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23 WEST MAIN STREET
WEBSTER, NY. MS80
(716) 872-4503
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J
y^o
A PROPOSAL TO ESTABLISH A
MISSIONARY COLLEGE
ON THE
NORTH-WEST COAST
OF
BRITISH AMERICA,
IN A LETTER
TO THE EIGHT HONOURABLE
WILLIAM EWART GLADSTONE, M,P.
btl,, etc. etc.
from the reverend
CHARLES GRENFELL NICOLAY,
FELLOW or THE ROYAL GEOiPAPHICAL SOCIETY,
LIBRARIAN OF KINO's COLLECB, LONDON.
LONDON:
SAUNDERS AND STANFORD,
6, CHARING CROSS,
1853.
\ y
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,
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^ A^ .^^.^i.^^^.^ ^
C^^*^.
Dear
To
no
on any subject
British America than to you; your knowledge of every-'
thuig relating to the country and its inhabitants will enable
you to correct or confirm whatever statements may be made
respecting them— the ready access you have always
accorded to myself and others, when desirous to communi-
cate with you on the subject, assures me that you will
not be inattentive to it-your bold and uncompromising
advocacy of the cause of the natives of that coast, and the
Hudson's Bay Company's territories generally, in conjunc-
tion with the present Secretary of State for the Colonies,
when five years since it was brought before the Imperial
P rliameiit, renders it due to you that nothing should be
attempted with respect to the country or people without
your knowledge, if not without your sanction and co-
operation— while your present position seems to suggest
the propriety of a public rather than a private application
to you.
I may assume without hesitation the following facts,
which indeed are patent to all in the j)ages of ''Parlia-
mentary papers, the works of Mr. Montgomery Martin
and my friend Mr. Edward Fitzgerald.
That when, in consequence of the claims of the United
States of America, attention had been generally directed
to the North West Coast, and subsequently a boundary
fixed between their territories and those of Great Britain,
it was acknowledged by all that the establishment of a
British Colony there was a matter of the gi eatest impor-
tance; and, in consequence of its position and natural
capabilities. Vancouver's Island was generally selected as
the best situation for it.
That the island was ultimately given by charter to the
Hudson's Bay Company for that purpose, Lord Grey,
then Colonial Minister, considering the Company as more
wealthy and responsible than other parties who had made
previous application, and therefore more fitted to under-
take the charge.
That, during the four years the Company had had pos-
session, up to the time of making the last report in 1852,
271 males, who appear from the report to be hired servants
of the Company or of its offshoot, the Puget's Sound Com-
pany, had emigrated, to a settlement formed round Fort
Victoria, situated at the south- eastern angle of the island,
and now the principal depot of the fur-trade, with 80 women
and 84 children ; 11 persons had purchased 1478 J acres of
land ; about 2500 more were under survey for sale ; 3,084
had been appropriated by the fur-trade branch of the Com-
pany, of which some had been sold to its retired servants ;
but of these sales, no account has been given ; the Company
had spent £1986. 4s 9<:/ for emigration purposes, i.e. as
their account shews for the cost of Charter, salaries and
transit expenses for Governors and Surveyors, for already
there had been more than one of each ; while the
money received for land sales had been, at £l per acre,
£1478 10s, from which deducting one-tenth, allowed to
the Company as its profit on the speculation, we have
a balance, expended for emigration, of £655 lis 9d;
besides this 1315 tons of coal raised in the island had
been sold, the royalty of which at 2s Gd per ton, deduct-
ing as before one-tenth, amounts to £147 18s 9d, which
further reduces the expenditure to £507 13*.
