ssHi ^- ~*^ «%. IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I tii §U IIIII2 2 12.0 us I4£ 1.8 1.25 1.4 1.6 -< 6" — ► /a VI ^m >j ^- ^ (p/i /A Photographic Sdences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY. MS80 (716) 872-4503 s. ip V .^\^ :\ \ % V ;^^ % // 'A' Mi :d CIHM Microfiche Series (l\/lonographs) ICIMH Collection de microfiches (monographies) Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproductions / Institut Canadian de microreproductions historiques Technical and Bibliographic Notei / Notes techniques et bibliographiques The Institute has attempte /« '> ■u Z d> ti Jap.an, Wilkes that a few boys who were educated at r<"-'J»" eouver not only earned their own living, but were profitable to the establUhment, Of course, a peope who can obtain the necessaries of life, without "'ffl™"!" fr?™ *= abundant supplies with which nature has surrounded them, and can grat^y their acquired tastes and habits by bartermg the proceeds of the chase or fishery with the servants of the Company for European nianufactures, requires rome m- du^men^ to labour. It appears to me that th,s mducement cronly be found in the power of avaihng themselves of European science and civih^ation for the>r own benefit andTot merely for that of those who instruct thcna and that the prospect of being able to do so will at once attach them any teachers who come among them w.th thjs smgle- heald and unselfish purpose. At present the European alrNative American, on the North-west coast, must Indin the relation of master and "'^ - »f J™ ° concealed enmity, either case opposed to the pnncples and practice of Christianity. What is wanted for this purpose, on this coast, and pos- sibly nearer home, appears to me to be some centre, round whkh the people can congregate, and where 'hey ".ay find The means of civi«^ation by bodily and mental culture, and rfinrtruction in the principles and doctrines of the Chns ,an rlSr I believe L can only be done by transportmg Eniush social Ufe there as well as Enghsh science ; our misslaries must be women and children, laymen, me- rhinics and labourers as well as clergy. X importance of the social element can hardly be over- rated We have not now the kind of mstruments for mUsionary enterprises, nor the sources for the supply of Tm whfch the lioman Catholic Church has-we have * Ther the order nor the vow ; but it is my behef that we 17 have far better— the means of shewing the influence of Christianity on domestic life. By way of explaining my ideas on the subject I will sketch a plan, roughly, in outline, premising that the filling in of the details must be left, in a great measure, to those who are to work them out. If a Missionary College consisting of a Superior or Principal, and five fellows or brethren, to whom and their successors, under certain statutes made and provided beforehand, the future conduct of the mission might be committed, and in whom its property might be vested, it might be sufficient, pro- vided they were all married men, if with families, so much the better. Of these, two should be priests, to secure a continuance of sacramental administration ; two might be medical men, who might also be in deacon's orders, which would enable them to as ist better in missionary work, and need not at all interfere with their professional labours; the two others might be laymen. The application of a missionary force of two priests and two deacons, being medical men, is sufficiently obvious under any circumstances, but I feel that which I have to propose for the laymen will at first appear strange to many, and possibly even to you. All will, however, agree that the specialty of these men must be determined by the cir- cumstances of the case, the character of the people among whom, and the country in which they are to labour. In the present case I propose that one, at least, should be, in the first instance, a sailor. For the reasons already stated, the college must of necessity be isolated, and at present— although we have been recently told by the Minister of the United States, that four lines of radway are in process of survey to the Pacific Ocean, although the brigadt^s uf the Ilutlsou's Bay Company traverse the interior of the continent without difficulty, and I at least look forward to seeing that path opened to all before louir 18 — there 13 no available communication with the North-west coast but by sea. To place a small community, including women and children, most of them accustomed to the comforts, many to the luxuries of our most comfortable, not to say luxurious mode of life in England, thus