13/08/2012
Missionary Atlases
The Kinder Library has the fifth(1873) and seventh(1891) editions of The ‘Church Missionary atlas; maps of the various missions of the Church Missionary society, with illustrative letter-press’, [BV2500CHU].The latter, more comprehensive edition includes: Part III. Ceylon, Mauritius, China, Japan, New Zealand, N-W America, and North Pacific.
As well as maps which give the location and list the names of the mission stations, the atlases contain substantial passages of text about the ‘New-Zealand Mission’ as the following extract illustrates:
‘The Maori language belongs to the Malayan stock. In the Northern Island there are less than seven leading dialects, each more or less distinct. Of these the Ngapui [sic] is the most northerly, and was originally employed when settling the orthography; but the idiom now adopted for translations and other literary purposes, and also the most widely diffused in the Waikato, belonging to the Metropolitan District of Auckland. …. ‘The Maori vocabulary is peculiarly copious, each native tree and plant, of which there are 600 or 700 species, each bird and insect having its distinct name, however minute the variation. But there are no indigenous words to represent “peace’, “grace”, “hope,” “charity” … though “joy”, “anger”, “sorrow”, and other natural passions have each several synonyms’.
Church Missionary Atlas, 1873, p.54 [BV 2500CHU]
23/07/2012
The Church Missionary Intelligencer and Record journal
First published in 1849 as the Church Missionary Intelligencer, the journal merged in 1876 with the monthly Church Missionary Record; detailing the proceedings of the Church Missionary Society,1830–1875, which for a brief period also included the Church Missionary Gleaner publication.
Issues of The Intelligencer and Record consisted of leading articles, such as the example below, as well as records and reports of the Missions by regions. Occasionally lithographs or maps were used to illustrate the reports, as in these featured examples:
Death of a Veteran New Zealand Missionary
‘Another of the faithful band of self-denying men who laid the foundations of the Maori Christian Church half a century ago has gone to his rest. Mr George Clarke, whose death we have to now record, went out as a missionary schoolmaster in 1822. He laboured zealously for several years in that capacity and in 1839 was appointed by Captain Hobson, the first governor of the then infant British colony to the specially instituted office of Chief Protector of the Aborigines.’ The Church Missionary Intelligencer and Record, February 1876 p.117 [BV2500CHU].
The beautiful lithograph ‘Wai Aniwaniwa appeared in the Church Missionary Intelligencer in 1850, with the accompanying text:
‘The waterfall in our engraving partly conceals a cave, where once, in the bygone days of New-Zealand savagery, a cannibal feast was perpetrated by the great chief Hongi. Three hundred Wanagaroa (sic) natives were here killed and eaten. The water falls like a beautiful veil over the gloomy face of the cave, as if to hide it from view.’ p.257
11/06/2012
Early Church Missionary Society publications
“The Missionary Field in New Zealand has now faithful Labourers to cultivate it: and we may hope for the Divine Blessing. God has been very gracious to them all. The Mission has now been established about thirteen years; and no man, woman, or child, who were sent out to the work, has died or had a bone broken; though living in the midst of cannibals. The Missionary Register, 1828, p.618 (BV 2361 MIS).
The above extract is an example of the information relating to their New Zealand mission in the Register.
Publications of the Church Missionary Society held in the Library include their monthly ‘Church Mission Register’,1813 – 1855(BV 2361 MIS); the ‘Missionary register, extracts relating to New Zealand’ 1823–1842 (BV 2361 M1S); and ‘the Church Missionary Intelligencer and record; a monthly journal of Missionary Information’, 1849 – 1927 (BV 2500 CHU: MIC 023).
The Missionary Registers typically contain a ‘biography’ section; a ‘proceedings and intelligence’ section which includes surveys of the missionary stations throughout the world and ‘recent miscellaneous intelligence’ which at times includes engravings.
For example ‘The Reinga New Zealand engraving featured appeared in the March 1842 issue, with the following description:
‘The Engraving …. gives a View of the Reinga, the north-western extremity of the Northern Island of New Zealand, and the entrance, as the poor Natives suppose, to the place of departed spirits. From the Journal of Mr W. R. Wade, who made the drawing ….’
Our next blog will concern ‘the Church Missionary Intelligencer and record’ journal.
28/05/2012
Finding information on the Church Missionary Society in New Zealand
Featured is a list of Church Missionary Society missionaries which was created by Bishop William Simkin in 1965. [ANG 17/3/3}. The list we understand, is compiled from a printed register first published by the Church Missionary Society.
