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Title: Journal of a residence in Ashantee
Author: Joseph Dupuis
Release date: October 6, 2026 [eBook #79736]
Language: English
Original publication: London: Henry Colburn, 1824
Other information and formats: www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/79736
Credits: Galo Flordelis (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/Wellcome Library)
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOURNAL OF A RESIDENCE IN ASHANTEE ***
[Illustration: Representation of the Court of Select audience Costume,
and the ceremony of swearing fidelity to the British Government.]
JOURNAL
OF A
RESIDENCE IN ASHANTEE.
BY
JOSEPH DUPUIS, ESQ.
LATE
HIS BRITANNIC MAJESTY’S ENVOY AND CONSUL FOR THAT KINGDOM.
COMPRISING
NOTES AND RESEARCHES RELATIVE TO THE GOLD COAST,
AND THE
INTERIOR OF WESTERN AFRICA;
CHIEFLY COLLECTED FROM ARABIC MSS.
AND INFORMATION COMMUNICATED BY THE MOSLEMS OF GUINEA:
TO WHICH IS PREFIXED
AN ACCOUNT OF THE
ORIGIN AND CAUSES OF THE PRESENT WAR.
* * * * *
ILLUSTRATED WITH A MAP AND PLATES.
* * * * *
LONDON:
PRINTED FOR HENRY COLBURN,
NEW BURLINGTON STREET.
1824.
LONDON:
SHACKELL AND ARROWSMITH, JOHNSON’S-COURT, FLEET-STREET.
CONTENTS.
* * * * *
PART I.
Page
Introduction i
CHAPTER I.
JOURNEY TO COOMASSY.
Departure from Cape Coast Castle — Mouree — Dutch Castle of 1
Nassau — Beetles — Ashantee Travellers — Ruins of Fantee
Crooms — Emperou — Defeat of the Fantees at that Place —
Formidable Serpent — Second Party of Ashantee Traders; Terror
of the Females — Moslem from Coomassy — Red and Black Ants —
Description of Doonqua — The Forests — Remains of Mansue —
Provisions Plundered by the Fantees — Courses of Rivers —
Abandou — Crooms or Towns of Fooso, Yancomady, and Akomfody —
Annoyance from Rats — The Youne, a kind of Sloth — Dansansoo —
Mekaren — Passage of the Praa — Prasso — Kikiwhary — Enmity of
the Inhabitants towards the Fantees; Seductive Arts of the
Females — Site of Miassa — Defeat of the Assins under Cheboo —
Remains of Saporgah, Tibiassah, Bequama, and Ensamah — Arrival
at Ansah
CHAPTER II.
Public Reception at Ansah — Description of an Assin House — 41
Effects of Negro Warfare — State of Health of the Party —
Akrofroom — Superstition of the Inhabitants with regard to
White Travellers — Beasts of Prey — Elephants — Moisy —
Frontier of Ashantee — The River Bohmen — Sable Naiads —
Chusah — Fomanah — Doompassy — Offering to a Household God —
Datchasoo — Message from the King of Ashantee — Adadwasy —
Amoafo — Visits from the King’s Son and Daughter — Bequa —
Assiminia — Boposso — Agemum — Sarasoo — Process of Clearing
Land for Cultivation in Fantee and Barbary — First Sight of
Coomassy — Public Reception by the King — Speech of the King
of Banna — Ceremonies — Observations on the Journey and
Climate
CHAPTER III.
COMMENCEMENT OF NEGOTIATIONS.
Audience of the King — Objects of the Mission — Delivery of 86
Presents — The Oath of Friendship and Alliance, taken by the
King and Principal Chiefs and Officers — Inspection of the
Presents, and Effect produced — Visits from the Ashantee
Moslems — Violation of Mohammedan Law — State of Religion in
Ashantee — Characters of the Caboceers — Second Audience of
the King — His Ideas of Europe — His Presents — Visits from
Mandingo Moslems — Interruption by Ado Quamina — Dispute and
Reconciliation with Him — Misconduct of the Fantees — Third
Audience — Prospect of an Amicable Conclusion of the
Negotiations — Presents to the Great Men
CHAPTER IV.
NEGOTIATIONS CONTINUED.
Arrival of the Interpreter Abroah — Prejudices of the King 131
against Him — The King’s Sister — Account of her Promotion to
the Rank of Governess of the Empire — Magical Rites and
Superstitions — Barbarity of the King towards his Wives —
Commencement of a History of the King’s Wars for the
Information of the King of England — Suspicions entertained
against the Interpreters — The King’s Notes for Cape Coast
Castle and Annamaboe — Remarks on the Conduct and Statements
of Mr. Bowdich respecting these Notes — The King’s Arguments
and Declarations — Qualities and Prices of Goods supplied from
Cape Coast — Human Sacrifices — Attempt of the Caboceers to
Sound the British Agent — Conference on the Sketch of a Treaty
— Message to the King from Cape Coast Castle — Disputes
respecting a Penalty alleged to have been Represented as
Inserted in the Former Convention — Return of Mr. Hutton to
Cape Coast — Erection of a Fort by the King — Misunderstanding
respecting the King of Juabin (Dwabin) — Continuation of the
Palaver — Little Adai Custom — Human Sacrifices — Audience of
Ceremony — Presents from the King — Instructions from Cape
Coast — Indignation of the King — Exhibition of the Magic
Lanthorn — Appointment of a Day for the Author’s Return, on
his solemn Requisition
CHAPTER V.
RETURN OF THE MISSION.
Presents from the Moslems — Diplomatic Advice — Farewell 151
Visits — Fort George — Proposed Embassy from the King of
Ashantee — Examination of Plate of various European
Manufactures — Merchandize suitable for African Markets —
Visit from the King to the Quarters of the Mission — Jealousy
of the Ashantee Chiefs — Discussions on the Cape Coast Prices
— On the Slave Trade — The King’s Wars — Bardic Recitations —
Exposure and Harsh Treatment of a Captive Prince — Signature
of a Treaty — The King’s Commercial and Financial Plans —
Peculiarities of African Commerce — Audience of Leave — Troops
of Slaves intended for the King of England — Instructions to
the Ashantee Ambassadors — Presents to the King of England —
To the Envoy — Ceremonies of naming the Ashantee Fort —
Extraordinary Condescension of his Majesty on taking Leave —
Mortification of the Moslems at the Author’s rejection of the
Koran — Departure — Heavy Rains — Liberation of a Slave —
Journey to Cape Coast — Disavowal of the Treaty by the
Governor and Council — Preparations for War — Fantee
Conspiracy — Protest — Sir George Collier refuses to convey
the Ambassadors to England — Correspondence — Observations —
Return of the Author to Europe
CHAPTER VI.
OCCURRENCES SUBSEQUENT TO THE AUTHOR’S RETURN.
Correspondence of Messrs. Gordon, Robertson, Dawson and 194
Collins — Inactivity of the Ashantees — Stoppage of Trade —
Conduct of Mr. Smith — Government take Possession of the Forts
— Effective Force there — Commencement of Hostilities — Attack
of Mouree by the British — Observations — Vindication of the
Dutch from the Charge of exciting Hostilities — Appointment of
Sir Charles M‘Carthy as Governor of the British Settlements on
the Western Coast of Africa — His Ideas of the Power of
Ashantee — State of the Gold Coast on his Arrival — Blockade
by the Ashantees — Their Military Tactics — Murder of a
Serjeant — The British Force takes the Field — Defeat and
Death of Sir Charles M‘Carthy — Correspondence — Observations
CHAPTER VII.
HISTORICAL MEMOIRS OF ASHANTEE.
Antiquity and Power of the Monarchy of Ashantee — National 224
Character — War of Dinkira — Reign of Sai Tooto — Massacre at
Acromantee — Sai Apoko — Civil War — Sai Akwasy — Sai Kodjoh —
War of Gaman — Sai Quamina — Embassy from Dahomy — Sai Apoko
II. — Sai Tooto Quamina — War of Ghofan — First Bontoko War —
War of Assin — Murder of the King’s Messengers by the Fantees
— Fantee War — Attack of Annamaboe — Death of Cheboo —
Ratification of the Truce — Exchange of Presents — Prisoners
of War awarded to the Governor, and their Disposal
* * * * *
PART II.
CHAPTER VIII.
ON THE GEOGRAPHY OF WESTERN AFRICA.
WANGARA.
Credibility of Information obtained from the Moslems of Guinea I
— Character of the Religion of Islam — Anecdote of the Khalifa
Omar — Anecdote of Mulai Soliman, Emperor of Morocco —
Vindication of the Character of the Moslems of Ashantee —
Their Correspondence with the Author — Remarks on the Mission
from Cape Coast Castle, in 1817 — Travels of the Moslems —
Authorities, and Explanation of the Map of Wangara — Remarks
on the Geographical Statements published by Mr. Bowdich,
relating to the Courses of the Niger — On the Various
Distances denominated a Day’s Journey — Enumeration of Errors
in Mr. Bowdich’s System of the Geography of Africa —
Geographical Description of Ashantee; its Roads, Paths, Towns,
Rivers, Lakes, &c. — Wangara — Course of the Niger — The
Aswada — The Logos — Great Lake of Ayoh — River of Benin —
Empire of Zogho — Yarraba — Rapid Changes in the Political
Divisions of Africa — Haoussa — Relative Situation of the
Moslems and Heathens — Protection necessary for Travelling in
the Interior — Great Divisions of Wangara — Enkasy — Ghofan —
Yandy — Abomey — Eastern Districts of Wangara — Horses,
Weapons, &c. — Benin — Gaman — Rock Gold and Gold Dust —
Manufactures in Gold — Moslem Population in Ashantee —
Character of the Fantees
CHAPTER IX.
SOUDAN.
Ancient Africa — Derivation of the Name — The Gharb — Soudan — LXXVI
Traditions — Inroads of the Ocean — Names given by the Arabs —
Ancient Population — Ignorance and Indifference of the Pagans
— Great Divisions of Africa, South of the Desert — Ghunja —
Sarem — Dagomba — Ganowa — Bambara — Fillany — Marroa —
Killinga — Haoussa — Yarraba — The Niger — Shary — Ghulby —
Captain Laing’s Observations — Description of Routes Marked on
the Map — Jews of Soudan — Travels of the Ashantees —
Privileges of Moslem Travellers — Current Coin — Weights and
Measures
* * * * *
APPENDIX.
No. I. Appointment of the Author as Consul at Coomassy CXVII
No. II. Treaty made with the King of Ashantee, by Mr. Bowdich, CXIX
in the Name of the Governor and Council
No. III. Treaty made with the King of Ashantee, by the Author CXX
on behalf of his Majesty
GEOGRAPHICAL DOCUMENTS.
No. IV. An Arabic Manuscript and Translation, shewing the CXXIV
route from Salgha in Ghunja, to Youry in Haoussa, &c.
No. V. An Arabic Manuscript and Translation, shewing the route CXXVII
from Coomassy to Salgha
No. VI. An Arabic Manuscript and Translation, shewing the CXXVIII
route between Salgha and Kassina by the river Ghulby
No. VII. An Arabic Manuscript and Translation, descriptive of CXXX
distance, &c.
No. VIII. An Arabic Manuscript descriptive of the journey CXXXI
between Coomassy and the Jolliba, at Sego and Jenny, distance,
&c.
No. IX. An Arabic Manuscript and Translation, descriptive of CXXXIII
the route between Jenny and Bornou
No. X. An Arabic Manuscript and Translation, descriptive of ib.
the journey from Coomassy to Kassina, by the route of Magho
and the Ghulby, written by a native of Haoussa
No. XI. An Arabic Manuscript, describing distance, &c. from a CXXXIV
travelling chart of the Sheriffe Brahim or Ibrahim
LIST OF PLATES.
* * * * *
1. Representation of the Court of Select
Audience Costume, and the Ceremony of
Swearing Fidelity to the British Government to face the Title.
2. South Prospect of the River Praa and the
Forest of Assin 33
3. A Woman and Youth of Banna, and a Marroa Slave 40
4. Moslems of Dagomba and Salagah, in the
Costumes of their Countries 72
5. Priests or Magicians of Ashantee invoking
the National Deities 75
6. The Palace of Ouso Adoom, the King’s Nephew;
the Author’s temporary Residence at Coomassy 83
7. Specimen of Ashantee Sculpture 85
8. A Street in Coomassy leading to the Palace 112
9. The Close of the Adai Customs 142
10. An Ashantee Soldier 193
11. A Caboceer of Ashantee equipped for War 223
12. Military Weapons of the Ashantees 264
13. Map of Wangara and Soudan to face Part II.
Page I
14. A Moslem of Kong, in Military Costume XXXVII
15. A Man and Woman of Gaman LVI
16. A Man and Woman of Banna LXXV
DEDICATION.
* * * * *
TO
THE KING’S MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY,
GEORGE THE FOURTH,
&c. &c. &c.
SIRE,
IN conformity with the permission which I have received, I now
place under the patronage of your Majesty’s august name, a volume
exhibiting the intimate and political feelings of the Sovereign of
Ashantee, demonstrative of a friendly regard, as well towards your Royal
person as to the commercial prosperity of the British Colonies on the
Gold Coast: the contents of which I stood pledged to make known to your
Majesty.
With sentiments of the purest attachment to your Majesty’s service, and
to the honour and interest of the crown,
I remain,
With the profoundest veneration,
SIRE,
Your Majesty’s most faithful Subject,
and dutiful Servant,
JOSEPH DUPUIS.
JOURNAL
OF A
RESIDENCE IN ASHANTEE.
* * * * *
INTRODUCTION.
The British trade with the Gold Coast of Africa was placed by charter,
in the reign of Charles II. under the controul of the Royal African
Company, whose governor-general (the Governor of Cape Coast Castle) and
council (consisting principally of the commandants of the subordinate
forts) had the direction of matters on the African shore, acting, of
late years, under instructions sent from England by a body of men chosen
for that employ, called the African Committee. This committee was
latterly allowed by parliament £30,000 per annum, for the maintenance of
their forts in Africa, the protection of the trade, &c. The system was
highly injurious to the public, for the trade was only nominally free—in
fact it was monopolized by the governor and council themselves, and so
much of the public grant as was actually laid out in the maintenance of
the forts and establishments, served only to keep the public out of the
African market; the application of the remainder it is not difficult to
conjecture.
The forts were held at certain rents secured to the native chiefs by
notes, which will be more particularly mentioned in the following pages.
On the conquest of Fantee by the King of Ashantee, the notes came into
his possession, and the rent was paid to him for a time. He several
times ravaged the Fantee and other maritime countries, and the English
having interfered to protect the natives, he blockaded Cape Coast itself
in 1816, but was induced by presents to withdraw his forces.
In 1817, Mr. John Hope Smith being Governor of Cape Coast Castle, and
president, and the council consisting of the Governors of Accra, Tantum,
Annamaboe, and Dixcove, the African committee on the suggestion of the
council, sent instructions to forward what they termed both an _embassy_
and an _exploratory mission_ to Coomassy the capital of Ashantee. Mr.
Smith furnished a sketch of a treaty to be concluded between the
governor and council, and the King of Ashantee. Mr. James was appointed
to head the mission, from his rank as senior member of council, and
governor of Accra fort, and Messrs. Bowdich, Hutchison, and Tedlie were
selected as his associates; the two former gentlemen writers, the last
named an assistant-surgeon in the company’s employ. At Coomassy Mr.
Bowdich, of his own authority, assumed the chief command, superseded his
superior officer Mr. James, and concluded with the king the convention
which will be found in the appendix, No. 2, where it is inserted from
the original in my possession, which differs materially from that
published by Mr. Bowdich as the treaty in question.
Such was the state of our relations with Ashantee, when, by the advice
of a friend, I forwarded a memorial to the Right Honourable the Lords
Commissioners of the Treasury, tendering my services as resident consul
in that country.
In due time I received letters[1] from the Treasury and Downing-street,
intimating that my offer had been accepted, and ordering me to make the
necessary preparations for proceeding to my destination.
It was explained to me, in England, that my appointment originated in an
earnest desire on the part of His Majesty’s government, to cultivate the
existing harmony with the king of Ashantee, and, upon the basis of a
mutual confidence, to nurture the seeds of an accidental friendship as
an essential preliminary step to the advancement of certain hopeful
expectations connected with the manufacturing and commercial interests
of Great Britain; whereby government, it would seem, had built upon the
probability, through the auspices of the king, not only of enticing all,
or the greater part of Ashantee commerce, to the several British
settlements on the Gold Coast; but also of inducing that monarch to
suffer the traders from the more inland districts to visit the British
markets in common with the Ashantees themselves. In elucidation of these
sentiments, I beg to refer the reader to the following extracts taken
from my instructions.
“It must be almost superfluous to point out to you, that the _most_
important object to attain, is, to establish mutual confidence; since
upon this basis alone can mutual interest be raised. And with this view,
it may be good policy to defer the prosecution of any plans for
_immediate_ profit that may have a tendency to excite the suspicion or
jealousy of the natives. For though the promotion of our commercial
relations with the interior is, undoubtedly, a consideration of the
_first_ importance, yet in a country with which we have had so little
intercourse, _that_ should be but a secondary object. Your particular
care should be to satisfy the minds of the king and his ministers, that
our professions of _friendship_ and _good-will_ are _sincere_, before
you allow it to be understood that the intention is to pursue our
enquiries, and to extend the trade beyond the boundaries of his
dominions.
“The duties of a British consul at Coomassy must necessarily be of a
peculiar nature: He must therefore, for a _time_, be _almost wholly_
guided by _circumstances_ as they _arise_, bearing however always in
mind as the general rule of his conduct, his duty and allegiance to his
sovereign and country, the _promotion_ of the Christian religion, and
the interest of British commerce.
“Your acquaintance with the characters of the Moors or Arabs (obtained
during your long residence in Barbary,) renders any suggestions for your
government, with respect to them, wholly unnecessary; further than it
will be deserving of much consideration, how far it may be politic to
place confidence in any of those who are resident at Coomassy, by making
use of them as interpreters or otherwise, as they _must_, both from
their religious principles and self-interest, be rather disposed to
_prejudice_, than to promote our interests. You may, however, find them
to be less bigoted than self-interested, and by prudent measures may be
able to turn their influence with the government very much to the
advantage of this country.
“One object most desirable to obtain, as it would essentially assist in
the realization of the views of government, might _perhaps_ be a grant
from the king of Ashantee, of a district, about _twenty-five miles from
the coast_, subject to a perpetual annual rent, with full liberty to
clear and cultivate the same, and to erect houses, &c. Such a spot, if
judiciously chosen, might open an extensive field for the employment of
the youth educated at the Company’s schools, and be the beginning of a
system which might eventually extend to the cultivation and civilization
of the whole coast. You will, therefore, keep this object constantly in
view, and seize every favourable opportunity of impressing upon the mind
of the king, the signal advantages that would result to the Ashantees as
a people, and the immense accession of riches and strength which would
be acquired by the sovereign, from the country being brought into such
an improved state. It hardly need be observed to you, that this is a
matter which will require to be treated with the greatest delicacy, and
that no opinion upon it should ever be hazarded by any other person
attached to the mission.
“The enclosed are copies of the treaties entered into with the kings of
Ashantee and _Dwabin_: upon reference to which, you will see that _they_
pledge themselves to continue on terms of friendship with the British.
To permit a British officer constantly to reside at Coomassy; to
encourage trade with Cape Coast Castle, and its dependencies, and to
commit _their_ children to the care of the governor in chief (of the
Company’s establishments) for education at Cape Coast Castle, &c. &c.
“You will be sensible how necessary it is to get geographical
information, and therefore you will carefully treasure up every thing
you can learn, without showing that you attach any importance to the
obtaining of it.” &c.
I was detained in England about nine months, reckoning from the date of
my appointment; for I did not sail for the coast of Africa until the
month of November following. The voyage itself was as favourable as
could have been desired: we left the Downs with the wind at north-east,
which increasing to a gale, conveyed us to Madeira in six days. After a
detention at Funchal short of a week, we finally weighed anchor for Cape
Coast Castle. More than this outline, it is presumed, would not afford
the reader any real interest.
From January, the month I landed on the Gold Coast, to the following
June, my health was unimpaired by the effect of climate, while many sunk
under the mortal influence of tropical diseases; yet I courted rather
than shunned exposure to the air by night as well as day.[2] It was the
opinion of my friends that the seven or eight years of “seasoning” I had
undergone in Mauritania rendered me less susceptible of danger; but in
this sentiment I never could agree with them; and I was the more
prejudiced in favour of my own way of reasoning when the periodical
rains set in, for I was instantly assailed by a fever, which for
severity and duration, was of the most dangerous character. When from
this attack I emerged to a state of convalescence, which I did only
under symptoms of extreme debility after the lapse of nearly two months,
I retired from the castle to a little cottage in the “bush,” where for
six ensuing weeks I gradually improved in health. But the season of
fogs, mists, and exhalations succeeding the first fall, as it does upon
this parallel of latitude, I again relapsed under the malignant
influence of the period. The fever at this time attached itself
locally[3] to the liver, spleen, &c., and although the danger was more
remote than heretofore, yet as I laboured long under it, and grew
gradually worse, I had no hopes of gaining strength sufficient for my
contemplated journey to the interior, unless by a change of air. Thus
prepossessed, during the height of the ulterior rains which usually set
in in the month of September, I embarked on a cruise in his Majesty’s
ship Pheasant, commanded by Captain Kelly, an officer every way
conspicuous for his gentlemanlike conduct.
The rains chased us from the coast to the bight of Benin, whither we
were bound, and for five ensuing weeks the strides of death among the
crew were considerable. My health continued to be seriously bad, and the
cruise becoming irksome, I availed myself of an opportunity that offered
to transship myself to the Snapper gun-brig, (commanded by a late
lamented friend) then on her passage back to Cape Coast. A tornado which
we experienced, and the set of the current together, carried us to our
destination in two or three days, and when I set foot again on shore at
the close of November, I was little improved in health. The rains,
however, had ceased, and in less than a week my disorder wholly
subsided. I recovered, seemingly, to the most perfect state of health,
and my anxiety to take upon myself the duties for which I was sent out
to Africa, was proportionate to the now alarming state of public affairs
in relation to our connexions with Ashantee; for this was the period
when the king, exasperated to the highest pitch of indignation against
the servants of the Company as well as the native population of Cape
Coast, demanded satisfaction of both in sums of money equivalent to
£12,800., the half of which was, as he termed it, the assessed penalty
for a violation of the treaty made by Mr. Bowdich.
During my absence on the cruise, a Mr. Wm. Hutton, a writer in the
service of the company, landed at Cape Coast. I had once before
accidentally seen him at Gravesend, when, it seems, he contemplated
returning to Africa, this I knew at the time I sailed myself, and this
was the limit of my knowledge of this gentleman. When I returned from
the cruize, he shewed me the respect of a common place visit of
congratulation or condolence, (for I had unhappily lost an infant member
of my family during my absence) and this was succeeded by a letter,
which I received the next day, from my friend Mr. Joseph Dawson, (ex-
governor of Cape Coast) a merchant in town of the first class of
respectability, both in property and character. It ran as follows:—
“The gentleman I sent to the Castle is Mr. Hutton, whose name you have
frequently heard me mention. I now introduce him to you as a particular
friend whom I wish well to. He accompanied the expedition of Major
Peddy, and is well-seasoned to the climate. I think he would be useful
to you, if you go to Aquamassy, (Coomassy), in case of sickness, for he
knows the nature of business here, and can act under your direction. He
has begged of me to see you and offer his services voluntarily to go up
with you; so I may recommend him to you as a young man who has talent,
and for his integrity I will answer,” &c.
Pleased with a voluntary tender of service for such duty, as it was a
solitary instance of the kind, and gratified with the idea of obliging a
friend, I accepted of the offer, although I was already provided with a
vice-consul,[4] a youth inexperienced indeed, but whose qualifications
of the heart were of the first distinction.
Mr. Hutton being more competent to take an active part, I employed him
on many occasions, and indeed I may not omit my public acknowledgments
of his industry and zeal on many early occasions, and which I stamped
with my approbation in a memorial submitted to me to obtain my sanction
ere I forwarded it to the lords commissioners of the treasury, the
result of which procured both him and Mr. Collins the rewards they
petitioned for.
During my third illness, a few days antecedent to the journey to
Coomassy, I gave Mr. Hutton a temporary power to act for me, mainly
because I was apprehensive that measures would be taken to supersede me
in my command upon the score of ill health—a step which might be imputed
to motives of _humanity_. I therefore authorised Mr. Hutton to proceed
to Doonqua, with the presents under his charge. Finding subsequently,
however, that the influence of the governor and council still endangered
my possession of the charge, and as my indisposition for several days
continued obstinate, rather than allow any authority in that country to
interfere with the powers which had been granted to me, I increased that
which I had granted to Mr. Hutton, authorising him now to jog forward at
a gentle pace, if my illness should still increase in severity, to
relieve me from the uneasy thoughts arising from the daily and hourly
interference of the castle with duties which belonged to me alone.
My recovery, two or three days afterwards, rendered this precaution
unnecessary, and I had the satisfaction to assume the command at
Doonqua.
Looking back to the period of my arrival in Africa—the month of January,
1819,—I found Mr. Hutchison, who had been left at Coomassy by his
coadjutors, Messrs. Bowdich and Tedlie, in quality of resident, upon the
coast, having been recalled by Mr. Smith, the governor of Cape Coast
Castle, to fill the office of salesman in his warehouse, at that
interesting period when the king of Ashantee was occupied with his
military preparations for the approaching war with Dinkera, king of
Gaman.
During Mr. Hutchison’s stay at the court, the king, on various
occasions, acknowledged the satisfaction he enjoyed from his connexions
with the whites, and particularly the British. The fervor of the king’s
attachment indeed, had developed itself in many little conciliatory
acts, and in tokens genuine or politic of his personal esteem for
Messrs. Mollan, Smith, and Hutchison[5]; nor was the primary
consideration forgotten, for that monarch employed every means in his
power to promote trade with the British, which for a time flourished,
although chiefly, it must be admitted, in the governor’s warehouses; for
when the tributary sovereigns and caboceers assembled their retainers,
preparatory to the meditated invasion of Gaman, they were all directed
to procure supplies from Cape Coast, so that, according to the most
authentic accounts, Mr. Smith’s stock of rum, powder, and cloth, was
metamorphosed into gold dust in the lapse of a few days only.
These were benefits conferred by the court alone. In regard to the
inferior classes of traders, they, not being bound by the royal
restrictions, speculated freely and sought their own markets, either
with the officers of the castle, or among the free merchants in town.
Thus all participated, more or less, in the temporary influx of
commerce; although it was stated by some to have been of no solid
advantage, except in bulk, as the business was chiefly transacted by Mr.
Smith, and a favoured few. This correspondence is supposed to have
received a slight check, from an omission, on the part of Mr. Smith, to
acknowledge the king’s benefits according to negro courtesy, by
reciprocal donations, courtly messages, &c. This neglect, however, made
no impression on the political attachment of the king, whose conception
of the treaty of 1817 favoured an implicit confidence in the good faith
of those who had courted the union; and this belief was encouraged by a
persuasion that the smiles of the British government, or rather the
British sovereign, irradiated his throne with a refulgence that dazzled
the multitude, excited the envy of cotemporary powers, and rendered his
political existence more secure from foreign enemies, or the ambitious
schemes of the tributaries and nobles of his empire.
Mr. Hutchison’s occupation, as warehouseman, was found profitable to his
employer, as it attracted a private connexion from Coomassy, who chose
that gentleman for their broker in preference to one they did not know.
This preference excited much dissatisfaction among the merchants and
inferior traders. Without the castle walls the treaty itself was
bewailed in serious lamentations, reproachful to its authors, although,
in truth, a few of the complainants had no cause to be dissatisfied,
unless by comparison with the channel that absorbed so much gold in
mass. Be this as it may, the evil, real or imaginary, vibrated in my
hearing, shortly after I landed on the coast, and the treaty was
unreservedly condemned as the cause of the public grievance. The mission
which gave existence to that treaty was represented to have been
conceived in mercantile enterprize and intrigue; the expence of which
was cast upon the government, while the profit was almost exclusively
pocketed by the few leading servants of the African Committee. It was
boldly affirmed that the document dignified with the name of treaty, was
in reality a shadow, although not an innoxious one; and although it
could deceive no one versed in the tortuous politics of the country, yet
it was reasonably calculated to stand the test of criticism in the
meridian of London; where the organs of its supporters (who were liable
to the same imposition) afforded the only channel from which information
could be elicited: that to effect the sinister purposes of a plot deeply
laid, a meritorious officer, such as the late Sir James Yeo described
Mr. James to be, was recalled with censure, at the instance of his young
aspiring associates, the companions of his dangers and fatigues.
The king was at the head of his army on the Gaman frontier at the time I
landed, and a battle was shortly expected to take place between the
“rival powers,” as they were improperly called by the governor. The
natives of the town of Cape Coast, elated by reports which some affirmed
came from the windward towns, whilst others maintained that they were
fabricated in the castle, entertained hopes that the Ashantee monarchy
might be annihilated in the approaching conflict. These wishes they were
imprudent enough to promulgate, thereby affording the king’s friends and
his captain resident, who lived in the town, an opportunity to represent
the disaffection that prevailed. In due time the court noticed it, and
politically restricted the intercourse between the inland and maritime
traders, until the termination of the campaign. This restriction,
however, is to be understood in a limited sense, for still the
sovereign’s confidential servants and traders visited the castle, and
purchased, as usual, what was wanted for the court or camp.
The Ashantee captain resident had been stationed by the king at Cape
Coast, and was considered there as the organ of his government. While
the king remained in his capital, the maritime states were cautious of
giving offence; but when the southern provinces were no longer overawed
by the presence of the monarch on his throne, the natives of Cape Coast,
encouraged, it must be admitted, by the gossips of the castle, thought
proper to take a sudden umbrage at the resident, whom they looked upon
as a spy or inspector over their actions. Reports were circulated from
some unknown source, that the king’s army had suffered a defeat of
magnitude, and that Dinkera was pushing over the Tando river with intent
to repay the hostile visit of the king. The resident protested against
the falsity of the account, as did the chiefs of Elmina town, but the
interest they took in the business was supposed to proceed from other
motives than those sincerity might inspire.
Traders now but rarely visited the settlements; and when they did come,
it was found impracticable to elicit from them what alone would have
passed current for authentic information, namely, an admission that the
king had been defeated!
At this crisis two royal messengers came to Cape Coast to vent a
complaint against the conduct of the people of Commenda, whither they
had been sent by their sovereign to convey a _jaw-bone_ or two, as
trophies of the success of the Ashantee arms. They claimed the
protection of the British, by virtue of the treaty. It was confirmed
beyond disputation that these messengers had been used with some
violence, and turned out of the town in contemptuous defiance and
ridicule. At Cape Coast they were secure from molestation, but could get
no redress; for Mr. Smith, without the aid of the council, and without
regard to my particular interest and responsibility in the concerns of
Ashantee, refused to administer justice between the parties until, after
the lapse of many months, the threat of hostility became so alarming to
the interests of the settlements, that the council assumed the power of
acting independently of the views entertained by its president, and
determined to forward the mission.
As far as policy may be allowed to palliate those errors of
administration, which are connected with a violation of public and
private faith, so far only it was justifiable to abjure this treaty of
Mr. Bowdich. Let it be assumed that the early reports of the king’s
defeat were actually credited in the castle to the extent that the
military power of Ashantee had been vitally shaken in the conflict with
its western enemies, still it was the honour of England, and, as it was
imagined by the king, the faith of her monarch, which had been pledged
to him in the treaty of 1817, upon what authority I leave to the
judgment of the reader.
I believe, upon no slight grounds, that my consular appointment to the
court mainly contributed to inspire Mr. Bowdich’s uncle with the
temerity to induce a rupture with the king; for in opposition to my
solicitations that my arrival in the country should be communicated at
the capital by a public messenger, it was explained to me that the time
was not suitable, and I must wait until after the rains, as it would be
dangerous to travel before I was seasoned to the climate. Many
whisperings were circulated in augmentation of the difficulties, and my
hopes, although buoyed up in favourable expectancy, did not wholly
subdue my fears of disappointment; for the impracticability of visiting
the metropolis became a common topic of conversation, and every
discouraging prognostication was echoed about without reserve, but
certainly not without a motive. The sentiments of the parties in town
united in a rooted belief that every measure short of _actual hostility_
would be resorted to, to prevent the execution of those plans which were
contemplated in my appointment; and that Mr. Smith was, moreover,
personally interested in suppressing my visit to court, from the
feelings he had for his nephew, whose exaggerated representations of the
opulence and grandeur of the Ashantee monarchy, he was no stranger to.
Doubtful as the sequel might prove, my hopes and fears alternately
fluctuated as I anxiously looked forward for the king’s return to his
capital, upon which I was now inclined to concentrate all my
expectations.
The Captain resident, who was a young athletic man, was taken suddenly
ill in the month of March, while this misunderstanding existed, and his
death speedily ensued, not without a strong suspicion of poison, which,
it was whispered, had been administered by a slave of the caboceer
Aggry, a man who received pay from the company, and who was upheld as a
superior chief, and dignified with the title of King of the town.
Whether this was true or not I cannot affirm, but no successor was ever
appointed to the vacant situation, and yet it was more than ever
incumbent on the government to watch the idle rumours that gave so much
uneasiness to the king.
In the same month a silly tale was circulated at Cape Coast that a most
decisive battle had been fought between the belligerents; that the king
of Ashantee had fallen in the conflict, that his army was scattered over
the face of the country, and that his enemies, headed by the victorious
Dinkera, were within a few days’ march of Coomassy, where the advanced
guard had already arrived. Yet no clue could be discovered for tracing
this rumour to a source that might imprint upon it a semblance of
authenticity: notwithstanding which it was seemingly credited implicitly
by Mr. Smith, who assured me _he had no doubt of its truth_: hence the
same opinion predominated throughout the town, as well as in the castle.
I know no reason why it should have taken so deep a root, except that it
was what chimed with the anxious wishes of the natives, and, as it would
seem, co-operated with the views of some of the superior authorities in
the castle.
As my hopes and fears now centred in the truth or falsehood of the
statement, I hired a canoe and went to El Mina with a letter of
introduction to His Excellency the late Governor Oldenburgh, by whom I
was assured that there was not a word in the report deserving of credit,
although he doubted not there had been a general engagement. The
Ashantee traders who were in the town, amounting to near one hundred,
including their slaves, laughed outright at the tale, which they treated
as a malicious libel that would be attended with evil consequences in
the sequel. It was added, moreover, that these artful reports were
coined at Cape Coast exclusively, for every other town knew them to be
false; and even the people of Commenda were then sensible that they had
been betrayed into their late excesses by the influence of Cape Coast.
Towards the end of March, a messenger, bearing the gold-hilted sword,
came to the castle from the camp, stating that he had been deputed by
his sovereign to acquaint the governor that an outrage had been
committed at Commenda upon two men of office, who had represented to him
their inability to procure redress; but that the king expected, upon the
faith of the treaty, and the friendship that existed between them, that
justice would be done. However, if the governor declined taking that
trouble, he should send some troops for that purpose.
The king, it was added, had also heard with anger and regret, that the
natives of Cape Coast were not disposed to be friends; that they talked
foolish things, as if they wanted him to come down again to the water
side; but he trusted the governor would look to it for him, because he
was then engaged in war.
This was substantially the message which was laid hold of as a
palliative argument for having bidden defiance to the king in language
which that monarch deemed insulting, and a farewell adieu to the treaty
of Mr. Bowdich: for Mr. Smith, without listening to the main argument,
or attending to the justice of the king’s complaint, interrupted the
man, by desiring him to return to his master and acquaint him that he
might come down “in forty days, or in twenty, or as soon as he thought
proper.”
This messenger, whose name was Accra Dehe, lingered about the town for
some time, and vainly intimated that he durst not carry such a message
back: that it would be an insult to the king, and perhaps cost him his
head. But at length he was compelled to depart.
In order to elucidate these rash councils, so abruptly resorted to,
without the concurrence of any other individual associated in the
commission for the administration of public affairs; it is requisite to
say something of a finesse that was employed to give sanction to
hostility at such a crisis, when so many interests and expectations were
thrown away. Will it be credited that the message itself was perverted,
through the medium of the interpreter, who was instructed so to do, that
a plausible opportunity might be afforded for breaking off the friendly
connexion that existed with Ashantee? This was roundly asserted by many
who were not known as friends to the king, and who freely declared that
De Graaf, the castle linguist, interpreted the king’s message to the
governor with exaggerations, and even falsehood, in the course of which
he said (or as it was suspected was urged to say), “The king would
certainly come down to Cape Coast in forty days and _punish those who
had abused him_.” In order to obtain, as it were, a tacit sanction, Mr.
Smith invited me to meet the messenger in the hall, in company with
captain Kelly of H.M.S. Pheasant. We caught the words as they fell from
the lips of De Graaf, and I confess, for my own part, the colouring was
so artfully contrived, that I saw no other alternative than waiting
patiently where I was. Indeed, for some time after, I was a dupe to the
prejudice that the king actually designed war; notwithstanding that
Accra Dehe, before he quitted the Cape, declared that De Graaf had
perverted the king’s message.[6]
The elders and chiefs of the town were then privately instructed to arm
their people, and defend themselves in case of necessity. A wall of
circumvallation, extending across the hills, and entrenching the town
and castle, was hastily erected with mud and swish, loop-holed for
defensive warfare, as if it were actually believed that the Ashantees
would come down; and if so, that the people would find security behind
these frail bulwarks, against an enemy so terrible to their
remembrances.
Accra Dehe returned to the camp, and, as I learned at Coomassy, truly
reported what had occurred, together with his own suspicions regarding
the imposition. The king, however, was enraged to a great degree of
anger against his officer, whom he accused of falsehood, put him to the
torture of the bastonade to extort confession, and finally threw him
into prison with the intention of putting him to a cruel death, in case
he discovered equivocation or deceit.
In the meantime the farce was conducted at Cape Coast, with every
ostensible show of promptitude, although in reality it all ended in the
erection of the wall; for Aggry, who had boasted of his ability to
procure five thousand auxiliaries from the bush (country), found it
impossible to obtain a single man: every town and every village, being
either overawed by a dread of the vengeance of Ashantee, or in strict
alliance with that powerful nation.
These reports, reaching the capital, annihilated what little remained of
the trade, at a single blow; the traders either not caring to trust
themselves and their property at Cape Coast, or being laid under
prohibitions, which restricted the intercourse to El Mina, and the
windward settlements, where, for twelve months after, they deposited
their gold and merchandize. The Dutch, consequently, enjoyed all those
benefits which the treaty was supposed to have conferred upon the
British, who in truth were indebted to the agency of their European
brethren in the few commercial transactions they had with the Ashantees;
and these contracts were sometimes attended with loss upon the property,
varying from twenty to thirty per cent. (without including interest of
money and risk of payment) which fell to the share of the Dutch as the
intermediate parties.
The prospect of surmounting those obstacles which impeded my visit to
the court, was now but a faint one at best, and only to be discerned
through a cloud of trouble and vexation. By this time I was sufficiently
initiated in the sinister mysteries of African politics to know that,
although I might ultimately succeed in my endeavours to reach the
metropolis, yet it would not be until every hostile feeling had been
roused into action, thereby to give full employment to my time, and
excite general distrust and suspicion. These sentiments imperceptibly
stole in upon my secret thoughts, harassing my mind with tantalizing
reflections; nor were any of my friends able to console me at this time
with a solitary hope of what I so ardently desired. But one opinion
existed, and anxious as the majority were for my success, they did not
hesitate to suggest to me the propriety of returning to England, there
to submit a just statement of the obstacles I had to encounter.
This advice, it is almost needless to say, did not accord with my own
sentiments. Limited as my hopes were, I still enjoyed the mental
satisfaction of knowing that things were at least in a train to be
brought to issue, however unfavourable that issue might prove; and I had
previously resolved to abide the test, before I sought new instructions
or resigned my commission.
The rains set in with more than usual violence before the close of
April, and although I had hitherto enjoyed as good health as in England
or Barbary, I was early attacked with fever, which for six weeks held me
in suspense between life and death, nor did I recover without symptoms
of extreme debility, increased by the nature of the climate and the
anxiety which preyed continually upon my mind.
Another messenger came down in June, desiring, in the name of the king,
simply to know whether Accra Dehe had deceived him, or whether Mr. Smith
had actually sent him up a defiance.
I was too ill at this period to attend the hall, but I learned
afterwards that the reply retorted the charge of defiance upon the king
or his messenger, for having first used the language of threat.
Whilst all this was transacting, news reached the Ashantee army that
Cape Coast had been entrenched with a wall, and that the town’s-people
were in arms against the king’s authority (for this, indeed, was a truth
too palpable for concealment). When it was reported to the king, at
Houraboh in Gaman, as that monarch told me himself, his captains
simultaneously unsheathed their sabres and solicited him to allow a
detachment of troops to march down to the coast. “We will kill them,”
said the captains, “or bring them before you, for this insult is
insufferable.” However, enraged as the king was, he suppressed his
feelings, telling his captains that he held a “book” with the white men,
and could not acquiesce in the general wish, but that he would
nevertheless swear to seek satisfaction, for he believed the governor
was imposed upon.
Notwithstanding the royal messengers continued coming to and fro,
between the camp and the castle, the report of the king’s death did not
lose ground. In the castle the most favourable supposition supported an
opinion that the Ashantees had sustained a defeat of such magnitude as
to have produced the election of another king, who, from state policy,
negotiated in the name of his predecessor. Some were bold enough to
affirm that Ashantee no longer existed, but as a department of the Gaman
empire, and was then governed by a son of Dinkera.
In conformity with the king’s promise to his army, another messenger, of
high rank, and with a large retinue, made his entry in September. I was
at this time sufficiently recovered from a second attack of illness to
attend the interview. The man, in an able speech, recapitulated all
those grievances of which his master complained, beginning at the
Commenda “palaver,” and ending with the fortification or line of
defence. The mutinous conduct of the people was touched upon with
_delicacy_, yet the odium was cast upon Mr. Smith, who was indirectly
accused of having _invited_ them to _insubordination_, on a belief that
the king had been defeated by his enemies. In conclusion, the messenger
declared, in the name of his master, that the treaty was of no use if
_insincerity_ was attached to British councils;—that the king looked
upon that treaty as “Fetische,” (sacred) and therefore had sent it down
to the castle, in order that Mr. Smith should read its _contents_, and
determine whether or no he was bound to give satisfaction for the
injuries that had been done: and moreover, if it should be answered
negatively, that gentleman was desired to retain possession of the
treaty, in order that the king might apply to his own resources without
scruple, as it was contrary to his principles, or his notions of honour
and good faith, to keep that deed in his hands and make war; or, as it
was more figuratively described to me at Coomassy by Apoko, to march
against the town with the musquet in hand and the “book” in the box.
As this was uttered, the messenger drew from under his garment a little
morocco trunk, out of which he took the treaty, and presented it to Mr.
Smith, who evinced something like perturbation or confusion, as he
declared “he had nothing to do with it.” The linguist, De Graaf,
interposed a whisper, and it was then read over as far as the fourth
article,[7] when the messenger again rose and demanded satisfaction in
the name of his sovereign, upon the faith of that article, which, if not
complied with, he affirmed, would call down the vengeance of Ashantee
upon the natives of the town. In respect to the Castle, he added, the
king did not wish for war with white men, but his own people must be
obedient; he would not, however, hold the book or treaty if he made war.
The hall now resounded with vociferous arguments from the partisans of
Ashantee and others connected with the messenger’s suite. Some of the
town chiefs, awakened at last from the stupefaction of idle dreams,
joined earnestly in the debate, hoping, as it appeared, to mitigate the
wrath of the monarch, or exonerate themselves from censure, by declaring
that as they were under the government of the whites, they could not
help what had been done. In fact the audience for a time resembled the
upper gallery of a playhouse between the acts, so general was the
confusion; when order was restored, the messenger desired he might hear
more of the treaty, which Mr. Smith read, as far as the seventh article,
where he was interrupted, a second time, by a demand of satisfaction
upon the faith of it.[8] Nor would he listen to the palliative arguments
which were obtruded by Aggry and a chief of the name of Binie. He
declared that his orders were peremptory and his duty imperative; and,
therefore, he should leave the treaty in the castle, unless Mr. Smith
would promise to do the king justice.
At this juncture I requested the governor would make known to the
messenger the object of my mission, and the desire I had to see the
king; for, incredible as it may appear, that monarch was in total
ignorance of any thing concerning me, unless from report. My request was
complied with. The messenger again rose, bowed to me, and took me by the
hand in token of respect and good will. This circumstance appeared to
stagger the resolution he had formed; and he was, for some time pensive
and doubtful, as if he knew not what course to pursue; his
inflexibility, however, was overcome, as he testified by enquiring
whether he was to leave the treaty, or whether I would talk the palaver
with the king. The reply was, that he must be guided by his own
discretion, and accordingly he retired with the treaty to his quarters
in town.
The town chiefs and their retainers were now, for the first time, warned
of the danger they had incurred in giving an unbridled licence to their
tongues.[9] Indeed the advice was scarcely needful at this time, for
their minds were riveted upon the impending peril; and the scenes of
former years were revived in imagination, as they contemplated the
daring spirit of their enemies, and the power of the king. In the town,
tranquillity predominated for a time, among all orders of men; not a
whisper, or the rumour of one, was to be heard prejudicial to the
character or interests of the offended monarch, and the reports of a
Gaman invasion were now woefully discredited or silenced. Yet, in the
castle, the same idle speculations were indulged in, but whether their
propagators actually believed in such trash, although they affirmed it,
is very doubtful.
Mr. Smith was, it seems, still of opinion that the Ashantees had been
totally defeated, and accounts were again written to England to this
effect, but in order somewhat to qualify the tone of his former
sentiments, he affected to imagine that the government had recovered the
blow, still however doubting that the same monarch ruled the empire.
Trade was entirely at a stand, for the Ashantees had long since deserted
the Cape. The Dutch settlements, particularly El Mina town and castle,
were stored with the inland merchants; and British commodities gained
vent through that channel alone, whilst the Dutch, as heretofore,
continued to reap all the advantage.
The messenger, whose hesitation proceeded from doubts connected with the
importance of my mission, and my rank as coming from England direct to
the king, came to the resolution of remaining on the spot until he
should be furnished with other instructions from the king.
During the suspense, I was again so severely attacked with fever, that
by the advice of my medical attendant I was prevailed upon to take a
cruize in the Gulf, and accordingly I embarked on board His Majesty’s
ship Pheasant. The rains were still excessive, sickness tracked our
flight, and mortality made some havock among the officers and crew. At
the expiration of five weeks (it being then November) my health having
improved, I returned to the coast in the Snapper gun-brig. For some time
after I enjoyed indifferent good health, under a tardy convalescence.
The season of health and re-animation was, however, now in rapid
advance, and I believe the revived prospect of visiting the capital
contributed more than any thing else to my recovery.
Public affairs were precisely on the same footing as when I left the
Cape. The same messenger was still in town, but it was reported that a
man of high rank was coming down to the coast in quality of ambassador;
with a train of armed followers.
The town’s-people were more than ever sensible of their folly, and a few
vented their murmurs against the whites, under the impression that they
had encouraged them to resist a power which they could not unitedly
contend against. The wall of defence was, therefore, suffered to moulder
away in neglect, notwithstanding Mr. Smith continued still to give it as
a sort of private opinion, that both policy and necessity required our
entering upon defensive warfare at least, and offensive as regarded the
protection of the town, if needful, from the ravages threatened by the
Ashantees. The impossibility of affording thereby, protection to the
lives and property of the people, formed no part of the argument.
Many were the anxious hopes and fears in circulation, and no one could
form even a conjecture as regarded the future. On the one hand it was
feared that the accumulated provocations would weigh heavily in the
scale of Ashantee politics, and perhaps influence the king to carry fire
and sword through the town; for it was no secret that an enemy so
powerful as the sovereign of Ashantee might perform this with
comparative ease, and without incurring any particular hazard even from
the fire of the castle guns, should that course of proceeding be
resorted to. On the other hand it was admitted, that although the king
was exceedingly exasperated, yet he would be influenced to listen to any
reasonable terms, provided they were associated with the long agitated
mission. In one point of view there was an unity of sentiment outside of
the castle, namely, that any attempt at negotiation short of my visit to
court, would be fruitless.
This was the time when advices were expected from the committee, and
many sanguine hopes of relief were centred in that quarter. But when the
dispatches arrived, they were found to contain nothing important as
regarded the political aspect of affairs in Africa. The information, in
substance, was a reiteration of former strictures upon the conduct of
Messrs. Mollan, Smith, and Adamson[10], on the score of exorbitant
charges in their accounts; but more particularly as they concerned the
pecuniary affairs of the two former gentlemen; and the threat of recall
or dismissal was again fulminated at them with revived censure, in
consequence of their having defended their accounts with scornful
acrimony. Under these circumstances I was confirmed in the opinion that
the committee themselves had been misled by the interested reports of
their servants in regard to the affairs of Ashantee.
Mr. Smith now unequivocally gave it as his opinion, without however
specifying reasons, that to forward the mission would be the “height of
imprudence and madness.”[11]
Again, therefore, my hopes were blighted, and no other consolation
presented itself than the anticipation of the interview with the
ambassador, whose arrival was looked for within the month, and to whom
report gave the credit of extensive, if not ample powers. Indeed it was
affirmed that this great captain had been dignified by his sovereign,
with a commission that qualified him to decide for peace or war upon the
spot, and to act accordingly.
From this period, then, I no longer looked upon the councils of the Cape
(that term will imply the individual acts of Mr. Smith) but as a
barrier, or a chain of mountains on the march: and I availed myself of
an opportunity that offered, to make known to Lord Bathurst, in the
fullest extent, my situation and the predicament in which I was so
accidentally placed.
Another month elapsed, and still every measure of policy was
contemplated in secret hostility, whilst a semblance of inflexibility,
devoid however of the dignity of resolution, or the generosity of
fellowship and good faith in politics, tended to support the natives in
a belief that their “palaver” with the king was of consideration
sufficient to warrant unqualified hostility on the part of the castle.
Certainly the town had been made the dupe of this conceit at an earlier
stage of the quarrel, and doubtless it inspired them with that symptom
of courage, or folly, from whence emanated many offences which,
unhappily for themselves, called down upon their heads the vengeance of
the sovereign, and that not a slight one; for already I was sufficiently
informed to know that the united power of the British and _all_ Fantee
besides in the field, was inadequate to contend against that of the
king, who, if he chose it, might destroy the town of Cape Coast without
risking the loss of a man from our fire; and if he knew how to attack
the castle itself, it was not defensible. But the original infatuation
was nearly at an end, and perhaps had wholly subsided; for the people,
as if sensible at last that they had overstepped the boundary of
prudence, were armed with caution: they were now seriously alarmed, and
their efforts of courage were paralyzed in embryo; they therefore
endeavoured to screen themselves under a semblance of neutrality, as if
they were either unconcerned in the differences now existing between the
king and Mr. Smith, or as if the British government would rescue them
from their perils by negotiation or force of arms: and that too without
employing any efforts on their own parts. Indeed they had buoyed
themselves up with the hopes of a _white_ army coming to their relief.
The year was fast approaching to a close: I had already been held in
this state of anxiety and suspense upwards of eleven months, and for ten
of those weary months, or thereabouts, I had supported my lot with as
much fortitude and resolution as I could.
The messenger, whose approach had been so long the theme of
conversation, was now announced to be on his journey to the Coast, and
at no great distance. Various reports gained credit, also, that a large
body of troops would be quartered upon the town, until the negotiation
should determine between peace or war.
In this interval of suspense, Mr. Swanzy arrived upon the coast,
bringing under his charge despatches from the Committee, which warranted
his hopes of assuming to himself the direction of public affairs in
place of Mr. Smith, upon whom, together with his coadjutors, Mollan and
Adamson, a final act of censure was registered, on the score of
unjustifiable charges in the public accounts, and insolence in their
vindication.
Mr. Swanzy had the candour to admit that obstinacy and private
resentment alone had reduced the settlements to a situation so truly
alarming.
Hitherto, novel as it may seem in the system of government, no council
had ever been assembled for taking the sense of that body upon the
subject of Ashantee, as it has already been related. But now Mr. Swanzy,
in virtue of his own powers, took an active part in public, compelling
Messrs. Smith and Mollan to curtail their charges by a reduction of some
hundreds of pounds, and to recant certain injurious expressions which
they had applied to the committee.
Mr. Smith still adhered to his sentiments of defying the power of the
king; Mr. Mollan, with that obmutescence for which he is remarkable,
gave no opinion at all, and Mr. Swanzy, who it will be remembered, had a
political game to play more intimately associated with his private
interests, avoided saying more at this time than what might be qualified
affirmatively or negatively.
This semblance of re-animation, however, once more removed the cloud of
despondency that covered the minds of many of the chiefs in town, and it
was now imagined that Mr. Swanzy had ability and inclination sufficient
to avert the threatened calamities. That his inclinations would suggest
pacific measures, no one could reasonably doubt, as his mercantile hopes
naturally beat in unison with the feelings of those who had been such
long sufferers.
Again at the close of the month of December, I paid another visit to his
excellency governor Oldenburg. Trade was still brisk at El Mina, and the
Dutch were still profitting by our own evil policy. The Ashantees, I had
the mortification to learn, spoke in very loose terms of British faith,
nor did they seem to think that we were overburthened with common sense.
The information I derived from the governor gave me to understand, most
unequivocally, that, instead of having suffered reverses, the king had
been completely successful in the Gaman campaign, and that there no
longer existed a doubt of the death of Dinkera, and the final submission
of his subjects to the conqueror’s yoke.
During my stay under the hospitable roof of this worthy governor, I
received information from Cape Coast that the long looked-for ambassador
had arrived at Doonqua, and would shortly reach the place of his
destination. Thus informed, I returned to the Cape without loss of time,
where I found the popular rumours to be again very unfavourable. The
anxiety of all classes was extreme, from a presentiment of hostility;
for the ambassador’s train, according to report, was _an army_, and his
demands upon the castle and the town were stated to be exorbitant.
From this period it was a sort of breathless suspense for a day or two,
until the advanced guard, as it was termed, was seen traversing the
beach.
The ambassador entered the place with a degree of military splendour
unknown there since the conquest of Fantee by the king, and according to
prevailing courtesy, the town chiefs, headed by Aggry, were drawn up to
receive their unwelcome visitors.
Let the imagination trace the routine of etiquette, and let it be
believed, as there is no doubt of the fact, that the number of people in
the ambassadors train, at the lowest estimate, was about twelve hundred,
of whom about half were either Ashantees or Assins (some of them women
and boys) and the remaining half Fantees of Doonqua and Mouree, joined
by some El Mina people, who all professed allegiance in common to the
king.
The ambassador, who was a man apparently between the ages of thirty and
thirty-five, stood in the relationship of nephew to the king: it will be
unnecessary, therefore, to say more of his rank and influence at court.
On the day of audience, he delivered a speech in the Hall, which De
Graaf interpreted briefly as follows:—
“The king says, you (the governor) sent white men to Coomassy, and they
told him it was because the whites wished for peace and a good trade; on
hearing which he rejoiced to think that he should gratify the great king
and his captains. These white men saw the king’s face, and they knew he
was a good king and wished well to the governor and white men who lived
in the country; therefore they made a treaty of strict friendship. Then
the king sent down all the trade to the governor, thinking he loved him
as a true friend.
“The king was afterwards obliged to make war against Dinkera, who had
defied him, and refused to pay him gold as before. He ordered his
captains to bring all the people together, and clean the guns. And when
the white man,[12] who lived with him heard that, he said, now I must go
back to the water side; and the king, considering that to be right, let
him go.
“The trade went down as before, and the king was happy, because he
thought, as the white men were friends, they would not allow Fantees to
do foolish things and shame him before his captains.
“When the messengers went to Commenda, it was because he loved the
people; he, therefore, sent a jaw-bone[13] of Dinkera’s captain, that
they might know the king’s enemies were dead, and rejoice at it. Now the
governor knows that these messengers were robbed and beaten, and the
people laughed at the king; therefore, the messengers went to complain
to the governor of Cape Coast, but he would not hear them.
“When the king heard that he was much grieved, and he sent Accra Dehe to
make his compliments and tell the governor to examine that affair, and
do what was right. When Accra Dehe returned to the camp, and told the
king that the governor did not care for him, and said that he might come
down in twenty days, it broke his heart, because it shamed him before
his captains, and all the kings and great caboceers who fought for him.
He could not think the governor would use him in that manner, because he
never sent an offensive message to the castle. The king then punished
the messenger, but the captains said it was wrong, and that the people
of Cape Coast were insolent; and they took their swords to march against
the Fantees. But the king forbade them, saying he must do what was right
according to the book, and he should have satisfaction. Then the king
sent more messengers to the governor; but they tell him the governor
will not give satisfaction according to the book, and the captains
believe that it was true he sent a defiance, saying if the king chose to
come and fight he was ready. Then the king called all the chiefs and the
old men together, and told them the truth; and they said, ‘This
dishonours you, king; we cannot hear this and sit upon our stools, for
the people will laugh at you and us; it is a very bad thing: you must
have satisfaction.’ Then the king sent down another messenger and gave
him the book, that the governor might see what was true with his own
eyes; and say whether he wanted peace or war. But still the governor
refuses satisfaction; and yet he says the book is right.
“The king is sorry for the sake of the old men, and women, and children,
but then he cannot help it, if the governor will have war; the king has
nothing to do with white men; but if they choose to make palavers with
him, it is not his fault. He knows that they come to trade in his
country, and they have a great king of their own in the land of the
white men. This is all true; but then the king (of Ashantee) is a great
king too, for all the black countries, and the people must serve him;
and if they will not serve him, but are foolish, and do evil, they must
die. Now the governor knows that Cape Coast is very insolent, and when
the king complained to the castle, the people were told to build a wall
and fight him. Is that like good friends, as the book says? The other
towns of Fantee do what is right, and the king has no palaver with them,
and he is unwilling to make war for one town only. And now he sends to
the governor to ask, if he will settle that palaver or not? because,
otherwise, the army will certainly go down and destroy the place; for it
is a great palaver, and the king and all his captains are very angry,
because they believe that Aggry and De Graaf cheat them, and tell the
governor lies; therefore, the king says they had better look to it, and
take care what they do, for he is not a king to play the fool with.”
Here the ambassador paused, or was interrupted by Aggry, De Graaf, and
others, who felt interested in the censure. Some confusion ensued, and
when order was again restored, the linguist declared that there was
something more important “_in the budget_.” This was signified to the
ambassador, and he proceeded to say, that in consequence of the
provocation that had been given to the king by the town of Cape Coast,
he, as ambassador, was authorized to demand from the inhabitants a fine
of[14] 1600 ounces of gold. And as regarded the conduct of the governor,
he was desired to make the same demand of 1600 ounces from him—making
collectively 3200 ounces, and unless these payments were complied with,
he was instructed to say the king would grant no peace; nor would he
desist until he had taken ample satisfaction.
Confusion and discord again predominated, every tongue was put in
motion, coupled with such gesticulation and contortion of the muscles as
a subject of that interest may be supposed to have created. The anxiety
of the town chiefs was extreme in proportion to their fears.
It was some time before the tumult subsided, and in the interval Mr.
Smith collected the sentiments of Mr. Swanzy and myself.[15] It is
perhaps needless to say they were in unison upon the item relating to
the king’s demand made upon a British castle or a British governor, and
it was resolved unanimously to reject the terms with indignation, unless
that clause was rescinded which concerned the governor publicly, for in
no other character could I know him in a transaction which involved the
national dignity. This resolution being announced to the ambassador, it
was then somewhat qualified by an offer to negotiate, upon terms of
equity, the _differences that existed between the king and the natives
of the town_. To this amendment Mr. Smith did not object at the time;
but subsequently he endeavoured still to give the colouring of
consistency to what he termed his former policy, by declaring his
conviction that no good could be done by temporizing measures, even at
so critical a juncture.
Here then I will say, (and in truth it deserves recording as a solitary
instance of the kind) the councils of the Cape exhibited a moderate
share of dignity and temper, however late and unseasonable. Had this
moderation been adopted earlier, all differences would have been
adjusted many months sooner: in fact, they never would have had
existence to any serious extent.
The ambassador, in reply to our proposition that he should renounce the
demand made upon the governor, declared it was impossible for him to
abrogate what the king had decreed; upon which Mr. Smith retired from a
debate which was at first partially, and then exclusively engrossed by
the town chiefs. These men admitted, in a qualified sense, that they
were bound to the sovereign of Ashantee in bonds of _fealty_ and
_allegiance_; and when taxed by the ambassador with insubordination and
insolence, in having built up the wall, &c., they claimed certain
privileges from local situation within the precinct of a British fort,
which they affirmed had been stipulated for by the treaty of Mr.
Bowdich. Some exonerated themselves at the expence of their protectors,
by attributing every thing that had been done to the orders of the
governor, whose authority, they said, they were bound to respect.
In conclusion, it was stated they could not attempt to negotiate even on
their own accounts, while the king demanded money of the castle, but if
that edict were repealed they would pay what they were able. Here the
audience broke up in dissatisfaction. This was the 7th of January.
Having on a former occasion had reason to doubt the veracity[16] of the
linguist’s interpretation, I took the precaution, this time, to station
a linguist of my own choosing in the hall, and this man assured me that
the king’s speech did not exactly tally with what he had just heard from
the lips of the public interpreter, who had omitted certain
complimentary parts, and in particular one which regarded me, personally
or publicly. Upon making further enquiry I was fully satisfied of the
truth. My indignation may be imagined; I instantly resolved either to
proceed to Coomassy at all hazards, or to quit the coast and lay my
complaints before government. My letter to the Governor and Council of
the 8th of January, of which the following is an extract, will bear
testimony to what I affirm.
“Having learned, after leaving the hall yesterday, that the linguist had
not made a just interpretation of the message sent down by the King of
Ashantee, particularly as regarded that part of the message wherein he
sends ‘his best compliments to me,’ I was induced this morning to send
the messenger a present, coupled with a request that he would pay me a
visit, &c. What he declared was as follows:—The king desired his best
compliments, and would be very glad to see me in the capital, and
accordingly a person appointed by the king accompanied him for the
purpose of conducting me to court immediately, and without regard to
existing disputes, which he, on the part of the king, would remain here
to settle. The king says, moreover, he is very much hurt to hear I have
been so long detained at Cape Coast.
“From the impression made upon my mind by this conversation as now
stated to you, and particularly as my belief is that the demand on the
Fort will be abandoned, it is my earnest desire to lose no further time
in proceeding to the discharge of my duties at Coomassy, and as the
king’s messenger with his retinue are to remain here, you can, if you
think proper, (although it is by no means my wish) detain them as
hostages,” &c.
“Under all circumstances, and as I am firmly persuaded the king has no
hostile intention, &c. I must entreat you, in the name of his majesty,
to fix upon an early day for my departure to the Ashantee capital, being
determined to proceed thither alone, if the other gentlemen are not
disposed to accompany me.”
My letters to the Colonial Office set forth the obstacles I had so long
contended against, and the ultimate resolution I had taken, conformably
to what I have stated. In council I protested, that unless the presents
designed for the king were restored to my charge, and due preparations
made for the mission, I would leave the coast by the first
opportunity,[17] and should hold them responsible for what consequences
might ensue in the sequel. No direct reply was given. Mr. Smith and Mr.
Mollan still pertinaciously adhered to their former resolutions, and Mr.
Swanzy neither countenanced nor opposed them, for he was at this time
interested in affairs of pecuniary moment, in which the council were
called upon to enforce the resolutions of the committee against the
governor and vice-president.
Some private discussions took place the following morning in town, upon
a question between Akassy, a caboceer of Assin belonging to the
ambassador’s suite, and some of the town chiefs, who were accused of
being accessaries to the robbery of certain Assin traders and others,
who had ventured to the coast upon the faith of the treaty.
The ambassador again demanded an audience in the Hall, in the course of
which he reiterated the demand he was authorized to make upon the castle
and the town, adding it was the king’s fixed determination not to allow
the aggression of the natives to pass unpunished, and unless the most
ample satisfaction were made, nothing less than war was to be expected,
although the king wished to live in friendship with the whites.
At a meeting of the council, it was at last resolved to adopt
conciliatory measures, and accordingly this resolution was notified to
me by way of reply to my letter of the eighth, as before quoted. As a
peace offering, I presume, on the part of Mr. Smith, it was notified
also to me, that the governor and council, in consideration of the
critical situation of public affairs, had deemed it essential to
increase the present originally designed for the king, by the addition
_of one hundred kegs of gunpowder, one hundred musquets_, and one
hundred ankers of rum, over and above what I brought out from England,
and that these articles were to be selected from the best in quality.
Some cloths were moreover appropriated for distributing among the
ministers and courtiers.
Here then, after seven or eight months loss of time in England, and
upwards of a year’s forcible detention at Cape Coast Castle, the
prospect of reaching my journey’s end dawned on the horizon. Yet there
existed many preliminary points to adjust: the presents to pack; relays
of hammock men to procure; meetings of council upon the affairs of
Messrs. Smith and Mollan, upon private affairs, &c. All these matters
required time, it must be admitted, but they needed not to have taken up
so much as three weeks, viz. from the 11th or 12th of January, to the 2d
of February. But it is well known that many hopeful _humane_
expectations were raised upon driving the mission into the depth of the
rains; the policy adopted was evident, but disappointment crowned the
sequel, as every man lived to return, although death made some havoc in
after days.
The comparatively few days remaining on my hands were devoted to the
society of friends, who, as usual, on such, occasions consult nothing
but hospitality and good fellowship. The convivial character of our
tropical colonies is proverbially known; I need only observe that Cape
Coast does not lag in the rear. Good cheer greeted me in various
quarters, and a parting glass at the social board never could do harm in
the salubrious climate of the Gold Coast; so, unfortunately my friends
thought, in defiance of my own philosophy.
On the 26th of January, as I was coming from a friend’s house at a late
hour in the evening, a sudden paroxysm of fever arrested me; and for
several subsequent days it raged with violence, and as it is frequently
the case in this zone, attached itself to the liver. The best medical
advice tendered by Mr. Banks, formerly a surgeon in the service, and
then a trader in town, availed but little, although the fever
occasionally remitted. February set in, and convalescence was yet
remote.
The presents were ready at the beginning of the month, and soon after I
received documents of possession; but how shall I describe my
astonishment, when I found that these simple projectors had intruded
upon me a volume of instructions, which they chose to consider proper
for my government; adding, at the same time, by message, that unless I
would accept of the same upon the prescribed terms, they would take upon
themselves to withhold the presents, and appoint one of their own body
to attend the court. Thus decorously were my actual instructions
authorised by the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury treated, and thus
respectfully was it presumed to treat a commission bearing the
signatures of His Majesty and the Colonial Minister.
My feelings may be well conceived. As the insincerity of my
opponents[18] became more evident, and as sad experience had taught me
that if I should now resign myself to their controul, they would not
hesitate attempting to pursue measures to an extreme which might arm
them with the power of effecting my political ruin, I was resolved to
anticipate the project without even consulting the honourable grounds of
resistance my commission afforded. I chose, therefore, to enter the
lists armed with precautionary language. I protested against the right
claimed by the company’s servants to intrude instructions on me. I
delivered them over to the possession of a friend, authorizing him to
send them to the castle after my departure, and I gave my reasons for so
doing in letters from which I shall select the following extracts, the
former of which I wrote instantly upon receipt of the instructions.
Cape Coast Castle, 2d February, 1820.
“As regards your instructions to me, it was my intention at first to
return them to you without a comment, conceiving, as I do, that I am not
bound in any shape to receive instructions from you. But when I reflect,
that by taking this step it might lead to an open rupture between us,
and prevent those objects for the public good proceeding in a fair
train, &c. I sacrifice my own feelings to the service in which I am
engaged, and shall only, _for the present_, enter my protest against
such instructions _for reasons which will appear in due time_.”
