METHODISM IN TARANAKI.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 245, 25 March 1915, Page 8

METHODISM IN TARANAKI.

EARLY DAYS OF NEW PLYMOUTH

AN INTERESTING REVIEW.

The anniversary of Whitclcr M'emoivt'. | Church was last Sunday made the oi i sion of a peep into the past of i ; province in church matters. This ,va,' all tlio more appropriate as the day had be.n the Alethodist churches of Taranaki tor eominumorativ.; reference; to the completion o! seveuf - live jearj of religious work in th u ■;."■;- trict.

At the evening service the Rot. A B Chappell preaclied from ' lX j 23: "At the commandment of the I..ir,| they .encamped, ami at the commandment of tile Lord they journeyed: they kept the charge of the' Lord." A condensed report of the sermon is !at.given:—

So, heedful of the heaven-bom cloud that rested on the sanctuary of God overshadowing it by da v - and irradiate"' it by night, tho Israelites of old ordered their goings: and so, ooedient to a heavenly vision that enkindled their hearts »s it beckoned their footstep, the missionary pioneers of our island dwelling "kept the charge of the Lord.'' A. Divine impulse drew them hither from lands of securer service, and kept thi.m faithful to a task that involved peril* and pains and patience. Whether making th„ beginnings of missionary setu.ment or bein« "in journevings often," they regarded themselves" as obeying that impulse and keeping that <:harg ■•. They were the Lord's wayfarers or builders as necessity demanded, willing to go or stay a s He bade them.

Such a man was Samuel Marsden, first of the Church of England missionary, the centenary of whose first sermon in this land, preached on Christmas Day, of lSl4.in the Bay of Islands ha s been recently celebrated. We have joined—in spirit—in that memorial rejoicing over , an auspicious and pregnant event. Such a man, too, was Samuel Leigh, tho Vvesleyall pioneer missionary of 1822, whom 'Marsden encouraged and helped in his beginning at Wesley dale, Wliangaroa. Such men were t'riose who established the missionary enterprise at Hokianga in 1827, in pursuance of the cordial, agreement that left the Anglicans to mission the East Coast and the Wosleyans to work the West Coast of this island. Such, without doubt, were the men associated with the beginning of Christian effort in Taranaki. It is seventy-five years since that beginning was definitely made. Dr. Emit Dieffeubaeh, the New Zealand Company's naturalist (who was, by the way, the first man to reach Mount 2gmont's summit), wa 8 exploring these parts late in 1839. On January 10, 1840, he set out on an excursion up tlio coast to Mokau. He had as guide a son of the chief of a Waikato tribe settled there. He passed along the sandy beach from Ngamotu, along what ia now our New Plymouth foreshore, srossing at their mouths the Huatoki.

Mcuui, and Waiwakaiho streams in succcssic.!. After a night spent on tho bank of the VVaitara river, he ncgoti-' ated tils Onaero and Urenui fords. Then, referring to the Urenui, he says in his records: "After, we had crossed this river wo heard voices at a distance, and aoon came up with a European, who had been sent by the Wesleyan missionary in Kawhia, and was travelling u.r missionary objects.to the southward. With him was a large party of Waikato natives, and also men, women and children belonging to the tribe of the Ngatiawa at the Sugar Loaves. Thev had been taken into slavery during the last war, and had been o'blig«d' to live at Kawhia, but now t'leir masters had allowed them to go to Taranald for

the purpose of paying a visit." That "visit" of Dieffenbach s entry was more than appeared to him. That journey meant the liberation of those who hail been slaves. They were being freed through the influence of Christianity upon their Waikato captors, espccialf/ upon, two of their chiefs. To the number of some hundreds they were, on their way to be reinstated in their former home. The "European" was the Rev. Samuel Ironside (one of the Wesleyan missionaries of the north). With him

were the Revs. «. Buttle and J. Aldred, }'ounger men then getting acquainted with the country and inured to trawl. The missionary records tell of the joy of the returning natives when, after leaving Mokau and so passing the interv.suing range, they again looked upon iCgmont'.s snowy summit. But their wel-

come at the Sugar Loaves was tardy. The party was mistaken for a war partv of the Waikatos, and the Ngatiawa remnant hid in the rocks and refused to parley. At last the trutli was undsrstood and a fitting welcome given. Arrangements were made for th e purchase of a hundred acres for missionary purposes, and soon afterwards the Wesleyan ministers went on down the coast, with a native escort. At Oeo the next bait was made, and there, having •jnwittingly violated Maori tapu through the taking of firewood from a sacred spot, the missionaries were threatened with death. The intervention of a native teonvert relieved '(, he situation. Journeying on to Waimate Plains (tho district surrounding the Manaia of today) the missionaries chose Waingo-

ngoro—''a hroad, grassy peninsula of four or five acres, formed by a bend in the river" —as a centre for st'.iled work. To this spot, known as the Taranaki South Station, the Rev. John Skcvington was soon afterwards sent, and there a very successful period of evangelisation was experienced. Jlr. Skevington's sudden death in Auckland, during the District Meeting, at a service conducted by the Rev. James Wallis in the High Street Church, left the natives of his wide parish sorely bercavedi The liev. < W. Woon and Mr. Hough corried on the cause there till in 1858 Mr. Woon retired.