The work of the CMS began in New Zealand with the visit of Samuel Marsden in 1814. With Marsden, who was chaplain to the prison colony of New South Wales, came three lay workers: carpenter William Hall, flax spinner and shoe-maker John King and school teacher Thomas Kendall. The missionaries were part of a voluntary religious movement rather than an official expansion of the church’s domain and although Marsden was not a CMS missionary, he continued for the next forty years to act on behalf of the Society. On his second in 1819, Marsden brought with him the Rev. John Butler, James Kemp and Francis Hall as reinforcements for the mission.
The list of missionaries is divided into three parts; part one – known as ‘the missionary period’, extended from 1814 to 1841, ending with the arrival of Bishop Selwyn; part two – known as the ‘period of organisation’ extended from 1841 to 1903. For this second period, most of those listed were already resident in New Zealand and were appointed on local recommendations. Part three of the list gives the names of sixty eight ordained Maori who became missionaries, beginning with the Rev. Rota Waitoa in 1855.
24/04/2012
Early mission printing presses
For many Maori, learning to read was a powerful incentive in accepting the early missionaries’ religious message. As demand for printed material increased, the missionary-printer William Colenso was sent to New Zealand, arriving in 1834. The Church Mission press was soon set up at Paihia, and the first work printed was a translation of the Epistles to the Ephesians and the Philippians.During Colenso’s time with the press up until 1842, about thirty-six items were printed in Maori, varying in size from a single leaf to the 356 page New Testament in 1838. Colenso’s next major undertaking was 27,000 copies of the Book of Common Prayer in Maori. By 1840 he had produced over 74,000 copies of books and pamphlets, not all of them religious publications. It is believed that this was the press used to print copies of the Treaty of Waitangi.
When in 1845 Selwyn moved his College of St John from Waimate to its present site in Tamaki, he took with him the press which had earlier been presented by the Church Missionary Society. The imprint on Maori books for the next decade are given as from Purewa (one Tamaki) or Te Kareti (the College). The press is sometimes described as the Mission Press, or the Bishop’s Press and occasionally as the College Press. The latest date for the College imprint is 1856, by which time some fifty Maori items had been produced there. Subsequently, the press was moved to St Stephen’s School Parnell, with no date known for its removal.
Between the years 1845 to 1853, the Bishop had issued Church almanacs in English with the imprint “Auckland: printed at the Cathedral Press”. Little is known of an independent Cathedral Press and it is surmised that this refers to the old Mission Press after its removal from St John’s College. From 1864 to 1878 the place of issue of the almanacs is given as ‘Akarana’, ‘Tipene’ (St Stephen’s) or ‘Taurarua ‘ (Judge’s Bay) and the press described as the St Stephen’s School Press.
Featured are examples of publications showing the imprint of the various presses held in the Library, as well as ledgers of works produced by the College printing press, 1848 – 1854 (SJT) 1/3.2/1) and a manuscript letter from J.C.Patteson to Bishop Selwyn, reporting on the installation of the press at the College – “the printer is I really think, likely to turn out well ….” (ANG 90/1/3).
04/04/2012
Revision of the New Zealand Testament, St Matthew and St Mark, 1843 (ANG 63/3/1.6)
1838. 5,000 copies were produced of this first edition, which was translated mainly by William Williams. The second edition of the complete New Testament in Maori, published in 1841, was printed in London with a print run of 20,000. The New Testament in Maori was first published by William Colenso at Paihia in Third and fourth editions were published in 1842 and 1844 respectively.Following the publication of the third edition a Syndicate was appointed by the Bishop of New Zealand and under the direction of the Church Missionary Society, to revise the New Testament, St Matthew and St Mark. The Syndicate consisted of the Ven. Archdeacon William Williams, the Rev. Robert Maunsell, James Hamlin and William Puckey.
The images of the featured manuscript of the Revision show the layout of pages, with columns for the ‘Present Version’ set alongside changes recommended by Syndicate members, as well as a ‘General Remarks’ column. In the Mark Ch.1V section (p.226) for example, is the comment: “I never recollect to have heard such an expression as ka nui te. I think tino would be preferable tho’ this is not often used. Mr H.”
Such remarks give a unique insight into the thinking re the revised translation, which is likely to have influenced the fifth edition of the Maori New Testament, published in London in 1852.
It was reported that the British Foreign Bible Society received complaints from Maori in some localities about the new text, compared with the original Paihia (1838) version. To this the Rev. Maunsell is said to have responded that William Williams had been involved in the preparation of both versions and strongly supported the new one as the far better translation.
06/03/2012
Early records of the Church Missionary Society
Researchers are used to the bulk of the CMS records only being available on microfilm unless one is willing to travel to Birmingham, England. However, amongst the records of the General Synod are a few volumes that provide copies of correspondence from the London based Church Missionary Society to the New Zealand Missionaries and Settlers. The first letter, dated July 20 1820, is from Josiah Pratt, and is written after the report of Samuel Marsden’s visit to New Zealand in November 1819 reached London.Extract:
To the Missionaries & Settlers at New Zealand
Dear Brethren,
We rejoice to learn your safety and welfare when Mr. Marsden quitted New Zealand in November last. The circumstances under which Mr. Marsden found the Settlement on his arrival, has however, in some respects given the Committee much pain.’ ….