To the Governor and Council.
Doonqua, 11th February, 1820.
“For reasons which will recur to you, and which appear more fully in my
protest, I have thought proper to return you those instructions which
you took upon yourselves to frame for my government, not conceiving
myself justified as a government officer in recognizing any instructions
from you as the servants of a mercantile board. At the same time, and as
I before stated, I shall not object to receive any suggestions from you,
&c.”
To the Governor and Council.
But resuming the clue of the narrative, my distemper, which changed to a
fever of the intermittent order, continued obstinate, and the state of
my feelings by no means contributed to assist nature. In short, I was
unable to rise effectually from my couch for a week after the presents
had been consigned to my charge, namely, from the 1st to the 7th of
February, and even then I could but stagger.
During this suspense it was consulted in private how it would be
feasible to supersede me in my command, on the score of ill health. This
scheme I counteracted by ordering the party to hold themselves in
readiness for the march at the instant, and authorizing Mr. Hutton and
Mr. Collins to proceed as far as the village of Doonqua, there to attend
my coming, should my recovery speedily ensue. The presents, securely
packed, and covered with skins to preserve them from the wet, were thus
conveyed to the village before-named.
As I did not quit my apartment on the following morning, my opponents
sought another mode of annoyance; but now it degenerated to what was
really contemptible, for reports were circulated that my illness was
feigned. My physician, who was in some shape in the interest of the
company, had honour enough, however, to refute the calumny by letter.
On the seventh, I made an attempt to follow my charge, but failed under
it; for I could not walk ten paces without support. That night, however,
I gained repose; on the eighth, I was better, and on the ninth I left
the Cape.
[Footnote 1:
_Downing-street, 3d January_, 1818.
I have laid before Lord Bathurst your letter of the 26th ult. with its
enclosure from Mr. Joseph Dupuis, tendering his services as resident at
Coomassy in Africa; and I am directed to acquaint you, for the
information of the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury, that Lord
Bathurst entirely concurs in their recommendation of appointing a consul
at Ashantee, and will have much pleasure in submitting to the Prince
Regent the name of Mr. Dupuis, as qualified to fill the appointment.
Signed HENRY GOULBURN.
_To G. Harrison, Esq._
The other letter addressed to me was as follows:—
The Lords Commissioners of his Majesty’s Treasury, having been pleased
to communicate to Earl Bathurst your letter of the 26th ult. offering
your services as resident at Ashantee, I have it in command from their
lordships, to transmit for your information a copy of his lordship’s
answer thereto, in order that you may make the necessary preparations
for proceeding to your destination.
Signed GEO. HARRISON.
_Treasury Chambers, 14th January_, 1818.
See also Commission, Appendix No. I.]
[Footnote 2: I am satisfied, from the result of my own experience in
Africa, that many fall victims to the climate from the adoption of a
course of training improperly termed prudential; viz. a _sudden_ change
of diet, from _ship’s fare_ to a scanty sustenance of vegetable matter,
(rejecting even a moderate proportion of wine) and seclusion in their
apartments from the sun and atmosphere. Habits of this kind have, at
least, a natural tendency to stagnate the flow of healthy juices, and
render the body unfit for exertion. Many there are, however, who fall
victims to intemperate habits.]
[Footnote 3: This is a very common symptom of the progress of disease
upon the constitution of Europeans between the tropics.]
[Footnote 4: Mr. Collins, son of the reverend gentleman of that name,
who was sent out by the late Bishop of Chichester.]
[Footnote 5: These gentlemen were presented by the king with slaves and
gold. Mr. Mollan was governor of Annamaboe, and Vice President of the
Council.]
[Footnote 6: The king denied the message to me, in terms the most
positive and convincing, and alleged that he had punished Accra Dehe in
the first of his anger, wrongfully; for De Graaf was the man who, he
believed, had perverted his words. Mr. Smith, however, understood the
native language!!!]
[Footnote 7: The fourth article was as follows:—“In order to avert the
horrors of war, it is agreed, that in any case of aggression on the part
of the natives under British protection, the king shall complain thereof
to the Governor-in-chief, to obtain redress, and that he will in no case
resort to hostility, without endeavouring as much as possible to effect
an amicable arrangement.”]
[Footnote 8: This article was worded as follows:—“The governors of the
respective forts shall at all times afford every protection in their
power to the persons and property of the people of Ashantee, who may
resort to the water-side.”]
[Footnote 9: Yes, it is a notorious fact, that the people were first
encouraged to resort to arms, then censured for having done so. My
confidence, during the erection of the wall of circumvallation, was
rooted implicitly in the honor and integrity of Mr. Smith; and so I
described my sentiments in my public letters to England. So much did I
deludedly conceive myself a partisan in the policy he had adopted, that
I daily visited the progressive advancement of the works of defence, and
often in his society, although I knew, at the same time, they were
calculated to ruin my best hopes. But these, while I felt their force, I
set in no sort of competition with what I imagined to be a national
cause,—the insult offered to the flag of my sovereign, and the indignity
offered to a man whom I looked upon as a friend.]
[Footnote 10: Mr. Adamson was governor of Tantum.]
[Footnote 11: These are his own words, extracted from letters which he
wrote to me on the subject, and which I have still in my possession. It
was clear to me, that either pride, and the anxiety of preserving a
reputation for consistency, predominated over every other feeling,
whether as regarded his own interests or those of the public; or that he
was inflexibly bent upon the original maxim of risking every thing
rather than promote a mission whose tendency he seemed to think inimical
to his own and his nephew’s interests and reputations.]
[Footnote 12: Mr. Hutchison.]
[Footnote 13: I think I have observed, elsewhere, that this description
of present is deemed courteous and highly complimentary by the negroes,
particularly when conferred by a chief or crowned head. This character,
however, was attempted to be disputed when the palaver had gained its
greatest ascendancy, and not before, for no other reason that I know of
than that government and the committee would readily credit the belief
that it might be interpreted into threatened hostility and insult. Let
us put the question fairly to the issue, by referring to what Bosman
relates of the war between “the Commanians” (Commenda itself) and the
natives of Saboe, Acany, and Cabes Terra, page 33:—
“Notwithstanding we (the garrison of Elmina castle) had been hitherto
perfectly neuter, the negro-general sent a civil message to our
governor, with several sculls of his vanquished enemies, in token _that
he had resolved to live and die in the service of the Hollanders; his
message was civilly received, and after thanks and presents to the
general, dismissed_.”]
[Footnote 14: Equivalent to £6400 currency, the two demands making
£12,800 together.]
[Footnote 15: This was the only compliment of the kind that gentleman
ever voluntarily offered to my political opinion, my rank, or interests,
in the affairs of Ashantee.]
[Footnote 16: Whether the linguist on this occasion was instructed to
deceive me, whether he acted from design or inadvertency, I cannot
say;—but I may say, I _believe_ his intention was to support Mr. Smith
in his endeavours to oppose the mission.]
[Footnote 17: I have been thus explicit only from the circumstance that
the governing faction, in lack of a more equitable charge against me,
had the effrontery to write in a clandestine manner to the committee of
African merchants, setting forth a disinclination or a dread on my part
to perform the duties for which I was sent out.]
[Footnote 18: Mr. Swanzy had publicly declared, both in council and out,
that the Board had no power to assume dictation to me, or to interfere
in the remotest degree, with those functions which His Majesty’s
Government had confided to me.]
JOURNEY TO COOMASSY.
JOURNAL
OF A
RESIDENCE IN ASHANTEE,
_&c. &c._
* * * * *
CHAPTER I.
JOURNEY TO COOMASSY.
DEPARTURE FROM CAPE COAST CASTLE — MOUREE — DUTCH CASTLE OF NASSAU —
BEETLES — ASHANTEE TRAVELLERS — RUINS OF FANTEE CROOMS — EMPEROU —
DEFEAT OF THE FANTEES AT THAT PLACE — FORMIDABLE SERPENT — SECOND PARTY
OF ASHANTEE TRADERS; TERROR OF THE FEMALES — MOSLEM FROM COOMASSY — RED
AND BLACK ANTS — DESCRIPTION OF DOONQUA — THE FORESTS — REMAINS OF
MANSUE — PROVISIONS PLUNDERED BY THE FANTEES — COURSES OF RIVERS —
ABANDOU — CROOMS OR TOWNS OF FOOSO, YANCOMADY, AND AKOMFODY — ANNOYANCE
FROM RATS — THE YOUNE, A KIND OF SLOTH — DANSANSOO — MEKAREN — PASSAGE
OF THE PRAA — PRASSO — KIKIWHARY — ENMITY OF THE INHABITANTS TOWARDS THE
FANTEES; SEDUCTIVE ARTS OF THE FEMALES — SITE OF MIASSA — DEFEAT OF THE
ASSINS UNDER CHEBOO — REMAINS OF SAPORGAH, TIBIASSAH, BEQUAMA, AND
ENSAMAH — ARRIVAL AT ANSAH.
On the 9th of February, at an early hour in the morning, I mounted my
palanquin and bade adieu to the castle. As the customary salute was
fired, a party of the town’s-people assembled, and tracked my steps
along the eastern beach as far as the outskirting houses. Here the crowd
of spectators was augmented by another group of men, women, and
children, who flocked from the different avenues. The spectacle was
indeed calculated to impose an idea of splendour upon the imagination of
a negro; and the novelty of a palanquin with four bearers was a
refinement in the _luxury_ of African travelling, that excited
additional attraction. The women, in particular, who surrounded me, and
for a time impeded my progress, were profuse in courtesy.
At the distance of a short quarter of a mile, my friendly retinue bade a
final farewell, and returned to their homes. About this time I was
compelled to alight, on approaching some rugged cliffs which intersect
the beach, jutting out into the sea. The crags which here and there
overhung the water, under the semblance of little capes, formed of
shelving pointed rock, created serious impediments.
The surface was now totally changed from a bed of sand to one of granite
rock, which at intervals stood erect in small spiral points, as if
chiseled by the hand of art into the fanciful forms it exhibited. The
jutting cliffs appeared to increase in number as we advanced; their
acclivities were also of some elevation, and sloped off in angles. In
some instances the surface exhibited solid ramparts of stone shooting
upwards into ridges little short of perpendicular elevation, and these
barriers it became necessary to scale by the combined assistance of
hands and feet.
The sun had by this time attained an elevation that rendered the effect
of his beams oppressive; the absence of the sea breeze, which seldom
sets in before ten o’clock, contributed to increase the languor I felt.
The exhaustion occasioned by premature exertion wanted but little of
producing a fit of fainting; and at last it totally prevented my
descending from the vehicle, notwithstanding the embarrassment and
detention it occasioned. In this helpless state, my attendants were
compelled to lift me over the obstructions as they occurred. At last we
emerged from our difficulties, and as we quitted the sea coast, in
approaching the Dutch fort of Mouree, the path presented a fine surface
of sand skirted by a few stunted bushes.
The road between Cape Coast Castle and Mouree, and from Mouree to
Annamaboe, is at all times disagreeable, and perhaps the most
precipitous on the line of coast, but the state of the tide during this
journey rendered it particularly so.
On entering the town the Dutch colours were hoisted in compliment to my
arrival, by the corporal who had charge of the fort; for it is at
present ungarrisoned, although not considered as abandoned by his
Majesty of the Netherlands.
When I alighted, I felt a degree of exhaustion and indisposition,
occasioned by a slight attack of fever, that rendered it extremely
dubious if I could proceed further that day. The crowd which had
assembled obstructed the current of air, small as it was, and increased
the languid symptoms until, for a few seconds, the heat was
insupportable; but a draught of the cold infusion of bark, added to the
refreshing application of vinegar, quickly restored me. The Caboceer of
the town and the Dutch corporal shortly after waited upon me to exchange
compliments.
Some trivial disputes ensued among the Fantees on the distribution of
equal loads, and before the misunderstanding could be enquired into, it
appeared that the good sense of those, to whom the least cumbersome and
weighty burthens were assigned, had suggested the propriety of decamping
during the confusion. To appease these discontents it was requisite to
supply the deficiency, by taking on a few more carriers; and as nothing
more remained to do, but prosecute the journey, I embraced this
opportunity to disencumber myself from the burthen of military
accoutrements. The travelling dress which I now substituted for my
former apparel, consisted of a jacket and trousers of linen; it was
commodious and light, and contributed, in no small degree, to alleviate
the oppression from intense heat. The hour of ten flattered us with
expectation of a sea-breeze, and a zephyr, announcing its approach, soon
afterwards agitated the torpid atmosphere.
The Dutch castle at Mouree is called Nassau; and, when the slave trade
was in its vigour, was deemed a station of great importance. The
edifice, although small, is compact, and regularly flanked with bastions
at each angle; this, added to its elevated situation, would entitle the
place to some respect as a fortification, provided it still maintained a
garrison. The landing-place is tolerably commodious for canoes, and
differs little from that of Cape Coast. The town of Mouree, like all the
towns in the vicinity of European forts, is built immediately under the
walls, and is a compact mass of stone and clay-constructed houses,
without any other order than a division of the whole into irregular
openings or avenues, forming narrow lanes, of intricate, and in some
places, from the obstructions of dirt and rubbish, of difficult access.
The whole population is supposed not to exceed eight thousand souls. Its
distance from Cape Coast is nearly four miles.
Our route from Mouree was rather to the eastward of north. The path in
the vicinity of the town was open for the distance of more than half a
mile, except at intervals, where a few projecting boughs of the loftier
kinds of shrubs intersected each other; but as we proceeded the road
gradually contracted, and the bushes which were stunted before, now
exhibited a more mature and luxurious growth; added to which, a number
of lofty trees grew spontaneously over the surface of the country.
The soil on the line of march was a reddish clay, covered with a scanty
surface of white sand, interspersed with broken pieces of quartz: the
sand, however, appeared attached exclusively to the path, and was
probably the effect of constant friction upon the quartz pebble, which,
from its brittle quality, pulverized to a glittering dust.
The discordant voices of the larger species of birds now vibrated
through the woods; but the luxuriancy of the foliage obstructed the
view. The notes of parrots, crown birds, and toucans, were, however,
easily recognized amidst a vociferous medley of warblers, who, as we
advanced, retreated, sportively singing and hopping from spray to spray.
Various large beetles, but more particularly one of the cricket kind,
swelled out a lengthened note of an indescribable sound, exceedingly
shrill and inharmonious. These little inhabitants of the forest climb
the loftiest boughs, where they sustain life by perforating the bark,
and sucking out the glutinous sap of the ganian and other mucilaginous
trees; they are extremely numerous, and as their notes commence with the
rising sun, and last throughout the day, they keep up an uninterrupted
uniform dizzy chirping.
At three miles and a half from Mouree, we passed the site where a small
Fantee croom was said to have existed, but of which not a vestige
remained. The plantations of cassada, banana, guava, &c. nevertheless
still flourished in unnurtured growth, blended with the wild productions
of the forest. The path suddenly contracted as we ascended an acclivity,
and the foot-way, which appeared to have been formed by the passage of a
current of water, was scarcely wider than the breadth of a foot. The
impediment occasioned by this gully was increased by the fall of several
large trees, which intersected the path at right angles, forming, as it
were, a breast work which it was necessary to scale or to scramble
under.
The distant tinkling of an iron castanet now attracted our notice, as it
announced the approach of strangers; another instant presented to our
view a party of five Ashantees, who informed us that they were
journeying to Elmina for gunpowder. They had left Coomassy, they said,
twenty-one days before. One of these travellers was decorated with a
very large necklace of human teeth, interwoven with charms. The teeth
had the appearance of recent extraction, an opinion that was afterwards
strengthened by the sight of a little ivory blowing horn, to which he
was then in the operation of fastening a human jawbone. To my inquiries
how he became possessed of these trophies I could not obtain a
satisfactory answer; a smile of brutal insensibility, however, convinced
me the question was of a gratifying nature, inasmuch as it was
interpreted into a compliment to his military prowess. This feeling was
displayed by various contortions of mockery and exultation, as he
directed a sort of conversation to the relic, in a chaunting tone.
A little beyond this, we entered another plantation in a kind of valley,
containing the site where also a Fantee croom had stood in former times.
We passed two other spots of this description, before we entered an
opening covered with palms, plantains, and papas. Here I sought the
shelter of a tree, under which I alighted to obtain a little rest, and
allow my attendants leisure for refreshment. On descending from my
hammock (for the palanquin I had already been compelled to lay aside)
the sensation of languor was so oppressive, that I could not preserve my
footing without grasping the boughs for support.
The surface beyond this was every where covered with the same dwarf
shrubs and forest trees, blended together. The stems of some were
concealed by a species of parasitical plants, covering in some places
the loftiest boughs. This produced a lively and novel contrast to the
barren stems of others by which they were surrounded. Detached patches
of bamboo and dwarf palm became also more frequent, and added to the
variety of the landscape.
The next opening exhibited some relics that denoted a field of battle;
it is now remarkable for a few straggling hovels built among the ruins
of an extensive village, and inhabited by a remnant of Fantees, who had
the good fortune to escape during the invasion of their country by the
Ashantees.
This croom is called Yanbrassa: the number of its inhabitants did not
appear to exceed two hundred; notwithstanding the numerous plantations
by which it was surrounded afforded invitation to settlers. No corn was
seen, but yams, bananas, plantains and papas flourished without culture.
At a little distance to the North and East, on the slope of a hill,
stands another village, called by the natives Tom Coffee, after the name
of a particular kind of cloth, of which the Fantees are very fond. Here
also the plantations were in a state of high natural perfection.
At the distance of half a mile, we passed the ruins of a small croom,
called Berim: another spot of desolation bore the name of Eydro. We then
entered a plantation that covered a greater extent of ground than any we
had before passed. The diameter of this space probably exceeded a
furlong, and in the midst of a jungle stood a few hovels squeezed within
a mass of crumbling walls. The name of this croom was Emperou. Its
inhabitants during the first invasion of Fantee by the King of Ashantee,
had observed an unfortunate neutrality, until the great battle which
preceded the destruction of Abrah, and the extermination of the Braffo
chieftains. To this unhappy policy they had been inclined from jealousy
of the Braffo influence. Convinced of their error when it was too late,
and smarting under the recent blow their country had sustained by the
loss of its capital, they rashly formed the resolution of defending
themselves against a sovereign already flushed with conquest. A Caboceer
named Quassy Beni, who had escaped from the general slaughter at Abrah,
presented himself before Emperou with the shattered remnant of his
division, and invited the inhabitants to form a junction with his forces
for the defence of their town. The proposal was embraced by the Emperous
who had already collected another body of auxiliaries. This little army
was, besides, augmented by the junction of some straggling parties who
were necessarily falling back as the enemy advanced. The king, however,
was acquainted with what was transacting; his object, after the
destruction of the Fantee government, was, perhaps, confined to the
temporary occupation of Fantee, and the imposition of contributions; but
the obstinacy of the people, it is said, forced that monarch to secure
his conquests by the exterminating use of fire and sword, until he drove
his enemies into the sea. Be this as it may, it was admitted by Fantees
as well as Ashantees, that before another blow was struck, after the
affair at Abrah, the king sent messengers to several of the Fantee
towns, calling the people to submission, upon the promise of protection
in life and property: thus pacifically inclined, he sent two of his
sword-bearers to Emperou, to proclaim his sentiments to the chiefs; but,
whether from distrust, or a too implicit reliance upon their own
strength, these proposals were not only treated with contempt, but the
royal messengers were used with indignity, and then put to death. When
this impolitic step became known to the king, it naturally rekindled his
wrath, and he then vowed the overthrow of Cheboo’s government.
The order was now given to exterminate the population of every town, and
raze the houses to their foundations; and in conformity with this
resolution a body of troops was detached against Emperou, with orders
not to spare an inhabitant of either sex. In the meantime the Fantee
troops, assisted by the inhabitants and their auxiliaries, assembled to
the number of many thousands, and by vigilance succeeded in cutting off
some reconnoitring parties of the enemy. Too much elated by this
success, they at length determined upon the plan of endeavouring to
intercept the communication between the detachment and the king’s head
quarters. They separated their men into two bodies, one of which being
left to guard the town, the other made a circuitous march to the
westward, and fell unexpectedly upon the flank and rear of their
adversaries. No happy consequences attended the action; it would appear,
from accounts of the survivors, that neither party was prepared for the
rencontre. The Ashantees, however, lost no time in sounding the alarm,
rallying their forces, and recalling the advanced guard to their
assistance, while the Fantees, even before the onset, were appalled. In
this state of eventful inactivity, it is said, the main body of the
Fantees remained passive spectators during a distant skirmish between
their own vanguard and a detachment of the enemy. At last the Ashantees
advanced with a shout, which struck a decided panic in their favour; the
Fantees soon fled outright, and, with some loss, rejoined their comrades
at Emperou. Notwithstanding this check, the inhabitants, as the
Ashantees approached, suffered themselves to be led out to battle. The
united force of the Fantees is stated to have greatly outnumbered their
enemies, and a battle of the most sanguinary complexion ensued, at the
distance of a mile from the town. The first charge of the Ashantees was
severely checked, and they were driven back upon the main body with
slaughter. The enemy, however, was too well disciplined to allow the
Fantees to improve upon their advantage, and a murderous firing
succeeded the onset, in which the Ashantees, from superior celerity, had
the advantage. Still, however, the Fantees maintained their ground, with
a degree of intrepidity not undeserving of record, as it is perhaps a
solitary instance during this war of their valour and resolution. On a
sudden, vollies of musquetry announced an attack on their flank and
rear, supported by the king in person. This unexpected charge decided
the fortune of the day, for the Fantees now retreated with
precipitation, while their enemies rushed on, and strewed the forest
with indiscriminate carnage. Before the retreating army could regain the
town, it was doomed to cut a passage through an opposing body of the
enemy, who were at that critical period in possession of many of the
houses; despair assisted their efforts, and their enemies were either
cut to pieces or trampled under foot. The town itself, which was already
in flames, afforded no protection against the murderous assaults of
their pursuers. In this hopeless state, several of the Caboceers, after
destroying their property, their wives, and children, put an end to
their own existence; whilst the people, endeavouring to fly from the
scene of carnage, were intercepted and butchered, or cast headlong
amidst the burning houses. To sum up the horrors of this barbarous
scene, every house was entered with fire and sword, and the inhabitants
of both sexes destroyed. It is said that, with the exception only of
about one hundred people, who fled before the town was assaulted, not a
soul escaped from the calamity. These particulars were narrated by my
two guides who were in that conflict.
The walls stood in many places erect, exhibiting the action of fire
which, by vitrifying the clayey composition, had preserved the ruins
from dissolution. The surface of the earth was whitened, in particular
spots, with ashes, and bleached human bones and sculls, forming a
distressing portrait of African warfare. In crossing the opening, some
of the Fantees, by way of diversion, pointed to the relics, saying
jocosely, they were Ashantee trophies: the Ashantees retorted the jest
upon their fellow travellers with equal good-humour, and all parties
were indifferent at a retrospection so paralyzing to humanity.
A small brook crossed the path at a little distance from Emperou,
tracking a course south-east to the Amissa River, which flows into the
sea at the back of Tantum. During the operation of filling some water
bottles, a discovery was accidentally made of a large snake coiled upon
a pile of stones. The reptile appeared to be in a state of torpor, or
sleep; and judging from the mass of folds, could scarcely be less than
fourteen feet in length, by nine inches diameter, in the thickest part
of the body. The scales on its back were large, and beautifully
variegated with red and bright yellow. I was anxious to obtain the skin,
but it was not deemed prudent by my guides to make the attack, as they
affirmed that its bite was mortally venomous. In this particular it may
therefore be supposed to differ from the boa-constrictor.
We met, shortly afterwards, with a large party of Assins and Ashantees,
who stationed themselves on each side of the road, and saluted me with
many courteous bows. They were armed in the fashion of their country
with musquets and knives, and were conveying some bulky loads of ivory,
and a valuable kind of grease used by the natives for anointing their
bodies. A number of women and girls, whose employment consisted in
attending upon their husbands, or masters, closed the order of the
march, which from the nature of the path was necessarily in Indian file.
The elderly females were under some consternation as I approached, yet
they were not behind the men in good manners; but the young women, who
perhaps had never seen a white man before, were wholly unable to
controul their fears. The panic was excited by a very interesting girl
who, at first sight, plunged screaming amidst the bushes, after
resigning her hold of a bundle which she was carrying on her head. This
movement was instantaneously adopted by the rest of her companions, to
the great diversion of the men, who added to the general amusement by
raising a shout, which increased the apprehensions of the _fair_
fugitives.
We had not proceeded twenty paces from the spot, before we again fell in
company with a party consisting of three men, two of whom were slaves,
carrying a few elephant’s teeth to the coast. The dress of the
proprietor, which consisted of a long shirt, a pair of ragged trousers,
and a loose cap resembling a turban, convinced me that he was a Moslem.
He saluted me with the customary inclination of the body, which I
acknowledged with the Salam. For some moments he appeared in doubt, but
recovering from his surprise he pursued my steps, and taking me by the
hand, repeated with great emphasis, “Alikà Salam yà khâi,” “Peace be
upon you brother.” I endeavoured to converse with the man; but we were
wholy unintelligible to each other, except in the few scripture phrases
which comprised his stock of Arabic knowledge. By means of an
interpreter, I found he was from Coomassy, where he had left the King in
anxious expectation of my arrival. He had just quitted Doonqua, he said,
where all the white men were well.
Pursuing the journey, we came to an opening where a few huts stood
detached from the ruins of another large croom, whose fragments were
half concealed in high Guinea grass, and jungle, interspersed with
plantain, guava and papa trees. I was by this time so extremely
exhausted with fatigue and indisposition, that it was doubtful if I
could even reach my destination that night. Somewhat refreshed, however,
by a short repose I indulged in at this place, and by another
application to my restorative draught, I again resumed the march, and
before four o’clock was gratified with the prospect of Doonqua. The day
had been excessively warm, and the thermometer in town stood at 90
degrees in the shade.
The horizontal distance from Mouree to Doonqua, I estimate at fourteen
miles and a half, although from the sinuosities of the path there can be
no doubt that the whole journey exceeds twenty. The average course from
Cape Coast is N. NE. The surface of this space is covered with a mixture
of tall tress, stunted shrubs and bushes. The species which I
recognised, amidst a vast amphitheatre of unknown productions, were
bombax or silk cotton, tamarind, low palm, ganyan, wild orange, wild
cedar, monkey apple, doom trees, a sort of wild fig, erasma, mahogany,
and a lofty tree that yielded a light apple like the coloquintida. Among
the dwarf trees were several kinds of dying woods, of which I saw
samples varying in tint from a deep to a bright yellow and orange, and
others of a crimson red. Besides these, were numerous trees of lignum
vitæ, iron wood, guava bush and laurel. I discovered also, several
species of fine cane, of which the rattan and small Bamboo were the most
conspicuous, growing in clumps or patches. The anana, or pine apple
plant, flourished along the sides of the path, and even under the more
sheltered parts of the forest, exhibiting, equal luxuriance in spots
where it was not possible for the rays of the sun to penetrate. Several
sorts of aloes were seen embedded with creeping shrubs: that called
_aloe succotrina_ was distinguished by its thorny leaves and spiral
growth; but others of this class towered into trees of a beautiful
appearance, the _aloe arborescens Africana_. Chains of fibrous stems
shooting forward in longitudinal projections, completed the wild
beauties of the surrounding scenery. Many of the fibrous species varied
in dimensions, from the size of ordinary packthread, to the thickness of
a large cable rope, which in some instances they represented by a
natural twist. These vegetable chains, wholly destitute of leaves,
appeared to bind the entire forest in solid concatenation. In some spots
they rose to an elevation of fifty feet perpendicular height, sustaining
their weight by an endless variety of folds and embraces, amidst the
thickest boughs, and descending again in an opposite direction only to
seek another commodious supporter.
The soil between Mouree and Doonqua, is a rich brown mould, occasionally
encrusted by white sand and quartz pebble. The mould, however, did not
appear to be of sufficient depth to afford much nourishment to the
larger growth of the vegetable kingdom. On examining several fallen
trees, I particularly noticed that the roots grew almost exclusively in
horizontal shoots. This may be attributed as much to the sterility of
the strata below the mould, as to nature itself, because this remarkable
character was not confined to a particular class of vegetation. In the
ravines and gullies were large pieces of quartz scattered over deep
sandy beds. One remarkable patch of solid granite rose in pyramidal
masses to the altitude of twenty or more feet; these blocks of stone
were at a short distance from the ruins of Emperou. No smooth pebbles
were seen.
The habitations of the red ants form a striking feature, as they convey
the idea of little towns established in the wilderness by another order
of the creation. These erections are spiral, and of the elevation of ten
or more feet. Another class of these insects, the small black ant, build
nests on the boughs of trees, which in appearance resemble a globular or
cylindrical mass of black clay, unlike that of the red ant, which is of
a gravelly yellow tint. The weight of these masses of earth, and the
glutinous matter which cements the parts, causes the boughs to droop and
bend, in some cases, till they sweep the ground; and in others these
nests are cemented to the ramifications of several trees, which encrust
the whole in a solid mass of dripping mucilaginous matter. The most
voracious and formidable insect of this genus is the large black ant,
which burrows under the roots of trees, and erects a sort of nest upon
the surface, resembling in form the mushroom.
The village of Doonqua is indebted for the importance it now enjoys, to
the invasion of Fantee, and the desolation of its towns and cities,
particularly that of Abrah. Formerly the spot on which it stands
exhibited only a few humble sheds, the residence of foresters, and
people whose occupations, as wood-cutters, and canoe builders, induced
them to settle there. The ground on which it stands has been evidently
gained from the forest. The inhabitants are said to exceed two thousand,
and out of that number, in cases of emergency, they can equip 300 men
for war.
The plantations that surround the croom are extensive, and yield more
than sufficient for internal consumption. The houses of the inhabitants
are built in the style of those of the Ashantees. A piece of ground is
first cleared, and a frame-work, according to the plan and dimensions of
the intended edifice, is erected, with some regard to regularity. This
frame consists of long poles, sunk below the surface at each angle. To
these poles they attach hurdles by means of a strong lashing of fibrous
twigs collected from the forest, the interstices being afterwards
closely filled up with clay, which is smoothed over with rubbing stones;
this gives it solidity and uniformity. Bamboo and palm boughs are
employed for the thatch, which from its regular structure has a much
more pleasing effect than the rude boughs and grass used by the natives
on the coast.
The house of the Caboceer consisted of an assemblage of apartments
quadrangularly enclosed in the form of three squares; linked together by
avenues, barely sufficient in width to admit free ingress. Upon
enquiring the reason of this singular style I was satisfied with the
reply, that it was advantageous for defence or escape, in case of an
attack. I could not avoid remarking that the plan upon which the more
wealthy part of the community built their houses, resembled, although
rudely, that of the Moors of Barbary; the only striking difference was
between the thatched roofs of the former, and the terraced covering of
the latter.
A small stream of running water, in the vicinity of the croom, supplies
the inhabitants with that element in a state of purity, and thereby
exempts them from that excruciating malady the Guinea-worm, a disorder
with which the natives of the sea coast, who use the stagnant water of
pools, are cruelly afflicted.
The Caboceer who governs Doonqua under the king is called Paintry, and
the village is also known as Paintry’s croom. The course of policy
pursued by this chieftain during the invasion, entitled him to the
clemency of the conquerors. After the destruction of the Fantee armies,
he was permitted to retire from Abrah with all his property, and this
was the spot he selected for his residence, to which he invited other
settlers to establish themselves under his protection. The king
afterwards conferred upon him the dignity of Caboceer; although the only
benefit he reaps from that title is an honourable seclusion from the
court, whose policy interdicts all confidence in the Fantees.
Towards the close of the day, the Ashantees, headed by their two
captains, Ado and Quako, assembled to wish me joy on my arrival, and to
learn my intentions regarding the morrow. As the fatigue I had undergone
suggested the propriety of rest, I retired at an early hour, but passed
a sleepless night, for I was attacked with a smart paroxysm of fever,
attended with acute pains in the side.
The tenth of February was spent in quarters. Mr. Collins, during the
day, had an attack of ague, and was confined to his bed; the other
officers, however, enjoyed good health. The thermometer at twelve
o’clock stood again at ninety degrees in my apartment; but as the
evening approached it fell, and during a tornado, which ushered in a
heavy fall of rain, the quicksilver was for a few seconds considerably
agitated: it afterwards sunk gradually during the storm to eighty-one
degrees. Towards evening it fell as low as seventy-six degrees, and the
transition from heat to cold was acutely felt. My health still continued
below mediocrity until the evening of this day, when I was overpowered
for the first time with a soothing sleep; from this period my bodily
ailments subsided with a rapidity that has ever since made the
retrospection wonderful. At the dawn of day I arose much refreshed, and
already I enjoyed the certain criterion of returning health, a wholesome
craving for food. From this period, the eleventh day of the month,
symptoms of convalescence advanced rapidly. Mr. Collins was also
improving; and as circumstances were thus propitious, I gave orders for
the march on the following day. Unfortunately at this crisis the chief
linguist was severely afflicted with Guinea-worms; and without giving
notice of his intention, he returned to the Cape.
At eight o’clock in the morning of the 12th, we left Doonqua. After
penetrating through a thicket of five or six hundred paces, we suddenly
found ourselves in a forest as magnificent as it was dense and
intricate. Numerous plants and creepers of all dimensions chained tree
to tree, and branch to branch, clustering the whole in entanglement, so
that it sometimes became necessary to cut an opening as we proceeded. In
this operation we were considerably retarded, and our clothing suffered
much from the rude assaults we sustained from the trunks of trees, and
impending boughs. Nor was this the only inconvenience; for
notwithstanding we were continually on the alert in watching these
formidable obstructions, we could not avoid receiving some slight
contusions, and scratches. The opacity of this forest communicated to
the atmosphere and the surrounding scenery a semblance of twilight; no
ray of sunshine penetrated the cheerless gloom, and we were in idea
entombed in foliage of a character novel and fanciful. The death-like
stillness that prevailed was soon interrupted by the occasional shouting
of the negroes, to put to flight, as they termed it, the evil spirits of
the forest. Now and then a flight of parrots and other gregarious birds
interrupted the intervals of silence; but the richness of this vegetable
canopy prevented the possibility of gaining even the most imperfect view
of these feathered screechers, or indeed of anything but those objects
by which we were immediately surrounded. Even on the line of path, so
frequent were the turnings, and so greatly did the angles incline to the
eastward and westward of north, that I have no hesitation in affirming
that the precision with which Mr. Bowdich has described his route by
compass, from what he has termed a calculation of its numerous angles,
is, at best, but a conjectural estimate.
In some spots the land was elevated in slopes and ridges, yet it was not
upon the whole deserving the name of hilly. On descending one of these
slopes, a partial opening in the forest afforded a limited prospect, and
the blaze of light that burst through this gap animated the scene with
some tints of lively green. Clumps of plantain trees were seen sprouting
out of a rich bed of grass and cane, and the whole plat was studded with
low palm and patches of jungle. We were now in the enjoyment of what was
comparatively a distant prospect; it was the summit of a little hill, at
a short musket-shot distance from the path, covered with vegetation. A
few wretched hovels stood in the midst of silence and desolation. In
former days, however, this gap contained a very populous town.
Again we plunged into the recesses of a forest whose obstructions were
as formidable as the preceding, and we shortly after came to a piece of
swampy land, on the margin of which we alighted for refreshment. Having
expeditiously satisfied the cravings of hunger, we resumed the journey
over two small water courses flowing to the south-east, but they were
nameless. After crossing another little stream, we were consoled with
intelligence that our resting-place for the night was close at hand. An
opening that admitted the fading rays of daylight, now presented a
capacious surface, fledged with exuberant patches of grass and jungle,
in the midst of which stood some tattered sheds. This was Mansue, where
formerly stood a large opulent town called by the same name, and
considered the frontier of the kingdom of Fantee. Mansue originally owed
all its importance to the traffic in slaves. When Fantee and Assin were
two distinct sovereignties, it was customary to permit the latter to
bring slaves and merchandize to this mart, where they were regularly met
by the Coast traders. In those days I was assured the whole space was
occasionally surcharged by assembled crowds, whose interests were
connected with the traffic in slaves.
The Ashantees had arrived before us, and already were their fires
blazing in all directions; it therefore became necessary to use
precautions against any accident that might endanger a communication
with the gunpowder, which the careless insensibility of these people
would have consigned to one of the sheds. A small chasm resembling a
cave, which stood at the distance of about a hundred paces to the
westward, was pointed out as a secure receptacle, and thither it was
conveyed.
The path over which we this day travelled differed materially from the
preceding journey. The forest between Doonqua and Mouree, however
imposing, is not to be classed with the one that now falls under
description; for, indeed, every advancing pace seems to confirm the
knowledge that the traveller is no longer on the confines, but in the
heart of a great continental wilderness, where nature governs on a scale
of proportionate magnitude. The bamboo and dwarf palm occupied intervals
where they covered the space of many acres, presenting thorny
impenetrable barriers; and where they bordered the path were amongst our
most formidable enemies. A tree of the mimosa species also, of large
dimensions, was occasionally discovered by an aromatic fragrance emitted
from its pods. These pods, which exhibited a firm woody texture, were
eagerly sought after by the Fantees, for the purpose of extracting their
odour. The Ashantees named the tree cotamma. Wild fig trees were
numerous, and the fruit lay thickly spread upon the ground. The leaf of
this tree bore, however, no resemblance to the true fig leaf; but rather
resembled the maple, in its formation and glossy surface. The fruit
itself, notwithstanding it could not visibly be distinguished from the
fig, resembled it neither in smell nor taste, for it was exceedingly
offensive, whilst its external construction promised all the delicacy of
that luscious fruit in a state of culture. The Bauhinea Scandens, or
Patagonian tamarind, every where abounded. This is a majestic tree, yet
it by no means deserves to be ranked with the first class of African
growth. The pod, as its name indicates, is a tamarind externally and
internally, but its dimensions are from one to two feet in length, and
in breadth about four inches, yielding a number of stones proportionate
to the size of the outer rind.[19] Besides these, the forest was strewed
with several kinds of fruit resembling the pomegranate, and a very large
growth of guava; but the odour they diffused was most repugnant to the
smell, notwithstanding their inviting looks. Bombax and wild tamarind
were the most conspicuous objects, as well from numbers, as their
remarkable forms and bulk. In certain spots some monstrous trees had
fallen to the earth from decay, exhibiting in that state, every stage
between maturity and decomposition. Here and there were scattered solid
mahogany logs, as if torn from their roots by tempests. Others under
rapid stages of decay, showed a gangrenous disease at the root. Many
also, which had the semblance of having fallen long since, yielded to
external pressure, and occasionally the foot would sink through
moistened dust to the depth of several inches. A few were cankered
through the centre, leaving an open passage between the separated stem
over huge heaps of rotten wood-dust. Some of the fibrous kinds were
covered with knots and sharp-pointed thorns of a fearful growth, the
punctures of which were considered by the Ashantees as painful and
poisonous; they were on this account avoided with caution.
Some hollows and slopes, where the rain had collected, exhibited sheets
of clay-coloured water through which we waded at uncertain depths; but
generally between the knee and ancle. The sides and bottoms of these
cavities were of a spongy slime, which absorbed the feet with the
slightest pressure, and rendered the passage exceedingly laborious.
We were seldom disturbed by the howling or appearance of wild beasts,
yet the spots which were supposed to have been visited by hyenas, were,
on approaching them, easily recognised by the emission of a fetid
effluvia which, it would seem, the earth had imbibed from the
exhalations of the hide of that animal. Indeed these rancid smells were
frequent on the route, although we never could discover their authors.
As the night closed in, we endeavoured, by means of the luggage, to form
a fence round our tattered habitation; and having erected a sort of
breast work, we retired to rest as composedly as our limited comforts
would permit: for at Mansue we could procure nothing, save two or three
unripe plantains. These privations had been anticipated at Doonqua by a
stock of provision, more than reasonably enough to last two or three
days; but our good friends the Fantees, imagining they could carry the
burthen in a more commodious manner than on their heads, had thought it
advisable to distribute the weight internally. Besides committing so
great a depredation on our suppers, they had made a serious attack upon
the rum kegs and wine bottles. The excessive fatigue of the march, had
indeed overpowered the acute sensation of hunger; but I awoke at an
early hour in the morning, indifferently refreshed, and exceedingly
stiff from the bruises and excoriations of the preceding day. The route
to Mansue is about N. half E. distance seventeen miles horizontal,
twenty-two by the path, which is one of the most tortuous on the
journey.
At seven o’clock in the morning of the thirteenth we left Mansue, and
with it the prospect of the heavens, as we entered a forest exactly
similar to the former. The limits of the foot-way could scarcely be said
to exceed the width of twelve inches, over which the shrubbery projected
on all sides. Another fall of rain during the night, had soddened the
earth, and all the vegetable world was dripping with a moisture which
showered upon our bodies in plentiful discharges, while the foliage
nearer to the surface, with equal liberality, shed its moisture on our
clothes, to a degree that very speedily drenched us through to the skin.
The etiquette of Africa, which imposed on me the head of the file, was
little to be envied in this place, as it naturally exposed me to more
than a single share of soaking.
A little running stream, such as might be termed a brook, flowed with a
sluggish motion rather to the eastward of south. The Ashantees called it
Sanary. The gap it occasioned was equal to twelve or fourteen feet, yet
the junction of the boughs above the stream, entirely excluded the sun’s
rays. The water was limpid, although sensibly impregnated with
decomposed vegetable matter, and when disturbed by pressure, the soil
raised a turbid cloud from its bed, like the grounds of coffee.
About eleven A.M. we arrived at the Okee; a little river that holds its
course here to the S.SE. over a bed of granite rock and white sand, with
a gentle rippling current. This stream was the most important of any we
had yet seen, although its surface at the ford did not exceed four
fathoms. The depth was indeed too inconsiderable to deserve notice,
except in certain spots, where the water had collected in pools, formed
by the embankment and some stony obstructions. Here alone, the sun had a
partial action upon the shrubbery. The Okee empties itself into the sea
near Tantum, and is there known as the Amissa river. On leaving its
embankments, we again left behind us the cheerful light of day.
A party of Ashantees who were journeying south, suddenly approached, and
saluted by a respectful inclination of the body. They were from
Coomassy, they said, and had been deputed by Agampong to sell their
loads of ivory at El Mina, whither they were going. The information
obtained from these people corroborated former accounts of the anxiety
of the king to see me in his capital.
We arrived next at an extensive cluster of ground palms, where a little
stream called Ibani flowed to the west of south, and was said to unite
with a larger branch, in its track to the Okee. The river named Agoya or
Gaya, next arrested the attention, its course was south. The width of
this stream in the broadest part might have equalled eighteen feet, its
bed, however, was compact, and the embankment steep; but at the ford the
water scarcely covered the ancle. This is a stream tributary to the
Okee. About half a mile beyond the Agoya we fell in with a small clear
watercourse that terminated in an extensive swamp, spreading around as
far as our limited prospect afforded observation; in the midst stood
many of the largest forest trees.
On leaving the swamp, we caught the distant tinkling of the castanet,
and at the turning of an angle fell in with six Ashantees who had left
Abandou, as they asserted, within the compass of an easy run. We had not
long separated from these people, before we met two others in company
with many women and slaves, among whom was a girl about fourteen years
old, of the most jetty blackness, and in features more than ordinarily
interesting. Whether these travellers belonged to the preceding party or
not I had no opportunity of inquiring, for they fled abruptly into the
recesses of the forest.
Exactly at night-fall a little opening which discovered a mass of jungle
and cane, denoted our arrival at Abandou; the croom at which it was
proposed to rest that night. A few bamboo huts thatched with palm, and
lined with cane matting, marked the spot where formerly a more extensive
town existed. In the vicinity of the houses was a small plantation which
barely sufficed for the refreshment of travellers; for we were again
constrained to resort to our fragments.
The occupiers of two or three of these huts, were by the orders of the
Ashantees turned out of their habitations, for our accommodation; much
against their will indeed, for the weather indicated rain. The fissures
were therefore carefully closed, by which the apartments were rendered
tolerably comfortable.
The horizontal distance from Mansue to this place is eighteen and a half
miles, and by the path about twenty-three. The average of the courses
gave N. half E.
During the reign of King Cheboo, who governed in Assin prior to the
Ashantee invasion, Abandou was a populous village; but it now gives
shelter to a few foresters only.
The features of the country between Mansue and Abandou are almost the
same as on the preceding march. Many of the climbing plants, and some of
a migratory character, were observed to strike across the rivulets, from
bank to bank, by twisting their stems for support amidst the lower limbs
of lofty trees, and adhering in their progress to whatever object stood
in the way, until the opposite shore again afforded a permanent resting
place. The large parasitical plants were more frequently seen as we
advanced to the north. The mimosa classes were numerous, as also
clusters of the ground palm, and wild aloe; ebony, various species of
mahogany, iron-wood, wild tamarind, &c. were among the most conspicuous,
and may be added to those already described as inhabitants of this
forest.
The banks of several streams exhibited strata of red and dark grey
coloured clays, surmounted with light and sandy mould. Decaying wood and
vegetable matter presented solid masses of corruption in all its various
stages. The thermometer in the woods at eight o’clock A.M. stood at
eighty degrees, and at noon at eighty-two.
Notwithstanding the combination of evils such as have been described,
and which are unavoidable in travelling through the forests of this
kingdom, the fatigue they occasion is perhaps more than counterbalanced
by the friendly shade they afford the European traveller. The contrast
in temperature, when we emerged to one of those insulated spots where
the sun has a partial action, was equal to an increase of eight or nine
degrees on Fahrenheit’s scale.
A light rustling breeze from the east, shortly after our arrival at
Abandou, indicated an approaching tornado. The thunder was heard in the
distance, but no rain fell near our quarters. As the heavens were now
partially open to observation, we were for some time amused with the
flight of parrots, crown birds, toucans, cranes, vultures, hawks, and a
variety of smaller birds, retreating before the expected blast, and
seeking security from the torrents of rain which accompany this species
of storm. Some of the latter were clothed in plumage beyond conception
beautiful; about the same time, a troop of monkeys of the marmozet and
large black species, were sportingly skipping from tree to tree, with
astonishing dexterity.
The fatigue we had endured, and the limited rest we enjoyed in our
quarters at Mansue, induced an early retirement to repose. For my own
part, I revelled until morning, in what then seemed to me the most
luxurious repose I had ever enjoyed.
On the 14th, at eight o’clock in the morning, we left Abandou: the path
for the first two miles was particularly intricate, and the ground more
than usually covered by entangled thickets of bamboo, palm, briars, and
other thorny ligaments.
At three miles distance from Abandou, we fell in with a pretty little
rivulet called Katoa, its course was to the south-east, over a bed of
rock and sand. This also is tributary to the Amissa. At half a mile
beyond this, we crossed another stream of less magnitude, running to the
southward of west, into the Katoa: it was called by the Ashantees
Abonou. In half an hour more, we fell in with the Okee, its computed
distance from Abandou being short of five miles and a half. The course
of the river this time, was westward, inclining a little to the south,
which was the reverse of its course on the south side of Abandou. The
ford at this place was intersected by a chain of rocks forming a sort of
bridge. We shortly after crossed the Adanso running south-west into the
Okee, at no great distance from the ford. Here we perceived a number of
Assin women and children, who were washing in the stream.
Lions and panthers were said to be found here occasionally only, for
they usually occupy the thickets in the vicinity of villages, where they
enjoy more opportunities of satisfying the cravings of hunger on the
cattle of the inhabitants than in the solitary regions of the
wilderness: an observation which appeared to me of a reasonable texture,
as it coincided with the opinion I had previously formed on the nature
of those voracious quadrupeds. The lion, the tyger, the panther, the
leopard, say the Ashantees as well as the Arabs, are delicate in the
selection of their victims. They must destroy the carcase themselves, or
they loathe the food; and the blood alone suffices their wants, unless
indeed the rage of hunger be very great, in which case they will devour
a small portion of the flesh, leaving the remains of their prey to the
hyenas and other carnivorous animals. The reason they alledge why
hyenas, jackalls, &c. make more extensive excursions, is that these
animals will take up with any kind of food, whether in a state of
putrefaction or not. The superior beasts of prey seldom remove to any
great distance from the place which gave them birth, provided there be
opportunities of sustaining life, even at any risk from the wiles of
mankind. Throughout the whole extent of land from Doonqua to the banks
of the Praa river there are neither towns nor hamlets, consequently
there is no cattle for the sustenance of these animals, except the
chance range of a few deer.
We next arrived at a small stream that flowed to the south-west, but its
insignificance was such that it had no name. A mile beyond this stream
is the Atonsou, a little rivulet flowing S.SW. into the Praa. Here an
opening presented itself to our view, in which the scene was animated by
the reflection of the sun upon a rich foliage that surrounded a sort of
dam, where a body of water had stagnated. Having left the Atonsou a mile
in the rear, we came to a few bamboo huts like those at Abandou. The
area, which was free from forest trees, was about three hundred paces in
diameter. The sugar-cane, and a few banana and plantain trees, grew
hereabouts in luxuriant clusters, besides which there were both high and
low palm, bamboo, cocoa trees, and erasma. The name of this place is
Fooso. Prior to the invasion it was a town of some little consequence,
chiefly from its central position: it was then well inhabited, whereas
at present it exhibits no better aspect than Abandou, and neither place
admits of more than a temporary sojournment. During the retreat of
Cheebo, when he fell back upon Fantee, a skirmish took place between the
Ashantees and Assins in the neighbourhood of these huts; the former
gained the advantage, and the destruction of the town was the natural
consequence of that action. The Ashantee army then pursued the fugitive
monarch southward. The distance from Abandou to Fooso is eleven miles.
Our route still lay through forest, but to the north of Fooso the ground
was clear of thicket, and the eye was permitted to wander amidst its
recesses to the distance occasionally of forty or fifty yards. An
horizontal glance exhibited pillars of wood of mighty dimensions,
rivetted as it were to pedestals, such as Mr. Bowdich has not
inappropriately termed flying buttresses; trees proportionately smaller
filled up the interstices of this woody landscape. The prospect above
displayed all the verdure cemented in a rich entangled web, impervious
to a single ray of the noonday sun. This grand awning was still
enwreathed in folds by various plants of a migratory kind, and
particularly by that sort of fibrous stem which resembles cable ropes.
Ground palm, bamboo, and rattan, were now become very common.
A morass intersected the path at no great distance from Fooso, in which
mud predominated more than water, and beyond this, at an hour’s march,
we crossed a little current of water flowing westward, and entered
Yancomady. All that now remains of this village is a few Bamboo huts,
the abodes of foresters; some palm and plantain trees choked up with the
rank growth of cane and jungle were the only relics left of its
plantations, or rather, in despite of the exterminating hand of war,
they had again reared their heads above a surface of utter devastation.
Some spots appeared in the neighbourhood where clusters of the largest
trees had been subverted by the violence of tempests, thereby dragging
in their descent a whole army of surrounding objects, or crushing into
splinters those limbs which were incapable of sustaining the accumulated
pressure until a sufficient bearing was gained on the barren wrecks of
many trunks. Not unfrequently these threatening avalanches were
suspended in various angular positions, supported only by numerous bands
and links of forest cordage, entwined in friendly embraces amidst the
branches, and round the trunks. The thermometer here stood at eighty-
eight degrees in the shade.
Our path lay amidst clusters of ground palm, which grew on the brink of
a romantic slope terminating on our right in a deep chasm. A few hundred
paces from this we alighted at the Potessin, a rivulet whose current
flowed to the W.NW. in a stream of ten or twelve feet broad, and united
with the Soubin, tracking their course jointly to the Praa. In half an
hour more we arrived on the margin of a little rivulet called Ambama,
and from this stream we came to the Soubin, flowing to the northward of
west. As the evening approached we crossed a little brook called Aniya,
and from thence travelled by an agreeable path to Akomfody, where I had
resolved to pass the night.
This also was a long journey, for the march was of nine hours duration
in the whole; and in the course of that time, we traversed twenty-three
miles of ground, although the true distance is no more than seventeen.
The average course about N.NE.
The surface between Abandou and Akomfody is level, with the exception of
a few slopes, and the chasm between Yancomady and the Potessin. A rich
black loam frequently bordered the streams, and was occasionally found
in a few marshy spots. Sometimes a fat unctuous marl was met with in
extensive sheets: sand however predominated; and in place of the quartz,
which abounds so greatly in the southern districts, nothing in the shape
of a stone was discovered except a few small angular pieces of mica and
granite. Certain spots emitted a corrupt effluvia blended more or less
with the odour of decomposed vegetation and aromatic shrubs.
The hillocks formed by red ants were now rarely discovered; but the
black ants were numerous and troublesome, the bite they inflicted
occasioned a sharp burning heat. Nor are they less dreaded in the
cultivated parts and even in the towns. The voracity with which they
surprise their prey and assail him at all vulnerable points exceeds that
of locusts, when they alight in a field of corn; for when once the
attack is commenced, no bodily effort of the victim will avail him.
Flight is generally impotent, unless it should lead him to a pool, when
a natural instinct occasioned by the burning pain, induces him to plunge
into the water. This kind of ant, say the Ashantees, is not only the
plague of all other animals, but also of every class of their own
species, and of the red ant in particular. If I may be indulged in a
whimsical comparison, I will suggest a resemblance between these
diminutive freebooters and the Arabs, who alike migratory, rove over the
surface of the country, and establish a temporary residence where it
meets their views, often to the terror and in defiance of neighbouring
towns. Thus the black ants in myriads will trace a particular course,
and pursue that track in exact and thick embodied file, over an extent,
perhaps of miles, until they fix upon a spot to their liking, where they
erect little conical habitations, which may be said figuratively to bear
a similitude to the Arabian tent, both in colour and form. The red ants,
on the contrary, raise solid mounds of clay, which are cemented with a
mucilaginous substance that binds the parts together in an indissoluble
encrustation, and bids defiance to any violence short of the pick axe.
The intrusion of the black ants is thus effectually prevented; but
whenever their entrenched prey venture abroad, or are observed in
repairing and augmenting their habitations, which they frequently do, a
chase ensues, and thousands become the victims of their opponents, who
sometimes force an entrance even into the nest itself. I was present
once when a hillock was perforated in order to obtain what is commonly
termed the queen, or mother ant, which is an unwieldy insect, two inches
in length and one in circumference, formed in head and shoulders like
the common ant, with a white body like that of a maggot. This insect
resides in a separate cell, at the very foundation of the hillock, and
is said to be gifted with such inexhaustible fecundity as to bring forth
its myriads in daily and unceasing repetition. The act of cutting
through the surface was laborious; but that effected, the earth crumbled
as it usually does. The cells resembled those of the hornet, and were
generally in diagonal rows, but without order or regularity. The labour
was ultimately attended with success, in the discovery of the “queen
mother.” During the process the red ants fled in all directions, and
vainly endeavoured to recover their cells, while they were assaulted by
a troop of black ants, who in despite of a vigorous resistance devoured
their prey on the spot, or carried it off between their nippers. The
black ant, it is said, will fearlessly attack any animal, not exempting
mankind; but particularly infants, whom they frequently destroy and
devour. The panther is not too strong for them to cope with, the rat is
not too subtile, nor is the squirrel too active; vigilance and force are
equally unavailing. They will even, as the Ashantees report, seek the
abodes of serpents, and entering their holes, allow the reptile no
chance of escaping. The hanging nests of small black ants were also very
numerous in the trees, where, it would appear, they choose their abode
as a security against attacks of the universal enemy.
Acomfody, formerly a village of moderate dimensions, now lies desolate
like the rest, and is only remarkable for the few huts it contains. Its
plantations are equally insignificant, so that all the refreshments we
were able to procure amounted to a few unripe plantains. The huts were
already occupied by a party of travellers; but this, as usual, produced
no inconvenience to us, for they were speedily dislodged.
The fatigue of these marches had jaded even the negroes, several of whom
were lame; and notwithstanding the general anxiety to keep pace with the
mission, there were fifteen absentees as late in the evening as ten
o’clock. That we suffered in an equal proportion may safely be
concluded. We therefore sought our apartments, anticipating the benefit
of repose; but in vain; for after I had retired to rest, and had just
fallen into a profound slumber, I was roused by a confused noise, and a
sensation resembling that of the pressure of a man’s hand upon my face,
and on the bed-clothes, as though some persons were about to attack me
in that defenceless posture. Thus prepossessed I started out of bed, and
immediately recognised screechings resembling those of the rat. This
indeed confused, but did not satisfy me, so strongly did I imagine that
an intruder had gained access in the dark. By the aid of lights which my
attendants procured, I searched, but to no purpose, and while I was
prevailed upon to discredit the suspicion I had formed, I took the round
of the quarters, where all was confusion and uproar, from the same
cause. Mr. Collins was employed in defending himself with a stick
against these vermin; and at Mr. Salmon’s hut it was the same.
Satisfied, now, of the reality of the nuisance, I again retired to seek
repose, but in so doing was compelled to resort to the same weapon in
defence of my person against hundreds of rats, who, if I attempted to
lie down, ran indiscriminately over my face and body, in their nocturnal
gambols. Thus finding it impossible to sleep, I at last relinquished the
attempt. Even the Fantees were distressed in this _rat croom_.
Towards the dawn of morning I heard the cries of some wild animals,
which the Ashantees described under the name of _youne_. They said it
climbed the trees, and continued those cries throughout the night. From
this description, I could not clearly discover to what genus it
belonged; but subsequently I was shewn one at Coomassy, which was of the
sloth family.
We left Akomfody at the hour of nine, and at the distance of a short
mile, crossed a little rivulet running west of the Praa, whose name was
Shambany; and, in two miles more, alighted near a little brook called
Baraco, a branch, it is said, of the former. For three miles more, we
travelled over an entangled thicket, that led to half-a-dozen deserted
huts, surrounded by a moderate sized plantation: the name of this place
is Dansansoo. Not a soul inhabited the spot, and except when
occasionally tenanted by travellers and foresters, it is as desolate as
the wilderness itself. The summits of some old vitrified walls were here
and there perceptible, amidst a plat of withered jungle and cane. This
village was also demolished by the Ashantees during the retreat of
Cheebo and Apoutay.
From Dansansoo our route lay over the same mazy thicket. Many limbs and
branches of trees lay scattered about, exhibiting another scene of
recent violence, as if a current of wind had passed over this tract; an
opinion that was strengthened by the numerous little swamps, and the
quantity of moisture hereabouts.
Short of one mile and a half from Dansansoo we arrived at Mekaren. This,
likewise, was a wretched spot, consisting only of two or three hovels,
encompassed by a little plantation; yet this, too, had been a populous
place. A little distance beyond this, was a ravine that had the
appearance of a water course; but its sandy bed was now dry. The surface
was swampy, and overgrown with ground-palm, thicket, and small trees.
We were now in the neighbourhood of the Praa river. Hereabouts we fell
in with a party of traders, and one of the king’s sword-bearers. The
slaves, to the number of twelve or fourteen, were loaded with many
valuable teeth of ivory, also for the Dutch market. After a march of two
miles and a half more we gained a glimpse of the water between the
trees. A serpentine path, formed by a chasm, where the ridge was about
forty feet perpendicular height, led down to the margin of the river,
and here, after our guides had tried the depth of the stream, we crossed
in a slanting course, under the lee-side of a bed of shelving rock,
which stood near the centre. The water, at the ford, came up as high as
the arm-pits; and on gaining the opposite shore, we climbed up a steep
embankment, retracing the steps we had deviated from our true course. A
little fetische house, which overlooks the river, invited our steps to
the grateful shade of a cachou tree. Indeed, it is usual for the
northern travellers to visit this spot, and make oblations to the river
God, to whom the house is consecrated, before they presume to plunge
into his stream. The house was built with upright poles, and wattled
hurdles, lashed with twigs, and cemented together with clay; the roof
was of palm.
The prospect of the landscape from this commanding point was really
magnificent, but it was nevertheless a wilderness, and the knowledge of
this limited the pleasures of imagination, in despite of its superb
scenery, the fecundity of nature, and the fair bosom of a sheet of water
that gave animation to the prospect. The gloomy forest to which we had
been so long confined, presented itself to our view in a section, on the
side from whence we came, whose northern limits were laved by this
beautiful stream meandering in a serpentine course from NE. to SW.,
until both extremes were lost in forest. The margin of the water was
overgrown with a line of rank grass and flags, while the slope of the
embankment was thickly covered by shrubbery, such as ground-palm,
bamboo, rattan, sugar, and ground-cane, various species of the dwarf
mimosas, besides a variety of unknown plants. The rays of a sun, now in
his zenith, acting upon this mass of verdure, produced an animated tint
in the different shades of green upon every shrub, and almost upon every
leaf. The forest itself, frowning in awful majesty to the very verge of
the embankment, formed a romantic back-ground, while the surface beneath
was buried in darkness. To enumerate half the different species of
vegetation is not in my power, for the greater part by far were unknown
to me. Those which I recognised of the larger growth, were such as have
been already mentioned. Ganyan, however, was a very conspicuous object
on the opposite embankment. It is characteristic for this tree to shoot
out fibrous tendrils from its branches, and these are prolongated in the
growth, until they strike into the earth in various postures, although
generally perpendicular.
The smaller trees and shrubs, besides bamboo, rattan, and common cane,
were Guava bush, in limited quantity, indigo, umbrella trees, dying
woods, erasma, cocoa, male and female, migratory and stationary vines,
wild fig, aloe, tamarind, &c.
The surface here was a rich clay, free from pebble, and covered in the
line of the ford with a bed of light sand. This river enters the sea at
Chamah. It was at this time about the breadth of the Thames at Richmond,
and the current, which varies, on account of the freshes that
occasionally augment the stream, ran about four knots. The annexed plate
is engraved from a sketch I took on the spot. Mr. Bowdich, in
acknowledging his failure in an attempt at copying the natural beauties
of the scene, perhaps with reason declares, that it would baffle the
skill of any artist to depict “the life of its beauty,” except a Claude,
or a Wilson. Without questioning the truth of this, I hope my
presumption may meet with indulgence, as I trust it will, when I declare
that with a limited knowledge of the art, I attempted the sketch from
private and not public motives. It may be considered, therefore, as the
outlines of a landscape where the objects are represented as nature has
stationed them, rather than as an attempt at pourtraying the _animation
of vegetable life_.
[Illustration: A South prospect of the River Praa and the Forest of
Assin.]
Having indulged a sufficient time in the contemplation of these rural
beauties, we resumed the journey over what now appeared to us a
delightful path, and which, indeed, was open, and wide enough in some
places to allow six or seven men to walk abreast. The barbarism of the
southern forest appeared every where to be softened into features of a
milder aspect, and it seemed as though our toils were comparatively at
an end.
At a short half mile from the river, we entered the town of Prassoo
through a clean broad avenue, which separated the houses into two nearly
equal sections. Decency now required me to conceal my tattered apparel
(for deplorably torn it was) from public gaze. I therefore wrapped
myself in a cloak, and walked to the house of the Caboceer. This chief,
a little emaciated old man, whose name was Awado, received me with much
ceremony; but, as I then thought, little civility. In retiring I was,
however, better satisfied with the good-natured countenances of a few
scores of spectators, who were waiting to obtain a glimpse of white men.
From the Praa southward, the progress of the sword down to the very
margin of the sea may be traced by mouldering ruins, desolated
plantations, and osseous relics: such are the traits of negro ferocity.
The inhabitants, whether Assins or Fantees, whose youth and beauty
exempted them from slaughter on the spot, were only reserved to grace a
triumph in the metropolis of their conquerors, where they were again
subject to a scrutiny which finally awarded the destiny of sacrifice or
bondage; few or none were left behind to mourn over their slaughtered
friends, or the catastrophe of their unhappy country.
Prassoo, or Praa Assou, is a name derived from the proximity of this
town to the river Praa. In magnitude it cannot be compared with the
superior class of towns, yet it covers a great extent of ground; its
main street being about two furlongs in length, broad, clean, and
regularly formed. This street cuts through the village at right angles,
and intersects a number of little lanes and passages formed by rows of
houses, which are closely erected, although generally detached from each
other by a space of several feet. Many of these vacancies were enclosed
by hurdles and fences of bamboo, of an unsightly construction. The
generality of houses were rather superior to those we had seen at
Doonqua. The habitations of some were washed on the outsides with a
bluish clay, which, from exposure to the sun and atmosphere, had faded
to a dirty white, recalling by an effort of the imagination what had
been reported by Mr. Bowdich, of Ashantee, “architecture.” But the far
greater proportion of the houses were formed simply with hurdles,
plastered over with clay, the common soil of the country, and some of
hurdles and thatch only.
The population of Prassoo is stated to be about nine thousand souls. The
town does not lay claim to any very great antiquity, and may be said
still to enjoy the infancy of its growth. It is surrounded by luxurious
plantations of plantain trees, and some detached spots for the
cultivation of maize.
Leaving Prassoo, we entered an open path which we pursued for another
short half mile, and entered Kikiwhary long before the sun had run his
course. Our reception by the spectators was courteous and gratifying,
for every countenance testified joy. I dispatched a complimentary
message to the _deputy_ Caboceer, and, as it was my intention to pass
the night in the town, I alighted under a spreading tree, while the
captain of the escort selected appropriate quarters. After a short
absence, he returned and conducted us to a neat little house, containing
four apartments of convenient size. Our first calls, it may be well
supposed, were for food, particularly flesh, which we had been so long
deprived of. In the interim, I received a very acceptable present of a
sheep, some bread, and plantains, from the Caboceer of Prassoo. The
deputy Caboceer and some of the town’s-people waited upon me with
congratulations.
In the cool of the evening I walked over the town, and was every where
greeted with the most cordial and respectful welcome. A number of
children of both sexes, and some adults followed me at a reserved
distance, gratifying their curiosity without intrusion, and flying, as I
approached, when occasion required to retrace my steps. To me the scene
conveyed infinite pleasure from a retrospective contrast with the more
northern regions of this vast continent, where I have travelled among
strangers, from whom I have, on similar occasions, experienced insult
and hostility. The natives, however, were observed to scowl at the
Fantees, with a malignancy, which, at first, I could not satisfactorily
account for.
The town of Kikiwhary is considerably larger than that of Prassoo, and
its inhabitants proportionately numerous. The population of the place is
said to exceed fourteen thousand. The etymology of the word Kikiwhary
is, _take heart_, or resolution, a name which is not uncommon to other
towns of the kingdom. It is said, that the present town stands on the
scite of a very extensive city, which was destroyed some ages back by an
irruption of the tribes of Dagomba. Like Prassoo, it is characterised by
one main street, separating the houses into two sections, and
intersecting at right angles a number of avenues. The houses, which
resemble in construction those of Prassoo, consist of various classes,
from the quadrangular building down to the common bamboo hut. The white
clay washed walls generally distinguish the habitations of the wealthy;
but they are not numerous. As the apartments are all either upon the
ground floor, or elevated only two or three feet above the natural
surface, the roofs are necessarily the most conspicuous features in the
_coup d’œil_ of an African town. The interior compartments of the best
houses are furnished in a style corresponding with the simplicity of
African wants; two or three wooden stools, some earthen pots for
culinary purposes, cane mats, a water jar, and a lamp, constructed of
brass or clay, comprize all the utensils of the far greater portion of
the inhabitants; while many of the houses of officers high in rank, are
adorned with large wooden drums, and horns decorated with sculls and jaw
bones.
The government of Kikiwhary, like that of other towns, is vested in a
Caboceer and Council of Elders. This chief, whose name is Akassy, was at
this time absent. He was formerly a captain of that part of Assin,
governed by Amoo, and had, at the early part of the contest with
Ashantee, espoused the politics of the king. Akassy was deputed to
accompany the embassy to Cape Coast, as representative of Assin, to
discuss individual claims and private losses.
