Adelaide.

A teak-built craft of 640 tons, the Adelaide was the largest of the first five ships, and she brought out 176 people, including some of the higher office-bearers of the Company. Having been specially built for taking troops out to India, the Adelaide was a suitable vessel for the charter, and she seems to have been regarded as something in the nature of the flagship of the first five, but in spite of this, and the further fact that she carried a number of the big-wigs, the voyage was anything but a happy one. Before the Cape was reached things had reached such a pass that the master, Captain William Campbell, was persuaded by Dr. Evans to put into Capetown, where a stay of eleven days was made, no doubt the idea being to allow the passengers to compose their ruffled feathers. Exactly what page 20 all the trouble was about is not clear, but reading between the lines, one gathers that a gentleman of means, who had taken advantage of the cheap fares to travel in the steerage, treated his fellow passengers in a too naughty and dictatorial manner, which was naturally resented. There was also trouble in the saloon, but what it was all about does not worry us much to-day.

Leaving London on September 18th, the same date as the Aurora, the Adelaide did not get away from Falmouth roadstead until the 30th Teneriffe was reached on October 14th, and a couple of days were spent at Santa Cruz, the passengers being allowed a run ashore. The Equator was crossed on November 14th, and the trade winds took the vessel to within 600 miles of the coast of Brazil. On December 20th Capetown was reached, and there the ship remained until New Year's Day, when she resumed her voyage. New Zealand was sighted on March 1st, and three days later the ship called at Port Hardy for orders, which were, of course, to go on to Port Nicholson. On March 7th, 1840, in a storm of thunder, lightning, and rain, the Adelaide dropped anchor in Port Nicholson, 171 days out from London.

When the passengers went ashore at Petone they found the low-lying lands flooded to a depth of two or three feet, and the unfortunate settlers taking refuge on the higher land wherever they could find any. Dr. Evans and some of the other officials, after having had a look round the harbour, voted emphatically against Petone as the site for the city and he insisted on a move over to the southern shore. It seems that before this Wakefield had pitched on Thorndon as a good site, but apparently when the surveyors arrived they were either not informed of his views or there was some misunderstanding, for they set to work on the Petone site.

Dr. Evans was so insistent, that the Adelaide, which had been anchored off Petone, was removed to Thorndon Bay, and all her passengers landed in the ship's boats on a beach just in front of where the Hotel Cecil now stands. Thorndon, therefore, has the honour of being the "Plymouth Rock" of the Wellington settlement. At that spot was afterwards built the Commercial Wharf, and there landed at least two Governors—Hobson and Fitzroy.

As the land where the Adelaide's people came ashore had not been surveyed, they were given allotments temporarily, and on these they were soon busy putting up such dwellings as circumstances permitted. There was then a native pa at Pipitea Point, the memory of which is perpetuated in Pipitea Street, and these natives were very useful in helping the newcomers with their temporary whares and shanties. While these primitive buildings were being run up many of the passengers slept aboard the Adelaide for several weeks, rowing to their work every morning and back again at night.

Having reached the site of the modern Wellington, it is a convenient time to explain that originally the name of the city the New Zealand Company planned for Port Nicholson was "Britannia," which in August, 1840, was approved by Governor Hobson. Within a few months, however, it was changed to Wellington, and the "New Zealand Gazette and Britannia Spectator," in explaining the change, said that the directors of the Company had always contemplated calling the city after "the illustrious warrior of modern times, an intention that was entertained in gratitude for his having given life to the great principle of colonisation."

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