It is not my present business to inquire how far the con-
ditions expressed or implied in the Charter, or Lord Grey's
expectations respecting the outlay to be made for emigra-
tion have been fulfilled, or whether the placing 191
iinmarried men on an island many thousand miles from
any of their countrywomen is a desirable thing in itself, or
may be called colonisation, these questions will come
I
/
5
naturally under your consideration and that of the Legis-
lature generally, when, next January, at the expiration of
five years from its date, the Charter may be revoked if
Its provisions have not been fulfilled. It is sufficient
for me to shew that the Company has hitherto attempted
nothing beyond placing a few settlers at the south-
eastern extremity of the island-that nothing has, so far
as can be ascertained, been done to civilize or educate the
natives, or instruct them in the principles and docLrines
ot Christianity, and that therefore it remains that this
saould be undertaken by some one else.
But^ as the Charter of Colonization has given Van-
couver s Island in possession to the Company, and as by
tlie Grant of exclusive trade renewed to it in 1838
Bnhsh subjects are excluded from other parts of the North'
west coast, though other nations obtain free access there •
It IS necessary that some modifications of the Charter and
(.rant, by which the whole coast is now monopolized, be
eflfected before anything can be done for the natives-and
therefore it is that I desire to put forward a plea on their
behalf, before the time comes when such modifications may
be made. It is true that the Crown might, at any time,
according to the terms of the Grant to which I have
re erred, take any portion of the coast, Vancouver's
Island excepted, from under its jurisdiction, by declaring
It a Colony, but I shall presently shew that island to
be the most fitting place for my purpose, and though
the establishment of a Colony might result from it,
that IS not my first object in the proposition 1 am about
to make.
But it may be asked, why not incite the Company to
Uiis good work ? Without entering more fully into the
fitness of the Company for it, I nmy reply that it is most
apparent from its own account, either that it has not at-
tempted or attempting has not succeeded in any such
endeavour, at least, on the North-west coast, and there-
4'
6
fore those who desire the success of such an effort, will
wish to see it commenced under other auspices. Of this,
tlie following facts may be sufficient evidence.
The Company has been paramount in the Valley of the
Columbia for above thirty years; under its government
the natives in that locality have decreased with fearful
rapidity, and now the local Governor of the Company,
Sir George Simpson, in removiuj, ..o chief depot from
Fort Vancouver on the Columbia to Fort Victoria on
Vancouver's Island, congratulates himself in escaping from
the disorderly population of the Columbia (see Despatch,
18 June, 1846). If it be said that by this expression he
means the emigrants from the United States, pursuing
the inquiry about the spot selected by him, the result will
be the same ; although the operations of the Company have
never been interfered with on the continental coast, Chief
Factor Douglas, now I presume, his Excellency the Go-
vernor and Vice-Admiral of Vancouver's Island deprecates
the establishment of mills there "until we have gained
the confidence and respect of the natives." — See his report
to Mr. Mc Loughlin, June 12, 1842. Moreover, in my
opinion, the state of concubinage in which so many of the
servants of the Company have lived, must form a serious
impediment to the preaching or progress of Christianity
'.n the neighbourhood of its forts .
To these I add two more facts which shew how little in-
fluence the Company has over the natives and how little,
even in the neighbourhood of its chief post, it has done to
instruct them, if only to develop the natural resources of
the island.
1. That on the 26th September last the United States
schooner, Susan Sturges, w as taken and plundered by the
natives of Queen Charlotte's Islands.
2. That the 1315 tons of coal of which jiccount has been
taken were traded from the natives by the Company, and
raised by them from surface seams, without the aid of
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European skill or science to enable them to reach those of
a more valuable quality below, or to raise a greater quantity.
You are aware that this coal is the only deposit of that
mmeral northward of Panama, of which we have any satis-
factory knowledge, and that it offered one of the chief
mcentives to all parties desiring to colonize the island *
all looking to supply from it the steam communication
between San Francisco and the Isthmus, and this coal has
been altogether abandoned by the Company to the natives j
great expense, as we are told, having been incurred in the
endeavour to find seams of coal further south. (See
Governor Colville's Report, Nov. 24th, 1852.)