cut oflf from all communica- tion with civilized men, without even power to obtain news of their friends, for they could scarcely depend on the transmission of letters by the Company, and in that case must send to Fort Victoria for them, is, to say the least, if it may be avoided, an unnecessary cruelty. By the Com- pany's mail news could t nly be received once a year, and very probably no answer returned until the next, and for nothing else could communication with Canada be made available for many years to come ; while if means of com- munication with California were afforded, it might be made every three months. It will appear from the locality I have named, that the nearest point from which supplies could be obtained — Fort Victoria — would be, say two days' sail; Puget's Inlet settlement, three or four; the Columbia river, say four, probably more, on account of its difficult entrance ; Fort Vancouver, say seven, San Francisco five or six; the Sandwich Islands, fifteen or twenty : all, indeed, less under favourable circumstances, but these may be assumed as fair averages. Now, al- though it is intended that the College shall be self- supporting, yet provision must be made against contin- gencies. Fort Victoria, the nearest at hand, cannot' be depended on for supplies, the Company providing there, as it may be presumed, only sufficient for its own purposes ; Puget's Inlet, Fort Vancouver, the Willamette and the Sandwich islands are therefore the available points, and at one, if not all of them, every thing necessary for a young settlement may be procured; for such distances a good vessel and good saUors to command and man her are indispensable. Besides, if the missionaries, as I should 4 • 19 hope they will, are to itinerate beyond their own immediate locality, it must be by sea ; if, in short, they are any of them to go among the natives, and attract them to their settlement, they must travel as the natives do, by water, and the intricacies of the navigation and strength of the currents are well known to you. Aioreover, the Corpora- tion, its belongings and dependants, must be conveyed to its locaUty, and as the voyage there by any existing means would be almost as expensive as the purchase, I would make a vessel—say a chpper schooner of about 200 tons burden— a part of its outfit. This would, as will be seen in the issue, add not only much to the com- fort and speed of the voyage, but contribute effectually to the efficiency and security of the College when established. We have, then, our priests, medical men and sailors ; to these must be added a schoolmaster, an engineer, a gar- dener and agriculturist, a carpenter, a mason, with say four sailors, a boatswain or petty officer, a ship carpenter, a blacksmith and armourer, and sail maker—in all fifteen men, at the least; to these add fifteen women, and at an average, say thirty children, in all sixty persons, who, with the requisite stores, supplies, and materiel, might be comfortably conveyed in such a vessel as I have indicated, and, I think, would not be more than three months on the voyage. I would supply them with food for the voyage, and vegetable food for one year; stock may be purchased at Victoria or Puget's Inlet, at a great saving on home cost and risk of transit ; seeds and plants should be taken in abundance ; agricultural and other implements, a saw and grist mill, a lathe, all of which might be worked eventually by the same power, whether water or steam ; a printing press; astronomical and other scientific instru- ments ; and, I believe, with these, they would find them- selves when landed thoroughly independent. A little fur- ther explanation of the modus operandi will shew this sufficiently. 20 ill I li! 1 suppose that, in such a plan, civilization and religion must go hand in hand, if permanent benefit is to be effected. Such a Corporation would, after the fashion of the monks of old and the successful American mission- ai-ies in Oregon and elsewhere in the Pacific, endeavour first to surround itself with the comforts of European social life ; to build, to sow, to plant, and to teach the natives, especially the children, to do the same, and thus open the way for religious instruction ; and I think this is fully jus- tified, not by experience only, as the true missionary method among uncivilized people, but by the example of our Lord himself, who " went about doing good, and heal- ing all manner of disease among the people '," and gene- rally by the application given to precepts of charity by himself and his apostles, especially St. John. All, there- fore, even