[2] The Editor hopes to publish these OCCASIONAL PAPERS from time to time as news reaches him. But communication is so uncertain, as he has pointed out before, that he cannot promise them at fixed periods. The expense of printing and forwarding them to the subscribers is a very serious charge on the Mission Funds. Hitherto, all publications by the Mission have been sent out without charge, and when only the Report and Island Voyage were sent the expense was trifling. But the addition of three or four Occasional Papers in the year is a serious matter. He would therefore be much obliged if all subscribers to the Mission would let him know:--

1. How many copies of the additional Occasional Papers they wish to receive--and (2) whether they will be willing to pay a small sum say: 3d. a copy for them.

HIS ADDRESS IS:--

MASTER'S LODGE,
SELWYN COLLEGE,
CAMBRIDGE.

+

Subscriptions and Donations may be sent to:--

Rev. W. SELWYN,
Treasurer of the Mission,
BROMFIELD, R.S.O.,
SHROPSHIRE.

[3] I HAVE delayed the publication of the Occasional Paper that t might be able to give the account of the consecration of Bishop Wilson. The mail has just arrived (July 27th), and many letters with it, full of thankfulness and hope. Each gives some particular point of interest, and I piece these together, in order to give as full an account of the consecration as I can.

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Laus Deo.
___

Mr. Wilson arrived at about 10 p.m. on the evening of Sunday, June 10th. The steamer had had strong head winds, and people at Auckland began to be anxious, lest he should not arrive in time.

The Southern Cross had arrived before from Norfolk Island with Mrs. Comins, the Rev. A. Brittain, and a party of Melanesians, including the Rev. George Sarawia, the first ordained of the Melanesian Clergy. Rev R. B. Comins had oleo arrived from Figi, so that there was a Melanesian as well as a New Zealand welcome awaiting him.

One and all record the feeling of joy with which they ratify the choice that had been made at home. They feel, what the old members of the Mission in England felt, that as far as human eye can judge, Cecil Wilson is one who is fitted for the work, and under whom they can serve loyally. This is the first thought which fills our hearts with thankfulness to God.

Captain Tilly, Bishop Patteson's old captain, the most faithful friend of the Mission, expresses what they all feel. "He has won all our hearts, and what more gratifying can I say to you who have chosen him for your successor?"

The next note of thankfulness is struck by Bishop Wilson himself. As all hearts have gone out to him, so God has removed from his soul, all the doubt and hesitation that he may have felt, and naturally felt. In a letter, too full of deep self-surrender to be quoted in full, he says:--"Those Melanesian boys receiving the Holy Sacrament did me good as did, I need not say, the whole service. The gladness of the people and their numbers; the mass of communicants; the welcome of the Bishops--then the marvellous welcome of the people at the Choral Hall and at a Conversazione; all made me see that I was wanted, and prayed for, and that God had answered their prayers by sending me. At last I saw the honour of being chosen, it was really the act of God, not men. He had really been behind you all along, and behind Jacob and the Dean (Vaughan), and all my friends, who said that I must accept."

The fulness of his satisfaction peeps out, in a way which perhaps I can understand better than anyone else.

"I went on board the Southern Cross on Tuesday and my flag was run up. The Bishops of Dunedin, Nelson and Christchurch were there. All of us were much impressed. How I pity you having to give it all up."

The third note is the extreme dignity of the service and the impression it made on the people.

The Primate (Bishop Cowie) had made the most careful preparation, and everything was done with the utmost dignity and reverence.

[4] The consecrating Bishops were The Primate, Neville (Dunedin); Julius (Christchurch); Mules (Nelson). The Church of St. Mary's was crowded with over 1,200 people, of whom about 600 remained to receive the Holy Communion. Archdeacon Dudley thus describes the scene:--"There were present a large proportion of our clergy. Fancourt and Leonard Williams from Wellington and Waiapu respectively.* [Footnote: * Administering the Dioceses.] Archdeacon Samuel Williams could not come. Services were held in many places to synchronize with the service. Mac Murray (the incumbent) arranged admirably, and Walsh took an infinity of trouble as M.C. The united choirs and communicants filled the church in every part. I fear that some of those who sat in the old low part of the building could hear but little. But all heard the sermon of Bishop Julius, which was eminently appropriate to the occasion: "Ye have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go, and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain."

Perhaps that which most profoundly affected all who were able to witness it, was the demeanour of the Bishop-elect throughout--perfectly calm, not a trace of nervousness, collected, quiet, intensely earnest. There was a sense of strength suggested, of cost counted, of responsibilities recognised and faced without fear, in dependence on God. . . . The moment of consecration when the Maori chaplain held up the Bishop's staff, and George Sarawia held up the book, was one that brought home the fulfilment of your father's aspirations, and of the ancient prophecy--"Thy heart shall fear and be enlarged." The last of the communicants were a number of Melanesian Christians who had come up with Comins from Figi."

Most thankworthy also was the impression which the service made on the hearts of the people. It may be seen in the extract which we print from the New Zealand Herald, and the Bishop of Auckland sends an extract from a letter received from one of the most thoughtful of the laity who were present.

"I would like also to say that neither in New Zealand nor in Australia have I ever been privileged to join in a service so impressive, so feelingly earnest and magnificent as that at S. Mary's last Monday. And although I have been at various ordination services in a Cathedral in England, I cannot recall one which so thoroughly impresses itself on my mind, as being all that such a solemn service ought to be, as that of Monday. There seemed nothing wanting, nothing out of orderly arrangement, nothing to cause a jar to interfere with the conduct of the service."

And Mr. Brittain says:--" I think that all Auckland has been moved. . . . The service on Monday was admirably arranged, and was real worship. The communion of over 600 people must be very strengthening, and of great service to the Church. People have been greatly impressed by it. As I had to take rather a prominent part in it, I have been recognised since, and unknown people have spoken to me in public places, and said how affected they were."

The Church in New Zealand does wisely in insisting that her Bishops shall be consecrated in her midst. And the impression so made by such a consecration cannot fail to help Bishop Wilson and the Mission in after years.

[5] Lastly, it must be noticed with thankfulness that the native Churches shared to the full the joy of the day. I have mentioned how a Maori clergyman held the Primate's pastoral staff. The Rev. George Sarawia, who acted as chaplain to Bishop Wilson, was the first Melanesian who was ordained by Bishop Patteson. Among the clergy who attended was the Rev. Heta Tarawhiti, my father's old comrade during the New Zealand war. And I gather that my tried, friend Rev. Henry Tagalad, of Motlav, was there also. The touching address of the Maori given below, will show how they remember those who have worked before; and can cheer and stir the young Bishop, who is going forth to carry on that work.

I cannot conclude without one word of deepest gratitude to all those who took part in this consecration, and who made it such a noble and impressive service. It is the crowning act of all the loving care which the Bishop of Auckland has ever shown to the Mission, and to him and to the other Bishops and all who contributed to this most solemn welcome and consecration of the new Bishop, the thanks of all who love Melanesia are most due.

But as we began so let us finish, with praise to our most loving God. He has tried the Mission with sickness, with bereavement, with poverty, and with death. It was His hand then, and surely we may trust that it is His hand now, which sheds upon it the blessing of renewed strength, and life, and hope. To Him be the praise, and the glory, and the thanksgiving, The willing service and the perfect trust, now and for ever.

J. R.SELWYN,
Bishop.

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At a meeting held in the Choral Hall in the evening to welcome the new Bishop, addresses were given by the Primate and the Bishops of Dunedin, Christchurch, and Nelson. A deputation of Maori clergymen---the Rev. Heta Tarawhiti, Hoe Papahiha, Wiki te Paa, and Hoere Matete--also presented an address of welcome. It was read in Maori by one of their number, and then read in English by Archdeacon Clarke as follows: we quote from New Zealand Herald Report:--

"This is a welcome from the Maori clergy of the diocese of Auckland to the Right Rev. Cecil Wilson. Welcome Bishop of Melanesia! Welcome spirit of our father Bishop Selwyn, which began the work on which you have started. Welcome spirit of Bishop Patteson, who gave his body to die in his great earnestness to preach the Gospel to those who are still in darkness and the habitations of cruelty. Welcome successor to our younger brother, Bishop John Selwyn, now in England, whose heart is still agonising to return to the work which he had to leave in consequence of ill health. Sire, we here to-day are the fruits of the missionaries who have recently passed away. Our fathers were like the black people of the Islands to which you are going. "We were sometimes darkness, but now are we light in the Lord." And here also stand some of the results of the labours of Bishops Selwyn, Patteson, and John Selwyn, and their fellow-workers. Sire, "Be strong and of good courage, fear not nor be afraid of them, for the Lord thy God He it is that doth go with thee. He will not fail thee, [5/6] nor forsake thee." Let the farewell words of Christ, "Lo I am with thee always, even unto the end of the world," be your support. Go forth to our brethren who are "without hope and without God in the world." Our prayer for you is that the mantle of the former Bishops of Melanesia will fall upon you, and that a double portion of their spirit may rest upon you. May God give you health that you may labour with success in that part of the vineyard. May He strengthen, enlighten, and guide you in times of weakness, sorrow, and difficulty, and then, when your work is done on earth and you stand in His presence, together with those you have taught, may you be enabled to say, "Behold I and the children whom the Lord hath given me." Though the majority of us are absent, we ask you to accept this welcome as coming from all the Maori clergy--your fellow-workers.

The Bishop of Melanesia, in reply, said "he did not expect such an address in a strange land, but after all he did not feel he was in a strange land. (Cheers). From the hour he was dragged out of the steamer, and taken to Bishopscourt, he felt at home. He thanked them for coming to his consecration and joining with him in the Communion. His Home parish was so like a suburb of a colonial city--the thoroughfare so broad and the people so independent that the gradation to colonial life was easy. (Laughter and cheers). He had also worked in a slum in Portsmouth, but they had no slums here in the Working man's Paradise. In England great interest was taken in the New Zealand Church, and it was something to see the places now won to Christianity in this colony, which, 70 years ago, were in heathenism. He felt he was on a battlefield with the battle just over, but when he saw the Melanesian natives he felt it was not over yet. He was reminded too of the missionaries of old, of the Williams, and Archdeacon Maunsell, whom they had lately lost. They had had great missionary Bishops in Melanesia in the past, but he hoped they would still take an interest in the mission, though some of its heroes had passed away." (Cheers).

