PILGRIMS’ LANDING AT LYTTELTON.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18639, 17 December 1928, Page 14

PILGRIMS’ LANDING AT LYTTELTON.

CANON WILFORD SPEAKS OVER THE AIR ON ANNIVERSARY DAY. Speaking from Station 3ZC Christchurch on the occasion of the anniversary of tha province, Canon J. R. Wilford gave an interesting account of the landing of the pilgrims, and the first day at Lyttelton. He said: “Seventy-eight years ago to-day, on Sunday, December 15, the first of the historic four ships sighted Banks Peninsula. At ten o’clock the next morning the Charlotte Jane arrived in Lyttelton, to be followed in a few hours by the Randolph. The Sir George Seymour arri V 55 on December 17 and the Cressy on December 27. All four boats had left England after a banquet at Gravesend, about a hundred days before, and they arrived in the order in which they had left. THE FIRST BOAT TO ARRIVE. “Each boat naturally wanted to be the first to arrive, and, therefore, there was some consternation on board the Charlotte Jone when, on rounding the Heads, the passengers saw two other vessels riding at anchor. There was great joy when it was discovered that their ship was really first, and that of the two vessels in harbour one was the Fly, with the Governor, Sir George Grey, and Lady Grey on board, and the other a trader, the Barbara Gideon, which had left England some time before. * TRAVELLED IN TWO SHIPS. “One of the early diarists has called attention to the remarkable fact that three of the four ships, all taking different tracks, should all have sighted New Zealand on the same day, having, with one single exception, failed to sight each other during the whole voyage. He took it to show the good hand of their God upon them. The single exception was a most fortunate occurrence for one of the passengers. The story goes that one of the Pilgrims, having allowed the charms of a lady to delay him, arrived at Plymouth to find his ship, his berth and his clothes for the voyage all gone. With difficulty room was found for him on the Sir George Seymour. On October 4, his ship, the Randolph, was sighted, and its chief officer, with two of the clergy, paid a visit in mid-ocean to their pilgrim sister, and the dilatory pilgrim rejoined his goods and chattels and gained the distinction of having travelled to New Zealand in two boats. 2600 COLONISTS ARRIVE. “The First Four Ships w r ere afterwards followed by fourteen others, carrying in all 1650 passengers and bringing the number of arrivals up to 2600 for the first year. Amongst these colonists were some carpenters and mechanics from Van Diemen’s Land. WOMAN TO THE RESCUE. “We take ourselves back now to the arrival of the Charlotte Jane. Accustomed so long to the sight of an unending waste of waters, the passengers were enthralled by the picture of Lyttelton and its surroundings. The scenery caused a spontaneous shout of delight. After the captain and some officials had gone on aboard the Fly to pay their respects to the Governor, arrangements began to be made for landing the passengers. This had to be done by means of small boats. Three incidents are worth recording: At one stage in the proceedings the wife of Mr Walter Russell (a name preserved for us in a divinity professorship at College House) fell into the water. Like the dutiful husband he was, Mr WattsRussell, regardless of the fact that he could not swim, plunged in after her. He was soon in difficulties, and was promptly rescued by his wife, herself a strong swimmer. The onlookers might here have seen an action prophetic of the future. History, at any rate, tells us that many a Canterbury man has since those days been rescued from insuperable difficulties by his wife. W’hat cannot women do? A RACE FOR LAND. “The second incident relates to Mr Fitz Gerald. The first of the little boats was approaching land. Mr Mountfort, the architect of the Cathedral, was in the bow of the boat with Mr Fitz Gerald immediately behind him. The boat had hardly touched the shore when Mr Fitz Gerald leapfrogged over the young architect, shouting when poised in midair, “No, you don’t. I’m going to have the honour of landing first! ’ ALL DRESSED UP AND NOWHERE TO GO. “The third story is too pathetic for words. All the women had dressed themselves up in their Sunday best, and on landing they were told that there was nothing for them to do but to go to the barracks. Women seldom cry and they alw'ays put up with far more than men seem able to, but who will not sympathise with those women cf early days crying their eyes out ‘because they were all dressed up and had nowhere to go.’ • EARLY LYTTELTON. “Now what sort of a Lyttelton was it at which they had arrived Yes. There were Natives there, for the Maoris who afterwards went to Rapaki were living in the very heart of Lyttelton. Excellent arrangements had been made. Captain Thomas, the officer of the association, and Mr Godley himself, had seen to this. Several long buildings had been put up for the newcomers. There were two stores and a shop or two. Moreover, the colonists had been told in England exactly what to expect. The Canterbury Association had put out a very carefully-worded prospectus. The Pilgrims had been given full information concerning the climate, the kind of soil and the best breed of sheep. Much work had been done in the colony itself—the streets of Lyttelton had peen marked out, the City of Christchurch had been planned, 200,000 acres had been surveyed, accommodation had been arranged for 600 people in the barracks, the Bridle Path was ready for use, and a path to Sumner was being made by Maoris. All this had cost much money, and when Mr Godley arrived he found that Mr Thomas had overspent supplies to the extent of £SOOO, and other work was urgent. To save the new settlement from disaster, friends in England, amongst whom Lord Lyttelton was chief, impoverished their estates in a way from which they never recovered. ASPIRATIONS AND REALITIES. “But we come back to the Pilgrims. All through the voyage they had been building castles. Quite clearly, their diaries tell us, they were expecting churches and schools at any rate in Christchurch and Lyttelton. But howdifferent the reality! But now it is we see the type of men they were. There was a disappointment—yes; but they have left it on record that they laughed at their own ambitious expectations and cheered themselves by telling one another that there would be much more honour in building up their colony right from the ground. After seventyeight years, to-day we see how well they built. Grumblers, of course, there were. It would never do to be without them. No good work has ever yet been cartimd through without some poor old dear

