokens of true knowledge and faith as these, but that the words of our Lord to Peter are still applicable to many even of the most degraded heathen in our own day ? — " Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona, for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is it Heaven !" VII. WKTLAKATITIA — MATERIAL PROGRESS AND MORAL INFLUENCE. Metalakahtla is no hermit's cell in the wildern(^ss, romovod l^r away from the haunts of men, and exertinorno influeneo upon them. Rjither is it a harbour of refuse, whose lights radiate forth into the darkness, inviting the bark in distress to .«ieees hy tlie inontlis of a set of cannil)als at a ^reat teast." Nov(»rtlioless, Mr. Diincun's inHuencc fjrew continually. In this very case its power was exhil)ited in his succossfnlly inter- ])()sin;r to allay the exasperation of his people, and to prevent a war of extermination. Even the white traders in fire-wiiioi themselves were sometimes touclied. The captain of one smni;<>;lin, the simple character and intluence of one missionary nviiiled to aeconiplish." In dno course this man was brouijlit to trial for his crime, when it came out that ho had hecui an unwillinnj participator, and he was pardoiuMl. On his release \w went hack to Aletlakahtla, and was bapti/ctl hy the nishop in 18()(). A similar and very intercstin;»" case occurred in 1872. Somo years hefore, an Indian from a tribe livincj thirty miles oft' had come to Mr. Duncan, and with f;rcat emotion confessed himself a murderer, sayinnr tliat having frequently attended the services, tho burden of sin had become " too heavy for him to carry," and some Christian relatives had advised him to confess his crime and take the consenuences. Mr. Duncan sent word to the Government at Victoria, but tliey thought it best not to prose- cute the njan for a crime which was not recent, and which had been done under the orders of a powerful chief who was still at largo. No further steps, therefore, were taken. But at tlie beginning of 1872, a magistrate who was visiting at Fort Simpson detected two men who had been concerned in another murder, and the excitement caused by this led to further inquiry about the Metlakahtia man's crime, and to the arrest of both himself and his chief. The four Indians thus in custody made sevorallv a full confession of both crimes to Mr. Duncan and the other magistrate, and they were sent to Victoria for trial. They were found guilty, and, on being called ujion to reply, made most affecting speeches in court, acknowledging the sin, and their just liability to punishment. Sentence of death was ordered to be recorded, but on the recommendation of the judges, it was connnuted to five years' imprisonment (not confinement) at Metlaknhtla. " So," wrote Mr. Duncan six months afterwards, " they are now with us, and all behaving very well. The proud chief has become very docile and happy, and he and all declare it their intention to remain at Metlakahtia till death. Several of the foremost Christians make it their duty occasionally to visit them. I;' S8 Mdlakahtla and the Monk Pacific Mission. and instruct and encourage them. Thus can God brhig good out of evil." The charge of the Chief Justice, Sir Matthew Bogbie, at tliis trial is a most remarkable document, and must be i)rinted here in extemo. Had the white roan always treated the red man in 3uch a spirit, what results might we not have seen ?* Charge of the Chief Justice, ItEGINA V. SeBASSA AND TilRACKET. ReGINA V ^EE«KA AND SlMON JoilNSON. (( Many years ago there v.'ere sorue poor white men on the sea. Men oil the sea are always in danger from the winds and the waveb ; but these men trusted in God, who rules the winds and waves, and they were not afraid. Neither were they afraid of the men whom tliey might meet, for they did not intend to hurt anybody, and they were i3ady to do good. And, indeed, if the white men intended to do harm to tlie Indians, the whites could destroy them off the face of the earth. The ■• "hites could send up one man-of-war, which could easily, and without landing a man, destroy all their houses and canoes and propttty, and drive them iiaked and helpless into the woods to st?«rve. No canoe could venture to go fishing. In one year the white men could destroy all the Indians on the coast without losing a man. One of our cannon could swallow up all th" muskets of your tribe. " Kow these poor white men on the sea met with some Indians. The Indians said they were hungry, an'o officers of the ships. But laying the stone was one thing ; building the church was another. The Governor and Captain Gator saw lying on the ground huge timbers to be used in its erection, but how these were to be reared up was not ap})arent. Very kindly they gave Rlr. Duncan a (quantity of ropes, blocks, &c., but even then they saikxl away in considerable scepticism as to the possibility of unskilled red men raising a large and lofty church. In January, 1874, Mr. Duncan wrote : — "Tlio massive timbers for framing, which Governor Trutch and Captain Cator, of H.AE S. 'Scout,' saw ou the ground last year, and doubted of our ability to raise, are, I am happy to say, now tixed, and fixed well, in their places, and all by ludiau labour. Especially am I thankful to report that, though the work is attended with no little danger, particularly to inexperienced hands, as we all are, yet have we hitherto been graciously preserved from all accidents. " The Indians are delighted with the ap[)earanc(! the building has already assumed, and you may gather from the amount of their con- tributions (X17<^>) how much tiiey appreciate the work. They pro[»ose again subscribing during the coming spring, and I only wish onr Christian friends in England could witness the exciting scene of a contributing day, with how much joy the poor people come forwad and cast down their blanket or blankets, gun, shirt, or elk skin, upon the general pile * to help in building the house of God.' " By the end of that year the church was finished, and on Christmas Day it was opened for the service of God. " We had indeed," wrote Mr. Dinican, " a great struggle to finish it by that time — the tower and si)ire presenting very difficult and Metlakahtla — Material Progress and Moral Influence. 65 (lan- journey across the continent to Ottawa. The Hon. D. Laird, Minister of the Interior, gave the most attentive hearing to his rejM-esentations, and also made him a donation of 1,000 dollars towards the work at Metlakalitla ; and on May 10th, 187G, Mr. Duncan wrote, "I am glad to inform that vou the terms set forth in the Keport have been adopted (with Mctlakahtla — Material Progress and Moral hijlucnce. 71 a small modification or two) by tho Dominion Government, and so the dead-lock about tho land (luestion seems in a fair way of bein^ remove d." Mr. Duncan's well-timed interposition in this matter was not the least of the many services (lod has enuhlcd him to render to the Indian population of ]3ritish Cohimhia. Ahout the same time, tho Provincial Government gave another proof of its confidence in the Mission, by appointing one of tho Chri^tliin Tsimsheans of M(^tljikuhtla lieacl constable of the district, with a salary of 350 dollars per annum. Year by year the Mctlakahtla connnunity has continued to increase, by the admission to its privilcfres of now settlers. New Ycar"s-(lay is especially tho time for enrollinnr them. A fjjeneral meet in tr of the adult males of the xillao^o is hold, and before them all each applicant for leave to join their body has to stand up and declare his adhesion to the rules. He thus cnts himself off from all heathen customs, and ''places himself under Christian instruction " ^to use tho TinnevoUy term*). He {irobablv knows somethintian instrui'lion." iSubse'^ .'d'^H; \\ i YIII. METLAKAIITLA — TWO rilRTSTMAS SEASONS. CiiuiSTMAS is a jovous time at Motlakalitla, and the accounts we have of its services and t'estivitios liolp not a little to brino- the settlement before the eyes of our imai>;ination. Two sutli accounts are subjoined. The first is from Mr. Duncan's Hcpoit for 1873. Christmas-day in that year is memorable for a visit paid to Metlaion interruptod by the establishment of a Canadian Methodist Mission at the Fcrt. The second account was sent home by Bishop Bom])as, of Athabasca, after his visit to the coast in 1677-8. Christmas, 1873. From Mr. Duncan's llepovt. "This is the first season that the heathen customs at Fort Simpson have been generally (lisref^^-ardeii, and hence we thought it well t»> encourage Christian customs in their place. To this end we decided to invite all the congregation at Fort ^Simpson to suenil the festival of Christmas with us at Metlakahtia, that tliey might receive the l)enelit of a series of special services, and he preserved from falling' into those excesses which we had reason to fear would follow should they spend the (Jhvistnias by themselves. About two hundred and filty availed Metlakahtla — Two Christmas Seasons. 