Mr. Upton and Archdeacon Dudley also spoke.

A Conversazione was also held by the Women's Guild under Mrs. Cowie's presidency on another evening.

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The welcome of the Mission was given to their new Bishop, as was fitting, on board the Southern Cross. After the flag had been hoisted, a short service was held partly in English, and partly in Mota, and Mr. Comins welcomed the Bishop in a short speech, to which the Bishop replied; and thus, as it were, took charge of the work.

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The next day a conference was held to settle procedure. It was decided that the Bishop should go down at once to Norfolk Island, and wait there till the end of August, when the Southern Cross would pick him up, and take him round the islands. He would return at the end of November, and then spend January, February, and March in visiting (in the Southern Cross) the New Zealand ports, being at Nelson on January 31st, for the General Synod. After this the Bishop proposes a long visit, say a month, to Queensland, and then a short visit to Figi.

[7] It was also decided that Mr. Brittain should at once visit Queensland. Of this he writes:--

"I am to go on to Queensland. It is a somewhat critical time just now there, and we must do what we can to adjust things. Two hundred Malanta men are said to be preparing to go home with a white man, (a Dane I think), as their missionary, to live with them. Now the introduction of a foreign body or organisation in our islands would be a very serious matter, and a great effort must be made to get them to work with us. The journey will be at some inconvenience to myself, but some one must go, and I am the only one available, so I go--you will hear further on of what transpires, no doubt."

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This mention of the Malanta men in Queensland who had been taught Christianity, and are anxious to spread it among their countrymen, leads on to the exactly similar problem which has to be solved regarding the men of that island who have been trained in Figi. Mr. Comins has been visiting them, and his story must be told in his own words. He left Auckland shortly after Easter with Luke Masuraa, a native of Malanta, who has been trained at Norfolk Island, and is now one of the teachers at his own home. When they arrived at Suva they were met by Mr. Jones and a crowd of Melanesians.

"They literally swarmed down to meet us, and gave Luke and myself a most enthusiastic welcome. They had been so often disappointed about our coming, that now their delight knew no bounds. . . . The great event of my stay here was the opening of the Polynesian Church (as they call it). Mr. Jones' boys have increased in numbers till there was no room for them in his own Church. So they collected nearly £200 among themselves, and Mr. Jones has had a splendid building put up for them in a nice airy position. We opened this on Saturday evening, and the place was crowded with both whites and blacks. I gave an address, in English first, then I tried my hand at two Malanta dialects--Port Adam and Saa; and then said a few words in Mota for the sake of some Banks Islanders present. The singing was grand, being assisted by the church choir. We had one Malanta hymn, which Luke had translated. I find that there are 4 or 5 distinct Malanta dialects represented here, and Luke can make nothing of two of them; and when we give an address in any one dialect, only 25 or 30 people are reached by it. It seems as if Figi would be the best medium for instruction, but the Solomon boys are ambitious to learn English, and do not care to be taught Figian."

NOTE.--This interesting letter shows how real is the work that has been done by Mr, Jones at Suva and by Mr. Floyd at Levuka among the labourers brought to Figi. But it also shows the exceeding difficulty of using the men so taught as missionaries to their own countrymen. It will have been observed that no one dialect extends over more than about 20 per cent. or even less of the population of Malanta. The same holds good about those in Queensland. How then are they to reach their own countrymen, except with the somewhat scanty and imperfectly understood teaching which they receive through the medium of English--a very hard language indeed with which to get much below the surface? How is any literature, such as prayers, hymns, translations of Scripture to be provided, when an exceptionally acute and well-trained lad from Norfolk Island can make nothing of two dialects out of five spoken by his own countrymen? It is well to have such a good example of the difficulties which meet the Mission, through this terrible diversity of language. They are not indeed insuperable, but they show how slow progress must necessarily be, if it is to be worth anything. For teachers who have themselves been taught in a very hard foreign tongue, and who have no books which they can use, would, if they were left to impart to their countrymen what they had learnt in English, and then translated into their own language, rapidly produce a very curious and distorted Christianity, however faithful and zealous they might be.

[8] Mr. Comins reached Auckland from Figi in good time for the consecration. He tells in a letter dated June 15th, of the result of his work in Figi:--

"I much enjoyed my stay in Figi, and feel very much stronger and better. I had a long talk with Sir John Thurston, who goes down to the Solomon Islands in September in a man-of-war. He promises to go to Saa and help Joe Wate and his people. He is most anxious to work with us as far as possible, and hopes to see a good deal of the new Bishop in the Islands. He gave permission for me to take away six Solomon Island boys from Figi to Norfolk Island for their education as teachers there. The bargain is that I have to return them to Figi in 2 years' time, when the Government will forward them to the Solomons, together with those of their own people who like to return with them. I have chosen 6 lads from Malanta; i.e., 2 from Alite Bay and Feu, just opposite Florida, 2 from Suu and Manoba, at the end nearest Bugotu, and 2 more from the coast near Cape Arcasides, all from parts where we have no schools, and have not been able to get any footing. Their friends in Figi from those parts have agreed to await their return from Norfolk Island, that they may go home together. About 100 lads from villages near Pululaha and Tawaniahia, and the coast of Maramasiki, on either side of Saa, hope to go home next May, and I am to arrange for them to settle in certain centres where we can put teachers down among them to keep them together. From there they can reach their heathen friends. Sir John approves of this. The boys I take to Norfolk Island are communicants, and read and write English. I hope to go down to the Islands for the 2nd voyage on August 17th, and I must be there also the first voyage next year to shepherd the returning labourers."

Meanwhile Mr. Comins takes charge of Mr. Calder's parish at Ponsonby, while the latter pays a visit to Norfolk Island. It is to be hoped that the bracing effect of a New Zealand winter may restore Mr. Comins' health, which has been sorely strained by the very hard work he has done without intermission for the past two years.

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The following is a condensed account from New Zealand Herald of June 15th, 1894:--"The solemn and impressive ceremony prescribed by the ancient rubrics of the Church of England for the consecration of a Bishop, was witnessed on Monday, June 11th, by a congregation that filled to overflowing, S. Mary's Cathedral, Parnell (Auckland). This congregation included among its numbers representatives of nearly all classes and creeds. His Excellency the Governor, accompanied by several members of his family, and attended by his suite, occupied seats in the nave. Although midwinter the weather was singularly mild and pleasant, and the sun streamed through the stained windows of the chancel. The Processional hymn tune "Thro' the night of doubt and sorrow" was sung as the choristers, Clergy, and Bishops entering at the western porch slowly and solemnly wended their way up the central aisle. The choir, in black cassocks and white surplices, the Clergy in their robes, the Primate (whose Pastoral Crook was carried in front of him by his native Chaplain), and the Bishops, in their imposing vestments, made up a spectacle which, for picturesqueness, [8/9] and impressiveness has seldom been witnessed in New Zealand. Conspicuous in the procession was the Bishop-elect, attired in plain black clerical dress, without ornament of any kind. With crossed hands and bent head he walked slowly to his place at the altar rail. And here it may be said of him that throughout the whole of the service he bore himself as one deeply conscious of the solemn nature of the ceremony in which he was the chief figure. Calm and collected in all his movements, betraying little or no signs of nervousness, he impressed all by his intense earnestness and gravity. Looking at his well-knit athletic figure, his finely-moulded head, his broad brow, and his serious yet kindly expression, one is reminded of his first predecessor as "the Christian, yet man of the world, the scholar, yet the athlete, first and foremost in all the contests of English courage and skill, wise and witty as well, with a word, and a look, and a deed for everybody."

The Consecration Sermon.

BISHOP JULIUS then preached the ordination sermon, taking his text from St. John xv. 16: "Ye have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain." The day, said Bishop Julius, was one of gladness in the Church of New Zealand--their prayers had been answered--God had sent them a man for His own work in the Islands. Their anxieties were removed; their fears had vanished; and their brother stood amongst them waiting for consecration--the consecration of the Holy Ghost, that should fit him for the work which God had given to him. They remembered that day how the great Apostle Barnabas would have welcomed their brother, holding out to him the right hand of fellowship; greeting him as an old friend, though it were amongst strangers. That was their task also that day. If they could not find some words of loving greeting and of fellowship they could find them in the words of their Lord and Master Himself. Bishop Julius then went on to point out a vital distinction to be found in his text. Supposing the disciples had chosen their Lord as other disciples were chosen, and yet chose at present. It was quite possible to found a Christian Society upon such a basis. It was often done. It was the common basis of sectarianism, and all self-willed religion. "We have, it was said, chosen him; we have banded ourselves together; we have formed a Church; here we are; he did not choose us, we chose him." What house in the world, however well built, could have more stability than the sand upon which it was based. And if the stability of the Church depended on the choice of themselves, there was little hope for it. The existence of the Church did not depend upon the fact that so many persons had chosen such and such a form of fellowship and common worship; that they had united themselves into such a body for such and such a purpose. But it did depend on the fact that Christ had built His Church, and was calling one and another into it from the four ends of the earth, "and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." Turning to the Bishop-elect, and addressing him personally, Bishop Julius said the thought would be comforting in the days that were coming that God had been calling him when he did not know it; in the young days of his childhood, in the circumstances of his earliest years. In the boyish days of [9/10] school-time He had trained him. In the sports he had loved He had been fitting him for his work. And in his studies, when as yet he had no idea of what great work God had for him, God knew it. Physically, mentally, and spiritually, through all his days, when he knew it not, his Lord had been calling him, until the word, through His church came. The preacher then went on to dwell on the point that the ordination was to bring forth fruit, this was impossible without intimate communion with their incarnate Lord. They were not as atoms cast forth unto the world, but as members of the body of Christ. Their brother would go forth alone, but yet not alone, for the Lord would be with him all his days. The great solemn work was closely bound up with that of the saintly martyred Bishop Patteson and of dear John Selwyn. They were not atoms. Their brother was going out with those who had served through long years of labour and faithful watching; those who had stood by the side of Patteson and Selwyn. It seemed as though the very world were girdled that morning with intercession for their brother. It was the closing hour of Sunday in the dear old land. Many prayers were being sent up there--in Lichfield, at Eton, at Bournemouth, and elsewhere--prayers that were reaching up to Heaven for a blessing on the servant now going forth to this far-distant mission, and all New Zealand too, rang with prayer that God would bless him and consecrate him with the Holy Ghost.

