Well, to be brief, my own father, Simon Young (I cannot begin to tell you how good he was), feeling that the children of the two families that first returned needed someone to look after their educational and spiritual affairs, determined that he would make the effort to return also and do what he could for them. His own educational advantages had been very limited, but he had made the very best use he could of them, and had taught the children, while on Norfolk Island, the art, at least, of reading, writing, and the four principal rules in arithmetic. So, in December, 1863, our family and a few others besides left Norfolk Island to come back here, arriving in the early part of February, 1864.
We left a good school and teacher behind, and I have never ceased to regret that it was never my privilege to have gone through some regular course of study, to better enable me to accomplish what has since been my life work, for I was only ten when my return here was made.
As soon as possible father took up the work of teaching the few children and young people as best he was able, and, at about fourteen years of age, I began to help him by putting the youngest through the alphabet and first reading lessons. I have had no educational privileges, and only do the best I can, with what success will be known in the great hereafter.
In February, 1893, Miss Hattie Andre, a young lady just graduated from a college in Michigan, arrived here to take charge of the school. My loved and honored father, sixty-nine years of age, then retired from the work, leaving it in the hands of Miss Andre and myself. She has a membership of about thirty-four of the young people, and I teach twenty-one of the youngest children, from the age of seven to fourteen, two of mine being Dano-Spanish boys from Mangareva, one of the Gambier Islands. Their sister attends Miss Andre’s school.
You inquire about our religious belief. When John Adams took up the work of trying to rear in righteousness the rising young community, his sole aids to education were a Bible and Book of Common Prayer, saved from the Bounty. With these extremely limited means he taught, quite successfully, the young folks to read, and, instituting some sort of religious services, he very naturally had the liturgy of the Church of England to pattern after.
This is what we had followed until October, 1886, when we, as a body, and after ten years’ searching “whether those things were so,” and battling against most unfounded and unreasonable prejudices, joined ourselves to that church known as the Seventh-day Adventists—seventh day because we believe in and preach the letter of the fourth commandment of the decalogue, and Adventists because we believe in the soon coming of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ in the clouds of heaven to take his true followers to himself.
In our view of the case this is the explanation of so much that the world at large is at present undergoing, and which seems so mysterious to those who do not make the prophecies of God’s word their study.
You very rightfully judged that we are kept pretty well posted by means of newspapers and friends, who now and then touch in here on their way to different ports, in regard to what the world is doing, but we have no regular means of correspondence. Our friends abroad take advantage of the occasional trips of our little missionary ship to send us letters and anything else, as she always comes direct to us after leaving California. She arrived on the 17th ult., and proposes to make a quick return to America (if she is not sold, as has been arranged), where she will be about the end of the present year.
Several of our people have made visits to some of the neighboring islands and some have gone to England and back, but I do not think the words “dissatisfied with our lot” can be properly applied to anyone here. In regard to myself personally, I am so in love with the free, natural life I enjoy here that I would not willingly exchange it for any other, much as I would enjoy a visit to your shores and to see in reality the life of the world of which I have read so largely—life in all its phases, from the high-toned “society” life to the very lowest. So that I do not feel that “surprised” would correctly describe my impressions.
Yes, marriage is—shall I say it?—committed among our people, the different family names numbering seven. Young, McCoy, and Christian are of the original families, and those who have come in later on are Buffett, Warren, Butler, and Coffin, the last three being Americans, and only the very last, Coffin, still lives. I think away back in the long past there were some curious “love stories” which would prove quite interesting reading, and within my own knowledge there are several that would make a good foundation for very entertaining stories should someone be found to weave them.