482 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1813. 



Mission of the United 

 Brethren. 



From Lichtensteiti' s Ti-avels in 

 Southern Africa, translated by 

 j4nne Plumptre. 



Those who have read Mr. Bar- 

 row's Travels, know already some- 

 thijig of the institution formed in 

 this district by the Herrenhuters, 

 or Society of United Brethren : it 

 has now been established for a 

 considerable number of years, and 

 deserves every thing that can be 

 said in its commendation. Spar- 

 man mentions a pious German of 

 the name of George Schmidt, as 

 the first of the society who under- 

 took to come out in quality of mis- 

 sionary to Southern Africa. He 

 settled there about the year 1 737, 

 and soon collected some Hottentots 

 together for the purpose of con- 

 verting them to Christianity. After 

 his departure, a small number of 

 his disciples remained together in 

 a society, and the reports concern- 

 ing them, which reached Europe, 

 induced three of the United Bre- 

 thren in Holland and Germany, of 

 the names of Marsveld, Kuhnel, 

 and Schwin, to remove hither in 

 the year 1791 ; the first was from 

 Zeist, in the province of Utrecht, 

 the other two were Germans. By 

 order of the East India Company 

 in Holland, this spot was granted 

 them for the establishment of a 

 little colony, and the boundaries 

 petween the lands awarded to them, 

 and those of the neighbouring 

 colonists, were accurately defined. 

 In a short time they collected to- 

 gether a tolerable number of Bas- 

 tards and Hottentots, whom they 

 instructed in their religion, at the 



same time endeavouring to inspire 

 them with habits of industry. 



In the mean time, that is, in the 

 year 1794<, those unfortunate dis- 

 sentions broke out among the co- 

 lonists, the destructive consequen- 

 ces of which were fortunately su- 

 perseded by the English invasion ; 

 but the sad effects of their discords 

 spread even to this peaceful vale. 

 The whole institution was a subject 

 of offence to the surrounding colo- 

 nists, partly because they did not 

 see their own strong Calvinistic 

 doctrines taught in it, but still more 

 because they found themselves re- 

 strained in extending their lands, 

 and were in some measure deprived 

 of the services of the Hottentots, 

 for the latter preferred leading a 

 quiet life among the Herrenhuters, 

 to attending the sheep and oxen of 

 the farmers. It was to these causes 

 that the enmity of the colonists 

 towards the Brethren, mentioned 

 by Mr. Barrow, is to be ascribed ; 

 but this gentleman suffers his zeal 

 against the colonists to get too 

 great an ascendanc}' over him, 

 when he represents their enmity 

 as having been carried to such 

 lengths, that a conspiracy was form- 

 ed among them to murder the mis- 

 sionaries. I have myself been as- 

 sured by the missionaries them- 

 selves, that they never heard of 

 such a thing; they only, by way of 

 precaution, petitioned Sir James 

 Craig, in the year 1796, to grant 

 them a confirmation of their rights, 

 and security against the encroach- 

 ments with which they were me- 

 naced. Since that time, excepting 

 some trifling disputes about the 

 boundaries of their lands, they have 

 lived upon very good terras with 

 the colonists. They are universally 



