RELATIONS WITH THE PEOPLE. II 



will yet spring up, though we may not live to see the 

 fruits. 



Leaving this sketch of the chief, I proceed to give an 

 equally rapid one of our dealing with his people, the 

 Bakuena, or Bakwains. A small piece of land, sufficient 

 for a garden, was purchased when we first went to live 

 with them, though that was scarcely necessary in a 

 country where the idea of buying land was quite new. 

 It was expected that a request for a suitable spot would 

 have been made, and that we should have proceeded to 

 occupy it, as any other member of the tribe would. But 

 we explained to them that we wished to avoid any cause 

 of future dispute when land had become more valuable ; 

 or when a foolish chief began to reign, and we had erected 

 large or expensive buildings, he might wish to claim the 

 whole. These reasons were considered satisfactory. 

 About 5/. worth of goods were given for a piece of land, 

 and an arrangement was come to that a similar piece 

 should be allotted to any other missionary, at any other 

 place to which the tribe might remove. The particulars 

 of the sale sounded strangely in the ears of the tribe, but 

 were nevertheless readily agreed to. 



In our relations with this people we were simply strangers 

 exercising no authority or control whatever. Our influ- 

 ence depended entirely on persuasion ; and, having 

 taught them by kind conversation as well as by public 

 instruction, I expected them to do what their own sense 

 of right and wrong dictated. We never wished them to 

 do right merely because it would be pleasing to us, nor 

 thought ourselves to blame when they did wrong, although 

 we were quite aware of the absurd idea to that effect. 

 We saw that our teaching did good to the general mind 

 of the people by bringing new and better motives into 

 play. Five instances are positively known to me in which 

 by our influence on pubhc opinion war was prevented ; 

 and where, in individual cases, we failed, the people did 

 no worse than they did before we came into the country. 

 In general they were slow, like all the African people here- 

 after to be described, in coming to a decision on religious 

 subjects ; but in questions affecting their worldly affairs 

 they were keenly alive to their own interests. They 

 might be called stupid in matters which had not come 

 within the sphere of their observation, but in other things 

 they showed more intelligence than is to be met with in 



