New Zealand
Being a Narrative of Travels and Adventures during a Residence in that Country between the Years 1831 and 1837

This 1838 publication is an eye-witness account, by a young British businessman, of New Zealand during the early colonial period.

J. S. Polack (Author)

9781108039871, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 24 November 2011

460 pages, 9 b/w illus. 4 tables
21.6 x 14 x 2.6 cm, 0.58 kg

J. S. Polack (1807–82) lived in New Zealand during 1831–7 and 1842–50. An enterprising businessman and land speculator, he traded in timber and flax, and in 1835 set up the first brewery in the country. He also learned the Maori language, and warned against the destructive effects on Maori society of unorganized European settlement, while arguing for the benefits of systematic colonization. This two-volume work, published in 1838, was the first of two successful books by Polack about his experiences in New Zealand and is still regarded as an important and impartial source about the period immediately preceding the Treaty of Waitangi. Volume 2 focuses on Maori material culture and craftsmanship, traditional beliefs and rituals, and warfare (including lurid reports of cannibalism), as well as the early interactions of Maori and Europeans through trade, missions and whaling.

1. Cannibalism of the New Zealanders
2. European ammunition
3. Native presents
4. Adventures in Tolaga Bay
5. Establishment of the Church Missionary Society
6. Biographical notices of E'Ongi
7. Land purchased by European settlers
8. Religion and devout feelings of the New Zealanders
9. Prohibition of tápu
10. Decrease of the flax trade
11. On colonization
Errata.

Subject Areas: Australasian & Pacific history [HBJM]