DEATH OF DR. VANDERKEMP.

37

monstrations of the Divine blessing on their labours. "The progress also of their scholars in learning to read and write, was astonishing to them, and above all, their facility in acquiring religious knowledge, knowing, as they did full well, the peculiar apathy, stupidity, and aversion to any exertion, mental or corporeal, which characterises the natives." Dr. Vanderkemp having, with true Christian benevolence, pleaded the cause of the oppressed,-for there were oppressions, national and individual, whieh we must leave till that day when every one will receive according to the deeds done in the body;-the great struggle commenced which terminated, through the persevering exertions of the Rev. Dr. Philip, on July 17th, 1828, in the effectual emancipation of the Hottentots. All the contentions, heart-burnings, broken heads, and broken hearts which marked the long struggle, will appear hereafter in the page of history, like the conquest of Mexico by Cortez, the colonization of America, or the savagism of our forefathers in their border wars, humbling, but instructive mementos to succeeding generations. Dr. V.'s interference in the cause of suffering humanity, or rather his disclosure of some of the wrongs of the Hottentots, led to his being summoned, with Mr. Read, to Cape Town, to appear before an extraordinary commission appointed by Lord Caledon. This was followed by most important results; for the Doctor having been fully borne out in his facts, his Excellency directed that commissioners should personally visit the several districts where enormities had been perpetrated, and that the guilty should be punished. This was among the last public services which Dr. Vanderkemp rendered to that people, who had now been the object of his solicitude for eleven years. He had long contemplated a mission to Madagascar, and though now far advanced in years, his soul burned with youthful ardour to enter on that perilous undertaking. It was in his heart, but the Great Head of the church had otherwise ordained it; for after a few days' illness, he closed his eyes on this world, Dec. 15th, 1811, after breathing out the Christian assurance, "All is well."

Thus ended the memorable life of Dr. Vanderkemp. Avoiding the extravagancies of momentary feeling, which declares that "His equal is not to be found upon earth, and that he was little behind the chiefest apostles of our Lord," we nevertheless cheerfully concede to him this meed of praise. Few men would have encountered the storms which he braved, and, perhaps fewer still have been more

38

VANDERKEMP'S CHARACTER.

conspiculously distinguished by success in their efforts to emancipate the Hottentots from temporal and spiritual thraldom. Divine Providence, from time to time, in a remarkable manner, raises up men adapted to certain situations, apart from which, they would have been like the flower which "wastes its sweetness in the desert air." Such were Luther, Wickliffe, Knox, and a host of others; and though those who well knew and loved Vanderkemp, would charge us with blind partiality, if we placed him on an equality with those distinguished reformers; yet no less can be said of his labours, than that they were those of an extraordinary man: and considering the time and state of affairs in the colony in which he lived, and the native character of the tribes among whom he laboured, the grace of God made him the honoured instrument of doing wonders. Dr. Vanderkemp was the friend and advocate of civil liberty. The condition of the slaves pressed heavily upon his mind, and the sufferings of those who had embraced the Gospel, made large demands on his almost unbounded generosity; so that he expended nearly 1000l. of his personal property in unbinding the heavy burdens, and setting the captives free. It is probably that his extreme sympathy with this enslaved people induced him, with more feeling than judgment, to choose a wife from amongst them. Being a most unsuitable companion for such a person, her subsequent conduct cast a gloom over the remnant of his days of suffering and toil; and as I have heard it remarked by one who knew him well, undoubtedly accelerated his death. It was from his lips that the Kafirs (a nation of atheists) first heard the Gospel, the theme of Divine love; and if we cast our eyes over the history of missions, and the successes of the "Martyr of Erromanga," we see at once the value of a pioneer of almost any description, and more especially of such a pioneer as Dr. Vanderkemp. He was the first public defender of the rights of the Hottentot. Although his expansive sympathy betrays not unfrequently in his writings what may be deemed instability of purpose, it is obviously attributable to a benevolent desire to grasp the whole of the race, while his eyes, wandering around the tempestuous horizon, sought a haven in which to shelter them from the storm. He counted not his own life dear to himself; for when advised for his own safety to leave the Hottentots for a season, his reply was, "If I knew that I should save my own life by leaving them, I should not fear to offer that life for the least child amongst them." In this, though

VANDERKEMP'S CHARACTER.

39

wanting in prudence, he displayed a magnanimity of soul which, in other circumstances, would have called forth the applause of a nation.