73 themselves of our invitation, and they arrived at Metlakahtla the day hefore Christmas in twenty-one canoes, which indeed presented a pleasin|jf picture as they approached us with flag's flyine following day the young men engaged in the healthy gam« of football, and all the people turned out to witness the sport. Mr. a.)! Mrs. Collison and myself were ])resent to encourage them. Alter football a marriage took {)lace. A young woman, formerly trained in the Mission-house, was mai'ried to a chief. A marriage feast was given, to which between lour and five hundred ])eoj)le were invited. During the day a Fort Simpson young man came to see me and con- fess a crime of theft he committed about a year and a half ago, and for which, when the proper time arrives, he will have to go t' gaol. In the evening the church bell was rung, and all assembled for divine service. Some little time after service the bugle was sounded ' Go to bed.' *' I held special services every night while the Fort Simpson people were here with us. Tin; sul»jects u])on which I addressed them were as follows, viz.: — *Thou slialt call llis name Jesus,' ' Thy Word is a Lamp ' i r l\ f I l! 1 » 88 Metlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. as a voluntary poace-ofFerinoj. " Wo had," m rote Mr. Duncan, " a solemn peace-making at the Mission-house. Several excellent speeches were made, and a document was drawn up and sifrned by the relatives of the young man, expressive of their recon- ciliation with their ancient foes." The principal tradinn; post, Massett, is on the northern coast of the northern island, Graham Island. Here Mr. and Mrs. CoUison, with their two little children, landed on November 1st, 1876:— " On our arrival I hadintended to have wintered in one of the Indian houses, as the winter season was too far advancpd for budding ; but Mr. Offut, the officer in charg-e of the H. B. Co.'s post on the island, kindly offered us a small house, in which g'oods had been stored, and as it was within 100 yards of the Indian encampment, I g"ladly accepted the offer. This I immediately put under repair, covering it with barks outside, and putting* up a stove inside. The house was very small, measuring' eig"hteen feet by twelve ; and, in order to secure a little privacy, I partitioned off eig'ht feet, leaving* for all purposes an apartment ten feet by twelve. This has usually been well iilled with Indians, sitting almost on each other ; and as we were loth to entertain such numbers at meals, we have often had to remain without food all day. Of course this, with many other difficulties, will be overcome by a command of their language ; but any attempt to carry out order without a fair knowledge of their tongue might only insult and estrange them." To the privations thus endured were soon added those attendant on sickness. First, their eldest child was attacked by fever, and for some weeks his life was despaired of, and then Mr. CoUison himself was struck down and broua'ht niffh unto death. Both, we need not say, were tenderly nursed by the wife and mother, and both, by the mercy of God, were raised up again. In the same letter Mr. CoUison describes a remarkable peculiarity of the Hydah villages : — " In approaching a Hydah village from a distance one is reminded of a harbour with a number of ships at anchor, owing to the great number of poles of all sizes erected in front of every liouse. These •mm Outlying Missions — //. Queen Charlotte Isliinds. 89 are carved very well, with all kinds of fipfiires, many of them unin- telligible to visitors or strangfers, but fraught with meaning: to the people themselves. In fact, they have a legend in connection with almost every figure. It is in the erection of these that so much property is given away. They value them very hig-hly, as was instanced lately on the occasion of the Governor-Oenerars visit. He was most anxious to p^irchase one, but they would not consent to it at any price." Patiently and prayerfully for the next two years and a half, with one or two intervals for visits to Metlakahtla, did Mr. CoUison labour among the Hydulis, on the same lines as Mr. Duncan had done originally among the Tsimsheans ; first, diligently trying to pick up their language, and making himself known as their friend ; then opening a school ; then seeking to win them from some of their most degrading customs. Very quickly he gained a remarkable influence over them, and though the medicine-men were, of course, bitterly hostile, greater was He who was with the Missionary than those that were with his opponents ; and the tokens of the working of the Holy Ghost were manifested sooner than even an ardent faith might have anticipated. During the winter of 1877-8, school was conducted daily, women and children attending in the morning, and men in the evening, and the Sunday services were generally attended by three hundred and fifty Indians. Gambling, heathen dances, and the manufacture of " fire-water " from molasses, began gradually to dhninish ; and Mr. CoUison's growing influence was well tested on the occasion of the death of a principal chief : — '*I visited him during his illness, and held service in his house weekly for the five weeks preceding* his death. On the morning- of the day on which he died I visited him, and found him surrounded by the men of his tribe and the principal medicine-man, who kept up his incantations and charms to the last. He was sittings up, and appeared g-lad to see me, and, in answer to my inquiries, he informed me that he was very low indeed and his heart weak. I directed him to withdraw his mind from everything, and look only to Jesus, who alone could help him. He thanked me again and again whilst I .Mmt, .1 i i 90 Metlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. instructed him ; and when I asked him if he would like me to pray with him, he replied that he would very much. I then called upon all to kneel, and, with bowed head, he followed my petitions earnestly. He informed me that, had he been spared, he would have been one of the first in the way of God ; but I endeavoured to show him that even then he min^ht be so by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. After- wards I sent Mrs. Collison to prepare some food for him, and make him comfortable ) and about mid-day he sent for me ag-ain, but why he sent for me, or what he wanted to say to me, I never learned, as before I reached his house he exj)ired. " His death was announced by the firing of several cannon which they have in the village. On my entering the house, the scene which presented itself was indescribable — shrieking, dancing, tear- ing and burning their hair in the fire ; whilst the father of the deceased, who had just been pulled out of the fire, rushed to it again and threw himself upon it. He was with difficulty removed, and I directed two min to hold him whilst 1 endeavoured to calm the tumult " I Wiis very much shocked to find that a young man — a slave — htid been iiccused by the medicine-men as having bewitched the chief and induced his sickness. In consequence of this he had been stripped, and bound hands and feet in ant Id outhouse, and thus kept for some days without food. I only learned this about one hour before the death of the chief, and it was well I heard it even then, as I learned that they had determined to shoot him, and a man had been told off who had his gun ready for the purpose. 