Early Years 



civilising effect on the people, not only from a religious 

 but also from the economic and industrial points of view. 



In the ^^ Journal '' (p. 419) we find a detailed account of 

 a visit to the missionary settlement at Waimate, New 

 Zealand. After describing the familiar English appear- 

 ance of the whole surroundings, he adds : ^^ All this is 

 very surprising when it is considered that five years ago 

 nothing but the fern flourished here. Moreover, native 

 workmanship, taught by these missionaries, has effected 

 this change — the lesson of the missionary is the enchanter's 

 wand. The house had been built, the windows framed, the 

 fields ploughed, and even the trees grafted, by the New 

 Zealander. When I looked at the whole scene it wa« 

 admirable. It was not that England was brought vividly 

 before my mind ; . . . nor was it the triumphant feeling at 

 seeing what Englishmen could effect; but rather the high 

 hopes thus inspired for the future progress of this fine 

 island.'' 



No such feeling was inspired by the conditions sur- 

 rounding the Roman Catholic missionaries whom he met 

 from time to time. In an earlier part of the '^ Journal -' he 

 records an evening spent with one living in a lonely place 

 in South America who, '^ coming from Santiago, had con- 

 trived to surround himself with some few comforts. Being 

 a man of some little education, he bitterly complained of 

 the total want of society. With no particular zeal for 

 religion, no business or pursuit, how completely must this 

 man's life be wasted." 



In complete opposition to these views, passages occur 

 in the following letters which show that Wallace thought 

 more highly of the Roman Catholic than of the Protestant 

 missionaries. In one place, speaking of the former, he 

 says : '' Most are Frenchmen . . . well-educated men who 

 give up their lives for the good of the people they live 



37 