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I insert from "The Guardian" the report of the meeting held in the Church House on April 5th, as I think many of the friends of the Mission will like to have in a permanent shape the report of a meeting which was unique of its kind.

The Melanesian Mission.

A largely attended meeting, to greet the Rev. Cecil Wilson, Bishop-elect of Melanesia, was held on Thursday, at the Church House, Westminster. Bishop Selwyn, late of Melanesia, presided. Amongst those present, in addition to the speakers, were the Bishop of Mauritius, Canon Churton, and Canon A. J. Mason, After the hymn, "Thou Whose Almighty Word," and prayer offered by the Rev. W. Selwyn.

The CHAIRMAN said he did not think that he ever rose to speak with a greater feeling of thankfulness to Almighty God than on the present occasion. For two years the diocese of Melanesia had been without a Bishop. Into the cause of that he need not enter much. There was a little difficulty caused by the delegation, and it was necessary to send out to Norfolk Island to see how the difficulty was going to be met. Although they sent out at once there was an unavoidable delay in the necessary communications, and then came the delay through two or three men who, they thought, were fitted for the task not seeing their way to go to it. But at last they were guided to one who, he believed, was well fitted to take up the work, but who was reluctant to relinquish his work in his parish near Bournemouth, and who did not know much about Melanesia. When, however, the call came, and it came most appropriately on the eve of Christmas Day, Mr. Wilson entertained it; he felt the call more strongly day by day, and now he was with them to tell them that he was ready to go forth [10/11] and to do this work. (Cheers). The feeling in Melanesia with regard to Mr. Wilson's appointment was best gathered by a letter which had been forwarded to him. This address, which arrived only on the previous day, he was sure expressed what they all felt, and he would read it on behalf of those "boys" he (Bishop Selwyn ) loved so dearly:--

[Translation].

To the Rev. C. Wilson, Bishop designate of Melanesia.

This is the letter of all of us, that you may perceive that we have heard of you and are thinking about you with eagerness. For we have heard that you have finally decided about us here on the other side of the world. For we have been waiting and waiting that somebody might so decide; but there has been a very long time indeed, and we have not heard anything about it, and have thought that they did not care (about us). Then we heard that you have decided in your heart about it. And because of that God has chosen you. And the hearts of us all are rejoicing exceedingly, and our hearts are very warm to see you here quickly amongst us. May God bless you. Farewell.

(Here follow the names).

Seventy-two of us have written here, and there are still some more who cannot
write well, but they all think the same concerning it. [end of letter]

Then, when this weighty matter was decided, when on the coldest day of the year they went to the Archbishop of Canterbury, and he received them in the most fatherly manner, and sent Mr. Wilson forth in the plenitude of his blessing, God put it into his (Bishop Selwyn's) heart to test the love that Bishop Patteson and his (the speaker's) father had stirred up in the hearts of the people of England. He asked for £1000 to get the Mission out of debt. He had got from the outside public something like £1100. (Cheers). Besides that there was a gift which he valued above all others--a gift from his mother, who was the earliest of the Melanesian missionaries except his father--a gift of £200 that had already gone out to Melanesia. Therefore he hoped the Mission was free from debt. Besides that he had received a letter from the Bishop of Tasmania, in which he stated that they had a Church Congress in Tasmania, and that having discussed all the missionary work that lay before the Australian Church, and especially this work of the Melanesian Mission--in which he was deeply interested, and for which perhaps he had done more than any one else out there because he went and cheered the members of the Mission--they were going to have a week of self-denial throughout Australia and New Zealand in order to put the Missions of the Church on a good sound footing. Now he (Bishop Selwyn) would be able to write out and tell him what they had done on this side to put the Melanesian Mission out of danger. They had in their speakers that day those who would represent all the different epochs of the work. They would see how the work had steadily grown, and had grafted itself in the life of the Church, and they prayed that under the new Bishop, and the brighter and hopeful auspices which God had sent them, that this growth would continue. He had referred to his mother as being the oldest worker in Melanesia living, and she was really a missionary. She used to go with his father and work on Norfolk Island. She had kindly written a letter, which he would read to them, and the handwriting was wonderful for an old lady of eighty-five years:--

There were three things that prompted your father to establish a Mission to Melanesia. First, the desire to provide some means which might create missionary zeal in the New Zealand Church, lest it should become a dead Church, caring [11/12] nothing for its neighbour. When, therefore, he had set in order the things that were there wanting, he, secondly, gladly availed himself of Archbishop Howley's parting desire that he would go to the regions beyond, and of the clerical error in the drawing of his patent which assigned to him many degrees of latitude in the South Pacific Ocean, and thus felt the multitude of the isles within them to be in his charge. He had diligently studied navigation on his way out from England, and seamanship from the sailing-master of his little topsail schooner of twenty-one tons, so that he could handle her as well as any skipper on the coast. The rest of his outfit consisted in some old Russian charts--(it was before the Admiralty surveys were made)--and some few volumes of the voyages of the Spanish explorers of the sixteenth century. As far as these went, they were most life-like up to this time, and were wonderfully correct. Still, for the most part, these were unknown seas, unknown people, and unknown languages, and he went with his life in his hands. There were a few traders after sandal-wood, but very often they left a legacy of blood behind if they had fallen out with the natives, and any had been killed, to be avenged on the next comer. Fear on both sides being often the beginning of strife, he was as careful as have been his successors to avoid all occasions of it, so that till well known he always landed alone on the islands, keeping the boat at a little distance and swimming ashore, taking fishhooks and beads to propitiate the people. How but by Divine guidance they were persuaded to come away with him who shall say:--He always took a party a little voyage of two days or so at first, and then brought some lads away. On one island, in the early times, he found a common English sailor, one Captain Padden, carrying on a very flourishing trade in sandal-wood, with a staff of natives under him. His fair dealing and kindness prevailed, and he lived at peace and prospered. The Bishop always called him his tutor, as the same methods would enable him to carry out his higher ends. In every summer a party were brought to New Zealand to a central school to train the youths to be teachers in their own islands, and before winter they went back to avoid the cold. After a time it was thought well to bring some girls as well to be trained as wives for the Christian men. Two only came at first. I remember the joyful arrival of the Mission vessel with its precious freight, and watching the party coming, wondering who and what the Bishop was leading. They turned out to be two girls attired in dresses made of a counterpane, and with tippets of fine sail cloth, devised by the Bishop and made by him. They were quaint figures both, and full of fun, but, of course, took all as a matter of course. They were my charge, and consequently playmates of the last Bishop of Melanesia and other children also, so they learnt to speak English very well; and to play at cricket or any other game in vogue.

That was the story of what transpired at the beginning of the Mission, and now they would hear from those who had seen it in all stages of its growth how it had gone on. He would first call on one of his father's co-workers and one of his father's oldest friends.

BISHOP ABRAHAM said that he never took any actual part in Melanesian work, and what they learnt of that work was pumped out with the greatest difficulty. He heard, however, of some of the dangers through which Bishop Selwyn passed in a very remarkable manner. Upon Bishop Selwyn's return from a visit to one of the islands, where he was attacked, he (Bishop Abraham) gave one of his companions a "shakedown" in his study, and in his dreams he revealed some of the scenes which the Bishop had passed through. When he (the speaker) once incautiously spoke to Bishop Selwyn on the subject and asked him to describe the attacks which the boy had rehearsed in his dreams, the Bishop said it was sometimes thought that people had gained very little benefit from classics, but he had gained from a Latin author the advice that "the best you can do is to talk as little as possible about yourself." He heard that Bishop Patteson had to encounter difficulties from the labour traffic, and he heard also that the chairman had also to cope with considerable difficulties with slave hunters, and the manner in which he settled on the island to protect [12/13] his school, and how he braved the lion in his own island went to the savage heart. The Church at large must feel deeply indebted to the Archbishop, to the Chairman, and to Dr. Codrington, for having nominated the Rev. Cecil Wilson to the vacant see of Melanesia. They also owed a deep debt of gratitude to Mr. Wilson for accepting the post, which was very onerous, and at times dangerous. He did not think the dangers now were as great as those which the previous Bishops incurred, but those acquainted with the natives, even with those who had been converted, were aware that they were what he would term "children of wrath"--of strong, violent impulses; and though they were kind and generous in the way they had received their Bishops, and would respond to deeds of courage, faith, and sympathy, anything that affected their superstitions would turn them from the gentlest creatures into madmen, who would turn upon their benefactors. Therefore danger was not at an end. But Mr. Wilson would go forth in the same spirit and in the same faith, and with God's blessing, as his predecessors did, and he had not the slightest doubt that he would hand on the torch which the noble Bishops who preceded him had committed to his charge.

The CHAIRMAN called upon another of his father's oldest friends and fellow-workers and the dreamer of dreams of whom Bishop Abraham spoke.

CAPTAIN HECTOR described his first meeting with. Bishop Selwyn when he (the speaker) was a little boy residing with his family, and how the Bishop's uncommon presence inspired him with a feeling of reverence and love for the Bishop, who eventually placed him in St. John's College. He, (the Bishop), afterwards became the skipper of the small vessel mentioned in Mrs. Selwyn's letter, and the speaker bore testimony not only to Bishop Selwyn's knowledge of navigation but of seamanship. None except those who had experienced them could realise the discomforts of so small a vessel. He (the speaker) knew the dangers that would be associated with these voyages, but the Bishop was strong in the faith that led him to undertake these journeys. The Bishop, with unfailing courage and calmness, surmounted all the difficulties, he navigated his small craft in unknown waters, and frequently was the man in charge of the watch at night-time and on other occasions. These islands which he visited were at that time in a state of savagedom; they had now by the work of the Bishops and the missionaries become almost safe to navigate amongst. It had been a pride and privilege to be associated with a man so great as Bishop Selwyn, and he was sure that the noble example of his predecessors would be a help and strength to the Bishop-elect.

