III. Life Beyond New Zealand: Concerning Publication

There was significantly limited access to press at the time of The Boy Colonists' publication. As mentioned at the beginning of this introduction, there is no criticism about Elwell’s single colonial text; even his aforementioned works for the Church of England are difficult to seek out. The publication of such a large body of work all within the same genre further complicates a reception of The Boy Colonists. Despite the fact that Elwell’s holistic literary catalogue covers a range of subjects – from colonial recount to Christian epistles – the lack of any scholarship or publication records about the former suggests a certain level of obscurity throughout his earlier career as a writer.

There is one newspaper excerpt detailing the novel’s publication, printed in The Star newspaper, on June 19th, 1878 in Canterbury in the South Island. Other than this small description and preview of the book, there is no easily-discernible material about The Boy Colonists in New Zealand other than varying editions of the book itself. Within the excerpt the story is described as “simply a brief and plain narrative of what occurred to a settler in the Province of Otago, New Zealand, during the years 1859 to 1867” (publisher’s note, Elwell ii):

While a similar announcement was also printed in England, this newspaper extract has become the only indication of The Boy Colonists being sold or promoted in the Southern Hemisphere.

Considering the links between Britain and New Zealand were quite substantial throughout the nineteenth century (especially with settlers migrating to New Zealand), Elwell’s lack of mention in Antipodean press is confusing. The “availability of British publishers was very significant for New Zealand literature”, as it was the primary outlet through which their works could reach a wider audience (Bones 865)¹. Elwell is an exception to this generalisation. He was neither involved with New Zealand for an ongoing period nor does he appear to be involved in press circulation. He therefore is a difficult author to place within the imperial relationship: since the rest of his works were all England-dedicated and England-published in his later life, he is clearly affiliated more closely with his home country than with New Zealand.