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The fact that Krull is neither a scientist nor naturalist already reveals a clear change in
perspective from that laid out by Forster and Dieffenbach. On a practical level, this meant that
Krull had very different aims and priorities in mind when composing his letters, which saw him in
the dual role of a colonist and a merchant rather than the detached scientific observer. Apart from
recording the odd piece of information on natural history, he was more interested in describing
and outlining the respective needs of the newly arrived immigrant, such as finding
accommodation, employment and eventually starting a family, and the socio-economic conditions
which would determine how successful a merchant business could be in New Zealand, as well as
general working conditions and opportunities for the skilled labourer and middle-class immigrant.
The bulk of the information not garnered from experience would have therefore been available to
him in various immigration-related sources, newspapers, and conversations with colonists and
fellow immigrants, rather than standard scientific monographs, although he may very well have
read Forster’s account. On a literary level, this means also that the format of these letters neither
caters to philosophical reflection nor criticism of the kind observed in the work of early German
explorers. And while there is greater opportunity to do so in the revised article, it is likewise kept
to a minimum, as again the author’s primary role here is to advise immigrants on the conditions,
both positive and negative, awaiting them in New Zealand.
When Krull arrives in New Zealand it is first and foremost as an immigrant full of
enthusiasm and hope for the future. His voyage by sea, somewhat reminiscent of Forster nearly a
hundred years earlier, offers the reader the first glimpses of his impressions of the foreign country
which was to become his new home. As the Equator approaches the Cook Strait of New Zealand
on 15 January 1859, the magnificent sight of Mt Taranaki and the North Island present
themselves to the new immigrants. The next morning the calmness of the seas gives Krull the
opportunity to observe his new home further:
Es war ein herrlicher Tag, der erste wirklich warme und schöne, seit wir das Cap verlassen. Wir
konnten aus dieser Entfernung das schöne Land so recht überblicken: ein Gebirge thürmte sich in
7 bis 8 allmälig immer höher ansteigenden Stufen vor uns auf und bot mit seinem in der Sonne
blendend erglänzenden Schnee einen herrlichen Anblick dar. (27.1.1859, 104)
After alternating days of no wind and strong wind, albeit in the wrong direction, as well as days
of slow progress and thick fog, they are finally greeted by favourable wind only for it to change
direction yet again. It is not until seven days later that this ship of immigrants and visitors is able
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