COLONY’S FIRST PRESS

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXIX, Issue 19999, 5 January 1935, Page 6

COLONY’S FIRST PRESS

ARRIVAL AT PAIHIA INTERESTING CENTENARY An important centenary fell last Sunday. On December 30, 1834, the first printing press, the property of the Church Missionary Society, arrived in New Zealand at Paihia, Bay of Islands. The epistles to the Ephesians and to the Philippians in Maori were the first fruits of this press, and were printed by Mr William Colenso, who came to New Zealand as the Church Missionary Society’s printer. The Maori language, one of the most musical of tongues, was, only 120 years ago, a language with no written expression. When the early missionaries came to New Zealand they immediately set about the task of recording this language. Missionary Kendall’s book, “a Korao” (Korero), written in 1815, was the first attempt, and five years later he helped Professor Lee, professor of Arabic at Cambridge, to draw up a Maori grammar. They were assisted by two important chiefs—the famous Hongi and Waikato —who crossed “Moana nui a Kiwa” so that the professor and Mr Kendall should have at hand exponents of the correct pronunciation. This Kendall and Lee grammar is prized by collectors to-day. The missionaries were responsible for the whole of the printing output in New Zealand for the first 30 years. At first printing orders were placed in Great Britain, later in Sydney, and finally the printing was done in New Zealand.

The Rev. William Yate, a keen observer and careful chronicler, whose book. “Yate’s New Zealand,” printed in 1835, is one of the treasures of collectors, narrates thus the beginnings of this great and interesting work: “In the former part of the year 1830 I spent upward of six months in New South Wales, occupied in carrying through the press, 117 closely-printed pages of a selection from Scripture, the liturgy, catechism and hymns, translated into the language of New Zealand. Nothing could exceed the gratification with which these books were received on my return by those who could read them. They were willing to receive them as wages, or to purchase them with anything they passessed of a valuable nature.

“During the two years subsequent to this first successful attempt, the translating committee assiduously prosecuted their important labours. At length, having ready for the press the whole of the liturgy of one church, with all' its services, a number of hymns, and catechisms, with the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. John, the Acts of the Apostles, and the Epistles of Paul to the Romans and the Corinthians. it w r as determined that I should visit New South Wales for the purpose of carrying these works through the press. This and other matters occupied me from November, 1832, to August, 1833.”