The complaints of the inhabitants of this town were, indeed, serious;
for it appeared that some of their people, to the number of about sixty,
had been _panyard_; or, in other words, seized, together with their
trading property, and sold by the Fantees at different stations on the
coast to slaving ships, while the king was absent in Gaman. Report
conveyed to me the murmurings of several families, who alleged their
participation in the injury; and the execrations which were lavished
upon the Fantees taught them, betimes, to limit their rambles.
This day’s journey was nine miles and a half, horizontal distance, and
the average of a long list of courses gave NW. and by N. On the banks of
the Praa, the thermometer, at one o’clock, P.M. gave eighty-seven
degrees in the shade, and again at three o’clock, it was as high as
ninety degrees in my apartment, at Kikiwhary.
The quarters were continually surrounded by spectators, chiefly women
and children, whose anxiety to gain a glimpse of our persons was
occasionally checked by an impulse of terror when we approached them.
The smiling countenances which graced these beauties, convinced me that
their destiny was a happier one than the generality of their sex enjoy
in Fantee. Their lascivious glances, accompanied by signs, which could
not be misconstrued, convinced me also that these ladies, however
superior to the Fantees, participated with them in a certain failing. I
was, besides, assured that many of the wives and daughters of men in
power, were employed in the way of traffic, to practise the seductive
charms of beauty, to inveigle the impassioned and unwary of the other
sex, in order to create a palaver, which commonly terminated in fines or
slavery. When the slave trade was legalized on the coast, it was a usual
mode of entrapping youth, and those who were incapable of redeeming
their persons from bondage, suffered the severity of this pernicious
law, and were in most cases sold in the public markets for exportation
to the West Indies.
About ten o’clock on the seventeenth, I bade farewell to Kikiwhary,
pursuing a path, which for the first two or three miles, inclined very
much to the westward of north; now and then it was rugged, and overgrown
with briers and underwood. The Ading rivulet, an inconsiderable stream,
whose current ran to the S.SE. at this distance, held on a course to the
Praa, where it united near the ford. The water did not exceed a foot in
depth, and twelve feet would have measured the breadth of the stream;
yet during the rains its tributary waters were said to inundate large
forest tracts hereabouts. Another stream called Ano, of less importance,
flowed easterly, and is said to connect itself with the Ading, from
which it is separated by a small tract only. Hereabouts is also a clear
open space of several acres in extent, surrounded by jungle and plantain
trees. The name of this spot is Miassa, (not Animiaso, as Mr. Bowdich
has spelt it, and which is an amalgamation of both river and town) it
was distinguished formerly for its great population, and when Assin was
a tributary sovereignty it belonged to the first rank of towns. A few
miserable inhabitants now occupy the land, where they have erected some
habitations of bamboo and thatch. Their existence chiefly depends upon
the traffic with Kikiwhary. Miassa was at one time deemed the capital
city of Assin, but it owed its importance more to the seat of
government, which was established here by Cheboo, than to any local
influence of its own. During the wars between Amoo and Cheboo, when the
latter had suffered two defeats from his adversary; a third sanguinary
conflict took place near this spot, which terminated in favour of the
latter, and the utter destruction of Amoo’s army followed the action.
Amoo, however, escaped, and again fled to Coomassy to lay his complaint
before the sovereign king. That monarch had employed many months in a
fruitless negociation prior to the engagement, and having about this
time received a cruel indignity in the person of an ambassador, he first
formed the design of compelling the Assins to a state of unlimited
submission.[20] Cheboo and Apoutay, however, assembled their forces in
the vicinity of Miassa, with the resolution of giving battle to the
Ashantees; but some disaffection among the Assin chiefs dispirited the
troops, and treachery was supposed to have stirred up a powerful
interest in favour of the enemy. The crisis approached which admitted
the choice of only two alternatives, either to risk a battle on the
spot, or resign that extensive tract of country north of the Praa, and
retire to the left bank of the river. In this dilemma Cheboo chose the
former, but in the hour of trial his courage was not competent to the
task of meeting an enemy so proverbially terrific as the king of
Ashantee. A few shots were exchanged at the onset, while Cheboo and a
party of followers fled to the river. This decisive panic in the chief
is said to have been occasioned by the desertion of several Caboceers,
on the field of battle. Be this as it may, it is admitted on all hands,
that here the Assins fled before an army which numerically did not
amount to half its own force; although it was confessedly superior in
organization, equipment, and resources. Slaughter followed in the rear,
down to the margin of the river, where Cheboo and his friends learning
the extent of their misfortunes, fled across the stream, and whither the
Ashantees had no inclination to pursue them, at that time. Miassa was
razed to the foundation, thousands were put to the sword, and thousands
sent into slavery in the more northern provinces of the empire. This
event is celebrated by the Ashantee bards in an appropriate song,
wherein it is recorded that a river of _perjured blood flowed from
Miassa to the Praa, and propitiated the wrath of the river god_.
Thousands of human victims were afterwards sacrificed in daily and
nightly troops, at the little fetische house were we alighted; and the
carcasses were cast into the river, in order, as the Ashantees affirm,
that the glory and military prowess of their sovereign might be known
throughout the land, as the current swept the bodies to the sea. Akassy,
the Caboceer who now governs Kikiwhary, and a man named Quamina Abindou,
both incurred the stigma of treachery; the latter was subsequently put
to death for some embezzlement of the spoil.
The forest beyond Miassa relapses into its usual solitude, exhibiting
also most of those stern beauties which are characteristic of the land
south of the Praa. At a little distance beyond Miassa to the eastward,
are several ruined villages, in particular one named Soubel between the
Ano and Ading; other desolate spots of the same kind are scattered over
the surrounding country, between the points of north and east, of which
Oncro, Intoba, and Injany are the principal.
The paths leading to the plantations were still open, and occasionally
frequented. Two miles more brought us to another open space, the relic
of a large Assin croom called Saporgah; which is little better than a
heap of ruins. Some solitary sheds occupied by foresters and palm wine
collectors were the only objects that could interest the eye. The path
was exceedingly obstructed by thicket and decayed logs, from this place
until we arrived at the ruins of Tibiassa, another habitation, as the
Ashantees affirmed, of the spirits who roam at night. Nothing but a few
straggling ruins, embedded in jungle, remained; yet it was said to have
been a place of importance. The little stream called Prensa crossed the
path, at a very inconsiderable distance from Tibiassa, as it traced an
easterly course to the Ano. The next opening at the distance of a mile
and a half more, was a moderate sized space occupied by some detached
ruins, the relics of a town called Bequama, and near this spot the
little rivulet called Prapong (or arm of the Praa) about seven yards in
width and two or three feet in depth, pursued its southerly course to
the Praa. We shaped a course along the bed of this stream to the
distance of a hundred yards or more, and then quitted it at an angle
formed by its westerly inclination. The path as we advanced rather
improved, although the natural obstructions were still so great as to
create delay. Four miles beyond the Prapong are the ruins of a town
called Eshamah. A little village of modern construction, bearing the
same name, stands on a slope which commands the ruins. The inhabitants,
probably about fifty in number, obtain a precarious subsistence from
their labours in the forest. These poor people were at this time absent,
at their respective occupations, in hewing timber, and tapping palm
trees for wine, with which they trade to Ansah. A few traders from
Ashantee were reposing under the shade of some trees, in what might be
called the market place.
Eshamah formerly enjoyed a moderate rank in Assin, and its population is
said to have rivalled in numbers the inhabitants of Prassoo. It is
remarkable for a sanguinary battle fought in its vicinity between
Cheeboo and Amoo. Leaving the ruins of this place, we again penetrated
the forest, and in the lapse of an hour entered Ansah about four P.M.
[Illustration: A Woman & Youth of Banna. A Marowa Slave.]
[Footnote 19: Some of the seed I brought to England and consigned to Mr.
Lee, of Kensington, in whose Nursery it was sown.]
[Footnote 20: Vide also Meredith’s History of the Gold Coast.]
CHAPTER II.
PUBLIC RECEPTION AT ANSAH — DESCRIPTION OF AN ASSIN HOUSE — EFFECTS OF
NEGRO WARFARE — STATE OF HEALTH OF THE PARTY — AKROFROOM — SUPERSTITION
OF THE INHABITANTS WITH REGARD TO WHITE TRAVELLERS — BEASTS OF PREY —
ELEPHANTS — MOISY — FRONTIER OF ASHANTEE — THE RIVER BOHMEN — SABLE
NAIADS — CHUSAH — FOMANAH — DOOMPASSY — OFFERING TO A HOUSEHOLD GOD —
DATCHASOO — MESSAGE FROM THE KING OF ASHANTEE — ADADWASY — AMOAFO —
VISITS FROM THE KING’S SON AND DAUGHTER — BEQUA — ASSIMINIA — BOPOSSO —
AGEMUM — SARASOO — PROCESS OF CLEARING LAND FOR CULTIVATION IN FANTEE
AND BARBARY — FIRST SIGHT OF COOMASSY — PUBLIC RECEPTION BY THE KING —
SPEECH OF THE KING OF BANNA — CEREMONIES — OBSERVATIONS ON THE JOURNEY
AND CLIMATE.
Desolate as the land is on both sides of the Praa, with the exception
only of Prassoo, Kikiwhary, and Ansah, I had, nevertheless, deemed it
expedient, in support of my public character, to announce the approach
of the mission with all becoming solemnity. A description of the
ceremonies practised at Ansah, as they bear a relation to the usages
elsewhere observed, may not be displeasing to the reader. The road-flag
with which I travelled through the woods, and which was simply a small
union-jack, was, on our approach to the town, dismissed to the rear, its
place being supplied by a more brilliant suit of colours. Such of the
escort as were in attendance joined in embodied ranks equal to the
limits of the path, while one of my soldiers who had practised the
bugle, blew a blast or two on that instrument, which, coupled with the
shouts and songs of my attendants, never failed to collect from the
houses a numerous concourse of spectators, who, it may be said, strove
in emulation to pay that respect to the British flag, and to white men,
and Englishmen, which it was my pride to witness. At Ansah, every
countenance was stamped with those genuine feelings of respectful
admiration which it was my object to excite. Crowds followed us to our
quarters, bestowing occasionally some flattering commendations upon the
objects that interested their attention.
As the day declined, drums were beat and horns sounded throughout the
town, to give notice to the chief and elders to assemble with their
retainers, in the market-place, to receive the public visit they
anticipated. On our side, I gave instructions to the officers to equip
themselves in uniform, and the people to dress in clean apparel, &c.
Thus arrayed, we sallied forth, at a sort of funeral pace, preceded by
the colours. On turning an angle leading to the market-place, we were
suddenly saluted by the beating of drums, but after awhile the discord
ceased. The Caboceer, whose name was Coinin Akim, (deputy Viceroy of
Assin under Amon Koitea) was encompassed by all the principal male
inhabitants of the town, headed by their respective chieftains. An
avenue between this mass of human beings was left sufficiently wide to
permit us to approach in the order of single file; and through this
space I advanced, touching hands with the Caboceer and the other chiefs,
while a number of boys waved short scimeters, chopping bills, and
swords, over my head, as they yelled out the “_strong names_” of their
patron, descriptive of his rank, heroic achievements, &c.
At the conclusion of this ceremony our party retired to the shade of a
tree, where, when we had taken our seats, the Assin chief and his party
advanced in turn, preceded by the band of performers, whose overture was
of a character still more inharmonious. Indeed the flutes and some of
the smaller horns only, when they could be distinguished in the medley
of sounds, softened to a degree of tolerance the harsh barbaric clamour.
One instrument, resembling the horn of an enormous buffalo, which was
decorated with a profusion of human jaw-bones, uttered abrupt and
incessant blasts of the most dismal howling that can be imagined. Others
of similar dimensions ornamented with the like brutal trophies, produced
a lengthened distressing tone, something resembling the moderate cry of
hyenas. Some small elephants’ teeth, hollowed into form, were rather
more melodious, excepting when they chimed with the concert. The large
drums were carried on the heads of men, and beaten in that posture; but
the small ones were slung as kettle drums. These added to calabashes and
gourds filled with shot or small stones, concave bits of iron, and
striking sticks, will give an idea of the national taste in harmonic
matters. As the chieftain advanced to take my hand, a number of
parasites rushed before him holding their noses, as the custom is, and
recapitulating his “_strong names_,” with vociferous, and, as it would
appear to a stranger, offensive intrusion; for these flatterers,
notwithstanding they were gently pushed aside, returned to the charge as
boisterously as before. On a sudden he burst from the crowd, and as he
took me by the hand, perfect order and silence ensued.
The Caboceer was followed successively by the captains, elders, and
ordinary class of inhabitants; but the latter did not presume to offer
their hands for acceptance, a compliment which was expected by the
Caboceer and chief officers only; all others were happy in being
permitted to pass in the pompous line, to wave their hands, and pay the
compliment of a welcome.
I had scarcely returned to the quarters when a file of men entered
profusely laden with provisions. The present consisted of a sheep, a
goat, a quantity of yams, eggs, fowls, plantains, and palm wine, besides
fire-wood, cankey bread, sugar cane, and some honey in the comb. Indeed
I never before witnessed hospitality, even among Mussulmen, who are
religiously scrupulous of that virtue, equal to this, which in fact was
a private present. My acknowledgments were accompanied by a trifling
return of rum, and a piece of British manufactured cotton.
The plantations of plantains, yams, and cassada, are very extensive in
the vicinity of Ansah, and large tracts of land were then in a state of
preparation for the reception of grain. This, which is now the
metropolis of Assin, is a large compact town full of houses and hovels
of all classes, from the quadrangular inclosure of four, six, or eight
apartments, to the small bamboo hut. The quarters assigned for the
reception of the Mission belonged to a wealthy inhabitant, who, to
accommodate us, was unceremoniously compelled to turn out, with his
wives and children. As the house I occupied at Ansah is at least equal
to some of the best in Coomassy and elsewhere, I shall digress a little
in particularizing its “architecture” and conveniences. It was a square
enclosure with a recess behind, forming two apartments, besides the four
contained in the quadrangle itself. Opposite the door was a narrow
passage, leading to the retired part of the building, and which the
natives appropriate to the use of the women and juvenile branches of the
family. The rooms were elevated two or three feet from the ground, and
the ascent was marked by two steps, which, as well as the lower walls,
were simply plastered with red clay, rudely sculptured indeed, but still
with some regard to order. Little buttresses here and there surmounted
with ornamental carving in “_alto relievo_” decorated the sides of the
rooms, the dimensions of which were about nine feet by six or seven, and
roofed with a sloping thatch of palm.
Ansah has also one broad street only, leading north and south through
its centre. The avenues, or lanes, right and left, besides being of
extreme narrow limits, exhibit a variety of unsightly obstructions. This
place, having formerly been the seat of government of Amoo and the party
attached to Ashantee interest, was respected during the war by the
forces of the empire. Its population is estimated at twenty-four
thousand souls.
Coinin Akim, it may be observed, besides his deputy viceroyalty of
Assin, is also Caboceer over the desolate forests of Fantee; his
jurisdiction extends from Moisy in the north, down to the sea-coast, and
eastward from the province of Akim to the limits of Denkera. Akassy, the
Caboceer of Kikiwhary, who supports a secondary dignity in Assin,
governs all the adjacent towns and villages, as the representative of
Coinin Akim, to whom he is immediately answerable.
It will not be deemed extraordinary, by those who are acquainted with
African maxims and prejudices, that all Fantee, excepting the few towns
on the coast, and the far greater portion of Assin should be found in
the state I have described; the population extinct, the plantations more
or less destroyed, and the forest relapsing to its original growth. In
the wars of the negroes, a few of the subjugated are reserved to grace
the victor’s triumph; but slavery, or death, is most frequently their
final doom. Little kingdoms have been thus annihilated, as in the case
of Denkera, Akim, Warsaw, and many others, whose names have almost
become obsolete. The importance of these dreary regions is, therefore,
trifling, when compared with a surface of such extent; and particularly
so, when it is considered that where a population amounting, it is
supposed, to something between three and four millions occupied the
districts of Fantee and Assin, the inhabitants now scarcely amount to as
many hundred thousands, after the most liberal calculation, including
even the Fantee towns on the sea side.
The march from Kikiwhary to Ansah was comparatively the most moderate
and least fatiguing of any of our journeys. The Anana still flourished
luxuriantly in the woods, and the bamboo and ground palm covered many
acres, with a most impenetrable thicket. The high palm which towered
here to an elevation rivalling the more gigantic productions of the
earth, increased the wild beauty of the surrounding scenery, for this
class had been rarely met with on the road.
The thermometer in the forest varied between the hours of ten and two,
from eighty-one degrees to eighty-three. In our quarters at Ansah, at
one o’clock, the quicksilver stood at eighty-seven, and two hours after
sunset, sunk as low as seventy-seven.
From Kikiwhary to Ansah it is ten miles, horizontal distance, and the
average of a long list of courses gave N. half W.
The health of the officers at this time was good, excepting that of Mr.
Collins. In justice to the gentlemen who accompanied me, I ought to
acknowledge the fortitude which marked their characters, and stifled
every complaint, during a laborious course of service, and under
circumstances not far removed from severe hardship.
The Ashantee guides or captains, belonging to my retinue, wished me to
remain at Ansah, until the king should be apprised of my arrival; but,
as I preferred a station nearer to the capital, I again issued orders to
resume the journey in the morning.
Accordingly, on the 18th, I quitted this town, attended by a group of
spectators, who, on the verge of the forest, exchanged a parting
farewell, and returned to their homes. The umbrageous covering of the
trees was again a grateful relief from the sensation of extreme heat.
Within the compass of an hour’s walk from Ansah, we crossed the bed of
the Foum, a fine little rivulet running easterly, and uniting, it is
said, with the Prapong and the Praa. The margin of this stream is
profusely covered with a shrubbery of a beautiful character. The water,
at this time, was knee deep, although the width of the channel could
scarcely be more than three fathoms. At the distance of a mile and a
quarter more, we came to the Parakom, another little rivulet,
proportionate in dimensions to the Foum, of which it is a branch, and
flowing at this part of its course in the same direction as the former.
Another little stream intersected the path about half a mile beyond the
Parakom, but was too unimportant to have a name.
The rustling of the branches above our heads, and a deeper gloom,
combined with the distant sound of thunder, announced, about this time,
an approaching tornado; but no rain fell. The thermometer sunk from
eighty to seventy-six. At an early hour in the day, we arrived in the
neighbourhood of Akrofroom, where a concourse of spectators had, as
usual, assembled, in the main avenue, to greet our entrance. At my
request, the Caboceer, who had already set the gong-gongs at work,
deferred the ceremonies of an interview, until the sun had sunk below
the visible horizon (the tops of the adjacent trees.) The rights of
hospitality were, in the meantime, lavished upon us with liberality,
equal to what we had before experienced; and our quarters were stored
with yams, cankey bread, cassada, eggs, oil, fuel, and a sheep. The
distress I felt for the females, who resigned their apartments for our
use, (some of whom had infants at their backs) was quickly removed by
the cordial welcome that animated their looks. A superstitious belief
was entertained by those to whom the lot of sheltering white men had
fallen, that their lives in future would be prosperous. The house itself
was passably well built in the form of one we occupied at Ansah, but
superior in size and sculptural ornaments, both of red clay and grey.
The Caboceer, of this town, whose name was Tako Dooney, happened to be
at Ansah, when we made a public entry there; after the ceremony there,
he was dispatched, by Coinin Akim, to repeat the honours at his own
government. As the sun declined, the jarring discord of drums, gong-
gongs, &c. announced the assemblage in the market-place. It will be
unnecessary, however, to relate a ceremony, which did not materially
differ from what has been described at Ansah. The parasites of this
chief, it may, however, be told, desisted sooner, and were not quite so
outrageously indecorous as those of Coinin Akim.
My people now fared sumptuously, yet there were ten men on the sick
list, besides as many more lame or bruised; several of whom were in a
state requiring rest, as well as wholesome food; but as our journies
henceforward were likely to be short ones, I did not think proper to
detain the mission; although my own servants were both incapable of
exertion, one from the Guinea worm and fever, and the other from severe
lameness.
Akrofroom covers a large tract of land, and is built in a straggling
manner. It is not so large as Ansah, and its population is numerically
inferior. The avenues intersecting the main street east and west, like
all others of the class, are either exceedingly confined, or, where the
space is more than sufficient to accommodate one or two passengers
abreast, the waste ground is generally appropriated to the reception of
offal, dirt, and rubbish; which, as in that part of the city of Morocco
inhabited by the Israelites, accumulates from time to time into little
mounds, or hillocks, sufficiently elevated to afford a prospect over the
walls and even the roofs of low built houses. The main street, however,
is exempt from these nuisances, and the market places, both here and
elsewhere, are never polluted by dirt or litter of any description. The
favourable impression of Ashantee cleanliness, was checked by the
exposure of nuisances in bye streets, in the environs of the town, and
the backs of the houses, where it became difficult to select a foot way
free from excrement and filth. Yet decency in compliance with natural
calls was not by any means unobserved by the inhabitants, who erect
sylvan temples in retired spots, at the outer boundary of the
plantations, by excavating the earth, and erecting a platform on the
upper surface, or by placing a number of fallen trees in parallel
positions.
The number of small ill-constructed hovels at Akrofroom probably
exceeded the more commodious buildings as fifty to one; and the grey
clay plaster, or wash, here, indicated no distinction between rich or
poor, master or slave. The plantations, however, are extensive, and
yield more than sufficient for the consumption of the inhabitants; yet
those of corn are very limited even here, although the population is
estimated at eighteen thousand souls.
At the distance of one day’s journey and a half westward, are the ruins
of a large town called Boyabo, formerly the seat of Apoutey’s
government. The average course from Ansah to Akrofroom was N.NW. the
distance amounted to eight miles and a quarter, horizontally computed.
We quitted this place on the following day, the nineteenth. The path in
its vicinity is broad and open, but this is characteristic only of the
first half furlong, beyond which the forest relapses to its usual form
and aspect.
This tract is said to be occasionally infested by the superior beasts of
prey, such as lions, panthers and leopards; but none of these animals
met our sight, nor had we ever distinguished their cries, although we
were frequently disturbed by the plaintive screechings of the sloth, and
the howling of hyenas, jackalls, &c. Amidst the boughs of a kind of
cedar, I noticed several grey squirrels, who regarded my approach with
great indifference. Here also, some of the party picked up a good number
of quills that seemed to have belonged to a porcupine of the largest
size.
At no great distance from Akrofroom we again fell in with the Prakoom
rivulet, as at this time it swept to the west of south. On the opposite
bank the path was open, leading over a thick bed of loose sand that
covered the surrounding surface. Many lofty trees, and some of the
smaller sorts of shrubs, were sapless and barren, with naked limbs and
blighted foliage.
In the midst of a thicket, at the distance of four miles from Ansah, an
elephant’s tooth of moderate size was discovered; but the enamel being
cracked into gashes, it was deemed of little or no value. It is affirmed
by the Ashantees that elephants never herd in these forests, although
very frequently stragglers are shot on this parallel as also on the
confines, two journies north of Coomassy. Yet these wanderers are young,
and as my informer described it, “foolish.” The old elephants herd in
Banna, Coransah, and some in Bouromy; they are numerous only in Sarem.
We shortly arrived at a little stream shaping a course to the S.SW.;
another of the same size, and running in the same direction, intersected
the path a quarter of a mile beyond this; but they were both unimportant
and nameless. At the end of ten miles (by the path) we discovered a gap
that admitted the cheerful light of day, the surface of which was, as
usual, covered with jungle and rank weeds. We were now in the vicinity
of Moisy, a small croom on the frontier of Assin, and which we entered
about noon, but made no stay there.
This village, like other places of greater importance, can claim but one
avenue deserving the name of a street, although it has several leading
to the huts in the back ground. It is inhabited principally by
mechanics, as weavers, potters, smiths, &c. and may be called a place of
wretchedness; yet it is notorious for excellent palm wine, and a
superior growth of cotton. The habitations, even in the main street, are
mean, notwithstanding the grey clay wash and plaster are more commonly
in use here than elsewhere. The main avenue terminated in a pretty
shrubbery, whose limits stretched away to the neighbouring plantations.
Through this we journied some hundred paces until the little rivulet
Bohmen, which sparkled in the front, gave notice of our approach to the
hilly barrier that separates Ashantee, properly so called, from the
province of Assin. The stragglers being numerous at this time, I thought
fit to alight on the margin of the stream. My guides, (the Ashantee
captains Ado and Quako,) were the first who approached, and with anger
in their countenances, reprobated the conduct of the Caboceer, at Moisy,
in not having prepared the honours due to a public reception. “He will
lose his head for this neglect,” added they, uniting their voices, “for
we must tell the king the truth.” I vindicated the unfortunate chief, by
alledging my disinclination to alight. It mattered not, was the reply,
the Caboceer alone was to blame, because the most positive orders had
been given by Coinin Akim, that he should assemble the townsmen to greet
me in passing.
We stood in need of rest, and as the hills lay exactly on the opposite
bank of the stream, I delayed prosecuting the journey to give time for
the people to recruit their strength. Our weariness was, indeed,
universal, and we reposed in sullen lassitude on the margin of the
romantic Bohmen; the river, according to Mr. Bowdich’s information, so
gifted by Providence, as to deserve the name of the “_Water of
Eloquence_.” The fairy virtue of this stream recurring to my memory, I
demanded a calabash of water. In short, its efficacy was put to the
trial, by many who required to slake their thirst, and be it recorded,
failed in working its usual miracle. These symptoms of lassitude and
silence were, however, quickly interrupted, by the arrival of a large
pot of palm wine, and a message of exculpation from the Caboceer, who
extenuated his neglect by alledging that he had expected me to have
slept in town, rather than crossed the mountains that afternoon. The
wine was of a growth recommended by the Ashantees as particularly
nourishing and grateful to the palate, and was, they said, the best in
the kingdom. But it did not need many encomiums, so acceptable was this
description of beverage. Indeed, the far-famed excellence of the “Water
of Eloquence” itself, would bear no competition with the wine. Its
invigorating powers won it the palm of supremacy, without a single
dissenting voice, for the faculty of speech which before was chained up
within us, resumed its function with an effort powerful enough to banish
the memory of past fatigue.
Upon making enquiries of the Ashantees, respecting the alledged virtue
of the water, I had some difficulty in persuading them that it was a
serious question. When assured of that fact, they declared they knew the
water to be sweet, and, perhaps, it was good for sick people; but they
did not know that it was capable of prompting speech, nor did they ever
hear that it was visited on that account by parties of their countrymen.
The Bohmen is a very inconsiderable upland stream, gliding in its
descent, between the vallies of Moisy, and slanting in its course to the
southward of west, until it connects its waters with those of the
Prakoom. It is almost embowered in shrubbery, overtopped by high trees,
whose branches locking together in each others embraces, give it, in
imagination, the semblance of a fairy grot; for its bed is studded with
brilliant little rocks, and shelving slabs of granite, iron stone, and
mica, mixed with clear white sand, and yellow gravel, glittering, as it
may be said, poetically, with a golden refulgence, where the meridian
sun-beam here and there penetrated the vegetable arch.
Romantic as this may be pronounced, it was something heightened in
effect as we crossed the rivulet, by the appearance of a party of women
and young girls, skipping over the rocks, and laving their limbs in the
current; but, for whose jetty complexions, the fancy might in reality
have conceited them a group of Naiads. Nor were the nymphs of the
African wilderness wanting to themselves in the decorum of the sex, for
they modestly screened their persons amidst the foliage.
Immediately after this, we commenced ascending a lofty hill, at first by
a gradual slope; but on a sudden it became abrupt, rugged, and washed
into gullies. Huge pieces of rock, in overhanging precipices, opposed
our steps, and as we were early compelled to clamber with hands and
feet, our progress was attended with difficulty, and great physical
exertion. The path, near the summit of the hill, was bare of its leafy
canopy, and here the rays of the sun darted fiercely down upon a surface
already scorched beyond a moderate glowing heat. This, added to the
increased action of the vital organs, rendered our distress complete,
and it was with incredible difficulty we journied up the acclivity,
nearly a mile to the summit.[21] A contracted gap, or aperture on the
left hand, afforded an indistinct prospect to the westward, of the top
of another hill connected with this chain. It was, in truth, the
greatest scope our eyes had been permitted to range over throughout the
whole journey; and although the horizontal distance would barely have
exceeded a mile and a half, its novelty was equally delightful and
transitory.
Mr. Bowdich says, he observed several eminent points from this station,
in the hope of being able to check his computed distance by paces. No
such land marks were visible to me, or any eminence, excepting the peak
of the hill already described, the utility of which, for mathematical
calculations, it was surely absurd to suggest; for the visionary glance
was so imperfect, and the uniformity of its clothing so characteristic
of the land throughout, that had it been perceptible a second time,
(which it was not) I am convinced it would not have been recognized with
any certainty.
For some hundreds of yards beyond the summit, it was a sort of table
hill, gently incurvated with slopes and ridges. The sound of a waterfall
on our left hand indicated, however, that the path lay over a
precipitous ridge, terminating below in a deep valley. Yet the forest
was so opaque, that nothing was visible (except the stems of trees)
beyond the circumference of a few yards.
This chain of hills, according to native authority, commences on the
north-west side of Bequa, From thence inclining easterly to Datiasso and
Doompassy, where it forks off in two branches, the one leading NE. to
the Echouy Lake, the other inclining south of east, through Assin and
Akim, to Aquamboe, and the neighbourhood of Accra, where it unites to
the chain that may be seen at the distance of twenty miles from the
British fort at that place. The height of Moisy Hill may be about
sixteen hundred feet perpendicular elevation. The north side of the hill
is less steep and rugged, so that the descent is not attended with much
inconvenience. A small ravine gave a passage to a little stream, flowing
westerly with a rippling noise; but it was said to bear no name. The
land beyond the hills is evidently much higher than that of Assin.
The sight of a patch of jungle indicated our approach to the first
Ashantee village: this was a miserable place containing about thirty
hovels, called Chusah, whose inhabitants lived by the trade in palm wine
and nuts. The track over the hills is capricious, but the course, after
having passed Chusah, inclines again north. We traversed the brink of a
chasm or pit of great depth, said to have been excavated for gold; but
latterly neglected, notwithstanding the mine was believed to be rich.
Three quarters of a mile beyond Chusah is Fomanah, another little
village, containing about a hundred and fifty inhabitants. Mr. Bowdich’s
assertion, that Fomanah was once a very considerable town, is
contradicted by the natives, who, while they admit that it was formerly
more populous than at present, declare it always to have been a
foresters’ village, and a place of insignificance upon the frontiers.
The Caboceer, who was seated in the main opening, very courteously
tendered an offering of palm wine and eggs.
Beyond Fomanah for about half a mile, the path was good, exhibiting a
clean swept surface, with burning stubble on each hand. Doompassy was
now distant only an hour’s march, and as we approached in sight of the
town, the greetings of the spectators, who were numerous, indicated the
utmost cordiality. The Caboceer, a middle aged man, named Soabin,
received me very courteously in the market place, and in due formality
conducted me to the house designed for my reception. It was a sort of
double house, neatly constructed, and ornamented with the rude sculpture
of the country. The family (one of the first rank in the place) were all
employed in removing their utensils. The landlord politely told me it
gave him pleasure to shelter white men, as it would bring upon him a
blessing from the gods. The distance from Akofroom to Doompassy is
eleven miles and a half horizontal distance; by the path it is nearly
fifteen. The average course was north, inclining half a point to the
west. Mr. Collins here suffered a relapse of fever.
Our journies, it may be seen, were comparatively rapid, and really so in
such a country, for we generally travelled as long as the day-light
lasted, excepting the two or three last stages. Our halt, however, at
Doompassy was imperative, for many more were afflicted with lameness and
inflammatory disorders, of which the Guinea-worm and boils were the most
prevalent.
The tall and stunted palms form the most interesting, and the doom,
mahogany, and silk cotton trees, the most majestic objects in the
neighbourhood of the plantations hereabouts. These, blended with fibrous
and thorny plants capriciously threading the branches in festoons, or
entwining in snaky wreaths round the trunks of trees, give that
singularly wild aspect to vegetation in the torrid zone which, perhaps,
is only to be witnessed within the limits of the first and second
parallels of climate in continental Africa. The Anana still skirted the
path, and a few cocoas both male and female, increased the variety.
Among the plantations I discovered a grovelling sort of palmeta or small
ground palm, called by the Arabs asha, whose fibres they interweave with
goats’ hair in the manufacture of their tents. Among the trees and
shrubs of small growth were cotton in abundance, some indigo, coffee,
arrow-root, and the gooro or war nut, a species of betel, which the
natives masticate as they do in India.
Hyenas, civet cats, baboons, monkeys, porcupines, ant-eaters, wild hogs,
sloths, and squirrels, are said to abound greatly, besides deer, in this
part of the forest. An animal which, from description, answers to the
cameleopard, it is affirmed, sometimes visits these regions, and there
are many to be found both in Sarem and Ghunja; but they are sacred
quadrupeds, and although they herd with the elephants, they are never
destroyed by the hunters.
At this elevation from the sea coast, much is left behind of the gloom
and solitude of one of the greatest wildernesses south of the Niger; but
this impression originated perhaps in the knowledge, that although it
was still a waste, it now contained the cheerful habitations of men.
A serpent, agreeing with the _constrictor_ of the class I met with on
the road to Doonqua, but larger, was said to be occasionally seen here;
it was dreaded by the traveller more than either the lion or panther,
and would attack men as well as the most powerful animals in the
creation, the elephant only excepted.
Red ants were very rarely seen here or on the road; but others were as
numerous and troublesome as ever, a fact of which they gave us many
painful proofs.
My guides suggested to me the propriety of halting a few days at these
quarters, adding that they durst not approach nigher the capital, for
fear of giving offence to the king, by permitting me to travel like a
common messenger, and by approaching the court before the necessary
arrangements were completed for my reception. I was prepared to stop a
day, to allow time for the return of an express messenger I had sent to
the king from Kikiwhary.
I was roused from sleep at a very early hour on the following morning,
(the 20th,) by the entrance of a man, whom I discovered to be the
proprietor of the house, with an offering for his tutelary god, and
which he was about fixing to the sacred tree, at the door of my
apartment. The tribute, which consisted of the legs and head of a white
speckled fowl and a small calabash containing a little corn and
plantain, steeped in a fluid looking like blood, was placed on the
ground at the root of the tree; but afterward, the members were severed,
and suspended by a piece of cotton-yarn upon one of the lower branches.
Another calabash containing a blackish fluid, served to water the roots,
by being poured upon the ground, as a libation, during the recital of
certain mystical words in prayer. The ceremony concluded by washing the
stem of the tree with a colouring, made from the white or grey clay. On
the route, particularly in the vicinity of towns, these offerings were
very common, and in some spots, on which superstition had stamped a
particular veneration, a numerous collection of pots and pans, although
commonly broken ones, were deposited with their tributes to the gods of
the forests and highways. Like the Greeks and heathen tribes of Egypt,
Syria, and Arabia, the Ashantees, (who may rival or even excel the
ancients in the practice of their orgies and rituals) provide their
δειπνα, or highway suppers. Among the tribes of negroes hereabouts, they
are, however, family offerings, and not public or national.
Doompassy, it is said, contains a population of fifteen thousand
inhabitants. It has but one avenue deserving the name of a street, for
those which intersect it, right and left, are only a confused number of
openings of width barely sufficient to allow free ingress. Near the
market-place are many decent-looking houses, of which the Caboceer’s is
by far the best. The plantations, which are flourishing and extensive,
it would seem, are adequate to the supply of a population infinitely
greater. Several large corn plats were enclosed, with tolerable fences
of bamboo, to preserve the grain from the incursions of wild animals,
and of pigs, which are here permitted to rove at liberty about the
suburbs.
In the forenoon, I sent out a hunter, who, in less than two hours,
returned successful from the chase, bringing with him a deer, of the
antelope kind, a civet cat, and several birds.
The detention at Doompassy was particularly salutary to Mr. Collins. Mr.
Salmon complained of the return of former symptoms, augmented, perhaps,
by the passage over the hills. For my own part, I rapidly gained
strength every journey, so that even at Doompassy, after a night’s
repose, I found myself in a state of health equal, perhaps, to the best
I ever enjoyed in tropical Africa.
As the expected messenger had not yet returned, I gave instructions to
renew the march on the 21st, to the great disappointment of my escort;
but, as I hoped to meet the messenger on the road, I deemed it advisable
to halt at a station more convenient to the capital.
At Doompassy, the thermometer, at eight A.M. stood at 81, at twelve, 86,
and at seven P.M. 82, in the shade. In the evening, distant peals of
thunder and a rustling breeze from the east denoted a tornado at no
great distance, but no rain fell in the town.
The sick and lame were now twenty-three in number, of whom five were
cases of so much severity, that I left them in charge of the Caboceer,
with a supply of gold for their support, or to defray the expences of
their burial. Many others, indeed, required rest, but they were
obstinately bent on going forward, rather than remaining unprotected in
what they might conceive an enemy’s country.
The inhabitants, as the bugle gave notice of our departure (on the 21st)
flocked together in crowds, and with good-natured smiles bestowed their
parting farewell.
A mile and a half beyond the town is a little current of water called
Bahrein, running west, and a quarter of a mile beyond it is Carbouso, a
croom equal in wretchedness to whatever the imagination may conceive of
it. This we passed through, and beyond it the path was tolerably
inviting, leading on to the village of Sanquanta, another little dirty
croom, inhabited by forty or fifty families, who depend for their
support upon the range of the forest.
Adjoining to Sanquanta, is a little brook, whose course S.SW. unites it
to other little streams, that meander in the vallies of the hilly
barrier and fall into the Prakoom. The name of this stream is Injouma.
At the distance of a furlong, east from Sanquanta, is a large populous
croom called Meduma. The discharge of musquets was distinctly heard in
that direction. A little cross path to the westward led to a small
village called Baramken. At an early hour, we entered Datchasoo, a town
of some little importance, and took up quarters for the night in one of
the best houses the place contained. This was a small enclosure, with
four thatched rooms in a dirty and ruinous condition; but after a
diligent search, it appeared that this habitation was superior to any
other in the town.
Just at this crisis, two royal messengers arrived from Court, bearing
congratulations on the part of the king, and a present of two and a half
ounces of gold dust, enveloped in silk, a fat sheep, and an enormous
sow. My own messenger returned with the royal messengers, who thus
explained themselves:—“Sai (the king) hears you are come to see him, and
it gives him pleasure; he therefore sends his compliments to let you
know he will see your face on Monday (28th February) for that is a good
(auspicious) day.”
One of these messengers was a reverend looking negro, and a man high in
rank; the other was a sword bearer, also high in office, and a vassal of
Prince Adoom (the ambassador on the coast.) Having dismissed these
people with suitable presents, they returned to say, that the king had
ordered them to bear me company, and see that due respect was every
where paid to the white men.
The sow, which, as I before said, was of an enormous size, was lashed by
the legs to a bamboo pole, and had been transported, with great labour,
on the shoulders of men.
From Doompassy to Datchasoo, it is short of six miles horizontal
distance, or eight by the path. The average course by compass was N.NW.
It is a straggling town containing about four or five hundred houses and
hovels, most of which are in a very ruinous condition. The population is
given at two thousand souls, who subsist by spinning, dying, and weaving
of cotton, manufacturing pots, working in the forest, &c. The
flourishing state of the plantations here, bespeaks a rank which must
have belonged to former years. There were corn, yam, and cassada
enclosures, some of them tolerably extensive; and, in short, the people
did not appear to want the necessaries of life, although their domestic
comforts seemed so very limited in other respects.
We had been visited during the night by troops of rats, whose gambols
over the thatch threatened to renew the adventure at Akomfody.
On the 22d we left Datchasoo, launching into forest as before, but an
order from Court having been issued to remove obstructions and sweep the
paths, the inhabitants of Datchasoo were already occupied in that work,
and a number of fires were kindled on the sides of the pathway. We
travelled therefore at a brisk pace, occasionally passing over prostrate
logs of the most gigantic classes of timber, where the fire had severed
them into open breach, and others that were still in flames. The slave
population of each town and of both sexes, was employed in this work.
At half a mile distance from Datchasoo is a little croom called Ankoasy,
containing about seventy hovels, a mile beyond which we entered a better
looking place called Adadwasy. At half a furlong distance to the east is
a town of considerable magnitude called Madjoury, whose population is
rated at ten thousand.
The population of Adadwasy is said to exceed three thousand. The town is
constructed with tolerable regularity, and a growth of very fine trees,
of the class mimosa, flourished in the market place, affording an
agreeable shade for refreshment. The plantations were extensive and in
the highest perfection. Having passed a leisure hour on the spot, we
renewed the march, followed by a body of spectators to the opposite
confines of the forest. The land in the neighbourhood is rather more
hilly, but the risings are in long slopes easy of ascent. Aquamasy was
the next croom we entered, distant from Adadwasy about three quarters of
a mile. This is likewise a decent village of foresters, potters, and
weavers. Its plantation is not inferior to that at Adadwasy, although
the population is scarcely half as numerous.
Passing a ravine, at the bottom of which flowed a little rivulet to the
S.SW. of very inconsiderable dimensions, called Jonkaran, we came to a
place where a few wretched habitations were buried in a mass of jungle.
This village, if it may be dignified by that name, was called Safoo, and
a little beyond it was another brook called Yanasee, running NW. At a
mile and a half from this is a small croom named Coraman, here also is a
larger rivulet called Dansaboo, with steep banks on both sides
terminating in abrupt ridges. The water flowed in a gentle current to
the west. In three quarters of an hour more we entered Amoafo, where I
resolved to pass the night, and as it had been announced to me as a
place of importance, I thought fit to renew the ceremonies usual on such
occasions. We accordingly passed down the main opening, and were
conducted, after some formalities, to a very tolerable house, which had
been evacuated for our accommodation by the family of a captain named
Agado.
This journey was eight miles horizontal distance, the course N.
The curvature, or diagonal inclination of the path, if the reports of
the Fantees may be credited, does not arise from natural causes, but is
a political _ruse_ of the sovereign to bewilder the faculties of the
stranger, and create an exaggerated belief of the extent of the Ashantee
dominions. This opinion is, however, ridiculed by the Ashantees, and I
apprehend with justice, for the same rule could not possibly apply to
the forests of Assin and Fantee, particularly in that dreary track
between Mansue and the Praa; where the path, such as it is, appears to
have been entirely neglected since the subjugation of the southern
tribes.
Amoafo is a croom of the first class: it is a sort of military depôt,
and has a governor of rank. Some of the houses are tolerably well
constructed; but still the clay and bamboo hovels predominate, perhaps,
here, in the proportion of twelve to one, in the leading street. The
population is said to be upwards of seven thousand, many, however, were
Gaman prisoners of war, the property of officers and soldiers in the
army.
On the twenty-third, my second messenger returned from the capital, for
ceremonious courtesy being the _sine qua non_ of African diplomacy, I
endeavoured to neglect none of those outward forms which are so well
understood in private life. I was assured by the Caboceer that the
streets in Coomassy were by a royal edict ordered to be cleansed in
anticipation of my approach.
While the presents were housing, I received a visit from the king’s son,
a child about six years of age, who was brought to me by his nurse, and
several guardians, besides a courtly little troop of slaves and
playmates. The custom of Africa was not omitted even on this occasion,
for the visit was attended with a present of fowls, vegetables and wine.
A suitable return in sugar highly gratified the infant prince, who,
however, generously distributed a portion of the sweets among his
juvenile companions. I was next honoured with a visit by a female member
of the royal family, a daughter of the king, whose age was probably
about ten years. The retinue of this young lady was as numerous as the
former. A sugar offering to the princess, with the addition of a little
rum to the attendants, introduced us to a familiar acquaintance at
sight. The matrons endeavoured to win my notice to their ward, by
intimating that she was very fond of white men’s caresses; but her
timidity gave a flat contradiction to the assertion. I endeavoured to
soothe therefore, in language somewhat adapted to a female ear, but the
compliments I paid were unaccountably appropriated by my auditresses to
their own youth and beauty, or to other inclinations; for they assured
me by way of reply, that although the princess was young, yet in a very
few moons she would be ready to take to wife; and if I admired her, they
had no doubt the king would give her to me. At the same time the old
women, taking several of their youthful companions by the shoulders,
introduced them in a circle, desiring me to select a favorite without
scruple, and keep her as long as I thought fit.
On the 26th, I again resumed the journey, and at the distance of half a
mile, crossed the Bequa path. This is a very large town about three
miles westward of the spot. The first little croom on the northern track
is Gabin, adjoining to which is a small stream running west, to the
Souberry. The land hereabouts was swampy, and covered with thicket and
jungle. Beyond the swamps, is another superior little croom, named
Benichas, which has a population of eight or nine hundred inhabitants.
The village led on to the Souberry, a rivulet superior to the generality
of little currents. Its course is to the southward of west, in a channel
of the dimensions of twenty or thirty feet, and it is said to unite with
the Foom.
Assiminia was now distant about a mile only, and this being a town of
some distinction, the usual formalities occurred in the market-place.
The houses here, particularly those in the main avenue, are built with
regularity, and may possibly rival the best in Kikiwhary, Ansah, or
Doompassy. This appearance of comfort was also heightened by a number of
beautiful trees in the market-place.
Assiminia is stated to contain from seven to eight thousand inhabitants.
Its plantations encroach very extensively on the forest, and several
large fields were, at this time, well fenced round in a state fit for
the reception of corn and yams.
I delayed the march only to exchange compliments with the Caboceer, and
supply our party with wine. The next croom we came to was Boposso, a
mean dirty little place, seated on the top of a rising ground. The
population could scarcely exceed a thousand souls, if so many.
A small stream intersected the path near Boposso, tracking a course
westward, and a little beyond it we entered Agemum, a village of little
more importance than the former. Yoko is the name of a third croom of
this class, within the space of four miles; and short of a mile beyond
Yoko, is a pretty considerable croom, named Abointem, containing it is
said, three thousand inhabitants. Still, however, its construction was
mean, nor did any of the houses here bespeak a rank superior to the
ordinary class of crooms. A few hundred paces north of Abointem, a
little rivulet called Bequa, which gives its name to the large town
before-mentioned, flows to the S.SW. and falls into the Souberry. Two
miles beyond the Bequa is Potaiga, a croom rather superior in
construction to the others, and containing twelve hundred people. A mile
and a half beyond this is Fuiasso, a croom rather smaller than Potaiga.
Sarasoo was now distant but an easy walk, and we accordingly entered
that village at an early hour. The horizontal distance from Amoafo to
Sarasoo, is ten miles and a half, and the average course north half
east.
The surface is of indurated high coloured clay, with now and then a
scattering of iron ore, and white sand. In the vicinity of Yoko, were
several very massive blocks of red and white granite. The high palm
became more conspicuous as we approached the metropolis, and where a
village, or open space, admitted a prospect of its upper limbs, added
that beauty to the landscape which gives so much grandeur to the scenery
of tropical Africa. The wild fig trees were still numerous, and some
cassia, entwined with various aromatic shrubs, and the trees producing
the kind of pepper called mallaguetta, or grains of paradise, were
occasionally seen in the openings.
On the margin of the Souberin, and also near Potaiga, I noticed some
large trees that yielded abundance of resinous gum in excretions of
several pounds weight. In quality it was inflammable, like camphor,
extremely light in weight, brittle, and emitting a strong odoriferous
scent, not very unlike gum benzoin. I recognized also, that particular
species of juniper, which produces the sandarach gum, and abundance of
fine white soluble gum upon a kind of shrub, very nearly similar to the
gum arabic tree. The genuine trees of these several classes named
grassa, and tolh, by the Arabs, the former, a particular juniper, and
the latter, what we term the gum arabic tree, were well known to me
during frequent excursive tours in those districts of northern Africa,
where they are indigenous. The soluble gum, which, for the sake of
distinction, I shall term Arabic, is of the finest quality I ever saw,
and is produced in crystalline globules, from the size of a pea to that
of a small walnut.
This part of the forest abounds greatly in civet or musk cats, besides
antelopes, ant-eaters, porcupines, wild hogs, sloths, squirrels, apes
and monkeys. Some of the latter are exceedingly diminutive, and
beautifully variegated with black and white stripes. Of the ape genus,
the natives describe a species which inhabits the more eastern district,
and walks erect, in which posture it will even attack armed men. It is
said also to ensnare women and young girls, whom it carries off to its
recesses, and is so nimble as to render abortive every attempt at
pursuit.
Sarasoo is a large compact village with one main opening, N. and S.
dividing the houses into two masses. The plantations are extensive, and
in an adjoining space were some small corn, yam, and cassada fields.
The difficulty of clearing spots, for the reception of grain, may well
be imagined, where vegetation, both above and below the surface, is knit
in such indissoluble bonds. In the Fantee country, where the produce of
the earth is naturally dwarfish, and, generally speaking, does not
exceed the elevation of common thickets, the process of clearing land is
infinitely more arduous than in the northern parts of the Ashantee
empire. The method which I have frequently seen employed in Fantee is as
follows:—When a suitable spot has been selected, the slaves are directed
to cut down the thicket, which is effected with the assistance of a
small bill-hook, and without any immoderate labour. In the course of the
operation, the few trees of a large growth are suffered to stand, after
the amputation of their upper limbs. Besides those which are from
necessity exempted, are also others which are suffered to remain from a
religious veneration, and these are of various classes. The loppings of
the boughs and thicket are then scattered over the surface in the most
exposed situations, in order to dry up their sap and moisture. The
reflected heat generally accomplishes this in two or three days, and the
dried bush is then piled up in heaps, at regular distances, where it is
fired and soon reduced to a burning pile, the ashes from which are
scattered over the field as manure. At this stage of the process the
preparatory labour is completed, for the plough is wholly unknown, nor
would it be of any avail in such a matted soil. The spot thus prepared
for the reception of grain, after the fall of the first rains, is
planted with the assistance only of a small hoe, at orderly distances;
but the land is never turned over, nor indeed do the natives give
themselves the trouble to grub up any of the roots, or the tendrils
branching from them, or even to lop away the woody stubble that may
obtrude above the surface.
In the more central parts of the kingdom, the features of the land
render the process of clearing it infinitely more complicated and
laborious, notwithstanding the method resorted to is the same. Here
trees of more than ordinary dimensions must necessarily be rooted out,
or felled with the thicket. The exempted trees are those which possess
useful qualifications, such as the high and low palm, bamboo, tamarind,
papa, cocoa, and some other kinds that yield valuable nuts. The sacred
kinds of vegetation of every growth, are religiously respected, and
suffered to exist; nor are they even mutilated like the trunks of those
giant-like classes whose tops soar to the elevation of one hundred and
thirty, and more feet, and whose ramifications are necessarily subjected
to the operation, in order to admit a free circulation of air. The
cumbersome growth of fibrous stems and vines, mixed with other plants of
a watery nature, requires much labour in hacking to pieces and in
removing. The time they take in drying augments the expence of the
operation; but this accomplished, the process is simply as in Fantee.
In Mauritania and other parts of Barbary, as well in the Berreber lands
as in those of the Arabs, I have seen tracts of many miles extent
cleared externally from a covering of thicket in the course of a single
day, simply by firing a quantity of stubble to windward in the dry
season, when there is sufficient air to give action to the fire. The
rapidity with which the crackling flames spread, is sometimes, although
rarely, disastrous to those who may have wandered too far in attempting
to cross to leeward of the body of fire. The thickets in these
countries, however, abound in vegetation of an inflammable character,
being chiefly composed of resinous trees, and dry combustible wood,
whose kindling properties are increased by six or seven months’ parching
drought during the absence even of a single shower.
So far nature contributes to the labour of the Arab, and aids in the
transformation of a wilderness into a fair open field, or space richly
manured with the still ignited embers. But what remains to be done
before the ground is capable of cultivation must yet depend upon extreme
bodily exertion. “The sweat of his brow,” as it is sacredly written,
must flow copiously ere that land can be rendered arable and fit for
tillage. His labour indeed only commences at the stage where the toil of
the negro has ceased, for every root and fibre must necessarily be dug
from the bowels of the earth, before the plough can be made use of. Thus
it would seem that Providence has duly portioned out the labours of the
field; and the distribution of toil, whether it be caused by obstruction
or sterility, will probably be found equal in all countries where waste
land may be taken into cultivation.
Ceremonies were not wholly neglected during my stay at Sarasoo, but the
nigher I approached to the metropolis the more deserted were the crooms
by their Caboceers and the agents of government, who, by a mandate of
the Sovereign, had been called in within the circumference of twenty or
thirty miles, to add splendour to the Court, on the day appointed for my
public entry. The deputies who governed in the absence of these chiefs
being men of inferior rank, it was only necessary to exchange
compliments with them by proxy, except when they met me in the market-
place, or visited me in my quarters, which was usually the case.
The 27th was spent in tedious preparations, and in visiting the
neighbourhood of the place. One of these excursions I directed to the
Dah, a river that runs W.SW. at two or three hundred paces north of the
town, from whence it tracks a course to the Souberin, with which it
unites, and not with the Foom as Mr. Bowdich was informed. The width of
the river was about fourteen yards, and the depth two or three feet at
the crossing place. The Dah rises in Akeyah.
Sarasoo is said to contain eight thousand inhabitants, who for the most
part are soldiers, slaves, and vassals, to Amon Koitea. Artificers,
however, are very numerous here, and the manufactures of cotton-cloths
are of the superior order.
Our detention at Sarasoo afforded leisure to the invalids to rejoin the
mission by slow stages; but, notwithstanding the general anxiety to do
so, twelve were still absent, when the muster was made on the night of
the 27th.
Early on the 28th, we crossed the Dah to a fine open path, that inclined
over a bed of coarse and very white sand, extending from the river many
hundred paces, and penetrating the forest as far as the eye could
compass, right and left. Parties of travellers were no longer a novelty;
we met many in the course of this morning journeying to and fro between
the capital and the maritime towns, Cape Coast excepted. We passed a
small croom two miles beyond the Dah, named Ayokoh, inhabited only by
foresters. Numerous parties of natives, women, as well as men and boys,
were briskly engaged, near the path, in lopping the boughs and enclosing
some large tracks for the reception of maize and yams. Agogo is another
croom of this class, and at a very inconsiderable distance from Ayokoh.
We were now, it may be said, in the immediate neighbourhood of Coomassy.
A Court messenger met me on this path, with a complimentary enquiry
after my health; and this man, being furnished with instructions from
the king, conducted me to a little village, about a mile and a quarter
SE. of the capital; the name of it was Ciry, a paltry little place,
containing about seventy inhabitants; here the party alighted, and
having exchanged road dresses for others suitable to the occasion, we
prepared to move forward; but my palanquin, for which I once more
exchanged the hammock, was so thoroughly dislocated, that it became
necessary to secure the parts with lashings extracted from the forest:
this accomplished, and the canopy being decorated with some gaudy yellow
and red silk, produced a courtly African effect. Indeed, every man
habited himself in his holiday apparel, and thus equipped, the march was
renewed in as close order as the path would admit of, serenaded by a
vociferous chorus of the Fantees. Upon turning an angle, whereby two
paths were connected, I was not a little surprised at coming directly in
contact with a party of soldiers habited and armed in British costume,
and headed by a white African (or, as it may be better understood, a
white negro) dressed _en bourgeois_, with the exception only of a
ponderous hat _en militaire_. These apish warriors, who formed a part of
the king’s body guard, fell into open ranks, and made some awkward
movements with their musquets, accompanying each caricature evolution
with a low submissive obeisance. They told me, that Sai had conferred
the honour of sending their troop to escort me to his presence; a
compliment which, perhaps, could not have been selected more
judiciously. My own soldiers, however, were jealously inclined to
preserve their station about my person; but this I opposed, from
political courtesy, and therefore placed myself under the protection of
the king’s guard, stationing the Fantees in the van as an equivalent. In
a quarter of an hour, we approached the swamp that environs the city on
the south and east sides. Even here, under the very walls of the
metropolis, the forest retained much of its characteristic gloom, and,
excepting on the line of path, its thickets and entanglements; no change
indicated an approach to a neighbourhood so highly populous as the
metropolis of Ashantee. The swamp itself would have passed for any other
of the same class in the wilderness. On the opposite margin of the
water, a good number of the town’s-people were stationed, waving to us,
and inclining their bodies in salutation as they perceived they were
observed. Several boys, who were here introduced to me by the Ashantees,
as sons of their monarch, pushed in amidst the guard, and kept pace by
the side of the palanquin.
A prospect of the capital (if such it may be called) at last opened in
front of us; it was a partial glimpse, at the distance of twenty or
thirty paces, of a few mud built hovels, surrounded in part by
plantations, and some straggling walls of the same material, covering a
contracted space gained from the adjacent waste. As soon as we arrived
at the outskirting houses, a portion of the city became visible; but its
external aspect by no means promised any thing superior to the towns of
Assin in general; and was, it must be told, foreign to those highly
coloured plates and the description given to the world in Mr. Bowdich’s
work.
The street we entered was a broad convenient space enough, leading
nearly in a direct line, north, to the Palace-gate; up this avenue we
advanced through a crowd of spectators, of all ages and classes, and of
both sexes. The clamorous songs of my people, as the procession moved
on, joined to the novel sound of the bugle, appeared to animate every
countenance with tumultuous joy, which was momentarily subdued only as a
royal _blunderbuss salutation_ burst full, as it may be expressed, in my
face. The assemblage was too great to maintain an orderly deportment,
and the soldiers were compelled to exert their authority to keep the
people back. This, notwithstanding the commotion, was effected without
difficulty, by flapping upon the ground small twigs of Bamboo, and
sometimes striking the people lightly upon the legs.
My palanquin was on a sudden arrested in the main avenue by a deputation
of Caboceers, who paid a formal congratulation on behalf of the king. It
was Sai’s desire, they added, that I should repair to the market place
until the court assembled. Here, therefore, I alighted under the shade
of some high trees, reposing for awhile from the scorching blaze of the
sun, now about commencing his descent from the meridian. The atmosphere
too, was in a manner stifled by the pressure of the multitude. A pause
of twenty minutes sufficed for the approaching ceremony, and we again
bent forward in orderly ranks to an angle that opened into the place of
audience, from whence another salute was fired. A silence, however, like
that of the forest, succeeded as the echoes died away; and as the smoke
dispersed, the view was suddenly animated by assembled thousands in full
costume, seated upon the ground in the form of an extensive semicircle,
where the chiefs were distinguished from the commonalty by large
floating umbrellas or canopies, fabricated from cloth of various hues.
These officers, only, were seated upon stools that elevated their heads
just above those of their attendants. An avenue not wider than the
footway in the forest, was the space allotted for walking in the line of
chiefs, leading to the station where the king was seated. The etiquette
was of a character corresponding with other ceremonies.
All the ostentatious trophies of negro splendour were emblazoned to
view. Drums of every size, from five or six inches in length to the
dimensions of as many feet, occasionally decorated with human relics,
abounded in all directions; and in some (although few instances) the
sculls of vanquished foemen, and strings of human teeth were glaringly
exposed on the persons of the youthful captains. Ivory horns similarly
ornamented, reed flutes, calabash rattles, and clanking bits of flat
iron, composed the various bands in front of the Caboceers. The
salutation, as heretofore, was accompanied by an impulsive grasp of the
hand with each Caboceer of rank, and a waving motion afterwards in
compliment to his friends, retainers, and slaves. In the act of
approaching these peers of the Ashantee realm, the solemn stillness was
invaded at intervals by the full chorus of each band, beating in
rotation the peculiar adopted air, whereby each noble is known from his
compeer. A number of select young slaves, boys of fifteen or sixteen
years old, stood before the war captains, and other chief officers, in
the aspect of a guard of honour, waving short scimiters and knives,
which they flourished in a threatening attitude. The deportment of the
Caboceers was marked with gravity; not a smile nor a courtly glance
illumined the asperity of their features, and the salutations were
uttered in a low affected tone of voice. The crowd, however, did not
consider themselves bound to imitate the dignified deportment of their
lords: they breathed a welcome in the silent language of the features.
In turn the quarters of the Moslems opened to view, where about three
hundred people of that faith (including slaves) were seated round their
Bashaw. No drums or warlike instruments of any kind were in the retinue
of this chieftain, nor was the avenue leading to his person guarded by
steel. A dignity and decorum of the soberest cast distinguished the
followers of the prophet from the tumultuous din of Ashantee custom.
Policy at this time forbade my giving the salutation in a language known
to them; still the reception I met with was courteous but dignified.
[Illustration: Moslems of Dagombah and Salagha in the Costumes of their
Countries]
The dress of these people corresponded better with the costume of Egypt
or Tripoli, than it did with that of western Barbary; yet it was a
medley of several nations; but the privileged classes were handsomely
habited in robes of Turkish or Indian cut silk, called _cofatten_,
trousers of native cotton, with turbans of the same, and a small body
vest richly braided with silk twist. This was perhaps the prevailing
mode of dress, but other fashions, not less graceful, denoted the
foreign traders; and in some instances, it was a mixture of Indian and
Turkish habits, in which the loose flowing shirts with long and broad
sleeves, formed the whole attire. I recognized also the common dress of
the Arabs and mountaineers of Atlas: this was simply a sort of tunic
without sleeves, falling down to the knee, and called in Arabic
_kussabi_. The chief, however, was a solitary instance of deviation from
every national mode. This man, who was far advanced in years, was
decorated in yellow damask robes, something of a theatrical cut,
although rich in faded embroidery and braiding. A muslin turban,
preposterously studded with pieces of looking glass, charms, bits of
unwrought coral, and glass beads, enveloped his head, which was covered,
besides, with a damask scarf that fell over his shoulders in many ample
folds, and united with a cumbrous load of apparel of various colours.
A full share of reserve, not untinctured with fanaticism, appeared at
first sight to distinguish the conduct of this follower of Mohammed’s
law. When I approached to receive his hand he hesitated, and in a tone
of low rapid utterance, recited those beautiful lines of the Koran,
called al Fathiat.[22] The ceremony was novel, and courtly in the
extreme; for in Morocco and other Mohammedan states, this form of
introduction is only adopted on particular occasions, where the parties
are both brethren of the same faith.
From the Mohammedan quarters I advanced towards those of the ministers,
linguists, and other confidential officers in whom the king reposes
trust. Their superior rank was conspicuous in the number of their
attendants, in the superior construction of the enormous floating
canopy, in the reiterated discordance of the bands of musical
performers, and in personal decorations, consisting in general of a
profusion of gold ornaments suspended from the wrist and ancle, to
distinguish the favourites of Royalty.
At last I approached the avenue where the king was seated. The martial
instruments surrounding the throne suddenly burst upon the hearing in
heavy peals, and the household slaves advanced, flourishing their
scimiters over my head with menacing violence. This threatening ceremony
was directed with renovated vigour as I advanced to take the king’s
hand, but having as it were won the contested honour in the late
struggle, my opponents quietly suffered me to enjoy the prize, for the
_music_ ceased, the guards retired from the presence, and I was quietly
permitted to pay my respects. The king extended his hand with great
complacency, yet with a dignity that created admiration and respect, for
it was even more than national. The features of the monarch were placid,
yet serious, with the exception of his eyes, which seemed rivetted in
good-natured admiration, although they were not permitted to convey this
feeling to the muscles of his face. The salutation murmured by the
sovereign was re-echoed by an officer in attendance, and reported to me
as follows: “Sai thanks the gods he sees you, and the other white men,
and all your people.”
The royal chair was a specimen of some ingenuity, yet the workmanship
was rude. Its arms and legs were carved from the solid into grotesque
forms, and embossed with little ornamental casts of gold. Several
Caboceers in waiting were decorated with massive gold breast plates,
chains of the same metal, and solid lumps of rock-gold, of the weight,
perhaps, of a pound or more each. The royal messengers stood behind the
sovereign, shouldering by the blades large crooked sabres, the emblems
of their offices, and displaying the reversed hilts, cased in thin gold
sheathing. In another position, at the back of the king’s chair, a
select few stood erect as guards, and were armed with common English
muskets in gold casing, and habited in grotesque apparel, which
consisted of a large helmet or plume of feathers of the Argus bird,
sloping backward over the head, in form not very unlike those which,
according to history, were worn by the inhabitants of America, and
particularly in the empire of Mexico, by the warriors of that nation. In
front of the plume was an arching pair of ram’s horns, cased in gold,
and attached by the centre to several charms and amulets, neatly
sheathed in morocco leather. A scull-cap united the whole, and a long
tiger’s tail flowed down over a close-bodied jacket, that concealed
every part but the arms, in a perfect mail of magical charms, also
richly ornamented in gold, silver, or stained leather. A simple covering
of cloth girded about the loins, fell half way down the thigh, and left
the rest of the body bare. In addition to guns, the weapons and
accoutrements of these officers were bows, and a quiver of poisoned
arrows, suspended from the back by a belt, which at the same time
supported the weight of a string of case-knives and a large powder
pouch. The most ludicrous part of the equipment consisted in a large
gold, silver, or iron bell, suspended by a rope that girded the loins,
and overhung the posteriors, causing at every movement a dull tinkling
sound, like the pasturing bells used in Spain. Over these bells were
suspended gold or silver epaulettes of European fabrication, more or
less tarnished. Some of the officers wore small turbans of silk taffety,
or figured cotton and muslin; and beside were decently dressed in robes
of various striped cotton, folded round the loins, and gracefully turned
over the left shoulder, exactly as the Hayk or Alhayk, is worn by the
Arabs of the western and southern deserts. The king was modestly habited
in a large cloth or Hayk of figured cotton, cast off from both
shoulders, and resting negligently in loose folds, upon the loins and
thighs. From his naked shoulder was suspended a thick silk plait or
cord, to which were attached a string of amulets cased in gold, silver,
and silk. A massive gold chain encircled his waist, in the form of a
zone, below the navel; and a variety of clumsy gold rings covered his
fingers, thumbs, and toes. On the left knee he wore a bandage, or fillet
of silk, and plaited weed, interwoven with gold beads and amulets,
terminating in a tasteful tassel, that hung as low as the calf of the
leg.
[Illustration: Priests or Magicians of Ashantee invoking the National
deities.]
Monday being a day of religious importance, the king, I was privately
informed, had been engaged in the forenoon in the rituals of his faith,
and three human victims, in addition to cattle, had been offered to the
favoured deities; but their lives, as I afterwards found, were already
forfeited to the law. The chief priest, or, according to the phraseology
of Cape Coast, the head fetische-man, occupied a position on one side of
the throne, and was surrounded by a group of aged disciples, and
youthful attendants, disfigured with stripes of white clay upon their
faces, breasts and legs. In the midst rested an earthen pot and a small
box, containing, as it was imagined, relics, or offerings for the
tutelary deities of majesty.
As I was about retiring, the king motioned with his hand to impede me,
and by a significant nod indicated his wish that I should still remain.
In the meantime, the other gentlemen who were following my steps and
actions, came to the spot, and were in turn saluted by his Majesty with
equal serenity, his eyes all the while rivetting themselves upon the
persons and features of every stranger; while tranquillity beamed from a
countenance that never even for a moment underwent the slightest
alteration. At last I retired amidst renovated peals of drums, horns,
rattles, and other mellifluous instruments of the kind.
As the position occupied by the king stood nearly in the centre of a
large semi-circle, above a moiety of the ceremony was still in reserve.
The king, or tributary chief of Banna, a monarch subordinate to the
sovereign of Ashantee, happened to be at this time at Coomassy, and was
stationed at no great distance from his liege lord. His retinue was
splendid and numerous, comprising, besides his own people, several
moslems of inferior rank, and their slaves. The vassal prince was simply
attired in an African cloth, decorated with amulets, &c. sheathed in
gold and the skins of beasts. Gold rings ornamented his fingers and
toes, and little fillets of gold and aggry beads encircled the thick
parts of each arm. The incessant din that occasionally reigned in all
parts, naturally gave rise to a feeling of sincere contempt—disgust I
may say, for the music of Ashantee, however grateful it would seem to
have been to the auricular organs of Mr. Bowdich, whose harmonic taste
is upon record in his work. The illustrious negro prince was seated upon
a chair studded with silver coins, such as dollar and half dollar
pieces, which were riveted against the frame work, none being permitted
to sit enthroned in gold but the “King of Kings.”
