RURVTLT. 
401 
feet wide. In this I preached to nearly the whole 
of the inhabitants, who were serious and attentive. 
After the service, we examined the building, the 
pulpit, &c., and were delighted to behold the rail¬ 
ing round the table in front of the pulpit, and by 
the side of the stairs, composed of the handles of 
warriors' spears. 
Twelve months afterwards they were visited by 
Mr. Williams, who found their industry and im¬ 
provement had been progressive. The young king 
had died; and as there were two candidates for 
the supreme authority, this led to the formation 
of two settlements instead of one: to each of these, 
one of the teachers was attached; and as the 
friends of Auura had not succeeded in procuring 
for him the government of the island, the teacher 
attached to his party had proposed, as a sort of com¬ 
pensation, to make him king of the church. When 
this plan was mentioned to Mr. Williams, he informed 
them that the Lord Jesus Christ was the King of the 
church ! that he was a Prince, as well as a Saviour! 
and that in the Bible there was nothing about the ap¬ 
pointment of any other king of the church. This was 
sufficient, and Auura’s friends were content that he 
should be supreme in his own district, but subor¬ 
dinate to the uncle of the late king, who had been 
the more successful candidate for the government 
of the island. This fact serves to shew the advan¬ 
tages of European Missionaries occasionally visit¬ 
ing the stations under the care of native Mission¬ 
aries. In November, 1824, I again visited Rurutu, 
travelled across the mountains from one settlement 
to the other, and conversed with most of the inha¬ 
bitants, many of whom were living in comfortable 
dwellings, and wearing decent clothing. Industry, 
activity, and cheerfulness, were every where mani- 
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