ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO

Te Puke Times, Volume XXVIII, Issue 54, 18 July 1939, Page 3

ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO

UNITED STATES APPOINTS CONSUL WHALING INTERESTS IN NEW ZEALAND HOSPITABLE CONSUL On 30th July, 1839, the first United States Consul in New Zealand, appointed early in the same, year, reported to ids home government. Thus one hundred years ago American interest in. the disposal of New Zealand was quite as strong as that of the French. The United States, however, never had any ambition to acquire territory in New Zealand. This first United States Consul was James R. Clendon, a Bay of Islands merchant of some years standing. He was appointed to look after the interests of American whalers in New Zealand waters, and at that time the Americans, besides having the largest fleet, we;< generally considered die most efficient and courageous whalers. They did not actually whale from the Bay ot Islands, but Kororareka was the best port in New Zealand in 1839 for refreshment on a voyage that usually lasted two or more years.

A Busy Life We know from the fact that in May, 1834, he was one of the ten signatories of a memorandum requesting uames Busby to defend British interests, that Clendon must have suffered from some of the discomforts of living in a country whose native Government was described as “exceedingly loose.” Again in 1837 lie signed a round robin from the respectable white residents of New Zealnad requesting the British Government’s protection. Most of the problems of his short tenure of the office of United States Consul were concerned with the breaches of the peace in one form or another by sailors and other Europeans. The Maori chiefs were actually most helpful, returning deserters to their ship’s captain for a small reward in

trade goods. Ships calling at the Bay were usually short of men. One of the tricks of the tavern-keepers of Kororareka was to kidnap men or entice them off one ship in order to sell them to another, short-staffed as the result of similar depredations. Captain Bennett, of the American whaler, “Hannibal, knew how to deal with the decoyers of his seamen—He raised a force from the other American whaling ships n t.ne Bay and pulled down the house where his missing seamen had been conceal id. Clendon did all he could to help cu,< tains retrieve their men. On one boons ion he had to succour the crew of a whaler wrecked afj Akaroa. Besides he had routine duties, furnishing returns of American shipping and reporting i n the British Treaty negotiations or the direct action which lie applauded—of the forceful Captain Bennett. ENGLAND TAKES OVER

When an armed party of Europeans at Kapiti Island stole a boat from American whalers, Clendon wrote home that he wished an American man-oi war would cruise in New Zealand waters to impress the “lawless wretches” of Cook Strait. This prayer was soon to be answered. The American Antarctic exploring expedition squadron was at the Bay of Islands from February 'to April, in 1840. It’s leader, when he got home, made a curious statement that the Treaty of Waitangi had been “signed entirely through the influence of .Mr Clendon, the American Consul.” This is not true, though Clendon probably made himself serviceable to Hobson, for in May, 1841, Hobson appointed Clendon to Ills Legislative Council, a position lie held until 1844, There is therefore a l ’(strong - presumption that Clendon was a British subject. In 1841. he had appointed a vice-consul, .Mayhow. a citizen of the United States, to release him from his duties, and. sent in iii.s resignation. A Comfortable Home Felton Mathew, first Surveyor-General to the. Colony, visited Clendon’s comfortable <hoiiie. “We landed on Ur estate of a Mr Clendon, American Consul, who has acquired a very fine property. His house is handsomely furnished, and is very prettily situated with a nice lawn ond paddock green with clover and commanding a fine view of tli. .harbour.” Mrs Felton Mathew has left us an even more intimate sketch of the interior of the. Consulate. Mrs Clendon seems a very kind sort of creature. . . . She has all the comforts and many of the luxuries of a civilised life about her. There is a splendid piano by Broadwood in the drawing-room, but so woefully out of tune that it is quite impossible to touch it. . We drank tea from splendid china served on a silver salver, and about nine o’clock took leave of our kind hostess, whose trouble with her guests

was much increased by a cross, screaning babe four months old.” America’s Dwindling Interests It is noteworthy that America. had a Consul in New Zealand at a time when England had only a Resident, the sedate, upright and ineffectual James Busby, an officer with a lower status in International Law. Hobson himself had been sent out armed frith a commission as Consul, for use in case he should have failed to negotiate a treaty with the Maoiis. Majhew, the Vice-Consul, reported in 1842 that the new Government was extremely detrimental to American interests. Heavy duties were imposed on Ameruan imports, and whaling by foreign ships was prohibited inside- the three mile limit. But in any case the whales were disappearing and with them United States interest in New Zealand.