A warlike band, who guarded the person of this tributary, were martially
habited in the skins of beasts, chiefly the hides of leopards, and
panthers; their weapons were bows and poisoned arrows, javelins guns,
sabres, clubs, and case-knives. Many were in a state of nudity,
excepting the shim or girdle, three or four inches wide, that passed
between the thighs, bracing round the loins and under the posteriors.
Chieftains of rank, governors of provinces, and allies of the Ashantee
empire, were next in order to the King of Banna, and the intervening
space was occupied by caboceers, captains, and other officers of less
note. At the expiration of two hours, I had the happiness to arrive at
the extreme end of the crescent, where several of the king’s ministers
stood in waiting to receive and conduct me to a resting place: this was
a spot of clear ground shaded on the margin by some tall trees.
After a suspense of some minutes duration, the renewed discord of drums,
gong-gongs, &c. in full concert, announced a movement on the part of the
court. The clamour became more and more general, and its effect, for an
interval, deafening. The chiefs advanced at a tardy pace, followed in
successive ranks by their vassal captains, personal attendants, and
slaves, armed and equipped in their full military habits; some with iron
chains suspended round the neck, others round the body in the form of a
zone, while the men at arms, belonging to the household establishments
of each Caboceer, brought up the rear in close embodied masses.
To prevent interruption, the leading ranks were compelled to use a
moderate share of dispatch, and to induce this promptly, my guards armed
themselves with palm boughs, which they flapped upon the ground,
sometimes threatening, and at other times striking the twig on the naked
legs of those who were too tardy in their movements. The principal
performers in this discipline were the two captains, Ado and Quako,
aided by the whole troop in British uniform. Yet some of the people were
a little indignant at the harsh reception they met with, although the
far greater part capered along in merry mood.
Chiefs of the first class now arrived on the spot, and saluted with
courtesy; the reserve of a first introduction was banished from every
countenance. The band of each of these officers preceded the march, and
was followed by a group of parasites, whose business it was to proclaim
in boisterous songs the strong names of their masters. The bellowing of
these heralds, the discordant din of war instruments, and the clamour of
my guards produced a chaos of harsh sounds that would baffle the efforts
of the pen to describe. The feelings of many of the caboceers, and
especially those of a youthful deportment, were conspicuous, in defiance
now and then of an affected serenity: their countenances from composure
relaxed into smiles, and even a stifled laugh was more than once exacted
by the persevering adulation of their attendants; but not wholly
forgetful of what was due to their own dignity, they frequently affected
displeasure at the unblushing flattery with which they were assailed. As
it may not be uninteresting to the reader, I shall give the translation
of one of these songs as my linguist interpreted it.
“Where shall we find such a warrior as the strong and beautiful Apacoo
Kudjo, whose eyes are like the panther in fight? O great slave of the
king, how you are beloved! your victories delight his ears. Who fought
the Gamans and killed their Caboceer Adouai? Apacoo Kudjo! Where are the
women and the gold? Apacoo Kudjo has them. He is a rich man; a mighty
man! His enemies die when he is angry. He is invulnerable, his fetische
(amulet) no man can look upon and live.”
The evening began to close in apace, yet still the pageant displayed
unbroken ranks, and no movement had yet taken place in the king’s
retinue. The Moslems, accompanied by their captains, and headed by the
Bashaw under his canopy, advanced in order and gave the salutation with
a decorum peculiarly korannic. No barbarous music, no osseous relics; no
gambols of the war dance; no sycophants to sound poetic titles and
achievements; even the courtly strut was softened down to a character
modest and reserved. The contrast was thus favourable to education, and
the superior rank of these people in the classes of African society
could not be more pre-eminently contrasted.
As the king of Banna approached, he silenced his band and sycophants
together, by an authoritative wave of the hand. Then advancing until he
had gained a position exactly opposite to me, he snatched a scimiter
from a youth in attendance, while his people formed a silent and distant
circle. He then commenced an harangue, which, by progressive degrees,
degenerated into the most furious utterance, associated with rapid and
vehement gestures, and flourishings of his weapon, within two or three
paces of my feet. The bystanders, during the pause, gave a respectful
attention to the discourse, frequently sympathised in the feelings of
the orator, and oftentimes used soothing epithets, while the very eye
balls of the royal chief glanced with real, or affected malignity; and
the foam spurted from his mouth as from that of an enraged maniac. At
last he ceased speaking, and his countenance subsided into tranquillity,
as he cast the scimiter upon the earth. His relaxed features even wore
the semblance of a smile, while he held me by the hand, saluted and
retired. The interruption gave no satisfaction to my guards, who, after
this shadow of royalty was again fairly obscured in the crowd, applied
their twigs very smartly to his peoples’ shoulders and legs, in revenge
for the detention, for we were by this time almost enveloped in
darkness. The anxiety I felt to know the substance of the speech could
not be gratified at the moment; but subsequently I minuted down the
following particulars from the memory of the linguist, which I introduce
in this place from its obvious connexion.
“Ashantees, who is there so great, so good as Sai? No where can you see
such a king. He says, destroy this country,—and it is a desert; the
people are killed with his shot and his powder. When he makes war, he is
like the tiger. Can any one fight the tiger? How foolish, then, are
those who say they hate this great king, and speak with arrogance; for
if they cannot fight, what will become of them. They cannot go in the
bush, (northwards) for there is my country, Coransa, Takimah, and
Bouromy: all this belongs to Sai, he is king over all the kings, and all
the people, and his foot stands upon every one’s neck. If they run to
Adirai river, it is the king’s fetische, and will kill them. They cannot
pass Tando river. What then? there is only the sea. Will not that kill
them too? You know I fight for the king; he is my master, and I love
him. I fought with Dinkera (late king of Gaman) and he died, and the
people died. If the king bid me make war on any country, I must obey; he
is the master and I am the slave. If he desire me to go to Fantee, I
swear the great oath, I will kill them all; I will cut up their bodies
in pieces, and take out their hearts, and I will not let one live,
because they are an insolent people. Now they hear Dinkera is dead, and
they are frightened, and want to make a palaver between white men and
the king, because they think he cannot then catch them. Is that
reasonable? This white Caboceer comes up to talk the palaver. If he
comes with truth in his heart, and with friendly intentions, it is well;
but if he tries to deceive and dishonour the king, it cannot be
suffered; and I shall kill all these people[23] and drink their blood,
because they forget that they are the king’s slaves,” &c.
These particulars were repeated to me with evident reluctance, and under
a promise of secrecy, as it was feared I might be offended, or the king
himself be displeased; I learned, moreover, that this tributary had
recently arrived at court, to claim his proportion of spoil from the
sacking of Bontoko and Houraboh, the two capital cities of Gaman, which
fell under the power of Ashantee, after the decisive battle that cost
the life of the sovereign. The king of Banna had been extremely active
during the campaign, particularly on one important occasion, when
Dinkera, the king of Gaman, was on the point of gaining a decided
advantage over his enemies. It was whispered that this ebullition arose
out of circumstances connected with interest and policy, in what
regarded his situation at court and his expectations. A division of the
unfortunate captives taken in the Gaman war had already occurred, when
it appeared that four thousand seven hundred people of that nation,
(men, women and children), were awarded to the king of Banna, as his
share of living plunder. The gold palaver, or in other terms, the spoil
of the enemy’s government and towns, remained still in statu quo,
subject to the award of the king of Ashantee; and although several
conferences had taken place on the subject, yet each time the assembly
had broken up without coming to a decision.
Several ministers and officers of high rank followed the petty
sovereign, and darkness rapidly increased before there was a visible
diminution in numbers. At last the ranks thinned; a few stragglers only
came forward to warn me of the approach of the sovereign. On a sudden a
number of blazing torches were seen in the distance, and a burst from
the king’s band announced his approach. Hitherto the preservation of our
ranks had been attended with little difficulty, notwithstanding the
tumultuous movements; but now I was to be initiated into a novel scene
of regal splendour. By the time the foremost torches had advanced within
fifty paces of the spot where I was seated, a most harsh discordance of
yells, shouts, and howls, assailed the ears in a sudden peal, heightened
by a re-animated burst of instruments. It naturally occurred to me that
the impression was intended to paralyze the senses, by contributing to
magnify the man of royalty. Thus ended a moment’s reflection; for on a
sudden my guards were forced by a rush of the king’s guards,
notwithstanding the most vigorous efforts they made to oppose the
intruders. A rally was then made round my chair, to screen my person
from the rude buffets of the warlike mob, but all efforts proved
ineffectual, and another rush knocked over my seat, and almost threw me
upon the earth. With some difficulty, aided by the bodily exertions of
my friendly guard, who it appeared had suffered in an equal proportion,
I recovered my feet, but with the temporary loss of sword and hat. The
king’s guards were now in the midst of our party, some with large ivory
horns and wooden drums, chiming together the most _excruciating_ harmony
I ever heard in my life; others with burning vegetable torches and
crooked sabres, which they flourished in attitudes of defiance and
threat; yet it was evident they wielded their weapons with caution. The
other gentlemen were at this time separated from me, I knew not how far,
and the noise and confusion were unabated. My soldiers at last rallied
again, and by dint of main strength forced a passage through the crowd,
and gained for me a more secure station behind a tree, where I met
Messrs. Collins and Salmon, who had been swept away in the boisterous
eddy, and had suffered as much jostling as myself. The torches threw a
brilliant stream of light on all around, and increased the savage
splendour of the scene. The king’s canopy was already within a few paces
of the spot, and still the buffetting continued; but at this time we
were effectually relieved by the exertions of the guard, for the Fantees
were appalled, and made no effort for themselves. A number of warriors
bedecked with argus plumes, gold ornaments and bells, preceded the
canopy; performing certain evolutions representing the invocations and
inspirations blended in the war dance; twirling also their gold-mounted
guns, and screaming in terrific transports. A gigantic negro followed in
the train, bearing the execution stool, encrusted with gore, and howling
the song of death. The heralds, (for I have too much respect for kingly
rank to class them with the parasites of the captains), followed next,
announcing the monarch’s high titles and deeds in arms. The conquest of
Fantee and Gaman were enumerated in the list; but it was remarkable that
these royal _trumpeters_ observed a greater decorum in their approaches
to the person of the king. They did not press upon him rudely, and never
presumed to venture under the canopy. Upon a given signal, while I was
still compelled to use some exertion in maintaining my ground, the
confusion subsided into a respectful silence. The king’s canopy at the
same time stood before me, and this redoubtable monarch again appeared
with the same unruffled aspect, and with features rather more relaxed
than before. He gazed a few moments with a penetrating glance, as if
contemplating the effect created by the first impressions. He then took
me by the hand in the most affable manner, and pronounced a laconic
welcome: after which he saluted the other gentlemen, and the Fantees,
and immediately moved off the ground.
Some of the king’s torch bearers were ordered to shew the way to the
quarters. The king, it seemed, had allotted the house of prince Adoom
for my separate use: thither I was conducted, and an adjacent house was
appropriated to the joint use of the officers. I had scarcely crossed
the threshold of the enclosure, before a party of slaves, headed by a
captain, entered the place, loaded with a present from the king, of wine
and honey, coupled with a complimentary enquiry whether I felt fatigued.
[Illustration: The Palace of Ouso Adoom, the King’s Nephew; the Author’s
temporary residence at Coomassie.]
The building assigned for my use stood nearly opposite the palace, and
consisted of two apartments thirteen feet long by seven in breadth, with
a wall and fence, besides a long gallery or corridor, that served me as
a sleeping place for guards and servants. Without the enclosure,
opposite the entrance, was another recess belonging to the building,
designed for the dispatch of public business. Rude as the fabric was, it
was tolerably commodious, for the roof was well thatched, and the whole
was perfectly secure against wind and rain, except when they happened to
beat in the direction of the door-ways, or from the NE. Its
architectural beauties may be classed with those of our own well
thatched barns. It should be remembered, however, that under the torrid
zone a barn is better suited to the climate, and certainly more adapted
to the habits of the people than a more confined habitation would be.
The annexed engraving is copied from a correct external view of the
palace, representing that sort of hieroglyphical sculpture, in relief,
which is characteristic of the style of decorating the houses of
chieftains, and which, it would seem, Mr. Bowdich has so highly improved
upon. The foreground represents the etiquette of forwarding messages to
the king. As the flag departs, some Ashantees are saluting it with
discharges of musketry.
Thus terminated the journey from the sea coast to the capital of
Ashantee, a tract which is formidable to the traveller, not as it
regards distance, but from its natural obstructions. From Sarasoo to
Coomassy the distance is six and a quarter horizontal miles, and the
course north. The distance from Cape Coast to Coomassy, it will be seen,
is rather short of one hundred and thirty-three miles horizontal; or one
hundred and eighty-seven by the path.
As regards climate or atmosphere, the Gold Coast and places adjacent to
the settlements, are more or less known to be unhealthy. But I will
hazard an opinion that the countries inland are infinitely more
salubrious, the air more pure, and the soil less humid and vaporous than
at any station upon the Coast, between Cape Palmas and the Gaboon River.
At Doonqua, at Mansue, and on the banks of the Praa, the temperature
seldom varied much (except when tornados checked the heat), and the air
was pure and exhilarating; for notwithstanding sickness tracked our
steps from stage to stage through the wilderness, it must be allowed
that the diseases of our party (unless, indeed, we include lassitude and
lameness) were engendered at Cape Coast Castle. Mr. Collins and myself
were more severely afflicted than the other Europeans; many of the
natives laboured under attacks of fever, Guinea-worm, and inflammations;
but it was clear to me that these distempers, and our own complaints
also, were either the associates of our outset, or arose from the
malignant germs which, lying torpid in the constitution, were
stimulated, by exertion, into life. It would seem, however, that a
country so intersected by watercourses, so humid and swampy, and withal
so surcharged by forest trees and thickets, where noxious exhalations,
oozing from the decay of vegetable substances, are likely to condense,
could scarcely deserve the character I have given it for salubrity. Be
this as it may, I leave it to others who are better able than myself to
account for apparent contradictions: I speak only of the reality of the
fact, from personal experience, and the effect I witnessed on the
constitutions of the party under my command. The deadly effluvia of
African vapours are in general well known, for the rivers upon the
western coasts of this continent have recorded but too many fatal proofs
to leave the matter in any doubt. The Callebar, the Cameroon, the Logos,
that of Sierra Leone, and the Gambia rivers, become the sepulchres of
hecatombs of the human species. Whole ships’ crews have even been
ingulfed in these waters, and the assigned cause is the pestilential
exhalations of the air. These facts it would be superfluous to question,
as indeed it would be a difficult matter to refute them by force of
argument. May it not, however, be enquired, whether local circumstances
are not connected with these cruel calamities; whether these noisome
vapours do not imbibe a mortal venom from the putrefaction of vegetables
indigenous to the sea coast, or to a mixture between salt and fresh
water? Where the mangrove (for instance) is found—and it is presumed
that this is the case not only in the rivers above-named, but at the
mouths of every petty stream in tropical Africa—the infection is
considered more contaminating, more pernicious in quality, and its
action more deadly in effect to the constitutions of Europeans.
In reference to this hypothesis, I shall only observe, that the mangrove
was rarely or never seen inland, and that the waters of the rivers, with
few exceptions, are limpid, and sweet flavoured. I conceive, therefore,
that the dry season of Ashantee is, beyond a doubt, equal in salubrity
to what is experienced in any tropical country; and that the climate
itself is superior to that of the Guinea Coast; and particularly so
during those seasons of rain, mist, and earthy exhalations which prevail
for eight months out of the twelve.
[Illustration: A Specimen of Ashantee Sculpture.]
[Footnote 21: Our sufferings on this march were necessarily greater than
what the former party endured, because we crossed this barrier at the
time of the greatest daily heat, and after a moderate journey, whereas
the others traversed it in the cool of the morning.]
[Footnote 22: بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم الحمد لله رب العلمين
الرحمن الرحيم ملك يوم الدين اياك نعبد واياك نستعين &c.
“In the name of God the merciful, the compassionate. Glory be to God the
Lord of the creation and the universe—the most merciful King of the day
of Judgment. Thee do we worship and Thee do we supplicate. Direct us in
the right way; in the way of those to whom thou hast been gracious: not
of those against whom thou art incensed, nor of those who are ill
directed.”
The Lord’s Prayer is certainly not more venerated by Christians than is
the Fathiat of the Arabs by the worshippers of Islam, and hence it is
selected as the standard for attesting public and private faith, or for
any particular emergency in joy, tribulation, or doubt, between the
interests and feelings of opposite parties.]
[Footnote 23: The Fantees.]
CHAPTER III.
COMMENCEMENT OF NEGOTIATIONS.
AUDIENCE OF THE KING — OBJECTS OF THE MISSION — DELIVERY OF PRESENTS —
THE OATH OF FRIENDSHIP AND ALLIANCE TAKEN BY THE KING AND PRINCIPAL
CHIEFS AND OFFICERS — INSPECTION OF THE PRESENTS, AND EFFECT PRODUCED —
VISITS FROM THE ASHANTEE MOSLEMS — VIOLATION OF MOHAMMEDAN LAW — STATE
OF RELIGION IN ASHANTEE — CHARACTERS OF THE CABOCEERS — SECOND AUDIENCE
OF THE KING — HIS IDEAS OF EUROPE — HIS PRESENTS — VISIT FROM MANDINGO
MOSLEMS — INTERRUPTION BY ADO QUAMINA — DISPUTE AND RECONCILIATION WITH
HIM — MISCONDUCT OF THE FANTEES — THIRD AUDIENCE — PROSPECT OF AN
AMICABLE CONCLUSION OF THE NEGOTIATIONS — PRESENTS TO THE GREAT MEN.
On the morning of the 29th of February, I received a message from the
king to the following purport:—“The king sends his compliments to you,
and says, good morning. He wishes to see you when all his great captains
are assembled.” Upon this notice, I gave instructions for the officers
to be in readiness, and to assemble the people. At ten o’clock, an extra
guard of honour was in attendance at the outer gate, to escort the
mission to the presence of the sovereign.
Upon arriving at the spot where the king was seated, a discordant peal
of drums and horns burst out with a deafening clamour; but these sounds
soon died away, and were succeeded by a silence uninterrupted even by a
whisper. The monarch of Ashantee was enthroned in his state chair, under
a large cotton canopy, ornamented with pieces of red cloth; and his
ministers and captains surrounded his person. Three or four guards only
stood behind the chair, with musquets, and a number of priests were
seated upon the ground to the left of the monarch. In the front, to a
considerable distance right and left, the eye wandered over the heads of
a crowded assemblage of chiefs of all ranks, mingled with their
respective vassals. An avenue was left in this mass of human beings,
just sufficiently capacious to admit ingress to the king; and through
this passage I advanced. Our salutation was courteous: the king
particularly enquired about the health of the officers, &c. I opened the
business of the mission in terms of the following import.[24]
“The king of England, whose servant I am, salutes the king of Ashantee
in peace; and salutes all the great captains, his friends, and his
people. The king of England, one of the greatest monarchs of the whites,
having heard, by the return of some of his officers, who visited
Coomassy three years back, that the king of Ashantee had received them
with respect, and loaded them with kindness, rejoiced to think that the
king was a friend. This induced him to make an acknowledgment, such as
it was hoped would be agreeable to his majesty. He has, therefore, been
pleased to appoint me the bearer of his sentiments; in token of which, I
am entrusted with a present to deliver to the king of Ashantee. The king
of England knew the king of Ashantee from his wars on the sea coast,
long before his people visited Coomassy; but he did not know until that
event, that his majesty was no less respected for his hospitable
treatment of strangers, than renowned as a warrior. Influenced by these
feelings, the king, my master, as a friend, earnestly invites the king
of Ashantee to cultivate peace between the nations, and to assist him in
encouraging a trade that would be productive of good to the country, and
benefit the people, I have been a long time on the coast, more than
twelve moons, waiting in anxiety to see his majesty; but was prevented
travelling at an earlier period, in consequence of the interruption of
intercourse by the Gaman war, and also of the rainy season.
“The dispute between the king and the governor has been a subject of
disappointment and regret to me, because it could not fail to give
dissatisfaction to the king of England, and his great captains, that the
whites and blacks should have any cause of dispute, and particularly at
a time when so much had been done for the good of all.
“If, therefore, the king of Ashantee has any thing to say against the
white men, let the _palaver_ be spoken, for I dare affirm that the king
of England would not permit any of his people to give offence to the
king of Ashantee, wilfully and without cause. At the same time it is my
duty to declare to the king that if he injure the governor and white
men, he may certainly expect it will deprive him of my master’s
friendship, and be attended with disastrous consequences.”
During this recital, which, in conformity to court etiquette, was first
translated by my own linguist, and afterwards re-translated into a
superior dialect, the king was musing; but no sooner had the linguist
ceased speaking, than his features relaxed into a smile of satisfaction
and self-importance. Turning round to his captains, he said aloud, “You
see how much honour the white king does me. The gods have done me all
this good instead of my ancestors! Who shall disobey me, now the white
king is my friend?” Turning his face towards me, he smilingly said,
“This is well, I am now very happy, because you are come, and can see
with your own eyes, and hear with your own ears, what is true; and now
you shall settle all disputes.” With this assurance I was dismissed.
In the evening I received a message requiring my attendance at the
palace, on the day following, with all the presents except the rum,
guns, and powder.[25] Some pots of palm wine were afterwards brought, a
part of which was, by the king’s desire, distributed among the Fantees.
On the first of March I went to the palace, where I found a number of
workmen in readiness. The king, who was seated under a shed, surrounded
by a few favourites, received me this time with the most open
affability; and having directed my chair to be placed in front of his
own, he introduced some significant questions about England and her
king; demanding to know his name, (which he endeavoured to repeat after
me, and _at perfection_ articulated _Shorshi_,) the kind of house he
inhabited, the number of his women (_wives_), slaves, &c., the manner in
which he made war, and a variety of other questions. He declared that he
knew the English king to be king over all other white kings, and that
his subjects were the most powerful and warlike of the white nations:
just as he was the black “king of kings, and his people the greatest
black warriors.” This eulogy he concluded by saying, “the great God of
his fathers, whom he serves, preserve him long upon the stool (throne),
and make his enemies die before him. The king of England had chained his
heart to him.”
He repeated the enquiry whether I was actually from England or not, for
the other white man[26] told him, he said, that he was sent by the king
of England. This I conceived to be a fit opportunity for dispelling all
doubts, by introducing my credentials. One of the officers, to whom I
delivered my commission, read it aloud, while the linguist interpreted
at each period deliberately. The king listened with attention, and when
the recital was over, he bounded upon his feet, and grasping a scimiter
that was handed to him, he gravely folded his clothes about his loins,
eyeing me at the time with a scrutinizing glance; and as he stood in
that posture, commenced an energetic speech, while his captains flocked
tumultuously together, half surrounding their sovereign. At intervals
the king flourished his weapon in the air, elevating or depressing the
point of the blade as low as my forehead. When he had concluded he
retired backwards to his seat, and cast the weapon from his hand, making
a signal at the same time to his chief officers with one finger. The
sign was understood. Adusai (a confidential minister) advanced next, and
spoke with his characteristic volubility, imitating at the time, the
transport before described. This officer was succeeded by Kankam
(another minister), Apoko, the chief general of the army, Ado Matta (an
aged officer of high military rank), and Agampong, all favourites of the
king, with whom their influence was great.
This striking novelty in court _etiquette_ naturally excited surprise.
The king perceived it, and desired Adusai to explain to my linguist that
the ceremony I had witnessed was an oath of inviolable friendship and
fidelity, whereby the king pledged himself to the king of England, to
serve him and to fight for him, as I should direct, &c.
At my leisure I obtained copies of the oaths, from the memory of my
linguist,[27] and the Fantees who were present. That of the king was
thus construed—
“I swear a great oath, by the great God and the Fetische, and that great
oath of my ancestors (the battle of Accromanti) that that book
(commission) is what I approve of; and I will remember what is just. The
great king has secured my attachment; he is my master, and I will serve
him truly, and do all I can to give him satisfaction. I will send my
soldiers to the right and to the left whenever you say he wishes to make
war on the wicked; then all these countries will know that I am a true
friend, and that the white king is my king. I will do much to benefit
the English in this country, and the people shall know that I love them
better than the Dutch and Danes; but I like all white men. Hear this,
captains; my master has sent me a great officer to take care of, and he
must have whatever he wants, for he is now the same as my son, and the
people must know I love him very much.”
The oath of Adusai was as follows:—
“This is a great day for Sai (the king) because we see his name is known
in the white country. My gold, my life, my wives, children, and slaves
all belong to Sai, for he is the great king here; and I swear by all the
king’s great oaths (those by which he swore) to do all that is right as
the king says; I will fight and I will die for the white king, if he
tell me.”
That of Kankam ran thus:—
“It is many moons since the white men came up before. When they went to
the white country, they spoke the truth to the great king, and said, Sai
is your good friend; and when he hears that Sai is a great king also
over the black countries, then he knows that Sai has a good heart. Now,
I am the king’s slave, and I shall serve him faithfully. I swear the
king’s great oaths, that I will do what he commands, and I will fight
and die for the great white king. Thus, because he is a good friend, all
the black men are his slaves.”
Apoko took up the scimiter in turn. It was not unknown to me that the
political sentiments of this chief, whose influence was powerful, were
hostile to the Fantees. His rank in the army rendered his voice in the
cabinet the most important, perhaps, in the list of caboceers. It should
be recorded, however, that although he and his party were adverse to a
reconciliation with the natives of Cape Coast, they did not openly
implicate the governor and council in the quarrel, unless as accessaries
to the conduct of the Fantees. The king of England, Apoko one day said,
could not know the truth; for, as the governor had at least taken a
secondary part in the quarrel, and had broken the law (treaty), he would
not surely write a true book to the great king. The sentiments of this
man, to be gathered from his speech, were naturally interesting at this
crisis.
“Chief of the white men,” said he, “that book is good, the king likes
it, and we all like it. Sincerity appears in your face. The great god
you serve knows what is in the heart; but I think you cannot tell a lie.
I see the great king sends good things to Sai, because he thinks he is a
true friend, and will take care of his forts, and the white men, and
make a good trade. But the white captain, who came up before, told the
king lies; because he made a book of friendship, and then cheated the
king. Sai is a true king, I am only a captain. If he say—Make war, and
kill the people, I must do so. If he say—Be friends, then I certainly
cannot fight. Now I hear the words of that book (the commission), I like
it, because the great king wishes to make Ashantee and England all one.
Sai knows I tell him what I think is good for him; because I cannot sit
here when I see people insolent, and hear them say he is not the king. I
fought in Fantee and Assin, with Apoutay and Cheboo. If Sai be not king,
as the Fantees pretend, why does the white king now send him a true
captain, and presents? But they lie! and it is their deceitfulness;
because they do not wish him to see the king. The white men know very
well that Ashantee is mighty in war; and it is not right for the
governor to say to the people, ‘Make a wall, and fight the king.’ That
is not like a true friend, according to the book. This palaver, Captain,
(addressing me) is what is in my heart: I think it very shameful in the
governor; but let that pass. I swear the king’s oath, that what he says,
I will do; and if he say, fight for the great king, I will kill all his
enemies, so that all the people shall serve him here as in the white
country. Sai is our master, and the great king is our master too.
“Then for you, Captain, you are all the same here as our wives and
children: nobody shall hurt you.”
Agampong and Ado Matta swore the oath; the former without passing any
particular comment; the latter, however, a respectable old chief of the
first rank, said, at the close of the ceremony, “I am an old man now,
but I have fought many times against the king’s enemies, and now I see
all the towns conquered, and the people know that Sai is king; it is
only foolish men who speak evil; but they know not what they do.
Suppose, then, Cape Coast refuses to pay what is just, this white
captain will look to it, and restore a good understanding; and then the
trade can go down to the water side as the great king wishes.”
The presents were then opened for inspection; and it unfortunately
happened that the most unsightly articles presented themselves first to
view. A turning lathe, in particular, attracted the king’s notice, not
unmingled with a look of disappointment; yet he examined the parts with
minute attention, as he inquired its use. Some British silks of Indian
patterns, and some little carpets which were spread before him, again
brightened up his countenance, although he endeavoured to affect
indifference. “All was good,” he said, as he bestowed commendations on
the usefulness or beauties of the presents. A convex mirror attracted
universal attention, and gave the monarch so much delight, that he
marched off with it to the harem, to shew it to his wives.
The next articles were an admiral’s full uniform, richly embroidered, a
service of china, a bronze lamp, a repeating watch, a musical box, and
some pieces of rich gold flowered silks. A few of these articles, it was
evident, gave him great delight; but he would not approve of one in
particular, lest it might be considered a disparagement to the others.
He repeated his approbation of the whole, and then passed them over for
the inspection of some of his chief officers. “I love the great king,”
said he, “even without a present. I like the good things he sends me
too; but if he sends me a corn stalk it is enough, I shall always love
him.” His majesty required an explanation of the properties of the
organ, lathe, musical box, watch, &c. Unfortunately the organ had
sustained more injury than any other article. The mechanism and harmony
of the other articles excited a degree of superstitious regard, until
the king was perfectly assured of their harmless powers: the box in
particular was supposed to possess talismanic virtues. The two drums,
probably gave as much real satisfaction as any of the articles. The case
containing them and the cymbals stood apart from the others, and the
Fantees, thinking no doubt, that their virtues would be better explained
by a specimen of the effect, struck up a peal without any ceremony. The
king, at first, did not seem to notice the sound, but as soon as he was
made acquainted with the cause, he desired the noise to cease; his
countenance at the same time indicating a sense of suppressed
mortification at the liberty taken. Last of all, one case of musquets
was opened, and their quality minutely inspected; as if these deadly
weapons were, after all, deemed of more intrinsic value than any thing
else.
It was already dusk, and the king appeared anxious to escape from the
bustle. He desired to know, precisely, whether or not the present was
sent to him by the king of England. My answer satisfied him that it was.
“Then,” said he “I am happy. I have conquered all the countries down to
the sea with my own powder and shot, and the gods have made me known to
the great king of white men, whose officer brings me good things. This
is a great honour, which I cannot forget. If my country contains any
thing good for the great king,” said he, addressing the conversation to
me, “it is his, for he is my master too. His present I like very much;
and I like him, for he is my good friend, and his people are all my good
friends.” As he concluded the sentence, he arose from his seat and
retired.
On the following morning, March 2d, a deputation of the Moslems waited
upon me to deliver a message of congratulation on the prospect of peace.
The deputation consisted of Mohammed al Ghamba, or Baba as he was
commonly called, Bashaw, or Caboceer of the Moslems, attended by
Abdallah ben Gatta Shoumou, Ali ben Mohammed, Shellom ben Cantoma,
Ibrahim al Yandy, Abou Becr Atolo, Jelelly ben Kadsy al Bouroumy, and Al
Hadge Ambaric al Slaghy; nine of the principal traders, besides a
proportionate number of the inferior classes, and slaves. Many of these
people enjoyed rank at court, or were invested with administrative
powers, entitling them even to a voice in the senate. The party having
seated themselves, the chief explained the purport of the visit,
commenting at intervals upon the pacific disposition of the king towards
white men, his prowess in war, the extent of his dominions, &c. Although
Moslems, many of these people, in common with the heathen Africans, were
addicted to the use of spirituous liquors, and it was frankly insinuated
by some of the bystanders that a little rum would be acceptable. The
chief, however, took the precaution to dismiss the whole of his retinue,
with the exception of a few friends. These failed not to indulge in
swallowing a few goblets of that _delectable_ spirit, although, with a
moderate degree of affectation, they rejected the first offer.
When they had sufficiently regaled, and as the liquor exhilarated the
company, I took the opportunity to introduce a sort of satire used by
the Arabs against drunkards. The astonishment, not to term it
superstitious terror, with which these _religious men_ were struck at
the sound of the language exceeded any conjecture I could have formed.
The sentence was well comprehended by the Bashaw, whose countenance
betrayed a confusion that gave me pain to witness. At length one of the
party, with pure simplicity, replied, “Chief, whatever you may really
be, for God alone knows, you have spoken wisdom to shame us before the
infidels, because we who are true believers are sinners, and break his
holy law. This is certainly a direction from the Most High. In the name
of God who are you, and from what country do you come?” Although I
satisfied their enquiries, by a confession that their religious language
was known to me, from a long residence among the Arabs, still I found it
impossible to renew the hilarity of the scene. The liquor was neglected,
and an affected austerity was employed to cover the former excess. From
this day forward, neither the Moslems nor any of their proselytes would
indulge in the use of spirituous liquors in my presence.
In the evening the Bashaw returned, in company with his friend Abou Becr
only. In the most serious and unaffected manner they enquired if I were
not a “true believer,” and a Talb, or priest. To both these questions I
thought proper to return evasive answers.
I found that the knowledge these people possessed of the Arabic was
limited, generally speaking; although a few of the most intelligent were
sufficiently skilled in the language to hold a conversation with
fluency. This qualification the chief and his friend, particularly the
latter (Abou Becr), were gifted with to a degree exceeding most of their
brethren. Although their idiom was sometimes obscure, yet all serious
obstacles to a direct communication of thoughts were removed. Thus early
I could not fail noticing that their pronunciation resembled that of
Egypt and the Deserts: notwithstanding an intermixture in the dialect of
a few uncouth expressions, which savoured of the original African. In
this language our correspondence was renewed, and when they could not
gain a satisfactory reply on the subject of religion, they produced a
Koran, and turning over the pages, pointed out two or three passages
relating to the unity of the Supreme Being, the resurrection of souls,
the future state, &c. These they requested me to read, and putting a
favourable construction upon my compliance, the controversy ended. It
appeared in the sequel, they indulged the belief that our faith was the
same, in theory at least; or that I was actually a true believer,
according to their own acceptation of the word; and for political
reasons I never was desirous of undeceiving them.
In reminding me of the sarcasm I had used in the morning, the Bashaw
told me that his feelings had been wounded, because he stood in the
character of Patriarch, and therefore had suffered degradation in the
eyes of his friends.
The familiarity of our intercourse entitled me now to a greater degree
of confidence, and accordingly I was given to understand, that the
“Prophet’s cause” was not neglected in these regions of ignorance. “When
I was a young man,” said the Bashaw, “I worked for the good of my body.
I traded on the face of God’s earth, and travelled much; as my beard
grew strong I settled at Salgha, and lastly removed to this city. I was
still but an indifferent Talb, when, God be praised, a certain Moraboth
from the north was sent to me by a special direction, and that learned
saint taught me the truth; so that now my beard is white, and I cannot
travel as before; I am content to seek the good of my soul in a state of
future reward. My avocations at Coomassy are several; but my chief
employment is a school which I have endowed, and which I preside over
myself. God has compassionated my labours, and I have about seventy
pupils and converts at this time. Besides this, the king’s heart is
turned towards me, and I am a favoured servant. Over the Moslems I rule
as Cady, conformably to our law; I am also a member of the king’s
council in affairs relating to the believers of Sarem and Dagomba; and I
trade with foreign countries through the agency of my friend Abou Becr.”
This confession was in some points open to a prejudicial construction,
inasmuch as it looked ostentatious; but from the general conduct of the
man, his modesty and urbanity, I could not bring myself to think so
uncharitably.
In adverting to the religious opinions of the Ashantees, the reply was,
that they were poor wandering heathens; but that many of the chiefs were
bigotted infidels, not excepting the king himself; although that monarch
would sometimes give ear to the law, (of Mohammed) and never opposed the
believers of Ghunja; but on the contrary was a friend on whom they could
always rely for protection. Although the king, added my informer, was a
misguided infidel, he was yet superior by far, to many other sovereigns,
and particularly to the king of Dahomy, his eastern neighbour, who was
an infidel of infidels (Kaffar ben al Koufar).
This sovereign a short time back was an avowed enemy to the religion of
Islam, and actually put a number of the “Prophet’s children” to death in
his country. God, however, they said, had changed his heart, and now the
brethren of the true faith travel even to the sea side in safety, and
gain numbers of proselytes in his dominions. Reverting again to the king
of Ashantee, they asserted that with the exception of many barbarous
practices, such as the libations of human blood at sacrifices, and the
horrid cruelty of his wars, he was a good man, and wholly undeserving
the name of tyrant. The character of true believers, they added, stood
very high with the king, for he consulted them upon many important
occasions, where the interests of their nation were concerned; and
moreover, he never engaged in any warlike enterprize without their
society.
In the case of the recent war of Gaman, they informed me that they both
accompanied the king.[28] It was the bloodiest campaign they had ever
witnessed, for many thousands of Moslems perished in the war, as
Ghobagho and Kong (both Mohammedan countries,) had united their forces
with Dinkera, king of Gaman, who had cast off his allegiance to the king
of Ashantee, and transferred a tribute which he formerly paid him to the
Sultan of Kong. In describing some of the characteristics of the war,
they declared they had actually witnessed the massacre of ten thousand
old men, women, and young children, besides numbers of chieftains, who
were put to death by tortures the most revolting to humanity. The
Ashantees, they affirmed, were, as enemies, the most terrible of
mankind, and in war, were justly dreaded even by the true believers.[29]
Religion was a favourite topic of discussion. With this preference I
purposely complied, that I might gain the confidence of my new friends.
To my enquiries relating to the geography, &c. of the interior of
Africa, they gave replies which proved their capacity and inclination to
oblige. Their account of these matters will be found in another division
of this work.
During the remainder of the evening these valuable friends continued to
furnish me with many useful lessons, calculated, as they affirmed, for
my guidance at court; nor did they exempt from the catalogue the private
characters of several of the king’s friends and courtiers. Apoko in
particular, they declared to be the most ferocious chief in the kingdom,
and one whose delight was to wallow in human blood. Amon Koitea, a man
whose rank was second only to that of the king, and who governed the
country as lieutenant or viceroy, was a tyrant equally blood-thirsty,
and in his sacrifices the most inhuman of monsters. Little more
reputable were the characters of Ouso Cudjo, Ado Quamina, Amo Nahim, and
other captains of the king’s troops.
My entry into Coomassy they affirmed was signalized by the sacrifice of
a number of human victims; slaves and malefactors, who had been reserved
by the king and his chiefs for many days previous. The number of victims
offered up at the palace, they added, were nine, and every chief was
compelled to furnish an additional quota to the sanguinary offerings;
but the king knowing the abhorrence with which the white men viewed
these butcheries, had conducted the sacrifices in secret, and had
prohibited all his chiefs from exercising the like barbarity in public
during my stay in Coomassy.
On the 3d of March, Agampong, the captain of the palace, or of
audiences, waited upon me with a message requesting me to attend the
king.
I lost no time in obeying the summons, and found his majesty seated in
his palace, under the same shed as before. Several of the presents lay
scattered before him, as if he had been engaged in the inspection. The
reception he gave me was as friendly as could be desired, and he caused
me to be seated by his side.
A conversation upon various desultory topics opened the audience, and
the king, throughout, manifested by his enquiries an intense curiosity
regarding the affairs of Europe; but more especially of England. His
knowledge on these points appeared, as in fact it really was, extremely
limited. Europe, or the “land of white men,” he supposed to contain
several tribes or families, of which the English was the most warlike,
and powerful, of the day; and the Portuguese the most ancient, and
formerly the mistress of all the other tribes. These several tribes, he
imagined, inhabited a number of large islands which were subordinate to
the king of England (or the English island) who received annual tributes
from the whole. Besides the Portuguese, the Danes, Swedes, Americans,
Dutch, and Spaniards were names familiar to his understanding, although
his information respecting them was equally contemptible; so much so,
indeed, that it would have warranted a mean opinion of his majesty, had
I not known from experience, that it was possible for nations less
remote from Europe, and infinitely superior in acquired knowledge[30] to
think as vaguely.
The king pointing to the lathe, required to be informed of its
properties; but when this was done, he could not be prevailed upon to
value it at a high estimation. It seemed to him too mechanical for a
royal present; at least his countenance conveyed this impression,
although courtesy prevented his evincing any disappointment. The
properties of the organ were better understood, yet it was discovered to
have sustained material damage in the humid vaults of Cape Coast Castle.
The task of winding up the watch and musical box required a degree of
care foreign to the comprehension of the king; it was requisite,
therefore, to put the mechanism in motion each time. At last the king
consigned the lathe and organ to the care of Mr. Salmon; as this
gentleman expressed his confidence of being able to put them in order;
and here the audience broke up.
Early on the 4th of March, the king sent me some bottles of palm wine,
coupled with an injunction to hold myself in readiness to meet him in
the great area, where he designed to distribute some bulky presents
before the people. I felt something like repugnance at meeting his
majesty’s wishes in so public a manner, and this objection I insinuated
to the Bashaw; but my scruples were totally beyond the comprehension of
this worthy Moslem; nor could he conceive that I was sincere, until I
hinted a thought of sending to the palace, to request that the intended
presents might be postponed until the evening. “How can you,” said the
chief, “think of such a thing? the king already loves you like his son,
and why do you wish to shame him in his own country, when he is going to
treat you the same as he would a king, and do you a great honour before
his captains and all Coomassy? The people,” added the Bashaw, “are
already assembled, the great officers are in attendance, as well as our
own people, and I shall be with the king; therefore come in God’s name,
and it will be well for you: but if you do not, the king will surely
think you are angry.”
The approaching ceremony, it is true, created a certain feeling not far
removed from disgust, as it seemed to interfere with the character I was
bound to support. It was pleasing, however, to witness the anxious
solicitude of the Bashaw and Abou Becr, who could only have been guided
by the purest motives of friendship, and I submit these remarks, in
contradiction of what has been insinuated to the prejudice of the
Moslems, respecting their political sentiments.
About one o’clock, the king sent me a guard of honour, and a message
intimating his readiness to meet me at the appointed spot. I accordingly
sallied forth with the other officers. The whole body of Fantee carriers
brought up the rear, with countenances beaming with satisfaction; for,
as they were heard to say, it looked auspiciously, and foreboded a
reconciliation. On turning the angle at which my quarters joined a row
of huts, a full assemblage of the people opened to the view; and in the
midst of the multitude the king was seated under his canopy. Our seats,
by his majesty’s direction, were placed under the shade of some trees,
and after a formal salutation he retired a few paces in front of our
ranks. His majesty’s countenance beamed with more than usual
satisfaction, which it reflected upon all around him. The chiefs enjoyed
in secret the ostentatious gaiety of their sovereign, while the
multitude, less attached to decorum, and elated with the bare glimpse of
royal smiles, were animated to bursts of enthusiasm and uproar. These
feelings of good will were not lost upon the Fantees, whose happiness
seemed little short of what was manifested by the Ashantees themselves.
Adusai was directed to distribute some little silk packages which the
king placed in his hands. In obedience to this instruction, the minister
came pompously forward, and advancing towards me, as he held up the
packages to public view, he delivered one into my hand, saying, “The
king gives you seven ounces two ackeys of gold, as a token of
friendship.” The other little parcels of gold, in the proportion of two
ounces and upwards, were afterwards distributed to Messrs. Collins,
Hutton, Salmon, and Graves, each in proportion to the estimation his
majesty was pleased to put upon their respective ranks. The king was
attentive to what was transacting; yet he occasionally turned round to
his courtiers, inquiring as it were, by his countenance, whether their
feelings sympathized with his own.
A pause of some duration ensued, and his majesty directed his eyes full,
and steadily upon us, while every muscle indicated a joyous
satisfaction, augmented as it seemed by the hilarity of the people. A
messenger now advanced to acquaint me that the present of provisions was
approaching, and soon afterwards a file of about two hundred men and
boys, laden with provisions, passed in the order of review, and were
then conducted to my quarters, where they deposited their burthens. The
supply consisted of two cows, several sheep and goats, poultry, eggs,
yams, plantains, bananas, honey, oil, palm, nuts, and wine, cankay
bread, and a large pig. The court then broke up, and we were permitted
to retire. Upon approaching the avenue leading to my apartments, the
scattered heaps of provisions which had been cast promiscuously on the
ground, nearly choked up the way. The abundance that now reigned in the
quarters, gave licence to excesses among the people, and as the diet was
in itself somewhat novel to the Fantees, many of those people suffered
from intemperate indulgence. This princely donation lasted, however, but
a few days, for added to our own daily consumption, the town’s-people
occasionally invaded the quarters by stealth, and pilfered the bread,
wine and nuts.
In the course of the day, the king sent me a horse, which he desired I
should make use of during my stay in the country. This animal, although
of a diminutive breed, and of unsightly appearance, was moderately fleet
and active, possessing a share of Arabian vivacity. The saddle and
trappings were in the fashion of West Barbary, although the workmanship
was uncouth, and some of the ornamental appendages were wanting.
Abou Becr and Cantoma, the two Moslems, whose names have been already
mentioned, paid me a visit in the afternoon, bringing with them a few
manuscripts, which they said belonged to a friend of theirs, who was
then absent on a trading journey at Killinga. Cantoma was moderately
well skilled in the Arabic language, which he said he had studied in
Haoussa. From these Moslems I learned that several Mandings and
Mountaineers were in the city, who only waited an invitation to pay
their respects to me. I had no sooner expressed an inclination to meet
the strangers, than these two friends departed, and in a few minutes
returned again with three Moslems, who said they were natives of Kong,
that they belonged to a Mandingo tribe called Argoul, who having opposed
the Ashantees in the Gaman war, it had been their lot to fall under the
power of the king. These men were incapable of holding any conversation
in Arabic, and one of the three only was able to read in that language.
Ado Quamina happening to enter the apartment at the time, put a total
stop to the harmony of the meeting; as they did not care to converse in
the presence of an Ashantee chief. My endeavours to get rid of my new
guest were unavailing, as he politely assured me that the king had
appointed him to prevent the people from being intrusive. Finding that
my new acquaintance were not disposed to retire, he spoke in an angry
tone to them; the effect of which was evident, as they suddenly took
leave. The interpreter said that Ado Quamina threatened to report them
to the king, upon a suspicion that they had been giving me information
about the western countries.[31] This recital kindled some indignation
on my part, and in turn I peremptorily insisted upon his quitting the
quarters, threatening to relate the whole matter to the king, and
complain that the first insult I had received was from the man who
called himself my protector.
The resentment conveyed in this threat effectually softened down the
austerity of the chief, who was now anxious to conciliate; offering to
restore me my friends; but I did not deem it politic to renew the
intimacy at this time, and Ado Quamina departed. Cantoma and Abou Becr
whispered me before they left, that I should be on my guard against Ado
Quamina, who acted as a court spy. The king, they added, would not
object to my intercourse with them, although he might not approve of an
intimate connexion with his recent enemies; but when it should be known
that our religious language was familiar, he would not certainly be very
scrupulous, and therefore it would be necessary to tell his majesty the
truth. Ado Quamina returned again at this juncture, bringing with him a
small pot of palm wine, which he presented to me as a reconciliatory
offering, and grasping Cantoma by the arm, he entreated his mediation.
It would have been impossible to harbour resentment, had I not persuaded
myself that it was necessary to consult other feelings than those which
were personal. Again he departed in a pensive mood, and as the sun went
down, returned once more, bringing with him his band of musical
performers on horns and flutes, and commencing a serenade opposite the
outer gate. Whilst this was transacting, he seated himself very demurely
in the street, beating time with his hands, and chaunting occasional
stanzas. During the entertainment, the Bashaw and two or three of his
friends entered the quarters, and Ado Quamina again followed with his
pot of wine, and some honeycomb, which he had added to the present. When
he had placed the articles at my feet, he renewed his petition to these
Moslems, one by one, requesting their mediation with me, and called to
my own servants, by name, intreating a good word from them. It was more
than enough; I felt as if I had really injured the man, and could hold
out no longer. I accepted of his offering, and buried all animosity by
permitting the musicians to enter the enclosure.[32]
The Bashaw informed me he had recently come from the palace, and that
the king knew I could converse with the believers, but he could not
acquaint me by what means his majesty obtained that information. The
king, he said, was not angry but astonished, and he believed my
_Fetische_[33] to be a very powerful one. The conduct of Ado Quamina I
found had been already promulgated abroad by himself, and my visitors
candidly avowed that they came to reconcile me to Ado Aquamina, who
dreaded the power of my “Fetische” as much as he did the risk of
incurring the displeasure of his sovereign.
The Bashaw introduced a number of young male slaves whom he had adopted
in his family, and who were under his religious tuition. These lads, he
assured me, were the children of infidels in various countries, and some
were Ashantees, given to him by the king, or purchased with his own
property. Every true believer, he added, adopted the same plan in
proportion to the extent of his income; and as it was an act highly
meritorious in itself, so all the faithful who visited these lands made
a merit of redeeming at least one soul from the jaws of perdition,
according to the injunctions contained in the Koran. One of these youths
was pre-eminently conspicuous from his fellows, by personal beauty, and
a countenance of prepossessing benignity, and the Bashaw noticing the
attention with which I eyed his convert, instantly offered to dispose of
him, provided I would be a purchaser. But when I assured him that my
curiosity was confined to a knowledge of his native country, he told me
that he was from a town in Bouromy, on the banks of the Bahar Aswada,
or, the Volta River. The young man’s features were exactly of the Arab
cast. He, as well as his compeers, was incapable of comprehending a
single sentence, or even a word of Arabic, beyond the little gleaning of
his religious study. The Bashaw, however, was unwilling to leave upon my
mind an impression so unfavourable to his scholastic capacity;
selecting, therefore, one of the pupils as a specimen, he desired him to
rehearse a part of his acquirements. This, the young man complied with,
and recited the[34] Fatha and Bismillah verbatim, but his pronunciation
denoted that redundancy of vowel terminations so peculiar to the
languages of all negroes. This circumstance I could not fail to notice,
because his delivery was an exception to the pronunciation of his
patrons, who, although African negroes also, generally spoke the
language with a tolerable share of fluency, and with a pronunciation
which would not have disgraced even the Caba. As the conversation turned
upon the features of internal Africa, the Bashaw informed me that, as in
his youth he had travelled a great deal, the thing he regretted most was
that he never took up the resolution to visit Mecca and the Holy Land.
Now, added he, I am an old man; the mountain rain has fallen upon my
head, and I am incapable of long journies; or, at all events, I would
close my days in the land of the faithful. In reply to my enquiry how
far he had been to the northward, “I have never, said he, crossed the
Quarra River, yet I have been in Sarem, in Dagombah, in Killinga, in
Yarraba, and all the countries upon the great waters.”
Agampong arrived at a late hour in the evening, bringing with him a
large pot of palm wine, which he delivered to me in the name of the king
as of a superior growth and quality, adding, “The king drinks your
health in his house, and wishes you to do the same by him.”
On the 5th of March, I attended the palace to return the king thanks for
his present. His majesty put on a scrutinizing, although a good-natured
look as I advanced, and when the acknowledgements were interpreted to
him, instead of noticing the purport of the visit, he significantly
motioned his head, repeating in a voice moderately audible, as if to
himself, “Salamo, Alikom, Alikom Salam Alikom Salam, Salamo Alikom[35],”
his eyes being still riveted upon me. My two friends Cantoma and Abou
Becr were seated upon the ground, near the state chair, in the attitude
of counting their beads, when the king abruptly inquired of them where I
gained a knowledge of their language; but made no remark upon it.
This audience was the least pompous of any. The king was habited in a
simple garb that covered his loins, leaving the remainder of his body
exposed; nor had he any ornaments of gold, silver, coral, or aggry
beads, as is customary on state occasions. A few only of the principal
officers and captains were in attendance, besides the two before named
Moslems. Two guards stood behind the monarch armed with musquets, and
this etiquette alone distinguished him from the subject. After the lapse
of a few seconds, (during which I felt some anxiety to know in what
light the king might view my intimacy with the Moslem laws and language)
the reserve passed off, and his majesty spoke upon several topics. At
last, resuming the business of the mission, he spontaneously said, “The
great king (of England) is my master; he is my friend too, he sends me
good things and makes my heart glad; thus he does me great honour before
all my people, and puts shame on my enemies faces. I see your face, that
is enough; I have no more palavers with white men, and I have no longer
a _bad_ palaver in my head. All the evil the Fantees have done shall be
settled, I am a true friend to the great king, and will do what I can to
please him.” The audience soon after broke up, and I returned to my
quarters under a buoyancy of expectation that led me to entertain with
confidence the hope of a speedy termination of all differences.
The news soon spread from the court through the city, and in less than
an hour, the Moslems assembled to congratulate me upon this happy turn
of politics. The Fantees, who had hitherto confined their perambulations
to the vicinity of the quarters, from an apprehension of insult, or
personal hostility, now roved at pleasure through every section of the
city; and from questioning these individuals I found that the greatest
harmony existed. Indeed the difficulty that remained was to keep the
people, and particularly the servants, to their respective duties. This
unanimity, moreover, introduced licentiousness into our party; who, no
longer awed by apprehensions, indulged themselves in excess.
One night after I had retired to rest, I was disturbed from sleep by a
clamour among the people, and throwing a cloak about me, I proceeded to
the apartment from whence the noise issued, and there discovered a
number of Fantees regaling over a keg of rum, and some pots of palm
wine, which they had purloined. Several women and young girls were
seated amidst the group, or rolling over the laps of the men in the most
wanton and indecent postures. My intrusion put a stop to the
conviviality of the meeting. The lamp was suddenly extinguished, to aid
their escape from observation, and every one who was able fled from the
scene of riot into the town, although I posted myself at the outer gate
to intercept the fugitives. This tended to increase my surprise, but at
dawn I was no longer astonished, when I found there was a private avenue
cut between the wall and the reed fence that surrounded the apartment.
This had been made as a private sally-port, to gain access to the city
when the quarters were closed at night.
I received visits from several Ashantees of rank, and amongst others
Ouso Bannahen, the king’s uncle, came in some state, attended by forty
or fifty retainers, amongst whom were a group of boys. This man was of a
disposition happily mild, and indeed, with the Moslems, I found he was
considered comparatively of an humane temper, although they would not
admit the term in an unlimited sense, for they repeatedly affirmed that
every chief was more or less prone to cruelty or oppression, and that
they were educated to deeds of ferocious barbarity from childhood.
In the evening the king sent me a present of palm wine, and some live
fish in a large silver tureen; these the messenger assured me were
caught daily for his majesty’s table, in the Bussem Echouy, a large lake
of water on the Akim path. His majesty’s good wishes were added to the
present, with the usual “good night” and an injunction “to make myself
happy, for he was my good friend; and if I wanted any thing to let him
know.”
The following day was chiefly employed in distributing presents to the
king’s officers and relatives. But before this very essential part of
the negociation could be carried into effect, or before any chief would
presume to accept the intended present, it was necessary to obtain
permission from the king. The message returned from the palace was
gratifying. “The great king,” said his majesty, “has sent me good
things, and he sends good things for my captains; this is a true friend.
White men know what is right, so do every thing you please.” With this
licence I drew up a list of those in power, whose influence at court was
most important to my views, and to these men I distributed presents in
proportion to their rank.
Here I shall observe, that the system of negotiation at Morocco, does
not materially vary from that of Coomassy; and as I have frequently
conducted missions of this character to the sultan, I was at no loss in
a negro court.
In Ashantee, however, the wives and concubines of the sovereign, are not
permitted, neither do they expect, to participate in the gifts of
foreign ambassadors. Their mediation is considered unavailing; and their
occupations too servile and domesticated to entitle them to notice in
state affairs. Whereas female mediation, as it is well known, is
absolutely of the first importance as well in Barbary as in the East,
where the fiat of the sultan frequently originates in the harem or the
seraglio.
[Illustration: A Street in Coomassy leading to the Palace.]
[Footnote 24: It is requisite to observe, that throughout the
negotiations, I was compelled to adopt a style of language adapted to
the understanding of the Linguist, who, although possessing a tolerable
knowledge of the English language, comprehended only familiar terms.]
[Footnote 25: These articles, however, were conveyed privately to the
palace at the same time.]
[Footnote 26: Mr. Bowdich.]
[Footnote 27: I had but one linguist when I arrived at Coomassy, a man
every way qualified for his office as interpreter; another, named
Abroah, came up some days after, and without my knowledge, whose
presence was inauspicious: at least the king was jealous of him.]
[Footnote 28: Subsequently I learned that the Bashaw deserted from the
army, the evening after the great battle of the Tando river, and
returned to Coomassy. This conduct enraged the king, who swore that had
he not been a holy man, he would have put him to death. After I became
acquainted with this little history, I took a favourable opportunity to
insinuate its contents to the chief, who, in reply, admitted the truth;
but alledged in his defence, that his character as well as his life were
at stake; for in regard to the former, he could not without deserving to
be stigmatized as infamous, witness the horrid butcheries in the camp,
so contrary to the tenets of his religion, and what would it have booted
him in the world to come, had it pleased God to have destroyed him in
the ranks of the infidels, when he was not fighting for the faith, but
against it.]
[Footnote 29: This political conduct on the part of the king appearing
to me a little enigmatical, and as it did not tally with what I had been
previously told of the respect entertained for Moslems, I suggested the
question as an apparent inconsistency. But I was readily informed that
his majesty’s affection for true believers was limited to the more
eastern districts, and to Talbs or priests of all nations, but more
especially those who came from Egypt, or any part of the Holy Land. His
western wars were strictly political. Yet the prisoners he took in
battle, if Moslems, were never put to death like infidels; on the
contrary, they were well used, and generally transferred to the eastern
division of the empire, particularly to Bouromy on the Volta. If they
fell in battle against the king, it was considered their “blood was upon
their own heads.”]
[Footnote 30: In Morocco I have conversed with Arabs or Moors of
superior education, whose notions concerning the geography of Europe,
differed not very materially from the opinions of the Ashantees.
England, Sweden, Denmark, Holland, Hamburg, Lubec, and some other
trading countries and cities were conceived to be islands in the Ocean,
contiguous to each other, and of no extraordinary magnitude, although
England was admitted to be the largest and most populous. Their notions
concerning France, Italy, but more particularly Spain and Portugal were
more accurately defined, doubtless from ancestorial tradition preserved
from the records of their forefathers, the conquerors or inheritors of
that extensive Peninsula.]
[Footnote 31: In pages 48 and 49 of Dalzel’s History of Dahomy, it
appears that a prejudice coinciding with the one abovementioned existed
in that kingdom. The passage is as follows: “In the evening going to
take leave of the great captain, they found in his tent two of the Muley
or Malaye people, of which there were about forty at that time in the
camp. They were black, dressed in long gowns, with a kind of turban on
their heads, and sandals on their feet. The interpreter told Captain
Snelgrave that they belonged to a nation far inland, bordering on the
Moors, had been taken in different wars as they were trading from one
country to another, and were, like the white men, possessed of the art
of writing. The king treated them kindly, in return for which they dyed
goat and sheep skins of divers colours, out of which, amongst other
uses, cartouch boxes and powder bags were made for the soldiers. The
author was desirous of conversing with them, but was informed it would
give offence to the great captain; knowing the jealousy of all the
negroes in like cases, he desisted, and having paid his visit, returned
to his tent.”
This is a more accurate account than any given by the preceding writers,
some of whom supposed them from the name to be natives of Malacca. It
seems probable that Guinea is indebted to these wandering Mahometans for
many of its customs, and Europe for the knowledge of the inland
countries.
It is this jealousy that has stopped the progress of all the European
inquiries into the geography and history of this part of Africa, and
which will probably remain an insuperable obstruction to it for many
ages, unless we could employ these Moors or Malayes, if found adequate
to the task, and willing to undertake it. They seem to be the only
people who have a _passe par-tout_, and who travel much farther than the
_Caravans_. The Malayes here are detained as being prisoners of war; but
traders would not be under such restrictions, as we may see by comparing
the treatment of Lambe with that of the other people.]
[Footnote 32: Of all the musical instruments of Ashantee, the flutes and
small horns are the most tolerable to an European ear. Enough has
already been said upon the discordant notes of a full concert of martial
music. The flutes and horns form, however, an exception, and in truth,
the harmony produced by an unison of these instruments is far from
despicable; the former being melodious and plaintive, and the latter
approaching the sound of the human voice, perhaps beyond any other
artificial contrivance. Indeed so clear and distinct are the tones which
they utter, that conversations are usually carried on by distant parties
of performers, and war songs, and deeds of heroism are recited, by which
they work an audience up to a pitch of phrenzy.]
[Footnote 33: The application of the word Fetische, so commonly in use
with Europeans and Negroes in this part of Africa, requires elucidation;
yet it would, perhaps, be impossible to select from any known language a
term of corresponding signification. Sufficient may be said, however, to
explain its general import. Fetische is evidently a corrupt relic of the
Portuguese, introduced to the country, probably, by the original
explorers of that nation, and adopted by the Africans to accommodate to
the understanding of their visitors, such things connected with
religion, laws, or superstition, as could not be explained by the
ordinary use of a few common-place expressions, and that could not be
interpreted by ocular demonstrations. Religion, we know, was a leading
feature in the Portuguese and Spanish armaments of those days. Any
exclusive power, or faculty in human nature, is deemed an inspiration of
the Fetische, such as slight of hand, necromancy, invocations of
departed spirits, and witchcraft. The religious laws of particular sects
or casts, (for they are probably as various in Africa as elsewhere) are
described to Europeans, at the present day, under the denomination
Fetische. The talismanic charms and sentences from the Koran, worn about
the body, have the same appellation in common; and generally whatever is
held as sacred, including trees, stones, rivers, or houses, whether
ancient or of recent dedication to any invisible spirit or matter, are
comprehended within that signification. Thus if a man should swear by
the religious observances of his ancestors, an interpreter would say he
called upon his Fetische to witness the truth: and the same invocation
may be applied to other cases, where the oath is upon trivial affairs.
An invocation of the wandering spirits or Genii, which also bear the
name Fetische, is considered inviolable.]
[Footnote 34: The Fatha has been already described. The Bismillah (In
the name of God) is another prayer; or more properly that part of the
Islam creed which teaches its votaries the unity and indivisibility of
the Godhead, and held in high repute. The words are—
“In the name of God the merciful and compassionate. Say God is one (and
indivisible). The Eternal God: he begetteth not, neither is he begotten,
and there is no one like unto him.”]
[Footnote 35: The Korannic salutation.]
CHAPTER IV.
NEGOTIATIONS CONTINUED.
ARRIVAL OF THE INTERPRETER ABROAH — PREJUDICES OF THE KING AGAINST HIM —
THE KING’S SISTER — ACCOUNT OF HER PROMOTION TO THE RANK OF GOVERNESS OF
THE EMPIRE — MAGICAL RITES AND SUPERSTITIONS — BARBARITY OF THE KING
TOWARDS HIS WIVES — COMMENCEMENT OF A HISTORY OF THE KING’S WARS FOR THE
INFORMATION OF THE KING OF ENGLAND — SUSPICIONS ENTERTAINED AGAINST THE
INTERPRETERS — THE KING’S NOTES FOR CAPE COAST CASTLE — REMARKS ON THE
CONDUCT AND STATEMENTS OF MR. BOWDICH RESPECTING THESE NOTES — THE
KING’S ARGUMENTS AND DECLARATIONS — QUALITIES AND PRICES OF GOODS
SUPPLIED FROM CAPE COAST — HUMAN SACRIFICES — ATTEMPT OF THE CABOCEERS
TO SOUND THE BRITISH AGENT — CONFERENCE ON THE SKETCH OF A TREATY —
MESSAGE TO THE KING FROM CAPE COAST CASTLE — DISPUTES RESPECTING A
PENALTY ALLEGED TO HAVE BEEN REPRESENTED AS INSERTED IN THE FORMER
CONVENTION — RETURN OF MR. HUTTON TO CAPE COAST — ERECTION OF A FORT BY
THE KING — MISUNDERSTANDING RESPECTING THE KING OF JUABIN (DWABIN) —
CONTINUATION OF THE PALAVER — LITTLE ADAI CUSTOM — HUMAN SACRIFICES —
AUDIENCE OF CEREMONY — PRESENTS FROM THE KING — INSTRUCTIONS FROM CAPE
COAST — INDIGNATION OF THE KING — EXHIBITION OF THE MAGIC LANTHORN —
APPOINTMENT OF A DAY FOR THE AUTHOR’S RETURN, ON HIS SOLEMN REQUISITION.
On the 7th, a Mulatto, named George Abroah, arrived at Coomassy from
Cape Coast, with a letter recommending him to me as interpreter to the
mission. His knowledge of the English language was rather superior to
that of his coadjutor and predecessor; but as I afterwards discovered,
he was very deficient in diplomatic courtesy, frequently giving
unintentional offence by the omission of certain acts of ceremony and
decorum. His presumptuous address excited some displeasure in the king,
even on the day of his arrival in the capital, when he was ushered into
the presence of that sovereign, and imprudently started the topic of the
“Fantee Palaver.” The king also obtained information (but by what means
I could never discover) that Abroah was a relation of De Graaf, the
linguist of Cape Coast Castle, whom he was pleased to consider his
political and personal enemy. This circumstance also weighed heavily on
Abroah’s reputation at court, and indeed operated to the disadvantage of
the mission, by checking that open confidence which had hitherto been so
strongly manifested by the king and his council. These disqualifications
compelled me to remonstrate warmly with Abroah.
The king’s sister entered my quarters in the forenoon, bringing in her
train a troop of about one hundred and fifty women and young girls, many
of whom were described as the daughters and wives of men of high rank.
After taking a seat she motioned to several females who were her
intimate attendants, to enter the place, whilst the remainder stood or
seated themselves upon the ground without. Her speech was laconic. “She
was happy,” she said, “because I was her brother’s good friend, and the
friend of the captains, and she thanked me for the present I had sent to
her.” This woman’s relationship naturally established her in an elevated
rank, but she was doubly dignified by an employment which, perhaps, may
not improperly be termed Governess of the empire, or Queen over the
females; all of that sex being immediately responsible to her
government, and subject to an arbitrary controul under her vice-
governesses.
With this employment she had been invested only a few months, and since
the king’s return from Buntoko. Her elevation proceeded from a cause
somewhat remarkable.
When the king was about to open the campaign against Gaman, he collected
together his priests, to invoke the royal Fetische, and perform the
necessary orgies to insure success. These ministers of superstition
sacrificed thirty-two male and eighteen female victims, as an expiatory
offering to the gods, but the answers from the priests being deemed by
the council as still devoid of inspiration, the king was induced to
_make a custom_ at the sepulchres of his ancestors, where many hundreds
bled. This, it is affirmed, propitiated the wrath of the adverse gods.
The priests then prepared a certain Fetische compound, which they
delivered to the king, with an injunction to burn the composition daily
in a consecrated fire pot within the palace; and upon no account to
neglect the fire, so as to suffer it to go out; for as long as the
sacred flame devoured the powder, he would triumph over his foes.
When the king joined his army he commissioned his eldest sister (then
governess of the kingdom), to attend strictly to the sacred mystery,
telling her that his crown and life both depended upon her vigilance,
and the fulfilment of his order. He selected also three wives to whom he
was more attached than the rest, to watch by turns over the mysterious
rites, in conjunction with his last-mentioned sister.
During the king’s absence, this arbitress of his fate formed a connexion
with a chief of Bouromy, whose ambition suggested a plan to seat himself
upon the throne.
In this conspiracy, seventeen of the king’s wives and their families are
said to have joined; the fire-pot was broken to pieces, and the chief
commenced arming his party. But the king, added my informer, who had
sustained heavy losses in the early part of the war, _and was unable to
account for the audacity of the enemy_, performed an incantation over a
certain talisman, which gave an insight into what was transacting in the
capital. He therefore dispatched a body of men under Ouso Cudjo, who,
after an impotent struggle on the part of the enemy, effectually crushed
the rebellion. When the king returned home, he called a council to
deliberate upon the punishment due to the offenders, and it was finally
decreed that his wives should suffer death by decapitation. His sister,
to prevent the profanation of spilling royal blood, was ordered to be
strangled. The chief, her paramour, and all those of his party, were
doomed to the most cruel deaths at the grave of the king’s mother. These
sentences were carried into prompt execution, and it is affirmed that
above seven hundred people were sacrificed, or fell in resisting the
royal forces. After this the younger sister, my present visitor, was
made governess.
