Woodville,
New Zealand, .
President Wilford Woodruff and members of the
First Presidency.
My dear brethren,
I take pleasure in writing to you
and reporting the condion and necessities of the
Australasian Mission. The good work is progressing
nicely, and the Elders are reporting satisfactory results.
I am travelling continually, endeavoring to visit all
the Maori districts, thus aiding the brethren laboring
amongst the Natives, and visiting personally as many
branches as possible.
In addition to our Maori districts, we have now ten
European districts in which Elders are especially assigned
to labor in spreading the truth, and the work is being
vigorously pushed amongst the Colonials.
A new European district has been formed in the
North, with the city of Auckland as headquarters, and
Elders J. Johnson and Jedediah Goff are now located
there. The Elders in Tasmania give a very
encouraging report, having recently baptised a few
members, and they are now calling for more help.
In the Australian colonies of Queensland, Victoria
and New South Wales, we have now eight elders at
work, and I anticipate good results from their
earnest efforts. We have also two European districts
on the South Island, one of which I have recently
visited, and the prospects there are very good.
In view of these facts, I have just called the Mission
Clerk, Elder B. Goddard, to make a few months tour
of the colonies, visiting all the Europan districts,
and assisting & encouraging the Elders laboring in
the above mentioned fields.
Adjacent to New Zealand are the Figi, Chatham,
and Raratonga Islands, on all of which are large
numbers of natives, whose language is very similar
to the Maori. The latter two groups are under the
New Zealand government, and I am very anxious
to get the work started there.
If it is possible for you to send a few Elders
who have a knowledge of Maori, I can use them
advantageously, in connetion with Native elders,
in opening up these new fields.
I recently received from you a number of pamphlets,
"Succession" by B. H. Roberts, for which accept our thanks.
These have been distributed amongst the Elders.
Elders Stevenson, Crow, Armstrong and others, who
left San Francisco, May 3rd, arrived safely, and have
been assigned to their fields of labor.
1. I duly received draft for £50.16.4, as per your
letter of April 2nd. I used the one fare on hand, as
originally intended for Elder B. Hamblin, and paid
the return fares of Elders Rasmussen, Douglas & Gibson,
—£84.0.0 = equal to £28.0.0 each
2. I respectfully request you to forward me
two return fares for Elders T. L. Cox and E. Ellertson,
in case the latter has to be released on account of
ill health.
3. Will you also send me as early as possible,
another company of Elders—two for Tasmania
and four for New Zealand. Those for Tasmania
should obtain tickets through to Sydney.
This company is required for European work,
and the Elders should be recommended to equip
themselves with tracts and suitable literature.
If you can send a few experienced Elders
amongst these it would greatly facilitate the
work in the large cities.
4. We have great difficulty in obtaining tracts &c.
for this Mission and it is too expensive to print them
here. Our funds will not permit us to do this at
present, as we have not yet fully settled for printing
the Maori Ready References. We recently obtained
a quantity from Liverpool but they are all
disposed of.
If you can render us any assistance in this matter,
with the next company of Elders, it will be a great
favor. We need a large quantity of tracts, such as
Morgan's No1 and 2. (No 3 is unsuitable here.)
Roberts "Second Coming" and Character of Mormon people,
Rich's "True v. False religion,—Budges 'Only true Gospel,
Nicholsoen's tracts and any others that are suitable
for general circulation on the First principles of the Gospel.
If you have any spare copies of "Resources and attractions
of Utah,"—as circulated at the Midwinter Fair we could
use them to good advantage in all the public libraries
of the Colonies. I trust you will pardon me referring
so urgently to this subject but there is such a demand
for our church literature now, that I deemed it prudent
to submit the matter for your consideration.
I shall be pleased to receive counsel from you
as often as circumstances will permit, and pray
earnestly that God will continue to bless and
prosper Zion.
Your brother in the Gospel,
William Gardner.
Address
c/o J H. Dalton,
Box 236
Auckland,
New Zealand.
Let us do all we
can in the way of furnishing
tracts &c. and otherwise. J. F. S.
[sideways text]
Wm Gardner
Aug. 2 [18]94
[end of sideways text]