on buxton's death in 1845, samuel gurney took over as president. finances improved, and from 1847 hodgkin had an assistant as secretary on the payroll for a period, the activist louis alexis chamerovzow. chamerovzow published on the rights of māori in 1848, and worked on charles dickens as opinion-former, with some success (as dickens wrote to george payne rainsford james). he was a perceptive analyst of the difficulties in reconciling the interests of indigenous people and settlers.