From what cause this has proceeded I am not careful now
to enquire. It is evident the quantity raised must be very
much below the quantity in demand. More than six years
ago a contract for 20,000 tons annually was offered ; it has
been quoted at 17 dollars per ton, in the Market at San
Francisco, and complaint made that more is not to
be had; 5000 tons having arrived during the previous
month round Cape Horn {.see Times, 28 Dec. 1852.)
Captain Gordon considered the locality in which it was
found most favourable for its working and exportation,
and Its quality equal to the bost Scotch; he, indeed
recommended that it should be carried round the north
and not to the east of the Island; but, it appears evident
that, from whatever reason, the Company does not object
to abandon the north part of the island, inclusive of the
coal, to the natives, and confine its operations to the
southern extremity. Whether, therefore, the Charter be
revoked in January next, or whether the Company be
allowed to continue the operations it has commenced with
so large a spirit and so liberal an outlay, there can I pre-
sume be no objection on its part to the establj
lent of a
• For an account of this see article in the " Colonial Maeazi
Sept. 1848. ^
na
for
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settlement on the north of the island, for the special
benefit of those whom it abandons to their own devices
— whom it cannot, or at any rate it docs not, either govern
or ms tract.
I need not add that, as the Company has not, so neither
has any one else attempted to civilize or Christianize the
natives. Under the circumstances it was almost impossible ;
to the South, indeed, the American missionaries were the
pioneers of emigration in Oregon ;* the Roman Catholics
have established themselves in Puget's Inlet, and elsewhere,
and have baptized and given tickets of churchmanship to
the natives by thousands, though of instruction by them
we can learn nothing ; but in the territory where the
Company reigns supreme, to the north of De Fucas Ptrait,
nothing has been done. I am sure you will agree with wje
that this neglect should be remedied as soon as possible —
I hope you will think, with me, the present time propitious
for the attempt. I may remind you that this is the only
British colony or territory, on which British subjects re-
side, and over which they rule, in which no attempt is
• Of these Father Smet, in his " Missions tie L'Oregon," gives the follow-
ing account :— " Ce fut en 1840 que la propagande Mt'thodiste de I'Oregon
recut le plus grande renfort, Cette raeme ann^e, un M. Lee y arriva avcc un
vaisseau, il avec lui pleiseurs ministres accompagnes de leurs femmes, et deB
leurs enfants ; il avait aussi des fermiers, des forgeroni et autres artisans,
Cctait un veritable tnlonie." Before this the Methodists and Presbyterians
had each two missions. He estimates the Roman Catholic establishments
as at that time amounting to 1 college, 2 religious houses, 1 convent, and
15 chapels ; these, however, all in the Valley of the Columbia, or within
what is called the Cascade Range of Mountains, none in the Coast Dis-
trict to wliich I have referred, though we read that a church was being built
on Vancouver's Island, of which Mgr Demers was named bishop. These
establishments are conducted by 10 Jesuits, 6 " freres Jesuites," 4 Canatlian
Missionaries, and 6 " religieuses" of our Lady of Namur; and to this num-
ber, 26 in all, he addo " les bestiaux tels que les betes a comes, le moutons,
les cochons et surtout les chevaux, y sont en tres grand noniLre. Les
premiers aniinaux domestiques furent amends en 1837 de la Californie, au
nombre de 600." Against this efficient staff we can only quote, " Un
Ministre Anglican se trouvait a Vancouver."
mnrle to preach the Gospel to the natives. Over nil other
Uritish colonial dominions, British missions arc spread ;
almost every othni has its bishop to look after its spiritual
wants ; but here we have no reason to suppose that even
a solitary clergyman is placod to minister to the emigrants
who have been transported thither; that one was for-
merly maintained at Fort Vancouver by the Company, all
acquainted with the history of the Corporation and its
operations on the North-west coast, have good cause to
remember; but beyond this we are at present in ignorance.