New Plymouth was occupied in a settled way a few months after the epoch-making journey of Mr. Ironside and his company. On tho 14th of January, 1841, the Rev. Charles Creed and Mrs. Creed landed from the Triton. The Rev. J. Waterhousc, then superintendent of the New Zealand Mission, came here with them. Many have seen copies of tho picture immortalising that landing—the Triton anchored in the roadstead, a Maori canoe putting off to her, crowds of natives on the beae'i gazing in wonder at her, Mr. Waterhouse already on the 'beach conversing ■with the natives,, Mrs. (.fr|ed being carried ashore, by Maori women, and Mr. Creed still in the little boat directing the carry/ing ashore of his boxes. Missionary activity among the natives was Mr. Creed's first care, but work among the first colonists also made claim upon his fine powers. In little raupo buildings near the shore —there were, two, one for Maori and the. other for English services—divine worship was conducted; and near them Mr. and Mrs. Creed lived. ~*

Letters of those early days make interesting reading. They record the, fears as well as the .fortunes of Ihe pioneer settlers. Josias Hoskin, for example, writing to "Dear Friends and Shopmatcs" of the old land on 'November 14th, 1841, declares: "The natives are very civil indeed; they are much bettor than I expected, but wo have 10 thank the missionaries for it; the preacher's name is' Creed. ITo is a very good man. T never hear him preach but what T. think of John Hoskin.'' That was doubtless meant for the highest conceivable compliment to Mr. Creed's pulpit efficiency. Sally 'Oiddy'. writing on the 13th of 'November of that year to her brother John, enlarges on th- same view of the natives and of Mr. Oroed. "The natives are very kind," she savs: "they have, got tvro chapels, and there is a missionary her*. Mr. Cwcd, who fr'Bfhes to them ia

their own l«,ngunge in one of th» i*»pels ( »«d hj« prwio'-iej toiiH w»ll. The native* built them for i», and they *r» very attentive to the place of worship; they do not 'like for any on« to work on Sundays; they say it's "no good'; h\! cannot get them to builj any nouses but one for God, that in a cj't»pul, so they are going to build us a larger one, soon as they have put in their potatoes.-' We may trace some of the steps from that small raupo wharc on the foreshore to th o present Whiteley Memorial Church, whose anniversary w'e celebrate. During 1842 a grant of £lO from the New Zealand Company, through its agent, Captain Liardet, enabled the YVosleyans to build a temporary church in Brougham- Street south, near the location of the present Salvation Army Barracks. It also was of raupo. It served the need of the congregation for a year, but had to b 0 vacated under somewhat unusual conditions. The local authorities, represented by Captain King and Mr. Wickstced, ejftired to hold a horticultural show in it. This use of the building Mr. Creed strenuously, opposed, refusing permission. Thereupon it was proved that the building encroached on the public road, which had not before been clearly surveyed, and the Wesleyans were ordered to remove the building. However, a haven of refuge, win providentially near. The Independent* (or Congregationali3ts, as they are usually called) were then worshipping in a little building in Devon Street Eia», *nd their minister (Mr. Groube) had begun a proieet for another building, in Courtenay Street, of a more permanent nature. This was to bo of sandstone, and its erection had been started, on ft spot adjoining Dr. Fookcs' present residence. But lack of funds prevented its completion. Negotiations were entered into for its purchase by the Wesleyans, and .for £BO the incomplete building was secured by them, they completed it, and it served their purpose for many years. Still, it could not be a permanently satisfactory place of worship; it was about SO feet by 20 feet, and after a few years became too strait. So, on October '2nd, 1856, what was described as "a fine new chapel" was erected diagonally opposite the little sandstone building,, that is, on the present church site. The '•fine new chapel" is now Whiteley Hall, but not quite the Whiteley Hall we know. | Tho gallery used to be at tho west end, and the pulpit was mid-wfy on the south side. The space below the gallery was screened off. There the wounded often lay. There, indeed, for some time families lived, and it was no unusual thing for the fragrance of a domestic meal in preparation to pervade the sanctuary during morning service. In 18ft4, during the ministry of the Rev. Alexander Reid, the building was extended to the

northward to accommodate an increasing congregation. Then came the change of 1897," when that building was removed from the corner of the section to make room for the present structure, and was so altered in its new situation that the gallery wa3 moved to the w«it end, and the northern «xtension was made into some of the classrooms on the west; th<- pulpit was given to t'io ■ church at Rahotu. In this church »as ministered a succession of devoted men. The recent union of the Primitive

Methodists with the denomination that in 1805 included the Wesleyans with the Bible Christians and the United Methodist Free Church brings their early days into the story that this anniversary recalls. Many of the early settlers hero were Cornish Bible Christians (or Bryaniles, as they were often called after their founder). Some of them were lay preachers. On a .site given by the elder Mr. Veale, they erected a little chapel,.

