Erewhon

We should begin by representing the advantages afford- ed to labour in the colony of Queensland, and point out to the Erewhonians that by emigrating thither, they would be able to amass, each and all of them, enormous fortunes—a fact which would be easily provable by a reference to sta- tistics. I have no doubt that a very great number might be thus induced to come back with us in the larger boats, and that we could fill our vessel with emigrants in three or four journeys. Should we be attacked, our course would be even sim- pler, for the Erewhonians have no gunpowder, and would be so surprised with its effects that we should be able to cap- ture as many as we chose; in this case we should feel able to engage them on more advantageous terms, for they would be prisoners of war. But even though we were to meet with no violence, I doubt not that a cargo of seven or eight hun- dred Erewhonians could be induced, when they were once on board the vessel, to sign an agreement which should be mutually advantageous both to us and them. We should then proceed to Queensland, and dispose of our engagement with the Erewhonians to the sugar-grow- ers of that settlement, who are in great want of labour; it is believed that the money thus realised would enable us to declare a handsome dividend, and leave a considerable bal- ance, which might be spent in repeating our operations and bringing over other cargoes of Erewhonians, with fresh con- sequent profits. In fact we could go backwards and forwards as long as there was a demand for labour in Queensland, or indeed in any other Christian colony, for the supply of Ere- Free eBooks at Planet eBook.com 301

whonians would be unlimited, and they could be packed closely and fed at a very reasonable cost. It would be my duty and Arowhena’s to see that our emi- grants should be boarded and lodged in the households of religious sugar-growers; these persons would give them the benefit of that instruction whereof they stand so greatly in need. Each day, as soon as they could be spared from their work in the plantations, they would be assembled for praise, and be thoroughly grounded in the Church Catechism, while the whole of every Sabbath should be devoted to sing- ing psalms and church-going. This must be insisted upon, both in order to put a stop to any uneasy feeling which might show itself either in Queensland or in the mother country as to the means where- by the Erewhonians had been obtained, and also because it would give our own shareholders the comfort of reflecting that they were saving souls and filling their own pockets at one and the same moment. By the time the emigrants had got too old for work they would have become thoroughly instructed in religion; they could then be shipped back to Erewhon and carry the good seed with them. I can see no hitch nor difficulty about the matter, and trust that this book will sufficiently advertise the scheme to insure the subscription of the necessary capital; as soon as this is forthcoming I will guarantee that I convert the Ere- whonians not only into good Christians but into a source of considerable profit to the shareholders. I should add that I cannot claim the credit for having originated the above scheme. I had been for months at my 302 Erewhon

wit’s end, forming plan after plan for the evangelisation of Erewhon, when by one of those special interpositions which should be a sufficient answer to the sceptic, and make even the most confirmed rationalist irrational, my eye was di- rected to the following paragraph in the Times newspaper, of one of the first days in January 1872:- ‘POLYNESIANS IN QUEENSLAND.—The Marquis of Normanby, the new Governor of Queensland, has complet- ed his inspection of the northern districts of the colony. It is stated that at Mackay, one of the best sugar-growing dis- tricts, his Excellency saw a good deal of the Polynesians. In the course of a speech to those who entertained him there, the Marquis said:- ‘I have been told that the means by which Polynesians were obtained were not legitimate, but I have failed to perceive this, in so far at least as Queensland is concerned; and, if one can judge by the countenances and manners of the Polynesians, they experience no regret at their position.’ But his Excellency pointed out the advan- tage of giving them religious instruction. It would tend to set at rest an uneasy feeling which at present existed in the country to know that they were inclined to retain the Poly- nesians, and teach them religion.’ I feel that comment is unnecessary, and will therefore conclude with one word of thanks to the reader who may have had the patience to follow me through my adventures without losing his temper; but with two, for any who may write at once to the Secretary of the Erewhon Evangelisa- tion Company, limited (at the address which shall hereafter be advertised), and request to have his name put down as a Free eBooks at Planet eBook.com 303