1 lost no time in calling tlie chiefs and the friends of the deceased together, and showed them the wickedness and sinfulness of such proceedings, and how, by their thus acting, they had probably kept up a feeling of revenge in the mind of their friend who had just expired. They accepted my advice, and had him unbound, and he came to the Mission-house to have his wounds dressed. His wrists were swollen to an immense size, and his back, from hip to shoulder, lacerated and burned to the bone by torches of pitch pine. fi6 was deeply grateful to me for having saved him. " The dead chief was laid out, and all those of his crest came from the opposite village, bringing a large quantity of swan's down, which they scattered over and around the corpse. At my suggestion, they ilepaited from the usual custom of dressing and painting the deaa, and, instead of placing the corpse in a sitting posture, they consented to place it on the back. The remains were decently interred, and J Outlying Missions — //. Queen Charlotte Islands. 91 gave an address and prayed; thus their custom of placinp^ tlie dead in hollowed ])oles, carved and erected near thw houses, has been broken through, and since this occurred many of the remains which were thus placed have been buried." The first Hydah to come out distinctly as a Christian was a chief named Cowlioo, concerning whom an interesting incident is related. One day ho brought a book to Mr. Collison, saying it had been given him many years before by the captain of an English man-of-war. and asking what it was. Tt proved to be a Testament, with this inscription on the fly-leaf — " From Capt. Frevost, H.M.S. ' Satellite,^ trusting that the hi'ead thus cast upon the waters may be found after many daysy More than twenty years had passed away, and now that prayer was answered, though not by the instrnmcntality of the gift that bore the record of it. Covvhoe became a regular attendant at Mr. Collison's ser- vices and school, and we are told that at a meeting held on the Day of Intercession for Missions, Nov. 30th, 1877, he " prayed very earnestly for the spread of the truth amongst his brethren." When Admiral Pre vest visited the coast in the summer of 187(S, Cowlioe and his father went to Metlakahtla in a canoe on purpose to see the benefactor of their race. Of this visit the Admiral gives the following account : — " Edensaw, the chief of the Hydah nation, arrived with his son, Cowhoe, and Mr, Collinson. They had heard of my visit, and were anxious, to see me " face to face." I knew him in 1863, when I first visited the Queen Charlotte Islands in command of H.M.S. Virago. An American schooner had been plundeied and destroyed by the Islanders ; my object was to punish the offenders, but, after a searching enquiry, I was not able to fix the guilt upon any particular tribe. Some portion of the property was restored, and no lives being lost, I was obliged to be satisfied by assembling together all the chiefs, and reminding them of the power I held to nunish the guilty. In my own mind, I believe Edensaw was the guilty person. From that time up to this hour, he has "been halting between two opinions" — a proud man — he could not give up his power, his wealth and standing over the heathens, to follow the Lord God ; still he knew the Missionary had brought something better than he had ever >. d 92 Mctlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. possessfid in all bis g-lory, and it was expedient for him to be friends with the white men. When Duncan first arrivi'd at Fort Simpson, in 1857, he frequently entreated him to come over and teach the Ilydabs, and wiien I met him again on Imard the Satellite in 1859, he made a similar request to me. I may here remark that anxious as we were to establish a Mission amonj^st that fine race of Indians, it was not until October, 187G, the Committee of the C. M. S., wer able to comply with their request. During- that time hundreds, princi- pally females, had passed into eternity throug-h vice and disease con- tracted at Victoria. " I may add, when I visited Massett last October (1879) with Bishop Eidley, he left Cowhoe with Sneath to assist him during the winter, the first native teacher from the Hydahs. I trust the g-ood seed has taken root in many hearts. " God moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform ! " It was to show me this book, and to shake me by the hand, that the father and son came this long* journey." Id the autumn of 1878, some touching evidences of the Spirit's work gladdened the missionary's heart. On October 2l)th ho wrote : — . " Not a few are enquiring earnestly for the way of life. At a little I social meeting which I had a few days past, the principal chief said : I * I was careless and unconcerned about the message which the white chief brought us, but I can be so no longer. Even at night, when I lie awake on my bed, I cry to God to pardon my many sins and save me. I know now it is true — all true, and I want to be safe in the Ark, even in Jesus the Saviour ' ; and he continued at some length exhorting the others to receive the Word. " Another chief also spoke with intense earnestness and feeling. He said, ' A short time since I was blind, and knew nothing of these great things. But Jesus has opened my eyes, and now I see. Jesus is the way, and I am in that way now. I am happy, very happy ; but one thing keeps me back, and when that is over, I will seek to be baptized, and live only for God.' " This one thing referred to is a giving away of property on account of a deceased brother whose effects he took charge ofj and promised to give away property, and put up a carved pole to his memory. As he has already promised, and given notice to the tribe, he does not wish to draw back. M Outlying Missions — //. Qiieen Charlotte Islands. 93 ^e friends Simpson, teach the in 1859, t f»nxious Indians, S., wer > princi- ease con- Is, i Tiishop e winter, seed has ^^y. His ^Jj tike me ^Spirit's 2()tli Jic t a little ef said ; le white when [ fid save 3 in the leng-th ing-. eel f these Jesus app.y ; ^ to be ty on r, and to his tribe. *' Another — a young- man — is already obeying^ the injunction, ' Let bim that lieareth say, Come ' ; and at the salmon fisiiin}^ and else- where has endeavoured to gather his friends tog-ether for prayer and praise." And on March 20th, 1879, reviewing the winter's work, Mr. Collison again wrote : — " In October last, having mastered the difficulties of the language, I was induced to commence a weekly prayer-meeting. At this meeting we opened with a hymn, after which I prayed, and then delivered a short Gospel address, at the close of which I invited those of them who understood the solemnity and responsibility of prayer, and to whom God had given hearts to pray, to lead briefly and successively in audible prayer. "This mode of conducting the prayer-meeting was attended with good results, as it united those who were in earnest, and who had received the truth into their hearts, more closely together, and led several of those who were halting between heathenism and the truth to decide for the latter. " Thus a band was formed (amongst whom were several of the chiefs and principal men) which confronted the heathen customs on the one hand, and drunkenness and gambling on the other, and, having come out boldly on the side of the truth, their influence was soon perceptible. " I dare not attempt to convey to you in words the intense earnest- ness and fervour of the petitions which they oflered up on behalf of themselves, their families, and the surrounding villages ; whilst, at the same time, there was nothing like excitement, but rather a calm solemnity and quiet earnestness prevailed amongst all. " And surely our united petitions were graciously answered, and a '' great change was soon apparent. " The Lord's Day was observed by the majority, and the services of the day attended by almost all encamped, as well as by a number from the opposite village, which is about three miles ofl". " The flag which I received from the Missionary Leaves Association, to hoist on Sundays, in order to acquaint them of the weekly return of the day of rest, now no longer hangs alone ; but nine of the principal men now follow the example shown by the Mission, and have set up their banners also. 94 Metlaliahthi and the North Pacific Mission. 