Parramatta New S. Wales
Octr 26, 1815
Revd & Dr Sir
	I have the Pleasure to inform you that I received all the Investment safe, sent out in the Northampton, excepting the medicines and they were not on board; nor were they entered in the Bill of Ladening, nor any Receipt given for them— Every Search was made, but they could not be found. The Captain said they never came on board. I examined all the Cases had them opened, but they were not there— The Active left the Missionaries well, or rather the Settlers, the 11th of July, when she left the Bay of Islands, and arrived at Port Jackson, in the Beginning of August, having touched at the North cape, and brought a Chief, and his daughter with him to Sydney. All their Letters were very satisfactory, as far as related to their Establishment. As Mr. Nicholas, a Gentleman by whom you formerly wrote to me, and who accompanied me to New Zealand, is returning in the Northampton I shall send all my Letters by him, and other Papers for the Information of the Society— Some of these I shall forward open on Account of the Postage being so very heavy, and Mr Nicholas being fully acquainted with the Subject, and a Gentleman in whom I can place Confidence— 
I forwarded you by the Sydney packet my [f] Observations on New Zealand, with other Documents which I hope you have received safe. I shall now send you a short Account of Duaterra, who has been very unexpectedly removed from this present world, with Mr Kendall’s public Letter to the Society, and his private Letter to me for their Information—
I wish the Society to have every Communication, public and private, that they may be able to judge of all matters relative to the Settlement. They will be at all times prepared to hear both of good and evil. Men are imperfect in all Situations; and their Imperfections Weaknesses, and I may add Sins, may appear greater under certain Trying Circumstances, than what they would under others. When I was in New Zealand I strictly prohibited all kind of Trade and Barter to the Settlers on their private Account; you will perceive in Mr Kendall’s Letter to me that some laboured under that temptation still. I have again in writing strictly forbid any of the Settlers trading with the natives on a private Account till directions are received, or Permission granted by the Society. I hope you will be very particular in expressing the Sentiments of the Society upon this Head. I have little doubt, but upon the whole the Settlers will do well. I wish as much as possible that even the very Appearance of any Cause of Jealosey [sic] should be removed from amongst them. If private trading was allowed, it would be attended with much evil, and no good— Mr Kendall sent over a small Spelling Book to get printed by the Active— I sent him a few [f] and shall have all the others ready when the Active returns again. Mr Kendall has been very diligent in his work, and will I trust be an infinite Blessing to the poor Heathens. Tho’ the Climate of N. Zealand appears to be very healthy, yet the Settlers there cannot be supported at the same Expense as those at Otaheite. The Rains are heavy, and the weather at times Stormy, so that they require better Houses— They have also no Bread Fruit, and other Fruits with which Otaheite abounds. Mr Hall, tho’ a very industrious man as can be, he is not able alone to put up the necessary buildings for himself and all the other Persons belonging to the Settlement— I have sent over in the Active a Carpenter to assist in that necessary work for the present, and have also sent over one Pair of Sawyers more and their wives. One of the men is very piously disposed, and what I call a very good man, the other I have known for almost 20 years, and is a very quiet industrious man, tho’ not religious. The Chiefs are so urgent to get Mechanics of any kind, particularly Smiths and Carpenters, that I was induced to send these men. I hope they will be little or no Expense to the Society, as I have sent them on my own Account to procure Timber for the Active and hope their Labor will cover their wages and Support: tho’ my main object in sending these two Families was to promote the Civilization of the Inhabitants, and to add to the Strength and Respectability of the Settlers, and to give them more Influence and Weight— You will observe in Mr Kendall’s Letter that he mentions some Convicts who were on the Island left by [f] different Vessels. I am apprehensive some danger will arise from these bad men getting amongst the natives. These men the Settlers will be under the necessity of keeping in Confinement in general, for their own Safety. I brought Convicts from N. Zealand with me in the Active, and left three there as I could not conveniently bring more. When the Active sailed from there in July, there were six men Convicts, and some of them very daring and abandoned men. As these men belong to the Crown, the Government ought to contribute something to their Support, while they are detained Prisoners at New Zealand so that the whole Expense may not fall upon the Settlement. I made Application to Governor Macquarie for this Purpose, but his Excellency said he could not allow any thing towards their maintenance. I told his Excellency the missionaries would not be safe if the Runaway Convicts were at large, and to maintain them in Prison would be a very considerable Expense, and also to bring them away from time to time when the Active returned— The Govr said he would make some allowance for their Passage; but he could not do more. I have given Directions to the master of the Active to bring as many of them away, as he can with Safety. I am not able yet to tell what the expense of the Active will be. The Port Duties are very heavy. Sixpence per solid foot duty is charged upon all timber from N. Zealand, in Log or Plank. Should the Active bring 4000 feet = £100. Pilotage tho the vessel wants none, £7. Sixpence per Ton fees to the Governors