the priests would be working with their hands like St. Paul, and in that country, as the timber, though magnifi- cent in size, is not of close growth, — indeed it could not attain the size it does, which, especially to the south, often seems almost fabulous, if it were,— but is disposed for the most part over the ground in park-like order,* clearing is not a necessary preliminary to agricultural operations, but the soil at once admits the plough, and cattle obtain their natural food in abundance ; if therefore they arrived in the spring, and commenced cultivation at once, supplies for the second year could be obtained during the first, and before those taken out were exhausted ; and this is to me a most important feature in the scheme. Missionary efforts, as at present carried on, require onstant bols- terino- up from home, and consequentl r are seldom capable of extension ; and if application is made for the estabUshment of new stations, we are told that the old can scarcely be maintained. Now, if right-minded men • Thia is true of the Oregon and the south part of Vancouver's Island, but not of the south-west. If my information is correct, it is characteristic of the disti'ict about Quatsinough. 21 go out, and train their children to follow in their steps, it can scarcely be that in such a case sufficient men and means will be wanting to supply new stations, and as gradually great abbeys established cells, and by them ex- tended their influence to remote districts, so would the islands and coast of North West America soon be dotted with little nuclei of Christianity and civilization, differing in this from their prototypes, that they will contain within themselves the elements of their own permanence and extension, and require neither supplies of men nor monr y from home ; while their influence will be social, as well as ecclesiastical. There w-il then be no looking to England as the retreat in the decline of life, no turning back after having put the hand to the plough, but the missionrries will die in the land of their choice, and be buried in the Church which they founded, and identifying themselves with the people of their adoption, give the best proof of their honesty and singleness of purpose. With respect to the cost of such a schemo, I have made calculations which place its minimum at ^£5000, a sum which I conceive there would be no difficulty in raising, when the greatness of the work, the efficiency of the staff, its self-supporting power, cr the ultimate result, are con- sidered; for under any ordinary circumstances it must have recreative power enough to supply any department with fresh labourers, either from the children or the natives, before those who go out shall be taken awayj and what was at first a Missionary College, must become at last the Colonial University, which, for the first time in the history of, at least, English Colonies, the Colonists will find ready to educate their children the moment they arrive. It would,, of course, be easy to present an estima'e not exceeding the amount above specified, but all practical colonizers kno»v well how impossible it is to anticipate necessities which grow in the working, not so much from the nature of the thing itself, as the manner in which it is I I 28 doft^, nnd which must thcrct«rc depexul on those to whose dirtJCLiou it » committed ; the sum I ^ave named would, I beUeve, be swifficieut, as my calculations have been based on inquiries made from officers of the Hudson Bay Com- pany who have been resident on the coast, my own experience in British North America, and in the agricultural mining and fishing districts of England ; but whatever the amount of capital ultimately found necessary, a tract of land, say a mininum quantity of 1000 acres, would be essential ; they should be held in trust by the corporation, as indeed should all its property for certain uses. The objects pro- posed are, first, the education, in the largest sense, of the children of the natives ; and, secondly, of the colonists, whom such a settlement must infallibly attract to the coast. Care must therefore be taken that such a grant does not interfere with the necessities of a future settlement, as the wants of the College would be fully met, if land of a good agricultural character were given, and Liie title should not therefore be confirmed by the Government at home, until surveys sufficiently in detail were received to enable a judgment to be formed on this point. It may be asked how the most important element of all is to be supplied — I mean the human. I have yet to learn