The CHAIRMAN said they would now pass to the second epoch of the Mission--that connected with Bishop Patteson. Here, again, they had those present most intimately connected with the second epoch--Miss Patteson and Dr. Codrington.

Miss PATTESON next delivered a most touching address, in which she first alluded to her brother's Eton days, remarking that her brother was deeply impressed with the character of Bishop Selwyn, and that impression deepened as years went on. Twelve years passed and Bishop Selwyn and his family came home. England thoroughly appreciated her great missionary, and the Bishop was enthusiastically [13/14] received. During that twelve years her brother had gone from Eton to Oxford, and had travelled, and to some extent shown his aptitude for languages. When in England Bishop and Mrs. Selwyn and the two boys visited them. After his ordination he accepted a curacy close to their home in Devonshire, and in one short year as deacon completely won the love of the people. Her father being deaf had resigned his judgeship, and her brother was his chosen companion. Miss Patteson then went on to state how at first her father was reluctant to part with his son for missionary work, but how one solemn evening her father gave and the Bishop received his great gift, and then, after six months had passed only too quickly, one spring morning her brother went quietly away from the house and they saw him no more. Then Miss Patteson related how the sisters went to see how their father was bearing the parting, and seeing him with his open Bible before him they went away assured and comforted. Miss Patteson dwelt with tenderness upon the evident deepening influence of the home ties during her brother's last days in England Of her brother's work in the islands of Melanesia, the letters he wrote showed his ever-increasing intense love of the "boys" who came under his care. These letters never ceased during the sixteen years of his life there. The letters were full of love and affection towards his father and his sisters, but with no sign of giving up his work; in fact, nothing would induce him to come home. Then there came illness, and then the story of his last days. When that news came back to England what could they feel but thankfulness that God had called His servant to his rest? During all the sixteen years her brother was abroad he never missed on her birthday writing some loving expression of his affection. The world appreciated Bishop Selwyn as a great missionary, but she doubted if the grandest act of his life was valued as much as it ought to have been. His self-denial, humility, and obedience came out most grandly in his resignation of his diocese and in the acceptance of work less attractive in England. As Mrs. Selwyn expressed it, "Hereafter he descends from his pedestal." She (Miss Patteson) doubted whether until his death the world knew what a king of men had passed away. To know such a man as Bishop Selwyn was an inestimable privilege. She appealed to them to help on this Mission by their prayers, their alms, and their hearty co-operation.

The REV. DR. CODRINGTON said that the work of the Mission depended upon the native teachers and native clergy. That was the foundation of the Mission. These native teachers were prepared for their work on Norfolk Island. He wished to bear his testimony to the soundness of the foundation as it now stood. It was very difficult for those not acquainted with the work to realise the extreme isolation of the workers. The Mission had had also to contend with poverty, and its difficulties for the last two years were--no Bishop, no funds. There was one member of the Mission who had been steadily year after year devoting himself to the Mission--the Rev. John Palmer--and it was very much owing to what Mr. Palmer had done, and to the Melanesian members of the Mission, that they could say to Mr. Wilson that when he went out he would find to his hand the materials with which he would work. The services, too, which the Treasurer of the [14/15] Mission in New Zealand (Archdeacon Dudley) had rendered were very great. In New Zealand they had every prospect of what had not been known for many years--a full treasury.

The Chairman then introduced the speakers of the third epoch, his own dear friends and fellow workers. With the first, Mr. Still, he had rowed in the Cambridge eight--they had been fellow workers together in England and had gone out together to Melanesia.

The REV. JOHN STILL said they were there not only to wish Godspeed to Mr. Wilson, but to encourage him. As he looked back upon his life, the most unhappy day was that upon which he said "Goodbye" to his friends on Norfolk Island.

The REV. ALFRED PENNY, vicar of Tunstall (introduced by the chairman as the man who, under God, converted Florida), said he left England in 1875, and was appointed to work in the Solomon Islands, where the labour vessels were recruiting. It was in 1878 that the first adult converts were made on the spot, and not many years after that came the wholesale breaking up of superstition in this district. With the downfall of native superstition the power of the chiefs gave way, and it had been one of the chief aims of the Bishop and those who had charge of the district to put something in the place of that which had been destroyed, and that had been done by native Parliaments. Bishop Selwyn was present at the first of these Parliaments. Then there was the great question, Christianity having become popular, how to provide trained teachers to carry it on. The ten years he spent in Melanesia were ten years of great happiness.

The BISHOP-ELECT (the Rev. Cecil Wilson) was next called upon. He was sure he ought to go forth to this work with a very light heart after hearing the bright speeches that had been made, and he felt that he had been introduced into a very warm society. He believed that a great many friends of the Mission hailed from Eton, and he hoped as an old Tonbridge boy to introduce a new element of support. He wanted to weld the Tonbridge friends and the Eton friends together. It was not an easy thing to accept this call to Melanesia--to follow such men as those of whom they had heard. He thought that first of all his inclination was to missionary work, but when he got interested in town parish work it was not easy to give it up. He remembered that Dean Vaughan, under whom he read, once when he was ill gave him two books to read--one about Dr. Hook and the other about Bishop Patteson. It so happened that the first part of his clerical life was spent with one who might be called the modern Dr. Hook--Canon Jacob, vicar of Portsea, and now he was going to the happy hunting-grounds of Bishop Patteson. With his former inclination to missionary work, which was deepened by a fellow-curate, Tom Harvey, who died in China, he felt that his call to Melanesia was a call of God. But when he came to have to leave his parish he was afraid his inclination died away; but when his inclination had gone another spectre had arisen, and that was duty. That recognition of duty arose from four letters he had from Dean Vaughan, in which he spoke of the heavenly call, and said that if he refused it he might afterwards reproach himself for not accepting it. Canon Jacob said the same thing, and Mrs. Selwyn touched his heart when she [15/16] told him that she did not believe that a work begun by her husband, and carried on by Bishop Patteson and her son, God would ever allow to drop. Added to that, his (Mr. Wilson's) mother considered it was a call from God. Even then, however, he recognised the call of duty was only the obedience of the law, but gradually as he heard of the work of those who had been engaged in the Mission a new feeling sprung up, and that was love. One could not read the story of these men's lives without loving them. He felt very gratified in receiving the letter which had been read, and believed that very soon he and those who had sent it would be welded close together indeed. Although he felt absolutely unworthy to take the lead of the Mission, he said, as Luther said, "Here stand I, for I can do no other, so help me God." He felt unfitted for the post, from the greatness of those who had preceded him, but when God called a man from the rank of men to the rank of heroes He could make him a hero. At present he did not feel one, but those of whom they had heard would inspire him. And so he was going out, knowing he would have their sympathies and their prayers, and he believed that God would most
assuredly help him in his work.

CANON JACOB said he came there to act rather in the capacity of godfather, but he was sure in this instance none was needed. As he was very much responsible for the selection of Mr. Wilson, it was a great relief to him to know that this responsibility was shared more and more by those who came to know the Bishop-elect. Living, as he had done, in the same house with Mr. Wilson for five years, he knew that Mr. Wilson had strong missionary longings and leanings, and it was because of that he felt justified in making the recommendation. Only just before Dean Vaughan's illness began he (Canon Jacob) had an hour's conversation with him, and he should never forget that, when in his brightest intellect and clearest mind, Dean Vaughan asked him how he came to suggest Mr. Wilson, and he told him, the Dean said he thought it was one of the happiest inspirations possible. He felt that the confirmation of such a man as Dean Vaughan would relieve him of any responsibility. Both at Portsea and at Moordown, both populous working-class parishes, Mr. Wilson had completely won the love of the people, and not only among the working classes at Moordown, but amongst those better off at Bournemouth, Mr. Wilson had won respect and confidence, so that they had come forward beyond their former benevolence to help the work at Moordown.

The REV. W. SELWYN said that the receipts for 1893 exceeded those of 1892 by £435. For the last twenty years he had acted as secretary and treasurer for the Mission in England, but now circumstances had changed, and there were people intimately connected with the persons and places attached to the Mission, and therefore he felt it would be better that he should retire from the office of Secretary. Bishop Selwyn would in future act as secretary and chairman of the committee, but he would continue to act as treasurer.
.
The BISHOP of WAKEFIELD said it had just flashed upon his mind that he had one little connection with Melanesia. When in East London he received a letter from the chairman, who was then on [16/17] Norfolk Island, stating that several native boys during one Advent denied themselves certain indulgences, and afterwards brought to the Bishop a sum of money rather larger than he anticipated. The Bishop made it up to £10., and asked the boys what they would like to do with it, and they said they would like to send the £10 to help to support a little white boy. A boy was selected, and was supported by Melanesian boys for some years, living at an orphanage under the care of Mr. Elliott, of St. Stephen's, Poplar, and he became a sailor. He thought that was a parable they might taka to heart, because it showed that those who took an interest in foreign Missions would get a blessing in some shape or other. We in England, who lived at home ease, were put to shame by the lives of self-sacrifice in the Mission-field. If he might venture to speak in the name of the home Episcopate, he would say that they should all eagerly watch the new Bishop's career, and prayers would not be wanting for every blessing upon his work.

The BISHOP OF BRISBANE, who incidentally mentioned that as an old Tonbridgian there would be an additional link of sympathy between the Bishop-elect and himself, felt no hesitation in constituting himself the mouthpiece of the Australian Bishops on that occasion, and in that capacity giving their brother a cordial welcome to the southern hemisphere. He would find that his native "boys" were not deteriorated by their visit to labour in Queensland. He confessed that he hoped to have seen added to the work of the new Bishop the oversight of New Guinea; but it seemed at a recent conference, when the matter was discussed, that there were difficulties of a practical sort. He was sure that there would be a sufficient bond between work in Melanesia and work among Melanesians in the diocese of Brisbane to create a very strong tie between them, and that the new Bishop would find warm sympathy in all the Australian dioceses. There might not be very much pecuniary support, because of their financial troubles.

