In Memorian OF THE FIRST SOUTH SEA ISLAND PIONEER TEACHER TO NEW GUINEA.

Te Aroha News, Volume I, Issue 52, 31 May 1884, Page 4

In Memorian OF THE FIRST SOUTH SEA ISLAND PIONEER TEACHER TO NEW GUINEA.

Between my letters about New Guinea and its people it may be interesting to many of your readers to send you one which has special reference to a faithful native teacher who has just been removed by death from his post at our central station in the Fly River, than whom there is no teacher in the mission who has been more devoted, whose experience has been more varied, and whose labours have been more successful. Gucheng was a native of Uvea, one of the Loyalty Group, near New Caledonia. His mother being a Lifu woman, and his father dying whilst he was young, led to his being removed to Lifu and taken to his mother's family in Wide Bay. Here we found him in 1859, a youth about seventeen years of age. He was the first to offer himself to us as a servant, an otter which we gladly accepted, as we liked the appearance of the lad. He served us faithfully in that capacity for four or five years. He was never very bright, but always a quiet, plodding, reliable, and conscientious man. During his term of service he crossed the pons asinorum of reading, writing, and arithmetic, and became somewhat proficient in the use of tools.

An Interesting Incident. One of his chief works during that time was to sink a well sixty feet deep on the mission premises, a task that reqimed considerable faith and perseveranee at that time, as the idea was a perfectly new one to the natives, and seemed to them quite Utopian, there being no signs of fresh water anywhere near. However, Gucheng, with two others to assist him, worked away week after week and month after month at the well. It was an experiment which proveda great blessing, not only to Gucheng's future station at Lifu, but to many of the villages throughout the island. In visiting caverns at different parts of the island, some of them many miles from the coast, I observed that the fresh water in them rese and fell with ' the tide, which led me to conjecture that probably the sea-water percolates through these coral islands, and, being heavier than the fresh water, does not mix with it, so that the rain-water percolating from the surface would, when it descended to the sea level, simply float on the top of the salt water ; and, according to this theory, fresh water might be found anywhere on a coral island— except near the coast— by digging to the sea level. It was to prove this that I had the well made near the mission house, in what appeared a most unlikely place to ; find water. From the first the natives laughed at the idea, although for a while they worked away merrily. During the last 20ft, however, it was evidently becoming a serious matter to them, and they several times endeavoured to persuade me to abandon the idea of getting water in such a place. I knew exactly how far they had to go to reach the sea level, beyond which I felt it would be useless to dig. When they were near that depth I happened to be standing at the top of the well, where I heard a conversation by the two at the bottom, which clearly revealed their estimate of my intelligence. I was politely designated as a foreign fool, who knew nothing about their countx*y, Shortly afterwards, when a few natives had assembled at the mouth of the well, who facetiously said that they had come to drink the water, I called Gucheng and his mate up, and informed them that I was going down to get some water. They were mightily amused at this idea, and I was lowered down amidst a good deal of banter. I at once set to work vigorously digging a small deep hole in the middle of the well, the natives in the meantime declaring that they were very thirsty. To my great joy I soon found the point of my steel bar wet, and ere long was able to send up a pint of water. The change in the minds of the natives was about as rapid and complete as amongst the barbarians of Melita in the days of the Apostle Paul. I mention this circumstance because the discovery of fresh water in this well led to the formation of a plan for improving the villages throughout the island, which were to be built after a model, with a church and well in the centre.

A Model Village. Gucheng, after four years' special training in our Teachers' Seminary, was appointed to a village about six miles from the mission-house, which 1 determined should become, under his care, a niodel village for the island. I laid the scheme before the people at the time of Gucheng's appointment, pointing out a site about a mile distant for the new village, which was central, fertile, near the public road, and altogether a much better place than where they were then lfving. Both Gucheng and his people entered enthusiastically into the work, and in the course of two years or so a very pretty native village sprang up, with a wide road down the middle, bounded on each side by a substantial coral wall f from which were prettily fenced paths covered with gravel leading to neatly-built detached houses, with gardens in front. In the centre of the village stood a well-built coral church and a draw-well. Many a time have I ridden through that village on a Saturday afternoon on my way to an out station for the Sunday, with a glad heart at the evidences of order, peace, and plenty, cleanliness, comfort, and happiness, combined with the growing intelligence of the people. This was Gucheng's first charge, in which he showed his capacity for pioneer work.

Gucheng's First Call. When I was requested by the directors of the London Missionary Society to undertake the establishment of a mission in New Guinea, Gucheng was the first chosen native teacher I selected for this great work. He readily consented to leave his pleasant home and friends for the dark, sickly, savage country of New Guinea— a sacrifice equal to that made by many a European missionary. How well I remember the valedictory service just before we started, and Gucheng's earnest words to the native pastors, students, and Church members of Lifu. On our arrival in Torres Straits, Gucheng was located at the first mission station that we formed, which was at Darnley Island, that being the moßt suitable place for the centre and sanatorium -\\'l.'. Vi 'tit ' •

