Letter: John King to Reverend Josiah Pratt, 25 January 1816
John King
University of Otago Library
Digitised from the Hocken LibraryCollection Number MS-0055/053
Trimble 53
CMS Number 110
Digitised by the Marsden Online Archive
Library of Congress Subject Headings
Letter
Maori Subject Headings
Reverend Josiah Pratt
25 January 1816
Bay of Islands, New Zealand
The Katherine
Sir William Bensley
21 June 1816
London, England
08 July 1816
British English
Hope
Health
God
Children
Play
Peace
Land settlement
Prisoners
Boats and boating
Sails
Dwellings
Dead
Bay of islands
Jany
25th
1816
Hope
Health
God
Children
Play
Peace
Kendall
Port jackson
Settlement
Prisoners
Waitanghee
Boat
Octr
1815
Sail
England
London
House
Dead
Bay of Islands N. Zealand Jany 25th 1816 Revd Sir, I hope these lines will find you all in good health as they leave us, thanks be to God for this and every other favour, the natives are in a state of friendship with us, the children are makeing slow improvements as we have but little controle over them. A little time back when it was two raineyrainy days one girl made us a pair of sheets, another made the body and sleeves of a boys shirt, but as soon as the rain was over they left off work, one of them saying Mother when it comes plenty more rain, I will do plenty more sewing for you, when it is fine weather, I will dance and play this is very good at N. Zealand, they are under but little restraint from their parents therefore we cannot expect to have them at present under our controle altogether, but we are still striving to instruct them and to leade them on by degrees as they will bear it, We are endevouring to live in peace with all men, but we meet with great opposition from Mr Kendall.
He says he is the same here as the Governor is at Port jackson he threatens to send us out of this settlement he will do this and the other he has on all occasions if I mistake not encouradged his Goverment man to abuse us and the other prisoners that are in this settlement to strike and ill use us so that we despared of our lives and was going to make our escape to Waitanghee to Mr Hall’s place but the natives would not let us go, we had no body to pull the Boat the Natives sat down and wept with us to see the treatment we met with from our own people they told us that the white people should hurt us no more but if we persisted in going or did leave this place, they would send Mr Kendall back to port-Jackson for he should not stay here, He tries to set the natives against us by telling them I am nothing but a servant that he is a great Gentleman, he goes on board ships, that comes in, and gives us a bad name to the Captain in short he does all he can to abease us and to exalt him self— he well let us have nothing he can convenantly hinder us of, the natives takeingtaking our parts so much to Mr Kendall he sent me a few lines saying he would hear any complaint we might
make to him but, I spoke to him about it, we was in all the fault it is in vain for us to complain to him because we are always rong , after this he sent me several insulting Letters I answered the first, but declined sending any more, he sends me two which he calls consolatory ones, these I should have liked to closed in with, if his conduct had been consistantconsistent with the Letters, so I leave you to judge Sir, how we are going on, I do not aprove of his getting intoxicated, of his good words and fair speeches without regarding to do the same all intercourse is droped between us, except any thing that we cannot do without, he is welcome to write and say all he pleases against me and mine, I have sent some Letters dated Octr 1815. I expect this to arrive before them the ship Cato being about to sail from this place in a few days, bound for England leaden with oil. She is expected to be in London dock in four month. I expect that great good will be done here in the Lords time, and close in praying that the Lords will raise up and send faithful labourers into the Harvest and that your labours may not be in vain in the Lord. So I rest Revd Sir Your most humble And most Obedient servant John King This day Mr Halls House was plundredplundered Mrs was struck by one of the natives She was taken up for dead but she is getting better