It is my purpose to shew that a promising field for mis-
sionary labour is here presented, and that its cultivation
may be effected without much risk or outlay. For this
purpose I must give some account of the nature and re-
sources of the country, and the condition and character
of the natives. The statement must be brief, as our
means of information are, as you know, scanty, though I
believe fully sufficient for my purpose.
The British territories on the North-west coast of Ame-
rica are now situated between those oi the United States
to the south, and of Russia to the north, and between the
parallels of 48" and 54*=' north latitude ; they consist of the
valleys of Frazer's river and the northem sources of the
Columbia, and a long line of coast deeply intersected by a
labyrinth of canals, as they are called, much resembling the
Scottish lochs, or even more the fiords of Norway, into
which to the north fall some other small rivers ; of these
we only know from his account, that the Salmon river of
Alexander Mackenzie flows through fertile and beautiful
country. The whole of this territory is separated from the
rest of America by the Rocky Mountains, through which,
however, easy access is obtained by the head waters of the
riv rs; and to the south, bv De Fucas Inlet and Pueet's
Sound, direct communication is open with the valley of the
Columbia and the Oregon district, without any risk from
•I coast navigation, or the dangerous bar at the mouth of
10
the river Columbia. Off the coast to the north there is a
net work of islands, and about fifty miles to sea, Queen
Charlotte's Islands, a group of considerable importance,
being fertile, and possessing gold, copper, and it is said,
other minerals ; and to the south lies Vancouver's Island,
originally denominated of Vancouver, and Quadra, from the
English and Spanish naval officers who surveyed its coasts.
This is undoubtedly at present the most valuable portion
of the whole, and here the plan which I have to propose
may, I think, with the greatest prospect of success, be
attempted.
There are, it ia true, other places not unsuited to it, as
on Queen Charlotte's Islands, and at the mouths of
Frazer's river and of Mackenzie's Salmon river, one of
which, probably the latter, will be the western terminus
of the main line of communication which will no doubt ere
long be established from the Great Lakes to the Pacific ;
but of these we know less, and any establishment near
them would interfere as much with the Company's mono-
poly of trade as one on Vancouver's Island would with its
monopoly of colonization ; in any case, therefore, its pre-
sent rights would be infringed, and I am led to believe
from what I have read, as well as from the accounts of
those who have been there, that a haibour on the north-
west coast of that island, called by the natives Quatsinough,
is on the whole the most desirable locality that can be
selected. This is apparently the Port St.^Louis of La
Perouse, the San Josef of the Spaniards, and the Sea Otter
harbour of Hanna, the draught of which, as given by
Meares, corresponds sufficiently well with more recent
accounts which I have received.
Vancouver's Island lies between the 48th and 5l8t paral-
lels of north latitude, and Fort Victoria in 123° 23' west
longitude, being therefore only 4078 miles distant from
England. It may be estimated at from 250 to 290 miles
long, and from 55 to 65 broad. Capt. Gordon's imprcs-
11
sions of it were very favourable, and Sir George Simpson
says, "the country and climate are fine, means of living
abundant, say fish, venison, domestic cattle, agricultural
produce « and with this general, more particular statements
correspond ; of its agricultural capabilities it is noted, in his
despatch already referred to, that in the year 1845 the farm
at Fort Victoria " produced 1000 bushels of wheat over and
above the expenditure of that post ;^' we know also from
several sources that the Company's farms at Fort Van-
couver and Nisqually on Puget's Soun , e most produc-
tive.
Capt. Wilkes of the United States' Navy, speaking of
the country generally, estimates the produce whether from
farm or garden of the finest character ; he tells us, the wheat
produced weighs 63 lbs. to the bushel, and 600 acres pro-
duced 7000 bushels ; that barley yields 20 bushels to the
acre, though oats do not thrive well; peas, beans, and
potatoes, yield abundantly; strawberries and gooseberries,
the former nearly ripe, and salad gone to seed, were seen
by him at Nisqually on the 15th May; he considers it
three times more fertile than the United States ; cattle he
says find natural hay all the year round, and multiply with
astonishing rapidity. Sir George Simpson, speaking of
Vancouver's Island says, it is superior to any portion of
America for agricultural settlement; it is however, in all
probability not so generally fertile as the valley of the
Columbia below the Dalles, although its climate is more
favourable ; to the south the heat is extreme, even at
Puget's Inlet to the north of the Columbia the thermometer
often ranges 107° in the shade, and severe drought is
frequently experienced in summer ; on the island the tem-
perature is rendered more equal by the surrounding
water.