11 " Dancing has boon abandoned, and tho niodicino work is almost over- thrown ; and, in passing along the village after dark, my ear is now often greeted with tho Christian hymn or the song of praise, whore formerly tho noise of the heathen dance?, (jr tho frantic orgies of the niodicine-man, drowned all other sounds. Thus a change has been cllected during tho past tlireo years, in the contemplation of which 1 can only exclaim, * What hath God wrought ! ' " Even the chief medicine man himself abandoned his sorceries, and came forward as an inquirer : — " The charms and rattles of the leading medicine-man are now in our possession, ho having given them up, and ho is now an earnest inquirer after the truth, and is always present at the services, lie was hrst brought into contact with the truth shortly before Christmas last in the following manner. " A young man was brought homo very sick, and I went to see liim, and found him suffering from a severe attack of ' brain fever,' brought on by his swimming for some time in the cold salt water, in order to cure a severe headache which he had. " I did all [ could to alleviate his sufferings, and instructed his relatives as to how they should nurse him. This resulted in his resting more easily and in his obtaining some sleep, to which he had been a stranger for several nights. " Not satisfied, however, with this, they sent off for the medicine- man, who was encamped up the inlet. He arrived at midnight, and [at once commenced his whooping and rattling This he continued' I at intervals, until the following day, when I paid him a visit. " The house was full, and the patient evidently much worse. The medicine-man, or * Scahaga,' as he is called in their own tongue, had just finished another performance, and sat down exhausted as 1 entered. " All appeared surprised at my intrusion, but 1 knelt down beside the sick man, and took his hand to feel his pulse. I shook my head, and then informed them that he was much worse. The medicine- man then answered in his own defence, and commenced by informing me that he had found out the cause of his sicknesr. i man from the other village had caused it by snatching the cap irr»ra the head of the sick man wher: up the inlet together, which had led to his being smitten or bewitched by a land otter. To this strtei.cnt several Outlying Missions — //. Queen Charlotle Islands. 95 a<'n'^il, as they stated tlie nervous twitches and convulsive movements of tlie sick man were exactly similar to the movements of the above- mentioned animal. " 1 then addressed them all uii the power of God and His dealings with man, and how that Hj alou'. bringeth down and raiseth uj). I then called upon all to join vvilii me in prayer for themsolvos and also on behalf of the sick man. ".'lie uiodicine-man was evidently humbled aiul discomtitod, though ashamed to acknowledge it before so many. Sliortly al'terwvrds the young man died, and I attended his funeral, and gave an address and prayed, according to portions of the Burial Service The medicine-man was present, and most attentive. " From that time he appears to have lost faith in his profession, though ho informed me that the ' Scalumwali,' or spirit, appeared to him, and adviijd him to continue his medicine work, which would be a source of great gain to him ; but that ho had replied, saying God's Word had come, and he was determined to give up his practice, and seek the salvation of his own soul, llis long hair, which has never been cut, and which folded up serves him for a pillow at night, he speaks of having cut off as soon as he can do so with safety to his health. When I see him sitting at our services, clothed and in his right mind, I am reminded that the Gospel is now as ever ' the power of God unto salvation.'" At Christmas (1878), whon the Indians from othor villaoro.s came in canoes to Massett, the usual festive custom of " dancinor with painted faces, and naked slaves with their bodies blackened," was dispensed with, and in lieu of it the visitors were received by a choir of a hundred Hjdahs, children and adults, chanting the anthem, " How beautiful upon tho mountains." " The unanimous opinion of all was that the new and Christian welcome was far superior to the old heathen one." \.\\ the same letter Mr. CoUison mentions his translations, in which he had succeeded beyond hir> expectations. Portions of Scripture, a simple catechism, the Commandments, the Lord's Trayor, the General Confession and Thanksgiving, several collects, ten hymns, and a series of " Short Addresses on Great Subjects," had been produced by him in the Hydah language. Mr. Coliison had visited several tribes at a distance, both on tho islands more to the south, and on the coast of Alaska to the ii ! i I 96 MetlakaJitla and the North Pacific Mission. north. At Skidegate Inlet, which divides the two principal of the Queen Charlotte Islands, he had a particularly warm reception. In a letter, dated March 21st, 1879, he wrote that he had thirty names on the list of catechumens, most of them heads of families. Mr. CoUison has since removed to Metlakahtla, to under- take the pastoral and school-work there. His place at Massett has been taken by Mr. G. Sneath, a zealous young missionary artizan, who twice went to East Africa to join the Victoria Nyanza Mission, and twice was ordered home by the consular surgeon at Zanzibar, and who has now essayed missionary service in a colder climate. i XI. OUTLYING MISSIONS. III. — FORT RUPERT. Fort Rupert is a trading post at the northern end of Van- couver's Island, some three hundred miles soutii of Metlakahtla. In that neighbourhood are found the Quoquolt Indians, and among them a Mission has lately been begun. This is, how- ever, but a tardy response to their repeated entreaties for a teacher. It has always been a problem beyond their power to solve, why, when Mr. Duncan first arrived on the coast, he actually sailed past them on his voyage from Victoria, and went first to the Tsimsheans, who were so much further ofi"; and on one occasion they stoutly remonstrated with the captaia of a man-of-war, sent to punish them for marauding on the territory of another tribe, that they were left without a teacher, and were only visited when they had done w^rong. In due time teachers did appear, in the shape of a party of Roman. Catholic priests ; and Mr. Duncan, stopping at the Fort when on a voyage to Victoria in 1860, found that two of them had been there and had taught some of the Indians " a hymn to the Virgin Mary in the trading jargon." " I told tnem," he adds, " of Jesus the true and only Saviour, which the priests had neglected to do." These Romish Missionaries held their ground for eleven years, and then abandoned the Quoquolts as hopeless. As will be seen however, their hopes revived when at length a Protestant Missionary was found to be gaining an influence over the tribe. In October, 1875, the head chief at Fort Rupert took the three hundred miles journey to visit Metlakahtla, and once more preferred his request. He addressed the Christians of the settle^ G 98 Metlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. ment, and said that " a rope Lad been thrown out from Metla- kahtla, wliich was encircling and drawing together all the Indian tribes into one common brotherhood." Mr. Duncan planned to go and begin a Quoquolt mission himself; but it proved quite impossible for him to leave his multifarious work at the settle- ment, and ultimately the Rev. A. J. Hall, who was sent out in 1877, volunteered to go. It was on March 12th, 1878, that Mr. Hall landed at P'ort Rupert, and was kindly received by the Hudson's Bay Company's officer in charge. A large Indian house was purchased for the price of sixty blankets, and a school at once opened. On June 11th, Mr. Hall wrote:— *' I have taught them one English hymn, * Jesus loves me, this I know,' and three simple chants in their own language ; also three prayers — one the Lord's Prayer, four texts which they read from the black board, and a catechism, arranged and taught by Mr. Duncan at Fort Simpson. All this instruction has been given in their own tongue, translated to me by Mr. Hunt's son, who acts also as my interpreter at tlie Sunday services. " I have been able to hold two services every Sunday since I first came, and sometimes I have had perhaps eighty attend. Many are away from the village now, trading and visiting other tribes, so that my congregatioli is reduced. I have felt it a great privilege to stand up before this dusky assembly and open up to them the Word of Life. They are all clothed in blankets, some of them highly ornamented with needle-work and pearl buttons. When they enter the building, the men take off the bandannah handkerchiefs which are tied round their heads, and squat all around me. Tlie men sit on one side, and the women on the other, as a rule. This fact is in consequence of the inferior