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Kōrero: Indians

Letters about a homeless Indian

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Letters about a homeless Indian

When John Cracroft Wilson settled in Canterbury, he brought Indian servants with him. This correspondence, published in the Lyttelton Times in 1860, concerns one, named Goordeen, who became homeless after leaving Wilson’s employ. This letter, written anonymously by ‘A lover of justice’, deplores Wilson’s lack of responsibility in allowing the situation to have arisen. The patronising and superior tone of his letter also reveals the racism prevalent among European settlers at this time.

Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi

Christchurch City Libraries

Reference: Lyttelton Times, 26 May 1860, p. 3.

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Me pēnei te tohu i te whārang

Nancy Swarbrick, Indians – Early immigration, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/mi/document/1823/letters-about-a-homeless-indian (accessed 4 June 2026).

He kōrero nā Nancy Swarbrick, i tāngia i te 4 March 2009, updated 1 July 2024.