While these butcheries were transacting, the king prepared to enter the
palace, and in the act of crossing the threshold of the outer gate, was
met by several of his wives, whose anxiety to embrace their sovereign
lord impelled them thus to overstep the boundary of female decorum in
Ashantee; for it happened that the king was accompanied by a number of
his captains, who accordingly were compelled to cover their faces with
both hands, and fly from the spot. This is said to have angered the
monarch, although his resentment proceeded no farther than words, and he
returned the embraces of his wives. But being afterwards told by some of
the superintendents that these women were more or less indisposed from a
natural female cause, he was inflamed to the highest pitch of
indignation, and in a paroxysm of anger caused these unhappy beings to
be cut in pieces before his face; giving orders at the time to cast the
fragments into the forest, to be devoured by birds and beasts of
prey.[36] Nor did the atonement rest here, for six more unhappy females
were impeached of inconstancy, (a failing, I believe, very common among
them), and they also expiated their faults with their lives. Like
another Ulysses, his majesty then devoted himself to the purification of
his palace, when to sum up the full horrors of these bloody deeds, two
thousand wretched victims, selected from the Gaman prisoners of war,
were slaughtered over the royal death stool, in honour of the shades of
departed kings and heroes.
In the course of this day I repeated my visit to the palace. The king
was at this time listening to a palaver between a Moslem and an
Ashantee; but my entrance put a stop to the discussion.[37] His majesty
instantly invited me to a conference, and having assembled around him a
few of his captains, he commenced with great volubility, a narration of
his original intimacy with Assin and Fantee; retracing from its
commencement, the political connexions that existed between Ashantee and
the states before-mentioned, together with the causes that induced his
country to make war upon them and other neighbouring states. These
particulars the king expressly desired me to write upon paper, in order
to justify his conduct to the king of England, who, he said, could not
possibly know what evils had been inflicted upon his people, through the
bad faith and hostile policy of his neighbours.
I instructed one of the officers to minute down the particulars as they
were described by the king, through the usual medium of interpretation;
but in an early stage of the narrative, the king, who had been eyeing
the linguist Abroah with a look of suspicion and distrust, objected to
his services, protesting that he was a man, who, of all others, was most
prone to deceit, and who was purposely sent to pervert the truth, and
“put bad palavers in my head.” This was uttered with vehemence, and a
corresponding gesture, which failed not to have due weight with the
party to whom the accusation was addressed. The thread of the narrative
was thus interrupted, and the king wandered from the argument to the
dispute at issue, between himself and the authorities at Cape Coast;
thus reviving feelings which could only tend to procrastinate the evils
under which the British Establishments had so long suffered.
In the first transport of anger, the king exclaimed, with much
bitterness of expression, against De Graaf (the mulatto linguist at Cape
Coast) upon whom he lavished every abusive epithet. “He is the man,”
said the king, “who encourages the people to rebel; and his intrigues in
the castle made the white men enemies to their best friend. His heart is
bad, and he suggests falsehoods to the governor, telling him that
another king sits upon the stool of his ancestors in the place of Sai,
who was killed by the Bontokos.”
The king occasionally evinced symptoms of extreme anger, which now and
then degenerated into scurrility and malicious satire, as he dwelt upon
the character of the Fantees and his former wars with that nation. At
length this transport subsided, and by degrees his eyes recovered their
usual good-natured expression. He declined, however, continuing the
history, neither was I permitted to retain possession of the manuscript
in which the narrative had been commenced. When I returned it to him, he
said he would consider of it, and as he wished the great king to know
the truth, he would send some of his friends as ambassadors to England,
for he could not tell what the paper spoke.
The next topic of discussion related to what is termed the “king’s
notes,” being, in points of fact, a sort of feudal bonds for the ground
rent of the Castles of Cape Coast and Annamaboe, which, by reversion,
after the subjugation of Fantee and its reduction to vassalage under the
yoke of Ashantee, became the property of the king.
The following are copies of these notes which are still in my
possession. The reader will, by inspection, be qualified to form an
opinion whether or not the king, in complaining of the Fantees, was
justified in conceiving his title to the sovereignty a good one.
“Cape Coast Castle, April 1, 1817.
“Zey Tooto Quamino, King of Ashantee, at 160s. per month.
(Signed) “JOHN HOPE SMITH,
“Governor in Chief.” L. S.
“This note was held by Amoney, Caboceer of Annamaboe, but in consequence
of the conquest of the Fantee country was claimed and transferred to
Zey, king of Ashantee, by the consent of the former owner.”
“Paid to ultimo, July, 1817.
“Goods (Signed) W. SMITH. 8oz.
“Paid to ultimo, December, 1817, in
“10 Ankers Rum, 1oz. W. S. 10
“Paid to December 31, 1818, in
“24 Kegs powder W. S. 24
“Paid to December 31, 1819, in
“66 Lead bars oz. 2 1
“ 4 Ankers Rum 4 0
“ 4 Kegs Powder 4 0
“13 Cottons 1 10
“ 1 Ditto Bandanoe 0 8
“ 2 Taffeties 2 0
“ 5 Glasgow Danes 1 14
“ 1 Fathom Scarlet 0 8
“ 8½ Pieces Long Cloth 4 4
“ 3 Romals 1 2
“ 5½ Manchester Toms 2 1
---------
oz. 24 0 W. S.”
The other note is as follows:—
“Cape Coast Castle, April 1, 1817.
“Zey Tooto Quamina, king of Ashantee, at 160s. per month.
(Signed) “JOHN HOPE SMITH,
“Governor in Chief.” L. S.
“This note was held by Adooco, Caboceer of Abrah, but in consequence of
the conquest of the Fantee country was claimed and transferred to Zey,
king of Ashantee, by the consent of the former owner. The note of Adooco
was only 60s. per month, now increased to 160s as above.”
“Paid to ultimo, July 1817.
“In Goods (Signed) W. SMITH. 8oz.
“Paid to ultimo, December, 1817, in
“10 Ankers Rum, at 1oz. each W. S. 10
“Paid to December, 1818, in
“24 Kegs Powder W. S. 24
“Paid to December, 1819, in
“Goods as per note of Amoney, at this date W. S. 24
“This is the note of Cape Coast Castle.”
These wretched bonds were objects of contention in an early stage of the
negotiation between Mr. F. James (the conductor of Mr. Bowdich’s
Mission) and the _Cabinet_ of Ashantee, in the year 1817. The king’s
arguments, although they were vehement ones, were supposed even then to
be convincing; or at least, to show something like justice on his part;
nor can it be said that the forts ever attempted to exact a recognition
of sovereignity, beyond the precincts of those forts, castles, or
factories. So far, indeed, to the contrary, that not only Cape Coast and
Annamaboe, but every other establishment on the Gold Coast, were
fettered to Ashantee, by bonds not very dissimilar; and their payments,
since the conquest, reverted to the king by the right the sword had
given him; or were relinquished by that monarch in favour of his
maritime allies, as in the instances of the tributary king of Apollonia,
and the chief of Accra.
The following extract from Mr. Bowdich’s Mission (pages 46 and 47)
wherein that gentleman, for himself and coadjutors, Hutchinson and
Tedlie, endeavours to justify a conspiracy against their superior
officer Mr. James, may be useful to refer to here.
“We were sent for to the king’s house; he was only attended by his privy
counsellers, &c. The king said he wished to talk; he desired Mr. James
to explain to him two notes which he produced, written by the governor
in chief at the request of Amoney, king of Annamaboe, and Adokoo, chief
of the Braffoes, making over to Sai, king of Ashantee, four ackies per
month of their company’s pay as a pledge of their allegiance and the
termination of hostilities. The impression seemed to have rooted itself
in the king’s mind, that this was the governor’s individual act,[38] or
that he had instanced it; his countenance changed; his counsellors
became enraged; they were all impatience, we all anxiety. Tell the white
men, said the king, what they did yesterday made me much pleasure, I was
glad we were to be friends; but to day I see they come to put shame upon
my face; this breaks my heart too much. The English know that with my
own powder and shot I drove the Fantees under their forts, I spread my
sword over them, they were all killed, and their books (notes) from the
forts are mine. These white men cheat me, they think to make _Shantee
fool_; they pretend to make friends with me, and join the Fantees to
cheat me, to put shame upon my face; this makes the blood come from my
heart, &c. The irritation spread throughout the circle, and swelled even
to uproar.”
Page 48. Mr. James said in reply, “The governor of Cape Coast had done
it, that he knew nothing about it, &c. The king asked him to tell him
how much had been paid on these notes since his demand, that he knew
white men had large books which told this. Mr. James said he could not
recollect. Nothing could exceed the king’s indignation. White men, he
exclaimed, know how many months pass, how many years they live, and they
know this, but they wont tell me: could not the other white men tell
me?”
For the sake of brevity I must pass over some long panegyrics, which it
would seem the author with no parsimonious hand has stamped upon his own
zeal, promptitude, and talent, such as these qualifications stand
recorded at the expence of the unfortunate James, whom in the same
breath he stigmatizes with many disqualifications.
In page 49, the subject is renewed. “The Moors of _authority seized the
moment, and zealously fanned the flame which encircled us_; for the king
looking in vain for those testimonies of British feeling which presence
of mind would have imposed, exclaimed, I know the English come to spy
the country, they come to cheat me, they want war, they want war. Mr.
James said, no, we want trade, &c.”—The king continued, “I will send a
captain to-morrow to take these books, and bring me the heads of all the
Fantees under the forts; the white men know I can do this, I have only
to speak to my captains. The Dutch governor does not cheat me; he does
not shame me before the Fantees, he sends me the whole four ounces a
month. The Danes do not shame me, and the English four ackies a month is
nothing to me; I can send a captain for all: they wish for war. He drew
his beard into his mouth, bit it, and rushing abruptly from his seat,
exclaimed Shantee foo! ah! ah! then shaking his finger,[39] &c. would
have burst from us with the exclamation, If a black man had brought me
this message I would have had his head cut off. Mr. James was silent.”
Page 54. “Whilst we impress the surprising power and influence of the
king, we must do him the justice to acknowledge the convincing manner in
which he urged the injuries and forbearance which preceded the Fantee
war; his willingness to do every thing for the forts, and the conduct of
the Dutch governor in giving him the whole of the four ounces, were
impressively and ingeniously associated.”
But dismissing this digression, the goods that were sent to the king
under my charge in payment of the notes were subjected to a rigid
scrutiny, after which his majesty demanded to know their respective
prices, as they stood valued upon the list. When these charges were read
over, he affected the greatest astonishment, mingled with anger. “What,”
said he, “is it thus the governor shews his friendship for me, charging
me an ounce of gold for an anker of rum, or a keg of powder; six ackies
for a romal, an ounce for a piece of taffety silk, and all the other
goods at the same high prices? Is this treating me like a friend and a
king? Truly, I see he makes this extravagant profit, _because I would
not receive the notes at four ackies a month_. This is not proper
conduct in white men towards the blacks. The great God gave them much
sense, and they make books that ought to speak truth; but this book is
not true, for the governor puts down whatever he chuses, because he
knows I cannot read. This is shameful, for when I made the book (treaty)
with the other white men, I was too happy, and I sent all the trade to
the governor’s warehouse as he told me, and I sent him a present of gold
and slaves, and a present of slaves to the governor of Annamaboe[40].
When I do good in this manner, how can the white men say, I wish to
quarrel and make war? I like all white people, for God has made them
better than the blacks, and they hold my heart. Mr. White was a good
man; he always told me the truth, and never quarrelled with me or
cheated me; but this governor proposes to be my friend, and when I
accept his offer he deceives me, and shames me before my captains and
the Fantees. When I went out to fight against Dinkra, I sent to Cape
Coast for fifty kegs of powder and some lead to make shot, because I
liked Englishmen best; but the governor sent my messengers away, because
they had not gold enough; they then went to El Mina, and the Dutch
governor gave them the powder and shot, and sent my gold back. Which was
the best friend? Suppose I make an alliance with a king and he wants
gold; I give it him: if he wants me to help him, I must go and fight for
him too; and then he knows I have a true heart, and love him like a
brother.”[41] God made white and black men: he loves all men; he does
not say they must not be friends because they differ in colour. White
men read books, and know the great God, therefore the blacks say, these
are strong people; their fetische is good. This is true, but then they
must not do evil. Now when I send gold to Cape Coast to buy goods, and
the governor does not know it, so I buy powder at two and three kegs to
the ounce, and three ankers of rum to the ounce, and seven ackies for
the best guns, and I get one hundred bars of lead for two ounces. The
Dutch governor always pays me fairly, he same as if I buy in the town,
and I get good things; but when the governor of Cape Coast sends me
articles, they are bad;—the rum is watered, and the powder is all dust,
like charcoal. I think a white man cannot do this; therefore I say to my
captains, See what the Fantees do; they cheat me, and dishonour the
English governor. Then my captains take up the sword, and swear they
must march to the water side, and live in the towns. But I do not want
to kill old men and women and children for their gold, as my soldiers
do, I prefer friendship.
“The Cape Coast people, I know, are insolent; but as the governor made a
book, he should not listen to them. The poor people cannot help it, if
the Caboceers tell lies; but then the governor knows better. That man,”
added the king, pointing to Abroah, “is bad, for he belongs to the
family of De Graaf; I think he was sent to put a bad palaver in your
head. Then there is Aggry; he wishes, no doubt, to be thought king of
Cape Coast; but he does not wish me to know that. I am the king, and
there is no other king in my country. If I chuse, I can send my captains
and bring his head to Coomassy. He thinks I shall not do so, because I
am afraid of the castle; but this is not true. Did I not fight the
Fantees under Annamaboe fort? and when the great guns killed my people,
did I not fight the white men too, and did they not put out a white flag
to make peace? I cannot do this now, for I know the great king, but I
think he does not know the truth. Now I thank the gods you have come to
see me, for you will know every thing.” Here the king paused.
In reply, I defended, as far as in reason it could be done, the
governor’s charges. To deny that the goods might have been purchased at
a much lower rate, would have required a considerable share of
effrontery. I therefore maintained an argument founded upon precedent
from the year 1817, admitting the possibility of purchasing goods at a
lower rate, but insisting that the opportunity of doing so was
accidental. I refuted his imputations to the best of my ability,
although, to adopt the sentiments of Mr. Bowdich, the _king’s arguments
were plausible even to conviction_.
In the evening I was again summoned to the palace. I found the king
seated in the society of a few captains, who were again examining the
quality of these goods. “Do you tell me,” said he as I entered, “that
the prices I am charged are fair?” I replied evasively; but this not
proving satisfactory, I affirmed that if the communication with the
interior existed as formerly, they possibly would realize the prices
charged upon the list. This was tender ground, I knew. In truth the
prices were exorbitant. The king, not knowing how to direct his anger,
abused Abroah. “Mulatto men,” said he “look white and sickly, so they
want to be all Caboceers, like white men.” Breaking the thread of this
conversation, and turning abruptly to me, he said, casting the old
treaty[42] down, “What is the use of that book? I sent it back to the
governor, and now he returns it to me. I am afraid it is a bad book. If
I fight I cannot keep the book, for friends don’t fight.” I suffered
these _royal_ transports to subside, and at the close of the audience
had the satisfaction to hear the king reiterate his pacific intentions.
The 8th of March was a day dedicated to superstitious rites. My friendly
Moslems waited upon me in the forenoon, bringing in their train several
natives of Zogho and Killinga, who had recently arrived at court. The
sacrificing blade, they emphatically said, was in action at the
chieftains’ houses, and many human victims had been dragged into the
palace yard for slaughter. “The king, they continued, is wrathful to-
day. The angel of death hovers over the city; but Allah, the all-
powerful, will protect the faithful.” As no access could be gained
either to the palace or the houses of the great officers, all public
business was at a stand, and I indulged in rambling over the capital: it
was desolate; no human beings were seen in the streets, and very few in
the enclosures belonging to their houses; those few rejoiced at the
sight of white men, and bowed their heads at a distance with timorous
humility. The death drum and the horn were distinctly recognized under
the outer walls of the palace. After the lapse of an hour the gates were
again thrown open, and the people again filled the streets, resuming
their customary occupations.
Upon returning to my quarters, I found several of the king’s officers in
waiting. They were guardedly reserved with respect to the transactions
of the morning; but assured me the court was then open. Upon this
information I dispatched a messenger to solicit an interview with the
sovereign: but he returned unsuccessful, in company with a captain of
the palace, who had been deputed to apologize on behalf of his master,
for declining the meeting. This message was followed up by Adusai Ado
Matta, Kankam, Agampong, and Ado Quamina, all men of superior, and some
of the first rank in the cabinet and army. My former visitors retired,
as the second party seated themselves and opened a desultory
conversation. I was prepared for matters of more importance, to which I
imagined this was a prelude.
Adusai, taking the advantage of a pause, suggested that it would afford
the king great satisfaction to bring all differences to an amicable
issue. “You, white captain,” continued the chief, “are beloved by the
king, even as his son. The Caboceers like you, and the people say, that
is a fit man to talk the palaver, for the king knows he cannot tell a
lie. You know the people of Cape Coast are bad; they have incurred the
king’s strong displeasure, because they built up a wall and said they
would fight him. Now what do you think is fit to be done?” My reply was
an evasive one; but as they renewed the question, I desired to know
whether they had been deputed by the king to learn my sentiments
privately, or whether they had been invested with authority to negotiate
with me at the quarters? The answer was in the negative; they protested
that their visit was one purely of courtesy, and consequently they had
no diplomatic authority. On this assurance, I declined, as a matter of
course, entering upon a conversation of that public importance. This
resolution, which I thought would have excited displeasure in my guests,
had quite a contrary effect; a shout of approbation, coupled with a
train of compliments, too fulsome to repeat, convinced me that although
I was mistaken in my conceptions, these great men were not altogether so
innocently engaged as they pretended.
The Bashaw and Abou Becr called in the evening; they cursed the
sanguinary disposition of the government, alledging that six men and
nine women had been sacrificed in the morning to the king’s household
gods; that these butcheries were kept from my knowledge, for two
reasons: the one, that they concerned the Mission, as the king had been
imploring the aid of his idols, to incline the heart of the great King
of England towards him—the other that I should not have to report that
the sovereign of Ashantee delighted in spilling human blood, which it
was well known gave as much offence to white men as it did to Moslems.
March 9th. The audience of the 7th had excited a train of conjectures
regarding the complexion of court politics, as they related to
Fantee.[43] The interview yesterday with the chiefs had not tended to
raise my hopes, and the ambiguous conduct of the court prompted me to
bring matters to a speedy issue. Accordingly I framed certain
preliminary articles upon the fundamental parts of the old treaty,
strengthened by one or two clauses contained in my instructions, viz.
for the establishment of a factory between our chief settlement and the
capital; a guarantee of safety and protection to the persons and
property of individuals, who might be induced to visit the interior on
trading speculations, or to inculcate Christian knowledge, &c.
A particular clause also specified that Cape Coast, and every other town
under the guns of a British fort were to be considered entitled to the
protection of the British government, and subject to the controul of the
garrisons; also, that in consideration of the friendship manifested by
the king of England, and the appointment conferred upon me, all
grievances and disputes of a past date, and particularly the “palaver of
Cape Coast,” should be buried in oblivion. That the peace should be re-
established by an act of renunciation on the part of the king of all and
every claim or pretension, particularly those claims whereby his
ambassador had been authorised to demand 1600 ounces of gold from the
governor, and 1600 more from the town of Cape Coast. Thus prepared, I
made my arrangements for the next audience.
At an early hour in the forenoon, a messenger came from the king,
bringing in his arms a child, and under his escort several other male
children, sons of the monarch. The purport of the visit was to return
thanks in his majesty’s name for some little presents of sugar which I
had distributed among the members of his family. “Sai,” continued the
messenger, “says white men have good hearts, for they love little
children.”
I repaired shortly after to the palace, in company with the officers and
Fantees. The reception I met with from the king was promising.
Accordingly I explained my sentiments upon the propriety of arranging
the palaver. To this the king assented, and I then solicited his
attention to the preliminary articles as already explained. One of the
officers read them over to him, allowing sufficient time to the
linguists for interpretation. The article explanatory of the royal oath,
according to the etiquette of the 1st of March, afforded the king much
satisfaction. “That is proper,” said the monarch. “The great God take
care of your king. You must put in the book that whatever he bids me do,
that I will do; for I am a true friend to my master, and I must fight
when he commands.”
The article guaranteeing security of life and property to merchants and
missionaries visiting the interior, passed this time without a comment;
as likewise that for establishing a factory on the road to Coomassy. The
one relating to the encouragement of trade afforded delight. “This,”
said the king, “is what I want. I don’t want war, that is only the talk
of bad men.”
The article relating to Fantee and the legislative influence of the
castles on the line of coast, was listened to with great attention, but
did not afford satisfaction. An interruption ensued, and the king warmly
declared that he should insist peremptorily upon receiving from the Cape
Coast people, as a matter of right, that obedience which was due to him
in quality of their sovereign, and which they had hitherto been in the
habit of paying him. They had used, he said, the most insulting language
towards his person and government. Dare they fight him? If they thought
so,—why pray to white men to make peace? When he was absent in the Gaman
war, did they not abuse him, and say he was no longer king; that the
Buntokos had killed him, and conquered his country? His captains knew
this to be true, and when they were angry they said, “O king, the
Fantees are a bad people, they insult you and us, you must let us go and
kill them.” “But,” added the king, “I told them no, that would be wrong
because of the treaty. When my messengers went to Commenda, with the jaw
bones, the people laughed at them, called them liars, beat them, and
turned them into the bush. Then they went to Cape Coast and complained
to the governor, but he would not listen to them. I then sent more
messengers; but they all say the Governor refuses to attend to me. He
made the people build up a wall, and told them that if they would fight
the king he would help them. Then he tells me that if I can come in
twenty days that will be better than forty. Is that a fit message? Does
he want war, to kill poor women and children and old people? Were any
king to send me such a defiance, I must undoubtedly go and fight him.
But I say, captains, never mind; this is a white man’s palaver, you
can’t talk it. The great God makes them strong people; and I don’t mind
the governor’s talking foolishly. This I tell my captains,” continued
the king; “but it breaks my heart, because I love the whites. But why
did the governor send to me before, to make a book of friendship, and
then build a wall to fight me, and keep the people’s gold himself?” By
way of illustration, he added, “Suppose your king were to send a great
captain to this country, with orders to enforce the obedience of the
white people; and that captain were to think that because the king lives
at a great distance, he would take all the gold and not pay any thing;
and were to send to me and say, be you my friend and help me to fight
the great king, and I will reward you; would that be right? No,
certainly; I cannot do so.”
The courtiers warmly approved of what the king had said. Had not the
great king, they continued, sent me to reconcile all parties, and speak
what was true, of whites as well as blacks? If that were the case, I
could not say the king of Ashantee was in the wrong.
The king resumed the argument, and in an animated tone declared he never
could or would relinquish his right of sovereignty from the conquest of
Fantee, over the whole country. Elmina Town, which for wealth and
population, greatly exceeded Cape Coast, acknowledged his supremacy; and
the Dutch governor compelled the people to obey him, for that reason he
was the friend of the Dutch. The natives themselves were his friends,
and he never had any palavers there. Danish Accra, English Accra, Tantum
and Apollonia never disputed his title; the people never gave him any
trouble, and therefore if his power was acknowledged so far to the east
as Accra, and so far to the west as Apollonia, he must surely be the
master of Cape Coast which lay in the centre. The king of England, he
added, was his great master, he would do all in his power to give him
pleasure; but he could not think that a poor black town was an object
worthy his notice. “I don’t want war,” said the king emphatically, “I
want the people to serve me, and serve white men. It is true I told the
governor he must pay me gold, but now I see your face I am willing to
relinquish that. Cape Coast, however, must give me gold, for they are my
people, and if they will be insolent I must punish them: for unless I do
so, all these countries will laugh, and say, What kind of king is this?
The governor knows I am right, for he now sends word the people are
unable to pay 1600 ounces, and that if I will abate something it will be
paid. What I tell you,” added the king, noticing my surprise, “is very
true: here is the messenger,” pointing to the man who brought the
message up. This man confirmed what the king said, and concluded with an
observation which he affirmed the governor had made, that the object of
my visit was merely to convey some presents to him from the king of
England. The linguist Abroah was pointed out as a witness, who
interpreted the very message in the castle hall. “Do I speak the truth,”
said the messenger emphatically, “or do I tell a lie before the king and
the white captain?” The linguist confirmed his statement. “Then,” said
the king, addressing his conversation to me, “I must be paid. I shall
look to you, to the governor, and to my nephew: but it is the governor
who must see to it, for he now says he will settle that palaver with
me.”
The arguments with which I opposed those of the king palliated the
alleged offences of the Cape Coast people as far as it was practicable,
although it would have been impossible to deny what in substance the
king had related. I retorted, however, that the sixth article of the old
treaty had been violated, in which the king pledged himself to encourage
the trade of his subjects with the Cape. This article I maintained had
been infringed upon, by the act of cutting off the communication between
his capital and the settlements. In reply, the king said “Yes, I made
that book, it speaks true now; but that is not my fault; Cape Coast did
the first wrong: they sold some Ashantees off the Coast, and seized
their property. Fourteen traders went to Tantum, and the Fantees stole
all their gold and ivory, and sold them for slaves to a ship. Another
time they seized two Ashantees, and killed them for the Fetische. When
the traders heard these things it made them stay at home, for they were
frightened; and so those who wanted trade went to Elmina, because the
Dutch governor takes care of my people. If the traders will not go to
Cape Coast, I cannot help it. I did not break the law, the governor
broke it.”
I desired to know upon what grounds the king had thought proper to
demand gold of the governor. The reply was laconic, “For breaking the
law.” This, I maintained, was illegal and unjustifiable, either upon the
face of the treaty, or by the laws of nations. The answer was, “I made
that book (clause) with the white men; they told me if I broke the law,
I was to pay gold; and if the governor broke it, he must pay it. Now all
the people know it was the governor who broke it; for when Cape Coast
was insolent, he would not hear my palaver; but told them to give the
gold to him, and fight the king. Here is the book,” added his majesty,
handing me the treaty to peruse. “You will find the gold mentioned in
it.” Upon inspection, I assured him that no such clause was to be found.
“No!” said the king, musing as he spoke, “then true it is the other
white men cheated me. Here are my captains, they will speak true; and
here,” pointing to one of my own servants, “is a Fantee who came up to
Coomassy with the white men the other year, he must tell true.” This
man, whose name was Coffee, declared he was present when the treaty was
read over, and that it was explained to the king precisely as he had
stated. I then told the king that I would neither dispute his word, nor
the evidence; but certainly I knew that neither Mr. Bowdich nor his
uncle were authorized to agree to pay money on account of the king of
England, in a case of that kind; for when my master was forced into
palavers, nothing but war could settle the dispute.
The discussions had been protracted to an unconscionable length, and
fatigue only terminated the business of the day.
The importance of evidence, at this crisis, prompted me to obtain it of
those who were present. The following is a sketch in abstract from an
original document.
We, the undersigned officers and gentlemen, who accompanied the Mission
under charge of Consul Dupuis, were present at the audience of the 9th
of March, &c.
The king declared it to be his fixed resolution not to give up his
lawful claim to the sovereignty of the maritime towns and provinces of
which Cape Coast formed a part. He declared that the governor, so far
from disputing that point with him, was actually negociating for the
people, and had appealed for a reduction of the demand of 1600 ounces of
gold, which it was represented was more than they could afford to pay.
The messenger and the linguist Abroah both corroborated what had been
stated, the former with many vehement protestations of sincerity. The
king moreover declared, that as he had “seen the consul’s face,” he gave
up his pretensions of 1600 ounces of gold demanded by him of the
governor.
He (the king) protested that he had been deceived by Mr. Bowdich, who
had distinctly told him before his captains, and in the presence of the
consul’s servant Coffee, that the penalty for breaking the law was a
fine of gold, &c.
The consul told the king that he did not dispute his word; but a treaty
so framed was not valid, nor was it a treaty, as the governor had no
authority to pay him money on account of the king of England.
Witness our hands, &c.
Signed BENJAMIN SALMON.
FRANCIS COLLINS.
D. MILL GRAVES.
WILLIAM HUTTON.
The second declaration was as follows:
I, George Abroah, recently appointed linguist to the Mission, &c. do
certify that the message sent by the governor to the king, and
interpreted by me, &c. was in substance as follows:
“The king must not demand any gold from the castle, and for the claim
upon the town of Cape Coast, the governor promises to settle that
palaver, provided the king will take something off, &c. The gentleman
who was carrying up presents from England, had nothing to do with the
palaver, and merely came out from the king of England to see him.”
In witness, &c.
The mark of X GEORGE ABROAH.
Witnesses,
FRANCIS COLLINS.
DAVID M. GRAVES.
The clauses in the former convention which the king pointed out at as
militating against the governor, were as follows:—
Article 4. In order to avert the horrors of war it is agreed, that in
any case of aggression on the part of the natives under British
protection, the king shall complain thereof to the governor, and that he
will in no instance resort to hostilities without endeavouring as much
as possible to effect an amicable arrangement.
Article 7. The governors of the respective forts shall at all times
afford every protection in their power to the persons and property of
the people of Ashantee, who may resort to the water side.[44]
I cannot dismiss this subject without adverting to the 3d Article of the
same convention, which, by comparison with its fellows, and particularly
with the two above quoted, carries upon its face an air of absurdity. It
runs thus. “The king of Ashantee guarantees the people of Cape Coast
from the hostilities threatened by the people of Elmina.” How such an
article will harmonize with the assumption of a legal jurisdiction over
the towns in Fantee, &c. I know not; neither does it seem to become the
dignity of the British Government in Africa to stipulate for the
independency of its towns with a native prince, and in the same contract
to expose its incapacity to afford protection to the inhabitants, even
against a single town of the Ashantee confederacy.
Mr. Hutton having expressed anxiety, for some days past, to return to
the coast, I gave consent to it; but the king affected some scruples
which it required a little management to remove. “What,” said the king,
“is he already tired of stopping with me. He must not leave, or he will
carry down a bad palaver to the castle.” The fear of denial increased
the anxiety of the applicant; so at least his countenance indicated.
“Tell him to stay,” said the king, “and not to be afraid. Never mind the
palaver, I am a true friend to the English for all that, and I cannot
hurt him.” Finding that this exhortation had not the desired effect, he
added “Stop with your captain, and I will make a great feast and call
all my caboceers together, that they may give plenty of presents to my
friends.” Mr. Hutton’s perturbation was more and more visible. “I see,”
continued the king “he is fearful that I shall not do what is right.”
“Is it your wish,” addressing himself to me, “that he should go?” “He
has my permission,” I replied. “Then let him go,” said the king; “but
tell him he is my friend too, the same as other white men, and,
therefore, when he goes back he must not talk foolishness, and tell
lies, or he will do you wrong as well as me.” With this congé and a
cordial shake of the royal hand, Mr. Hutton departed for Cape Coast,
much gratified, by his own confession, at his release from what he
conceived hazardous duty.
On the 10th of March the king secluded himself within the palace, and
declined transacting public business; the day was considered of an
ominous cast. It being Friday, and consequently the _Sabbath_ of the
Moslems, I received the visits of my old acquaintance the Bashaw,
Kantoma and Abou Becr, attended by a numerous party of their friends
from the interior; among whom was an aged Sheikh or chief, a native of
Kassina, who had been many years established in Yandi. The intelligence
he communicated of the interior was founded upon a long residence at
other courts, particularly those of Bargho Zogho, Youry, and Dahomy. He
had never, he said, been so far to the eastward as Bornou. This man
affected all the austerity of a Morabth (maraboo), among the Arabs, with
whom he claimed consanguinity, by descent, from the conquerors of the
Niger.
March 11th. I received some presents of wine, fish, and fruit, from the
king, with a message couched in the usual form of salutation, and an
injunction to meet his majesty in the palace. On repairing thither, I
found him actively engaged in a crowd of artificers, soldiers, captains,
and labourers. “I am building,” said the king to me as I entered, “a
fort like Cape Coast Castle; but I shall make it very high that I may
look out and see all the town.” A number of large and small trees had
been cut in the forest and dragged to the spot with infinite labour.
These were sunk two or three feet in the ground, and reared at certain
distances apart, forming in mass a small quadrangular enclosure,
supported by other trees of less dimensions, attached crossways by
horizontal and diagonal supporters, lashed together by fibrous vegetable
cordage. “Do you know, captain,” said his majesty, “why I sent for you?
That building you see is to be made very grand. The inside shall be
gold, ivory, and _brass-pan_;[45] so you must tell my great master I do
it for his sake to honour him, that the people may know it was a great
day when I saw your face; and that all the black countries may know I am
a great king here. Now white men know me, I must live in a great house
as white kings do; then I shall not be ashamed when more white people
come. You must say a strong prayer to the great God, and make proper
Fetische for me, the same as my master’s Fetische. Those workmen,”
continued the king, pointing with his finger to some who were engaged,
“were sent me by the Dutch governor, for Ashantees are fools at work;
they can only fight.”
The king was in a vein of good humour, laughing immoderately at the
awkward manner in which his own people, courtiers and labourers
together, elevated the stems and secured the lashings. The building in
every part was so thickly covered with human beings, of the sable hue,
in all postures and attitudes, that it required but a small effort of
the imagination to compare the _coup-d’œil_ to a legion of demons,
attempting in mockery a _Babel_ of modern invention. So eager were these
men in their occupation, and so delighted were they to catch the smiles
of Royalty, to which they responded with shouts, songs, and even
_capers_, that it is astonishing some fatal accident did not occur.
Deeming this an auspicious moment to attract the king’s attention, I
endeavoured to prevail on him to talk upon business. But he replied, “I
sent for you to-day to laugh and play with me, because my heart is glad.
To-morrow I shall hear the palaver. It is true the Fantees make me very
angry; but never mind, you must not take too much trouble.”
In the course of a promiscuous dialogue, I suggested that it would
afford me pleasure to meet the king of Juabin (spelt Dwabin.) “The
king,” replied the monarch, with some appearance of jealous indignation,
“who is he? Am not I the king? Is there another king then besides me?
Does the book say that too? If so, it spreads a shameful lie in the
white country. Ah!” said he, with increased irritation, “I see—I see
white men can tell lies, and put them in books too. Ask my captains,”
added the monarch, throwing himself ostentatiously back in the chair;
“ask all the Fantees, if they know any other king besides me. Shame!
great shame!”[46]
March 12th. An audience was granted this morning. The king desired that
the articles of the new treaty might be explained to him again. He
listened patiently throughout; after which, with great emphasis, he
reverted to many of his former arguments, insisting as before that
Fantee, with all its towns, was inseparably united to the empire, from
the date of its conquest; and that he had always received tribute, more
or less, from the days of governor Torrane, and that his just title
should never be wrested from him, unless by force of arms. “Did the king
of England,” continued he, “say that the people should be exempted from
paying gold to their king? If not, how could I attempt to vindicate the
conduct of his rebellious subjects. I think,” said the monarch, in
thundering indignation, “that the governor told the other white men to
cheat me, for the book does not speak the truth: yet even so I have
never broken the law; but the governor has broken it, for he promised to
take care of my people.” It was no pleasure to him, he said, to make
palavers; but he could not submit to insults before his captains. The
king of England he knew was a powerful monarch, and white men were
superior to blacks; but the great god made justice for all, and oaths of
friendship written in a book were sacred; they were sacred, he added, in
Africa, where men did not write them down on paper: they were the same
as Fetische. For his part, it was well known his people could fight, and
if he thought proper he could easily destroy every fort in the country;
but it neither suited his inclination, nor his policy; because himself
and his ancestors owed all they possessed to the trade they enjoyed with
white men. He loved all white people; but particularly the English, from
the knowledge he had of governors Torrane and White: they gave him up
his great enemy king Cheboo. When the white flag, said the king,
somewhat exultingly, was lowered over the battlements of Annamaboe
Castle, was it not done to make friends, for fear the place should be
taken the next day with all the goods and money contained in it; and
when he made peace did he not give a convincing proof that he was a king
and a friend? The whites sold him guns and powder; he liked that trade,
for his was a _war country_; he could not therefore carry them back to
the sea coast to turn against his best friends: yet Mr. Smith[47] made
him very angry, and if he had not seen my face, and if he did not know
that his great master wanted peace, and a good trade, he would surely
visit Cape Coast with destruction, and people it with better men. Then
he would make a palaver with “_Smitty_” in his own house.
It would swell this volume to an enormous bulk were I to recapitulate
each argument the king employed, and its numerous repetitions. They
were, however, extremely convincing. My duty, nevertheless, was clear;
and policy suggested the necessity of resisting the force of such
language; but my efforts were not successful, and I was about to depart
on this occasion without being able to soothe the angry monarch, who,
however, observed my chagrin, and before I could escape sent a captain
to call me back. “Don’t be angry,” said he; “I love you much; I must do
what old men say; I cannot help it.” This was the eve of a religious
festival called Little Adai.
On the 12th this custom was ushered in by the discharge of fire arms,
and the sound of many barbarous instruments. Numbers of victims were
offered up to the gods, although secretly, in the palace and the houses
of the chieftains. The poorer classes sacrificed cattle or poultry. The
city itself exhibited the most deplorable solitude, and the few human
beings who were courageous enough to shew themselves in the streets fled
at the approach of a captain, and barricadoed the doors of their huts,
to escape the danger of being shot or sacrificed. The doleful cries of
the women vibrated from several quarters of the city, and the death
horns and drums within the palace seemed to stupify the obnoxious
prisoners and foreign slaves with horror, as they contemplated the risk
they were exposed to. I wandered about during this awful day, until
fatigue and disgust led me to seek my quarters. The Fantees now did not
care to stir abroad, and my Moslem acquaintance kept within their
houses, as they afterwards assured me, to avoid the sight of the
butcheries. Oppressed with bodily and mental fatigue, I mounted my horse
and rode into the forest. The business of the day was not over at my
return, and my efforts to gain access to the palace were ineffectual.
The following day, one of a similar train of horrors succeeded, and
still I was left in suspense, for my own linguists and messengers were
not hardy enough to knock at the royal gate. They dreaded, they said,
the Fetische men, who guarded the avenue, and who alone were suffered to
enjoy free ingress. The society of the Moslems, however, in some degree
reconciled me. By these people I was given to understand that seventy
men and women had been put to death the day previous in the palace only;
besides those who were sacrificed in private houses, and in the forest.
Most of these unhappy beings were Gaman prisoners of war, who had been
purposely reserved as an offering to the gods; the others were
criminals, or disobedient slaves. Such was the explanation I received.
This evening a courier arrived from Accra, bringing me letters from a
correspondent. The journey he had accomplished with some labour and
difficulty in fifteen days.
The 15th was the last day of the custom, and I received a summons to
attend the king. Anxious as I was, I lost no time in complying with the
requisition, attended by Messrs. Collins, Salmon, and Greaves, the three
gentlemen who staid with me; but my disappointment was renewed upon
perceiving the order of the day to be that of ceremony.
The courtiers were habited in full costume, as on the day of entry. The
king himself was clothed in an under garment of bloodstained cotton; his
wrists and ancles were adorned with fetische gold weighing many pounds.
A small fillet of plaited grass, interwoven with gold wire and little
consecrated amulets, encircled his temples. A large white cotton cloth
which partly covered his left shoulder, was studded all over with Arabic
writing in various coloured inks, and of a most brilliant well formed
character. His body in other parts was bare, and his breast, legs, the
crown of his head, and the instep of each foot, were streaked with white
clay. It was remarkable that this distinction was not general throughout
the assembly.
Upon receiving the king’s hand, which he presented with the utmost
affability, I noticed a streak of dried blood upon his forehead, and
this token appeared to be universal, as well among officers of
distinction as their slaves and retainers. It denoted their
participation in the late sacrifices. The royal death stool, clotted
with the still reeking gore of its victims, stood on one side of the
king, under care of the captain executioner, who attended with his band
of assistants. At the feet of the sovereign, stood a small firepot, and
a trunk fitted up with a compound medley of relics and charms soaking in
blood.
Before I could gain access to the King, I was surrounded on all sides by
a juvenile band of warriors, who flourished their knives, axes, and
scimiters over my head, as on other state occasions.
The Moslems also were assembled in a separate band, to the number of
about three hundred, who had also met together by invitation, to
congratulate the king and partake of his good cheer at the custom.
[Illustration: The Close of the Adai Customs.]
His majesty sent me a canopy and a royal troop, desiring I would seat
myself among his great captains, as he was going to distribute presents.
This he did with a liberal hand to every chief, and my share of the
bounty was a fat sheep, and a bottle of rum. Even the Fantees received
for their portion four sheep and two kegs of rum.
When the distribution was over, the captains rose, and one by one
saluted the king in martial procession. Having no better occupation on
hand, I devoted my leisure to sketching a representation of the close of
the custom.[48]
I received a message from the king, on the 16th of March, running thus
“The king thinks you talk reasonably; but then, when you say the Fantees
must not pay him, he thinks you are a better friend to the Fantees than
to him.”
As I foresaw that no good could be done by a distant correspondence, I
once more demanded an audience. The request was granted, and the king
opened the discussions, by various conciliatory arguments, styling the
king of England his great master, the king of kings, the king of white
men, &c. He refused, however, to talk the palaver that day, alleging it
was a bad day. I acquiesced, but demanded to be informed what were the
expectations regarding the people of Cape Coast, that I might know
whether my duty warranted a longer stay in the capital, or not; but the
question being artfully evaded, I was compelled, however reluctantly, to
return to my quarters unsatisfied.
The Caboceer Boitenee Quama, sent me, on the 17th of March, a fat kid
and some vegetables. The bearer delivered a message, saying “Boitenee
salutes you, and makes his best compliments. He is glad to hear you are
the king’s friend, for that makes you his friend too.”
I waited in suspense the whole of this forenoon for the promised
audience, and at last sent the canes to the palace. The king, however,
did not return me an answer so promptly as was due; and as I was then in
possession of a public letter[49] from Cape Coast Castle, specifying the
amount of tribute awarded there as a peace offering to the king, I
determined to urge the business. Thus resolved, I sallied forth,
attended by my party, at a late hour in the afternoon. My messengers and
the linguists were waiting at the outer fence. But as I approached, the
palace gates were thrown open, and the king soon appeared and took his
seat. I pleaded the long suspense he had kept me in; the many fruitless
conferences, &c. and the great expence attending the mission: added to
which, the inflexibility of his disposition tended to render abortive
all those benevolent views which my sovereign entertained for his
benefit and that of his people. All these advantages and more, I
continued, he was likely to be bereft of, by his personal inflexibility,
and his attachment to councils which teemed with hostility against an
object comparatively below his dignity to notice; and actually so as
competing with those great objects for which I had been sent to his
court.
The king listened with lively attention, then instinctively rising from
his seat, he said, “White man, what you say is good. I like you because
you speak the truth, and I am sure you are my friend; but what can I do?
I must listen to what the old men say.” Turning his head round to the
captains, he said, “Hear this talk, it is rational; and it is a strong
palaver, for it belongs to the king of kings. We must look to it.” Here
his majesty paused; but the answer not satisfying me, I proceeded to
state that it was my intention to return to the Coast, requesting that a
day might be appointed for my departure, unless he would pass his word
to settle the palaver at an appointed time. The reply was, “I am sorry
to hear you say so, for all my great captains are coming to town to see
you. Never mind the palaver, we will talk it over at another time.” I
demanded to know, as he declined talking upon business, why he detained
me, contrary to my duty; and whether or not I was to consider myself a
prisoner. At the bare mention of the word the countenance of the king
changed, and he evidently laboured under anxiety, as he said I had
broken his heart. “Do you think,” said he, “I can act thus to my great
master’s, captain? No: were he to send me a slave, and say he did not
want me for a friend, I could not do that.” At this pause I made a sort
of ambiguous apology; but being resolved to gain a decided answer, I
assured him that I did not doubt his word, but was instigated by a sense
of duty to my sovereign’s great officers, to whom I must account for the
time that had been expended.
I next introduced the dispatch I had received from Cape Coast,[50] and
read its contents to the king. A pause, of the duration of a minute or
more, added to a fiery glance of the eye, convinced me of the operation
of his mind; nor was the brooding tempest longer confined within its
boundary, for raising his voice to its utmost elevation, and assuming a
countenance of demoniacal phrenzy, he threw himself convulsively back in
his chair, clenched his fists, and stretched forth his arms and legs,
assuming, as it were, the rage of madness, while he bellowed out the
most direful imprecations against the natives of Cape Coast, not
excepting those present, or even my soldiers; nay Mr. Graves also
participated in these anathemas. The foam all the while flowed down his
beard in copious discharges, and the saliva spurted from his mouth upon
all around him. His ministers even betrayed emotion; some stood aghast,
and others applied their forefingers to their heads and breasts,
muttering all the while their respective charms, to avert impending
evil. Occasionally the king spoke with less acrimony; his paroxysms were
less violent; then again he would relapse into all his former fury,
calling to his aid all the powers of his household gods, the Fetische of
his country, &c. At one interval he vociferated, “White men come to my
country to trade—what have they to do with my slaves? They build castles
and houses to live in; they stay as long as they like, then take the
gold and go home again; but they never take mulattos and blacks, for
they are their servants: the great God made them so; they are bad men.
_Smitty_ cheats me, and joins the Fantees to raise a laugh. The forts
are mine, because I hold the books (notes), but I don’t say they belong
to me to keep. I say they stand in my country to trade with the people.
By that great oath (the battle of Cormantine or Accromanti), the Cape
Coast people ought to die. Let me go there,” said the king to me, rising
from his chair—“let me have the jaw-bones of Aggry and De Graaf. I don’t
want their gold: I want the blood of bad men to wash my stool. I cannot
fight the whites, they are my friends.”
The Fantees stood petrified with fear. Exhaustion alone seemed to
overpower the king, and I thought it advisable to leave him time for
cool reflection. My forbearance had the desired effect, for after the
lapse of some minutes, he said, in his usual tone, “Forgive me, captain;
this is what the bad people do to me, therefore be not angry. Do not
tell my master I am angry, because I have a good heart towards him and
all white men. I have no palaver with them. But for the blacks, _I am
king_, and I will be paid, or I will kill them. Why does the governor
send a message, saying he will settle the palaver with me, and then send
you a book to pay a hundred ounces of gold?” Muttering this, the royal
indignation seemed to have entirely evaporated. Another pause ensued:
and at length the king said, “This palaver, I see, cannot be talked
here; but you shall settle it for me with my nephew at Cape Coast, and
what you say is right I will take.” Anxious again to gloss over the
breach in his manners, he alleged that he was overcome by anger; but if
I thought him a friend, such as he really was, I should forgive it.
Torches were introduced, (for it was already dark,) before the
discussions ceased. The king having expressed a wish to see the
properties of the magic lanthorn displayed, the powers of that
instrument were exhibited by Mr. Salmon. As the figures were made to
perform, the king involuntarily seized me by the coat, then by the hand,
as if apprehensive that I should quit him in the dark. He thought it was
_Fetische_; but being assured to the contrary, he said, “Ah! I see then
it is made for laughter and sport.” Indeed it afforded no real interest.
It was enquired if the great king (of England) amused himself so. At
last the monarch turned his back upon it, leaving the entertainment to
his courtiers. The friendly obscurity concealed the colour that suffused
my own cheek, when I replied that it was an instrument adapted to the
Harem, and the amusement of his children. This seemed to agree with his
own conceptions, for he instantly added “I see it is good for that; good
night.” At parting he said he would _sleep over the palaver_, and see me
again in the morning.
March 18. The forenoon passed away in anxiety, for no messenger came
from the palace. My Moslem friends paid me a visit in the interval, and
from them I learned that the king was engaged in close conference with
his ministers; that Apoko, Ado Quamina, Agampong, and the whole of the
army interest were implacable in their resentment at what they termed
the presumption of their vassals, who had dared to stipulate for the
price of their own insolence; and that a very great majority in the
assembly of chiefs loudly cried out for war. Yet the king was averse to
it. He, Adusai, Amon Koitea, Kankam, and Ado Matta, opposed the torrent.
“We have just given our opinions,” said the friendly Bashaw, “to the
king in private, that a war will ruin him in the land of the whites, and
perhaps your Sultan will send a great army to conquer the country. We
should not be sorry,” said he, in a laughing whisper, “to see white men
here; but we have told the king what we believe to be the truth, for
that is our duty, and he has been good to me. The Bashaw sent Abou Becr
again to the palace to get information.” At his return I learned that
the king threatened every opposer in the council, and insisted upon an
unconditional submission to his plan of negotiation.
The hour of four succeeded, and still no invitation came from the
palace, I therefore dispatched another messenger, demanding an interview
in the most positive terms. But this messenger was also unattended to.
Again I renewed the application, forbidding the linguists to return
without obtaining an answer. The lapse of another hour convinced me that
they had met with no better success. A little irritated at this neglect,
I assembled the officers and Fantees, with whom I proceeded to the outer
gate, which was instantly thrown open at my approach. It was then dusk,
and his majesty was seated by torchlight among his chief captains. Some
of his children of both sexes were playing about his knees. My reception
was courteous, and I was forced to place my chair by the side of the
king, who assumed a look of inquiry, indicating a desire to know the
purport of my late visit. This opened the business, and I requested to
be informed what resolution had been adopted regarding the palaver. To
which he replied, he could not tell me more than I knew: the palaver, he
thought, must be talked at Cape Coast. I complained that insincerity
lurked under his answer. “By the great God you serve,” said the king,
“and by my gods, what I tell you is true, you shall settle all for me.”
Still I persisted; the necessity of returning was now greater than
before, and I hoped he would appoint the day. “You must not go,” said
the king, “you have done me good, and I must do you good.” Being
determined to bring the business to an issue, at all reasonable risks, I
insisted that my detention looked like political craft, and as such, it
was impossible I should think otherwise than that I was kept as a
hostage for the liquidation of the demand made upon Cape Coast, however
exorbitant it might be.
Sable as the royal countenance is, I distinctly saw the blood mount to
his cheeks. His concern was mingled with real anxiety. “What,” said he,
“do you still think me a bad man? Do not leave me; you cannot go now,
for you must make me a book to be good friends with the king of England,
as the other book tells lies.” I assured the king, I was convinced of
his friendly disposition; but as he chose to oppose a settlement of the
palaver with the natives, it was not clear to me that my duty warranted
a longer stay in the capital; and therefore I was necessitated to insist
upon having a day appointed for my return. These words were strengthened
by a formal invocation in the name (upon the head, as it is called in
Africa,) of the king of England.[51] The linguists hesitated at the
interpretation. The king perceived it, and desired they would interpret
truly. This injunction was reluctantly obeyed. They attempted to soften
the force of the language by a partial translation. It was enough,
however; the countenance of the king fell; grief and vexation were
strongly pourtrayed on his features, and he started from his chair with
a sudden bound, saying, “you break my heart! you break my heart! Indeed
I cannot do wrong. But the great king is my master, and I must go to
council.” He then retired to the council chamber, followed by the
captains who were in attendance.
My duty prompted this step, but let me confess I was struck with remorse
at the pain I had given him; for I had abundant reasons for feeling
respect and even attachment to this prince. After the lapse of some
minutes he returned, and appointed Monday the 27th of March for my
departure. “Then, said the king, you shall settle all with my nephew
there, for he must be paid, and the soldiers must be paid; but I want
only what you shall say is proper to settle a great palaver. You were
angry and used high words, but I think you are a friend, and I overlook
that.”
[Footnote 36: The law of Ashantee, although preserved only by tradition,
is equally influential over the morals of all ranks. That regarding the
treatment of women is of some interest, from its approximation to the
Levitical, or, perhaps, more intimately to the Mohammedan law, as
related in the second chapter of the Koran, where it is enjoined that
the men shall separate themselves from the women when naturally
indisposed, this being deemed a pollution. In Ashantee, a woman is
unclean from the same cause, and cannot approach her husband, or any
male branch of her family, until the disorder has left her, and she has
undergone certain purifying ablutions.]
[Footnote 37: Vide Note, page 124.]
[Footnote 38: Whether Mr. Bowdich doubted the fact I stop not to
enquire; but the reality of the act, agreeably to the king’s suspicions,
was notorious.]
[Footnote 39: Ingenious as this specimen of the Ashantee language may
seem, it is only remarkable, as I am credibly informed, for being a
specimen of the author’s limited erudition: he forgot however to insert
its meaning, if he knew it. _Shantee foo_ implies, simply, Ashantee
people, as we may say Englishmen. How the king could have applied such
angry words to threaten poor Mr. James and his band, would seem to
require some little philosophy to explain. The ah! ah! is O! O! This is
the _exposé_ of all the hidden mystery of this terrific exclamation. Mr.
James knew more of the Ashantee language than any white man in the
country, judge then how dreadfully alarmed he must have been at such a
menace from such a monarch.]
[Footnote 40: Mr. Mollan.]
[Footnote 41: During the speech of the king, the parties mentioned in
page 117, were again called forward to await judgment. The palaver
itself was subsequently explained to me by Kantoma. It seemed a relation
of this man, having married a very young girl belonging to a good family
in Coomassy, carried his bride away, with intention to solemnize the
nuptials at Coransah, among his own tribe, a race descended from a
branch of Moslem Mandings called Salkoh. On the route, at a short
distance from the capital, she had been clandestinely seized upon by a
party of men, dragged into the forest, violated, and beaten in a cruel
manner. The assailants then effected their escape, leaving the
unfortunate girl to her fate in a trackless thicket, where, after long
search, she was discovered, in a bruised and lacerated state, but could
give no account of those who had injured her.
The accused, a heathen, pleaded, in the course of his examination, a
prior claim to the girl, who, he alledged, had been betrothed to him
from infancy; but he denied all knowledge of the criminal transaction,
or indeed that his intended bride had ever been disposed of in favour of
another. The Moslem, who, it seems, had selected this man upon suspicion
only, was unable to establish proof, and in this stage of the trial, the
king commanded the accused to pass the ordeal termed the “fetische of
truth,” a poisonous beverage usually administered to suspected
criminals.]
[Footnote 42: The convention made by Mr. Bowdich in 1817.]
[Footnote 43: Strictly speaking, the town of Cape Coast is nominally
distinct from Fantee, although the Ashantees class the people together
as one nation, or family. The king invariably spoke of Cape Coast Town
as a Fantee town.]
[Footnote 44: The Treaty, as published in Mr. Bowdich’s work, compared
with what was actually written, and deposited with the king, is a
garbled statement. I cannot say less. In the original document, which is
now in my keeping, the pompous name of Boitene Quama, king of Dwabin, is
nowhere to be found. It would seem that this association of two
sovereigns was calculated to awaken a more lively interest, and thus
only can I account for an attempt to deceive government and the public,
by means, I believe, unprecedented in the annals of British diplomacy.
The article, No. 9, shewing the king’s disposition to send his own
children to Cape Coast for education is falsely inserted, and every
other article is disfigured or misrepresented more or less.]
[Footnote 45: The Fantee term for brass, which is always imported in the
form of pans.]
[Footnote 46: The reader by a reference to page 125 of Mr. Bowdich’s
work, will be able himself to detect what does appear a deliberate
imposition; for the author therein admits that Boitinnee Quama only
attested the treaty of 1817, as a witness, certainly the day after its
ratification. _Ahen_ which is the title of king, in the Ashantee
language, does not even belong to him; although he of Banna, and the
ruler of Gaman, are both entitled to it.]
[Footnote 47: The king having about this time learned to pronounce the
governor’s name, he frequently spoke of him personally by the name of
_Smitty_.]
[Footnote 48: See the Plate.]
[Footnote 49: This letter from the governor and council stated that 100
ounces of gold was the utmost the people were inclined to pay, and that
I should not (at the risk, it is presumed, of every object of the
mission), negotiate upon any other terms.]
[Footnote 50: This letter, I should have observed, had been detained by
the king for several days before he transmitted it to me. He was
jealously suspicious of the arrival of any letters or messengers from
the Coast, during our conferences.]
[Footnote 51: The words were—“I swear upon the head of my master, you
shall settle the palaver in three days or appoint next week for my
return to the Cape. If you do not I am surely a prisoner, and you may
put me to death.” This style of invocation is considered too serious to
be trifled with, and perfectly in consonance with African customs,
although its application by natives, particularly to crowned heads, or
men in power, is often attended with dangerous consequences. This by way
of illustration—
An Ashantee of good family visited the Cape at the time Mr. Bowdich was
at Coomassy. As he was passing the castle gate, a Fantee sentinel upon
duty desired him to cast off his cloth, to leave the shoulders bare, in
conformity to a custom exacted from the towns-people. The fiery spirit
of the Ashantee refused compliance with a law which he could not
comprehend. A scuffle ensued, and the offender was securely conveyed
into the fort, where, by Mr. Smith’s order, he was thrown into a
dungeon, known by the name of the “slave hole.” Probably no greater
injury would have been done the man than a night’s imprisonment. Be this
as it may, the Ashantee resisted, and suffered some injury in so doing,
when he invoked Sai (the name of his sovereign), swearing upon his head
that Mr. Smith should hear his palaver or kill him outright. The appeal
had no effect, and in the morning he was dragged from his subterraneous
lodging a corpse, having strangled himself, as it is understood, on the
governor’s head. Mr. Smith, indeed, wrote a letter, as may be seen in
Mr. Bowdich’s work, to palliate or justify his conduct, for what had
occurred, and the affair was buried in oblivion, through the king’s
declared affection for white people.]
CHAPTER V.
RETURN OF THE MISSION.
PRESENTS FROM THE MOSLEMS — DIPLOMATIC ADVICE — FAREWELL VISITS — FORT
GEORGE — PROPOSED EMBASSY FROM THE KING OF ASHANTEE — EXAMINATION OF
PLATE OF VARIOUS EUROPEAN MANUFACTURES — MERCHANDIZE SUITABLE FOR
AFRICAN MARKETS — VISIT FROM THE KING TO THE QUARTERS OF THE MISSION —
JEALOUSY OF THE ASHANTEE CHIEFS — DISCUSSIONS ON THE CAPE COAST PRICES —
ON THE SLAVE TRADE — THE KING’S WARS — BARDIC RECITATIONS — EXPOSURE AND
HARSH TREATMENT OF A CAPTIVE PRINCE — SIGNATURE OF A TREATY — THE KING’S
COMMERCIAL AND FINANCIAL PLANS — PECULIARITIES OF AFRICAN COMMERCE —
AUDIENCE OF LEAVE — TROOPS OF SLAVES INTENDED FOR THE KING OF ENGLAND —
INSTRUCTIONS TO THE ASHANTEE AMBASSADORS — PRESENTS TO THE KING OF
ENGLAND — TO THE ENVOY — CEREMONIES OF NAMING THE ASHANTEE FORT —
EXTRAORDINARY CONDESCENSION OF HIS MAJESTY ON TAKING LEAVE —
MORTIFICATION OF THE MOSLEMS AT THE AUTHOR’S REJECTION OF THE KORAN —
DEPARTURE — HEAVY RAINS — LIBERATION OF A SLAVE — JOURNEY TO CAPE COAST
— DISAVOWAL OF THE TREATY BY THE GOVERNOR AND COUNCIL — PREPARATIONS FOR
WAR — FANTEE CONSPIRACY — PROTEST — SIR GEORGE COLLIER REFUSES TO CONVEY
THE AMBASSADORS TO ENGLAND — CORRESPONDENCE — OBSERVATIONS — RETURN OF
THE AUTHOR TO EUROPE.
March 19th. The king, as usual, sent me the morning salutation.
The Moslems again visited me in their robes of ceremony; each, according
to his rank, bringing with him a present of vegetables, bread, fowls,
honey, &c. The hospitable gifts of the chiefs were more considerable.
From the Bashaw I received a sheep, a large cotton cloth, &c. Kantoma
gave a sheep and a small collection of national weapons. Abou Becr,
Soumah, and many more, made presents in proportion. They felicitated me
on the settled disposition of the court for peace. The king, they
observed, had expressed his sentiments that morning, declaring in the
most decided terms, that he would leave his interest in the negotiation
to his nephew and myself. The governor of Cape Coast was to have a voice
also. “Allah is my witness,” said the Bashaw, “I have served you as I
would my own son; and I thank him the king’s heart was open to my
advice. We shall all be sorry to lose you; but come up again as soon as
the palaver is settled, for the king loves you much, and you may do
great good for whites, blacks, and Moslems. But if you could settle it
here, that is what I should like. Can you not give the king 400 ounces?”
“No,” I replied, “I am not authorized to do so.” Abou Becr joined in the
conversation: “Give,” said he, “300 to the king, ten to Amon Koitea, the
same to Adusai, and six to Apoko, and I am sure you will settle it at
once.” “It was impossible,” I said.
March 20th. This day I received several deputations from chieftains who
govern the surrounding country, and others; Ado Matta and Apoko were of
the number, and each was attended by a select band of armed men,
preceded by musical instruments. In the course of the day the arrival of
some of the king’s sword-bearers announced the approach of some members
of the royal family. These were the king’s sons, named Ouso Kro Ahen,
Ouso Akoteah, Ouso Gamadouah, Ouso Yaou, and Ouso Quantabisa. These
young men were between the ages of twelve and twenty-five. They had
received instructions from their father, they said, to pay their
compliments to me; and each came attended by a number of slaves, bearing
loads of provisions.
The Bashaw and a party of Moslems called upon me again this forenoon.
They had seen Adusai, they said, in private, and that minister was
disposed to negotiate with me, provided I would pass my word to the king
for three hundred ounces, and about thirty more to be divided among the
disaffected chiefs at the capital, and the little army at Cape Coast.
“Do this,” said the good Bashaw, “and you will immediately have a party
that shall carry all before them in the cabinet; for the king is
disposed to do all he can for you, but he must not oppose his great
captains, because they say it is for his good. The king does not want
gold, and if you were to give him a thousand ounces, he would distribute
it all among his captains, to make them friends to the whites. Do so, do
so, my son,” added the chief, “give him three hundred, it will gladden
all our hearts, and we will then go boldly to the king, with Adusai, and
those of his party, and I promise you, by the assistance of our holy
prophet, we will not leave the court until every thing be adjusted to
your satisfaction, and the king’s. If you have not gold enough, never
mind that, for we will lend it you to any amount, if you will only stay
with us. The king himself will lend you gold, if you prefer it.” Abou
Becr and Kantoma united their entreaties, but all was in vain; the
decided tone of the letter from Cape Coast was imperative. I had long
esteemed these friends, but now they were possessed of my whole heart.
Indeed the Moslems, in many unrecorded instances, evinced a genuine
solicitude for the welfare of the Mission, and anxiety for my personal
good.
The king sent for me towards the close of this conversation. I found him
on foot, taking a circuit round the palace walls. “Ah!” he ejaculated,
as I approached him, “thank the gods I see you again with a good face;
you are not angry with me.” I assured him that so far from having been
moved by real anger, I had done violence to my feelings, in urging a
demand, which was exacted from me by a sense of duty only. But, I added,
I never should forget his hospitality. A smile of great good-nature was
the only reply. The king shewed me the progress he had made in building
the fort. Then turning abruptly, he said, “You must write me a book to
my master, and tell him, if he wants to make war upon the blacks, to let
me know, for they shall serve him as myself. But tell him the Ashantees
love him very much, because he has done me honour.”
Again I demanded to know, if he had any thing to say about the native
palaver. “True,” replied the king, “I shall tell you more before you go.
I see _Smitty_ does not wish to serve the people, so he takes their
gold, and says he will talk the palaver with the king. Then he tells
them too, you must build a wall and fight Ashantee. By and by he sees
that is a strong palaver, and he tells the people that the king is very
angry, and says he must kill them; but never mind that, says he, bring
me more gold, and then I will send a proper book to the king of white
men, and tell him that it is his palaver, and he must send plenty of
ships and soldiers. But this is all cheating; the Fantees cannot fight,
and being much frightened, they ask the white men what they are to do.
Then Smitty says, have you any more gold? but they say no, because they
think he does not care for them. Well, says he, I shall see what to do;
the white king will send soldiers by and by. But they say that will not
do. Then he tells Aggry, and De Graaf and Biney, now I shall make a good
palaver for the town, and the people must pay an hundred ounces to the
king. This is all the talk among black men. My great master does not
hear this; he does not know the governor keeps all the gold himself. So
you must put down in the book what is true, then white men will not say
I have a bad heart, and want to kill people to take their gold. I only
kill my enemies and bad men. This is strong talk, captain, but never
mind now, for I have no more disputes with white men, they are my
friends, and I do not ask them for any thing; but black men must pay
me.”
On a former occasion, the king had proclaimed his intention of sending
some of his people ambassadors to England with presents; I requested now
to be informed if he still persisted in that resolution. “Yes,” he
replied, “I shall do so, and you must get a good linguist to tell the
great king what I say.” I neither opposed nor made any objections to
these arrangements, which, according to my thinking, afforded a rational
hope that great advantages might ultimately accrue from it, to the
renown of the British government over the wide spreading plains of
Africa, and the benefit of the mercantile interests. According to the
reception given to the ambassadors of this monarch, I conceived that
other kings might feel inclined to tread in the steps of the sovereign
of Ashantee, whereby a preponderating influence would be given to
British councils either at home or on the Gold Coast, (in African
affairs), and the negro potentate, with more probable hopes of success,
might then be persuaded, on the return of his caboceers, to listen with
attention to those humane overtures which the compassion of the age so
earnestly desires to convey to the hearts of the kings and princes, who
rule our sable brethren.[52]
On the 21st, several caboceers of rank visited me, and each deposited a
small package of gold, varying from four to twelve ackeys. It was
impossible to refuse acceptance without giving offence. Ouso Bannahen
and Yaho Korakoo,[53] entered into a long detail of the Gaman war: then
shifting the conversation, they said, “The king knows you are a friend
to all the people; but if he thought you came up to look at the country,
and then go back and send for white soldiers to join the Fantees and
fight him, he must certainly kill you.” Bogiabi Adoom, the king’s
canopy-bearer, and Ouin Bendah, a captain of the palace, paid their
compliments, about noon, by the sovereign’s express order. The day, as
usual, was spent in the society of the Moslems, and in visits to the
houses of the chieftains.
March 22d. Numerous caboceers, many of whom were from the country,
called at my quarters. These were followed, in succession, by a long
list of inferior captains, who were all authorized to swear attachment
to the king of England. They were desired to do so, they said, by the
king; but they were friends independently of that, for they liked _my_
palaver, and they liked me. “Now,” added they, “the great king is a
friend to Sai, it is all the same; he is our master too, and we will
serve him.”
March 23d. The preceding day, and part of this morning, had been devoted
to private councils in the palace, at which the king was again compelled
to exert his authority against a few ambitious chiefs of the opposing
faction, who were hardy enough to persist in demanding war. Towards the
afternoon, Adusai called to conduct me to the king’s presence. I found
his majesty seated amidst a confused heap of old battered silver
utensils. “I want you, captain,” said he, shewing me a tureen of that
metal, “to tell me in what country this was made.” I concluded it (from
the stamp) to be the workmanship of Holland. “You are right,” said the
king. He then shewed me a bowl, a coffee-pot, some cups, &c. Some of
them, I replied, were the manufacture of Spain and Portugal, others of
Holland; this was also satisfactory. Lastly, he pointed to a richly
chased urn, a kettle, ewer and basin. I had the good fortune again to
satisfy his enquiries.
It appeared to me that the king was practising an innocent device, to
put my veracity to the test. He desired next to know if they were all
silver, requiring me to select the base, if any, from the pure metal.