position of the women, and because they are not allowed to attend the meetings which the men constantly hold to talk over the at!airs of tlie camp. At first my congregations came with painted faces, and were little inclined to stand wlien we sang. They are now, however, more clean in their appearance, and, with few exceptions, rise when I play the tune on my English concertina. " 1 have almost exclusively spoken to them from the Book of Genesis, and hav^e brought in the work of our Lord from these lessons, e. young women, and children, with a few eld peojde. They assisted their energetic white chief in getting up a demonstration which, under the circumstances, was quite credit- ahle to them. Several Union Jacks were hoisted throughout the village, and a red cloth, with 'God save the Queen' worked on it, was stretched across between two houses near the landing;. As the vice-regal party went ashore a small cannon was fired oiF several times from the gaol, a small hexagonal structure with a balcony round the top. The next thing was the singing of the National Anthem to an accompaniment supplied by some of the members of a brass band which exists among the young men of the community. The latter were g'orgeous in cast-off uniforms of United States soldiers, purchased at a sale of condemned military clothing recently held in Alaska. Half-a-dozen Indian maidens then came forward and pre- sented Lady DufFerin with a bouquet, after which the distinguished visitors were taken to see the church, the school-house, and one of the Indian residences. Subsequently all the people were assembled in the open air, and the younger portion of them sang", under the direction of Mr. Duncan and Mr. Collison, a number of songs and hymns, both in their native tongue and in English. They pronounced the words of the pieces that were in the latter language with a remarkably g"ood accent, although every effort to induce any of them to converse in it was futile. Lord Dufferin endeavoured to get some of tliem to talk with him about their studies, but was not successful in extracting from any of them, including a young" Indian woman whom Mr. Duncan has placed in the position of an assistant teacher in the school, any more definitely English expression than a simper. Mr. Duucan stated that many of his pupils understood English very well, but were somehow averse to speaking it. The \oices of the I I rllj ''' .- *i io6 Metlakahtla and the A'orlh lacific Mission. sinn^ers sounded vei'y well, when allowance is made for their bashful- ness. Some of their pieces were of a fiig-ue character, and the tuno which was kept in sing'inpc them was remarkably j^'ood, considerin;,' that there was no accompaniment to them. ** After some time had been spent in singing-, a young man advanced and read the following* address in excellent style : — " To His Excellency the Earl of Duff'erin, Oovernor-Generalof the Dominion of Canada : " May IT Please Your Excellency, — We, the inhabitants of Metlakahtla, of the Tsimshean nation of Indians, desire to express our joy in welcoming your Excellency and Lady Dutferin to our village. Under the teaching of the Gospel we have learned the Divine command, * Fear God, honour the King,' and thus as loyal subjects of her iMajesty Queen Victoria we rejoice in seeing you visit our shores. *' We have learned to respect and obey the laws of the Queen, and we will continue to uphold and defend the same in our community and nation. " We are still a weak and poor people, only lately emancipated from the thraldom of heathenism and savage customs ; but we are struggling to rise and advance to a Christian life and civilization. "Trusting that we may enjoy a share of your Excellency's kind and fostering care, and under your administrat on continue to advance in peace and prosperity', " We have the honour to subscribe ourselves, your Excellsncy's humble and obedient servants. " For the Indians of Metlakahtla, " David Leask, " Secretary to the Native Council." " The members of the Council all came forward in turn and signed the document by making their marks." The Governor-General replied as follows : — " I have come a long distance in order to assure you, in the name of your Great Mother, the Queen of England, with what pleasure she has learnt of your well-being, and of the progress you have made in the arts of peace and the knowledge of the Christian religion, under the auspices of your kind friend, Mr. Duncan. ■ You must understand Lord Dii^erin at Metlokahtla, 107 that I have not come for my own pknisiire, but that the journey has been long* and laborious, and that I am here from a sense of duty, in order to make you feel by my actual presence with what solicitude the Queen and Her Majesty's Government in Canada watch over your welfare, and how anxious they are that you should persevere in that virtuous and industrious mode of life in which I find you enpag-ed. I have viewed with astonishment the church which you have built entirely by your own industry and intelligence. That church is in itself a monument of the way in which you have profited by the teachings you have received. It does you the greatest credit, and we have eVery right to hope, that, while in its outward aspect it bears testimony to your conformity to the laws of the Gospel, beneath its sacred roof your sincere and fiiithful prayers will be rewarded by those blessings which are promised to all those who approach the Throne of God in humility and faith. I hope you will understand that your "White Mother and the Government of Canada are fully prepared to protect you in the exercise of your religion, and to extend to you those laws which know no difference of race, or of colour, but under which justice is impartially administered between the humblest and the greatest of the land. The , .vernment of Canada is proud to think that there are upwards of 30,000 Indians in the territory of British Columbia idone. She recognizes them as the ancient inhabi- tants of the country. The white men have not come amongst you as conquerors, but as friends. We regard you as our fellow-subjects, and as equal to us in the eye of the law as you are in the eye of God, and equally entitled with the rest of the community to the benefits ot good government, and the opportunity of earning an honest liveli- hood. I have had very great pleasure in inspecting your school, and I am quite certain that there are many among the younger portion of those I am now addressing who have already begun to i^tA how much they are indebted to that institution for the expansion of their mental faculties, f jr the knowledge of what is passing in the outer world, as well as '.'or the insight it affords them into the laws of nature and into the art? of civilized life 3 and we have the further satisfac- tion of remembering that as year after year flows by, and your population 'iicreases, all those beneficial influences will acquire additional strength and momentum. I hope you are duly grateful to him to whom, under Providence, you are indebted for all these benefits, and that when you contract your own condition, the peace in which you live, the comforts that surround you, the decency of W io8 Afetlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. your habitations, when you see your wives, your sisters, and your duuf^hters contributing so materially by the brijj^litness of their appearance, the softness of their manners, tlieir housewifely qualities, to the pleasantness and cheerfulness of your domestic lives, contrasting; as all these do so striking-Iy with your former surroundinf^-s, you will remember that it is to Mr. Duncan you owe this blessed initiation into your new life. By a faithful adherence to his principles and exampleyou will become useful citizens and faithful subjects, an honour to those under whose auspices you will thus have shown to what the Indian race can attain, at the same time that you will leave to your children an ever-widening- prospect of increasing happiness and pro- gTessive improvement. JJefore I conclude I cannot help expressing to Mr. Duncan, and those associated with him in his good work, not only in my own name, not only in the name of the Government of Canada, but also in the name of Her Majesty the Queen, and in the name of the people of England, who take so deep an interest in the well-being of all the native races throughout the Queen's dominions, our deep