Part 13 (2/2)

A sojourn which was to bear more permanent fruit was that which henorth of the New Hebrides, in 14 South Latitude The inhabitants of this group showed unusual capacity for learning from the missionaries, and sufficient stability of character to pro the to the line of cliffs which for; so it escaped the visits of white traders who could not e feats of Selwyn and Patteson, and was free froht with them Once the island was reached, it proved to be one of the most attractive, with rich soil, plenty of water, and a kindly docile population Here, on a site duly purchased for the antic banyan tree, on a slope where bread-fruit and coco-nuts (and, later, pine-apples and other importations) flourished, the first habitation was built, with a boarded floor, walls of baether after the native fashi+on so as to be waterproof Here, in the next ten years, Patteson was to spendwhen the curiosity of the natives left hi with all and sundry who cae of their dialect andfriends with individuals While he showed instinctive tact in knowing how far it ise to go in opposing the native way of life, he illing to face risks whenever real progress could be made After he had been so rite was held outside the village Patteson exercised all his influence to prevent one of his converts fro drawn in; and when an olda syued with hi symbol But apart from idolatry, from internecine warfare, and from such horrors as cannibalism, prevalent in many islands, he was studious not to attack old traditions He wanted a good Melanesian standard of conduct, not a feeble imitation of European culture He was prepared to build upon the foundation which time had already prepared and not to invert the order of nature

In writing hoularly depreciates his own hardshi+ps, saying hoorthy he feels himself to be ranked with the pioneers in African work But the discomforts must often have been considerable to a ht up as he had been

Food was most monotonous Meat was out of the question except where the missioners themselves imported live stock and kept a farm of their own; variety of fruit depended also on their own exertions The staple diet was the yaht far in excess of the potato This was supplied readily by the natives in return for European goods, and could be cooked in different ways; but after many weeks' sojourn it was apt to pall Also the cli, and apt sooner or later to tell injuriously on Europeans working there

Dirt, disease, and danger can be faced cheerfully when a ood health hi from ill-health in such conditions is indeed put to an heroic test Perhaps the greatest disco in public The natives became so fond of Patteson that they flocked round hi was interrupted by a strea close to his elbow, following his everyof letters seeh they could not be answered for so long His journal, into which he poured freely all his hopes and fears, all his daily anxieties over the Mission, was destined for his family But he had other correspondents to whoularly, especially at Eton and Winchester At Eton his uncle was one of his most ardent supporters and much of the money which supported the Mission funds cah the Eton association Near Winchester was living his cousin Charlotte Yonge, the well-known authoress, who afterwards wrote his Life, and through her he established friendly communications with Keble at Hursley and Bishop Moberly, then Head Master of Winchester College To them he could write sympathetically of Church questions at ho the summer months also, spent near Auckland, Patteson suffered fro the entrance to the harbour, to which the school was moved in 1859, he had a tiny room of his own, ten feet square; but the door stood open all day long in fine weather, and he was seldo the boys, his own bedrooiven up to an invalid

But these deed, while he talks with vexation, and even with asperity, of the people from the toho caht of his school His real friends were few and were partners in his work The two chief a the to the many claims upon him, and Sir Richard Martin, who had been Chief Justice of the Colony The latter shared Patteson's taste for philology, and had a wide knowledge of Melanesian dialects

By the middle of 1860, when Patteson had been five years at work, he became aware that the question of his consecration could not be long delayed New Zealand was taxing the Prith and he wished to constitute Melanesia a separate diocese He believed that in Patteson, with his single-ifts, he had found the ideal man for the post, and in February 1861 the consecration took place The three bishops who laid hands upon him were, like the Bishop-elect, Etonians;[39] and thus Eton has played a very special part in founding the Melanesian Church What Patteson thought and felt on this solemn occasion may be seen froe, still living with his daughters at Feniton, had been stricken with a fatal disease, and in the last months of his life he rejoiced to know that his son was counted worthy of his high calling He died in June 1861 and the news reached his son when cruising at sea a few months later They had kept up a close correspondence all these years, which he now continued with his sisters; nothing shows better his simple affectionate nature They are filled mostly with details of his mission life It was this of which his sisters wanted to hear, and it was this which filled alh he loved his fae to England as incoave his tiular subscriptions, Australia responded to appeals which he made in person and which furnished the only occasions of his leaving the diocese; but, without his devotion of the inco from his Merton fellowshi+p and from his family inheritance, it would have been impossible for him to carry on the work in the islands

[Note 39: Bishop Selwyn (Priton, and Bishop Hobhouse of Nelson]

In his letters written just about the time of his consecration there are abundant references to the qualities which he desired to see in English er to make what they called the sacrifice of their lives The conventional phrases about 'sacrifices' he disliked as much as he did the sensational appeals to which the public had been habituated in s He asked forlanguages, entlemen' who could rise above distinctions of class and colour and treat Melanesians as they treated their own friends Above all, he wanted men ould whole-heartedly accept the system devised by Selwyn, and approved by himself He could not have the harinate methods before they had served their apprenticeshi+p If he could not get the right recruits froland, he says more than once, he would rather depend on themen from New Zealand would adapt themselves better to the life and he himself would try to remedy any defects in their education Ulti he would draw his most efficient help from his converts in the islands, and to train the ten years of his service