The Benediction was then pronounced by BISHOP ABRAHAM. Tea was afterwards provided by Mrs. Selwyn.

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The Islands.

The Editor has the Island Voyage in his hands, and hoped to have published a good deal of it in this issue. But there is such a press of interesting matter that he hopes the readers of the Occasional Papers will approve of his postponing it till the next issue, which he hopes to bring out in October. By that time the news will have come of the Bishop's arrival in Norfolk Island--and we shall have the latest news from thence, and probably accounts of Mr. Brittain's mission to Queensland. He therefore merely gives extracts from letters just received.

Norfolk Island.

Mr. Palmer, with his usual unselfishness, stayed at Norfolk Island to superintend matters there, though he much wished to be present at the Bishop's consecration. He writes from thence May 26th;--

[18] "The Southern Cross came in this morning, taking us all by surprise--my letters in consequence all behindhand. Mrs. Browning heard from her brother, who told her of the very successful meeting you had had on April 5th, and that you had raised £1,100 to clear off the debt. This is good news for us, and we are very grateful for your efforts to get our affairs straight. It is gratifying to start our new Bishop with a clear balance sheet. We must manage to keep our expenses within bounds, but what we really need is an increase to the income if the work is to grow.

You will be sorry to hear that * [Footnote: *Wife of Rev. G. Sarawia] Sarah Sarawia died while George was here. He is very much cut up about it, poor fellow. He wishes to go to Auckland to meet the new Bishop. Rev. H. Tagalad is up for the same purpose, and so is Huqe. J. Pantutun, Joe Atkin, Pegone, Gatapeva, and Iumane are going.

News from the Islands is somewhat mixed. Fisher Pantutun is dead. I do not know of anything serious wrong in the Banks Islands district, but the Tamate business is giving trouble, and that will have to be considered. On the whole the news is good. Brittain gives a very cheering account of Maros, and a really hopeful one. He really seems to be trying in every way to redeem his character."

NOTE.--Those who know about the case of Rev. Marostamata will rejoice at this account of him. For many years he did admirable work, and was much trusted and beloved. Then he gave way to temptation and fell--and after his fall was stubborn and resolute in his sin. But God has not left him, and His Holy Spirit has softened his heart. Pray for him, that his repentance may be deep and real.--Ed.

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Dr. Welchman writes in high spirits from the Southern Cross on his return home after staying for the summer at Bugotu. He had had hardly a days' illness, and his most serious trouble was being bitten by a centipede, which, after the manner of its kind stung him in the dark without staying to say that he had done it. The pain was terrible, and Dr. Welshman made practical proof of the value of being a medical missionary by injecting morphia, which ultimately eased it.

He speaks of one of the north-westerly gales which blow at that season of the year.

"Our "Koburo" this year did not amount to a hurricane, but it was pretty stiff. Where do yon think I spent that week? In the "toa," on the top of the cliff at Pirihadi. My house is there, literally founded on a rock, and as I lay in bed, with the roof lifting and the rain coming in on me, I wondered how far we should go down the cliff, if we moved. But the house is beautifully built, and with the most violent gusts, only trembled, never rocked--so I turned over and went to sleep again. It was not altogether pleasant, but it would have been very depressing and miserable down on the beach, so I imagined myself well off. I could not get down to prayers sometimes, and we had very little school that week, so I was a good deal circumscribed in my movements. When I was tired of reading the children in the neighbouring houses came in and taught me cats cradle!"

He promises an account of a raid by the enemy, which was he says "a very anxious time."

He then gives a very interesting account of a moral struggle he had with Soga.

[19] Soga's own son Lonsdale had gone wrong with a married woman, and the affair probably from fear of Soga was hushed up by one of the teachers.

"I am sorry to say that both Soga and Lonsdale lied about it. I can quite understand his trying to save his son's name, but after he knew that I had cognizance of the whole thing, he spoke to the people one day coming out of church, and said that I had accused his son, but that it was not true. On my return to Sepi I met this move by publicly announcing in church that it was true, and that I had excommunicated Lonsdale for it. It strained our relations for a time, but I had many talks with him, and showed him that it was no personal rancour on my part, but the desire of keeping him in the straight path, that made me show him where he was wrong.

I told him that I had thought of his confirmation, but that after a deliberate public and wanton lie, he must wait. He was very much ashamed of himself, and though I was gone to Vulavu, he voluntarily absented himself from prayers, and wrote to me, asking me to wait for the Southern Cross at Vulavu, and not return to Sepi. To this I replied by returning immediately, though my day was come for the return of the ship, and told him to return to prayers at once, saying that it was my intention not to leave Sepi, as I thought he wanted me more than ever.

I put a big fine on Lonsdale, in consideration of his rank and the lie he told, and I told Soga that he himself ought to hand over the 100 "radi" which the woman's friends had paid Soga. This happened shortly before I left, and the money was not paid, but Hugo has his instructions, and I mean to have it. One of the old man's weak points is money. With this exception he has been doing well, and has been very helpful in translations. I have been correcting the Prayer Book with him, with a view to another edition. There are some funny mistakes. e.g.--In the baptismal service 'Who saved Noah and his family, don't capsize.'"

While speaking of Bugotu, I must not omit to mention the ordination of Hugo Gorovaka, who has so long worked as head teacher on that island. Mr. Comins brought him up, and the Primate ordained him on Easter-Day. Truly he has won a good degree, and has shown "great boldness" in the faith. He was brought as a small captive from Guadalcanar to Ysabel, came to Norfolk Island and then returned to work at Ysabel. But he still looks longingly at his native land, and is ready at any time when he can be spared to go as pioneer in that land from which we have been so often repulsed. And in this and in all good works, he is backed up and supported by his brave wife, Isabella.

I have known Hugo for many years. I have seen him unflinchingly go into imminent danger for the sake of Christ, he it was who stormed, as it were, the stronghold of Soga, by planting himself there while Soga was away. And much of what has been done in Bugotu is owing to him.--ED.

NOTE.--This story is interesting, as showing the ups and downs of missionary work, and how constantly evil is about its path. But does it not also show the power of God, who thus enables a solitary English clergyman to withstand to his face a powerful chief, and to lead him right, not by threat, but by the inner movement of the man's own conscience?

[20] Mr. Robin writes happily from the Torres Islands:--

"Since R. Pantutun's departure William and Ernest have succeeded in entirely stopping the 'gea' (kava) drinking among the School villages. I am very much pleased at this. William's testimony on the matter a regards himself is striking. He says.--"When I left it off I saw clearly at once that it steals the 'lolomaran' out of a man--(clear understanding) and makes him lazy." The whole tone of the place seems brighter and better now. The children are obedient and steady, and attendance at prayers by the baptized regular, and their conduct evidently devout. On Ascension Day we had quite grand services, only alas! the one of all was missing. Besides celebrating the great Festival we made it a re-opening of the church after some alterations. The low cross-beams have been taken away, and side posts put, which support cross-beams at a height of 10-12 feet."

He then mentions the delight of the people at the beautiful ornaments given him by his friends at Birkenhead, and especially their amazement at seeing one of their fighting clubs turned into a cross.

"I sincerely hope," he adds," that the people will be confirmed and strengthened by the beauty of God's house. They are deeply impressed by it all, and not chiefly by the wealth of the donors--which is the first Melanesian idea, but with the greatness of Him in whose honour these things have been given and erected."

________

There is no news to hand from either Mr. Cullwick or Mr. Browning.

Mr. Forrest was at Norfolk Island. He had not had a very satisfactory account from Santa Cruz through Mr. Cullwick. One of the teachers was slack, though at Nelua things were going smoothly. But from Mr. Forrest I have a letter, which announces his resignation to take place next year. Neither Mr. Palmer or he can give the reasons for this step, perhaps under the new Bishop's influence he may reconsider it. He has done much for Santa Cruz under circumstances of great difficulty and great danger. And no one could have behaved more bravely or devotedly than Mr. Forrest has, since I have known his work at Santa Cruz. (ED.)

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Rev. S. Plant sends the following letter which he has received from John Sara, a native of Florida, at Norfolk Island. It bears touching witness to the influence which his son John Holford Plant had on the minds of the young men whom he taught:--

January 4th, 1894.--S. Barnabas, Norfolk Island.

To Samuel, Father of J. Plant.

FATHER,--This is my letter which I write to you since I read the letter which you wrote to us all. You told us about J. Plant, and I read it, and cried over it. For I remember him because he loved me very much, and baptised me, and brought me here to Norfolk Island. I then saw his life that it was just and holy. He taught us about the true religion, and showed us the Word of God in our own country, and then the fire burnt well in Gela (Florida). After that he left us and returned to his own country: and then our Father saw him and took him away from us all. And now help us with spiritual food such as he himself desired. If you will please send me a photograph of [20/21] J. Plant, and write me a letter, I shall then see your letter and rejoice over it. Good-bye, Father, I, your son John Sara, write to you in the love of Jesus Christ.

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Dr. Codrington inserts the following correction of a statement in last Occasional Paper:--

Page 26. --'This year they waxed bold enough to make the attempt' 'to do away with the large .posts running up the middle of the building carrying the ridge.' A drawing made in 1881 of the Church at Kohimarama, Mota, shews the ridge-pole carried by king-posts resting on tie beams, without the middle posts. This building was soon blown down; probably the old native building was found stronger (page 41). 'The old school-house,' at Lago, 'the earliest built in Florida.' In 1873 a large fine school-house was built at Kolakaboa, Boli, where in 1875, there were 30 or 40 regular scholars. There was no village at Lago at all when this school was built.--R.H. C.

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We continue the Extracts from the Bishop of Tasmania's Journal:

"The Light of Melanesia."

V.