gratitude to him for thus having devoted the flower of his life, in spite of innumerable difficulties, dangers, and discouragements, of whicn we, who only see the result of his labours, can form only a very inadequate idea, to a work which has resulted in the beautiful scene we have witnessed this morning. I only wish to add that I am very much obliged to you for the satisfactory and loyal address with which you have greeted me. The very fact of your being in a position to express yourselves with so much propriety is in itself extremely creditable to you, and although it has been my good fortune to receive many addresses during my stay in Canada from various communities of your fellow-subjects, not one of them will be surrounded by so manj' hopeful and pleasant reminiscences, as those which I shall carry away with me from this spot." Before he left British Columbia Lord Dufferin delivered an address at Government House, Victoria, in which, referring to this visit, he said : — " I have traversed the entire coast of British Columbia, from its southern extremity to Alaska. I have penetrated to the head of Bute Inlet j I have examined the Seymour Narrows, and the other channels which intervene between the head of Bute Inlet and Vancouver Island. I have looked into the mouth of Dean's Canal, Lord Duffcrin at Metlakahtla. 109 nnd passed across tlie entrance to Gardener's Channel. I have visited ^Ir. Duncan's wonderful settlement at Metlakahtla, and the interesting" Methodist Mission at Fort Simpson, and have thus been enabled to realise what scenes of primitive peace and innocence, of idyllic beauty and material comfort, can be presented by the stalwart men and comely maidens of an Indian community, under the wise administration of a judicious and devoted Christian Missi died May 2nd, 1877, AoED 32 Years. ♦ In Memory op PAUL LEG AIG, (Head Chief of the Tsim&hean Indians), Who died May Gth, 1869, AoED 55 Years. "Is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?" On 2nd July I left Metlakahtla in a large canoe, paddled by five Kincolith Indians, to visit the C. M. S. Mission at Kincolith, " place of the scalps," Naas Eiver, established by the Rev. R. Doolan, in July, 1864. Since then the Mission has been removed lower down the river, at the entrance of the Portland Canal, beautifully ♦ A picture drawn from this photograph appeared in the Chtirch Missionary Gleaner of July, 1879, Admiral Prnmt at Metlakahila. 121 situated, hedged in bv high mountain peaks, 3,807 and 3,385 feet in height. Inland tnere is good farming land, and many native villages, with souls thirsting for the Gospel news. The following day we sighted the church ; soon the houses were visible. Flags were run up, ard as we approached the landing-place, a gun was fired, and we could see the inhabitants hastening to welcome us, dressed in their best, some in very bright colours. Being high water we landed easily. Many were the kind words of welcome floating in the bright sunshine. "Wklcome to KiNCOLiTH," in large letters of the fern leaves; " Come to Naas Kiver" ; ** Tis Day {sk\ We ahe all very HAPpy to see You, Sir" — their own composition and spelling. As we landed guns were fired. We were welcomed at tne Mission House by Mrs. Tomlinson and her five children. Soon after, we all met again in the schoolroom, where I gave a short address. July Ath. — Visited the sawmill, which is romantically situated near the river, from whence there is a fine view of the valley. Its high cliffs, and their snow-capped tops, betoken a severe winter residence, though on our return we crossed a meadow where cows and calves were grazing. In the meanwhile my invitation to a feast had been accepted, allwere busily employed, and soon all were seated enjoying the cofl^ee and biscuits as at Metlakahtla. During the feast, a canoe was seen passing down the river, and the universal wish was expressed by all the leading men that the strangers should be invited to join them. Oh, bow the blessedness of the Gospel is daily brought before one among these Christian Indians — "peace, good-will towards all men " ! In former years a watchman would have told of the approach of an enemy, and all would have taken to arms to defend their lives. " Oh that men would therefore praise the Lord lor His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men ! '* July 6th. — This was our last day at Kincolith. At 8 p.m., we embarked in our canoe to return to Metlakahtla, taking leave of the Mission greatly encouraged, and thankful for the bright prospects before them, acknowledging with deep gratitude the Lord's hand in the work, and earnestly praying that the young converts may be preserved from the many trials and temptations which are brought nearer and nearer to them year by year. July \Oth. — Before my departure from Metlakahtla, I assembled the few who were left at the village, to tell them I was anxious to leave behind some token both of my visit to them after so long an absence, and also that I still bore them ou ray heart. What should it be ? After hours of consultation, they decided they w >uld leave the choice to me, and when I told them (what I had beforehand determined iipon^ that my present would be a set of street lamps to lig'ht up their village by nig'ht, their joy was unbounded. Th?a 124 Admiral Prevost at Metlakahtla. iM* River, begun by Mr. Doolan, so that Metlakahtla still remained without an ordained missionary. But the grace of God is not tied to a regular ministry, and the settlement grew and prospered, spiritually as well as materially, under the loving care of its lay founder. In 1873, Mr. W. H. Collison joined the Mission as a schoolmaster, and in 187() Mr. H. Schutt went out in the same capacity, to leave Mr. Collison free to begin new work in Queen Charlotte's Islands. In 1877 the Rev. A. J. Ha-1, a youiig clergyman in full orders, was appointed to Mellakahtla ; but he, too, under the advice of his brethren, remov^ed soon after his arrival to Fort Rupert, to break up fresh ground. At length Mr. Collison, having been ordained deacon and priest by Bishop Bom pas, of Athabasca, during the latter's visit to the coast in the winter of 1877-8, and having been released from the work at Queen Charlotte's Islands by the arrival of Mr. G. Sneath in 1879, again took up his abode at Metlakahtla as pastor of the settlement. In the meanwhile, certain unhappy disputes in Victoria, arising from the extreme doctrinal views which found an entrance into the Church in the Colony, as they have into the Church at home, had resulted in a secession to the American " Reformed Church " under the leadership of the Rev. E. Cridge. Mr. Gridge was greatly beloved by the Christians of Metlakahtla, having given much godly counsel and help to the Mission ; and they not unnaturally felt much sym- pathy for him in the painful step he had felt it his duty to take. In this state of things, the Bishop of Columbia, anxious not to rouse feelings which it might be hard to allay, with much wisdom and generosity refrained from visiting Metlakahtla, and wrote to Bishop Bompas, of Athabasca, who is a devoted missionary of the C. M. S., asking him to come over and visit the coast, and to perform episcopal functions in the C. M. S. Mission. Accordingly, in November, 1877, Bishop Bompas, reached Metlakahtla after a long and difficult Journey across the Rocky and Cascade Mountains, and the wilderness of lake3 and rivers stretching between those chains. He remained three months on the coast, visited the outlying stations, confirmed The Diocese of Caledonia. 125 lained is not |w and loving joined |t went begin [. A. J. 124 of the Christian Indians, ordained Mr. Coilison deacon and priest, and assisted Mr. Duncan and the other missionaries in maturing plans for the extension of the Mission.