His way of life was not greatly altered by his consecration He continued to divide his year between New Zealand and his ocean cruise

He had no body of clergy to space out over his vast diocese or to ent demands of the islands In 1863 he received two valuable recruits--one the Rev R Codrington, a Fellow of Wadhae, Oxford, who shared the Bishop's literary tastes and proved a valued counsellor; the other a naval e of the new schooner called the _Southern Cross_, just sent out to hiland Till then his staff consisted of three er men ere to be ordained later One of these, Joseph Atkin, a native of Auckland, proved himself of unique value to the Mission before he was called to share his leader's death But the Bishop still took upon hies where the English were unknown or where the goodwill of the natives seemed to be doubtful This he accepted as acasually in his letters that the others are not good enough swi after the tiun In the interval between visits anything eful; and it is evident that, month after month, the Bishop carried his life in his hand

The secret of his power can be found in his letters, which are quite free froion was based on faith, simple and sincere; and he never hesitated to put it into practice From the Bible, and especially from the New Testament, he learned the central lessons, the love of God and the love ofwas allowed to come between him and his duty; and to it he devoted the faculties which he had trained

His instinct often stood hi him to practise caution and to keep at a distance from treacherous snares; but there were times when he felt that, to advance his work, he must show absolute confidence in the natives whatever he suspected, andthem In such cases he seemed to rise superior to all nervousness or fear At one time he would find his path back to the boat cut off by natives who did not themselves knohether they intended violence or not At another he would sit quietly alone in a circle of gigantic Tikopians, so at his 'little weak arms and shoulders' 'Yet it is not', he continued, 'a sense of fear, but simply of powerlessness' No amount of experience could render hi to open new fields for mission work and when his converts the

This was proved by his terrible experience at Santa Cruz He had visited these islands (which lie north of the New Hebrides) successfully in 1862, landing at seven places and seeing over a thousand natives, and he had no reason to expect a different reception when he revisited it in 1864 But on this occasion, after he had swu the people, a crowd ca at those in the boat from fifteen yards ahile others attacked in canoes Before the boat could be pulled out of reach, three of its occupants were hit with poisoned arrows, and a few days later two of thens of tetanus, which was al natives of Norfolk Island, for whom the Bishop had conceived a special affection, and their deaths, which were painful to witness, were a very bitter grief to him The reason for the attack remained unknown The traditions of Melanesia in the e nations; and under the spur of fear or revenge the islanders were capable of directing their anger blindly against their truest friends

The most notable development in the first year of Patteson's episcopate was the for of a solid centre of work in the Banks Islands Every year, while the Mission shi+p was cruising, some member of the Mission, often the Bishop hi steadily in Mota for a succession of inning, hours were given up to desultory talking with the natives, but perseverance was rewarded Those who came to talk would return to take lessons, and soradually made even on the older men attached to their idolatrous rites Many years after Patteson's death it was still the most civilized of the islands with a population ale was effected in 1867 when the Bishop boldly cut adrift from New Zealand and800 es which it possessed over Auckland were two Firstly, it was so many hundred miles nearer the centre of the Mission work; secondly, it had a climate much more akin to that of the Melanesian islands and it would be possible to keep pupils here for a longer spell without running such risks to their health Another point, which to many would seee, was the absence of all distraction At Auckland the clergy implored hiatherings; and if he would not come to the town, they pursued hied the loss of his time A contemporary tells us that he worked froical interests, he needed time for his own study of the Bible In the former he was a pioneer and had to uidance of the best scholars whenever he could procure their books He spoke with delight of his first acquaintance with Lightfoot's edition of St Paul's Epistles; he wrote home for such new books as would be useful to him, and he read Hebrew daily whenever he could find time Into this part of his life he put rew, and was always trying to learn It may have seemed to many a dull routine to be followed year after year by a h place and moved in brilliant society at home; but from his letters it is clear that he was satisfied with his life and that no thought of regret assailed him

[Note 40: This island had lately been colonized by settlers from Pitcairn Island, descended from the mutineers of the _Bounty_, ht a severe loss when Bishop Selas called hoe of the Diocese of Lichfield It was he who had drawn Patteson to the South Seas: his presence had been an abiding strength to the younger s; and Patteson felt his departure as he had felt nothing since his father's death But he went on unfalteringly with his work, ever ready to look hopefully into the future At the moment he was intensely interested in the ordination of his first native clergye Saraho had now been a pupil for nine years and had shown sufficient progress in knowledge and strength of character to justify the step Eager though he was to enrol helpers for the work, Patteson was scrupulously careful to ensure the fitness of his clergy, and to lay hands hastily on no man In little matters also he was careful and methodical His scholars in Norfolk Island were expected to be punctual, his helpers to be content with the siive their work freely; between black and white there was to be equality; no service was to be considered degrading He did not wish to hurry his converts into outward observance of European ways More i of clothes was the true respect for the sanctity of e; far above the question of Sunday observance was the teaching of the love of God

