Chap. V. SUCCESS OF MISSIONARIES. 107 



rished in their hearts ever since the emancipation of the Hottentots. 

 Thus, from imfortunate ignorance of the country he had to govern, 

 an able and sagacious governor adopted a policy proper and wise 

 had it been in front of our enemies, but altogether inappropriate 

 for our friends against whom it has been applied. Such an error 

 could not have been committed by a man of local knowledge 

 and experience, such as that noble of colonial birth, Sir Andries 

 Stockenstrom ; and such instances of confounding friend and foe, 

 in the innocent belief of thereby promoting colonial interests, will 

 probably lead the Cape community, the chief part of which by no 

 means feels its interest to he in the degradation of the native 

 tribes, to assert the right of choosing their own governors. This, 

 with colonial representation in the Imperial Parliament, in addi- 

 tion to the local self-government already so liberally conceded, 

 would undoubtedly secure the perpetual union of the colony to 

 the English Crown. 



Many hundreds of both Griquas and Bechuanas have become 

 Christians and partially civilized through the teaching of English 

 missionaries. My first impressions of the progress made were, 

 that the accounts of the effects of the Gospel among them had 

 been too highly coloured. I expected a higher degree of Christian 

 simplicity and purity than exists either among them or among 

 ourselves. I was not anxious for a deeper insight in detecting 

 shams than others, but I expected character, such as we imagine 

 the primitive disciples had — and was disappointed.* When, how- 

 ever, I passed on to the true heathen in the countries beyond the 



* The popular notion, however, of the primitive church is perhaps not very- 

 accurate. Those societies especially which consisted of converted Gentiles — 

 men who had been accustomed to the vices and immoralities of heathenism — 

 were certainly anything hut pure. In spite of their conversion, some of them 

 carried the stains and vestiges of their former state with them when they 

 passed from the temple to the church. If the instructed and civilised Greek 

 did not all at once rise out of his former self, and understand and realise the 

 high ideal of his new faith, we should he careful, in judging of the work of 

 missionaries among savage tribes, not to apply to their converts tests and stand- 

 ards of too great severity. If the scoffing Lucian's account of the impostor 

 Peregrinus may be believed, we find a church probably planted by the Apostles 

 manifesting less intelligence even than modern missionary churches. Pere- 

 grinus, a notoriously wicked man, was elected to the chief place among them, 

 while Romish priests, backed by the power of France, could not find a place 

 at all in the mission churches of Tahiti and Madagascar. 