The seasons may be thus described. In November
and December south-east winds prevail with rain and
storms; in January there is often frost in the low
12
grounds but never sufficient to interrupt agricultural
operations or oblige tlie cattle to be housed ; spring com-
mences in March, which as well as April and May, is warm,
showers and sunshine alternating; during these months
the thermometer rises to 60" and does not fall below 42°.
Meares indeed makes the winter longer, snow, he says, is
seen till March ; June and July are hot and dry, the
thermometer ranging 70° in the shade, August and
September very dry with occasional fogs, which about the
sounds and narrow channels between the island and the
main are frequently of extreme density ; October is rainy
but warm; in this month the second crop of natural
grass is very abundant ; throughout the summer westerly
winds prevail above latitude 30°, and, according to Meares,
south-east winds in May and September, when the
weather is raw and cold. The north-west winds bring
clear and fine weather.
Of the natural productions of the Island the first in
importance is coal. Lieut. Vavasour reports it to be
both abundant and excellent ; it has been tried in her
Majesty's steamers and works well; the Hudson's Bay
Company reports it excellent for the purposes of the forge ;
it is found principally on the north west extremity of the
Island. The early navigators speak of Copper, but this is
probably to be referred to Queen Charlotte's Islands,
and other places further north ; yet Meares tells us, the
Spaniards oper.d a mine on Hog Island in Nootka Sound,
but of what mineral he was ignorant. Granite and lime-
stone, according to the report of Lieuts. Warre and
Vavasour abound north of De Fucas Strait ; and the latter,
with slate, is found in abundance on Feveda's Island
between Vancouver's Island and the main.
Timber is next in importance ; the same report tells us
it is most luxuriant and valuable, enumerating pine, spruce,
red and white oak, ash, cedar, arbutus, poplar, maple,
willow, yew, the cedar and pine of enormous size, all niost
13
valuable to the north of the 50o parallel. Sir G. Si.npsou
lis us of a canoe 60 feet long, and capable of containing
100 persons cut out of a single log. Cook notes that the
p.ne trees at Friendly Cove in Nootka Sound were the
argest he ever had seen ; and Meares esteems the timber of
he sland wel adapted for dockyard uses, and the pines fit
tor he largest sized masts and spars. To the vegetable
productions may be added berries of many kinds in
extreme plenty, especially most excellent raspberries
Of animal life we have from Lieutenants Warre and
Vavasour, as well as Sir G. Simpson, the report, '^garne in
plenty ;« to particularize, of venison, moose, and deer :
of fur-bearing animals, the bear, both grizzly and brown
racoon, fox, marten, beaver, land and sea otter, seal, sea
cow, sea hon ; offish, the whale, both bone and sperm,
ble), ha ibut, skate, flounders and cod, while sardines and
several kinds of herrings visit the coast in the months of
July and August in incredible numbers ; aquatic fowls
are numerous, and the character of the climate will appear,
from Sir G. Simpson's statement that five kinds o^'
humming birds are found between the Columbia river and
he Russian sett ement of Sitka. From this it is clear that
the inhabitants of the island, can have no difficulty in obtain-
ing sustenance, and it may be concluded that both land and
traT "t-' P%"^''"' of establishing an important export
trade. Sir G Simpson indeed, looks forward to making
the island a depot for the refreshment and supply of the
whaling fleet ofthe Pacific, in which trade the American
ships alone are 700 in number; but although nearer the
whalmg grounds than the Sandwich Islands, those and
other islands ofthe Pacific present temptations to sailors,
absent from home not unfrequently for four years
which I am glad to say the North-.esf Coast never^ 1
14
and therefore I should be more concerned to locate the
fishing on the coast than to attempt to supply it from
^'' All writers, as might be expected, represent the natives
as well fed and clothed. Those to the south were so,
those on Vancouver's Island and to the North sU I are _ .