THE ISLAND OF VANUA LAVA (BANKS GROUP).

(7 schools; 318 baptised; 134 scholars; 536 attending services; 551 heathens.)

The centre of the main group of these islands is Vanua Lava, meaning "large land." It presents a beautiful spectacle from almost any point of view. There are fantastic shaped mountains with precipitous sides, the relics of extinct volcanoes--and still at one point the vapours from sulphur springs are seen rising like white clouds from the slope of one of these hills.

On the eastern shore lies fort Patteson, named of course after the Bishop. It is a safe harbour at any time, a rare thing in this group. It may almost be said to be the only harbour in the Banks Islands. The Southern Cross usually anchors here for a few nights whilst the clergy are visiting Mota and Motlav. It is not a healthy place. Mangrove swamps taint the air and suggest fever. A river runs into the harbour named Crocodile River. But, strange to say, no crocodile had ever been heard of here until the trip of this year. A dark object was seen by a boat manned by Solomon Islanders and others who are familiar with the saurians; and they all exclaimed, "There is a crocodile!" without being aware that the river was so named.

It is a great place for crayfish. Seventy were brought to the ship one day, and before evening they had all been devoured, so large is the company on board, and so welcome is this dainty to Melanesians and English alike. The schools on this island are seven in number at present, but as for the people themselves they do not seem very capable. Indeed it is a remarkable fact, that nearly all the teachers in the Vanua Lava schools, are at this time either Mota, or Motlav men. One amongst these stands pre-eminent for the good work he did, Edwin Sakelrau, and his wife Emma--both are dead now; but it will be long ere their names are forgotten. They came from Motlav to Pek in 1878, on the northern shore, and found the people living inland in somewhat inaccessible places. They discovered a healthy [21/22] site on a rising ground overlooking the sea, and well watered by rushing streams. Here they built their school, and gradually induced their people to come and settle round them, till quite a little community of Christians was formed here. On one Sunday evening I confirmed 35 of their number. Edwin Sakelrau was the brother of Henry Tagalana, the latter being the head native clergyman at Motlav. Edwin, his brother, was ordained a Deacon in 1878 by Bishop Selwyn, at Ra, an island adjoining Motlav. The Southern Cross brought over for that occasion many Christians from Pek, where Edwin was working, a distance of some 10 miles. Bishop Selwyn writes:--"We brought out the little altar table and set it up under the overhanging eaves of the school-house, and made a rude rail. The ground sloped away, and in the back ground was a magnificent banyan tree. . . . . . . . . . I am sure no Bishop ever sent forth a more simple, earnest man to do His Master's work. And I am very happy about him." Five years afterwards, in 1883, Edwin died at Pek. His wife followed him, only too soon for the people of the place; for she was a great power for good at Pek. The reason the inhabitants had left the seashore was that they had been decimated by dysentery in the spot which they had chosen for their village. But Edwin induced them to return to a most healthy spot at Pek. From a kind of natural terrace, upon which the church and the houses stand, there is a lovely outlook through the trees across the sea with Ureparapara in the distance, with its remarkable crater open to the sea.

Many have left this island in labour vessels. This indeed is true of every spot in these parts, and though it is natural that Christian teachers should regret the departure often of their best scholars, yet it is a not unnatural result of the opening of the eyes of the people by Christian teaching. They hear for the first time of the great world beyond, and they are seized with a longing to go and see it for themselves. It is better to prepare them for the dangers they may encounter than to be silent on such a topic, and stand unwisely in their way.

Vanua Lava was touched by Bishop Selwyn in 1857. It was then that George Sarawia was taken up in Port Patteson. The story of his sensations at the time, and of his after career, is given in the account of the island of Mota. During his second landing in Vanua Lava the Bishop proceeded to buy yams by weight. A steelyard was attached to a stout branch, and money was paid according to the scale. It is said that the natives were delighted at the justice of the proceeding. When at times yams were taken off the scale because they weighed too heavily for the sum offered, there was a hum of approval, and probably nothing was so great a help to the cause of the Mission than such an exhibition of even-handed justice.

There are of course incidents to be related which the people tell with amusement. A short while ago Benjamin Virsal, the teacher at Vureas, on the western side of this Island, swallowed a fish bone, which, however, stuck in his throat. Nothing the people could do appeared of the slightest use; the bone was refractory and kept its place, and poor Benjamin was unable to eat, and became a shadow of his former self. His friends thought he would die, and they put him in a canoe to convey him to Mota that he might be buried among his [22/23] own people. There is a very strong tide which runs round a well-known point on the way to Mota, and soon the canoe was dancing over the waves, and was giving the occupants of it a rare shaking. To the astonishment and delight of the rowers a great jolt at last dislodged the bone and it fell out. Benjamin soon recovered, and is now well and at work in his old school.

The neighbourhood of Vureas seems to be favourable to strange experiences, for on another occasion a woman here was placing her hand in a hole to draw something out. In order to do this she had to lie down and put her arm into the place as far as it could be made to go. At this critical moment her fingers were seized by a large crab who would not relax his hold. The woman no doubt struggled and shouted, but no one heard her cries. There she lay for part of a day and all the next night, until she was found by some children who hurried home with the news. Her husband soon appeared and dragged her arm, and also the crab, out very quickly.

There are seven schools at the present time in Vanua Lava--I visited three of them, and held two Confirmations. The baptised number 318; the young scholars are 134; the total number, including all who are listeners, is 536; and there are 551 who are still heathens in a full sense. Here, as in Santa Maria (these being the largest islands), it has been difficult to win the people as quickly as in smaller islands.

For the sake of those who are interested in the most characteristic customs of the Melanesians, and wish to understand their manner of life, I will give here the substance of a chapter in Dr. Codrington's book on Melanesian folk lore. The custom to which I allude is called the Suqe: it has not receded before Christianity. There is no particular reason indeed why it should, for there is nothing bad about it; and I had many opportunities of watching its action:--

"In every village, and group of houses in the Tories Islands, the Banks Islands, and the Northern New Hebrides, is conspicuous a building which does not appear to be a dwelling house. In a populous village of the Banks Islands it is very long and low, with entrances at intervals along the sides below the wall-plate, with stone seats or a stone platform at the main entrances at either end, and low stone walls planted with dracænas and crotons, with the jawbones of pigs and backbones of fish hanging under the eaves; and very often the clatter of sticks pounding in wooden vessels, and the presence of white clouds of steam make known the preparation of a meal. This place is a "Gamal." It is virtually a club-house for men. Women are not admitted into it nor young children. Virtually all the male population have in their day been initiated and have paid their fees to win the right of a place in it. If there is anyone who has no place in the gamal, he is nicknamed after a kind of flying fox, which is in the habit of living a solitary life. I have been often struck by the immense length of these long houses, extending sometimes for forty yards and more. There is nothing secret about them, for they are often the most conspicuous object in the village. Were you to enter one of them, you would notice at once certain log boundaries which separate a number of ovens from each other. And round the ovens are mats and cooking utensils. The general name for such a club in [23/24] the Banks Islands--at Vanua Lava, as much as elsewhere, is Suqe."

These ovens represent different gradations in rank. Each step for permission to use another oven in a higher place has to be paid for by heavy fees; and no one can have any great authority in his village who has not risen high in the Suqe. I gather that the highest rank of all is rarely reached. When a man has attained this exalted position he is a very great personage; and his permission would have to be obtained before anyone could be advanced at all to any grade. The number of ovens in a complete Suqe is 18, it will easily be imagined how heavy must be the tax upon a man's resources if he wishes to reach the topmost step. I used to notice that sometime one end of the gamal looked new, as if it had been recently added to. The reason, probably, was that some one had risen to a higher grade, and had built himself a new oven above the others. Sometimes, also, one end of the gamal was in ruins. This probably meant that there was no one to use the ovens at that end, and it was no one's business to keep the structure in that spot in repair. As a rule, most of the men never rise above middle rank, but most of them are initiated when they are boys. If a gamal only possesses five or six ovens it means that there is no one in the village who has attained a higher rank. It is needless to add that no one would dare to use an oven of a rank above his own. He would meet with instant and severe punishment. If a stranger comes to a village he is entertained in the gamal and sleeps there. He is made, in fact, an honorary member of the local club. I gather that in Mota the lowest grade can be reached by the payment of half a fathom of native shell money; but as the grades rise money sometimes fails and pigs, which are expensive creatures, are brought into requisition. Perhaps there is no better way of showing the position that the Suqe holds in the imagination of the people than to record that in native stories where the fortunes of an orphan boy are related, who wins his way to fame, it is by the gradations of the Suqe that he makes his progress in life. It is manifest that such a social institution as this which I have described is of use in preserving and maintaining order in a native community. Perhaps nothing will show the difficulty of Mission work in an island such as Vanua Lava so much as the fact that in this small space, not more than 12 miles by 10, there are 16 dialects, many of them very different from each other. Such difficulties help us to understand why a large island holds out longer against the work of the Mission than one of a smaller area, where there is not this confusion of tongues. I twice visited Vanua Lava. It is generally easy to land because Pek, the most important station, is on the lee side, and Port Patteson, a safe harbour, is at the other extremity. Between these on the west side is Vureas. It is a beautiful spot with hills towering above the ship, but it is one of the gustiest anchorages I ever experienced. The captain of a sailing vessel has to keep a very sharp look out for the squalls, rush down first on one quarter, then on the other, without any warning, and it is easy to lose control of the ship. The fact is Vureas is an eddy of the sea breeze, and the surface of the little bay is continually being whitened by these sudden gusts. It was here that I met my friend who had swallowed the fish bone, and had been so mercifully assisted by the tide rip. Here also, on Vanua Lava, is [24/25] the mountain of Qat, whose story will be told under the head of the Island of Motlav.

It was at Pek that I had, perhaps, the most delightful bathe in the whole tour. We undressed, I remember, in a hut about half-a-mile from the stream, as it was raining. Then we ran with shouts, a merry party, black and white, through the wood till we stood over a deep stream bursting into a hole after a plunge of a good many feet. Into this hole we also plunged, black and white together. I remember the merry scamper back to the hut, and the delight at the coffee which was ready for us there. I have reasons, both grave and gay, for remembering Pek, in Vanua Lava.

