I would be interested in hearing the spread of opinions relating to the differences in understandings between these three words. For example, was a 'colonist' an immigrant who arrived early on, say before 1860? Or did 'he' have to have had means to buy land, for example? And could a woman be classed as a 'colonist' if she sought to operate on her own account? Was a 'settler' simply an immigrant who would not have owned land, but maybe have been an artisan, for example? And again, to what point in time? 1860, for example? So, were 'immigrants' those of all classes/occupations who arrived later, say after 1860, or was that not the case until the great rush in the Vogel era, for example? Was there an established social hierarchy in the use of these words? I suspect from reading Papers Past, there was, with 'colonist' at the top of the tree. Thanks Joseph