Foreign missions have come in for plenty of criticism It is someti to intervention and annexation by the British Governe of covetousness and hypocrisy But there are few instances in which this charge can be maintained, least of all in Australasian waters A e, often made in India, is thatthe traditional beliefs of the natives, and that the convert is neither a good Asiatic nor a passable European This depends on the methods employed It er, as we can see from his words, and built carefully on the foundation of native character He took away no stone till he could replace it by better material He was never content merely to destroy

Another set of critics are roused by the extravagance of sos and societies: their taste is offended or (we are bound to admit) their sense of humour roused It was time for dickens to wield this weapon when he heard Chadbands pouring forth their oily platitudes and saw Mrs Jellybys neglecting their own children to clothe the offspring of 'Borrioboola Gha' Such folly caught the critic's eye when the steady benevolence of others, unnoticed, was effecting hich had a good influence equally at hoainst the fanciful picture of Mrs Jellyby let us put the life-story of Charlotte Yonge, hile discharging every duty to her fa affection, was able to put aside large sus of her pen to supply the needs of the Melanesian Mission

Let us remember, too, that much of the bitterest criticism has co e profits in reht of day Patteson would have been content to justify his work by his Master's bidding as quoted in the Gospel His friends would have been content to clai of the Mission should be examined If outside testiood instance will refute a large ae Grey, no sentiave his own et three native boys, chosen by himself, educated at Patteson's school, and was fully satisfied with the result

But this siular life was soon to be perturbed by new complications, which rose from the European settlers in Fiji As their plantations increased, the need for labour becaent and the Melanesian islands were drawn upon to supply it In ood for the Melanesians to be trained to agricultural work; but the trouble was that they were being deceived over the conditions of the undertaking Open kidnapping and the revival of anything like a slave trade could hardly be practised under the British flag at this time; nor indeed did the Fiji settlers, inunfair or brutal It was to be a ned by the workmen; but the Melanesian was not educated up to the point where he could appreciate what a contractto sign for a period long enough to be useful; ed their rew, some islands were entirely depopulated, and it becaage themselves The trade was in jeopardy; but the captains of merchant vessels, who found it very lucrative, were determined that the supply of hands should not run short So when they met with no volunteers, they used to cajole the islanders on board shi+p under pretence of trade and then kidnap them; when this procedure led to affrays, they were not slow to shoot The confidence of the native in European justice was shaken, and the work of years was undone Security on both sides was gone, and the ht find hi with the desire to revenge themselves on the first white man who came within their reach

Patteson did all that he could, in co-operation with the local officials, to regulate the trade There was no case for a crusade against the Fiji planters, ere doing good work in a hunorant of the misdeeds practised in Melanesia The best method was to forbid unauthorized vessels to pursue the trade and to put the authorized vessels under supervision; but, to effect this in an outlying part of the vast British Eh Whitehall This he set himself to do; butout of his reach, that in the last n in Fiji, where he intended to visit several of the plantations in turn and to carry to the expatriated workers the Gospel which he had hoped to preach to the he was himself destined to fall a victim to the spirit of hostility evoked His best as already done when in 1870 he had a prolonged illness, and was forced to spend soeed him considerably, and the clih he was back at work again before the end of the summer he was far more subject to weariness His manner became peaceful and dreamy, and his companions found that it was difficult to rouse hihts recurred more often to the past; he would write of Devonshi+re and its chares in Wordsworth, or fall into quiet meditation, yet he would not unbuckle his ar the Mission in order to take a holiday in England

In April 1871, when the time came for hiy revived He spent seven weeks at Mota, leaving it towards the end of August to sail for the Santa Cruz group

On Septeht of the coral reef of Nukapu, he was speaking to his scholars of the death of St Stephen Nexthe had the boat lowered and put off for shore acco had lately become embittered in this district over the Labour trade, but the thought of danger did not shake his resolution To show his confidence and disarm suspicion he entered one of the canoes, alone with the islanders, landed on the beach and disappeared a the crowd Half an hour later, for no apparent reason, an attack was started byclose off the shore; and before the rowers could pull out of range, Joseph Atkin and two of the natives had been wounded by poisoned arrohich, some days later, set up tetanus with fatal effect They reached the shi+p; but after a few hours, when their wounds had been treated, Mr Atkin insisted on taking the boat in again to learn the Bishop's fate This time no attack was made upon them; but a canoe was towed out part of the way and then left to drift towards the boat In it was the dead body of the Bishop tied up in a native mat How he died no one ever knew, but his face was caluish seems to have troubled him in the hour of death 'The placid smile was still on the face: there was a palm leaf fastened over the breast, and, when the e mysterious beauty, as it may be called, of the circuend of a martyr of the Primitive Church'[41]