that men are ever wanting for a good work ; and, I have no doubt, that the social bond will prove stronger and more enduring than the ascetic ; but if not, there will be means at hand to enable those who desire it to change this mode of life and retreat from its labours ttnd responsibilities. Still, as I said to the late Sir Henry Pelly when sow -^ years since I proposed to him a plan, not dissimilar to this, for the benefit of the natives, I can myself conceive no happier r' -le of existence in this world than one in which all bodily v, vs wUl be easily supplied, and high and noble occupation -o-, ^n- mi- padded to healthy and invigorating employmebi ib tUo body; w'nle absence from England its societ} aiid , "innce, will ue, in some maasure, com- 23 pcnsntcd by the presence of wife, cluldrea unci friends, and the means of extending seicnce in an important d.gree. Ihe ocrupafons natural to such a community u ill I thmk justify this opinion. First, there Mill be the ser^•iec3 of Uk. Church, m which nil who may be able will of course ^ke part m a corporation founded on a religious basis. lU superior or Prmcipal will be fully employed in gene- ral supenntendence, in the ehapel and in 'the school, for even before natives can be collected for instruction the chddrcn of the fellows and household of the college wiU supply occupation in teaching. In this teaching all must take heir part, not indeed in the school, but in the workshops and the fields, in the woods and on the water the chin '\'^''f'y f ^^'-y ^^^ will be transmitted to the children ;* and not the men only but the women, would find this congenial occupation, and with such an end in view I apprehend that to English gentlewomen it will not be though derogatory to superintend and to share the labours of the aairy, the laundry, the needle, and the loom. All then would not only be workers but industrial teachers of children therefore the more the better; and the merr T; 11^^77 ^"/"^ '^^ ^^^^^ ^"-> --^ the light shuttle fly from hand to hand, while above those engafed m the woods and fields, the birds, even if the shrill carol of our own skylark was not heard, would pour out floods of joyous song, while out of the mouths of babes and suck- ing. the praises of God were perfected; and when after the labours of the day the worship of the fratern ty had ascended to heaven in the rich harmonies of our chureh-for harmony of voice is ever the best exponent of harmony of soul-sufficient leisure would be found for social converse, mental cultivation, and the study of the wisdom of the elders, whether of our own or other t'Je^ be ail essential part of the scheme. " 24 and here then we may hope to perpetuate in domestic relations the simple virtues, the industry, if not the talents, and the learning which have adorned even the monastic life. The industrial occupations of such a community must depend of course on the resources of the country, and these as well as its position, and the necessities of the case must direct its attention to commerce ; to be self- supporting it must condescend to barter, and in this relation the principal use of the vessel appropriated to its service will appear. Exchange of commodities may be made with Fort Victoria, Puget's Sound settlement, the Columbia river, San Francisco, the Sandwich Islands, aye, and with Japan, and China ! the distance is com- paratively short, say 3700 and 4700 miles, or 30 and 40 days' sail respectively, and the winds and currents are favourable to the navigation. Indeed, to any port north of the Isthmus of Panama, the return voyage must of necessity be by Vancouvers Island. It must also be remembered that Hong Kong is, if not the nearest, the most accessible, diooc'se from thence. The character of the North Pacific Ocean, makes it par- ticularly suitable for navigation, by such craft as I have selected, for which with, say, four boys, two training for officers and two before the mast, the crew I have enume- rated would be fully sufficient ; and the commanding posi- tion occupied by the British dominions on the North-west Coast with reference to the Japan and China trade, and that of the North Pacific generally, must not be overlooked. Although I myself do not apprehend that this trade will pass through a canal, even if one suitable for the passage of the largest vessels be cut through the Isthmus of Cen- tral America at Darien, Panama, or elsewhere, yet it should be noted that whether, as Asa Whitney supposes it infallibly must, the North-west Coast monoplize this trade or it pass through the canal, that coast and its inhabitants must bene- fit greatly from it, as they must supply the vessels employed wItKn«^„- • '*'''"i'"n'\T ^^ -ifTOff vera 3w fT„i. shorter, and oth^r ! T , ^^ '' ** "*^*' ^^^ "ile^ Jinder aurvev i« >k^ 4- u • ""^^^ '° ^'^^ Pacific are keamea Salmon lUver through British territory *^t,<^ The 3«periorily of Vancouver's lalandTnd 2 5^1 ^ o«r«d oa at UBnec«s«uy expense to the metohmtrS be ««.