The pilgrims who set sail in September, 1850, in ships of 700 to 800 tons needed stout hearts. They were to make their home in a distant country, of which little was known, and the horror of the Wairau massacre and similar tragedies must have been fresh in their minds. Undismayed by the perils and hardships that beset their path, they set out in high hope to subdue the wilderness and to realise their dream, taught by the successes and warned by the failure of earlier pioneers in other lands. Their destiny was in their own hands; they were still to remain under the old flag, but were to have self-government, and with it the priceless boons of greater individual freedom and wider opportunity than were possible in the overcrowded countries of Europe.
Apart altogether from its religious aspect, the central idea of the new settlement naturally attracted courageous, self-reliant, and thoughtful men. Thence it is, that, although Christchurch is no longer exclusively a Church of England city, its people of all denominations are proud of its history, and still do honour to those sturdy pilgrims who made its first chapters and did much to mould its later ones.
