Nephew of
Boys. After graduating from Cambridge University in 1845, Robert John Staines taught in
England, Ireland, and France. In March 1848, the Hudson's Bay Company appointed him
both schoolmaster and chaplain for the
Columbia District after he took orders. Staines arrived in
Victoria in March 1849, began work, and acquired two parcels of land. In 1850, he opposed
the nomination of
Douglas to succeed
Blanshard as governor. In 1853, he signed a petition to the House of Commons calling for an
independent governor. Aware of criticism of Staines's duties as schoolmaster,
Douglas gave him notice in February 1854 that his services would no longer be required. Staines
quickly became the spokesperson of another group of colonists dissatisfied with the
appointment of
Douglas's brother-in-law,
David Cameron, as acting chief justice. Dispatched to England with petitions, Staines drowned when
his ship sank off
Cape Flattery.