Secretary, whatever the Vessel measures every time the Active leaves the Harbour— Two Shillings and sixpence per Head for all Persons in the vessel, whether [f] natives of New Zealand, merely as Passengers, such as the Chiefs and their Servants, or any others, and several other fees or duties which is a great drawback upon what the Vessel brings. The duty was one Shilling per Solid foot upon all Logs and Plank. The Timber I brought with me sold for two Shillings and sixpence per foot, so that the duty was two fifths of the whole Cargo. I remonstrated with the Governor upon the very heavy duty, that it amounted to a Prohibition, tho’ the timber was much wanted in the Colony, and no Vessel could bring it on Account of the duty yet I could not prevail upon him to take it off. He reduced it however to sixpence which was gaining some advantage. There is no vessel but the Active, that can afford to bring any, and I think the Governor ought to remit the whole of the duty upon the Timber. There has been only one vessel that ever brought a Cargo of Timber from N. Zealand and the owner told me, he had lost a very considerable Sum, tho’ he had sold the whole for 3s 6d per solid foot. The duty took more than one quarter of the Cargo, besides all other Expenses of the Port. There is no view to Gain in the Active, not even the smallest Advantage, but merely the good of the Heathen, and therefore the Government ought not to lay such heavy Burthens upon the attempt. The Governor told me if he remitted the duty for me, that others would expect the same Favor— at the same time the Governor well knew that there was no vessel employed in that Service, but the Active nor is there likely to be, as it will not pay for Carriage— I mean where any hope [f] of Gain is looked for— Tho’ this Sum which the Active may bring in by duties on the Timber, is comparatively nothing to the Revenue of the Colony; and cannot affect it in the smallest degree, as no vessel is employed, or can be in the same Service, because it will not pay, yet this Sum small as it may be in the Scale of Government, it is heavy on the Expences of the Vessel. Should a new Govr be appointed, which will probably be the Case, I earnestly recommend the Society to interest him on behalf of N. Zealand. I think these difficulties may be removed if they are represented. I think a small Colonial Vessel for Instance, which wants no Pilot, such as the Active, should not pay the same Pilotage as a large foreign Ship. The Pilotage of the Active for the last year amounts to almost thirty Pounds, which appears to me a very unnecessary Expense, but yet I am obliged to pay it. If it was a small Sum I should not mention it. But it is all these things which have no Connection with the wear and tear of the Vessel, Seamen’s wages &c that tend to increase so much the Expenses, and to increase the difficulties I feel at present. I must leave with the Society to act according to their wisdom in these matters I have stated— I simply mention them as they occur, as I feel them Grievances and think they are not right. If the Society should be of a different opinion I am satisfied; if they can be remedied, it will promote the Cause. What I think may be in some degree remedied is the heavy duty upon the Timber, and the Port fees. When the Active was [f] here in Sepr I believe there were 17 N. Zealanders came and returned in her— I was not very willing to pay 2s 6d per head for Permission for them to return, or for their Clearance, but I could not get the Clearance of the Vessel without they all attended at the Secretary’s office, and I understood 2s 6d per Head was charged for them. I remonstrated with the Secretary, told him as they were not under any civil Government, nor belonged to any Vessel as Sailors, that I thought they could not with any Propriety be subject to the same Regulations as British Subjects. But nothing would avail— They were compelled to appear personally before the Secretary, before I could get the Clearance signed— and some of the Chiefs were very unwilling to go, as they did not understand the Reason why they should attend— I hope these Vexatious things, will in time be removed; and that we shall have Persons in certain Situations that will not be so inimical to all true Piety, and pious men. A man can scarcely commit a greater crime in N. S. Wales than to be righteous over much—
Yesterday my Colleagues met me at Parramatta, to take into Consideration the Recommendation of the Society to establish an auxiliary Society to the Church Missionary Society here. Difficulties appeared in our way which could not be removed at the present time. I have the honor to send you our Letter containing our Sentiments for the Information of the Society. We shall make a beginning in a still private way— and if our Friends will assist us in the Colony, we shall be glad of their aid— [f] I am afraid the Society will think the Expenses heavy but the undertaking is great, and in order to atone in some measure for the Injuries the natives of N. Zealand had Sustained from the Europeans I was obliged to treat them bountifully both when at New Zealand, and also in this Colony— The vessel was constantly crowded with them there, and many urged me to allow them to accompany me to Port Jackson whom I was compelled to refuse for want of Room— I have the Brother of Duaterra’s wife who hung her self at Duaterra’s Death; Duaterra’s half Brother, and another young man, a Chief belonging to another Party with me now. These will immediately be placed in the Institution which we have resolved to establish— and Preparations made to receive such as may come when the Active returns in December if all is well. You will be tired with my long Letters, which I shall now close and leave what I have said for you to make what use of you think good,
and have the honor to be
Revd Sir
Your most obedient
humble Servant
Samuel Marsden
Revd J. Pratt
&c &c &c