LETTERS

ON

THE NICOBAR ISLANDS,

THEIR NATURAL PRODUCTIONS,

AND

The Manners, Customs, and Superstitions of the

NATIVES;

With an Account of an Attempt made by

THE CHURCH OF THE UNITED BRETHREN,

TO CONVERT THEM TO

CHRISTIANITY.

Addressed by

THE REV. JOHN GOTTFRIED HAENSEL,

(The only surviving Missionary)

TO

THE REV. C. I. LATROBE.

LONDON:

PRINTED FOR THE EDITOR, NO. 10, NEVIL'S COURT, FETTER LANE,
BY W. M^cDOWALL, PEMBERTON ROW.

AND SOLD BY

HATCHARD, 190, PICCADILLY; L. B. SEELEY, 169, FLEET STREET;
JOHN LE FEBVRE, CHAPEL PLACE, NEVIL'S COURT;
BINNS AND HAZARD, CHEAP STREET, BATH;
AND MARTIN KEENE, DUBLIN,

1812.

TO

William Wilberforce, Esq. M.P.

&c. &c. &c.

Dear Sir,

Your obliging inquiries concerning the attempt made by the Church of the United Brethren, to establish a mission in the Nicobar Islands, I have not been able hitherto to answer as fully as I wished, the documents in my possession being few and unconnected, and a reference to Crantz's History of the Brethren, p. 504 and 614, furnishing but a short notice of the commencement of that undertaking. The difficulty attending our correspondence with our Brethren on the Continent, has likewise so much increased, that I cannot expect to be soon supplied with more detailed accounts from our archives; and the continuation of Crantz's History, in which a concise report of the progress of the mission is inserted, is not translated into English. I was glad therefore unexpectedly to meet with an opportunity of conversing with John Gottfried Haensel, a missionary from St. Thomas in the West Indies, who was formerly employed in the Nicobar mission, and resided for seven years in the island of Nancauwery. This worthy veteran has spent eighteen years in the East, and seventeen in the West Indies, and altogether thirty-eight years in the service of the Brethren's missions; yet by God's blessing, after suffering numberless hardships and dangerous illnesses, at the age of sixty-three he remains a most active, cheerful, and zealous labourer in the Lord's vineyard.

In the course of our frequent conversations on various subjects, relating to the occurrences of his past life, he interspersed so many curious and interesting particulars concerning his residence in the Nicobar Islands; that I could not help requesting him to commit them to writing, as they might occur to his recollection. This he very obligingly consented to do; and though, by my particular desire, he did not study to make out a complete history, the labour and formality of which might have suppressed, in a great degree, the liveliness of his manner, but left the arrangement of the subjects to me; yet I am of opinion, that you will read what he has written with pleasure, and esteem these fragments worthy of preservation. Many of your questions will be pretty satisfactorily answered by them, and I have therefore translated them for your perusal. They exhibit a degree of patience and perseverance in the prosecution of missionary labours, in hope against hope, such as has hardly been exceeded in our Greenland and North American missions, with the history of which you are acquainted.

The mission of the United Brethren in the Nicobar Islands, was undertaken in the year 1758. A person of high rank at the court of Denmark, having intimated to the directors of the Brethren's missions, that it would give particular pleasure to the King, if some of their missionaries would settle on the Nicobar Islands, and endeavour to instruct the inhabitants in the principles of the Christian religion; they resolved to comply with his Majesty's wishes.

A commercial establishment had been formed on these islands in 1756, when the name of Frederic's Islands was given to them; but the first attempt miscarried, and almost all the colonists sent thither from Tranquebar, soon died. The Brethren, however, were not discouraged. After some negociation with the Danish Asiatic company, having obtained an edict, granting them necessary privileges to preach the gospel to the heathen, and to maintain their own church-discipline and worship, they agreed to begin the work, and several Brethren offered themselves for this service. The names of the first missionaries were George John Stahlman, Adam Gottlieb Voelcker, and Christopher Butler. They arrived July 2, 1760, at Tranquebar, and were received by the Governor and all the inhabitants, with much cordiality.

As an establishment on the coast of Coromandel, was found indispensably necessary to support the new mission, they bought a piece of ground, about a mile from Tranquebar, built a house, with out-houses and work-shops, and maintained themselves by their several trades. This settlement was called The Brethren's Garden.

A second company followed them in the same year. According to directions given by the Brethren in Europe, they carefully avoided all interference with the worthy Lutheran missionaries residing at Tranquebar, by whose pious exertions many Malabars had been converted to Christianity.

The Danish East India company, not being able to renew their settlement in the Nicobar islands as soon as was expected, offers were made to the Brethren by the English Governor of Bengal, to settle on the Ganges; but they resolved to wait with patience for an opportunity to prosecute their first plan, and obtain the original aim of their mission to the East Indies. This presented itself in 1768, when the Danish government formed a new establishment in the Nicobar islands. Six Brethren were immediately ready to go thither. They settled on Nancauwery.

In 1769, several officers of the company, with a party of soldiers and black servants, arrived from Tranquebar, and brought with them a considerable quantity of merchandize. But they died so fast, that in 1771 only two European soldiers, and four Malabar servants survived. This second failure deterred the company from repeating their attempt, and the project of establishing a factory in the Nicobar islands was abandoned. The four Brethren residing there were charged with the sale of the remaining goods, and experienced no small inconvenience and trouble from this commission.

In 1773, however, a vessel was sent from Tranquebar, which relieved them, by taking back the articles of trade left on hand, and bringing them the provisions they wanted.

As the means of thus supplying the missionaries with the necessaries of life, by uncertain communications with Tranquebar, were too precarious, the Brethren resolved to venture upon annually chartering a vessel for that purpose. Mr. Holford, an English gentleman, residing at Tranquebar, rendered them herein the most essential service. He joined them