™„t,_ae demomli.rtioa ofVhlnlZ ITJ!:!;'' obt«in«l «»er th«» by vagabond det^^lTf'' c iealiiiMyoilM^ fftf W^e^feti^ Vtf ^fliffif^hiflie^i^d? «he j^yvi'el^ed'm ii;/M i}lL'm^m^^^k »f^re'«han i'hrefe'"6i^'f6tlii- iii'oiitfe8-'artii|ji^Hef^iri^lio^g,^'ty's^ ^ffeit evils .mi^ht be altogether avoided; butHvftcthei"thfe iifehery be dl^cf^lfr^'^Jf <^'^t^^"^s^"f 'ti<^4,"i« ^o^ld afford to ^uch a •rof^P-^^^^'^^ ^'ra^^'feedii diesfcrfbiftgian adttiii'abledppor- rM^'^^'f ^^^**^**Wi'l*'**^^t^^<=*^^l^ ^*^** commerdial^ fiP%^^'^ ^tfaflVfe'^ WKb; lilte^«H(,ife'W the Sandwich ^miMoti^f^ ^eed' and titftostltuted-Wtiuld have, which ^'pjuta JHg'%ea;i%8 ^egai^S « the Mt^rests of sciettbe-^in - Pie«fiaa WadM'^^ fai? ta i^pafthe tost ot' its esta- ''"i^imiifW^yi^ndm^nmti oye^atioas and doUections. ^^B'ms* tiiJ^'ireft^eAbferea that bur knowledge of thi» portion °^of:W^«ria^»l^x^toB}y liftiitfed; as^t thereisnot<)ne ;.!^^«>if '«fi ^ tV^^stern coast of North Aaitiricft,. and "'T^^^afeV^'Wcj^gfe <^#'-^bsition accutatefl*^ ascertAiried ? our ^ %ma;^"i^^?»gie^,,t1ttHi*orolbgitiali' afl* t^ieuiar*^ ^ur ^'^P)P|)Mi iti^oW^^^ aiia ^philotegieaUnftitoirlioaf is "■'^ty'^t^^Hei^; ^2^qq-^^^^ l bar :i,no:)Ln^di-i>>A onloi -^'M^^fitt^a^di^-pfodtiW-Willo^rti^ittgJi^iditeathe Sn«& tif Bhd^iEJSHe^fet.- ^^^^h* gt^t'EJ^hibUiOtt itf=*&5l, ^' 5? toe^4t^a^'4io^,''^6 I'WeH Jfefi^ei ^^BiifWe/ife;'larg*fand ^«,'^l?Bei^aF'sTi¥ft//'W'"bfey,!»TW -mt^ibF^^^ T'^f 66fe5Jii^ate?a"iti^'l*e"deaitt^>*f'«u* iWihufattt^ers - "aH',!f fceMftkriiJ^tt^^^^^^ iMdpenaehi*of ty 'ferfetft' satltetlies, ^"^ffiMfiSfetPy^if 'Brah6li tf^'bJHsWiicr#*'firt'to ^tiart^otti^ith sciQnce„^,n9)^,r^r^3fW^4^^,^pj^e^^]^ knqwn sci^ntifiQ m^y.^fimynfl^ma)?im l^r^ly^.Paicijai^ upon to assist m this particular; we ^^^gjit ,^pp^M ' witrent^re Prince jaoasorthimaelf^.. , ,• ""'^'^ '^^'^ "^ 3^""" The foTm^^pnf,^.,^, 9Prpwa;^VQ ]j^y^^^^^^^|h^ Vte th« ^9a(;.^Q,x«ish^,al,^-H,wy !?e ,1|hp)^^i >^e :laiF such societies as thosff% P^fflfW)ti^C;^mfFli:no«iie^^^ aod the J?ropagatipii^C,% fepej, ti^^,^^!^ gpqi^J^aTd doubtless rgiv«,..^hew transactioi^ ,^nj3>u>3^^^^ continue.tbem. publi4iag,jS9RJetka|.f|»qi: (^erialsr'pub- h«herj,ariAw^i9r^,4.l^«U^YS.l,r^a5:Q9^^ him. that, wmild'te weU, be^tow,^ ^ ftwc^.^.^^^jj^^ej ., evea J„iliAttgh ^.-wwe^na usqW,);9 |^.^ouldL,«ontri. to the North-west Coast'; and I s^^posT^^^SEl ^dmM^h^,mf^l mmmej^y,t^suf?fi ^,wp?^^nitv every. ,n«lftV0B^ite;^9gj=^jpjp^tj^^f^c^^..^pix^p^„i^^^^^^^ .v.^^mn^ gaY^-,^pt^g„fpr,^pt^jng,,^^kt gjyg ^the ..^e. m4.^^p^o^pms^f^m pfu?« wwa ,^,|c^^ui. 28 and plants from that to him almost unexplored region; a Rocky mountain sheep might balance one from the South Downs J a bison, a Durham bull; tufted partridges, Dork- mg fowls; and thus plentiful means be afforded for the development of the industry of the community as well as of the resources of the country and people. In conclusion, having, I fear, vearied you with my im- portunity, I will only add that if the primary object of the undertaking shall be missed, and, in spite of all endeavours to the contrary, the civilization which must shed its light and heat on that coast before long, whether we aid it or no, prove a consuming fire to the natives, a consequence we have no right to assume as necessary until every means has been taken to prevent it; m least those who encourage It will have the satisfaction to knew that they have not laboured for nought, or spent their money in vain. They will, in any case, it may be presumed, have founded a College for the instruction in science, humanity, and the religion of their fathers, of the descendants of EngUsh. men on that coast of the Pacific, and completed the chain of English learning and social life which will then, without metaphor, encircle the globe ; and whatever the fate of our poUtical power may be in those regions at least we shaU have established the authority of the Christian re- ligion and her handmaids civilization and %cience. Commending to your consideration this proposal, which I trust will appear to be for the benefit of my feUow creatures and the glory of God, I am, dear Sir, Yours faithfully, C. G. NICOLAY. ihe Might Hon. W. E. Gladstone, M.P. &c. &c. 4c. &K}7-'i,lS 07 /^5 /655 {0e^CCX^