There are two volumes:
Leather bound letter book titled ‘Public letters from the Society’ containing copies of letters starting July 20, 1820 and including extracts from minutes of the CMS and Committee of Correspondence (Archives ref: ANG 63 Series 1, item 6)
Letter book containing copy Public letters from the Society: The secretaries of the Committee of Correspondence, CMS, London to the Missionaries of the CMS, New Zealand, p 1-476 (Archives ref: ANG 63 Series 1, item 7)
The letter books with the CMS copies of the letters they sent are held in the Cadbury Library Special Collections, University of Birmingham, and are also available in New Zealand as microfilm.
CMS Archives reference CN L1 to L7, and on the AJCP microfilm as Reels 238 and 239 (JKTL Ref MIC14).
11/01/2012
SCRAPBOOKS – STOREHOUSES OF MEMORY
The practice of cutting out items of interest and putting them onto blank pages is characteristic of scrapbook makers throughout the world. While scrapbooking is sometimes seen as a contemporary phenomena, the term scrap-book first appeared in the English language in 1825, and books with similar characteristics were made as early as the 15th century. A current exhibition at Auckland Libraries’ Sir George Grey Special Collections highlights these treasures and is well worth a visit.In the Archive at the Kinder Library, we have a range of scrapbooks which form part of specific collections and which vary in content from the records of organisations through to early personal papers of missionaries and notable Anglicans and Methodists. Typically, contemporary scrapbooks include a mixture of photographs, news clippings, sketches, handwritten comments and autographs. The type of scrapbooks used for the task varies from solid bound leather volumes through to colourfully designed soft-cover formats. The scrapbook featured, is part of the St John’s College Students’ Association records [SJC 4/5/7] and was compiled by their 1960 Social Committee.
A comment alongside the Saturday Night !!!!! Common Room sketch included this advice:
On Sat. 12 March, 1960, we were favoured with a talk from one of our first- year men Barry Allum. Notes for future! When using a small projector, make sure the speaker does not block the view of persons on one side whilst he gives his commentary …”
13/12/2011
First New Zealand Christmas
As Christmas approaches, we share extracts from this quaint pamphlet from our stacks, first published in 1933: First New Zealand Christmases by A.H. & A. W. Reed: BV 3667.M3 REE.1642 ABEL JANSZOON TASMAN
‘On Epiphany eve … he sighted a small groups of islets to the northward … and, being a good churchman and explorer of some originality … named them Three Kings, a tribute to the Wise Men from the East who followed the Star.’
1769 CAPTAIN JAMES COOK
On 17th December he sighted the north-eastern extremity of the mainland and named it North Cape. On Christmas Day he was in the neighbourhood of the Three Kings, and thereafter the Endeavour was tacking to and fro, day after day, in a heavy gale, in a vain attempt to round Cape Maria Van Diemen … Christmas was celebrated in the old-fashioned way, as Banks tells us, by the eating of Goose Pye. The ‘geese’ were provided by shooting gannets on Christmas Eve. ‘
1814 REV. SAMUEL MARSDEN
‘On the afternoon of 16th December 1814, Samuel Marsden stood upon the deck of the brig Active as she sailed to the Three Kings … a few days later the Active anchored inside the north head of the Bay of Islands, opposite Rangihoua … on Christmas Day in the morning every European with the exception of the Captain and one seaman, went ashore.
At Oihi, in the Bay of Islands, stands Marsden Cross, bearing this inscription:
ON CHRISTMAS DAY, 1814, THE FIRST CHRISTIAN SERVICE IN N.Z. WAS HELD ON THIS SPOT BY THE REV.SAMUEL MARSDEN
07/12/2011
A controversial churchman: essays on George Selwyn, Bishop of New Zealand and Lichfield, and Sarah Selwyn. Allan K. Davidson, editor. Bridget Williams Books, 2011.
New Zealand’s first Anglican bishop, George Selwyn, was a towering figure in the young colony. Denounced as a ‘turbulent priest’ for speaking out against Crown practices that dispossessed Maori, he brought a vigorous approach to Episcopal leadership. His wife Sarah Selwyn supported all her husband’s activities, in a life characterised as one of ‘hardship and anxiety’, she expressed independently her sense of outrage over the Waitara dispute. ….
His place in Treaty history as a political commentator and source of historical information is recognised. George Selwyn left a large imprint on New Zealand church and society. This collection both honours and critiques a controversial bishop.
The book, launched on December 7 at St John’s Theological College, was published with the support of St John’s College Trust Board.
