| 108 was accidentally shot by the French, whose funeral I attended. . . .
"We hired a house for eight dollars per month and commenced preaching in it, and soon baptized from fifteen to twenty whites, Americans and English. In the meantime we began to acquire the Tahitian language, and to preach to the natives, hundreds of whom professed to believe our preaching, but would not obey. Their reason was that they dare not, because they expected assistance from the English against the French, and they feared the missionary influence with the English government would be exerted against them if they embraced our principles. Affairs being thus in Tahiti, Bro. Grouard and I thought best to visit other islands. Accordingly we ordained Bro. Lincoln to preside over the branch in Tahiti, and took our departure, Bro. Grouard east and I west. I visited Morea, Huhena, Rieatiea, Bobobolo, and Taha; from thence to the island of Mote, one of the Harvey group.
"From thence to the island of Mangla, where I landed. This island contains about four thousand inhabitants, whose language is a little different from the Tahitian. No missionary was on this island, so I offered to tarry and teach them; but they informed me that they had received letters from Mr. Pratt and Mr. Baff, English missionaries, forbidding them to receive any missionaries or teachers unless they brought letters from them; that all who had not these letters were Popa havare (lying Catholics), consequently they had passed a law that no white man should live among them. From here I went to the island of Ruruto, where they told me the same story. So I found the missionaries had written to all the islands in the group to prevent our landing. The Lord reward them according to their works.
"I then returned to Tahiti, where I received letters from Bro. Grouard. He had landed on the island of Anana, one of the chain group. This group consists of thirty or forty low coral islands, with no vegetables but cocoanuts [coconuts]; but they have plenty of fish and hogs. The population of Anana is about four thousand. Bro. Grouard had baptized twenty of the principal men and many were investigating
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