Having done as I was requested, the king said, with a smile, “I know,
captain, you speak true, and cannot tell me a lie. I get these things
from the whites, and I like them much, because there is no silver in
this country. Some of them came from Christiansborg, some from Fantee,
when I conquered the Braffoes; but most from Elmina, for the Dutch are
good to me. Governor Torrane gave me a few, and many more I took in
Gaman when I killed Dinkera. I spoke this to the other white men,[54]
and they said the good silver was English, and the bad Dutch; but I knew
that was a lie. Now I shall give much gold to my ambassadors, and you
must tell them how to buy plenty of good things, and plenty of silver
like this, for I must provide every thing suitable and live like a white
king.”
Some very rich brocades, of various coloured patterns, were shewn me,
together with pieces of crimson damask, and fine cotton cloths, which
the king had just received in part of a present from the governor of
Elmina. “I shall make a fine canopy of these, said the king, to carry
over my head. Tell the merchants to bring plenty of those goods, I will
buy them all; for what I dont want I send away to my caboceers, and I
give many to the kings who live in Dagomba and other countries, near the
great water (Niger.)”
In obedience to a signal from the king, some eunuchs entered the Harem,
and brought from thence an enormous bundle of silk and cotton goods. The
latter were prints, in furniture patterns, and British chintz: the
larger the pattern the more it was esteemed. The king, however, shewed
some predilection for roses upon a pale blue ground; green taffety silk
and Scotch plaids, in particular, were the greatest favourites of their
kind. I was desired to bear in mind his choice, that I might procure him
a quantity of the same patterns, for which he would pay gold, he said,
to any amount.
“All my captains like these things,” continued the king, “so if the
great king will make a proper trade, tell him to send goods like this,
and plenty of rum, and powder, and guns; and I will take care he shall
have plenty of gold: not brass pan gold like what the Fantees make, but
true gold. And if he likes ivory he shall have more than he wants;
because, now I have no war, the people must go into the bush and shoot
elephants.”
I promised his majesty to bear this strictly in mind, and at a late hour
returned to my quarters.
March 24th. Two of the king’s sword bearers called to announce his
majesty’s pleasure to honour me with a visit _at home_. To pay due
respect to kingly rank, I _marshalled my forces_, and accompanied by the
officers, soldiers, and Fantees, sallied forth to meet him. The
sovereign of Ashantee was borne upon the heads of some captains, in a
sort of litter, made of wicker, and covered with brocade. His chief
officers, with the king of Banna, and a multitude of soldiers, and armed
men, were on foot. As soon as the king was advised of our approach, he
desired Apoko to lead me to a gateway, attached to an adjoining ruin.
Here the king descended from his vehicle, and as he entered from the
opposite side took me by one hand, and gave me a sort of half embrace.
We then retired to one side as he motioned with his hand, that the
procession should move forward under the same gateway. They inclined
their bodies in passing, and the Moslems gave their _salam_. I
recognized my friends, the Bashaw, Abou Becr, Kantoma, and Soumoh, the
smile of self-approbation was stamped upon their countenances.
When the king entered my apartment, he instructed his linguist to inform
me that the palavers had been a source of vexation to him, inasmuch as
they had hitherto deprived him of sufficient leisure to visit me in a
familiar way. His majesty, in compliment, accepted of a small glass of
brandy. He then reclined upon my couch, telling me he had been
indisposed. His nephew, Ado Braddie, seated himself at the feet of his
uncle, with a large palm fan, which he waved to keep off the flies. On a
sudden (as was usual with him) he started up, and addressed me in the
following terms:—“White captain, I know you now, and I love you much,
for what you tell me I think is good, therefore, if I should be angry,
regard it not. I believe all you say is true, and I do not think you can
tell lies and cheat me. To-day, you see, I come to your house for
pleasure and amusement, by which the people will know you are my friend,
and that I am the friend of white men. Now I have one palaver in my head
which I must tell you. You say the great king sent you to my country to
make us good friends; he wants a good trade, and he does not like people
to make war and fight. Then, you know, you talk much about Cape Coast
and Fantee. But this palaver the great king does not hear, so he cannot
tell what is right, and what is wrong. All this my captains talk among
themselves, and then they say to me, take care, king, we are too much
frightened: perhaps this white man comes to Coomassy to look at the
country, and see if Ashantee has strong towns and people. We think he is
a friend to Smitty, and the Fantees, because the people were never so
insolent before he came to Cape Coast. He will go back to the water
side, and say—Now bring your strong men, and fight the king; and do not
pay any gold, for the great king will send plenty of men, and powder,
and guns. This is what my captains say, added the monarch, for they are
alarmed about me. I do not think so—I cannot see lies in your face; but
then I wish to please my captains; so I told them, come with me to the
white man’s house, and see him with your own eyes, and hear with your
own ears what he will say.
I replied with as much composure as I could assume, although with secret
indignation, that if the king doubted my sincerity, and the sacred
character of my mission, it would be in vain to negotiate; for unless
the confidence were mutual, all the arguments I might urge in
justification would be fruitlessly expended. In other countries, I
added, where diplomacy was conducted upon a different system, such
injurious insinuations would have been construed into a premeditated
insult to the sovereign, who was represented in the person of his
officer. At Ashantee, however, I knew the customs were different; yet as
I did not doubt the sincerity of the king, I did consider that his
majesty had been ill-advised, by calumniators, and a faction that had
secret interests in keeping alive the embers of discord. After
entertaining me so long, as the ambassador of a great king, who sent him
presents, after hearing the king of England’s book (the commission) read
over; and swearing his great oath before the people, how could the king
now say I was a deceitful character, and only wanted to fight him? It
was a scandal, I said, which I never expected to have heard from his
lips: but now all discussions ought to be suspended, and the king might
suffer me to return or not as he thought proper. I compelled the
linguists to do as much justice to the interpretation as they were
capable of; for the subject came home to my feelings.
“White man,” replied the king, “the great God has given you good sense.
I was sorry to talk so; but it is not my palaver, it is my captains;
they forced me to do it against my wish. Now they hear what you say,
that is enough, they cannot talk evil again: so you must not be angry,
and you shall do what you please, for black men are fools, and you know
best what is for my good.”
The king having concluded, Apoko rose from his seat, and in the name of
his compeers, said, “That is good, O king, and we are all the white
men’s friends, when they are yours, and do not join the Fantees to
dishonour you. This white captain, therefore, must not think we want to
do wrong, because we tell you to beware of the Fantees. He is a great
man for his king, and says what he thinks true, and we do the same. But
we are good friends for all that, and now we believe all he says is
true.”
The Bashaw rose, and said, “White men serve the great god, the same as
ourselves, and they cannot do wrong to the king, for their law is the
word of God and the great prophets.”
His majesty remained above an hour longer, discoursing upon various
topics; but he previously dismissed the greater part of his retinue.
“What is your custom,” said the king, “addressing himself to Kantoma and
Abou Becr, when great men make friends?” “They swear upon the sacred
book,” (the Koran) was the reply. “That is good,” said the king,
“because then, if they keep evil in their hearts, the book must kill
them.” “True,” added the Moslems, “the book contains holy words from the
great God himself. Our law is a is a great law; we say there is no God,
but one God, the merciful,” &c. “Ah!” said the king, “I like that, it is
strong sense; it is the fetische of your country. Ashantee has no
fetische like this; but the Ashantee custom is good also. I know that
book (the Koran) is strong, and I like it because it is the book of the
great God; it does good for me, and therefore I love all the people that
read it.” The Moslems instantly prostrated themselves, and prayed aloud:
the king too extended his arms, looking upwards as if to receive a
blessing.
In the afternoon I attended at the palace by appointment. The first
topic of conversation related to the notes. “Look again at these books,”
said the king, addressing himself to me; “do you think Smitty treats me
like a friend, when he charges so much for the goods I buy of him?” “I
cannot say more,” I replied, “on that subject.” “Are they not _gold_
books?” he asked. “Yes,” I said. “You tell true,” continued the king.
“Now I will not have any more goods at those prices; and if I cannot get
what is right, I will have gold. I dont say I will not take goods, for I
like goods best; but then I must have them at a fair rate, the same as I
can buy them.” I urged that those commodities were liable to fluctuate
in value, whence it would be impossible to establish prices of currency.
But this reply did not satisfy the monarch; it had the semblance of a
subterfuge; for he could not comprehend, he said, why Mr. Smith, for
instance, should sell him one gun for an ounce of gold, when he could
purchase two anywhere else for the same money, of equal or superior
workmanship. And again, that an anker of rum, or a keg of powder, should
be put down on the notes at an ounce, when he could buy three, or even
four of the former, and certainly two of the latter, separately, for
that amount. Taffeties and other manufactured goods underwent the like
scrutiny, and their prices were equally condemned.
Dismissing these arguments, without attaching to them that degree of
importance, by which they were distinguished at Ashantee, I shall
briefly state, that many hours were consumed in discussing this topic
alone; and that at last an amicable understanding was effected, by my
guaranteeing such conditional reductions in price as the state of the
market might afford, after the effectual re-establishment of
tranquillity and commerce. “That is what I shall look to then,” said the
king, “but I will not trust Smitty again. _You_ shall take my notes,
because my master sent you to be my captain, and to look after my
affairs: then I can lie down and go to sleep.” I passed my word to
transact his business in the character of an agent only, alleging that
my situation did not authorise me to trade like the governor, and other
white men in the castle.
“Now,” said the king, after a pause, “I have another palaver, and you
must help me to talk it. A long time ago the great king liked plenty of
trade, more than now; then many ships came, and they bought ivory, gold,
and slaves; but now he will not let the ships come as before, and the
people buy gold and ivory only. This is what I have in my head, so now
tell me truly, like a friend, why does the king do so?” “His majesty’s
question,” I replied, “was connected with a great palaver, which my
instructions did not authorise me to discuss. I had nothing to say
regarding the slave trade.” “I know that too,” retorted the king;
“because, if my master liked that trade, you would have told me so
before. I only want to hear what you think as a friend: this is not like
the other palavers.” I was confessedly at a loss for an argument that
might pass as a satisfactory reason, and the sequel proved that my
doubts were not groundless. The king did not deem it plausible, that
this obnoxious traffic should have been abolished from motives of
humanity alone; neither would he admit that it lessened the number
either of domestic or foreign wars.
Taking up one of my observations, he remarked, “the white men who go to
council with your master, and pray to the great God for him, do not
understand my country, or they would not say the slave trade was bad.
But if they think it bad now, why did they think it good before. Is not
your law an old law, the same as the Crammo[55] law? Do you not both
serve the same God, only you have different fashions and customs?
Crammos are strong people in fetische, and they say the law is good,
because the great God made the book; so they buy slaves, and teach them
good things, which they knew not before. This makes every body love the
Crammos, and they go every where up and down, and the people give them
food when they want it. Then these men come all the way from the great
water[56], and from Manding, and Dagomba, and Killinga; they stop and
trade for slaves, and then go home. If the great king would like to
restore this trade, it would be good for the white men and for me too,
because Ashantee is a country for war, and the people are strong; so if
you talk that palaver for me properly, in the white country, if you go
there, I will give you plenty of gold, and I will make you richer than
all the white men.”
I urged the impossibility of the king’s request, promising, however, to
record his sentiments faithfully. “Well then,” said the king, “you must
put down in my master’s book all I shall say, and then he will look to
it, now he is my friend. And when he sees what is true, he will surely
restore that trade. I cannot make war to catch slaves in the bush, like
a thief. My ancestors never did so. But if I fight a king, and kill him
when he is insolent, then certainly I must have his gold, and his
slaves, and the people are mine too. Do not the white kings act like
this? Because I hear the old men say, that before I conquered Fantee and
killed the Braffoes and the kings, that white men came in great ships,
and fought and killed many people; and then they took the gold and
slaves to the white country: and sometimes they fought together. That is
all the same as these black countries. The great God and the fetische
made war for strong men every where, because then they can pay plenty of
gold and proper sacrifice. When I fought Gaman, I did not make war for
slaves, but because Dinkera (the king) sent me an arrogant message and
killed my people, and refused to pay me gold as his father did. Then my
fetische made me strong like my ancestors, and I killed Dinkera, and
took his gold, and brought more than 20,000 slaves to Coomassy. Some of
these people being bad men, I washed my stool in their blood for the
fetische. But then some were good people, and these I sold or gave to my
captains: many, moreover, died, because this country does not grow too
much corn like Sarem, and what can I do? Unless I kill or sell them,
they will grow strong and kill my people. Now you must tell my master
that these slaves can work for him, and if he wants 10,000 he can have
them. And if he wants fine handsome girls and women to give his
captains, I can send him great numbers.”
The wars of the king were shortly after introduced as a topic of general
discussion. That of Gaman was the favourite subject, and the king
occasionally took up the thread of the narrative, or elucidated such
events as were perhaps not generally known. As he caused the linguists
to interpret to me the particular feats of himself, the king of Banna
and Apoko, his eyes sparkled with fiery animation, and at one period he
threw himself into a sort of theatrical attitude, which appeared to be
unpremeditated, and unaffected. He then seemed to be wrapped up within
himself in delightful cogitations, and at this crisis, some of the
auditors like the bards of “olden time,” rose to the hum of the war
song, and recited their parts in a pleasing mellifluous strain. The king
enjoyed the scene in extacy, and frequently motioned with his body and
feet in cadence with the metre of the verse. This reverie and the
recitation occupied many minutes, and were ultimately succeeded by irony
and satire cast upon the memory of his fallen enemy. “His scull was
broken,” said the king, “but I would not lose the trophy, and now I have
made a similar scull of gold. This is for my great customs, that all the
people may know I am the king.”
A slave was deputed to one of the apartments of the palace, and as he
returned he deposited a chair,[57] which his majesty said was the regal
seat of Dinkera. This piece of workmanship was studded all over with
gold and silver ornaments, and silver coin of different European states.
The slave again disappeared, and returned, bringing under his escort a
son of that unfortunate monarch, one of the few male survivors of the
race of Dinkera. A pallid hue, if so it may be termed, overspread the
jetty features of the youth, as he bowed trembling before the king. The
angry glance which marked his reception, excited the most painful
apprehensions, and the countenance of the young man spoke woeful agony,
as he endeavoured to scan the purport of the summons.
“Your father,” said the king, addressing himself to the prince, “was a
rebel; he was full of pride, and wanted to be a great king; he forgot
when he was my slave. Is not this true? Then he wanted Sarem to help
him, and sent gold to make friends. Is not that true, too? He forgot I
was his master; he killed my sword bearers, and sent me an insulting
message. Now I have his scull, and the jaw bones of his captains. His
wives, and you, and all the people are my slaves; and when I tell you to
die, you shall die as your brother did; but now you shall serve me.”
The king then desired him to strip off his robe and shew me the wounds
he had received in battle. The unhappy youth did as he was instructed,
pointing to five or six honourable scars upon his breast, arms, and
thighs, which had the appearance of gun-shot wounds. “Now,” said the
king to him, with a stern, sarcastic apathy, “you know your father was a
fool, and that I am the king; you did not know that before; and so now
go home until I send for you again.”[58]
It should have been recorded earlier, that the king, at intervals,
before the 23d, during public and private conferences, renewed his
application for the “Book,” (Treaty) which he desired I should leave
with him in token of “good friends,” &c. with the great king. The old
book, he repeatedly said, was a book of “lies and cheating,” and he
would by no means retain it in his possession. “Your book,” said he,
“will tell true, because my master sent you to me to do me good;
besides, he will read your book himself; and it will be the words of
friends, and of two kings. Then you must put down all he wants, and what
you think will give him pleasure; and I shall look to it; for I love him
much, and cannot do wrong to any of his white men; but I will fight for
them and for him, if you say so.”
Many more such conversations passed between us; and I framed a
preliminary sketch of a treaty, which having been read over, he
suggested certain amendments relative to Fantee, the town of Cape Coast,
&c. Finally, on the 23d, the definitive treaty itself, coupled with
certain supplementary articles, (at a later hour) received the king’s
signature, after a most laborious discussion, wherein every article
separately was criticised and scrutinized by a full court, at which
Apoko, Adusai Ado Matta, Kankam, Amon Koitea, Ado Braddie, Coffee
Adukon, (the Caboceer of Amoafo) Soabin, of Doompassie, Quaky Coffee, (a
captain to Amon Koitea) Eshamo Cudjo, (the head captain over Assin and
Fantee) Agampong, and a few others, were present. The king seemed
perfectly conscious that the treaty covenanted many articles which were
calculated for the benefit of his people. He was sensible, moreover,
that the commercial clauses were at least mutually advantageous. But he
wished to know, he said, how much he was likely to benefit individually,
by encouraging a free export and import trade with inland states, such
as I had on several occasions impressed upon his mind, by making his
capital the depôt of British manufactured goods and African produce. I
explained the usage of Europe in regard to commerce foreign and
domestic, shewing that every article in bulk, and in proportion to its
value, paid a relative custom to the great officers of trade, in support
of government. “That is very good,” said he, “for the great king; but I
cannot do so, because the Ashantee fashion is different. None but kings
and great men trade here, the same as myself. Sometimes I lend them
gold, if they are good people; and then I cannot say, give me the gold
back. If they come from another country to trade in Coomassy, they make
friends, and give me a present; then, to be sure, I cannot tell them to
give me gold, when they buy and sell the goods. Besides, some traders
are kings’ sons and brothers, and great captains: I must not say to
them, give me gold, but I must give them gold and provisions, and send
them home happy and rich, that it may be known in other countries that I
am a great king, and know what is right. Thus I please my Gods, and they
make me strong.”
I adopted various arguments to convince the king that the establishment
of a well-regulated intercourse with Salgha, Daboya, Houraboh, Yandi,
&c. could not fail to increase the wealth of his subjects, even though
he might not think proper to levy commercial dues, and by consequence he
must be a gainer in the sequel. That was true, he admitted, but Ashantee
was a nation of warriors, and the people did not understand these things
like the inhabitants who lived nigher the great water (Niger.) If I
would take the task upon myself, and regulate the trade of his country,
he said, according to what I thought right, he should be happy and
contented, and would make all the merchants obey me, and give presents,
the same as to himself. “I will hear,” added the monarch, “every thing
you have to say, and my captains shall be told to obey you.”
The king then introduced the officers he had selected as ambassadors to
the British government (“the great king.”) “This man,” said he, taking
the foremost by the arm, “is my _treasurer_; he takes care of my gold
and good things. When he gets to the white country, he will talk all the
palaver properly, and then my master will know that I have a good heart
for him and his people, and that only bad men tell lies about me. I am
preparing a present,” he continued, “fit for him, and this captain will
give it to him; but I shall give you a part to take care of, and when
you go down to the water-side, you must see every thing put in the ship.
I shall let him have five thousand ounces of gold besides, to buy me
good things in silver-plate, cloth, silks, &c. and money for his
subsistence.”
The associates of this officer were six in number, comprising a suite
whose powers were subordinate to the _treasurer_, although they owed
little or no responsibility to him. This the king explained to me in
their presence, as he introduced them according to their offices;
namely, two royal bearers of the gold-hilted swords; two counsellors or
advisers; one priest; one crier of the court.[59] They should all bear
witness, said the cautious monarch, that “his treasurer spoke the truth,
when he came back.” I was also desired to procure a faithful linguist,
who should likewise assist in buying the fine things he required for the
use of his palace. It scarcely deserves to be recorded, that I acceded
to all these requisitions. I do not scruple to admit, that I was
gratified to the full extent of that feeling, at the brilliant harvest
it promised to England,—the influence it gave her over a monarch so
tractable, and a country so rich and barbarous, where, notwithstanding,
a king of England reigned already in the hearts of hundreds—of
thousands—perhaps millions of untutored heathens or Moslems of all
ranks, but chiefly of that which claims the first consideration.
“If you go to the white country,” said the king, “I place these captains
under your protection; they have served you, and you must serve them,
for my sake; instruct them in the ceremonies to be observed before my
great master, and tell them how to give him pleasure. Then you must tell
him that I like the present he sent me very much. But I like it because
the great God of his fathers made his heart to be a good friend to me;
therefore if he should send me only a slave to say so, it is enough.
Tell him my great oath. I will fight for him and his white men; and
every thing he wants he shall have: for he has brought tears of pleasure
into my eyes; but, tell him he must not believe the Fantees: black men’s
hearts are not the same as white men’s; and he does hot know these
people like me, for there is no truth in them; they cheat him, they
cheat me, and make fools of his white people.”
As the day of departure drew nigh, the king invited me to a full
audience, which was attended by many thousands, including all the
principal officers and their retinues. The din of martial _discord_
rained heavily upon my ears by way of salutation, from a countless
number of bands, as I turned the angle of the court of audience. The
king, who was encompassed by a mixed assemblage of courtiers, of high
and low degree, motioned to Agampong to place my seat by his side, “that
the city might know,” he said, “that I was dear to him as a son.” “I am
going to lose you,” continued the king, “it is the season of rain, which
I hear is bad for white men; and I do not know if you must go to the
white country: but I shall make a strong fetische and pray all the gods
to keep you well and bring you back to me soon again; for I love you
much. This is not talk of the tongue, it is my heart says so, and that
must tell truth.” His fine countenance, indeed, corroborated his
assertion;—is it weakness to say I too was affected? I assured him I
felt gratitude for the treatment I had experienced, and that my
attachment personally proceeded equally from the heart. “My captains,”
added the king, after a momentary suspense, “love you, because they know
the king of the whites is my good friend, and they believe you have a
good heart for all the people, Fantees and Ashantees, Moslems, and those
who serve my Gods; so now you shall hear what they say.”
The appeal created a simultaneous movement in advance of the throne, and
where I was seated. Apoko stood up, and for himself and coadjutors said,
“Have we not sworn to be true to the great king? we will serve him the
same as _Sai_, for we have made fetische, and cannot break our words.”
The king of Banna had already returned to his dominions, little
satisfied with the fruits of his negotiation respecting the spoil of
Gaman. The sovereign of Coomassy was engaged in selecting presents from
his stores, for the tributary princes and allies. These articles, in
conformity to court policy, were displayed to the people with great
parade and ostentation. To the king of Banna he sent five kegs of rum,
two pieces of brocade, some damask and fine cotton goods, ten kegs of
powder, and, as I was informed, one hundred ounces of gold dust. A
present of much less magnitude was sent to the Caboceer of Coransah. To
the Caboceer of Ghofan (below the desert), he sent the same quantity of
rum, some gold and damask. To the king of Salgha, (Entaâ,) he sent ten
kegs of powder, four pieces of brocade, some fine cotton goods, guns,
and eight kegs of rum. The Moslems of Dagomba and Ghunja, headed by the
Bashaw, Abou Becr, Cantoma, and Shoumo, came in a body to return thanks,
in the name of their sovereign, the King of Yandi, (the capital of
Dagomba) for a present he had already despatched to that monarch. They
made an appropriate speech, in the dialect of Dagomba, thanking the king
for his liberality, in language which seemed courtly and grateful. These
Moslems, in common with other favourites, participated in the royal
bounty. Besides merchandize, the king distributed, it was said, upwards
of 2,000 ounces of gold. A deputation of the Moslems of Bouromy and the
Volta, headed by their Caboceer (an Arab by extraction), arrived at
court, exactly as the king was dismissing the Bashaw. Stop, said the
king to this officer, you must not leave until you make good friends
between the white man and the Caboceer: he does not know those
_Crammos_.[60] “I have sent,” said he, addressing me, “to the king of
Dagomba, for fifty beautiful girls, and fifty boys; these I shall dress
up in rich clothes and gold for the great king to serve him. Some of
them are now here, and more will soon come. The other presents are all
ready, and the ambassadors will go as soon as they have made good
provision for their wives.” I told the king I regretted he had not
communicated to me, at an earlier day, his intention regarding the boys
and girls, for that quality of present, I feared, would not be agreeable
to my master, neither could I promise to engage for their transportation
to England. “Do not fear,” said the king, taking up the after clause
only; “for I will send more provisions than the ship can carry, and
plenty of gold to pay for their subsistence: you shall have nothing to
pay.” I durst not undertake such a charge, was my reply, yet I was
satisfied of the purity of his intentions. The king was dejected—he
paused, and several of the courtiers renewed the pleading. It was
impossible, I said; but whatever _inanimate_ objects the king might have
to send, I would take every care of. “If that is not a proper present,”
said the king, “how can I please my master? and that I must do.”
The slave trade became a topic of conversation soon after, for the king
abruptly cut the clue of the former conversation. “I think,” said he,
“that the great king will do me much good, if he likes to make a proper
trade for slaves as before. You must not forget that palaver. But I do
not say he must do so, for he knows best what is good for him and me
too: and if he says it will not do, that is enough.”
The ambassador and his suite again came forward, richly habited, and
adorned with rock gold. They had been engaged, they said, in making a
strong Fetische, to give them a good face before the great king. Their
bodies were painted with white clay, fancifully arranged in flowers,
stars, and streaks.
“Now,” said the king, turning half round to these men, “you are to tell
my master this. He is my good friend, and I shall serve him faithfully.
My people love him, because he is good to black men; and he is the great
king here, as in the white land. Tell him I send my ambassador, that he
may hear what is true from my own mouth, and not believe what the
Fantees say, for they lie, and cheat his people. I am pleased with the
captain he sent me, with his book,[61] and his present. My ancestors
loved white people when they only knew the name, because they knew they
were strong, and prayed to the great God. But I loved them from the day
I fought at Annamaboe, and met Governor Torrane. Tell my master that was
a proper governor, and so was Governor White. I never had any palavers
with them, for they knew I was the king; they did me good, and I did
them good. I never had a palaver with any governor before _Smitty_,
except the palaver of Fantee, before Torrane knew me. I cannot fight
white men: I cannot take their gold and their goods, as the Fantees did.
If I make war upon the blacks, when they are stubborn, tell the king not
to mind that; for all this country is mine, and I shall do so to make
the people know me and him, and to make them serve us both. He has only
to tell me what will please him, and whatever he wants I shall send. If
he likes peace, that is good for the people, because then they can
trade; and if he says, make war upon this country or that, I shall rise
in the night to serve him. Tell him the Cape Coast people made me very
angry; and all my captains wanted war, because they said the governor
would bring white men to help the Fantees. But never mind that now, we
are good friends again, and I hold a true book. I shall therefore make
plenty of trade, and do every thing to give pleasure to his people. His
captain shall look to all that; and whatever he says is proper, that I
shall do. Tell him I am a great king here, and this is not talk like the
Fantee caboceers; for I can do him great good, and send him gold and
ivory as much as he likes. He is my master, and I have sworn the great
oath that I will be faithful to him like a king and a true friend, and I
shall take care of his captain, and of all the white men; and when he
comes back to Coomassy, I can lie down and go to sleep. Then,” added the
king, as he directed the conversation more particularly to the
treasurer, holding him at the time by the skirt of his vestment, “you
are to give to the great king the present I am going to shew you, and
tell him Sai sends you this, because your country is a long way off, and
he cannot come and see you himself; but for all that, he knows you, and
he loves you the same as a brother.”
The discourse was interrupted by the entrance of a troop of eunuchs,
bearing upon their heads various articles of the present, which were
passed in review before the gazing multitude. These were a number of
ornaments, in molten gold, such as small plates, circlets, twists, &c.
besides some large specimens of rock gold; two fine camel’s hair
carpets, such as those of Mecca, Smyrna, Aleppo, &c. said to have been
brought from Cassina; four more, of Yandy[62] fabric, coarse; nine large
pieces of silk, curiously but preposterously fretted with thick gold
wire and fetische ornaments; a sort of quilted cotton robe, partly
covered with cabalistical scraps and sentences of Arabic: it was in fact
a war garment, gifted, as the king said, with the virtue of resisting
the power of a musquet bullet, or the thrust of a steel weapon; a long
gold pipe,[63] neatly and tastefully decorated with gold wire, the bowl
being cast in the solid, and rudely sculptured; a massive breast plate
cast pure, of the same metal, divided upon the outer surface into
compartments, and coarsely moulded into a sort of filligrane work; a
gold elephant’s tail, composed of a thick bunch of wire:—a sort of fan
or fly flap, used by the king, or rather to him alone; besides a variety
of the finest cotton cloths, striped and ornamented with silk in the
fashions of the country.
When these _treasures_ had been sufficiently paraded before the
assembled throng, the king ordered me to take charge of the pipe, the
breast plate and the other trinkets; his people, he said, would
carefully pack up the rest. The small trinkets, however, he once more
gave back to the charge of his ambassador, telling him to pack them also
in the same box with the silks, and leave with me the pipe and breast
plate only.
At a given signal, a man brought forward a beautiful pair of young
leopards, secured in a bamboo cage. “You are to take care of these
yourself,” said the king to me; “they are for my master, and if he likes
he can have plenty of all sorts of beasts.”
“What you see,” said the king, “is not half what I intended to send. By
and by the kings of Banna, and Salgha, and Yandy, and Gaman, and all the
great caboceers will send in their presents, but then you will be gone.”
His majesty again entreated me to take charge, if not of the whole, of a
part, at least, of the girls and boys, of whom, he represented, he then
had forty in readiness, of the most beautiful he could select. “It could
not be so,” I replied, “and it was not essential, for he had already
shewn a kingly liberality, worthy the estimation in which the great
officers of my master held him.” “Then pick out as many as you like
only,” said the monarch, “it is always the fashion to send some young
and handsome people, because then my master will look at them and _love
me_.” Finding my reluctance was not to be overcome, he dropped the
subject.
“For yourself,” said the king, “I make you this present,” handing me at
the same time a massive chain, formed of curiously plaited gold wire in
twelve circular links, bound together at the extremities by a twisted
fastening of the same metal, having a large clasp shaped into a
tortoise.[64] “This is what I wear round my body,” said the king. “Here,
too, are some cotton cloths to keep you warm on the road.”[65] To sum up
the royal bounty, “he _dashed_” me, as the _elegant_ phraseology of the
Cape expresses it, a boy and girl, of Gaman, two boys of Salgha, and a
man, who, he said, would be serviceable in the care and treatment of the
leopards. “The children,” he added, “would learn the language of the
whites, and then make good servants.”
Various desultory conversations followed, in which the king and his
ministers alternately broke silence. England and her king were the
favourite themes of discussion. I related, in abstract, a narrative of
the most prominent among the political events which have agitated the
continent of Europe during the last twelve years, and the glorious
triumph of the British arms, under the sway of the hero of the Spanish
Peninsula and the Netherlands. The subject excited an universal
interest; many smiled, and some laughed outright, with pleasure; but no
one was more strongly affected than the king himself. He comprehended
every thing, he said, but the manner in which white men managed great
ships, travelled every where in them on the wide sea, and fought great
battles on the water. He believed, he said, that the art of navigation
was connected with the fetische of the great God, which, from the
creation of the world conferred supremacy upon the whites,[66] and the
people of the East.
My fort, said the king, changing the conversation, is not yet completed,
but you must make me the white fetische, the same that the great king
makes for his house. What was proper to be done, he enquired. I replied,
to slay cattle, and (wishing to give in to the religious feelings of the
Moslems, who were present) sprinkle the blood of the sacrifice, together
with flour and salt, upon the threshold of the door. The Bashaw rose to
embrace, and would have kissed me. That is not all, I added, the king
must solemnize the custom by giving food to the people, and cultivating
the friendship of those holy men, (pointing to the Moslems) who believe
in the same God as myself. “I am ignorant,” replied the king, spreading
out both his hands to heaven, in the form of supplication. The chief of
the Moslems, together with Cantoma and Abou Becr, imitated the adoration
of the king, and chaunted aloud the _Fatha_.
“I must give a name to the fort,” said the king, “what shall it be?” I
reminded him of the name of George (as familiar to his hearing on a
former day.) “Yes,” he replied, turning round to Apoko, “it shall be
_Shorshi_, and you must write me a book for it.”
When I returned home, I complied with the king’s wishes, by writing
certain religious sentences in Arabic, that they might be perused by the
Moslems, if the king desired it. It turned out accordingly, and I was
again summoned to the palace, where _the believers_ had already
assembled. The king was gratified, he said, at the translation he had
heard, for that was strong sense; but I had not written down the name of
the fort, that the Moslems might know it when they looked in the book. I
took the reed that was offered me and wrote جُورجْ which they pronounced
with tolerable accuracy; the king expressed his gratitude by a donation
of provisions, wine, &c. But his feelings were most sensibly affected by
an order which I gave clandestinely to mount the British flag upon the
top of the building. It was an elegant silk flag, which I had previously
designed to give his majesty as a private token of friendship. “White
man,” said he, “the great God has given you sense for my good. Do what
you will, you are the same as my son:—go to Cape Coast, satisfy my
nephew, and what you say is right let me have. But come back again, if
you can, and send one of your friends to the great king to take care of
my ambassadors. I will make you richer than all the other white men for
I do not tell a lie, when I say I love you.” He took me by the hand, in
the most friendly manner; calling again to the ambassador (treasurer,)
and desiring him to report faithfully what his sentiments were. “I am
now going to council,” said the king, “for the last time, but wait for
me, I shall not be long.” Upon this he retired, followed by Apoko,
Kankam, Adusai, the Treasurer, and a few others.
As I retired, the king followed me to the gate. “With to-morrow’s sun,”
said he, at parting, “I shall lose you; but if you love me I shall soon
see you again, then I shall make a very great custom, and if it will
give you pleasure to look at all these countries, I can send you safe
all the way to the great water, to Haoussa, Marrowa, every where; for
next time, you must go and see all my good friends, the kings of this
country” (Africa). At parting I promised a full compliance with his
wishes; which, (in order to disguise the pleasure I felt) I affirmed
tallied with the customs of Europe; for hitherto I had cautiously
avoided trespassing upon the scruples or jealousy of those whose
counsels swayed the royal mind.
“Stop,” said the king, as I held him with a parting grasp of the hand,
“you are going, and I must do you good; open your hand.” I did so, and
to my astonishment he spat in it, while I made an involuntary start to
rescue it from his hold. My aversion to the royal bounty excited the
most lively astonishment in all present, except Mr. Collins and Mr.
Salmon; the rest could not comprehend how I should feel disgust.[67] “It
is good! it is good!” they all exclaimed, “do not do so to the king: he
is your friend, and does you a great honor.” But I did not wish to
engross to myself exclusively so much of this kingly liberality; and
accordingly I introduced Messrs. Collins and Salmon to their share. The
king was equally condescending to each of them, and his countenance
reflected nothing but good nature.
When I returned to my quarters, I found the Bashaw, Abou Becr, and
Kantoma. They came to felicitate me, they said, upon the great interest
I held with the king: it gave them pleasure, because they knew I was a
friend to the Moslems, more than any other people, and now I might
benefit them, and all the traders. I promised I should never forget the
friendship they had conferred upon me, publicly and privately. The
esteem I had for them, I added, would last my life, nor should I forget
to report their characters in their true colouring. You are, I
concluded, worthy the king’s confidence, and my friendship for you is
from the heart. “Allah, and his holy apostle protect you, my son!”
exclaimed the Bashaw, embracing me fervently; the others did the same,
and they all joined in the most cordial wishes for my welfare. “May you
live secure from sickness and misfortune; may you return to us in health
and safety,” vibrated from every tongue: “we love you, and we love the
great sultan who sent you, for he is a good friend to the blacks of all
nations;[68] we know this from our brethren who go to the Koara (Niger)
and Egypt.” Here we were interrupted by the entrance of Apoko, Agampong,
and Adusai. They came to swear me upon the Koran, they said, that I had
no malice in my heart; that all I had done at Coomassy was done without
any sinister design to bring white men to the coast, and arm the Fantees
against their sovereign’s government. The king, they added, knew better,
nobody thought so except a few bad men; but it would please his people
to hear me swear it. I did not hesitate to comply with the king’s
wishes, I objected only to the form he required. It was in fact a trial
for which I was not prepared. Reasons, which I may be excused for not
giving, urged me to do so, painful as it was to me, in the presence of
Moslems, to whom I was much indebted, and for whom I had a sincere
regard. The Bashaw placed the Koran upon the table. “By laying your
right hand upon it,” said he, “you will give pleasure to your friend the
king: he is ashamed to ask you himself, but he wants you to oblige him,
for all that.” I sent a cane to the palace, to request the king would
dispense with that form of oath, and accept in its lieu, of a custom
familiar to Europe. It was agreed to, and I swore to the covenant of
good faith upon the Bible: Messrs. Salmon, Collins, and Graves, followed
my example; but a bitterness of feeling overpowered me, as I noticed the
desponding countenances of the Bashaw and his friends: the former
retired pensively to a corner of the apartment, hugged the Koran to his
breast with both arms, and preserved a melancholy silence, in which he
was imitated by the others, whose features exhibited an index of
mortification. I had some difficulty, after the Ashantees had retired,
to banish their perturbation. For some minutes, I soothed in vain; at
length, however, I was consoled by hearing Abou Becr exclaim, “God
willed it so, it was so decreed.” As the temporary reserve wore off,
they protested they lamented I had not complied with the ceremony, for
many reasons. “The Koran _I knew_ was a good book, for it was written
upon the everlasting table, under the throne of God:—The king, and all
his idolatrous subjects believed in it too. It would have satisfied
every scruple of the court, of my integrity, sincerity, &c.; and it
would have conferred a great honour upon them and all the Moslems, and
permanently have united their interests exclusively to those of white
men, which was what they wished above all things.”
These friendly people, and some others of their associates, delivered me
a collection of manuscripts, containing geographical information of the
central parts of the continent.
In the evening, the king sent me a horse and a cow.[69] Each of the
principal Moslems called again with a farewell present. That of the
Bashaw was a cotton cloth, made purposely by his wife: others brought
sheep, kids, fowls, honey, &c. The rain fell heavily, and the Moslems
staid till a late hour, explaining themselves upon the subject of former
geographical conversations which could not, with propriety, be inserted
here.
The following day I mounted my palanquin, to bid farewell to Coomassy.
Drums, horns, flutes, castanets, &c. resounded from all quarters of the
city; assembled thousands occupied the space between the quarters and
the palace, and numerous bodies of troops were stationed in groups at
various points. The captains of all ranks were drawn up adjoining the
palace, to greet me as I passed, with a parting shake of the hand; and
here I was suddenly enveloped in the smoke from a thousand
blunderbusses, fired, I might almost say, against my face, amidst
flourishing, capering, and a variety of grotesque antics. Agampong, who
commanded a detachment of men sent by the king to escort me to the
forest, came running up to shew one of the pieces which had burst, and
lacerated the hand of a soldier slightly. “The king is very fond of
these guns,” said he, “and he has not got too many.” I promised I would
endeavour to procure him one for that which had been spoiled. The
Moslems had taken a stand at the extreme end of the palace wall. “I am
an old man,” said the Bashaw, as he gravely took hold of my hand; “Allah
knows, if you go to the land of white men, whether or not I shall see
you again: but if you love me, and if you love the king, you cannot
forget us. I pray God and his Apostle to restore you to us.” Abou Becr,
Kantoma, L’Hadge Said, and Shouma, and many more with whom I was on
terms of intimacy, prayed aloud for my prosperity. The converts and
pupils shouted at a distance, perhaps all they knew of Arabic,—“God
bless you, white man.”
A messenger sent by the king overtook me during the stoppage:—“Sai,”
said the man, “wishes you a good journey. His heart is full, and he
cannot see you; but he is making a strong fetische for his Gods, to send
you back safe.” The Moslems kept pace with my palanquin for some
distance; and at parting, which they did with a renewal of their
protestations of attachment, they continued to follow me with their eyes
until the forest buried me from their sight.
We were deluged with torrents of rain[70] for five ensuing days; the
forest was a continued sheet of water in many districts, through which
we waded with the greatest difficulty and bodily exertion; for our feet
sunk at every pace into an adhesive soil, while the dripping from the
boughs, and the perspiration together, drenched our bodies so
thoroughly, that the water flowed rather than oozed from the lower
extremities of our persons and apparel. The march was indeed most
harassing, and many of the people fell sick; nor did either Messrs.
Salmon and Collins, or myself, escape indisposition and lameness.
At Amoafo we were greeted by the Caboceer Coffee Ado Koum with a most
hospitable welcome; and in general, our reception as we advanced
southward was of the most friendly complexion, associated too with every
ostentatious shew of respect.
At Ansah, my corporal by accident encountered his sister in the street,
who had been dragged into slavery, together with many other women,
during the wars of Ashantee upon the sea-coast. The man, overpowered
with joy, seized his sister by the arm, and she with great willingness
followed him to my quarters. The people assembled in crowds, and those
from whose protection she had been forced away, vociferously demanded
the liberation of the slave, alledging they had paid gold for her to the
amount of twenty-five ackeys, (about £6.) and she was besides indebted
to the towns-people half as much more. To satisfy all parties, I
suffered the woman to be carried before the Caboceer Coinin Akim, by her
brother and former protectors, and desired that chief would restore the
woman to her relation, upon terms of equity suitable to the
circumstances of the disputants. The palaver, as all African palavers
do, took up many hours discussing; but at last I received a message,
stating that the Caboceer had placed the woman under my protection,
until the brother, who had liberty to convey her back to the coast,
should pay eleven ackeys. This was agreed to, and I had the satisfaction
to witness her safe arrival among her friends.
The rivers Dah, Prakomy, Praa, and Okee, had swollen to a great degree,
and their torrents were rapid—seldom less than five knots.
Finally, on the 5th of April, I returned to the coast, in a state of
health by no means equal to what I enjoyed either at Coomassy or during
the journey through Assin and Fantee.
As yet, the rains had not commenced in that part of the forest of Fantee
which is to the southward of Mansue; but during a journey of one hundred
and fifty-eight British miles from the capital, there had comparatively
been no intermission between the showers. The swamps, such as have been
noticed on the journey up, were swollen into little lakes, through which
we waded with difficulty, and at uncertain depths; and the southern
rivers and rivulets, more or less, were converted to foaming torrents.
The prospect of the ocean, as we entered an avenue leading to the town
of Mouree, at 5 P.M. was inexpressibly delightful, as it presented a
view of Cape Coast.
The sequel may be related in few words:—The servants of the Committee
not only refused to accede to the terms of the treaty, which they chose
to represent as a deed whereby the _sovereignty of Fantee_ had been
_transferred_ to the king of Ashantee; but they also took upon
themselves to forbid the payment of any proportion of the accustomed
tribute to the king, or even of the 100 ounces[71] they had already
tendered as a peace-offering in behalf of the natives of the town.
Knowing, however, that their resistance alone would avail but little,
they had in the interval of my absence obtained a _public_ promise from
the late Sir George Collier, to give support to their opposition. Thus
encouraged, the governor and council made no secret of their intentions
to bid defiance to the king, even before Sir George, who was then on a
cruize, had returned to the Cape. The news which was thus publicly
proclaimed became the general topic of conversation, and the Fantees,
who now earnestly built their hopes on the assistance promised them from
the squadron under the orders of the Commodore, again breathed defiance
in their houses against the king, although still they were cautious in
their intercourse with the Ashantees, to whom they artfully represented
that they were willing to obey the king; but from the situation of their
town, under the guns of a British fort, they were necessitated to that
course of politics which the governor might prescribe, who, whenever he
pleased, could destroy their habitations, and drive them into the bush.
On the seventh Mr. Smith, attended by Aggry, Binie, De Graaf, and some
other town chiefs went to inspect an adjacent hill, which overlooks the
back of the town, and on their return it was given out that a martello
tower should be built there, without delay, to cover the approach of an
enemy. This was enough, and the natives, no longer doubting the
sincerity of the Company’s servants, and reposing an equal confidence in
the promise of “a white army being sent, if necessary, for their
protection,” disdained any longer to conceal what were termed their
patriotic effusions; but which the Ashantees described as their
insolence.
About eight o’clock the same evening, the horns and drums of the
Ashantees announced a movement among these people. As I opened the door
of my apartment to enquire into the cause of it, two captains headed by
Akassy, the Caboceer of Kikewhary, rushed hastily forward; and when the
attendants, who I perceived were armed, had closed the entrance, they
told me that Adoom (the ambassador) desired an interview, as he had
something particular to communicate. When it was explained to him that I
waited his coming, he mustered and marshalled the whole of his force,
amounting, at this time, to about five hundred men, whom he stationed in
the adjoining avenues (for I was now residing in town).
During our conference, which related to the settlement of the native
palaver, the prince told me, that although he was anxious to adjust that
affair agreeably to the instructions he had received from the king, yet
he had now called with another intent. He had learned, he said, from
good authority, not only what had been transacting in town to the
prejudice of the king, but also, that a plot was then in agitation
between Binie, Aggry, and some other chiefs of inferior note, to
assassinate both him and me, and then destroy his little army.[72] “I do
not understand the _palavers_ of white men,” added the prince; “but I am
not afraid of what the town can do; it is you I am afraid for: and as
your king placed you under the protection of my king, I have received
strict orders to look to your safety, as Sai himself did while you were
at Coomassy.” I replied, “It was impossible such atrocity could be
contemplated:” and he retorted, “Do you think so? Then you do not know
the Fantees; but you will see by and by.” “I know them well,” I said,
“and they dare not attempt it; however,” I continued, “I shall report
what you say to the Castle, for the honour of white men is implicated in
the charge.” “And I,” said the ambassador, “who am certain of the truth
of what I tell you, shall take care of my people, and station them at
the quarters. In the meantime, I leave ten men for your protection ’till
I see you again in the morning; farewell:” so saying he departed.
I wrote to the governor and council on the subject, and they, it seemed,
had heard nothing to corroborate the fears of Adoom, although
subsequently I had good reasons to know that such conversations had
taken place, at the houses both of Aggry and Binie; whether the parties
accessory to the plot were deserving the name of patriots or
conspirators. I therefore, seriously preserved a defensive posture, and
never retired to rest without the precaution of loaded pistols under my
pillow. The house itself was guarded by the Ashantees, who, faithful to
their trust, never for a moment deserted their charge.
The prince called upon me on the eighth, at an early hour, and expressed
some anxiety to know what was intended to be done in relation to the
native palaver. The king, he said, would accept of any sum we might
agree upon, provided he was not exasperated by new reports of the
insolence of his vassals, who would surely repent it if they carried
matters too far.
My anxiety, I replied, was as great as his, for I stood in some degree
pledged to the king to settle it; but, as nothing could be done without
the concurrence of the whites, I should visit the castle.
My inability to walk that distance[73] was provided against by the
Ashantees; who having placed me in the ambassador’s palanquin, (a sort
of basket lined and stuffed,) they trotted off with me upon their heads,
as far as the outer gate, where the officer of the guard met my retinue,
to whom he communicated that it was the governor’s orders they should
not enter the fort. I demanded permission only for the prince who, I
said, besides his quality of ambassador, was privileged to meet the
governor and council with me, as a party to whom authority had been
delegated, by the king, to assist in the settlement of the Cape Coast
claim; and I would be bound, if necessary, for all consequences. In
reply, his orders he said were peremptory, and he could not suffer a man
to enter, whatever his rank might be.[74] I enquired if the prohibition
extended to me, and being assured of the negative, I desired the
Ashantees to wait my coming while I went forward.
The hall was empty, the _governor and council_, (i.e. Mr. Smith and Mr.
Swanzy,) were closeted in the sleeping room of the former, and refused
to come forward. The secretary, Mr. Williams brought me that message;
and I, in reply, told him the object of my business was not to exchange
compliments, but to adjust the Cape Coast palaver with Mr. Smith and the
prince, upon terms of equity, agreeably to the king’s wishes; as I had
already stated to them. In reply to this, after a lapse of some minutes,
I was given to understand, that they should not abide by the treaty,
neither would they allow the natives to pay one farthing. And with this
answer I retreated from the castle, never more to set foot within its
walls; a resolution which I inflexibly adhered to.
Thus, between the Ashantees and Fantees, it may be conjectured my life
was in no very secure asylum. However that may be, I had no distrust of
the former, and my confidence was repaid with a devotion and sincerity
more than Christian like in these parts, and every way honourable to the
commission I bore.
Policy suggested that I should yet conceal from Adoom the sentiments of
the company’s servants. Accordingly I stated that nothing could be done
until the commodore returned to the coast: although I knew, in fact, his
predisposition to support the interests of my opponents.
On the 9th, I served a protest upon the authorities of the castle,
containing in substance the following sentiments:—“As soon as Sir George
Collier arrives, I shall lay a statement of the council’s conduct before
him, and as I find it impossible to proceed in the discharge of my
public duties as his majesty’s consul and agent in this country, I shall
request a passage to England in the Tartar, &c.
“As regards my negotiations with the king of Ashantee, I shall not say
more than that I now throw the whole responsibility upon the council, as
to any measures that have been or that may hereafter be adopted by them
since my return to Cape Coast. At the same time, I have to remind the
council, that, in consequence of their former impolitic conduct, the
armed force of Ashantees and Assins, under the command of Prince Adoom,
were to have been joined by a large body of people from El Mina in case
of need, who had orders to destroy the town and population, which
hitherto I have been the means of preventing. It now remains for the
council to do so in future.”
In a supplementary part I stated, “I lament to tell you, that the
consequences which will probably result from the perverse conduct of the
council, will, I fear, be most serious to the merchants and people of
this town, &c.”[75]
The ambassadors destined for England, were all this time living in town,
busied with preparations for the voyage they anticipated. Although I
might fail in my personal exertions to bring men to rational reflection,
who were pre-determined, from interests of their own, to thwart every
plan which did not originate with themselves, I derived infinite
consolation in the reflection that these ambassadors, on their arrival
in London, would be capable of relating their own tale. Accordingly I
rendered them every assistance in packing up their gold and presents. I
indulged, moreover, in the hope that, however disposed Sir George might
be to act, I could prevail in some way to leave matters in statu quo,
until a fair and impartial statement of facts could be submitted to
ministers, by whose instructions I might be guided on my return to the
Coast, if I should be compelled to the step of seeking them in London.
In this state of suspense, the 9th, 10th, and 11th elapsed. At last the
Tartar hove in sight. On her coming to anchor, I wrote to Sir George,
covering copies of the treaties, &c. On the 11th, my letter was answered
in terms of ambiguity, and I then demanded a passage for myself, and the
ambassadors and presents. As regarded myself, Sir George acquiesced, but
stated, that in the West Indies, he should take up Lord Combermere and
suite. As related to the ambassadors and presents in their charge, he
said he was unable to give them conveyance, and that he was expressly
interdicted from carrying away any of the _natives_ by a standing order
of the Lords of the Admiralty. Whatever I could urge in support of this
petition had no better effect. The following extracts from my
correspondence with Sir George will be sufficient to shew the extreme
anxiety I felt to seal the confidence I had so happily awakened in the
king, and worm out the only little canker that existed, by settling the
despicable native palaver.
“The king of Ashantee is so perfectly disposed to co-operate in all
things for the promotion of the mercantile interests of Great Britain,
that if the present opportunity is suffered to escape us, it may be the
means of crushing, at a single blow, all future advancement towards
commerce, or the cultivation and civilization of this part of Africa.
“Let it be remembered, that in proceeding to Coomassy, the whole party
were endangered, if not in their lives, at least in their liberties, and
it is notorious that the cause itself was almost universally pronounced
hopeless and desperate. Indeed, I have good reasons for thinking that
the general opinion would have proved correct, had I not politically
stood forward as mediator between the authorities of the castle and the
king.”
In reflecting upon the impolicy and injustice of the governor and
council, I predicted the consequences which would probably ensue as
disastrous to the mercantile interests and the natives. “The king’s
power,” I wrote, “has been moreover considerably augmented since the
conquest of Gaman, and when it is considered how long the commerce has
been interrupted, I should be almost warranted to say annihilated; that
the town of Cape Coast itself has been in the power of the Ashantees and
Assins upwards of three months (although they have hitherto conducted
themselves with moderation); that these men were empowered to proceed to
hostility if necessary, and were to have been supported by a body of
Wassaw and El Mina people; that the inhabitants are totally unable to
protect themselves, and that the town is not defended by a redoubt tower
or other outwork, that could effectually check the progress of an enemy,
such as the Ashantees are known to be, I am convinced, that you and
every reasonable man must do me that justice which party spirit refuses
in this country.”
My communications elicited nothing satisfactory. Sir George said, “he
regretted to see so much misunderstanding; and he had been told, that
the Cape Coast people would not recognize the sovereignty of the king of
Ashantee, even if the governor and council were to withdraw their
support.” He could not, he said, _prejudge_ the case. I enquired, “if
upon his honour he believed any such thing.” “I will give no opinion,”
he added, “one way or the other.” “But,” I continued, “you will at least
support my protest against the adoption of any rash and hostile
proceedings, until I am able to learn the sentiments of his Majesty’s
ministers in relation to the treaty and negotiations at Coomassy.” “I
cannot interfere,” replied Sir George, “in these matters; my commission
is afloat, and I have no authority to act on shore.” “Then,” I added, “I
have nothing more to urge in that particular, but in regard to the
ambassadors, whose mission you can know nothing of, as indeed I do not
know the precise object myself, and whose presence in England, (without
considering the offering of friendship they are the bearers of) I
imagine will be gratifying to government, and instrumental to the
hopeful plan of turning the king’s disposition from war to commerce,—a
commerce which may almost exclusively be engrossed by British merchants
and British shipping; if, as you say, you cannot furnish a passage for
them in the Tartar, will you suffer them to accompany me to Sierra
Leone, from whence I will convey them to England myself?” “I must,”
replied Sir George, “for the reasons I stated to you in my letter,
decline taking them on board the ship.”[76]
Two messengers from the king came down to me during my stay on the
coast, the one to enquire after my health, the other to desire me to
take care of his ambassadors, particularly the treasurer, who was a
faithful servant.
The last messenger I despatched to the king conveyed my sentiments to
the following effect:—“Remember your oath—remember me, for I am sincere,
and will go to England to let the great king know that your heart is
inclined towards him and his people. If I live, I will return; but do
not expect to hear from me till eight moons are passed. Then you may
look for a settlement of this palaver, which is too great to talk at the
water-side, and therefore must be laid before the king, whose pleasure I
will inform you of by a letter to my correspondent at Cape Coast. Never
mind what the Fantees say, and take no umbrage at what the whites may
do, till my master’s pleasure is known; for you may depend he will act
with justice. Above all things, bear in mind the necessity of abstaining
from any thing like hostility against the people of Cape Coast, as that
would be construed into a declaration of war against the whites.”
I now earnestly busied myself with making such hasty preparations for
the voyage as the time would admit of,—packing up such of the presents
as were in my charge, &c.
On the 12th I received a notification from the governor and council,
stating that all the interests of whites and blacks were to be called
together in the hall of the castle, to discuss the _merits_ of the
treaty, and to signify their acceptance of it or _not_, inviting me to
be there also, to meet Sir George Collier and themselves, for that
purpose. Of course I refused attending, renewed my protest, and threw
all responsibility upon themselves.[77]
Sir George called upon me in the evening; I then enquired if he had been
at the _tribunal_. He said “he went to the hall by invitation of the
merchants of Cape Coast, but he had not thought proper to give any
opinion one way or the other.”
While we were in conversation, one of my attendants brought in the young
leopards, and Sir George taking a fancy to them, asked me to exchange
them with him for two he had on board, (given him by Mr. Smith.) I said
they were for his Majesty, and being part of the present under my care,
I designed taking them with me in the Tartar. Sir George protested he
had not room for them, and they were consequently left behind, but
shipped for London by another conveyance, subsequently.
On the 15th I embarked at a late hour in the evening; and in bidding
farewell to the prince, the ambassadors, and the whole party of
Ashantees on the beach, I desired my last words to be conveyed to the
king, “that he would never forget his oath, and never proceed to
hostilities against the town; but wait until he heard from me.”
Our voyage included Ascension and Sierra Leone; at the latter place I
remained three weeks, and during that time I proposed hearing the
sentiments both of Sir George Collier and Sir Charles M‘Carthy, in
regard to the merits of the treaty; but the former declining to
_interfere_, Sir Charles said he could do nothing alone that would be
useful in reconciling animosities.
At Sierra Leone, about the latter end of May, I took passage to England
by an early conveyance, and landed at the Isle of Wight about the close
of the month of August.
[Illustration: An Ashantee Soldier.]
[Footnote 52: The deputation of Ambassadors, however uncouth these semi-
barbarians might have appeared here, is strictly in unison with African
customs, and would not, it is presumed, have been more _outré_ than that
of the Cherokees during the American war.]
[Footnote 53: The king’s stool or throne bearer, an officer of rank in
the army only.]
[Footnote 54: The mission of 1817.]
[Footnote 55: Moslem law.]
[Footnote 56: Niger.]
[Footnote 57: The stool or chair is esteemed the throne. It denotes
supremacy and sovereignty in rank, not only in Ashantee, but in most
eastern nations, as well as the states of Morocco, Algiers, Tunis, &c.]
[Footnote 58: This illustrious prisoner was placed under the safeguard
of an inferior captain, who employed him in work at his plantations. The
negro has no tender sentiment for his humbled antagonist! He was
compelled, in the presence of the king, to join a chorus in the cruel
_Epicedium_, or death-song, which preceded his brother’s sacrifice:—an
execution which was performed in his presence, with torture, and amidst
the mockery and derision of the whole court.]
[Footnote 59: With the exception of the crier, who was a youth of
sixteen or seventeen, and whose profession was to keep order and silence
during my negotiations at the palace, the rest were all men of rank and
influence in the government; the priest was of the king’s own family,
and the others were in offices requiring their daily attendance about
the person of the sovereign.]
[Footnote 60: Moslems.]
[Footnote 61: Commission.]
[Footnote 62: A carpet of this description was given to me by the king
for a couch rug, intended, as he expressed it, to hinder me from getting
sick on the road in the rains: I have it still in my possession. The
texture is a coarse tropical wool, or rather hair, interwoven in
stripes, with alternate blue, red, and white cotton, flowered and
figured characteristically.]
[Footnote 63: The king desired me to report that, having himself smoked
the pipe, the great white king might do the same, and then it should be
considered a symbol of peace and friendship between them. It was a
proper custom, he said, and grateful to his gods, who, when two people
made friends that way, watched over the lives and prosperity of both.
The Ashantees are by no means singular in this practice, the same being
observed by many semi-barbarous nations; but it may be sufficient to
instance the Indians of North America.]
[Footnote 64: This chain, the finest specimen of gold work that ever
fell under my observation in Africa, weighed about a pound in pure
metal. Of all the presents enumerated above, the pipe and the breast
plate, which were in my charge, together with the leopards, alone
reached England. The rest were necessarily left behind on the coast,
together with the ambassadors, as Sir George Collier declined granting
them a passage in the Tartar, at the instance, it was reported, of the
governor. The whole I delivered to Lord Bathurst some time after my
arrival in England, for his majesty.]
[Footnote 65: The rain was at this time well set in at Coomassy; it
followed our steps considerably to the southward of the Praa River. The
forest resembled a shower bath, and when set in motion by an increased
action of wind, it fell from the foliage in heavy discharges.]
[Footnote 66: The Ashantees, in common with the maritime natives of the
Gold Coast, believe that the _Father_ or Ruler of the Gods and the
universe, originally created man of two colours; namely, black and
white. The tradition may be found in Bosman nearly as it is current at
this day.]
[Footnote 67: To the Oriental reader I need only say, he will find it
recorded of Mohammed, that his disciples and adherents were wont to wipe
up his saliva with their hands, or rub it into their bodies from
veneration. Refer to the interview between Mohammed and the ambassadors
of Khosrout Parvits, sovereign of Persia; and what they reported of the
dignity of the Arabian Prophet on their return to Persia. At Ashantee,
the sovereign commonly spurts his saliva over the courtiers and kings,
even of the first rank; or if it should fall by accident on the ground,
they carefully wipe it up, and rub it on their skins. The practice is
common in various parts of Africa, and even in some Moslem countries.]
[Footnote 68: Our correspondence, at intervals, was carried on by note;
but verbal or written, I never found that the Moslems entertained other
than the most enlightened sentiments of the views of the British
government.]
[Footnote 69: Different from the cattle of tropical Africa in general,
those of Ashantee are of the largest breed; but so fierce that it is
dangerous to approach them. The cow was lashed by the feet to a strong
bamboo pole, which prevented it from rising up; but in defiance of
obstacles it broke out into the forest.]
[Footnote 70: The rains set in at Coomassy about one month sooner than
upon the coast, notwithstanding the difference of latitude is so
trifling.]
[Footnote 71: It should have been noticed earlier, that when I quitted
Cape Coast, the governor and council authorised me by letter to pay to
the king, on behalf of the natives 150oz. It was their subsequent
advice, during the negotiations at Coomassy, as it has been stated,
which reduced the offer to 100oz.]
[Footnote 72: Upon the faith of the treaty, Adoom had already dismissed
all his auxiliaries and the greater part of his own people.]
[Footnote 73: The castle was distant from my residence only a pistol
shot; but the lameness I had contracted on the journey produced
inflammation after my return.]
[Footnote 74: It was subsequently insinuated that the garrison was
alarmed at _some act of treachery_, and this double insult was rumoured
as a _palliative_ for the indignity offered to the king as well as the
prince.
It cannot, indeed, have escaped the reader’s memory, that when Adoom
first came down, in the heat of the quarrel, he was attended by above
one thousand men, and yet the discussions took place in the hall of the
castle.]
[Footnote 75: In the same letter, I protest, moreover, that from the
little respect they thought proper to pay to my public character, I
should never hold any future intercourse with them.]
[Footnote 76: Unhappily no other conveyance offered, and they were left
behind. During my stay at Cape Coast, they would never stir from my
elbow, for the king, they said, had placed them under my protection.
This conversation with Sir G. Collier was conducted upon the most
courteous terms, for he was a man I greatly respected in private life.
Sir George, perhaps to palliate his refusal, invited the ambassadors to
see the Tartar. They went on board, and for their amusement, two or
three of the quarter-deck guns were discharged. One of the shots taking
effect upon a small sloop which was at anchor in the roads, stove in the
side and sheathing together. The copper being separated from the shot,
it formed a sort of skull-cap, which the Commodore jocosely clapped on
the head of the chief, and told him to shew it to the king, that he
might know what the whites would do to him if he came to the coast.
When the party landed, they came to me in the society of the prince, who
desired to know what was the meaning of the commodore’s sentiments, and
why he had desired to have the indented copper sent to the king, as he
could not do so without explaining the object to his Majesty. Did it
indicate a desire for peace or war? I replied I believed it to be merely
designed for the ambassador’s entertainment; and that as neither of
those constructions should be put upon it, it would be advisable not to
send it to the king.
As there existed no longer any hopes of temporizing with the governor
and council, even under the auspices of the commodore, I judged this a
fit opportunity to tell the prince the precise situation of affairs.
Having done so, I assured him, that as I was going to England to state
these particulars to my superiors, he had better inform the king of it,
and wait my return, or until despatches could be sent out, which I had
great reason to hope would set every thing to rights. He required to
know how long the voyage there and back again would take, and I told him
to count at least eight moons till I returned, or six moons for a
letter; but in the mean time, I desired him to remind the king of his
oath, and to assure him in my name, that under any provocation, he must
not think of going to war against an object so unworthy of his
greatness.]
[Footnote 77: Could it be imagined for one moment that I would submit to
such a course of proceeding? If not, what interpretation could be put
upon a mock tribunal of merchants, to examine into the merits of a
treaty between monarchs?]
CHAPTER VI.
OCCURRENCES SUBSEQUENT TO THE AUTHOR’S RETURN.
CORRESPONDENCE OF MESSRS. GORDON, ROBERTSON, DAWSON, AND COLLINS —
INACTIVITY OF THE ASHANTEES — STOPPAGE OF TRADE — CONDUCT OF MR. SMITH —
GOVERNMENT TAKE POSSESSION OF THE FORTS — EFFECTIVE FORCE THERE —
COMMENCEMENT OF HOSTILITIES — ATTACK OF MOUREE BY THE BRITISH —
OBSERVATIONS — VINDICATION OF THE DUTCH FROM THE CHARGE OF EXCITING
HOSTILITIES — APPOINTMENT OF SIR CHARLES M‘CARTHY AS GOVERNOR OF THE
BRITISH SETTLEMENTS ON THE WESTERN COAST OF AFRICA — HIS IDEAS OF THE
POWER OF ASHANTEE — STATE OF THE GOLD COAST ON HIS ARRIVAL — BLOCKADE BY
THE ASHANTEES — THEIR MILITARY TACTICS — MURDER OF A SERJEANT — THE
BRITISH FORCE TAKES THE FIELD — DEFEAT AND DEATH OF SIR CHARLES M‘CARTHY
— CORRESPONDENCE — OBSERVATIONS.
In order to put my readers in possession of the present state of English
affairs on the coast of Guinea, I subjoin an account of such events,
subsequent to my return, as have come to my knowledge.
In the months of November and December, 1820, during my residence in
London, I received letters from my correspondents on the Gold Coast,
dated at periods between one and two months subsequent to my quitting
the African _stage_. These letters, which were written by the late Mr.
Gordon, governor of Accra Fort, and member of the council, Mr. George
Robertson,[78] a merchant and representative of that highly respectable
firm of Henry Hunt and Co., Jeffery’s Square, London, Mr. Dawson, late
governor of Cape Coast Castle, and Mr. Collins. The inferences to be
gleaned from all this correspondence were satisfactory, inasmuch as they
conveyed the most unqualified assurances that the public tranquility
remained undisturbed. More than this could not be expected, neither
could it be hoped that the lowering calm, like Mr. Bowdich’s treaty,
“would last for ever.” Prince Adoom sent his compliments to me; and it
was moreover stated that no apprehensions of any unfavourable tendency
were entertained; but on the contrary, the most hopeful feelings were
indulged in, from the circumstance of my being on the spot where justice
and good faith ruled the destiny, not of men alone, but of nations. The
little Ashantee army, it was believed, would not in the interval take
the field against the natives of Cape Coast, supported as they were by
the whites, however hostilely and insultingly they might conduct
themselves towards the king. It was believed, moreover, that Adoom
having communicated my parting messages to the monarch, the latter would
confidingly wait the issue of the time I had prescribed for my return;
and that in the interval, the Ashantee troops would be equally
scrupulous in conducting themselves with order and moderation upon the
coast.
It seemed, however, as if this state of inactivity, on the part of the
court, had been construed by the British authorities there into a
political ruse, calculated to gain all that was possible by negociation,
without risking its honour and its interests in the sequel. It was, in
fact, believed by them that Ashantee would not dare to take up arms,
even against the natives, while the whites supported them in their
resistance with unqualified vigour, such as they had already evinced in
_cabinet_ theory, and were inclined, as they represented, to carry into
active effect in the field.
In short they argued as men whose concealed prejudices, interests, and
resentments, had blinded their eyes to every prudential thought, every
maxim of temperate and judicious policy, as they might have connexion
with the true honour of the crown, the interests of commerce, and
British faith. The denial of this can only lead to a belief in the other
alternative, viz., that the authorities who presided over our African
establishments were wholly _ignorant_ of the temper and resources of the
monarchy, whose confidence they had already betrayed, and whose
friendship they were insulting by puerile, and, it cannot be refuted,
unnecessary and undeniable acts of provocation, purposely to thwart the
measures which had been contemplated by government for _opening the
communication with interior Africa_, by a cultivation of the friendship
of the very monarch whom they by insults were urging to the necessity of
taking up arms, if not in self defence, at least in defence of his
maritime provinces—provinces which had been subdued by his
arms—provinces wherein the conqueror’s title, from the days of governor
Torrane, had been recognized by treaties and by “notes,” as they are
called, which, by reversion, fell into the hands of the king, and upon
which he constantly received his monthly, quarterly, or annual pay for
the ground rent of the castles themselves, as the Fantees themselves
originally used to do.
Peaceably as the Ashantees were inclined, it became apparent that the
king reposed his faith upon that of the British government, as the
fountain of supremacy; and the traders, oppositely circumstanced, and
having none but mercantile interests to influence their movements,
naturally placed no confidence whatever in the local authorities, either
of Cape Coast Castle, or the town under its walls; consequently,
although the Dutch markets were, as usual, constantly resorted to by
Ashantee merchants and traders, scarce any of those people ever visited
the Cape or its neighbourhood, and, as heretofore, the only vent for
British merchandize, _guns, powder, and rum_ included, was at El Mina,
through the agency of our commercial rivals, who, in truth, reaped the
harvest of a double profit, upon all the commodities they purchased of
us.