But it may be said that this is a partial view of the character of this great man; and it is only just to admit that the Doctor was eccentric; and many, very many of his personal hardships were self-inflicted. Though his mission to the Kafirs was a bold, and, in Africa, an unprecedented undertaking, he was always within the reach of civilized men; and except when Gaika detained him a short time in the country, he had always an asylum open to receive him. His trials in this respect were very different from those of the founders of the Namaqua and Griqua Missions, who were hundreds of miles beyond the abodes of civilized society, and the protecting arm of civi! power. In a colonial village, where there were many who admired, and were ready to serve him, the Doctor would go out to the water, washing his own linen; and frequently at home and abroad, he would dispense with hat, shirt, and shoes, while the patron and advocate of civilization. These were anomalies and shades of character, which of course added nothing to his usefulness, while his ultra notions on the subject of predestination left a leaven in some of the African churches, which it required the labour of many years to remove. It is also but justice to add, that Dr. Vanderkemp was not without sympathy; there were many noble-minded colonists who took a deep interest in his sufferings and labours; who felt strong compassion for the spiritual destitution of the Hottentot race, and the slave population; and who were liberal in supporting the cause. Stimulated by the example of Vanderkemp and Kicherer, they laboured to promote the kingdom of Christ among the aborigines. These were noble minds who wept over the country's wrongs; and it is scarcely possible to conceive the Doctor's feelings when on his journey to Graaff Reinet, beyond the Gamka River, he came to the house of Mr. de Beer, who, on hearing the object of the party, received them with uncommon joy;" and calling his family and slaves together, fell upon his knees, and uttered this remarkable prayer::-" O Lord, thou hast afflicted me with inexpressible grief in taking my child from me, whom I buried this day; but now thou rejoicest my soul with joy greater than all my grief, in showing me that thou hast heard my prayers for the conversion of the Kafirs, and giving me to see this moment the fulfilment of thy promises." He then

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40

FIRST MISSION TO AFRICA.

addressed himself to them, and sang several psalms and hymns, relative to the calling of the heathen.

Dr. Vanderkemp's death was a stroke severely felt; but He who had called him from his labours, continued to bless the seed sown, under the fostering care of Mr. Read and others. Bethelsdorp, under many difficulties and disadvantages, grew and multiplied. New churches were planted at Pacaltsdorp, Theopolis, and other places, through the instrumentality of the Rev. J. Campbell, in his first visit to Africa, who on that occasion was the means of giving a new impulse to the spirit of missions there, as well as among the churches at home.

The Kat River mission was commenced at the suggestion of the Hon., now Sir A. Stockenstrom, and was, so far as the plan went, a measure which will reflect lasting honour on the memory of that enlightened and liberal individual.* To the beautiful and fertile Kafir vales, the principal of the Hottentots from Bethelsdorp, Theopolis, and other places, flocked. This was a seasonable movement, as those stations were no longer, after the emancipation of that people, asylums to those who were active and willing to earn a competence elsewhere. The results of the mission at Philiptown, and its branches, the members of which had been culled from those in the colony, have been such as to prove that the plan was well laid, and carried into efficient operation. The last year's report of Kat River station exhibits 500 members in the church, and 912 children and adults in the schools; while their subscriptions to the support of the mission are liberal,—though, I am aware, far from being equal to the entire expenses, as many of the friends of missions have been led to expect, and which was anticipated at Bethelsdorp many years ago.

The colonial stations, though deprived of the most influential and intelligent of their inhabitants, continue to struggle and prosper. Bethelsdorp still maintains comparative respectability, under the devoted but noiseless labours of Mr. Kitchingman. We have now within the limits of the colony sixteen stations, and about thirty Missionaries. How

The author does not wish it to be understood that he approves of the policy which deprived the Kafirs of that rich and fertile portion of their territories, and gave it to the Hottentots. Bannister, in his "Humane Policy," makes the following very judicious remark on the subject:-"To obtain land for any portion of that oppressed race, is so good an act, that it would be ungracious to look harshly at the mode of doing it, if our character for justice to others were not involved in the particular way chosen."

KAFIR MISSION RESUMED.

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would the venerable Vanderkemp gaze, were he to rise, and behold the harvest which has been gathered in, from the people whose ignorance and degradation called forth all the sympathies and energies of his enlightened mind!

"The troubles of departed years

Bring joys unknown before,
And soul-refreshing are the tears

O'er wounds that bleed no more."*

But to return to Kafir-land, where the veteran sowed in tears, but where Missionaries of different societies now reap in joy. It was not before the year 1816, in the month of July, that a successful effort was made by Mr. Joseph Williams. At that time, with his wife and child, he took up his abode at the Kat River. Short as Dr. Vanderkemp's labours among the Kafirs were, he left a savour of the Gospel behind him, which prepared the way for others, after many long years had rolled by, during which many of the Doctor's acquaintances had been taught, by fearful lessons, not, alas! to admire the nation of whites, but rather to increase their suspicions aud alarms. But Jankanna's (Vanderkemp's) name still diffused a fragrance among the yet untamed and unsubdued Kafirs. Intercourse with the missionary station at Bethelsdorp kept up this delightful feeling; and Messrs. Read and Williams, in their previous reconnoitering journey, were hailed as the sons of Jankanna.

Most auspicious was the commencement of this mission, while the energy and devotedness of Williams, with the party he took with him from Bethelsdorp, were soon likely, under the Divine blessing, to make the wilderness and solitary place rejoice. Temporary houses were raised, ground was cleared for cultivation, a water-course and dam were in preparation, while the Kafirs assembled for daily instruction; and the beautiful vale which had often echoed to the din of savage war, was likely soon to become a peaceful Zion, to which the Kafir tribes would repair to hold their solemn feasts. Little more than two years had run their round, when Williams was numbered with the dead. His beloved partner, (now Mrs. Robson,) a woman of no common fortitude, was his sole attendant in the lonely vale, and saw in her expiring husband the bright prospects they had of permanent success among the Kafirs, and into which she had entered with all her energies of mind and body, blasted for a season. About to be left with two fatherless babes, her * James Montgomery.