THE EARLY HISTORY OF NEW ZEALAND.

Otago Witness, Issue 1917, 17 August 1888, Page 22

THE EARLY HISTORY OF NEW ZEALAND.

A good number of people assembled at the V.M.C. A. Hall on Tuesday evening, when Dr Hocken delivered another of his lectures on the early history of the colony. The lecture (which was delivered under fche auspices of the Otago Institute) was the tenth of the series and the third relating to the settlement of Otago. It dealt with a period dating from the later part of 1844 to the end of 1846, the lecturer recounting the condition of Otago during that'period, previous to the advent of the first settlers. At the outset Dr Hocken gave some interesting particulars regardiug the rise of the Lay Association of the^ Free Church in 1845 and the qu&rrels between' the New Zealand Company and the Colonial Office, which so greatly hindered the furtherance of the settlement. He then proceeded to give particulars relating to the early surveys, and spoke at some length of the late Mr C. H. j Kettle and the surveys of the Otago block, which were conducted under his supervision. He also entered very fully into the nomenclature throughout the provincial district, dealing more especially with the names in Dunedin and its neighbourhood. The lecture abounded in information of a most interesting nature, and it was listened to with the utmost attention throughout. , i A number of maps and sketches illustrative of the lecture were displayed on one of the walls and attracted a good deal of notice. One of these sketches was an attempt to represent the site of Dunedin as it appeared on the morning of Mr Kettle's arrival, being a water colour painting from a point about midway between the Colonial Bank and the Post Office. There was also a pencil portrait of Mr C. H. Kettle, done by Mr Abbott about 40 years ago, and a water colour sketch of Dunedin in 1849, presumably by the same artist. There was also exhibited Mr Tuckett's original map of the Otago block. At the close of the lecture Mr A. Wilson, M.A , who presided, in thanking Dr Hocken for his excellent lecture, referred to the good work which that gentleman was doing in collecting such valuable historic records. He thought that work would be even belter appreciated by those who were to come in after years, as they would be better able fully to realise the value of it. He mentioned that Dr Belcher would be unable to give his paper on " The Homeric Land System " at next meeting of the institute, but other original papers would be read. Dr Hocken's next lecture will be delivered at the meeting of the institute in October, and will deal with that very interesting period from the close of 1846 up to the time of the landing of the first settlers in the John Wycliffe and the Philip Laing.