shareholder. P.S.—I had just received and corrected the last proof of the foregoing volume, and was walking down the Strand from Temple Bar to Charing Cross, when on passing Exeter Hall I saw a number of devout-looking people crowding into the building with faces full of interested and compla- cent anticipation. I stopped, and saw an announcement that a missionary meeting was to be held forthwith, and that the native missionary, the Rev. William Habakkuk, from— (the colony from which I had started on my adventures), would be introduced, and make a short address. After some lit- tle difficulty I obtained admission, and heard two or three speeches, which were prefatory to the introduction of Mr. Habakkuk. One of these struck me as perhaps the most pre- sumptuous that I had ever heard. The speaker said that the races of whom Mr. Habakkuk was a specimen, were in all probability the lost ten tribes of Israel. I dared not contra- dict him then, but I felt angry and injured at hearing the speaker jump to so preposterous a conclusion upon such in- sufficient grounds. The discovery of the ten tribes was mine, and mine only. I was still in the very height of indignation, when there was a murmur of expectation in the hall, and Mr. Habakkuk was brought forward. The reader may judge of my surprise at finding that he was none other than my old friend Chowbok! My jaw dropped, and my eyes almost started out of my head with astonishment. The poor fellow was dreadfully frightened, and the storm of applause which greeted his in- troduction seemed only to add to his confusion. I dare not 304 Erewhon

trust myself to report his speech— indeed I could hardly listen to it, for I was nearly choked with trying to suppress my feelings. I am sure that I caught the words ‘Adelaide, the Queen Dowager,’ and I thought that I heard ‘Mary Mag- dalene’ shortly afterwards, but I had then to leave the hall for fear of being turned out. While on the staircase, I heard another burst of prolonged and rapturous applause, so I suppose the audience were satisfied. The feelings that came uppermost in my mind were hardly of a very solemn character, but I thought of my first acquaintance with Chowbok, of the scene in the woodshed, of the innumerable lies he had told me, of his repeated at- tempts upon the brandy, and of many an incident which I have not thought it worth while to dwell upon; and I could not but derive some satisfaction from the hope that my own efforts might have contributed to the change which had been doubtless wrought upon him, and that the rite which I had performed, however unprofessionally, on that wild up- land river-bed, had not been wholly without effect. I trust that what I have written about him in the earlier part of my book may not be libellous, and that it may do him no harm with his employers. He was then unregenerate. I must cer- tainly find him out and have a talk with him; but before I shall have time to do so these pages will be in the hands of the public. At the last moment I see a probability of a complication which causes me much uneasiness. Please subscribe quick- ly. Address to the Mansion-House, care of the Lord Mayor, whom I will instruct to receive names and subscriptions for Free eBooks at Planet eBook.com 305

me until I can organise a committee. 306 Erewhon

Footnotes {1} The last part of Chapter XXIII. {2} See Handel’s compositions for the harpsichord, pub- lished by Litolf, p. 78. {3} The myth above alluded to exists in Erewhon with changed names, and considerable modifications. I have taken the liberty of referring to the story as familiar to our- selves. {4} What a SAFE word ‘relation’ is; how little it predicates! yet it has overgrown ‘kinsman.’ {5} The root alluded to is not the potato of our own gar- dens, but a plant so near akin to it that I have ventured to translate it thus. Apropos of its intelligence, had the writer known Butler he would probably have said - “He knows what’s what, and that’s as high, As metaphysic wit can fly.’ {6} Since my return to England, I have been told that those who are conversant about machines use many terms concerning them which show that their vitality is here recognised, and that a collection of expressions in use among those who attend on steam engines would be no less startling than instructive. I am also informed, that almost all machines have their own tricks and idiosyncrasies; that Free eBooks at Planet eBook.com 307

they know their drivers and keepers; and that they will play pranks upon a stranger. It is my intention, on a future oc- casion, to bring together examples both of the expressions in common use among mechanicians, and of any extraor- dinary exhibitions of mechanical sagacity and eccentricity that I can meet with—not as believing in the Erewhonian Professor’s theory, but from the interest of the subject. 308 Erewhon