In April and May, 1821, further accounts were received from the Gold
Coast. I also received private letters from Mr. Dawson, Mr. Robertson,
and Mr. Collins. Those of the two gentlemen last named dwelt forcibly
and interestingly upon the state of public affairs there, as they
interfered with mercantile interests, and the danger impending over
councils which were termed rash and inconsiderate.
The Ashantees under Prince Adoom, it seemed, were still in the town.
They had waited the issue of the eight months with admirable patience
and forbearance, even without a murmur. Already, however, up to the date
of these letters, had nearly ten months elapsed, and ultimately they
manifested some uneasiness at not learning any thing favourable to the
cause of their sovereign, who, on his part, it was believed, was still
averse from the adoption of any hasty resolutions of a tendency to
resent the rupture which the company’s authorities had created by
recourse to arms.
Mr. Smith, it seemed, the original instigator of all the mischief that
had ensued, or that might ultimately ensue, did not repose quite so
calmly under the political frowns of the Ashantee monarch, as the reader
might suspect, from the ostensible character of the public reports. This
gentleman, whatever exterior surface he might shew, could not avoid
betraying his fears, in the secret course of politics he thought it
convenient to adopt; for notwithstanding recent proceedings, and without
regard to the tenor of his sentiments, as they were to be gleaned from
the public dispatches and letters designed for the inspection of his
Majesty’s ministers, or others in authority and of interest in the
state, he renewed, it is said, the negotiations on behalf of the
Fantees, when he found ultimately that it was his interest to meet the
impatience of the Court of Ashantee, offering, it is stated, the 100
ounces, or from that to 150 ounces of gold, as a settlement of the
claim.
Whether this renewal of overtures, if the account be true, associated as
they were, too, with professions of friendship, was calculated to amuse
only and procrastinate the time, is what I cannot take upon myself to
say, although I believe most cordially that Mr. Smith, in despite of
that insensibility and contracted knowledge of men for which he is so
justly characterized, was alarmed ultimately at the attitude of public
affairs. I can entertain little doubt of this; else, setting other
reasons connected with my correspondence aside, why should he have
continued to send messengers to court from time to time, directly or
otherwise; or have held any communication with the prince upon the
subject of a claim which he had resisted at the hazard of our dearest
affections and interests, the honour of the British flag, and the
prosperity of its commerce.
To give the reader a clearer insight into the secret machinations of the
Cape politicians, it must be told that ministers, at least, were
sensible of the imbecility of those to whom the public trust had been so
long confided,[79] to legislate on the Coast of Africa. Mr. Goulburn,
perhaps to relieve the natural anxiety I felt, had already done me the
honour to say, that Government were sensible of the many evils attending
the administration of public affairs upon the Gold Coast, and it was
consequently designed to take the forts under their own management. This
intelligence was moreover confirmed to me by a gentleman high in office
in the Admiralty, and by several others in public trust, both in Downing
Street and at the Treasury. This event, in truth, had been long looked
for, and I think I am justified in saying, ardently wished by every
reflecting man, whose property or whose interests entitled them to a
vote in regard to their protection. These changes were not unexpected,
but had been long in contemplation. In reference to the secret spring of
action among the leading servants of the Company, but more especially
Mr. Smith himself, they were of inducement sufficient to warrant every
exertion on his part to persevere _ostensibly_ in resisting the demand
made by the king, without suffering his recent temporizing maxims to
escape to the knowledge of supremacy, even in a whisper. And this he was
mainly anxious about, because the public correspondence for some time
past, from the Committee of African merchants, guaranteed to their
servants, perhaps in a limited sense, retirements proportionate to their
respective ranks, to be paid to them from the date that the forts might
be transferred to the possession of his Majesty’s government. Mr. Smith,
therefore, in common with his adherents, looked interestedly to his rank
in that service, and he was accordingly doubly anxious to support the
character of consistency, although at every hazard (short perhaps of an
actual appeal to arms against the Ashantees). It was moreover hoped that
Government, with their customary liberality would look with a favourable
eye upon what had been described to them by his friends, and those who
supported his pretensions, as the _energetic_ and dignified resistance
of a man of _talent_ and _discretion_; and in reviewing the transactions
on the day when their intrinsic worth might be estimated in sterling
money, that they might be influenced to apportion the award upon a scale
adequate to such services, as they stood arranged in order with the
fulsome, and, as it would seem, designed misrepresentations of his
nephew, in the description he gave of the former mission. Hence the
panegyrists who edited the public testimonials submitted to the Colonial
office and other departments of government, gave implicit credit to his
public spirit, zeal, _discretion_, &c.
The king of Ashantee, it appeared, down to the month of January,
resisted every overture (however indirectly they may have been made
through the agency of the prince) of a tendency short of recognizing his
supremacy at Cape Coast in quality of sovereign over the natives, of
whom he demanded satisfaction, equivalent to the offence they had given;
it would appear also that this monarch, having lost the original
confidence he possessed, was not to be amused with vain negociations,
whose tendency he might have probed, through his ambassadors and
emissaries upon the coast, where, for some months past, they had been in
constant habits of gleaning intelligence from the company’s servants of
inferior rank, relating to the change immediately contemplated, and
which the Ashantees doubtless imagined would bring their sovereign’s
“palaver” to the cognizance of the fountain of truth, purity, and good
faith. Upon these grounds, simply, we may account for a subsequent pause
of the duration of many weeks.
About the latter end of the summer of 1821, fresh accounts arrived from
the Gold Coast. My own letters from Mr. Robertson stated that the king
was inflexible as regarded his claims, but that tranquillity generally
prevailed, and every apprehension was removed from the minds of the
British and the Fantees, from the circumstance of his Majesty’s
government having, it was thought, finally taken upon themselves the
management of the forts. It was no longer doubted that the first object
of ministers would be to send an efficient force to garrison the
castles, for, will it be credited, that notwithstanding the assumed
dignity of the governor, or governor and council,[80] the total amount
of the garrisons, themselves included, was only _forty-five_ white men,
and these to give protection to no less than eight castles and
factories, viz. Cape Coast Castle, Annamaboe, Tantum, Accra, Succondee,
Commenda, Dixcove, and Apollonia, all situated within the territory of
Ashantee.[81] These reports of proceedings in London in particular,
animated the drooping spirits of the natives of Cape Coast, as it
moreover revived the courage of the British, instigating both to throw
aside the mask, and leave to chance alone, I presume, the issue. Mr.
Smith, it was clear, would be content to resign his trust with what he
termed honour, i.e. under the semblance of having supported the dignity
of the British flag in trials of severity, and under circumstances which
might appear of critical terror to those he wished to imbibe the
impression, and who would naturally weigh in the balance the total
numbers of the disposable British force, without learning the nature of
the intrigues.
The Fantees eagerly and anxiously looked out for the arrival of an
English fleet and a _white_ army to their succour, such as the
thoughtful or the thoughtless had led them to build their hopes upon.
Such was the substance of private letters, my own among the number.
Public as well as private ones of a few days’ subsequent date, contained
matters of a greater political importance, for as the great crisis
approached, so it appeared that the spirit of resistance was suddenly
metamorphosed into one of enterprize, in which blacks and whites
together participated in common with the hero of the Cape. But this,
besides its relative importance, which may warrant the insertion, being
written by one of the servants of the company (Mr. Colliver), who had
charge of the expedition, I submit the report verbatim as it was penned.
“Cape Coast Castle, 21st April, 1821.
“By the time you receive this, it is probable the African company will
have ceased to exist. We have received orders to hold ourselves in
readiness to deliver up the forts and settlements here to government. It
is understood they are to be put on the same footing as Sierra Leone. A
list has been furnished to government by the company’s committee, of
their officers, their age, length of service, the situations they fill,
their emoluments, &c. We have been blockaded here since the 10th of
February,[82] by the Ashantees (an African tribe), who have commenced
hostilities against us. On the day before-mentioned our governor
received intelligence that a black man belonging to Cape Coast, where
the people are under _our protection_, had been cruelly murdered by a
chief of the _Fantees_, at a place about six miles from Cape Coast,
called Mouree. I was immediately ordered to assemble all the soldiers I
could in five minutes, and proceed to Mouree to seize the murderer. I
quickly set off with four officers and eighty-five soldiers. A little
before we entered the town of Mouree where the savages, (_the Fantees_)
between two and three thousand in number, were assembled, we saw the
mangled remains of their unfortunate victim. The town stands near the
top of a hill, on the summit of which is an old Dutch fort. As soon as
we entered the town a fire was opened upon us, but as my orders were to
seize the murderer, if possible, without bloodshed, I did not for some
time allow the men to return the fire. However, perceiving they were
resolved to oppose us, I gave directions to my little party to give them
a volley, and then to charge. The negroes retired as we advanced, and in
less than an hour we gained the hill, from which our opponents fled in
every direction. We demanded the keys of the fort from the principal man
belonging to Mouree, who, not being engaged in the affair, had remained,
and who immediately gave them up. In the fort, which has a drawbridge,
we were perfectly secure from the attack of the negroes. The body we
defeated were _Fantees_, who were _assembled to assist the Ashantees_ in
enforcing some _very unjust_ demands made by them on the people of Cape
Coast. As soon as the Ashantees who reside near Cape Coast heard that
the Governor had sent an armed force against their friends, their drum
beat to arms, and they hastened after us. _Fortunately_, we had defeated
our opponents before they arrived; however, they rallied the Fantees,
and took a position about half-a-mile from the town with a determination
to oppose our little party. The governor, apprised of our situation,
assembled all the force he could muster, and speedily about five
thousand of the Cape Coast people, headed by our officers and carrying
the British flag, were seen approaching. The enemy immediately retired,
and we were released from our _disagreeable_ situation, after having
been, from nine in the morning till four in the afternoon, exposed to a
burning sun without refreshment. The negroes had forty-seven killed, and
upwards of one hundred wounded, in this affair. We had one soldier
killed, and four wounded. Since the affair, we have not seen one of the
Ashantees _or the Fantees_ here (at Cape Coast): and now a total
stoppage of trade has taken place. We have not learned how the king of
Ashantee intends to act, nor is it _safe_ to _venture_ out of _our
limits_ except in large parties.”
Thus it appears upon the clearest evidence, that we were the first who
appealed to arms, and under circumstances which, according to my
reasoning, were rash and unjustifiable in the extreme, either upon the
face of the old treaty, which it would seem Mr. Smith had some time back
insinuated a desire to recognise, or, as regarded the laws of nations;
for in the first instance, the murderer, (a Fantee) should have been
demanded either of the prince, the authorities of the town of Mouree, or
the Dutch governor-general at El Mina, ere any appeal was made to force,
and this never was done. Without looking to the great waste of human
life, as the sequel proved, and as might naturally have been foreseen in
a meeting between organized blacks and a mob of fishermen, such as the
Mourees in particular are, above all the little Fantee tribes, was it
reputable to make an inroad and an abrupt attack upon a town where the
flag of his majesty of the Netherlands waved upon the battlements of a
castle which might almost vie as a fortification with Cape Coast itself,
and which, before the Dutch took Elmina from the Portuguese[83] was the
head establishment of that nation upon the Guinea coast? Was it just and
honourable, admitting all the circumstances of the misunderstanding with
the king of Ashantee down to this period,—was it just, I would ask, or
creditable, without paying the compliment first of demanding the
offender to be delivered up, to adopt such precipitate and summary
proceedings? Was it agreeable even to that particular clause in the
treaty made by Mr. Bowdich, which ran to the following effect.—“_The
governor reserves to himself the right of punishing any of the subjects
of Ashantee, guilty of secondary offences; but in cases of magnitude the
offenders shall be sent to the king to be dealt with according to the
laws of their country_.” Although we were not upon friendly terms with
the king, we certainly were not in hostility, for hitherto the Ashantees
had conducted themselves with the greatest propriety and moderation, as
it has been already described, paying for every thing they required in
gold. But now they no longer deemed it requisite to observe the bounds
of neutrality, as in all probability they may have conceived that
British councils, as they were regulated and administered in Africa,
certainly teemed with nothing but perfidy. This, it is true, is
conjectural, but it seems very likely to have been the case, for the
Ashantees having taken up their position at a short station inland of
Cape Coast, never afterwards opened any conference with the authorities
of the Cape, or held any direct communication whatever with them or the
town, the natives of which scarcely ever durst trust themselves out of
sight of their habitations, when necessitated by their respective
employments to go in the “bush,”[84] although for a time they would
probably have been secure from molestation, as the prince himself durst
not certainly have acted in a military capacity (unless defensively, for
so he told me himself,) without express orders from the court to that
effect.
Let it be remembered, that besides the internal resources of the
monarchy, every town upon the line of coast, El Mina itself included,
acknowledged fealty and was tributary to Ashantee, and from El Mina
alone the enemy might, if he had thought proper, put in motion from
eight hundred to one thousand men, as the Dutch government,
notwithstanding their great castle and the title by which they inherited
it, claimed no sort of supremacy over that or any other town of Guinea,
but on the contrary distinctly admitted the title by which the king
claimed sovereignty over the whole extent of country, including all the
towns upon the sea shore which are overlooked by their forts and
factories, from Axim to the Volta.
That these, our rivals in commercial enterprise, did secretly rejoice at
a misunderstanding between the king and the British authorities on the
coast, whereby the latter were necessarily excluded from participating
in the benefits of a lucrative trade in the precious metal, pure as the
Ashantees carry it to market; and that these disputes should have been
procrastinated to the unconscionable length of years, to their exclusive
advantage and satisfaction, is what I can readily conceive, because I
know it to be a fact, from the sentiments I gathered from the Dutch
officers, when I was last at Elmina.[85] But is not this feeling
strictly in unison with commercial rivality and private interests? Was
it, taken in any sense, unnatural or unlooked for, that the Dutch should
rejoice in the good fortune which accident alone, whether founded upon
bad faith or bad politics among the contending parties, had cast in
their way? If we thought proper, from private views and resentments, to
enter into the quarrels of the natives, and make their “palavers” our
own, at the risk of our dearest interests and the only motives which
could induce a residence in such a climate, it surely did not follow
that the Dutch, because they were of the same colour as ourselves, and
were only distinguished by their blue coats instead of red, should tread
in our steps, and follow the tortuous maze of a course of politics which
they, and every sensible man, knew to be ruinous to their prosperity?
Nor can it be imputed to a nation of such renown in these parts, (as
successors to the Portuguese), that the government of the parent
country, friendly as it is, in all its relations, with our own, should
have contributed by any means, even of the most indirect tendency, to
foment discord and kindle the embers of war, purposely to destroy the
interests of their dearest ally, and those friends who love and serve
them best. No, the government of the Netherlands is, as I conceive, too
honorable and too grateful to entertain such sentiments, and her
citizens and burghers too respectable to entertain any sentiment
inimical to our happiness and prosperity in Africa, beyond the natural
scope of local and commercial speculation, for which they are no way
responsible, any more than ourselves.
Dearly as I love my country, and much as I respect its constitution, I
can subscribe only to sentiments such as these; and if it has fallen to
my humble pen to resist calumny and misrepresentation in other matters,
it may as well include the task of vindicating the honour of Holland,
and the good faith of its rulers, as far as their jurisdiction in Africa
has come under my observation.[86] The Dutch then, I affirm, during my
residence in that part of Africa, were in no way instrumental to the
misfortunes that have since befallen our arms under Sir Charles
M‘Carthy; but they were the natural and foreseen results of early
indiscretions, wherein Mr. Smith (I will take it religiously upon my
conscience to say so) consulting, as it would seem, nothing but his own
secret interests, prejudices, and animosities, drove the Ashantees to
their only resource—arms, and prompted the government to adopt, what has
been represented to them as the only alternative left to their choice,
the necessity of vindicating the honour of the flag, and defending the
settlement from foreign and barbarous devastation. The war, it is true,
had not yet been proclaimed by the enemy down to the period when the
forts were transferred to his majesty’s government; but when that event
did happen, it must have been clearly perceptible that nothing short of
a recourse to negociation, could prevent the probable consequences of
that rash and precipitate attack on the natives of Mouree, coupled, as
it was, with a train of auxiliary aggravations such as no sovereign upon
earth, meriting a throne, could compatibly with his dignity endure.
In dismissing the subject of the little Mouree war, I shall simply point
out to the reader, as an instance of the governor’s military talent, the
precarious situation in which he must have left Cape Coast, when
himself, the residue of the officers, and all the townsmen capable of
bearing arms, were pushed forward to rescue the eighty-nine men from
their supposed perilous situation on the eastern beach, as it was not
known at the time that they had sought the favour of the _friendly_
castle, whose flag they had insulted. Surely if I know any thing about
Cape Coast, there could scarcely have been more than two sentinels left
to guard the gates, and an invalid, perhaps, in charge of the fort. And
as regards the town, it must have been proportionably defenceless.
Still, however, it is consistent with other proceedings, and where is
there room for astonishment?
To return to the sequel of this narrative, Sir Charles M‘Carthy,[87]
whom I was in the practice of visiting during his residences in London,
obtained, about the time of the Mouree affair, through the interest of
certain individuals, an appointment as governor in chief of the whole of
our settlements on the western coast of Africa, from the Gambia to the
Volta rivers, the former inclusive. The death of my correspondents,
Messrs. Gordon and Collins, happened at no great distance of time after
these regulations were carried into effect; but before Sir Charles left
England, I had many interviews with him, wherein I took some pains to
impress upon that gentleman a just conception of the impolicy and
injustice of late proceedings. Sir Charles, I believe, was at this
period of my own way of thinking, for his reasonings inclined to the
same object as that for which I was commissioned, viz. that of promoting
commerce with the interior of Africa, (and consequently through the
dominions of Ashantee) by every possible means consistent with the
dignity of the flag and the interests of the colonists. Sir Charles,
however, was pleased to consider somewhat lightly, descriptions which
tended to convey an adequate idea of the disposable force of Ashantee.
He doubted that the king could send into the field more than twenty or
twenty-five thousand men; yet had he confided in the reports of his
friend Sir George Collier, he would at least have coincided in opinion
with the commodore, that the dispositions of the sovereign, his
tributaries, and people, were extremely prone to war, and the population
considerable, and proportionate to the great extent of territory held by
that government; for Sir George (from the information furnished him by
Mr. Smith, whose object in this particular, and at this time, was by no
means to deviate from the truth[88] (unless in derogation of the king),
has represented in his reports that “the Ashantee army is _numerous
beyond belief_, and though quite an irregular mass[89], yet more than
sixty thousand men can be collected, acquainted with the use of _fire
arms_, and ready to sacrifice their _lives_ to the nod or caprice of
their chief or king, who is known to be _savage_ and _cruel_ in the
extreme[90].”
Sir Charles finally sailed for the Gold Coast, by the circuitous route
and stoppages at the Gambia, Sierra Leone, &c. He landed at Cape Coast
Castle in the early part of the year 1822, and found that settlement as
might have been expected, and, as had been described, like a gangrened
member of the empire, from which all communication was cut off, to
prevent the contagion from spreading and infecting the vitals. It was in
fact a dreary solitude, as regarded its former connexions with the
interior; and with respect to information of any thing but the objects
which immediately surrounded the castle, the colonists might as well
have been stationed upon the little barren rock of Ascension in the
midst of the Atlantic waves, for they were strictly blockaded, although
no enemy could be seen. Trade, of course, was at a total stand, except
as regarded the supply of the Dutch merchants, and one or two of the
settlements both to windward and leeward, where the inland traders
occasionally resorted with their gold and ivory. This was the reputable
state to which Mr. Smith, to say the least of it, from mistaken notions
of honour and dignity, had reduced the national reputation in Africa,
and the character of its sovereign at the court of Ashantee: and this
was the state in which he resigned into the hands of Sir Charles
M‘Carthy the guardianship of that flag, whose reputation, tarnished as I
conceive it was by such a train of proceedings, he could not, it is
probable, at the utmost stretch of ingenuity, have protected from the
last violence and insult many months longer.
A change of chief governors, it would seem, led the king to hope for a
change in the hostile sentiments of the whites; hence for several
subsequent months he was quiet, and Cape Coast, although as rigidly
blockaded as ever, enjoyed its solitude and that delusion of
tranquillity which it had imposed upon itself. As it became apparent to
the _enemy_ (for such he was now considered and characterised), that the
new governor was treading in the path of his predecessor, as regarded
the “palaver,” and that little or no hope remained that the British
could or would descend to expostulation after so great an infraction of
the peace, he laid an embargo, it is imagined, even upon the tongues[91]
of his trading subjects, who visited either the Dutch or windward
settlements, and it was impossible to gain any intelligence whatever
relating to the interior. Indeed it was not so much as known at what
particular spot the Ashantees had stationed themselves.
Whatever opinions Sir Charles M‘Carthy may have imbibed in England or at
Sierra Leone, in respect to Ashantee (where indeed all his information
concerning the Gold Coast must have been gained,) it seems he was
extremely anxious to learn more of that country than what he could glean
either from the reports of Sir George Collier or Mr. Smith, or from the
works of Mr. Bowdich and Mr. Hutton. This anxiety was expressed in
letters which he addressed to me in the year 1822, urging me, (agreeably
to my representations to him in London that I had much important
information to communicate) to lose no time in pushing matters forward,
and desiring to have two or three copies of the present work by the very
first opportunity, if I did not bring them out myself. Sir Charles,
moreover, evinced a desire to obtain prompt information as regarded
some, perhaps the political knowledge I had gained at Ashantee, but time
and occupation rendering it impossible I could oblige him, I was
reluctantly compelled to resign the honour of a correspondence, which
private feelings of friendship and respect would have influenced me to
continue, although my sentiments could never have swerved from that tone
and feeling which have hitherto guided my pen, and therefore might not
have been productive of good, if, as it was reported some months
afterwards, Sir Charles seriously meditated, as soon as he should have
organized an army, marching with it to Coomassy to dethrone the king in
his capital.
To pursue this narrative,—Sir Charles speedily set about organizing the
natives whose towns are situated under the castles; for hitherto this
precaution had never been taken by his predecessor; and while this was
transacting, every thing was as quiet as if no such country as Ashantee
existed. It was not conjectured that the enemy might have been engaged
in an inland war, neither that he was busying himself with
preparations[92] for a campaign on the sea coast; but on the contrary,
it was believed that the king would be contented to preserve a defensive
posture. It was hoped, that besides the organization of the militia, as
they were called, (the bands of Fantees, or Cape Coast people, whose
cause we had adopted) government would plentifully supply the place with
arms, ammunition, &c., and men, if needful; but the latter were scarcely
deemed needful at this time, as the colony of Sierra Leone and the
shipping would furnish as many as might be wanting, if the enemy should
evince more activity, or become bolder than heretofore.
Sir Charles, conformably to the system pursued by the great Cortez, the
conqueror of the empire of Mexico, judiciously enough for defensive war,
formed certain little alliances with a few of the inferior southern
tribes of Fantees, Fetuans, Dinkrans, Inkrans, &c.. But besides that the
bulk of the population of these parts, whose numbers since the wars of
conquest were never great, still adhered faithfully in allegiance to the
king, those mercenaries who embarked in the cause were never steady, and
I believe never attached to our interests beyond the natural feeling
that they did not wish to pay gold to the king or to any one else,
whether their protectors or their oppressors.
Towards the close of the year 1823, Sir Charles, who doubtless was
extremely impatient at the rigorous blockade enforced by the Ashantees,
seemed to have come to a final resolution of marching at the head of his
militia bands and West India troops into the interior, for the purpose
of dethroning the king. He accordingly, I believe, wrote home (to
England) for cannon of the description of light artillery[93]. In the
mean while he arranged his plans for the meditated campaign; intending
to avail himself of the ensuing dry season, which usually commences
about the middle of November. Sir Charles, to whom credit is due for
more than a moderate share of activity, zeal and talent, as a governor,
did not neglect opportunities of improving the condition of the
settlements, for indeed a very great proportion of his time, as was
usual with him at Sierra Leone, was devoted exclusively to that
important object.
Thus situated, the most sanguine hopes were entertained by the
particular friends of Sir Charles, of the success which they imagined
must, or would attend a plan of military operations conducted by him
upon a scale of such imposing magnitude. About the month of March last
(1824) further accounts were received from the Gold Coast, but they were
in no way important, except as it was stated in a private letter, the
king—the inflexible, the hospitable, the celebrated, the friendly, the
distressed _Sai Quamina_, was no more; having, as it would appear,
departed this life in grief and vexation, bequeathing to his successor
the kingdom and the palaver together, as Mr. Smith had already resigned
his share of it to the interest which succeeded him. The successor to
Sai, the same accounts stated, had commenced his reign by an _edict_
against the British, wherein they were accused (whether justly or not it
is the reader’s province to decide) of perfidy, infractions of treaties,
violations of public faith, treachery, cruelty, &c. To revenge which,
and to appease the shade of the departed conqueror, in the region of
spirits, the new monarch vowed eternal war against the British until he
had obtained satisfaction; declaring (in the form of the great oath of
his predecessors) that he would not cease from hostility until he had
watered the grave of the departed Sai Quamina with the blood of white
men, &c.[94]
The first victim to the first aggressive act on the part of the
Ashantees fell at a short period after this event, when they surprised a
black man, who filled the situation of corporal in our service, and whom
they put to death, as is their usual practice in common with all
negroes. To revenge this insult, and to co-operate at the same time with
Captain Laing, who had the command of another division of troops in the
neighbourhood of Annamaboe, now the capital of Fantee, Sir Charles
resolved immediately to take the field.
Thus, as it was believed, upon the eve of the most important transaction
that has ever been witnessed in that part of Africa, and while the
public, from the nature of the last accounts, were in hopeful and
sanguine expectations of receiving advices from Africa of the most
satisfactory and flattering character, the appalling news reached
England of defeat and distress. But let the reader form his own judgment
upon the materials, as some of them have been already laid before the
public. “The new energy displayed by the English on the Gold Coast
imposed a salutary check on the savage chief of Ashantee, and at the
same time held out to the neighbouring states a hope of protection
against his oppressions. He was, therefore, for some time, quiet; but
having _in a fit of passion_ seized on a negro sergeant in our service,
Sir C. M‘Carthy felt himself bound to avenge the insult. A new corps had
been formed on the Gold Coast under the title of the Royal African Light
Infantry, and had attained a _high degree_ of _discipline_; a detachment
of this corps took the field under Captain Laing, an officer peculiarly
well qualified for this service, inasmuch as he had a year or two before
penetrated very far into the interior on an exploratory mission from
Sierra Leone. The tribes which had previously suffered from the tyranny
of Sai Tooto Quamina now seized the opportunity of shaking off his yoke,
and many swore allegiance to the English government. In May last (1823)
all the districts on the sea coast, west of the Volta, were in arms, to
the amount of 30,000 warriors, while in the _interior_ the inhabitants
_unanimously_ refused to pay the tributary exactions. Captain Laing took
the Fantee country under his especial care. This officer in August
last[95] (with a detachment of the West India regiment, and a detachment
of the Annamaboe militia, supported by several native chiefs, totally
defeated the Ashantees at Assecuma. On the 19th of last November, Sir
Charles M‘Carthy arrived from Sierra Leone, at Cape Coast, to take upon
himself, in person, the direction of public affairs there. At that time
it is stated the Ashantees had not ventured to approach the coast. A
camp had been formed of the British troops (including the West India
regiments, and others from Sierra Leone,) and great numbers of the
native chiefs had joined them and sworn allegiance to the British
government.
This is the substance of the reports of public transactions. Now it will
be essential to turn to the less consolatory matters of private
correspondence; the truth of which is too prominent to need any
observation of its authenticity.
Accra, January 31, 1824.
“It is unnecessary for me to communicate to you the seizure of one of
our sergeants by order of the Ashantee Despot, and other causes that
have led to a war between the British and that nation, as you have
already been put in possession of these circumstances by my friend ——.
Suffice it to say your prediction (that unless speedy and effectual aid
were sent from England, things would go hard with us,) has been too soon
verified. The Ashantees have long threatened us with an attack; and on
the 25th of last month intelligence was brought to Sir C. M‘Carthy, that
they were approaching the coast; but contrary to what is usual, their
forces were by report _diminished_ as to their real numbers; the
consequence was that Sir Charles divided his forces in four divisions,
and marched into _the interior!_ The enemy instead of dividing theirs,
collected a force of 10,000 men, and attacked the division commanded by
Sir Charles himself, (who did not muster 1000 muskets) and I regret to
say, totally defeated and dispersed it! The whole of the whites are
either killed or missing, except Major Ricketts and Ensign Erskine, who
after many hardships, have succeeded in getting to Cape Coast. Among the
killed and missing are Sir Charles himself, Messrs Buckle and Wetherill
from Sierra Leone; also Robertson,[96] Dr. Tedlie, Jones, Brandon,
Williams and Keddle of Cape Coast, all of whom you have seen, and
several others with whom you are not acquainted. H—— and I were with the
Accra division, commanded by Captain Blenkarne, and at least 150 miles
to the eastward of Sir Charles, when this afflicting intelligence was
brought to us; and by the same messenger we were ordered to fall back on
Accra, and put the town and port in the best state of defence. It will
now be seen that the Ashantees are a _people not to be utterly
despised!_[97] In short it has come to this, if government do not
instantly send out two or three thousand troops to put down this power,
they must withdraw the British flag from the coast, and leave the field
to the _cunning_ Dutchmen to reap the harvest of _their_ intrigue. The
moment the issue of the battle was known, the people of El Mina
commenced seizing our people, and those of Shamah, (another Dutch
settlement) had the temerity to fire on the boats of the _Owen
Glendower!_ But here they suffered for their rashness by the total
destruction of the town. It is a most _fortunate_ circumstance that the
frigate was in the vicinity of Cape Coast at this moment, as I know not
how much _more_ dreadful the result would have been. The divisions
commanded by Majors Chisholm and Laing have returned to Cape Coast and
Annamaboe; they can get no tidings of either Sir Charles or the
Ashantees, and it is supposed the latter have fallen back a short
distance to communicate their great success to their king, before they
renew the contest. Sir Charles’s orderly, who escaped from the field,
affirms that Sir Charles was wounded in two places early in the action.
“It is but justice to say, the Danish governor Richlieu, has acted the
part of a man of honour towards us. He has spared neither expence nor
personal exertion to assist us in putting down the Ashantees, and if the
Dutch had acted the same part, matters would ere this have been settled
in our favour. To secure the favour and trade of the Ashantees, the
Dutch have been so mean as to instil into the minds of these _people
that our object_ is to bring _their nation_ under _our yoke_,[98] and if
we are driven from the coast, they (the Ashantees,) will again have
opportunities of disposing of their slaves to the Portuguese and Spanish
vessels!
P.S.—“A report has just reached us, that Sir Charles is _safe_ among the
Dinqueras, a country situate about sixty-five miles north west of Cape
coast, and in our alliance. I sincerely hope this report may be
confirmed, but for my part, I much doubt it.”
Accra, January 31, 1824.
“The late disastrous events have brought us into a very critical
situation! On the 29th ultimo Sir Charles directed Captain Blenkarne,
the commandant of James Fort, Accra, to proceed to Aikin, and there to
form an encampment. The object of this was (I have some reason to think)
to menace and divide the forces of the Ashantees. We left this on the
4th instant for that purpose, but in consequence of some dissatisfaction
among those on whom we relied for aid, our forces were but slender, and
after having remained in the Aguassim territory three weeks, our forces
having _refused_ to _proceed_, we were _obliged_ to fall back on this
place. In the mean time, our good governor, hoping by his own presence
to infuse confidence into the _dastardly_ Fantees, among whom he had
trusted himself, was attacked on the 21st instant by 10,000 Shantees who
had been _near_ him for _some_ days. It was unfortunate that at this
time, a force under Major Chisholm, another under Captain Lestrange, and
a third under Captain Laing, were all at distinct camps, and knew
nothing of what was going on until all was over. We have nothing
authentic, but report is busy in making bad worse. We have every reason
to believe almost all the whites have been killed. Mr. Erskine, the only
officer who returned, is wounded; Sir Charles is said to have been
wounded in two places; nothing to this day has been heard of him. The
action took place behind Secondee almost ten miles inland. The wounded
(one hundred) made their way to that settlement and afterwards to the
Cape, in canoes. On the 28th, Major Chisholm returned to Cape Coast, but
had not heard of Sir Charles. He mustered all the forces he could, and
Captain Laing was sent with him to search for Sir Charles. The amount of
their forces I cannot state, not having heard, but the _blacks_ are, I
fear, _panic_ struck.
Government will see the necessity of now doing what ought to have been
done long ago. Unless three or four thousand men are sent out to beat
these _savages_ out of hand, they will keep the country agitated until
they effect the total subjugation of the coasts. You can scarcely
imagine the panic which prevails _every where_. The defeat appears by
the imperfect accounts we now have, to have been _complete_. The forces
under Sir Charles, are supposed to have been only five hundred.[99] What
was that to ten thousand, in a wood, surrounded and out of ammunition?
Poor poor Sir Charles! The _treacherous_ and _timorous boasting Fantees
have effected a mischance_ which _time_ cannot repair. If alive what
must be your feelings! If no more, how horrid a death must we suppose to
have been invented for you! Major Chisholm is doing all he can to put
this castle in a state to repel every aggression. The _sincerity_ of the
Dutch is doubtful. The enemy have not been heard of since the action;
they are, it is supposed, returned to their encampment; _we_ are the
most exposed to their attacks, this situation being so open.”
Thus far had the printing of this work proceeded, when the following
correspondence appeared in the daily journals, containing but too simple
a solution of the silence of my own friends. They had _all_ perished in
this unequal contest. My predictions have been but too completely
fulfilled.[100]
[Illustration: A Caboceer of Ashantee equipt for War.]
[Footnote 78: This gentleman, a man of the first talent and
respectability in the country, happened unfortunately to be at Sierra
Leone, when I returned from the interior. Independently of reasons which
may not be interesting to the public, or grateful to the hearing of
some, and which therefore, may be suppressed, I shall simply observe,
that at Sierra Leone, I conferred upon him the appointment of acting
consul during my absence, subject to the approval of his majesty’s
government. With this power, after the recovery of his property which
had been sequestered by the intrigues of the company’s servants, he
sailed back to the Cape.]
[Footnote 79: See Quarterly Review, “Bowdich’s Mission to Ashantee.”]
[Footnote 80: Mr. Swanzy and Mr. Smith, the two leaders.]
[Footnote 81: An equal division of the white forces would leave five and
five-eighths of a man to each establishment. The black troops, including
artificers, amounted to about one hundred, twelve of whom might be
spared for each of the five officers.]
[Footnote 82: Thus (and by my own accounts also) it appears that the
king waited patiently two months over and above the eight he had been
advised of, for it was exactly ten months after my departure when the
prince and the troops under his command deserted the town, and took up a
station in the rear of Cape Coast. Still, however, they avoided every
act of hostility.]
[Footnote 83: El Mina Castle, the town under whose walls is called
Addena by the natives, was taken by the Dutch in 1638, chiefly by the
aid of cannon which they planted upon the top of the hill of St. Jago.
When become possessed of this, the strongest and best situated fort of
Guinea, they naturally shifted their head-quarters from Mouree to El
Mina. The outwork or little fort of Condaadsburg they subsequently built
upon the top of St. Jago hill, and thereby rendered it wholly
impregnable on the land side, and, if properly garrisoned, it would bid
defiance every way to a powerful armament, whether by sea or land. St.
Jago is scarcely two furlongs from El Mina, yet it is situated in what
sixty years ago constituted a distinct kingdom, viz. Fetu, in which our
chief establishment (Cape Coast) stands. El Mina, from which it is
separated by a little river, called the Salt River, is the metropolis of
another little kingdom westward, called in those days Commany, from
which Commenda is derived. Fetu and Commany, although formerly very
populous, were about equal in strength and extent of dominions; for the
kings of each governed but the extent of eleven or twelve miles of
coast, and inland in about the same proportion. The town of El Mina is
built of stone, and it is the only one so constructed on the Gold Coast.
Mouree is also another of these kingdoms or principalities, formerly
called Saboe. Old Fantee, properly so called, lies next to the eastward,
of which Annamaboe was the capital, but each of the others is considered
of the same family.]
[Footnote 84: Notwithstanding the outcry about Fantee having been
_ceded_ to the king, the governor and council never actually presumed to
have any right or title of protection over it, neither would the people
have recognized their supremacy, or cast off their fealty to the king,
to enjoy the very precarious protection of the whites at that time.]
[Footnote 85: His excellency, the late governor-general Oldenburgh,
during one of my visits to Elmina, where I was his guest for some days,
received a message from the king, purporting to learn what the
sentiments of that nation were in reference to his misunderstanding with
the British. To the honour of that gentleman’s memory, be it recorded,
that he took the messenger to the top of the castle, from whence,
pointing eastward to Cape Coast, he said, “Do you see that flag?” Yes.
“Then tell the king that the Dutch have ever esteemed him as a friend:
they will have nothing to do, however, with quarrels; but so long as
that flag shall be seen flying on its battlements, just so long will
ours, for our monarchs are the greatest friends, and white men are all
of one family.]
[Footnote 86: Some days previous to my leaving Coomassy, the Dutch sent
a present to the king, of brocade, damask, and other rarities, which
gave him great pleasure. To this present was annexed a message, whose
purport may be gathered from the following sentences only: “The Dutch
king is your friend as well as the English king, and now you are known
in the land of the whites, every body will love you while you are the
friend of their countrymen. The Dutch governor sends his compliments to
congratulate you that the English king has sent an ambassador to
Coomassy,” &c. It must be admitted I did not learn this of the king. I
was extremely anxious to know the purport of the message, fearing the
possibility of a jealous interference, and I employed the Bashaw to
obtain this intelligence.]
[Footnote 87: This gentleman, it may be recollected, I was upon friendly
terms with at Sierra Leone, he also sailed for England a short time
after I left that colony, and the honour of knighthood was conferred
upon him soon after his arrival.]
[Footnote 88: I know, notwithstanding, that accounts were transmitted to
government on another occasion, stating that “the power and means of the
king of Ashantee were extremely limited.”]
[Footnote 89: Sir George, however, was not well informed of the military
discipline of the Ashantees.]
[Footnote 90: Neither was he better acquainted with the nature of the
king’s disposition, who, in regard to his own people, or those of
friendly powers, certainly does not deserve the name of savage and
cruel—with reference to enemies, I have elsewhere pourtrayed the negro
character, a character which I fear has too close an affinity to the
human heart in general, white or black,—i.e. the negro never forgets, or
forgives, unless atonement is made in time.]
[Footnote 91: By administering the oath draught, as it is termed. Before
our conferences opened at Coomassy, the king compelled my linguists, and
his own together, to take this species of “Fetische,” not, however, for
the purpose of stopping their mouths, but as a compulsory obligation,
which enjoined, under the penalty of death, and the vengeance of the
gods, a strict adherence to truth in the faithful interpretation of
words and sentiments. The same draught is administered in all cases
where the monarch’s interests are concerned, and it was usual to compel
the traders to take it during the Gaman war, that they might divulge
nothing prejudicial to their sovereign, during their sojournment at the
settlements. On their return to Coomassy, the oath was repeated under
another obligation, viz. that they should report faithfully every
political circumstance which came within the compass of their knowledge,
binding themselves by the usual covenant of invocations and
imprecations. The force and impression of this fetische may be well
imagined, when I relate that my linguists, terrified at the bare thought
of taking the oath draught, (simply a sort of consecrated water
impregnated with sacred vegetable infusions,) urged me by various moving
intreaties to prevail on the king to exempt them from compliance. Of
course I would do nothing that way, as it was my interest as well as
that of the sovereign to be able to distinguish falsehood from truth.
The crowd of courtiers and priests, on that occasion, impeded the
vision, so that I could not observe the particular ceremonies without
committing a breach of decorum, and forgetting my rank, &c. I confess my
incompetence therefore to explain the mystery, but for the reader’s
amusement shall quote what Bosman, on his own authority, relates. “The
oath draught is usually accompanied with an imprecation that the
fetische may kill them if they do not perform the contents of their
obligation, and all parties are obliged to drink this swearing liquor.
But of late years, (in covenants between party interests) some negroes
are so refined that they oblige the priest to swear first, and drink the
oath draught with an imprecation that the priests should punish him with
death, if he ever absolved any person from their oath, without the
unanimous consent of all. If you ask what opinion the negroes have of
those who falsify the obligations of the oath draught, they believe the
perjured person shall be swelled by that liquor till he bursts; or if
that doth not happen, that he shall shortly die of a languishing
sickness: the first punishment they imagine more peculiar to women, who
take this draught to acquit themselves of any accusation of adultery,
and if I may be allowed to make a comparison, this drink seems very like
the bitter water administered to the women in the Old Testament, by way
of purgation from the charge of adultery.” The following is the form he
describes of the most obligatory oath known:—
“Each priest or feticheer hath his peculiar idol prepared and adjusted
in a particular and different manner, but most of them like the
following description. They have a great wooden pipe filled with earth,
oil, blood, and bones of dead men and beasts, feathers, hair, and to be
short, of all sorts of excrementitious and filthy trash, which they do
not endeavour to mould into any shape, but lay it in a confused heap in
the pipe. The negro who is to take an oath before this idol is placed
directly opposite to it and asks the priest the name of his idol (each
having a particular one), of which being informed, he calls the fetische
by its name, and recites at large the contents of what he designs to
bind by an oath, and makes it his petitionary request that the idol may
punish him with death if he swears falsely; then he goes round the pipe
and stands still and swears a second time as before, and so a third time
likewise, after which the priest takes some of the mentioned ingredients
out of the pipe, with which he touches the swearer’s head, arms, belly,
and legs, and holding it above his head, turns it three times round,
then he cuts off a bit of the nail of one finger in each hand, of one
toe of each foot, and some of the hair of his head, which he throws into
the pipe where the idol is lodged: all which done the oath is firmly
obligatory.” (pages 124, 125, 126.) This is descriptive of the coast
“fetische,” but I believe it to be very similar to that which the
Ashantees themselves practise, and which I have witnessed in various
forms, excepting only the oath draught. The Moslems themselves are
terrified at the _oby_ of the Ashantees—the king’s fetische.]
[Footnote 92: The Ashantees never undertake any national concerns
without invocations to the deities, conjurations, incantations, and a
variety of customs which occupy incredible time, as these mysteries can
only be practised on particular days of the week or month, the others
being deemed ominous and portending evil, are days of grief and
tribulation. Out of the 365, the proportion of good or lucky days, the
Bashaw says, is no more than 150 or 160. During the evil days, councils
cannot be holden, nor can troops either march or engage the enemy,
unless in self-defence. An Ashantee army, in proportion to the rank of
its commander, and certainly if the king was at its head, could not
march to Cape Coast or to the seaside in less than three or four months,
for there are various other causes (independent also of circumspection,
rank, and dignity) to impede the march, such as divinations from the
flight of birds, track of particular beetles and insects, screechings of
the turkey buzzard, dreams, predictions, celebration of customs, &c. &c.
In short, the Ashantees are slow, and I believe, cautious in the
cabinet; they are slower, however, in warlike movements, and, for those
very reasons, more to be dreaded by those who do not know them; and
certainly no man had a just conception of this nation during my
residence on the Gold Coast. The Ashantees are energetic in the field on
days when they can act; and, as the Bashaw and the Moslems in general
relate, are more justly dreaded than any other tribe of Negroes. When
the army takes the field, it usually pushes forward a body of two or
three thousand men to the distance of a day or two in advance of the
main army, covering the enemy’s towns and frontiers by little detached
corps of observation, who prosecute their march during the silence of
night, in the most intricate parts of the forest, only seeking refuge as
occasion may require, in the loftiest boughs of the trees, where they
sustain life for many days, if necessary, upon a sort of soluble gum,
pounded grain, and “war nuts,” called by them Boesie, which they never
travel without. As the main body advances, so do these detachments, and
when the king and priesthood deem the opportunity a fit one for battle,
these corps of observation, strengthened by others, concentrate
themselves within a compass adequate to support the war with a most
deadly effect from ambush and intrenched positions, or from the canopy
which conceals their comrades; for during the attack, these elevated
warriors pour incessantly upon the foe a tempest of musquet-shot, and
poisoned missiles, javelins, and arrows.
The precautions taken by the Ashantees, during a march through the
enemy’s country, are equal to what is related of the tribes of North
American Indians; and it is almost impossible to collect intelligence
adapted to the service of an opposing force. Incredible as it may seem,
it often occurs, as it happened in the Gaman war, that the king in
person, at the head of an army, is able to conceal himself in the heart
of an enemy’s country (provided there are forests of sufficient
capacity) until the crisis for action is deemed auspicious.]
[Footnote 93: The artillery certainly could have been of no use in such
a forest as I have described, nor indeed would it have been practicable
to transport the pieces, unless by dismounting them from the trucks, and
loading the heads of the people with both. In open spots, however, there
can be no doubt that they would prove very destructive engines.]
[Footnote 94: It is essential to observe, that the account of the king’s
death may not be true, although it is highly probable. If correct, it
induces me to suppose that that monarch was tenacious of the oath he had
sworn to me, of fidelity; and under the fear of incurring the
displeasure of his gods, by violating it he might possibly never have
had recourse to other measures than those which he had already pursued
in maintaining a defensive posture against the settlements. Certain it
is, as the king confessed to me, that neither inclination, policy, nor
the desire of getting the good things, possessed by the whites in their
castles, could ever induce him to do them an injury. They were his best
friends he said, for he derived all his power and influence through
their means. In truth, it is not probable that the Ashantees, unless
their safety depended upon it, would ever attempt our expulsion from the
sea coast.]
[Footnote 95: About the time the sergeant was killed by the Ashantees.]
[Footnote 96: This was my friend and correspondent before spoken of.]
[Footnote 97: This sentiment indeed betrays the fatal secret that Sir
Charles was over confident, perhaps deluded by the puerile or false
insinuations of his predecessor in respect to Ashantee and its monarch.
If so, to what an extent has not Mr. Smith to atone to his country,
whether this loss of blood, treasure, commerce, and honour, may have
proceeded from ignorance or misrepresentation, calumny or resentments,
or secret intrigues and interests.]
[Footnote 98: Setting all prejudices aside, it would hardly have been
possible for the Ashantees to draw any other conclusions from the
magnitude of our military preparations on the coast. I greatly fear the
king must have reflected as I have done myself, with bitterness of
feeling upon the days when he favoured me with a visit at my quarters,
to explain the fears of his captains respecting the Fantees—as on the
day when he made me swear I had no intention to deceive him, and arm the
Southern tribes to war upon him. It would be thought romantic to say, my
heart still throbs with anguish at the retrospect.]
[Footnote 99: This is not probable when it seems the British
confederated force, allies included, could assemble together 30,000 men.
If true, however, it is an unaccountable sample of that prejudice or
contempt entertained for the enemy. Sir Charles’s judgment must have
been clouded indeed, to have dreamt of marching ten miles inland with
five hundred men only!!!]
[Footnote 100:
“Cape Coast, Feb. 23.
“The news I have to tell you are of the most distressing nature. His
Excellency Sir C. M‘Carthy, with a few regulars and militia, and some of
the natives, made a rapid advance into the Wassaw country to repel the
Ashantees, who advanced in great numbers, and in the most gallant style.
The attack commenced about two o’clock p.m., on the 21st of January,
across a river about twenty or thirty feet wide. The firing was
tremendous on both sides till six p.m., when it was found the ammunition
on our side was all expended; on which the Ashantees began to cross the
river in great numbers, and the havoc began. The natives of our party
(the Fantees) would never carry bayonets; but the regulars and militia
used them with the most deadly effect. Each one bayonetted three or four
Ashantees; then, snatching the bayonet from the musket, they dashed into
the middle of the enemy’s force, falling nobly and killing till the
last. As his Excellency and staff commenced retreating, they were
attacked in the rear by about two thousand of the enemy, who had been
sent round to intercept them, after which nothing certain has been
learned of any of the whites. Only two officers escaped out of the
battle, who were Brigade Major Ricketts and Lieutenant Erskine. Those
that are missing are his Excellency Sir Charles M‘Carthy, the Honourable
Mr. Buckle, Messrs. Wetherell, Williams, Heddle, Jones, Rayden,
Robertson, Tedlie, Brandon. There is not a doubt of his Excellency and
most of them being killed. It is said their corpses were used in the
most shocking manner. It is pretty well ascertained that Williams is a
prisoner. Thus in one day has the sword cut off what disease left.
“The most lamentable part of the catastrophe is, that it was caused in a
great measure by the officer who had charge of the ammunition, and did
not bring it forward as he ought: the Ashantees never would have broken
our line had there been powder. When Major Ricketts went to open the
three last kegs, he found—what think you? Why _Macaroni!!!_—while the
Ashantees, who plundered the camp next day, took ten barrels of ball-
cartridges, with a great quantity of other booty. When we got the news
of Sir Charles’s disastrous fight, we retreated directly; captain Laing
going to Cape Coast, by the way of Annamaboe, while I, with Mr. Fraser,
and all the Fantee force, marched across the country to reinforce Major
Chisholm; but when Captain Laing arrived at Annamaboo, the reports from
Cape Coast were, that the major and his party were also cut to pieces,
and he sent expresses after me to fall back and garrison Cape Coast, as
the panic was so great, and an attack dreaded. I shall always recollect
with pleasure, the reception I met with when the standard was seen
advancing over the rocks, and the bugles played ‘Over the hills and far
away.’ The whole town appeared mad with joy: such a day in a man’s life
richly repays for years of pain. Fortunately, next day, Major Chisholm
and party arrived, having never been engaged. I was ordered to occupy
the camp of Djguah with my little band of eighty; none of the
auxiliaries having come up.
“All trade is at a complete stop; every merchant’s goods are deposited
in the forts, which I have no doubt we shall have to defend till we hear
from England, as the Ashantees will no doubt make a push to destroy us
before supplies can come out. The short of the matter is this—England
must either now withdraw her protection from this coast, or send down a
force to put down as cruel an enemy as the world produces. The loss of
the merchants is not to be calculated, such a quantity of goods being on
hand.”
Another letter of the same date says,
“When Sir Charles M‘Carthy and Major Chisholm were in the interior, they
divided their army, and each took a different route. Sir Charles, I
hear, had only 1,000 men and ten officers, of which only fifty have
returned. They had gone but a short way, when they were attacked by the
Ashantees, by all accounts 10,000 in number. Our party behaved very
well, and had much the advantage, until they found all their ammunition
was expended. There were only two officers that were not killed, and
they had to make their escape after being wounded. The battle took place
on the 21st, and we did not hear of it until the 23d ultimo. Poor Mr.
Heddle was the first that fell a sacrifice to these dreadful barbarians.
He was shot through both his knees, and in that state he killed with his
sword two of the enemy. In a short time after a party of the Ashantees
came to cut off his head, when he shot himself in the heart.
“The officers who returned wounded are Major Ricketts and Ensign
Erskine. It is said that the heads of those who were killed are carried
to Coomassy. We expect the enemy to come down to attack this place, but
if they do, they will meet with a warm reception, as we have the frigate
_Owen Glendower_ and the _Raven_ sloop of war to assist us. I have put
all our property into the castle for safety; but I do not think there is
the least fear, but it is better to be on the safe side, as the people
of the Dutch fort of Elmina are supposed to be rather favourable to the
Ashantees. We have blockaded it to prevent any supplies being brought
there. In fact, we shall never be at peace until Elmina is under the
British flag; and instead of Government sending out a few white troops,
they should send out three or four regiments. Major Chisholm is sending
home despatches, and I have no doubt he has stated to Government the
actual necessity of sending immediate relief.”
Cape Coast Castle, March 23, 1824.
The following are the heads of what has lately occurred on this coast:—
The late warfare that the Gold Coast has been engaged in with the
Ashantees, for the last twelve months, has created little or no
importance until the present period.
His Excellency, Sir Charles M‘Carthy arrived here from Sierra Leone, in
December last, and in the early part of January marched to the interior,
towards the river Pra, with the force of from 6,000 to 7,000 men,
consisting of natives and companies of a West India regiment. On the
21st of January, near the Pra, a most desperate battle was fought, and
from the superior force of the enemy, they had surrounded our troops in
every direction; and after our ammunition was totally expended, the
troops under Sir Charles retreated, with a loss of nearly all the
officers, and sorry I am to state the inhuman manner in which they have
been treated, amongst whom the gallant chief, Sir Charles M‘Carthy, who
was wounded and taken prisoner. The loss of the Ashantees was upwards of
1,000, who were brought down by our fire. Every possible means has been
taken to ascertain the loss of our officers and men, and intelligence
has been received from a messenger, who saw at the enemy’s camp the
heads of nine white men (officers) with their jaw-bones taken out, and
amongst them was the head of sir Charles. This is invariably a practice
among these savages, when an enemy falls into their hands. It is said,
that our loss of men was not to any great amount: out of 140, said to
have arrived in the _Joseph Green_ transport in November last, one half
have paid the debt of nature.
Extract of a letter from Mr. Williams, the Colonial Secretary,
addressed, to the commandant of Cape Coast Castle, from the Dutch
settlement of Elmina, dated March, 1824, and read to the writer of the
above by Brigade Major Ricketts, the day before I sailed from Cape Coast
Castle, March 22, 1824:—
“It was my fortune to be near our lamented chief when he received a
wound in the breast by a musket ball, I believe mortal. Buckle,
Wetherell, and myself conveyed him under shelter of the nearest tree,
and there sat to await that fate which appeared inevitable. We had not
remained long before we were discovered by the enemy, who immediately
rushed on us with their knives. In the struggle, I received a desperate
cut on the left side of my neck, and before the stroke could be
repeated, a man who appeared to be of authority among them fortunately
passed, and ordered my executioner to desist, which was immediately
complied with. On my being released from their grasp, and turning round,
I was horror-struck at seeing my three companions lying headless corpses
at my feet. I was now bound as a prisoner and conveyed towards their
camp.”
A strong force have now crossed the Pra, under the command of Captain
Blenkairn, West India regiment; and it is to be hoped that the Ashantees
will meet their reward. An action is hourly expected to take place, and
the natives appear fully resolved to revenge the fate of our poor
countrymen. The _Owen Glendower_ has been usefully and actively engaged
with the army in destroying the towns along the coast, where the enemy
had taken shelter; she sails to-morrow morning to destroy a town in the
Gaboom, which has lately insulted the British flag, and murdered the
crew of an English merchant vessel.]
CHAPTER VII.
HISTORICAL MEMOIRS OF ASHANTEE.
ANTIQUITY AND POWER OF THE MONARCHY OF ASHANTEE — NATIONAL CHARACTER —
WAR OF DINKIRA — REIGN OF SAI TOOTO — MASSACRE AT ACROMANTEE — SAI APOKO
— CIVIL WAR — SAI AKWASY — SAI KODJOH — WAR OF GAMAN — SAI QUAMINA —
EMBASSY FROM DAHOMY — SAI APOKO II. — SAI TOOTO QUAMINA — WAR OF GHOFAN
— FIRST BONTOKO WAR — WAR OF ASSIN — MURDER OF THE KING’S MESSENGERS BY
THE FANTEES — FANTEE WAR — ATTACK OF ANNAMABO — DEATH OF CHEBOO —
RATIFICATION OF THE TRUCE — EXCHANGE OF PRESENTS — PRISONERS OF WAR
AWARDED TO THE GOVERNOR, AND THEIR DISPOSAL.
The growth and consolidation of this comparatively great empire, is much
talked of by the Heathens as well as Moslems; and both are agreed, that
the tribes of Ashantee, Gaman, Dinkira, and Akim, were driven by the
believers, in the early age of Islam, from their original inheritances
in Ghobagho, Ghofan, and Tonouma, to the _forests of Wangara_ (i.e. the
states of Ashantee inclusively, and the south eastern parts of Gaman)
where they maintained their independence at the expence of much blood,
and defended the country gifted with the precious metal, against the
most vigorous efforts that were made to bereave them of it. Whether the
sea coast was already peopled, tradition does not say; but it is
affirmed, the tribes spread over the land, down to the margin of the
ocean, peopling, it may be conjectured, some countries which heretofore
lay desolate, like the forests of Fantee and Assin, and others, whose
primitive inhabitants were not adequate to the defence of their towns.
Thus, Ashantee, contrary to what may have been represented, is the
parent country, and the stock from which the early generations of
Fantees and Dinkirans sprung.
As early as the hejyran year 1000, and from that to 1050 (A.D. 1640,)
Ashantee occasionally ruled, by its influence, over part of Akim, Assin,
Quahou, and Akeyah: it was then esteemed a powerful little monarchy, and
could probably send, in conjunction with its allies, sixty thousand men
to the field, indifferently armed with bows and arrows, and a very few
musquets; but even at that time they were men whose resolution, combined
with a natural ferocity, rendered their name terribly illustrious among
the adjacent tribes.
Nations, who term themselves the most civilized in the world, and others
which are the most savage of the human species, seem equally anxious to
justify every aggressive act, and vindicate the national honour, by
repelling what in their own countries passes for calumny and falsehood.
The Ashantees, not being competent to defend the honour of the throne,
and the national character by written memorials, in the systematical
style of Europe, endeavour to exonerate their sovereign and themselves
from the odious imputation of violence and ambition, by harangues
calculated to demonstrate that black is white, and white black; for the
truth of which men are too apt to appeal to whatever may be considered
sacred, whether it be the awful majesty of heaven, the day of final
retribution, or the deities of heathen adoration and superstition: the
rest is left to chance and the sword.
The Ashantees, of all ranks, are thus loyal and zealous, in common with
other nations, and the king himself takes pleasure in recounting his
forbearance, and describing the aggravation that roused the vengeance of
his ancestors and himself, against those federal powers, which, in an
earlier age, were independent little kingdoms, and now submit to the
yoke of government as provinces of the empire. The king, during various
desultory conversations, took particular pains to ingraft an impression
upon my mind, that it was a maxim associated with the _religion he
professed_, never to appeal to the sword while a path lay open for
negociation. He maintained that he would defy even his enemies to prove
that his assertion deviated from the truth, either as regarded himself
or his ancestors.[101] Be this as it may, the Moslems themselves
corroborate the assertion, although they accuse the government of
unbounded ambition.
The tribes under the early sovereigns (for they always enjoyed the rank
and title of kings) were unsettled in their habitations, while the Arab
influence yet existed on the Jolliba, Koara and Ghulby rivers; but they
were firm and compact as a nation, and not (as my informers reported)
wandering to the distance of the Arab.
It may not be amiss to observe, that in Africa, as in other countries
where slavery is tolerated, the wretched captive frequently turns his
thought towards home, his tribe and family. If his country is remote, he
is certainly less tortured by hopes and fears respecting his
emancipation; others, whose nation is a neighbouring one, and who are
less valued on that very account, are more or less in the practice of
emigrating in proportion to the treatment they receive; and if they can
successfully conceal themselves in the forest from the pursuit of their
masters, and the observation of travellers, they endeavour to shape a
course towards their homes; but should they fail in the undertaking, at
a distance, they simply exchange one master for another—a bargain which
is rarely the most profitable to them, as the new proprietor becomes
intimate with the secret propensity of his slave, and as an antidote for
the evil generally sells him in a distant land. The slaves of Fantee,
Ashantee, Assin, or any other country thereabouts, absolutely find no
security anywhere among the provinces, unless they are fortunate enough
to incorporate themselves with the tribe they belong to, for, if they
are picked up elsewhere, they become _legal_ prizes, and I believe this
custom prevails all over Africa.
The wars of Dinkira are still fresh in memory; the scull and thigh bones
of its last monarch are still trophies of the court of Ashantee, and
still those people, on solemn days, repeat their insults to the relics
of its king and caboceers.[102] The origin of this war and its sequel,
may be read in Bosman’s Description of the Gold Coast, which is so far
supported by current traditions, that I cannot do better than quote the
author’s words. “Dinkira, elevated by its great riches and power, became
so arrogant, that it looked on all other negroes with a contemptible
eye, esteeming them no more than its slaves, which rendered it the
object of their common hatred, each impatiently wishing its downfall,
though no nation was hardy enough to attack it, till the king of
Asiante, injured and affronted by its governor, adventured to revenge
himself on this nation in a signal manner.”
“The occasion of which was this—Bosiante, the king of Dinkira, a young
prince whose valour was become the admiration of all the negroes of the
coast, sent some of his wives to compliment Zay, the king of Asiante;
who not only received, and entertained them very civilly, but sent them
back charged with several very considerable presents, to express his
_obliging resentment_ of the grateful embassy: and being resolved to
return his obligation, he some time after sent some of his wives to
compliment the king of Dinkira, and assure him of the great esteem he
had for his person. These ambassadresses were not less splendidly
treated at Dinkira, being also loaded with presents; but the king cast a
wanton eye upon one of them, and being hurried on by exorbitant lust,
gratified his brutal desire: after satisfying of which, he suffered her,
together with the rest, to return to their country and their injured
husband, who was informed of this affront: But he took care to make the
king of Dinkira sensible that he would not rest till he had washed away
the scandal in his injurious blood. After he was made sensible of the
king of Asiante’s resolution, knowing very well who he had to deal with,
he heartily wished he had not been guilty of the crime; but since it was
done, he offered him several hundred marks of gold to put up with the
injury. The enraged prince, deaf to all such offers, prepared himself
for a vigorous war, by raising a strong army, in order to make a descent
on Dinkirat and not being sufficiently stored with gunpowder, he bought
up great quantities on the coast, the Dinkirans being foolish enough to
assist him themselves, suffering his subjects to pass with it
uninterrupted through their country, notwithstanding they knew very well
it was only designed for their destruction. Whilst he was making these
preparations, the king of Dinkira died, which might encourage a belief
that the impending cloud of war would blow over. Whether the governors
of Dinkira were too haughty to implore a peace of the injured Zay, or he
instigated by the enemies of that country, is uncertain; but he still
immoveably persisted in his purpose of utterly extirpating the
Dinkirans. And about the beginning of this year, being completely ready,
he came with a terrible army into the field, and engaging the Dinkirans,
who expected him, he beat them; but fighting them a second time, he
entirely defeated them. The negroes report that in these two battles,
above a hundred thousand men were killed. Of the negroes of Akim only,
who came to the assistance of the Dinkirans, there were about thirty
thousand killed, besides that a great Caboceer of Akim, with all his
men, were cut off. “Thus,” says this able author, “you see the towering
pride of Dinkira in ashes, they being forced to fly before those whom
they not long before thought no better than their slaves, and themselves
being sold for slaves.”
This Dinkira war, according to the Moslem records, commenced in their
year, 1132 (A.D. 1719.) Bosman wrote in 1721, and he says, these
transactions took place but a few months previous. This, they say, was
the first great war in which the believers were compelled to unite their
arms with the heathens of Ashantee, Banna, Juabin, and other tributary
states in the North, led on to battle by Sai Tooto, dignified by his
subjects with the epithet of Great. This monarch it was, who first
raised Coomassy from an inconsiderable town to the rank it now enjoys as
the metropolis of the empire. He did not, as Mr. Bowdich has
represented, found Coomassy, but he increased its size to a capacity for
the reception of the court and army, when he was influenced to translate
the seat of government, which, heretofore, was occasionally established
at Kikiwhary (N. of Coomassy) and Bequa, in the neighbourhood of
Doompassy. Sai Tooto was already king before the seat of government was
a permanent one, nor did he enjoy any increase of dignity, as the same
author writes, although a great increase of power and influence, after
the subjugation of Dinkira; for this kingdom introduced the Ashantees
and Moslems to a knowledge of white men, by the consolidation of an
empire now become maritime by its aspect over the Wossa country, whose
sovereigns were compelled to suffer the Ashantees to pass as they might
have occasion in the pursuit of commerce at the Dutch settlements, where
their early supplies of powder and guns were obtained with commercial
regularity.
The legends descriptive of the history of Ashantee, earlier than the
reign of Sai Tooto, are somewhat obscure; but were they the reverse, it
is not presumed the reader would find an interest in their perusal; for
this reason I shall suppress a series of unconnected accounts relating
to one or two of the earlier sovereigns.
The wisdom as well as valour of Sai Tooto are themes on which the
natives dwell with a national satisfaction; in short, he was, as they
say, the great, and the good; for, in his reign, justice was ever on the
alert, and the claims of his subjects were listened to without
distinction of rank or title.
The conquests effected by this prince were more comprehensive than has
been stated. He ravaged Assin with fire and sword, for some indignity
offered by its monarch towards his person; he entirely subdued Quahou,
and induced the government of Akim to a limited obedience. He subdued,
besides Dinkira and Tofal, a great extent of country beyond the Tando
river. He invaded Gaman with a powerful army, with which he vanquished
those tribes, and reduced their monarch to the condition of a tributary.
The Desert (of Ghofan) only was an impediment to the progress of his
arms north; and, in short, he created an empire, including tributaries
and allies, which was strictly of a feudal complexion, by the union of
all those kingdoms and principalities between the 6th and 9th degrees of
latitude, and between the 4th degree of longitude west from the meridian
of London and the river Volta. The auxiliary kingdom of Banna was the
right arm of Ashantee in those days, and still is.
Ashantee, however, excluding what it governed upon the western coast by
influence alone, was yet to be considered an inland power; for during
this reign its arms never penetrated within forty or fifty miles of the
European settlements upon the sea side; and all those countries, viz.
Aowin, Amanaha, Ahanta, Wossa, Fantee, Inkran, Aquapim, Aquambo, besides
others their tributaries, on the line of coast, enjoyed the greatest
political freedom among themselves; and many of them, if Bosman may be
credited, wished for the downfal of Dinkira. Akim, it would seem, then a
powerful little kingdom, was alone sensible that its proper interest
warranted every exertion of vigour both in the cabinet and field, to
keep back so powerful an invader, and preserve the equilibrium of the
respective nations; hence, they joined their forces to the Dinkirans,
and by the unfortunate result of the campaign, entailed upon their
country the conqueror’s vengeance; for the sovereign of Ashantee, who
probably rejoiced in having so good a pretext for invading Akim, entered
that territory with the victorious army, and after defeating the king in
a pitched battle upon the confines, reduced him to the necessity of
supplicating a peace, which was granted upon the condition of his
becoming a tributary, and defraying the expence of the war, by a present
of two thousand bendas[103] of gold; for the fulfilment of which, two
Akim caboceers of high rank, named Kakramsee and Adjumako, were
compelled to take fetische, and deliver themselves up hostages on behalf
of their sovereign.
But these conditions the king of Akim endeavoured to evade, or, as some
say, the captains of his army, and the great chieftains, who were called
upon for their quota of the contribution, refused to subscribe to the
terms of the truce, threatening, if their king would not lead them to
battle, they would elect another in his place. Be the truth which way it
may, Sai Tooto, impatient at the delay, and urged by the reiterated
complaints of his rapacious captains, levied another army, which he sent
against Akim, and, followed by the flower of his nobility, quitted the
capital on the day following, to invoke the necessary aid of his
tutelary deities, at the sepulchre of Bantama. After the celebration of
certain orgies, the monarch tracked the steps of the army, at a leisure
pace, and before he could join the main body, was suddenly assailed by a
superior detachment of the enemy, as he was crossing the Praa at a ford
where that river separates the province of Yomoha from Akim. The first
volley, it is related, wounded the sovereign in the side; but still
vigorous, he threw himself out of the hammock, and rallied his men as
best he could; a second discharge from the forest killed him outright,
and he fell with his face into the river. The consternation was now
general; and in the panic that ensued, the Ashantees cast away their
weapons, each man endeavouring to save himself; but in vain, for the
ambuscade issuing from their concealment, fell sword in hand upon the
fugitives, and put every one to death, to the amount of two or three
hundred persons, of whom sixty were women and children, either belonging
to the monarch or his generals.
