S. Turner Smith to Frederick Chesson, 3 January 1887, C147/134

Additional information

Correspondent

Turner-Smith, S.

demographic

missionary

Date (YYYY-MM-DD)

1887-01-03

City

London

region

England

Download original image

https://www.darrenreid.ca/aps_database_files/S.TurnerSmithtoFrederickChesson3January1887C147-134.pdf

Archive

Bodleian Libraries

Call number

MSS. Brit. Emp. S. 18 / C147-134

Transcript:

Church Missionary Society
Salisbury Square
London, EC

Jany 3 1887

F.W. Chesson Esq
Secy Aborigines Protection Socy

Dear Mr Chesson,

Accept my thanks for copy of the Report of the Committee of the Privy Council in Canada on the Indian land question in B. Columbia.

I am glad that you do not need to be … that the humane objects of your society have the very cordial sympathy of both the … and the missionaries of the Ch. Miss. Socy.

When W. Duncan and his Indians shall have given up the impracticable claim to exclusive ownership of the soil, should any question arise between the Indians and the government respecting the amount of land to be reserved, the Bishop of Caledonia and the missionaries may be fully relied upon to lend all their influence to a generous settlement.

It is a grief of mind to us here to refer to W. Duncan in any other terms than of thankful appreciation of the good work he has … doing, and we usually refrain from doing to. But of late years he has undoubtedly been misleading the indians to make wrong and foolish claims which might have led to consequences most fatal to their prosperity. The energetic action of the authorities, though tardy, has we trust averted these consequences.

Believe me
Yours very faithfully
S. Turner Smith
Acting Secy C.M.S.