* In 1879, Bishop Hills, being on a visit to England, arranged with the Church Missionary Society a plan for providing ils Missions with episcopal oveisight. He had come, charged by his Diocesan Synod to take steps for dividing his vast diocese into three— Columbia, New Westminster, and Calalonia— which would form an ecclesiastical province on the west side of the Rocky Mountains, just as, on th" east side, the four dioceses of Rupert's Land, Moosonee, Athabasca, and Saskatchewan, form the province of Hupert's Land, 'ilie northernmost of these three divisions, Caledonia, would comprise the field of the C. M. S. Missions ; and the Society therefore undertook to guarantee the income of the Bishop for this division, provided that the Committee w^ere satisfied with the appointment made. The scheme was happily consummated by the choice of the Rev. Wm. Ridley, vicar of St. Paul's, Huddersfield, who had been a C. M. S. missionary in India, but whose health had been unequal to the trying climate of the Peshawar Valley. Mr. Ridley was consecrated on St. James's Day, July 25th, 1879, at St. Paul's Cathedral, at the same time as Dr. Walsham How to the Suffragan-Bishopric of Bedford (for East London), Dr. Barclay to the Anglican See of Jerusalem, and Dr. Speechly to the new diocese of Travancore and Cochin. The Diocese of Caledonia comprises the territory lying between the Rocky Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, with the adjacent islinds, and is bounded on the south by a line draw^n westward from Cape St. James, at the south end of Queen Charlotte's Islands, and on the north by the 60th parallel of latitude. It comprises, therefore, the mining districts on the upper waters of the Fraser and Skcena and Stachine rivers, with their rough white population, and many thousands of Indians of the Tsim- * Bishop Bompas' accou.it of the Christmas he spent at Metlakiihtia is given at page 75. A narrative of bis journey across the Kooky Mountains, appeared in the O. M. Intelligencer ot August, 1878,. 126 Metlakahtla and the North Parific Mission. shean and Hjdali nations on the coast, as well as others in the interior. Bishop Ridley sailed from Liverpool on Sej)temher 13th for New York, crossed the States bv the Pacific Railway, took steamer again at San Francisco, and reached Victoria on October 14th. There he met Mr. Duncan, and also Admiral Pj'evost, who had again gone out a few months before, pr.rily ; • repare the way for the new Bishop; and a fiew days Iter i,;iey sailed together for Metlakahtla. On Novo'nber 1st he wrote as follows: — " Metlakahtla has no+ disappointed me. The situatior is excellent. There is no spot to compare with it this side of Victoria. During this week the weather has been charming-. Frosty nights, but the days mild, as in Cornwall at this season. Numbers of the worn-out old folk have been basking* in the sun for hours daily. Squatting in the long grass, they looked the very pictures of contentment. They all g'azed on the sea. No wonder it they loved it. Besides being the store-house from which they took their food, it is the chief feature in one of the most beautiiul views I have ever seen. We ire at the entra\ce of an estuary that winds about, lalyrinth-like ru;, it leads up to a stream more than twenty miles distant inianc'. > - side are large islands, their lofty heads pine-clad, and ti ) ,iu garment reaching to the very waves on all sides. These are (jrc i' breakwaters. Inside, wherever the channel widens, there aresmallei islands, so disposed as to make it impossible to say what is island and what continent. 'J'hese aie g'ems in a setting that perfectly reflects the grass and pines fringing" the sea's glossy surface, as well as the background of snow-patciied mountain. Yesterday the stillness was reverential, and quite in keeping with Sunday rest. Scores ot gTaceful canoes were di * wi; above the tide. Not a paddle broke the silence. As Admiral Piv,.uoo and l iiood in the Mission garden we heard, in the distance, the howls of ; ^^-^k of wolves. A flight of crows or rooks claimed a moment's aii-eurion. Besides this, nothing disturbed the calm sea, or the sfcdlness, but the wing of some wild fowl splashing the jc:;. as it rose. Before we returned to the house we were ravi&aeu wi'i the splendour of the sunset. The giant that had run its day's course transformed the scene. He touched everything, tdl sea "and sky vied with each other in glorious effects. The snowy peaks to eastward blushed. > The Diocese of Caledonia. 127 K'l's in the \ 13th for Y^y, took >n October revost, who ^'■♦'P'lre the •»ey sailed wrote as s excellent. •■• During ts, but the e worn-out uatting' in int. They iides being the cliief Wp :lrri like ■ nt)l an'.'. • t;!^ ti ) ■.,■00 are Gc I'i are smallei island and ly reflects i^ell as the ping- with ■*■ the tide. i- i;i:ocd in a V5<{'^lr of ati-eunion. !, but the before we ur of the rmed the ich other But, after all, the Sun of Rig'liteousness has ])rodiiced a far more beautiful transformation in the character of the Indian, and this chang-e is not fleeting*. The church bell rings, and, from both wings of the village, well-dressed men, their wives and children, pour out from the cottages, and the two currents meet at the steps of the noble sanctuary then own hands have made, to the honour of God our Saviour. On Saturday I had made a sketch of the village. Mr. Duncan remarked, as the people streamed along, * Put that stream into your picture.' * That would never do,' I said, * nobody would believe it.' Inwardly I exclaimed, * What hath God wrought !' Jt would be wrong to suppose that the love of God alone impelled them all. All, without reasonable cause to the contrary, are expected to attend the public services. A couple of policemen, as a matter of routine, are in uniform, and this is an indication that loitering during service hours is against proper civil order. This wholesome restraint is possible during these early stages of the corporate life of the com- munity. At present one strong will is supreme. To resist it, every Indian feels would be as impossible as to stop the tides. This righteous autocracy is as much feared by the ungodly around as it is respected and admired by the faithful. Thus are law and Gospel combined with good results." Before leaving England, Dr. Ridley had earnestly appealed for funds to provide him with a small stcaiier — an absolute necessity if his episcopal duties were to be performed safely and regularly. Without it ^he long voyages up and down the coast, and among th<3 islands, would have to be made in native canoes. The perilous naf^ure ol such travelling had been sadly illustrated only two years before, by the loss of a boat which was conveying an excellent Hudson's Bay officer from Queen Charlotte's Islands to the mainland. He and his crew of Tsimshean Christians were all drowned except one Indian, who was in the water four days and I lights, lashed to a piece of the canoe, and was drifted on to the Alaska coast. This Indian related how, when they were all clinging to the capsized boat, Mr. Williams, the officer, seeing death imminent, called on them to pray, and as tlieir strength failed they sank praying and singing hymns. The Bishop himself, in one of his first voyages, within a fortnight of his arrival, was overtaken by a gale in a canoe which two men could lift, and in J 128 Metlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. I which ten were huddled together, and '^ as nearly lost as a saved man could be." " How 1 longed for my steamer ! " he wrote ; " unless I get one, a new Bishop will soon be wanted, for the risk in tt"'?o frail crafts is tremendous, and a short career the probable conse/ 3." The n. ^ y required, we are glad to say, has been raised, and the steamer will (D.V.) soon be speeding up and down the coast on its errands of love — preserved and prospered, we doubt not, by His goodness who rules the winds and the waves. It only remains to add the latest news from Metlakahtla, as communicated in the annual letters of Mr. Duncan and Mr. CoUison for 1879. Mr. Duncan writes, on March 8th, 1880 :— " In regard to secular matters, the year past has been one of marked progress — the greatest year for building the Indians have ever known. We have now eighty-eight new houses up, or in course of erection ; and when all the houses are erected, roads completed, and gardens, drains, and fences finished, we shall have certainly a very attractive home. But there remains a good deal to do yet. Our Ar.