The number of the native inhabitants of the North-
west coast has been so variously calculated, that we may
safely conclude that it has not been accurately ascertamed ,
tn the Hudson's Bay Company, although it may estx-
Jatewithmuchtruththenumber of the tnbes dweUmg
near its forts, has no means of obtammg more than a
distant approximation to those of the "loi-e remote of
Queen dwlotte's Islands, and Vancouver's Island h tlem
Lh is known, the regular course of trade seldorn .eve
taking the Company's vessels to the former, or to the
Wp<»tern coast of the latter.
"^L^utenantsAVarreand Vavasour estimate the natives
on British territory west of the Rocky mountains a 72,000
Of these they give to Queen Charlotte s Island's about
10,000, and to Vancouver's Island, if anything, less ; but
th; means of accurate calculation are ^^ently w^^^^^^^^^^
the former are not above half the size of the latter ; and
as this estimate is entirely disproportionate to those ot
the earlier writers, we are forced to the same conclusion
as Captain Wilkes, that v. the so.-hward the decree ,
from whatever cause, has been ^o^^^^^r^.b^^-^^^^tr til
mated the village of Nootka alone to contam 2000 ; Mea^
thought there tere as many in his t.me, andcalcula ed the
subiects of the Chief of Noctka, whose dominion did not
ext nd far either to the north or south, as 15,000; but
from the accounts of Dunn, Wilkes, and others I cannot
tok that the entire population of the coasts of De Fucas
Strait now exceed. 5000; while, if the early navigators are
to be believed, in their time it must have exceeded 30^00.
-Mr Findlay estimates the native inhabitants of Van-
15
couver's Island at, in all, 11,463, and particularizes the
tribes to the North thus :—
Friendly Tribes, Neweegt or Nevvettrees . 500
^^^ktoe at North-West or Woody County . 1 000
Nimkis, on navigable river of that name ' on
Jiiastern Coast, near the Coal . f^nn
Quaquiolths . . .' ." 1 500
5 100
The Quaktoe are those about the harbour of Quatsinough
or probably Quaktsinoh, already alluded to.
Of the character of the natives but little can be said, yet
that little IS satisfactory, excepting in one particular, per-
sonal cleanhness ; they are, like most savages, expert thieves,
more expert probably than most; but this is partly in
their favour as evidence of what is testified of them
that they are most ingenious and skilful in all kinds
of handiwork ; their weaving and carving, their fish-
ing implements, wiers, houses, and especially their canoes
have been the theme of general admiration: these latter
birG. Simpson praises, not only for their elegance, but
for their speed and sea-worthy qualities, whether under
canvass or with paddles. Mr. Dunn, as an example of
the mgenuity of these people, records, that when the Com-
pany s steamer, Beaver, first appeared in their waters, one of
them made a boat with paddle wheels to imitate it. They are
represented as friendly, tractable, good natured. and indus-
tnous : to the north, indeed, they are said to be fierce and
cruel, and since they have acquired the use of fire-arms they
are, as the loss of the Susan Sturges proves, not a little dan-
gerous, It must be remembered however that even their con-
tact with Europeans has taught them no law but that mieht
makes right; m person they are represented as, though ie-
nerallyunderthemiddle height, well proportioned, active, and
strong, and when their natural appearance is not obscured
' 1
16
by dirt, imrticularly well and intelligent looking. With
sucba people there can be no natural obstacle to cml.za lou
7i:ZL, and accordh,gly we lear" fron>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^