Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 23.djvu/59



OREGON MISSION PRESS 43

he shall this winter prepare some others, so that they will be readv for me to print when I arrive. I have accordingly put up our old fount of Pica and Long Primer English, and also the new fount of English, received within a year or two. The. two former are nearly worn out ; but the latter is almost new. but a small fount, being- all contained in one case. This latter we can dispense with, with some inconvenience; and the two former are supplied with new founts recentlv received. The Press designed to be taken is only a small hand card press, which was a donation to this Mission, and came out with us in the Hellespont. I have had it put in order, by adding a frisket, points, etc. and hope to make it answer the purpose till the wants of those missions shall require greater facilities for the prosecution of that branch of labor. The type, also, will probably do till the language is so far reduced to system that the proper proportions can be sent for of all the letters. This will be done in the course of year or two."

From Honolulu, Mr. Levi Chamberlain, the secular agent of the Hawaiian Mission, writes to the Rev. R. Anderson on Feb- ruary 11, 1839:

"The health of Mrs. Hall has been feeble for a long time. A voyage to the region of Columbia River has been recommended as a measure of promising benefit. An opportunity now offers of a passage to Vancouver in one of the Hudson Bay Com- pany's vessels, and Mr. Hall has concluded to avail himself of it. He will take passage with his wife in the ship Nereide to sail in about a fortnight. We shall send by him about 50 reams of paper, a small assortment of types and a card press, being the one which was sent to this mission some years ago, and for which we have had no use.

Mr. Hall will make himself useful to the Mission in the Oregon Territory in various ways, and by putting up this press and printing such little works as the means which we are able to furnish will admit. His passage and freight of goods will be $250 payable here."

Rev. Hiram Bingham had greatly interested his church, the Kawaiahao Church of Honolulu, in the matter of converting the Indians of Oregon, and the previous year it had made a small present to assist the missions there.

This year a subscription by the native women of the con- gregation was used to defray the expenses of sending Mr. Hall and the little press to Oregon.