«rican neighbours are being aroused to their duty for the poor Indians of Alaska. — encourageH, they tell us, by what has oeen accomplished at Metlakahtla. During the past year I have had several letters from, and interviews with, American gentlemen (among whom were three generals of the army in active service), who w>^re anxious to learn from me my plans and modes of dealing with the Indians. I am afraid they are attributing our success too much to secular matters, and too little to the preaching of 'he Gospel. I have strongly warned them not to commence at the wrong end. " I have already opened up and discussed with the Indiana the desirability of their endeavouring to take into their own hands all the secular work I have begun. If my hopes are realised, it will be a grand termination of all my secular work. The Indians are delighted with the idea, and will struggle bard to reach the goal. " Our Church, Sunday School, and Day School are all prospering. " The surrounding heathen tribes are not being neglected. I paid a visit to the Kithratlas, in company with the Admiral, last Autumn, a saved wrote ; [the risk )robable 'ed, and |he coast ibt not, ihtia, as md Mr. 8th, one of ns have n course aipleted, 'tainlj a do yet. the poor IS been ve had (among 10 w,»re ^ith the uch to I have niii the ads all vill be IS are •al. 3ring. Ipaid tumn, The Diocese of Caledonia. 129 and a native teacher — Edward Mather — is now being employed amongst tliem. Other native teachers are about taking up work around, as the seasons allow, and as the Indians are accessible. " In the month of July Dr. Powell, Superintendent of Indian Affairs, and j\Ii-. Anderson, Commissioner for Fisheries, paid us their long-promised visit in H.M.S. Rocket. Though only a portion of our population were at home, our visitors expressed themselves as greatly astonished and delighted at all they saw. Dr. Powell has since written me an official letter, and read me his official report to the minister at Ottawa, both which were highly commendatory, and Mr. Anderson has published a long letter in the Colonist newspaper about Metlakahtla. The testimony of the latter gentleman was very telling upon the community here, as he has lived in this country upwards of fifty years^ and is considered a great authority on Indian # affairs." Mr. Collison mentions that during the winter he conductor' & class of catechumens, and that, after due examination by Bishop Ridley, seventy-two persons, men and women, were baptized on Sundays, Jan. 25th and Feb. 1st, of the present year, 1880. During the year under review sixty-three children also were baptized. " Thus," writes Mr. Collison, ** the visible Church increases ; but our greatest care and concern is that they may be united to Christ by a living faith, and grow up in Him into a spiritual temple, of which Jesus Christ Himself is the chief corner-stone." Such is the story of Metlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. An unfinished story, indeed, the plot of which is still unfolding itself, and the issues of which, in this world, are known only to Him who sees the end from the beginning. And yet a story which, embracing as it does, the separate life-stories of many individuals, again and again comes to a true "end," to an *' end" for which we may well render unceasing praise. What the destiny of Metlakahtla may be, none can say ; but what the destiny is of soul after soul that has passed away in peace and hopo, and that owed that peace and hope, under God, to the infiuence of Metlakahtla, we do know. The day is coming — it may be very soon — when Metlakahtla will share the universal jWBUgPUgg'*' I I 130 Metlakahtla and the North Pacific Mission. fate of the things that are seen and temporal, and will hare become a mere memory of the past ; while the men and women, and children, whom it brought to the God and Father of all to be washed, and sanctified, and justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God, live on and on in the power of an endless life. No tall church spire, rising from the inlet of Kahtla, will then be needed to guide the mariner througli the Archipelago of the North Pacific coast ; " for there shall be no more sea." But the great temple of living souls will stand forth in all its glory and beauty, and among the stones of that spiritual house will be many hewn from the quarry in the Far West. Tsimshean and Hydah, and many another l\ed Indian tribe, shall find a place in the building which, fitly framed to- gether, shall then have grown into a holy temple unto the Lord. Happy in Jeed will those then be who have had a share, however humble, in the work of raising it, stone by stone, to His praise who will make it His dwelling for ever ! i JAMES SEARS k SON, STKAM TRINTEKS, CRANK COURT, FLEET STREET, E.C ^ill have women, f all to |tho Lord in the from the through shall be ill stand ' of that the Far Indian lined to- le Lord, however is praise CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE. I ^ 1 ( u. 1792. 1819. 1856. July. )i >) Dec. 23. 1857. June 13. M Oct. 1. 1858. June 13. II Nov. 19. )i Dec. 20. 1859. 1860. April. >» Aug. 8. 1861. July 26. M Oct. 10. 1862. May 28. 1868. April. 1864. July 2. )» 1866. May. 1867. May 27. ** Aug. >l :o:- Discovery of Vancouver's Island by Captain Cook. Further discftverios by Captain Vancouver. Attention of the 0. M. S. Committee drawn to the Inci;'n Tribes on the N irth Pacific Coast. Captain Prevost's Appeal for British Columbia appeared in the C M, Intelligencer. Contribution of £500 received to begin a North Pacific Mission. William Duncan sailed with Captain Prevost in the Satellite. The Satellite reached Vancouver's Island. Duncan reached Fort Simpson. Duncan preached his first Sermon in Tsimshean. Duncan opened a School for Indian children. Legaic's attack on Duncan. Bishopric of Columbia founded. Duncan's first visit to Nass River. Arrival of Rev. L. S. Tugwell. First baptism of Indians— nineteen adults. Return home of Mr. Tugwell. Foundation of the new Settlemti;t at Metlakahtla. Visit of the Bishop of Columbia to Metlakahtla — Baptism of fifty-seven adults. Arrival of Rev. . R. A. Doolan. Nass River Mission begun. Second visit of Bishop of Columbia. Arrival of Rev. R. Tomlinson. Return home of Mr. Doolan. Kincolith Station established on Nass River. r, E.c. Chronological Table. f II ISfiQ. May 6. 1870. Jan. 28. M Mar. 13 to" Sept. 8 . 1871. Feb. 27. •> Oct. 1873. Aug. 6. )> Nov. ». 1874. Dec. 25. 1876. Aug. 18. 1876 i> Aug. 30. n Oct. 16. 11 Nov. 1. 1877. Aug. 6. •> Nov. to Mar., 78 1878. Mar. 12. >» Mar. 17. M June. 18 1879. May 2. ** July 25. >» Oct. U. Death of Legale. Duncan left Metlakahtla for England. Duncan in England. Duncan returned to Metlakahtla. First baptisms at Kincolith by Archdeacon Woods. First Stone of Metlakahtla Church laid by the Governor of British Columbia. Arrival of Mr. W. H. Collison. Opening of Metlakahtla Church. Duncan's plans for the Indians of British Columbia adopted by the Provincial Government. Duncan's journey to Ottawa to confer with the Canadian Government. Lord Dufferin's visit to Metlakahtla. Arrival of Mr. H. Schutt. Mr. Collison began Queen Charlotte Islands Mission. Arrival of Rev. A. J. Hall. Bishop Bompas's visit to the Mission. Mr. Hall began Fort Rupert Mission. Ordination of Mr. Collison. Admiral Prevost's visit to Jletlakahtla. Arrival of Mr. G. Sneath. Consecration of Rev. W. Ridley to Bishopric of Caledonia. Arrival of Bishop Ridley at Victoria. ''K WI^J- ■in" .fr \\r\mntiii.Mtiemimtmt Vublicationsst of tlje iona.r7 Ai.ma.nack may also be hal, mounted on straw boards, bound, round with paper, eyeletted and tapel for hanging up. Price 4J. each. The Church Missionary Pocket Almanack and Kalendar for 1880. Containing much general information and C. M.S. intelligence. Price in lithographed wrapper, 6d. ; In cloth, gilt, is. PAPERS suitable for GRATUITOUS DISTRIBUTION. Brief View of the Principles and Proceedings of the Society. Hints on Juvenile and Sunday School Church Missionary Asso. ciations. Appeal to the Toan?. Hints on the Use of Missionary Boxes. Parish Canvass Paper. Statements and Facts. Paper on Parochial Associations. By the Rev. J. E. Sampson, of York. Testimony of Government of India. Lord Lawrence on Missions in India. Testimony of Four Governors of India. Address to Heads of Families, &o. A Lady's Hints to Enlargre the Society's Operations at Home. Suhscrlption Slip for Pews. MISCELLANEOUS. A Set of Twelve Coloured Diagrams, suitable for Lecturing Purposes. Illustrative of the Society's work in India, and the Customs of the Natives. Printed on calico. Size about 3ft. by 4tt. Price £2 is. Two Large Wall Maps, printed on linen. Suitable for Lecturing Purposes. size abont 6 ft. square. 1. Th« Contin'-nt of Africa. 2. Eastern Equatorial Africa, showing the Lake Distrist, Price 8s. each, or the two Maps for 15a. i w Aj i jj ./ .^ >--i^ ., V,./ • >',WT4i' ^