THE ISLAND OF UREPARAPARA (BANKS GROUP), OR BLIGH ISLAND.

(2 schools; 123 baptised; 67 scholars; 178 attending services; 190 heathens.)

Just as Merelava, a cone 3,000 feet in height and plunging straight into the sea, is the sentinal of the Banks Islands to the visitor from the south, so Ureparapara, with its still more striking configuration, is the most northern outpost. Close past this spot, Captain Bligh passed during the most wonderful boat voyage that has ever been successfully made, after the mutiny of the Bounty in Tahiti. After the brave navigator, it has been called Bligh Island. But the Mission always urea the native name, which is to my ears more appropriate to its romantic interest--Ureparapara. It is a vast volcano, not so lofty as Merelava, but extending a great distance horizontally. When it was in a state of eruption in past ages, it must have presented an appalling prospect, for the crater is fully two miles in length, by some mile or so in breadth from edge to edge. The eastern end of this enormous crater has been completely blown away. There is apparently no ridge or bar except at some unknown depth; but the sea rolls in with unruffled surface, and the Southern Cross has found no soundings in this deep gulf till the very innermost edge is reached at the western end of the crater.

It is a sight not to be forgotten when the ship takes a sharp turn, and steams straight into the heart of the mountain. The deep water at the entrance is fully half-a-mile in width. Before the spectator there lies a calm, lake-like expanse, still and sheltered, except for the violent gusts which from time to time rush over the surface, at one time taking the vessel aback, and on the next occasion striking her on one quarter or the other unexpectedly. It is not a spot where the master of a sailing vessel could afford to go to sleep. At the western edge of this bay an anchorage has been obtained on a patch close to the shore. The walls of the crater are now clothed with vegetation up to the very summit. For the 2,000 ft. or so that they extend upward the gardens of the natives, peep out, recognised by their patches of yams in the presence of cocoanuts, palms, and bananas. There was a time within the memory of the Mission when the inhabitants were as wild and as quarrelsome as any in the entire district, and the Ureparapara bow, with its peculiar bend, has always been renowned. But it is difficult to express the change wrought in Christ's name in the last few years. There are some heathens still, [25/26] because it is so difficult to reach villages scattered everywhere both inside and outside this great horseshoe, and apparently hanging on to the slopes by their eyelids. The lofty barriers of the crater walls is always a hindrance to rapid locomotion. In 1878, three scholars, who had been to Norfolk Island returned; and a Mota man (named Viletuwale) started the first school. We have at the present time two schools, both excellently managed--one inside the crater, the other on the northern and outside face of the mountain.

The baptised number 123; the young scholars are 67; the total, including all listeners, is 178, but 190 heathen still remain scattered in inacessible nooks. What also makes the work difficult is the fact that the villages here are so small. They form a chain of small communities on the slopes, sadly interfering with teaching; for there is no definite centre of population. A village consists in Ureparapara of a single house and one gamal. The house will be divided inside by low partitions, and in one of these the whole family sleeps. The young men are, of course, in the gamal. The Mission is trying to improve this state of things, and to induce the natives (and with success) to give themselves more air and light. So much of the work of the Mission is done by native teachers, who are not naturally communicative, that it is not easy to give those indications of personal spiritual progress which are more easily obtained in places where the white man is always present. This is the answer to a criticism, which is naturally made, that the Melanesian Mission does not sufficiently give definite instances of the growth of spiritual life. But it will certainly interest my readers to peruse two letters which I give here. Let it be understood, that none of the clergy knew anything of the matter till it was all over, but the letters fell into their hands afterwards. The two young men who wrote the letters were at the time scholars at Norfolk Island. One is now the teacher at the crater school in Ureparapara, the other has a like post in Florida in the Solomon Group. The letters will explain themselves. It was a quarrel happily composed by the persons themselves without intervention. It arose through a misunderstanding. Of course the
letters were written in " Mota ":--

"Norfolk Island, June 7, 1889.

"Simon Qalges,

"My brother, is this word which I have heard true or not? They said that you said that you all would fight with me on fishing day (Saturday). But is it consistent with the law of fellowship to fight or not? We all here have had .fellowship together in Christ's religion. We have all received one baptism, and some of us have joined together in receiving the Holy Communion of the Body of Christ. And how shall we again have divisions amongst us who have been dwelling together in true brotherhood, according to the law of God? Now, to-day, did it appear to you that I was angry? No, I was not angry. But I was surprised to see you throwing at that little boy as if he were a grown person; and the boys belonging to us (Solomon Islanders) entreated me to let them go and help him; but I would not let them go, and they were angry with me for it; and then I saw you look as though you were angry, and I was going forward to speak to you, but it was all over. Now you and I are to partake of the Holy Communion on Sunday if able; and, if there be fighting on Saturday, will that be good or not? The sun is nigh upon setting. Don't prolong this affair, my brother, because we are both brethren, and it is not right for us to act in such a manner.

"I, Herbert Kulai, have written in love."

[27] Answer from Simon Qalges to the above:

"Herbert Kulai--to you all.--The peace of our God be with us. This is my answer to your letter about what I did to-day to Kasi, because they said he was clever in dodging; so I pelted him to see if it were so. I thought it was all being done in play. Then I saw you coming towards me with a hoe in your hand, not as though peaceably, and it appeared to me that your minds were disturbed; but my mind was not at all disturbed. I thought it was only play; but you thought it was something different. But in what way have I caused dissension? And this I ask you: Who told you that word came out of my mouth? When we came back to-day did you think it was so? I did not. About that word that we should fight it out on Saturday they told me that it was talked over there; but I knew nothing at all about it. This I heard: that Tarivaga and Garo told us that you people took a spear and called my name over it. But just all of you put that spear back in its place and then take up the Cross of Christ and hold it fast; and then let us fight manfully at the side of Christ all our days till death. My brother, tell them that if their minds are upset, it is for us two to pray that God will forgive. Tell this to those over there, and I will tell the boys over here. That is all.--I, Simon Qalges, have written with very great love."

Such letters take us into the innermost spirit of the Mission work, for here the Christian teaching, which has been received by the scholars by the influence of the Holy Ghost, is evolved in the most natural of ways, by letters written in privacy. I do not think, now that years have passed, that I have violated the rules of delicacy in reproducing these documents as evidences that God's grace blesses the Mission and permits them to see the fruit of their labours. It is affecting to note how the sons of those who knew no better return but that of vengeance for an insult once received are now unwilling to let the sun go down upon their wrath. That meeting at the Holy Communion, after the quarrel had been made up, must have been the seal of a deeper and fuller corporate Christian life.

One subject I have not yet touched upon: that of cannibalism. It is believed that throughout the Banks Group this horrible practice has been unknown for a very long time, even if it ever existed. No one living seems to have been acquainted with it. This is all the more strange, because in the New Hebrides close by, there is no doubt that it exists still in some islands, and was the universal custom not many years ago. It has been unknown in the Santa Cruz group; probably it was never practised there; whereas in the Solomons there are at this moment tens of thousands of cannibals.

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As the last proofs were being revised, another Mai1 brings the account of the Bishop's arrival at Norfolk Island, and his reception there.

We give a most graphic account of the proceedings written by Rev. Henry Welchman, which will, I think, interest our readers as it gives such a vivid picture of the simple life at Norfolk Island. We also give Bishop Wilson's first address after his Installation.

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Letter from REV. HENRY WELCHMAN:--

Norfolk Island,
30th June, 1894.

At Last! It seemed a long time, but thank God, we are once more officered.

We had waited and waited for them, wondering what made them so long. We would not hold our annual meeting, wishing to postpone [27/28] it till our Head arrived, but instead we had a Celebration at the hour of Consecration as near as we could guess, and prayed for a blessing with the aid of about 50 Norfolkers who came up. Then H.M.. "Orlando" came and told us that the consecration took place on June 11th, and that the Southern Cross was expected to start almost immediately, but the date was not known. We got everything in order; we had a little address drawn up, written out as nicely as we could, and decorated with a border by Miss Farr, and in the middle of the sheet was a birds eye view of the "Vanua."

We cleared up the place, got our flags ready and waited. Three times we swept till nothing else was wanted short of a scrubbing brush to the paths and grass, and we felt rather sold when nobody came to admire. Last Wednesday we had a warning of a possible Southern Cross. Palmer and I went out to investigate, and we saw a ship. Even with glasses we could not tell exactly, but after watching her for awhile, and catching sight of a little smoke, we thought it might be her, and Palmer went down to town, and I back to the Mission, where I had the honour of raising the shout of "Akanina."

You can picture the rest. By that time it was 4-30 so we sent down a few boys, a cart and a carriage. Forrest rode down, and we set to work to clear up, and put up flags. It was dark before anyone arrived, so we had no ceremony of any sort on their arrival, except that the town people read a short address, with the aid of a lighted match held in a hat! As soon as they were fed, we had prayers, Psalm 107 instead of the set one for the day, and Jacob's journey and vision for the Lesson, with a special thanksgiving for the gift and arrival of our Bishop. The boys sang grandly, our hearts were all full to overflowing. Next morning (Thursday) invitations were sent out, and the Installation fixed for Friday, 29th, and all day we were busy getting ready. Everybody was greatly excited, and most of us slept little the night before. After hearing all the clock's round, I got up at 4 a m. and went down to the cookhouse to get a bit of fire, and found it surrounded by boys out of every house, and many others were about all over the place. We had settled that Henry Tagalad should be Bishop's Chaplain, but he was not well in the evening and could not come out, so the Bishop asked me to take it; we coached the Bishop in the Mota of the two Benedictions, and got to bed somewhere on the dial, I dare not think where.