of our mission. I witnessed a very touching scene his location, which I must mention. We had some difficulty in persuading the chief (whojs now an active, devoted deacon of the Church) to allow the teacher to settle amongst his people, and he only gave his consent ultimately on condition that 'we should remove him at the end of the first year if he and his people desired it. The natives -were at thattime a wild, thievingset, who had not long before massacred a boat's crew sent to get water—hence the name of the anchorage "Treachery Bay." We had landed the teacher's boxes and bundles, purchased a native house, and made the best arrangements we could for their safety, and were about to bid them good-bye. Gucbeng had arranged to accompany us to the boat, about a mile distant, whilst his wife remained with the [other couple to protect their goods from the pil- • fering crowd of naked savages who surrounded them. She was evidently greatly distressed at the .thought of their being left amongst these people. I overheard a few sentences of a tearful conversation which it would have taken a stronger man than I am to listen to unmoved. * Wife : "I told you that I did not want to come ; Oh, that we were back in Lifu," etc. Gucheng: "Think what we have come for. We have not come to seek riches. Jesus will be with us, and think what He has done for us," etc. I could listen to no more, and walked to the boat with a sad heart, yet wishing that we had twenty Guchengs for New Guinea. A little peep like this into the inner life of on© of our native pioneers shows the character of the men who have done and are doing such a noble work in New Guinea. For Gucheng and his wife to leave their comfortable home and attached people (who, by the way, were exceedingly reluctant to give him up) at the model village, was quite as great a sacrifice to them as that made by many missionaries leaving England. I returned to Lifu, thence to England, to get a small steamer and the necessary appliances for working the New Guinea mission, Mr Murray taking charge of the infant mission during my absence. The next time ; I visited Gucheng's station I was welcomed I on the beach by him and his wife, the chief Imani, and a number of smiling natives, neatly dressed looking quite civilised and happy. I was conducted to a commodious mission-house on the hill, where the table was spread in true South Sea fashion with an abundance of the best that the island could produce. The change was remarkable. It was evident that Gucheng had gained the confidence and affection of the people. Then I heard the story of little Martha. How that when the teachers were sawing a log for their house, they heard of a baby girl about to be strangled on the other side of the island. Gucheng immediately left the saw, ran to the place, and rescued the child, which, under his fostering care and that of his wife, had become a tall, intelligent, affectionate girl, regarding them as her father and mother. Waunaea commencad a mission at the western end of the peninsula, settling on Yule Island. We were perfect strangers to the nativees of these places, knew nothing of their language, and had no introduction except at Yule Island, where we were accompanied by an Eastern Polynesian teacher from the Port Moresby district, the language of which place was understood by some of the natives of Yule Island. The massacre of Dr. James and Mr Thorngren, about a year after the establishment of this mission, led me to withdraw the teachers for the time, as the natives were in a very excited state, and they considered their lives in imminent danger. Since the settlement of Mr Chalmers at Port Moresby he and Mr Lawes have extended the Middle district to the westward as far as Bald Head, and re-established the mission in Hall Sound. Gucheng and his colleagues soon gained the confidence of the natives in China Strait, Milne Bay, East Cape, and Teste Island, where Lifu teachers are still at work, and both they and the natives anxiously awaiting the arrival of European missionaries to superintend and carry on the work so successfully begun. Gucheng having to return to Murray Island on account of a severe attack of fever — from which he soon recovered at our sanatorium — he resumed his old station at Darnley, with a view of assisting in the new mission about to be commenced in the Fly River, which is immediately opposite, within boating distance. In the meantime I had got the Papuan Industrial School and Teachers' Seminary fairly established at our headquarters, and in tolerably good working order, containing about seventy fine young men and boyi, more than half of whom came from Saiba^ Dauan, Katau, Tureture, and the mouth of the Fly River, the rest being from islands in Torres Strait. At this institution not only were the pioneer teachers trained for the Fly River mission, but the boat was built to take them there, and the frame of a house prepared to be erected on their arrival. Gucheng threw himself very heartily into I this new work, and was delighted with the place which I selected for our headquarters : on the Fly River — an island near the middle of the river, which, with two others, forms a fine harbour named Port Spicer — where we erected the mission-house and hoisted the mission flag. Large vessels can visit this port and be perfectly safe at all times. On my second visit I remained with the teachers a week or ten days visiting the sur» rounding villages and forming new stations, Gucheng intended remaining with the new teachers until the rainy season set in, said he never felt so well at Darhley as he had done there, and declared Mibu more healthy than any place he had been to in New Guinea. I could only hope all this, but dared not believe it until we had proved theplace. Being sufficiently far up the river to be clear of the mangrove swamps about the entrance, and being exposed to both monsoons, I have reason to hope that Port Spicer is the healthiest point in that locality ; but that it can be what Gucheng pronounced it, considering the low character of the country, is most improbable. During Gucheng's short residence on the Fly River he rendered the mission good service, and became known by the natives in all directions, by whom he was greatly respected. Indeed, he was a teacher greatly respected by all who knew him, both Europeans and natives, and no one in our large staff will be more missed or more deeply lamented. I left him at Port Spicer about a week before his death. He had been with me visiting villages thirty miles up the river, and when I left seemed as well as I ever knew him. I bought a pig at one of the villages before leaving, which I handed over to Gucheng ; and from letters to hand from teachers in the Fly River I'm afraid that pig was the death of him. These South Sea Islanders will persist, whenever they get a chance, in eating large quantities of fat pork in New Guinea, notwithstanding all we say against it. There are many indissretions whioh may be committed in other countries with comparative impunity which in New Guinea prove fatal. Whatever may be the cause, there is no doubt that we have lost a food man. Long will the name of Gucheng c remembered in the eastern and western branches of our mission, but long after heiß forgotten his works will live.

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