being present to tell us all is lost. Grumblers are like the earwigs in our gardens, they are always with us. Those early pilgrims -when they found themselves in difficulties, did what all wise people do to-day—they determined to make the besti of it. HEALTH WEEK SEVENTY-EIGHT YEARS AGO. “What, then, did they do on landing? I believe without knowing it they settled upon a health week. For the way to keep well is not to talk about it, but to live a healthy, vigorous life. Upon landing, Mr Fitz Gerald and Dr Barker went at once to Mr Godley, who had been made Resident Magistrate, and gave him the list of passengers, and then, with two or three others, they climbed Mount Pleasant by what they described as a winding path, and got a view of the mighty plains. Guide to health No. 1. But it wasn’t in church time on a Sunday that they were doing their climbing. They returned to hear a hue and cry. Unexpected officials have turned up from somewhere and custom duties are being threatened upon nearly everything the colonists have brought. The situation is tragic. It is only saved by a deputation to Sir George Grey. Had they not brought their household gods they would have been furnitureless for many a day. To pay duty upon them was to approach the ridiculous. Great care had been taken with the food supply, another item of health was wholesome food and sufficient of it. Those early colonists didn’t bother about—what is it?—vitamins—and they were the better for it. They paid 7d for a 21b loaf, 4d for a quart of milk, and 5d for a pound of meat and did not bother about their weight. They knew nothing in those days of reducing. The association in England had been careful to send enough provision to last the colonists their first two months in New Zealand. These provisions were sold by auction on the arrival of the ships, and, to avoid any chance of profiteering, the association had laid it down that all the goods were to be sold in small quantities. This precaution tells of the thoroughness of the arrangements. It turned out not to be necessary as seven other vessels had come from other parts of New Zealand bringing the necessities of life. In accordance with instructions from the association a week’s rations were served out to each immigrant. “The day of landing was a beautfiul one and the weather continued to be ideal. The colonists lived in the open without any slogan telling them to live in the open. One of them described their life as a healthy vigorous hardy childhood. They didn’t talk of germs, thay had so much else to think about. They didn’t catch cold because they simply never dreamt of catching cold. The men found a new use for moustaches—those without them quickly began to cultivate the upper lip. A moustache was a great protection against sunburnt lips.

THE PILGRIMS' WILL TO WORK. “ That first day saw the beginning of many a home in iron stores, turf cabins and blanket tents. For the first few days some returned to sleep in the ships at night. The energy with which all started to work my be gauged from these two facts: There were no houses to be hired. So one family anxious to have a roof of their very own, started at once to build and completed their -dwelling in six days. I have about twenty-three men I want to build a house for at College House. There is no room for them in the main building. I wish I could do it as quickly. Secondly: Those early pilgrims loved their tents. Some of them began at once to sleep in a very airy one in what they called Charlotte Jane Square, a place on which a prison was afterwards built. There came a night when the nor’-w’est wind With one fell swoop it came. Just as trees and chimneys since have fled from it, so that night the tent was carried away. But still those men slept on. The wind howled all round but nothing disturbed them. It wasn’t until the heat of the sun woke them that, they knew anything had happened at all. “ If the keeping of Anniversary Day in 1928,” concluded Canon Wilford, “is going to make the people of Christchurch work as hard as that, we shall have kept it to good purpose. We may not all think the day sufficiently important to do what a father once did and call a daughter after it, giving her the name of Annie Versary Smith, but it will be a bad day for Christchurch when Anniversary Day no longer reminds us of some of the best men that the Old Country ever sent forth.”