The following day (Friday) was a lovely day. Palmer celebrated at the early Mota service, George Sarawia assisting him, I think 24 or 25 were present. After breakfast everything was up and down all over the place-we prepared for a good number of Norfolk Islanders, and the Chapel was well filled by them and our own girls and boys. The place where the reading desk stands had 9 chairs on each side for the readers, and for those we chose of the 1st class to wear a surplice on the occasion, selecting one boy from every different island that we could manage, so as to make it representative of the whole mission. The service went beautifully, and the procession was very orderly. The Bishop gave a short simple address to the boys, good for the people too, and told us we might have confidence that since God had answered our prayers for this particular thing, so He would always [28/29] answer our prayers, though we might have to wait for it. It was very quiet and much to the point, and you may imagine the eager eyes rivetted on his face. Our procession of 18 readers and 6 clergy was quite imposing for Norfolk Island, as we left the Chapel the boys fell in two and two in the most orderly way, and marched down, the girls following, to Bishop Patteson's house, where we all gathered, the Coloqons (i.e., those not yet admitted to Church) joining us there. The Bishop offered up a short prayer, and then pronounced the Aaronic blessing (both in Mota) on people and place, after which we sang the Doxology, in Mota and English.

It was too much--poor Palmer all but broke down, and I don't know which was uppermost sorrow or joy.

I think we realised the last verses of Ezra iii. as we had never done before. Then we retired within the house and gave the Bishop congratulations.

In looking over this I see I have forgotten to say that our address to the Bishop was read after breakfast on Thursday morning. Tom Arloli brought it up, and Palmer read it, and had a little difficulty in getting straight through with it. The Bishop made a nice reply, which Palmer repeated in Mota, and when this was over, he called for 3 cheers for Palmer, which were given, and ended with the usual war-whoop. By the way, the address was written on some drawing paper which we found in your house, and the order of service on some paper, very old and dirty on the outside, out of Bishop Patteson's writing desk. The copy for the Bishop was decorated with a palm leaf and mitre, passion flowers and crown, etc., and we covered it with deep crimson silk which we turned out of our hidden treasures. So we all did our best to show our love. That was quite enough for one day, and we were very thankful for it. In itself the day was a perfect Norfolk Island day, when all nature glorifies God.

That evening the Bishop came to me and told me he wished to mark the day by making Palmer Archdeacon, and that I might greet him in the morning. I was delighted for he deserves it thoroughly, and so next morning, when we came out of Chapel I paid my duties to the Archdeacon of Southern Melanesia and introduced him as such to all the staff and guests. * [Footnote: * All will rejoice at this graceful and timely honour paid to Mr. Palmer, none more than his old Bishop. ¶ Bishop Wilson writing about it says I am so pleased that Palmer has accepted the office of Archdeacon of South Melanesia. You suggested the idea to me, and he and all the Mission party are so pleased about it. Ed.] Palmer was quite overwhelmed with congratulations, and the ladies have offered to make him a brown holland apron and gaiters for lack of better material! The poor people of England lack the fun of the difficulties which arise from our straits in this place.

[30] The Bishop writes me a letter full of joy and peace at reaching the Head Quarters of his Mission. He had already begun to feel the strange fascination which the Melanesian lads exercise over all that are brought in contact with them "How can I describe," he says, "the hold these boys have already taken of me, it must be felt." He has taken up his quarters in Bishop Patteson's old room, where he will be in the full life of the place, surrounded by his boys from morning to night teaching and being taught by them. I give the notes of the Address which he gave at his Installation. It should be borne in mind that he will be starting for his first Island Voyage at the end of August. I am sure our prayers will go with him.--ED.

Notes of the Address by Bishop Wilson,

At his Installation, S. Barnabas' Mission Chapel, on S. Peter's Day, June 29th, 1894.

____________

In speaking to you for the first time as your Bishop I feel that I may use the words with which Isaiah spoke to God's people of old (Isa. xlix. 1. etc.): 'Listen, O Isles, unto me, and hearken, ye people, from far.' You have come here from many islands, and now I say to you, 'When you go home, tell your people what you have seen to-day, and give them the message you have heard.' What was it the people were to listen to when the prophet spoke? It was the word of God --a message from God to His people. And what is it that I must speak? It is God's message to you. I must speak of Jesus, of the Word of Life, of God, and His love to all the world. And before the prophet spoke his message he told them why he was to speak to them. It was because he was chosen and sent by God. He mentioned four things which showed how he was chosen to do the work of a prophet.

1. He had been chosen from his birth, and brought up for that work.

2. He had been prepared and fitted to be as a sharp sword, as a polished shaft hidden and protected from damage in God's hand, as an arrow in God's quiver (verse 2).

3. God had claimed him as His servant or son (verse 3).

4. And God had overlooked his weakness and imperfection, and had promised to fit him for his work.

And so, I believe, all this God has done and is doing for me. You prayed that God would send you a man to be your Bishop, and by His servants He chose me, and sent me, overlooking my defects, and promising to give me His blessing. And you have believed all this of me. You have accepted me as born for one purpose, prepared for one purpose, and accepted now by God, weak as I am. And thus you [30/31] have received me as sent by God to you. You prayed that one might be sent to you, and you have accepted me as God's answer to your prayers, and by the hand of Palmer have placed me in the Bishop's chair this day. For two years you have been praying that God would send you a Bishop, and God has answered your prayers, and sent me. I say, therefore, remember that God answers prayer, and that as He has answered you in this to-day so He will also in other things when you pray. And now I will tell you what I want you all to pray for. You prayed just now that I may "be reckoned worthy to be counted among Christ's holy apostles here on earth." I want you to continue praying that prayer, and to think how much it means. An apostle of Jesus Christ needs much to fit him for his office. He needs the grace which was given to S. Peter (whose day this is)--the grace to feed Christ's sheep as a faithful shepherd--the grace which was given to S. Barnabas, to be a "son of consolation," to comfort those committed to his charge--the grace given to John the Baptist," to constantly speak the truth, boldly rebuke vice, and patiently suffer for the truth's sake"--the grace which was in the apostle Paul to endure privation and hardness, to suffer, it may be, but yet always to rejoice. All these graces are needed by an apostle. Who, then, is sufficient for these things? God only. Your prayer has been answered once; pray now that God may give me, whom your prayers have brought here, the graces which an apostle of God requires. And as I look upon you, gathered from many islands, and of different races, though all of one blood, and called to be one people in Christ, I remember that the Church of God is built upon the foundation of apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone. His Church is built upon the lives and acts of apostles and prophets, of those who in the ages which have passed down to the present time have obeyed His calling and served him in their day. You would not have been here to-day if it had not been for those who have gone before, and so, when I see you I think of the work of Bishop Selwyn, the life of Bishop Patteson, the health and strength of Bishop John Selwyn, the lives of Joseph Atkin, Stephen '1'aroniara, Fisher Young, and Edwin Nobbs, and the strength and devoted work of many more who have spent and been spent in the various works of this mission, and may now be reckoned among the prophets upon whom the Church is to be built up a stately pile in Melanesia, a temple not made with hands, in which the Holy Spirit of God shall dwell. But while those to whom I have referred were foundations, we must remember that all the work must rest upon Jesus Christ, who is the one Sure Foundation as well as the Chief Corner Stone. Remember that you are called to take part in this work, and pray that you may be able to do your share. Pray not only for me that I may be reckoned worthy to be called an apostle, but that you also may be prophets indeed. Believe that as once your prayer has been heard and answered so it will be again. Pray also for the Church of Christ that its rents may be mended, its walls repaired, its lost glory restored, its weak places strengthened, its imperfections cleansed and healed. Though you may be small, and in your own eyes of no reputation, go on praying and He will hear. He has heard you already, and He will always hear, for His promise is sure. 'Ask and ye shall receive."

[32] The Mission is thus in full working order again, and I earnestly trust that all friends in England will do their best to keep it efficient. For all that lies before it it will want more men. The Rev. Alfred Penny is sending his most excellent Curate Mr. Wilson who will join at the beginning of next year. The Rev. Percy Williams who bears a name honoured in the annals of New Zealand Missionary work, will also join about the same time. He is now working as Archdeacon Dudley's Curate in Auckland, and it is of happy omen that two old workers in the Mission should thus be represented by men whom they have themselves trained. But if Mr. Forrest goes, the reinforcement will be only of one man. Bishop Wilson authorizes me to send another and I should be glad to hear of one in full orders who will volunteer. Miss Julia Farr, of Adelaide, a cousin of Bishop Patteson's, who has before given valuable help at Norfolk Island, now joins the Mission on the Permanent Staff.

All this will need fresh exertions at home.

There are three ways in which help can be given:--

1.--By Sermons or Meetings. There are not many of the actual workers in Melanesia now in England, and those that are, are fully engaged, but when not engaged at Cambridge, I am always glad to come, and very often I can find an old Colleague who will tell the mission story. We have now an admirable series of Magic Lantern Slides which can be used in the winter evenings.

2.--By Collecting Cards, which I shall be happy to supply.

3.--By working for "Sales of Work." These are held periodically here and there by different friends of the Mission. Mrs. J. R. Selwyn wishes to act as a Central Receiver, and will be glad to receive any contributions, and distribute them to the various Sales as they are held. They should be sent to her address:--

Mrs. J. R. SELWYN,
The Lodge,
Selwyn College,
CAMBRIDGE.

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Subjects for Prayer:

1.--For the Bishop that grace and wisdom may be given him.

2.--For the Melanesian Converts in Queensland and Figi, that they may be used to reach their own people.

3.--For men as they are needed for the work.

[33] A PRAYER

FOR THE

MELANESIAN MISSION

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ALMIGHTY GOD, for whom the Isles do wait, send down Thy blessing on the Bishop and Clergy of the Melanesian Mission and all who teach or are taught in the Schools, that they may set forth Thy Name upon earth, Thy saving health among their people. Comfort them, O Lord, in every sorrow, protect them in every danger, strengthen them in every temptation, and give them such a sure trust and confidence in Thee that they may serve Thee without fear.

O Lord of the Harvest, send forth Thy labourers into Thine Harvest. Guide by Thy Holy Spirit those who are fitted for this work, that they may willingly offer themselves unto Thee--and by Thee may be enabled to set forth Thy glory, through JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD. Amen,

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