64 A MISSION TO VITI. 
of that group, treated Queen Pomare with unusual 
harshness, and the British representative in a manner 
that nearly brought about a war between France and 
England. Born in Tahiti, and thoroughly acquainted 
with the Samoan and most other Polynesian groups, Mr. 
Pritchard enjoys the peculiar advantage of being per- 
fectly familiar with all native modes of thought. During 
my stay in Fiji I had frequent opportunities to see how 
successfully he was able to deal with these islanders, 
whenever any difficulty arose. 
We called together on Mr. Binner, who has for years 
filled the office of training-master to the Wesleyan 
mission at Levuka, and also manages the commercial 
affairs of this religious society in Fiji. We thence went 
to Dr. Brower, the American Vice-Consul, who received 
me with great kindness, and whenever I visited Levuka 
I always took up my quarters under his hospitable roof. 
Mr. Williams, the American Consul, had died a few 
days before my arrival. I should have liked to have 
seen him, in order to form an independent estimate of 
a man about whom so many contradictory statements 
were afloat. He did not live on good terms with the 
missionaries, and controversies were carried on between 
them in the Australian and American newspapers, 
which, as is usual in such cases, proved advantageous 
to neither party. Mr. Williams bought considerable 
tracts of land, and it was maintained that the purchase 
was not in all instances a fair one, and that the na- 
tives had only from fear of American men-of-war given 
their assent to these transactions. It is impossible to 
say whether in all cases the sellers were satisfied with 