and wrote to England for a minister. Their request got a Scottish reply—it evoked a series of questions, instead of a granting of their wish. So their " local preachers" went on as well as they could till there came a memorable day—Sunday,* September 1, 1844. Leaving their little building near the centre of the town, they were surprised to lind a minister, standing on a chair on the Huatoki bridge (in Devon Street), preaching in the open air. • He was' the Kev. Robert (Ward, who had arrived

three days before by tho Raymond. They listened, and discovered, that the stranger earnestly proclaimed ihe things most surely believed amongst themselves. In their pastorless state, they invited him to become their shepherd. Ho accepted their invitation, and their building became the first Primitive Methodist Church in New Zealand. Not long afterwards Mr. Ward built the Henui Church and parsonage that made

it a more settled centre of hig ministry. He took an interest in Maori needs, and travelled afield on evangelising tours, Mr. and Mrs. Green relieving him at New Plymouth. Omata was entered by the Primitive Methodists in 1848, and Bell Block in 1855. The Rot. Joseph Long was in charge here in 1850, Mr. Ward having been removed to Auckland. Returning in 1859 for a term of three years, Mr. Ward was here when war broke out. His health was seriously .affected by the constant alarms and the need to hurry within the defence of the trenches. In 1802 the land in Queen Street was first occupied with a I'rimitive Methodist Church the building that now is the schoolroom behind the present church. Mr. and Mrs. Waters came in 1865, and were suc-

ceeded by the Rev. J. Dumbell, now resident in Wellington. Those days were remarkable for their One spirit of church unity. Once a month the Church of England and Wesleyan congregations worshipped together in the stone- church in Courtenay Street; every fourth Sunday tho Anglican clergyman gave to the Maoris, and then his white congregation mingled in harmony with the followers of John Wesley. The merging of Bible Christians and Primitive Methodists, already described; exemplifies the same good feeling. As another instance, there may be cited the fact that the bottle under the foundation stone of the first Baptist place of worship here, built in ISGS at the corner of Liardct and Gill Streets, contained this record: "On the 11th March, 18G8, the' foundation stone of this chapel, intended for the Baptist Denomination, was laid by the Rev. John Whiteley." Behind the Fitzroy Methodist Church of to-day there is a tombstone declaring that a daughter of that Wesleyan minister married a Primitive Methodist, and is buried on that historic spot, identified with the past of the younger Methodist denomination. " The communion of saints" was once much more than a ritual confession, and happily can' be still.

' The men whose work Hog behind the present activity of this church were a noble succession. Mr. Creed's memory is of a man able and beloved. The Rev. IT. IT. Tin-ton, who came in 1544, was a brilliant, brainy man. Governor Fitzroy found him very useful in difficult negotiations with the Natives, and he left his mark upon the educational development of the mission. Five years after his arrival the death of Mrs. Turtnn threw a gloom over the settlement, anil shadowed his remaining days- The Rev, John Whiteley came to his help in 1850. The. succeeding clergymen included the' Revs. S. Ironside, J. Fletcher, A. Roid, W. J. "vVatkin,, J. Crump, all of whom have passed "within the veil." Two others, who followed, are with us yet, the Rev. W. Kirk, whose greeting from Petono to the. Conference of a few days ago was 'penned with the mental alertness and definiteness usually associated with youth, and the Iter. W. Cannell, whose genial graclousness is a never-failing Messing in.our ftW! congregation.

Xo MiWersftry o»»»sion im this me-. «ori*l buildiig w»»)d b» templet* with'out som« dcteilod refereice to John Whitoloy, the martyr missionary. Born in 1809, he was at twenty-live a candidate in England for missionary work. Til 1832 ha loft for Now Zealand, being designatod for the Hokianga mission station. There, and at and' subsequently at New Plymouth, he proved his eminent fitness for such an enterprise as pioneer Christian missions usually mean. ,ITo had a warm heart, and quickly gave his lore to this country and its people. His intellectual capabilities made him speedily a good Maori linguist and preacher. Strong, nimble, and abstemious, he made many daring journeys on horseback, by canoe, and afoot. It was his custom to make regular rounds of block-houses and pas in this neighbourhood. Everywhere he was heartily we'eomed. • On Saturday, February IS, lisfii), he set oft* on one of his usual week-end journeys, intending to make Pukciinilie that night and return by stages next day, holding services at various plares on the Sunday. That dnr p. war party of the Maniapoto had visited the block-house, and three white men, with the young wife and little children of one of them had been done to death., Mr. Whitcley knew the danger to which this outpost near the White Cliffs wan exposed, for he had himself sent a warning letter to the Covernment about it. As he rode up the slope lie was seen by the war party in possession. "Hokia! Hokia!" (Co hack! Oo hack.) came the hoarse, abrunt warning from one of the group. But his sense of duty took him on. A shot rans out. His horse fell. Disengaging himself from the wounded beast, he knelt, audibly praying. In a moment the guns of the Maoris, fired at close range, sped his brave soul from earth.

As lonsr as our can«e in this place stands, his memory shall be kept. His death cries out to our lives. We are pledged by it to honour and serve his God and to bless the land he loved. We shall remember him as the man who refused to go hack. May we, with him and the noble company in which h\ served, encamp and journey at the command of the Lord, and keep His charge.