had sat in the Provincial Council, been Provincial Treasurer, a member of the House of Representatives and a Cabinet Minister. Probably there was no man then living better qualified to tell the story of Canterbury. He told it to me, not in connected narrative, but in fragments spread over many a fireside chat, and I was able to supplement it with other fragments obtained at other hospitable hearths.
I have endeavoured, in the chapters which follow, to weave the fragments into a connected story; to do so I have had to make a careful examination of existing records, and have been led much further afield than I originally contemplated. I found, for instance, that the story of the foundation of the city was too intimately associated with that of the province to be kept separate. Similarly I found that the story of the Church of England, its Bishop, its College and its Cathedral, was interwoven with those of the city, especially in the early days. I have been tempted, here and there, to stray out of bounds and write of the West Coast Gold Fields, the find of Moa bones at Glenmark and at Waimate, the work of the Acclimatisation Society and other topics, but on the other hand I have found it unfortunately necessary to omit much good material, which does not touch on the main thread of the story. I would like to have referred to some of the philanthropic and helpful social organisations that have been established in Christchurch, to the work accomplished by the Presbyterian and Nonconformist Churches, and to some of the men who took an active part in social improvement, but I have found it impossible, in a single volume, to afford space for the purpose.
It is difficult to adequately acknowledge the general and cordial assistance I have received, not only from old settlers, but also from many persons connected with the various institutions referred to in the narrative. I wish especially to tender my thanks to Mr. Johannes C.
