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The Pamphlet Collection of Sir Robert Stout: Volume 68

§ 3. The Press in New Zealand

§ 3. The Press in New Zealand.

1835. Jan. 3. On this day we got the Press and heavy boxes of type securely landed; the lighter packages, including Bookbinders' standing-and cutting-presses, and tools, having previously been taken on shore. It was a very difficult matter page 6 to land the printing-press safely, from the bulk and weight of the iron "staple" (it being a large Stanhope Press), and the vessel out at anchor in the harbour, with no wharf nor good landing, place, merely the natural sandy beach open to the ocean; the passenger-boats of the Mission Station being far too light, and the Maori canoes too small and crank; at last we managed it, by lashing two canoes together and so making a deck or platform on them, and working early in the morning before the sea-breeze began. The boxes of type would have been opened on board, but as the little vessel, owing to her novelty, was continually crowded by Maoris, (all of whom were very wild and rough, and some of them not very friendly,) it was thought the parcels of type might be seized for making musket-balls, then in very great demand. It was a matter of very great rejoicing to us when all our precious stores were safely on shore and without loss.

Speaking practically, however, our rejoicing was of short duration; for on unpacking the goods and stores I found many necessary articles to be absolutely wanting! For the information of Printers I will just set down a few of them; though I almost fear my relation will scarcely be believed. There was no wooden furniture of any kind, nor quoins, (cast-metal furniture, so common now, not being then in use,) no galleys, no cases, me leads of any size, no brass rule, no composing-sticks, (save a private one of my own that I had bought two years before in London, a most fortunate circumstance!) no inking-table, no potash, no lye-brushes, no mallet and shooter, no roller-irons and stock, though there was a massy cast-iron roller mould, and (as I have already intimated) no imposing-stone nor page-cord; and, worst of all, actually no printing paper!! Moreover, in those days, as things then were, none of these missing articles could be obtained from England in a less time than eighteen months! while they might possibly be got from Sydney in six or eight months.—

Such was the state of things at the setting-up of the Press in New Zealand! At first, and for some considerable time, we hazarded the hope that the deficient printing stores, especially the large bales of paper, might have been left in the Agent's warehouses at Sydney, where the Press and types and Binding tools had been long stored; but time revealed that such was not the case. Fortunately I found a handy Joiner in the Bay, who page 7 soon made me two or three pairs of type-cases for the printing office after a plan of my own. For as the Maori language contained only 13 letters (half the number in the English alphabet), I contrived my cases so, as to have both Roman and Italic characters in the one pair of cases; not distributing the remaining 13 letters (consonants) used in the compositing of English, such not being wanted.* My Joiner also made me a few galleys, and a small inking-table, and some furniture and quoins,—these last, however, were wretched things (partly owing to the want of proper and seasoned wood,) and gave me an enormous amount of labour, vexation and trouble!

* I may here observe, in a note, that such an arrangement proved to be a very good one while my compositing was confined to the Maori language only; but when I had any English copy to compose it was altogether the reverse! then I had to pick out the discarded English consonants as required from their lots put up in paper parcels. Fortunately this occurred but rarely; except at the time of the Treaty of Waitangi, (1840,) when I had necessarily much printing work to do for the Government of the Colony; and having no extra cases, was obliged to place the letters required in little lots on tables, and on the floor!—(See Note A, Appendix.)