This calamity did not put an end to the war, which now broke out with
greater fury than ever. A town called Acromantee, that harboured the
enemy the night previous to the attack, (many or most of whom were
inhabitants of the place) was consigned over to the army, as a proper
object to wreak their fury upon; accordingly, it was razed by fire to
the ground, and every living creature, men, women, cattle, and even
fowls, except such as were of the sacred order, were doomed to bleed in
expiation. _Miminda Acromantee_, (implying Saturday and Acromantee,) by
which the national affliction is recorded, has been considered ever
since an oath of the most solemn and unequivocal import; and the day
itself has been cast into the calendar among the list of ominous days
stigmatized by the Ashantees as days which forebode evil; for which
reason they are dedicated to expiatory and propitiatory sacrifices; nor
will any man, be the emergency what it may, commence the most trivial
enterprize, either on Saturday or the other days so characterized. The
words, as recorded, are deemed too profane to utter, unless in a whisper
between friends; and this redoubtable oath is most commonly taken by
inference only, as, the dreadful day, the day of the Gods’ chastisement,
&c. The effect of these expressions only, as I have witnessed at the
court, clouds every brow with woe, from the king to the slave who stands
behind his chair; many fly from the presence,—such, for instance, who
are not men of influence at court, or who may be involved in litigious
palavers, the issue of which is uncertain, and may be dangerously
prejudiced when anger clouds the brow of Majesty. Others cover their
faces with both hands, uttering at the time a charm or invocation to the
patron Gods to shield them from the ominous import of those words, and
the effects of the king’s wrath or sorrow. If it is appealed to as an
imprecation, while justice is pending between parties, it signifies that
the life of one or both individuals is staked on the verdict, i.e. upon
the supposed justice of their cause; the oath itself entails the penalty
of death, frequently by torture; and hence it arises, that many men
bring those punishments upon themselves, from indiscretion in the heat
of argument, where the sum contended for may not exceed the value of
five shillings.
After the death of Sai Tooto, the Ashantee army returned home, bringing
in their train a considerable number of prisoners, who were doomed to be
immolated to his shade; for as to the body of the king, it was never
recovered. A gloom pervaded the capital, and that gloom at last
degenerated into bitter reproaches and invectives against certain chiefs
of the Issounah tribe, who, it was suspected, had temporized with Assin
while the king was on the march, and had, as it was imagined, betrayed
the interest of the state, through an act of imprudence, in not bringing
the Assins to battle at once. The kingdom stood in need both of a
sovereign and a new order of nobility, as most of the ministers and
officers holding the first rank were cut off at Cormantee; and these
great changes were not effected without bloodshed. The conquered
nations, thinking it a fit time to disencumber themselves from the chain
of vassalage, while the capital was in commotion for the election of a
new sovereign and new ministers, one by one proclaimed their
independence, and refused payment of the customary tribute. Thus, when
Sai Apoko, (سَيْ اَبُوكُ) the brother of the preceding monarch, was
called to the throne, A.H. 1144, A.D. 1731, the wars of his predecessors
were to be fought over again.
The most remarkable events during the reign of this prince, were the
entire reduction of Assin and Akim, the re-occupation of Dinkra, the
perfect conquest of Gaman, and its annexation to the empire as an
unconditional tributary. In fact, this monarch once more gave stability
and vigour to the government; and in effecting the subjugation of
Bouromy and Yobati, which he shortly after did, it may be said he
performed as much for his own glory as his great predecessor, and too
much by far for the nations of the sea-coast to expect any repose, while
they were encircled by the territory of a prince whose subjects derived
their very existence from foreign wars, as they themselves did from
intestine ones, and the quarrels between the English and Dutch, in
matters connected with local interest, when the parent countries were at
war in Europe.
When Akim bowed to the yoke of the conqueror, a new election of chiefs
ensued, and the lands were distributed among the favourites of the
court. Then it was the Ashantees became possessed for the first time of
certain deeds,[104] which in the language of the English settlers are
termed notes,—the conqueror’s right serving them as a title of course,
(although it does not appear that this title procured them payment.) The
path to the sea side was now invitingly exposed to this enterprizing
nation. In the west they were masters of the defiles in Tofal, and upon
the confines of Wossa, which opened to them a prospect of the kingdoms
of Aowin and Amanaha, commonly called Apollonia; the former on the Ivory
coast, near Bassam and Cape Lahon; Ahanta also lay before them on the
south, and Fantee on the south-east. In the east, or east-south-east,
they overlooked the now provinces of Inkran, or Accra, Aquapim, and
Adampe, while Aquambo, the only existing kingdom in that quarter worthy
that title, courted the conqueror’s alliance, and was received into
protection as a confederate of the empire.
In this stage of politics Sai Apoko, in the latter part of his reign,
enacted new codes of laws, adapted for the government of the various
departments of the state; but some of these regulations being considered
inimical to the interests of the chiefs, and as they represented it
again, to the public welfare, a dangerous conspiracy was raised against
the throne, in the very heart of the kingdom. The capital, moreover,
took a share in these transactions, and the king was obliged to fly his
palace, by night, and seek refuge at Juabin, where he convened a sort of
diet; but some of his enemies were already in arms, and he was compelled
to the same alternative. The province of Akiah is celebrated for a
battle, which Apoko fought with the rebels, near the town of Dinkenny,
and which terminated in their utter discomfiture, although many of the
ringleaders availed themselves of the vicinity of the mountains, and
saved the remnant of their scattered followers by a precipitate flight.
Here they endeavoured to make a defensive stand, while their friends in
the city implored pardon on their behalf; this, under certain
limitations, was granted, and the country, from a state of anarchy,
again subsided into tranquillity. But the king did not survive long
after, having been suddenly arrested by the stroke of death, as he was
sitting in council; and he expired as the attendants were removing him
to the harem, after a reign of twelve lunar years, short of some months,
for he died A.H. 1156; A.D. 1742.
At the demise of this prince, a revocation of the obnoxious edicts took
place, whereby an ample scope for ambition was again enjoyed by the
chiefs of the army, whose object it was to preserve the old
constitution, upon that basis which guaranteed to all the principal
officers of state, and generals, or captains in the army, a
proportionate share of influence in the city, a political preponderance
in the councils of the nation, and a princely rank in the provinces.
This was a fit time to regulate the terms of succession to the
hereditary prince,[105] and it was not suffered to elapse unheeded. Had
it been practicable to have given stability to the wise regulations of
Sai Apoko, it is generally believed by the Moslems, that the empire of
Ashantee, at this day, would have held a rank proportionate to several
of the most powerful monarchies inland; and instead of exhibiting that
unstable force of tribes and nations (forty-seven, as they say, in
number), whose interests are, in some instances, necessarily the reverse
of that of the court, from the oppression they daily groan under, (owing
mainly to the arbitrary influence of the chiefs), it would have
exhibited an irresistible union between every tribe, and every
principality of the empire; and it would have placed the nation upon
such a respectable footing, that it might have given laws to Dahomy,
Dagomba, and all the land westward. “But this wisdom,” said my informer,
(the Bashaw), “they are not gifted with; the eternal decree is sealed
upon the hearts of infidels; therefore are they suffered to wander in
ignorance, and perpetrate those horrid systems of slaughter that
desolate the land, and steel the breasts of the few, who are spared,
with hatred and revenge[106].” The truth of these sentiments is scarcely
to be questioned. Powerful as the monarchy of Ashantee certainly is,
collectively estimated, it may be considered as a fabric whose
foundation is subject to periodical decay, and therefore requires
unremitting attention; or figuratively speaking, it may be assimilated
to the coarser metals, which are brilliant only from continual friction;
and to pursue the similitude, governments that are founded upon laws
which the people, from record and tradition, are persuaded to be of
divine institution, may be compared with those metals, precious in the
estimation of the world, which preserve their own lustre unassisted by
art: and although at intervals they may not flash so vividly upon the
senses, yet exhibit an uniform refulgence derived from their incorrosive
nature.
Ashantee, and perhaps Dahomy, deserve to be called _powers of our own
creation_. But to reconcile the assertion with fact, it must be
admitted, we are intitled to no other rank than that of indirect
assistants. In using the name of his majesty, as I was compelled to do
in the course of the negociations, the king (of Ashantee) would
frequently exclaim; “The God of his fathers preserve him, and increase
his glory upon earth;” and, during familiar conversations, he would say,
“the good things I possess, I am indebted for to my Gods, and the
benevolence of your king. My ancestors never knew white men personally;
but they were equally sensible of the obligations they owed to the
whites, who enriched them when they were poor, and fed the people by
trade, while Ashantee was yet but an inconsiderable nation compared with
its modern extent.” “My great ancestor Sai Tooto,” said the king to me,
a short time before I parted from him, “would have served your king’s
great ancestors as faithfully as I will, (the illustrious son), if that
intimate knowledge which your presence conveys to us had been decreed
during his reign; for we all know the whites to be a people who serve
the God of all gods and men.”
The sovereign who succeeded to the throne of Sai Apoko, was named سي
اكوسي Sai Akwasy. Several intestine commotions took place during his
reign, in the provinces of Bouromy, Quahou, and Akim, whose Caboceers
were instigated to take up arms by the intrigues of the court of Dahomy,
whose monarch received them into pay, and promised to support them with
an army for the restoration of their original forms of government. Thus
animated they took the field, pitching upon Quahou as the most eligible
theatre of action, from its vicinity to the Volta at a point whence the
promised succours were to arrive. Sai Akwasy, having come upon them
rather suddenly, defeated the rebels with great slaughter, and took
prisoners the caboceers, or vice kings of Bouromy and Quahou; the other
escaped for the time; but being shortly after beset by the king’s
troops, he blew himself up with gunpowder, together with many of his
principal wives, children, and slaves, to avoid falling into the hands
of his enemies[107].
When the king discovered how matters stood with regard to Dahomy, he
determined to revenge the injury he had sustained, by passing the Volta
with his army contrary to the advice of his most able counsellors. This
resolution having been adopted, he ravaged a great track of land of the
king of Gouaso, who was a tributary of the Dahoman empire. On the second
day, news was brought of the approach of the Dahoman army, and shortly
after, one of the most sanguinary battles in the records and traditions
of the country was fought by the two monarchs: night only put an end to
the conflict. In the morning, Sai Akwasy was for renewing the
engagement, but was arrested in his plan by the screeching of some
ominous birds,[108] as it is said, and upon consulting the gods
(Fetische) it was discovered they were not propitious to the
undertaking. While a retreat was in agitation, the Dahomans, mistaking
the inactivity of their enemies for want of resolution, came on to the
charge with their accustomed impetuosity. The king, who did not think
proper to abide a second contest, drew off his army as best he could,
and fled rather than retreated to the Volta, re-crossing that river with
precipitancy. But he had the mortification to witness the destruction of
a great part of his army, who, for want of a sufficient number of
canoes, were compelled to remain stationary until the next morning. Thus
the Moslems describe the result of the campaign, although they are
persuaded that the resources of Ashantee, in the present day, are
adequate to crush the whole power of Dahomy to atoms, as the sovereign
of that country might have known some time back, to his cost, were it
not that the government of the former is apprehensive of giving umbrage
to the Sultan of Dogho, who is the protector of Dahomy, which is a
remote appendage of his crown, and which he considers, if not as a sea-
port of his own dominions, at least, as a maritime state, depending upon
his empire for its political rank among nations.
After the defeat of Sai Akwasy, as before related, the kingdom was
filled with grief and mourning; the provinces were severally beaten up
for victims to sacrifice in the capital, in expiation of offences done
to the guardian gods, and to appease the shades of the great captains
who fell in the war.[109] The streets of Coomassy, according to my
informers, were drenched in human and animal gore during the whole of
the great Adai custom, which is chiefly remarkable as it corresponds to
part of the lunar month called by the Moslems Dhu’l’hajet ذوالحجة the
12th of their calendar, and the twelfth day of which is particularly set
apart by their law for the great pilgrimage, when the victims (sheep,
&c.) are sacrificed in the valley Mina, near to the city of Mecca, as
expiatory offerings to the supreme Deity.
In proportion to the losses sustained by the court, so the policy of the
government occasionally decrees the affliction of the provinces; for
such a maxim is held efficacious, in order to check the imaginary
rejoicing of foreign tribes, held in vassalage; or any real plot the
opportunity might induce the tributaries to engender, with a view of
emancipating themselves from the conqueror’s yoke. Gold, and victims for
the altars, are the _only_ penalties enforced; the latter, it is true,
however, are not, as might be supposed, indiscriminately chosen; they
pass, indeed, under the name of delinquents, and are so far deserving
that anathema, as having been convicted of speaking disrespectfully of
the king, or of his government; of having harboured secret intentions
inimical to the prosperity of the state; of having violated the civil
laws; or of having invoked the wrath of their gods upon the heads of
their oppressors;—a crime which, of course, passes for witchcraft and
sorcery among the Ashantees; but which, in reality, is the same
ceremony, and is performed with the same invocations or incantations, as
they themselves practise, the conquerors’ prerogative making the only
distinction in the texture of the offence.
A war with Banna terminated the career of Sai Akwasy, for he there
received a wound, of which, although he lingered some months, he never
after recovered. Sai Kodjoh, سي كدجوح the nephew of the former monarch,
succeeded to the vacant throne, in the year 1166, A.H. 1752, A.D. On his
elevation to that dignity, he dispatched messengers to the tributaries
who had withheld payment of certain arrears while the war with Banna
lasted. Some of these powers would not submit to the demand, alleging,
as an excuse, that they had served in the wars under the former monarch,
and his death had deprived them of their proportion of plunder. The king
of Gaman first took up arms, and was imitated by the tribes of Dinkra,
Wassa, and Tofal. This war, the Ashantees admit, was the most desperate
they were ever involved in, and the empire stood at a crisis where
occasionally the hazards fluctuated to the advantage of the enemy. Twice
did the king carry his arms into Gaman, and was each time defeated with
great slaughter, owing mainly to the weapons wherewith his enemies came
armed to the field being of the same description as those of his own
troops, namely, musquets,—besides an auxiliary force from Kong and
Ghofan, consisting solely of cavalry. Each time the monarch returned
penitential to the capital, and made new invocations and new sacrifices
to the gods and his ancestors; being determined, as the Ashantees
relate, since he found them to be still auspicious, to abide every risk
rather than relinquish the enterprize.[110] The third invasion proved
successful, and the king returned to his capital, bringing with the army
a multitude of captives, of both sexes and all ages; the children were
preserved to recruit the losses his armies had sustained; and the adults
were either sacrificed or sold in the market of Mansue, upon the
confines of Fantee, from whence they found their way to the West Indies.
The province of Wassa fell shortly after under the avenging sword of the
king, who let loose the fury of his troops upon its northern confines,
and bereaved several large districts of their whole population. The most
culpable among the insurgents were dragged to the altars of the capital,
and two powerful tribes of that nation were subsequently removed to
Bouromy and Quahou, either to supply a deficiency of the population of
those parts, or to secure their future allegiance.
It is a prevailing maxim, I believe, with most negro princes, as it may
be with other barbarous nations, to exterminate their enemies whenever
the chance of war throws them in their power, rather than conciliate
them as subjects, and reconcile them to the change they undergo. But I
do not find that this maxim, which, under limitations, affected by
circumstances, is the policy of the court of Ashantee at the present
time, in proportion to the rancour and aversion of its enemies, was ever
so rigidly enforced, (excepting in the primitive wars against the
believers,) as in the reign of Kodjoh. A negro can hardly be persuaded
that an enemy might be converted to a friend, and as he naturally
thirsts after his gold, if he is so far successful, nothing can satiate
him short of his opponent’s blood, which is esteemed the portion of the
spoil due to the tutelar gods (and acceptable to the shades of his
ancestors) whose service it is incumbent on him not to neglect, lest
their wrath should overwhelm him on a future day. The fault, according
to the friendly Baba, “is in their nature:” whether the curse of God
rests upon them or not, it becomes not me to enquire; but I think it
highly probable that the absence of a system of moral feeling,
inculcated by doctrines like those of the purest of religions, is mainly
the cause why in Africa the passions of men are permitted to wander in
the labyrinth of vile excesses we daily see committed with impunity.
The subjugation of Gaman at this time laid the Sarem country prostrate
at the feet of the conqueror, who penetrated Shouy, Ghombati, and Ponin,
in a sort of _friendly_ way to receive the submission of the southern
and western tribes, and invite the Caboceers to court. This is one of
the chances, which, as the Moslems say, the fortune of Ashantee
presented for the utter conquest of Sarem, as far as _Mr. Bowdich’s
Kingdom of “Bahooree,”_ i.e. the sea, in the neighbourhood of Cape
Palmas. But this scope of ambition exceeded the aim or the judgment of
the monarch, who was content to receive presents from the Kings and
Caboceers of those nations who heretofore courted the alliance of Kong,
the original mistress of Sarem and that part of Ghunja, whereon the
metropolis of Ashantee is built.
After the return of Sai Kodjoh from Gaman, he was engaged in several
wars of a domestic character in Banna, Akim, and Aquapim, but they were
too trifling to be of any interest to the reader.
The Dahomy war seems to have been forgotten during the reign of Kodjoh;
for, what is remarkable in the politics of the two courts, a friendly
embassy arrived at the capital, with presents from Abomey, announcing
the succession of a new sovereign.[111] This flattering deputation
excited public rejoicings throughout the empire. Costly entertainments
were given to the ambassadors; and, according to the etiquette of
African courts, a splendid embassy was got up by Kodjoh, to express, as
Bosman’s translator says, “his obliging resentment” at the Dahoman
capital. Sai Kodjoh did not long survive these civilities; he died,
however, at a crisis rather unfortunate for the state; for as the
infirmity of age crept upon him, he confined himself to the palace, and
his enemies availed themselves of this opportunity, to circulate in the
provinces a report of his death: there was no king in Coomassy, they
said.[112] This notice at any time is a charm sufficiently powerful to
kindle the flames of war; accordingly, Assin, Akim, and Aquapim once
more raised the standard of rebellion or defiance; and when Kodjoh, by
invitation, enjoined them to keep the peace, and lay down their arms,
they killed his messengers, threatening, out of derision, they would
march to the capital, and seat one of their women slaves upon the
throne, who should settle the turbulence of the chiefs, by proper
chastisements. Preparations for war were then vigorously resorted to;
but Kodjoh died while the army waited for the approaching dry season.
Sai Koamina, or Quamina, (سي كوامين) mounted the throne, A.H. 1196, A.D.
1781. This prince made a vow never to enter the walls of his palace, or
associate with his wives, until he obtained the heads of Akombrah and
Afosoo, the two active leaders of the revolt. He joined the army without
loss of time, and by diligent marches took the Akims by surprise. The
head of the latter was the consequence of a partial engagement; and it
is still a trophy in the _royal cabinet_ of human relics, together with
that of Akombrah, a Bouromy chief, who had joined the confederacy. There
was no war with Banna during this reign, as Mr. Bowdich represents,
(page 258;) and his story of the king’s head being sewed up in the
abdomen of a woman, but which was afterwards discovered, and placed on
the king of Ashantee’s great drum, has no foundation whatever, according
to the testimony of Moslems and idolaters.
A congratulatory embassy arrived from Dahomy, another from Salgha, and a
third from Yandy, shortly after the accession of this prince to the
throne. These flattering testimonies of friendship, it would seem,
instead of stimulating his ambition, bereft that prince of the necessary
energy to govern such a nation, and greatly conduced to his deposition,
the origin of which was his attachment to the Moslems, and, as it is
said, his inclination to establish the Korannic law for the civil code
of the empire. Sai Koamina, according to the Bashaw, was a believer at
heart; but the safety of his throne would not allow him to avow his
sentiments. His name is handed to posterity as the most merciful of the
race of kings. Towards the close of his reign, he prohibited many
festivals at which it was usual to spill the blood of victims devoted to
the customs; yet he could not be prevailed upon to relinquish the
barbarous practice of watering the graves of his ancestors with human
gore. These and other innovations were of a tendency to alarm the great
captains; they feared, it is said, that the Moslem religion, which they
well know levels all ranks and orders of men, and places them at the
arbitrary discretion of the sovereign, might be introduced, whereby they
would lose that ascendancy they now enjoy. To anticipate the calamity
they dreaded, a conspiracy was entered into, and he was deposed.
Sai Apoko, the second of that name, was elevated to the throne of the
deposed monarch A.H. 1212, A.D. 1797. This was one of the most promising
princes the nation ever had. He was the brother of the deposed Koamina,
who (in revenge it is supposed) occasioned his death, it is said, by
sorcery, after a reign of two years[113]; during which the Bontokos
(Gamans), once more broke out into rebellion at the instigation of Kong,
threatening to march to the capital and restore the lawful prince to his
ravished dignity. This war lasted upwards of fifteen months, during
which the entire force of Kong and its allies joined with that of Gaman,
crossed the Tando and gave battle to the Ashantees, near a large town
called Barbanou, which is distant one watch from that river.
The force of the enemy, as the tradition goes, was above four times that
commanded by the king. The princes and Caboceers of Banna, Juabin,
Takima, and Coransah, took an active part against the invaders; and the
Moslems, in despite of their prejudices, on one memorable, as on some
inferior occasions, were compelled to join the ranks of the heathens
against their brethren in faith. The Ashantees suffered some reverse of
fortune during the first campaign; for the enemy’s cavalry spread over
the open plains of Massy, but could not penetrate that intricate mass of
forest in which the capital stands. The Gamans fought hard and bravely
upon the Tando, for notwithstanding the national antipathy that prevails
against strangers, the Ashantees liberally bestow the titles of warlike
and courageous upon this nation.[114]
The king, it would seem, acted purely on the defensive, until the
tributaries came up, he then gave battle to his enemies in the open
plains, whom, after several days fighting, he defeated with prodigious
slaughter, and returned to his capital laden with spoil and captives.
Among the latter were upwards of five thousand Moslems, who were
distributed among the provinces and in the capital. In no instance were
these people subject to the penalty of death, as many of the heathens
were, neither were they sold into slavery. Some, according to their
inclinations or capacity, were suffered to redeem themselves from
captivity by paying a ransom; some were ransomed by the pious Moslems of
their own country, or of Dagomba, and others were liberated at a
subsequent period, when their sultan sent an embassy to Coomassy; many,
however, to whom the king had been bountiful, chose to remain in
Ghunjah, and they are now incorporated with the tribes of believers who
inhabit Baboso, Western Sarem, and Banna[115]. The king did not survive
his triumph many months; but died from a lingering illness.
The reigning sovereign, Sai Tooto Quamina, سَي تُوتُ كوَامِينَ brother
of the deceased monarch, was elevated to the throne A.H. 1215, A.D.
1800. Sai Quamina, for this is the name by which his subjects call him,
gave a sample, in early life, of that spirit of enterprize which is so
prominent a feature in his political career. “Thank the great God and
the gods of my country,” said the king, one day, “that I have been made
acquainted with white people, for Ghunja will now become a place of
knowledge, and my subjects will gain knowledge from the whites, who read
in books what old people say. Hear this, captains!” said his majesty,
addressing the conversation to Adusai, Apoko, Kankam, and some others in
waiting, “what say you?” “Tis true O king,” replied Adusai, rising, “now
what have you to fear? The great God of the Moslems, who is the same as
the white men worship, is your guardian. He defends your dominions on
the land side, where the believers live; and he protects you on the sea
coast, for he gives you a great name in the land of white men, and turns
their king’s heart to do you good.” “Yes,” answered the sovereign,
spreading out his hands and looking up towards heaven, as the Moslems do
in prayer, “I am a thankful slave of the God of all gods and men—I am
not ungrateful, I am not proud and ignorant, and therefore I know the
great God has made me kill all my enemies, that the white king should
tell me true things for my good, so my heart is open to him, and I will
serve him as he shall desire.”
This prince took the field (a few months after his elevation to the
throne) against Ghofan, when, as the Moslems say, he was yet a beardless
boy. Ghobagho shortly after united with his enemies, who drove the king
of Banna, his ally, from his capital, which they razed to the ground,
carrying off in their retreat a multitude of captives. But here their
success terminated. The king advanced in time to prevent the same
devastation in Coransah. The belligerent armies met at a short distance
from the town of Kaka, where a fierce engagement ensued. The enemy
retreated, and perhaps on that account the victory was claimed by the
Ashantees. The king diligently pursued his adversaries as far as the
desert, where they joined a body of reserve and again offered battle to
the Ashantees. This action was decisive, for the enemy, defeated at all
points, fled precipitately to the Volta, leaving, as it is said, 100,000
men upon the field, between killed and prisoners. Two tributary kings
fell alive into the hands of the Ashantees, and one, the king of Ghofan,
(a Moslem) breathed his last in the Ashantee camp, after witnessing the
slaughter of all his defenders. Amon Koitea, who commanded an army,
consisting of 50,000 men, gained infinite honour by a charge which
proved decisive in the fortune of the day. This defeat lead to the
occupation of a considerable territory, bordering the desert, which,
heretofore, belonged by a sort of feudal, yet a limited title, to the
Ashantee monarchy; although, in reality, its inhabitants enjoyed a state
of comparative independence.
A war with Gaman, called for distinction, the first Bontoko war of his
reign, again challenged the military genius of Sai Tooto Quamina. This,
however, was no more than a partial revolt of the people, who availing
themselves of an opportunity which they deemed favourable, transferred
their allegiance from the reigning prince, a tool of the court of
Coomassy, to the nephew of their late monarch, who had sought protection
of the sultan of Ghofan, the prince who lost his life on the desert
confines in the prosecution of his plan for subverting the government of
Ashantee. These commotions were, however, quickly suppressed, and the
vigour of the Ashantee councils (which, as the king says, never slumber)
gained the nation a more exalted character than it, perhaps, ever
enjoyed before. A profound peace of five years duration subsequently
fixed that character abroad, and created a flattering belief in other
powers, that at length the empire was controuled by more moderate
principles. What greatly contributed to the national satisfaction, was
the arrival of ambassadors at Coomassy from Abomey, Salgha, and Yandy,
bearing honourable presents, and congratulatory messages to the young
Sai, whose alliance was courted by all the powers of Ghunja and Dagomba.
This calm, hitherto unprecedented in duration, might have lasted if the
king’s word may be taken for it, to the end of his reign; but for the
secret passions of unjust men, who fanned the flame of war, and nurtured
discord into open rebellion against his authority, by arming the people
and exciting them to hostility against his person. Remonstrance served
only to confirm their assurance and augment their audacity, for when he
sent honourable tokens of his esteem to the chiefs, recommending them to
keep the peace, they killed his messengers, and bade open defiance to
his authority.[116]
The memory of Meredith, the author of an “Account of the Gold Coast of
Africa,” justly claims a tribute from my pen, for the candour with which
he describes the progress of the Ashantee war in Fantee. As long as
fidelity shall, in the public estimation, be superior to method and
studied language, this little book with all its blemishes,[117] (for
some indulgence may surely be extended to an author who, at his peril,
speculated a little conscientiously upon tender points of the service he
was engaged in,) will claim a proportionate rank with Bosman, the only
other author I know of who has written honestly of that part of the
world, as became a modest and an honorable historian.
The great movement of the Ashantees southward, as related to me by the
king himself, and which was confirmed by the Moslems, who participated
in the victories over the Fantees, and at Annamaboe, I shall briefly
describe, without robbing Mr. Meredith of his own words.
Assin, at the accession of the reigning monarch, enjoyed profound
tranquillity, under the government of three chiefs of that nation,
Cheboo, Apoutai, and Amoo; the two former ruling over the western, the
other over the eastern half of what once unitedly constituted a kingdom,
which, after the conquest effected by Sai Apoko about the year of the
Hejyra, 1146 or 1147, was torn thus asunder by the policy of that
prince, to induce a tractable submission to the court of Coomassy. The
great Sai Tooto, it is affirmed, forfeited his life in endeavouring to
bring to pass what his successor could only accomplish by the massacre
of thousands, and the expatriation of those tribes who were attached to
the ancient monarchy.
The grave of a distinguished caboceer, a subject of Amoo, was pillaged
of a quantity of gold by a near relation of Apoutai, who happened to be
present at the obsequies. This marauder fled during the night, and was
pursued by messengers, who, failing in their object, demanded
satisfaction at the house of Cheboo. The policy of that chief inclining
hostilely towards Amoo, the complainants were dismissed somewhat rudely,
with a message purporting that it was a tale of Amoo’s invention. The
messengers next proceeded to Coomassy, where they opened the business to
the king, who suspended judgment for several months, with the hope of
effecting an amicable negotiation, and reconciling the chiefs; but being
disappointed in his expectations he at last issued a decree, that the
relations of the deceased should be reimbursed by Apoutai, to the amount
of the property alledged to have been stolen. This chief happened to be
at Coomassy when the palaver was discussed, and availing himself of a
favourable opportunity, fled back to Assin, collecting his followers on
the route. Amoo, instigated perhaps by the court of Ashantee, resorted
to arms to enforce his claims; but after gaining one battle, was
defeated in a second, and compelled to fall back upon the frontiers of
his protector. Here, however, he took up a strong position, and defended
himself vigorously until succoured by a reinforcement: thus
strengthened, he once more took the field, transferring the war into the
heart of his enemy’s country, where he burned several large towns, and
defeated his adversaries in a pitched battle. Moderation, as the king
said, it was no longer incumbent upon him to observe, for he could not
remain a passive spectator of violence that tended to the destruction of
_his_ people by their own hands; but as he was still averse from using
coercion, he once more endeavoured to tranquillize the passions of the
belligerents, and bring them to a sense of their _duty_ to him, by
sending to each party a present of gold.
This expedient was but temporarily efficacious; other battles were
fought with alternate success; but Amoo had the prudence to subscribe to
the king’s authority, by again resuming his defensive position in the
hills of Moisy, and between that town and Doompassy, where some partial
skirmishing however took place, and in the interval messengers once more
arrived at both camps with presents of a golden hilted sword, an axe,
and a pike, plated with that metal, for each chieftain. The purport of
the message to Amoo was an injunction to break up his camp, and leave
the palaver as it stood, until the next Adai custom. That to Apoutai was
a requisition to keep the peace, and not molest Amoo during his homeward
march. But this chief, elated by his last victory, thought of nothing
but how to destroy an enemy whose situation appeared to him hopeless,
and who, in imagination, was already a captive; accordingly he
dissembled his policy, and signified acquiescence to the authority of
the king, by drawing off his troops. His opponent, confiding implicitly
in the truce, descended unhesitatingly into the plains, where he was
attacked so vigorously and so suddenly, that he could purchase his
safety only by a speedy flight, at the expence of the greater part of
his followers, who retreated as best they could, to the first Ashantee
town. This aggravation was a prelude to the massacre of the king’s
messengers, and a number of Ashantees and Moslems who were in the camp.
Some of these people were barbarously mutilated, and others suspended by
the feet or arms to trees, upon the frontiers of the province.
The king, justly irritated, now determined to wreak his vengeance upon
the authors and abettors of the injury; and accordingly he raised a
powerful army, with which he entered the Assin territory. But Cheboo and
Apoutai, terrified at last by the threatening calamity, fled together
towards the Praa, after making an ineffectual attempt to cover the towns
Ansah, Kikiwhary, &c. The first, called by way of distinction, the great
chastisement, happened between Ansah and Kikiwhary, where, after a
partial conflict, the chiefs and allies, (for some Fantees, as the king
affirms, were among the prisoners) were compelled to fall back upon the
Praa, and in the confusion attending a retrograde march, they were put
entirely to the rout, by an impetuous charge of their pursuers, who
chased their enemies to the opposite bank of the river. These events are
recorded in many popular songs and traditions, according to which it
would seem the Ashantees destroyed thirty thousand of their adversaries.
The fugitive chiefs, however, escaped this time, and the Fantees
received them with open arms, promising, that as their interests were
linked in one chain, they would exert their whole power to protect them.
The king, anxious to gain possession of his enemies by a friendly
overture to the Fantee chiefs, deputed messengers to Akoom, the caboceer
of Assekomah, a Fantee province that preserved connexions and some
shadow of allegiance to the sovereign of Ashantee, requiring that Cheboo
and Apoutai might be given up to him. The present of the king on this
occasion was twenty ounces of gold, an umbrella, and fifteen slaves.
These articles were accepted, but the council of Abrah rejected the
monarch’s solicitation, neither would the Fantees, although repeatedly
invited, send deputies to the royal camp, to assist in discussing the
palaver, when the king proposed to settle the differences by a legal
investigation, permitting the Fantees to have a voice in his own
councils. Hereupon the Ashantee ultimatum contained a demand to march
through Fantee in pursuit of the relic of the Assin army; and, as it was
perhaps foreseen, the messengers were rewarded for their temerity by a
course of barbarous torture, and finally, their bodies were cut open,
and stuffed with a preparation of salt and malagueta pepper.
The king, gaining no intelligence of his messengers, ordered the army to
advance under Ado Matta and Aby Dougah. These chieftains, with very
little loss to themselves, defeated an united force of Assins and
Fantees upon the frontiers, and the two distinguished fugitives were
once more compelled to seek their safety in a precipitate retreat
through the forest, where they sheltered themselves for some days, and
to avoid being cut off fell back upon the main army which was then on
its march from Abrah. Another rencounter happened not long after between
the Ashantee advanced guard and the main body of Fantees, headed by
Cheeboo, Apoutai, and many Braffoe chiefs, whose prowess in war was the
characteristic of the dignity they enjoyed: but this engagement, like
the other, terminated in the disgrace and ruin of the Fantees, who seem
to have had no conduct whatever in the field, at least against a
resolute enemy. The king arrived upon the ground in time to support the
van of his army, and, by a judicious manœuvre, decided what little
chance the Fantees might have enjoyed by a charge in flank, that cast
his enemies into a panic, and left him undisputed master of the field.
The rout was again general, some fled tumultuously towards Abrah, and
others to the sea side, Cheboo himself setting the example.
In this stage of the war Apoutai made overtures of peace which savoured
more of art than sincerity, promising to deliver up hostages for his
future allegiance, upon condition that the king would take upon himself
the payment of certain debts which had been contracted during the war,
and swear by his great oath not to disinherit him hereafter of his
stool. All this the king agreed to, and in token of a perfect
reconciliation, again sent presents to Cheboo and Apoutai. The latter
received thirty ounces of gold, some slaves, and a large quantity of
provision for the subsistence of his followers. To the former was
delivered an equal quantity of gold, and a number of Fantee prisoners of
war. But, unaccountable as it may seem to those who are unacquainted
with the force of the passions in Africa, the king’s messengers again
experienced the fate of their predecessors, and the Braffoes, it is
said, boasted of devouring their hearts in a state of palpitation.
The heads of these hapless men were struck off, and, in frolicsome
aggravation, the carcases were suspended from the boughs of trees, and
the mouths of the victims being stuffed full of excrement, the heads
were placed in regular succession along the path where it was known the
Ashantees would advance. After this act of brutality the Assins and
Fantees thought proper to decamp to the southward, for still the chiefs
were emboldened, by an opinion that the king would not choose to risk a
campaign among the large towns, and particularly those seated under the
guns of the British and Dutch forts. But in this speculation they were
woefully deceived, for whatever might have been the early policy of the
Ashantee councils, the late indignity practised upon the king, wound
that monarch up to a pitch of phrenzy, and he vowed by his redoubted
oath he would never sheath the sword nor return to his capital, without
the heads of Cheboo and Apoutai. The war henceforth assumed the sternest
features, even of African hostility. The utter extermination of the
Fantees was contemplated, and orders were issued to spare neither the
aged nor young children; but both sexes, and all ages were for a time
doomed to expire by the sword and the musquet, or in the flames of their
houses. The avidity with which the Ashantees thirsted, as they called
it, after perjured blood, the mouldering ruins, the solitude, and
desolate plantations of Fantee, but too plainly indicate at the present
hour. Many of the inhabitants fled at an early stage of the conflict.
Some chose to remain, in the presumptuous confidence of destroying, or
witnessing the destruction of the king’s army, and participating in the
spoil: and others, including the slaves, and those who may be termed
fortune hunters, associated in marauding bands, plundering and murdering
both friend and foe, indiscriminately. This feint of resolution was,
however, but of short duration, for the king advanced rapidly, taking
town after town, without encountering any serious obstacle,[118] until
he approached Abrah and Emperou, although several skirmishing
engagements and one or two severe but partial conflicts, happened on the
route. The aggregate of the enemy’s loss was incalculable, for literally
none were left alive in the rear. Atia, the chief Caboceer of Abrah (the
capital of Fantee), was a prisoner at head quarters, and every overture
made for his ransom was rejected. The Braffoe tribe (like the Shorfa
among the Moslems) was a particular object of the king’s vengeance, and
accordingly they suffered the severest effects of his power.
The few who escaped the destruction of the capital (for that fell to the
conqueror after a battle, or rather slaughter, of the most sanguinary
character) fled to Annamaboe, then the largest city upon this part of
the coast. Thither also Cheboo and Apoutai fled, and the king, nothing
relaxing from the rigour of his oath, pursued the retreating forces with
one-half of his army, while the other was employed in razing the towns,
and exterminating every living soul they met with; for none, by the
monarch’s own confession, were at that time received as prisoners,
except a few Caboceers of the first rank, who were doomed to expiate
their offences in the capital, that the people might also participate in
the exultation of the army.
The military policy of an African government, is conspicuous in the
cabinet maxim of Ashantee, during the war with Fantee. It may in some
degree be assimilated to the modern tactics of recent introduction to
Europe, by which the armies of France, under their late leader, pursued
a direct object, however remote, with that celerity which frequently
guaranteed its own success, and leaving half the war behind, terminated
the campaign by a single blow at head quarters. The only material
difference existed in those horrid butcheries practised by the Africans,
who, (unprovided with that efficient force calculated to overawe the
frontiers of an enemy, and check the population of towns, where every
man by habit and education is trained to war) are instinctively taught
to exterminate their enemies as a precaution necessary to their own
safety, in victory or defeat. The African will rarely be persuaded to
leave an enemy in the rear of his army. If he be a merciful invader, it
is usual for him to put to death those, only, who may be captured in
arms. The population of towns must, nevertheless, be translated to a
spot of security, and sometimes their houses razed to the foundation,
while the invader’s aim is unremittingly rivetted upon the seat of
government. By this policy, the subversion of a powerful state is
frequently accomplished, by what is figuratively termed a handful of
men; and the prisoners become hostages, and in some degree responsible
for the aggravations that may follow.
In the Fantee war, the exasperated feelings of the king would not allow
him to tread the path of mercy; hence the other alternative of
sacrificing the population to his own security, was resorted to.
Acoom, the Caboceer before mentioned, who preserved some shadow of
respect, or allegiance to the king, was taken into protection; but by an
act of treachery, in which he sold a thousand or twelve hundred
Ashantees to the slave dealers upon the coast, he forfeited that favour,
and was shortly after defeated by the royal forces, who compelled him to
abandon to their fate the wreck of his little army.
The Ashantees, after destroying Abrah and Emperou, moved to the coast,
from which they were now distant a march only. Cheboo and Apoutai,
not caring to trust their persons to the defence of the Annamaboes,
again fled, in time to secure their retreat, with six or seven hundred
followers, upon Cape Coast, where they had been invited to sojourn by
the natives themselves, who introduced these unfortunate men to the
acquaintance of governor Torrane; from whom they received _assurances
of protection either by mediation or force of arms_. In the meantime
the viceroy, or king of Dinkra, leading on the advanced guard, first
gained sight of the sea in the neighbourhood of Cormantine, where he
not only destroyed the town, but took possession of the Dutch fort.
There the Annamaboes had hitherto vainly boasted that their enemies
would never gain sight of the sea, and this success, as it seems,
gave the governor the first uneasy impression,[119] for he instructed
Mr. White, then governor of Annamaboe Fort, to send a message to the
commander of that division, _requiring to know what could have induced
the king to march his armies to the coast_. The king of Dinkra, as I
was told at court, mistook the purport of the governor’s message for
a specious pretext to gain time, or obtain by policy what arms could
never accomplish,—“chaffing,” as it is called in the enlightened age
in which we live,—and the chief’s reply, that when the governor would
send _him twenty barrels of powder and one hundred musquets_, he should
be told what the king’s designs were, savoured as strongly of the same
tortuous system of perversion; for the Ashantees are not a shade behind
ourselves in consulting that primary feeling in every man of honour,
the preservation of the dignity conferred upon him by nature and rank.
It was in vain to shew the return messengers the destructive power of
artillery, as that brave gentleman, Mr. White, humanely did, in hopes of
averting the approaching tempest from the town. The whites were ignorant
of the king’s force, and as Mr. Meredith justly observes, “had but an
imperfect idea of the bravery and intrepidity of the Ashantees; for it
was supposed they were like the natives of the coast, who cannot stand
against a regular fire: and often conceal themselves in holes during an
engagement. It was little imagined that the courage of these people
would carry them to the very muzzles of the cannon,” &c.
The governor’s message met with no attention at head quarters, and the
king on a sudden made his appearance at the back of Annamaboe, whither
the infatuated natives had drawn out their force to meet the invader.
The usual skirmishing battle took place; the Fantees were driven in with
great slaughter, and the enemy entered the town pell-mell in pursuit.
The fort was already crowded with as many women as it would contain, and
whole troops of the sex, beside children and aged men, took their
station under the ramparts, where the guns afforded them a feeble
protection, and that but momentary. I am justified in using the term
feeble, for these unfortunate people, in defiance of the fire of the
garrison, were every one carried off or inhumanly butchered upon the
spot,[120] and the fire became so hot as the Ashantees advanced towards
the beach, that not a man, _white_ or _black_, could stand at the
embrasure, or shew his head above the ramparts:—neither was it
practicable to work the great guns any more, without the certainty of
being picked off by the enemy, who surrounded the fortification on every
side, within the distance of half pistol shot. As to the Fantees, who
fired without taking aim, they were already dead, or dispersed, and the
enemy prowled in mixed groups among the ruins, some seeking for plunder,
and others glutting their revenge by cutting and mutilating their
victims, or severing the heads and legs from the bodies of the slain,
and slicing the flesh and sinews from off the bones, in order to convert
them to drum pegs and whistles; and the lower jaws and teeth, to
ornamental trophies, and necklaces. In this state of consternation and
distress, the utmost the little garrison could do, was to defend their
gate, which the Ashantees endeavoured to force or fire. The governor,
and two or three others, were disabled by wounds; two men were killed,
and the remainder of the garrison sought refuge in the two little
bastions on the west, that flank the approach to the gate; here they
laid themselves prostrate, to avoid the enemy’s shot and arrows, and
from time to time repelled, with musquets only, the most intrepid of the
assailants who attempted to force an entrance below.
The king assured me that it was no part of his plan to attack the
castle, and even after the guns had been turned against him, he would
willingly have negotiated, if any serious overtures had been made; and
in this expectation he refrained, during the remainder of the day, from
carrying matters to extremity against the whites; whereas the castle he
knew, was at his mercy, and had not the white flag been lowered the next
morning, he would, by the help of his gods, have seated himself in the
governor’s chair. To pursue the confession, it would seem that
dispositions had been made during the night, and the army had received
orders to hold themselves in readiness for an assault on _the following
day_, when orders came down from Cape Coast Castle to display a flag of
truce. This emblem of peace, which was just in time to prevent an
assault that foreboded the last calamity, was hailed with repeated
acclamations, and the king gave every assurance that he was pacifically
disposed. “My enemies,” replied his majesty to the deputation who waited
upon him, “are the Assins and Fantees; and I have now pretty well
assuaged my anger against them.”
Governor Torrane, in his public letter of the 18th June, 1807, _designed
for the king’s hearing_, palliated his conduct by saying, that
notwithstanding the steps he had taken _to give protection_ to the
Fantees, he had ever held him (the king) in the highest respect, and
that had he seen any messenger from him, antecedent to the attack on
Annamaboe, it was his opinion the blow would have been avoided _in that
quarter_.[121]
The king listened to every thing that was reported, with that cautious
reserve belonging to the councils of his nation when roused to
hostility; but as his majesty required ocular demonstration of the
sincerity of white men’s professions, and as it was not convenient to
that monarch to meet the governor at Cape Coast, it was politely
insinuated that the latter should visit the camp at Annamaboe.
The ill-fated Princes of Assin had lived some time at Cape Coast, under
the protection, as they had been given to understand, of the governor’s
negotiating talents, and the faith of the African company, pledged by
their head servant. Their personal security was, however, but a
transient delusion; for although the natives of Cape Coast at first
resisted the overtures of the governor to give up their guests, they
were finally prevailed upon, by the impending danger, to relinquish
their defence, and the governor, unsolicited by the king, insinuated an
armed force into their houses, and seized, not without resistance, the
person of Cheboo, whom he consigned to the little mercy his enemies were
in the habit of displaying. Apoutai, by the vigour of his defenders,
made good a retreat, and once more shone in arms in distant warfare. But
his coadjutor was sent as a present to the king, to serve for the basis
of a treaty and an introduction, to give the colouring of sincerity at
the meditated interview: and this man, after suffering tortures and
indignities the most exquisite, was compelled to resign his head as a
trophy for the king’s death horn, which is its decoration at this day.
This policy, cruel as it was, procured governor Torrane an honourable
reception, when he subsequently waited upon the king in his camp at
Annamaboe. The latter confessed to me that if he had been inclined to
visit Cape Coast, his army would not have been restrained from following
his steps, and as mercy had been solicited for those people, he did not
wish to bring upon them any calamity their imprudence might give rise
to.
The treaty of peace was a formal and a solemn acknowledgment on the part
of the governor, that by right of conquest Fantee, including _Cape Coast
and every other town in the neighbourhood, belonged exclusively to the
empire of Ashantee_, with the reservation of a judicial authority to the
company over such towns as stood in the vicinity of any of the castles;
and in confirmation or ratification of these terms, the governor
expressly admitted the king’s title to those deeds, called notes, upon
which he paid him the arrears then due, and a tribute, called perhaps a
present, which was demanded of the Cape Coast people.
The feelings of the monarch, by his own reiterated confessions, were
overpowered by the _handsome_ behaviour of this officer, when he sallied
out to meet him.[122]
When the preliminary discussions took place, the king urged his right to
dispose of the prisoners as he might think proper. All disputations
proving ineffectual to move a conqueror’s title, the terms of agreement
were acceded to, by which, if the most credible witnesses are to be
believed, some of the refugees who had availed themselves of the
protection afforded by the fort, were consigned, together with a
proportion of the relic of butchery, to slavery. A certain portion of
the prey are said to have been accepted by the governor, for the
purpose, it is to be hoped, of restoring them to their families, and not
that he might pocket the emoluments arising from their sale into
bondage; nevertheless, many or most of these wretched creatures, found
their way eventually to the West India plantations, where they or their
posterity may still drag on the chains of slavery.
The last military act of the government of Ashantee, previous to my
mission, was the invasion of Gaman in the year 1819, the defeat and
death of its sovereign, and the annexation of that kingdom to Ashantee
as a province, in lieu of the tributary rank it enjoyed before.
Torrane, whose name it delighted the king to hear, was a man like
Daendals, who, if properly supported, would have created empire in
Africa: of his moral qualifications, I may say in the words of Horace:—
· · · · · · · Omnisenim res,
Virtus, fama, decus, divina humanaque, pulcris
Divitiis parent; quas qui contruxerit, ille
Clarus erit, fortis, justus—Sapiens ne? Etiam et rex,
Et quidquid volet. · · · · ·
[Illustration: Military Weapons of the Ashantees.]
[Footnote 101: It is worthy of remark, that many of the whites upon the
gold coast so far acquiesced in these sentiments, as to admit that
Ashantee has never been engaged in war with the maritime states from
sheer caprice and rapacity. I may also be permitted to quote Mr.
Mollan’s words to me, “that he never knew the king to make a palaver
without cause, or violate his word.”]
[Footnote 102: After the decisive battle which preceded the conquest of
Dinkira, the body of the deceased Boshanty (Bosiante) was disinterred.
The flesh being separated from the bones, the former with barbarous
indignity, was given to be devoured by serpents, and the latter (the
scull and thigh bones) preserved as trophies.]
[Footnote 103: The Benda is two ounces weight.]
[Footnote 104: These notes, or title-deeds, convey an obligation on the
part of the late African Company, to pay to the chiefs to whom they were
delivered a certain annual sum, by way of rent for the ground upon which
the settlements stand. At least, it cannot be denied that this was the
original import of the deeds in question, for the object was to purchase
security of person and property, by attaching the leading characters of
the country to the British interest, while yet in its infancy. Mr.
Bowdich, _upon his own testimony_, “laments the mortifying destruction
of European records, by which he is confined to follow the reports of
natives,” on the subject of the notes in question. Whether this author
felt that his own dignity was implicated, is not material. But had he
candidly said, these feudal bonds, (for such they unquestionably are,)
disgrace my country, and, (in the language of the king of Ashantee) put
shame upon my face at the court of Coomassy, that the honour of my
sovereign and the flag of the nation should be so degraded in the
estimation of the lower classes of society, as to pay an indirect
tribute, he would have spoken the language of zeal and honour.]
[Footnote 105: Or the prince elective, for the Ashantees are not over
scrupulous provided he is of the blood royal.]
[Footnote 106: The prevalence of this opinion among the Moslems in
general, coupled with my own observations upon the Negro character,
almost warrant the assertion positively, that the latter from innate
causes are incompetent to spread into a large consolidated monarchy,
such as we see in Asia, the northern parts of Africa and Europe.
Notwithstanding the ambition of Negro princes, stimulated by that of
their captains, is certainly more conspicuous, and perhaps more volatile
in the path of life, than sovereigns of the northern zone are accustomed
to feel; the latter contenting themselves, for the most part, with
preserving their estates inviolable from foreign encroachment, and their
kingly prerogatives from innovations attempted by the subject; while the
former, we see, impelled by an inordinate thirst after power and wealth,
wherever they may be acquired, and at whatever expence; consult nothing
upon the casualties of war; but eagerly stake their crowns, their lives,
and what is religiously of greater importance to them, the insult their
relics are subject to, upon the issue of a single battle. This contrary
action of the passions incidental to man, and the propensities of our
nature is, doubtless, affected, however remotely, by the operation of a
moral law, which in countries where it prevails, serves the subject as a
standard, by which he may lawfully weigh the actions of a prince,
although he may not under all governments be permitted to pass judgment
upon them _viva voce_.]
[Footnote 107: Suicide is very prevalent in the Negro states; but its
complexion is materially different from the horrors so called in Europe.
It is put into practice chiefly by men of rank, who are solicitous to
preserve their remains from the brutal insults of their enemies; for
which reason a retired thicket is usually selected, or they blow
themselves to atoms, by confined powder; or procure a faithful slave, or
their children, to destroy them, and inter their bodies in secret.
Another description of suicide is when a man deprives himself of life in
revenge against an opponent, while any matter where justice is concerned
may be pending: in this case, the party is said to have killed himself
upon the head of his oppressor, who seldom escapes the retaliation of
the law without a pecuniary fine to the state, and other disbursements
among the courtiers. The third class of suicide is totally different
from either of the foregoing, from its connexion with the religious or
superstitious belief of the people; as when the priests ordain that a
sacrifice, voluntary or involuntary, is incumbent upon an individual,
who may have incurred their displeasure, (the displeasure of the gods or
fetische, as they term it,) or whose wealth may have fired their
avarice. These victims of blind bigotry go singing and dancing into the
grave, for when their doom is sealed, they habit themselves in their
best attire, and adorn their persons with pieces of sacred gold,
chaunting their own dirges, and dancing about for several days, previous
to the appointed one of self sacrifice; or as it is usually called,
making their own custom.]
[Footnote 108: It is worthy of remark, that the Ashantees are as
superstitiously affected by birds, as the Greeks and Romans were in
former ages.]
[Footnote 109: The Ashantees are firmly persuaded, that the ghosts of
the departed are suffered to revisit the earth, and brood over the
actions of their families and kindred. If due oblations are made to
these shades, it is imagined they will intercede with the deities to
render the lives of their progeny happy and prosperous. Some imagine
these spectres to be employed, as witnesses, over the actions of the
living, and that every new moon they report their knowledge to the gods.
Others believe as the Koran teaches, that the witnesses who are to bear
evidence against the conduct of the wicked are the shadows of their own
bodies while living.]
[Footnote 110: This is one of the wars religiously deplored by the
Moslems, for they were in this instance compelled to fight in the ranks
of the heathens, against their brethren in faith who espoused the
interest of Gaman.]
[Footnote 111: Several messages of this formal complexion have been
exchanged between the two courts; but this in particular, as the Moslems
relate, was the second _embassy_,—the first being in the reign of Sai
Tooto. They suppose, and perhaps justly, that the sultan of Dogho,
disappointed of the Dahoman councils that conduced to the war on the
Volta, in the late reign, and hearing continual reports of the growing
power of Ashantee, was anxious to reconcile the wounded feelings of that
court, from an apprehension that the government would not neglect the
opportunity, at a period of tranquillity, for carrying the war into the
Dahoman territory, where the result of victory or defeat might equally
operate in checking his own influence upon the sea-coast, and at all
events deprive him of a share of the revenue he annually derives from
that maritime kingdom.]
[Footnote 112: During the recent war of Gaman, Kong, &c. against
Ashantee, the Cape Coast people, because they wished it, gave out a
similar report, aggravated by a circumstantial account of the manner in
which they had been informed that the sovereign of Ashantee had fallen
in a great battle, wherein the Ashantees were cut up to a man.]
[Footnote 113: Mr. Bowdich says a few weeks, but upon what authority is
unknown to me, for the Ashantees contradict his statement.]
[Footnote 114: The king, in conversing upon the topic of the Fantee
tribes, invariably said, they were the most despicable people in his
dominions, or that any of his ancestors ever triumphed over in their
days. “I could forgive them for being insolent,” said the monarch, on
one occasion; “if they were capable of facing me in battle, like the
Bontoko tribes; for then, however angry I might be, I should respect
them as men, and when the war was over I should love them as I do other
people: but the Fantees are like women, who quarrel with their tongues
only; and if they are corrected, they shed tears to excite compassion.”
The Caboceers, the commonalty, and in short all sects and classes of
people, entertained no other sentiments than those of the last degree of
contempt for the Fantee nation; while no one withheld his tribute of
admiration from the Bontokos. The tribes of Banna, Bouromy, Akim, and
Quahou enjoy proportionate reputations for valour.]
[Footnote 115: It is worthy of reflection, that the doctrine taught by
Mohammed is, in leading matters of faith, congenial to the feeling, the
prejudices, and passions, of most African tribes. The Ashantees without
knowing the contents of the Koran, are equally persuaded that it is a
volume of divine creation, and consequently that it contains ordinances
and prohibitions, which are most congenial to the happiness of mankind
in general. It may be that the Moslems sedulously inculcate a prejudice
which operates so greatly to their own prosperity in heathen countries;
for their lives and property are secure to them only in relation to the
faith they profess. The African, however, laments his ignorance of the
art of writing, with more ostentation than sincerity; for he boasts at
the same time that his gods like to be served with vigor and activity in
the field, rather than by prayer and actions such as we term moral; and
which belong as a form of worship to the great God only, whom they
regard as a Being more intimately attached to the whites than
themselves, although not exclusively so, for they allow that the gods of
Africa are his subordinate agents.]
[Footnote 116: This sketch of history relating to a period when Ashantee
was scarcely known to us, even as an inland nation, was related by the
Bashaw, Aboubecr, Kantoma, and some others. Its interest may be trifling
with the public, for it is confessedly a plain narrative, designed to
shew the progressive aggrandizement of the empire, and its influence
over the Moslem powers.]
[Footnote 117: I shall consider an apology for excluding the last
section of Meredith’s book from sharing in the panegyric as unnecessary,
for I am greatly of opinion that what passes under the title of “A short
History of the African Company,” was never written by that author. The
political influence designed in that narrative sufficiently betrays the
source from whence it emanated. Setting aside its ostensible object for
appeasing the public mind, and reconciling the government to a
continuance of ministerial or parliamentary favour, I believe it may
rank in fidelity with other parts of that work.]
[Footnote 118: From the observations I have made upon the genius of the
two nations, there is nearly as much disproportion in force between the
Ashantees and Fantees as between an organized European force and an
undisciplined body of rioters. The Ashantees are trained to firing with
celerity, as we ourselves use the musquet; their manœuvres are rapid,
orderly, and uniform, and their other military tactics, which it would
seem have been borrowed from those of Europe, are ably seconded by a
propensity to war, and a natural bravery that is not excelled by any
nation upon earth. The Fantees, on the contrary, display no skill in
military evolutions, unless we should take into account the uncouth and
disorderly antics they practise in the field; and for the use they make
of the musquet, I am fully convinced their old weapons, bows and arrows,
would be equally and perhaps more efficacious in defending their persons
against the assaults of their enemies; for as if the recoil of the piece
were capable of inflicting a wound, they sedulously hold the weapon at a
distance, and discharge its contents at the elevation of a few feet from
the ground, without taking aim.]
[Footnote 119: The conduct of governor Torrane in not endeavouring to
negotiate or mediate with the king on behalf of the people, before the
destruction of Abrah, and the total extinction of the Braffoes, was
certainly blameable; but after that event had occurred, to leave matters
to the issue of another battle, where the people wanted both courage and
conduct to defend themselves, was deserving of a high degree of censure;
for indeed the promise of his support, inadequate as it was to effect
the smallest impression beyond the reach of the cannon of the forts,
alone encouraged that puerile and fatal obstinacy which led to the
massacre of so many thousands of misguided victims, even under the walls
of Annamaboe, a fort which, from the extraordinary disbursement its
erection cost the British government, has been represented as the
bulwark and the “_sine quâ non_” of African fortifications.]
[Footnote 120: These are the words of Meredith:—“The Annamaboes
conceived that with the aid of their canoes and their knowledge of
swimming, they would be able to escape; but they were pursued too
closely by the Ashantees, whose fury appeared insatiable; men, women and
children were followed by indiscriminate destruction in defiance of the
efforts of the garrison,” &c.—p. 141.]
[Footnote 121: This affected recrimination (for surely no milder epithet
could be bestowed upon it) was doubtless calculated to meet its object
in England. Colonel, or Mr. Torrane, was confessedly a man of greater
talents and education than any of his successors, or, for aught I know
to the contrary, his predecessors; and it is evident he saw his
political errors when it was too late to negotiate upon terms strictly
suitable to the honour of his country and the dignity of the British
flag. Admitting that this officer did not know that the united Fantee
forces were incompetent to check the incursion of the enemy, will any
man doubt that he did not know his own incapacity to do so; and since
his policy, ostensibly or virtually, might incline to support the
Fantees and protect them, did not the active part of the business, war,
or negotiation, belong entirely to himself? Would it not,—since his
judgment had failed or been outwitted, would it not have been more
humane, more honourable to himself and his country, to have turned his
guests (Cheboo and Apoutai) into the forest, to provide for their own
security? Surely even the king in his heart would have applauded the
act.]
[Footnote 122: From the hour governor Torrane delivered up Cheboo, said
the king one day to me, I took the English for my friends, because I saw
their object was trade only, and they did not care for the people.
Torrane was a man of sense, and he pleased me much. He gave me these
presents (shewing a trunk containing various articles of value). Mr.
White was also a man of sense, and a brave man; but Mr. Smith, said the
monarch, rising from his seat, is contem or contempo, (a weak vain
boaster), I think he learned all he knows of the Fantees, as white men
read books and learn better things.]
[Illustration: A MAP _OF_ WANGARA
_It’s political Sections, Ancient & Modern, the courses of it’s Rivers,
& the Routes from Ashantee to the Jolliba, Ghulby and Koara Rivers,
compiled from Manuscripts and other information collected at Coomassy
during a Mission to that Kingdom. By J. Dupuis Consul._
A MAP _OF_ SOUDAN
_Compiled from Manuscripts and Information obtained at Coomassy of the
Courses of the Rivers, and of the central Regions of Africa; Their
bearing from Ashantee and distance, according to the reported Journies
of Days Marches &c. By J. Dupuis, Consul._]
PART II.
ON THE GEOGRAPHY OF WESTERN AFRICA.
CHAPTER VIII.
WANGARA.
CREDIBILITY OF INFORMATION OBTAINED FROM THE MOSLEMS OF GUINEA —
CHARACTER OF THE RELIGION OF ISLAM — ANECDOTE OF THE KHALIFA OMAR —
ANECDOTE OF MULAI SOLIMAN, EMPEROR OF MOROCCO — VINDICATION OF THE
CHARACTER OF THE MOSLEMS OF ASHANTEE — THEIR CORRESPONDENCE WITH THE
AUTHOR — REMARKS ON THE MISSION FROM CAPE COAST CASTLE, IN 1817 —
TRAVELS OF THE MOSLEMS — AUTHORITIES, AND EXPLANATION OF THE MAP OF
WANGARA — REMARKS ON THE GEOGRAPHICAL STATEMENTS PUBLISHED BY MR.
BOWDICH, RELATING TO THE COURSES OF THE NIGER — ON THE VARIOUS DISTANCES
DENOMINATED A DAY’S JOURNEY — ENUMERATION OF ERRORS IN MR. BOWDICH’S
SYSTEM OF THE GEOGRAPHY OF AFRICA — GEOGRAPHICAL DESCRIPTION OF
ASHANTEE; ITS ROADS, PATHS, TOWNS, RIVERS, LAKES, &c. — WANGARA — COURSE
OF THE NIGER — THE ASWADA — THE LOGOS — GREAT LAKE OF AYOH — RIVER OF
BENIN — EMPIRE OF ZOGHO — YARRABA — RAPID CHANGES IN THE POLITICAL
DIVISIONS OF AFRICA — HAOUSSA — RELATIVE SITUATION OF THE MOSLEMS AND
HEATHENS — PROTECTION NECESSARY FOR TRAVELLING IN THE INTERIOR — GREAT
DIVISIONS OF WANGARA — ENKASY — GHOFAN — YANDY — ABOMEY — EASTERN
DISTRICTS OF WANGARA — HORSES, WEAPONS, &c. — BENIN — GAMAN — ROCK GOLD
AND GOLD DUST — MANUFACTURES IN GOLD — MOSLEM POPULATION IN ASHANTEE —
CHARACTER OF THE FANTEES.
An enquiry into the credibility of information derived through the
agency of Moslems, may perhaps be no uninteresting or unprofitable
introduction to this chapter; for in weighing this subject with due
attention, I conceive I have anticipated all that can be urged in
opposition to the testimony of native African travellers; by which
expression I mean Moslems; for as to the heathen Negroes, I have reason
to know that their fidelity as narrators or interpreters may be justly
suspected. In fact, their intellectual faculties, like those of savages
in general, although powerful in the emergencies of life, never stray
from the usual routine of human pursuits to explore unprofitable
mysteries; neither is it to be forgotten that a cautious scepticism is
necessary, where the secret interests or affections of men are to be
poised against the words to which their tongues may give utterance.
Although I do not submit my name to the reader, as guaranteeing the
veracity of the Moslems to whom I am indebted for the substance of these
remarks, yet I will take upon me to say, that I depend with as much
reliance upon the information I obtained through their means, as I
should on the testimony of any class of honourable men in Europe. And
why not? Are there not many standing authorities of literary renown,
whose writers were of that faith, and whose works are the rallying
points in Oriental literature, quoted moreover by the most respectable
in the classes of Christian authors of every nation? But as regards the
Moslems of Ashantee and interior Africa, it may be urged, they are some
degrees below the Arabs and northern Africans in the scale of
civilization and intellectual acquirements. Admitting, upon the general
average, that this is an undeniable truth, its effect is more than
counterbalanced by the advantage these Guinea tribes evidently possess,
in being more intimately acquainted with the land of their nativity, and
the countries through which they are in constant habits of travelling,
than the Arabs can possibly be. And these lands, be it remembered, are
situated precisely in that part of the African continent which is most
interesting to the geographical inquirer: for there the African maps of
the most modern construction exhibit naught to the eye, save a dreary
blank, here and there indeed broken upon by courses of rivers, positions
of mountains, and names of kingdoms, like the paucity of islands
scattered over the surface of its western ocean: but with this
difference, that many of the characteristics inland are either vaguely
marked down, or, what is even more to be lamented, their fidelity is in
no very remote degree associated with hypothetical criticism and
unsubstantiated axioms, gleaned from the testimony of authors of a very
early age, and who, in fact, never knew the central parts of this
mysterious continent, excepting through the reports of its natives.
Public curiosity, in short, finds nothing to feed upon that is
satisfactory, beside the bare outlines of this vast surface, with the
tracks of a few successful European explorers of our own times, among
whom the name of Park is deservedly pre-eminent; and that pre-eminence
is infinitely enhanced by a modesty of style almost unrivalled in modern
literature of that description, forming a strong contrast to the
unblushing pages of some authors, who vainly attempt to rival his fame
by egotism and a redundancy of words.
Moslems, of whatever nation, provided they have been initiated in the
doctrine they profess, are virtually men of knowledge, as they ought to
be men of honour and probity; and the educated negro is with justice
esteemed upon a par with other professors of the faith, whether from
Cairo, Medina, or the sacred city itself. The Koran, wherein the
prerogatives of all men concentrate as within a focus, was, morally
speaking, conceived in the true spirit of benevolence, whereby every
professor of that religion, however abject his condition in life may be,
is strictly upon terms of equality with his neighbour, as the law
instructs in civil and religious matters. This fascinating maxim, from
which the balm of consolation oozed into the breasts of the afflicted
idolaters of subordinate ranks, enticed a willing audience among the
lowly and oppressed, such as most of the inferior tribes of Arabs were
before the chapters were revealed, or the new law formally promulgated.
Indeed, the Moslems themselves do not hesitate to admit a truth, which,
in point of fact, may be traced through every page of the Koran,
although lurking under the mask of religion; namely, that Mohammed
raised the oppressed against their oppressors; or, in a political
retrospect, planned a revolution in the morals of men, upon the
prevailing principle of action whereby ordinary innovators are
actuated—by winning to his interest those who laboured under real or
imaginary grievances, and by their agency sapping the edifice which
prescribed limits to the several classes of society, and obedience where
it was due.[123]
What I have already advanced on the subject of “Islamism,” (for I
consider it to be by no means irrelevant to explain its impression) may
be still more essentially elucidated, so that the reader may be
furnished with materials wherewith to establish an opinion of his own.
In the reign of Omar, the second Khalifa, about the Hejyran year twenty,
(according to the historian ben Shohnah) an Arab prince named Jiabalah,
chief of the Pagan tribe of Ghassanida, who wandered over the plains of
Syria, professed a desire to renounce idolatry. With that intention he
visited the court of Omar, to whom he did homage as his liege, and was
initiated in the law. The Khalifa, feeling an interest in the voluntary
sacrifice his guest had made, conceived a partiality for the prince, and
took him with him on the pilgrimage to Mecca, with intention to instruct
him in the rites and mysteries incumbent upon devotees. In running the
tour of the temple conformably to custom, it happened that a pilgrim of
ordinary rank took the prince by his sleeve and pulled him on one side,
in order to pass himself, at which incivility Jiabalah was so enraged
that he struck the intruder a violent blow; and, not satisfied with the
vengeance he had taken, continued a strain of vehement abuse, in which
he reproached the man with insolent conduct towards a person of his
quality. Omar, noticing the immoderate anger of the prince, and that he
reiterated menaces and ill usage against a man whom he had already
punished and turned out of the ranks, said to him, “Calm your
transports, otherwise I shall cause that man to return the blow you gave
him, for you ought to know that Islam has rendered you both equal; and
the prince and the slave, when in the exercise of their worship, or acts
of piety, such as the functions of the pilgrimage, are but as men equal
in all their prerogatives.” Jiabalah, stung to the quick by the words of
the Khalifa, conceived so great a disgust, that he promptly gave up his
newly adopted faith, and retired to Constantinople, where he became a
Christian.
A circumstance which occurred during my residence at the court of
Morocco, in the year 1811, is also illustrative of this point. The
Sultan Mulai Soliman, conformably to his usual practice, visited the
public mosque of Sidi Yousif on a certain Friday; but being a little
after time, the area was crowded with worshippers to the very portico.
It happened also, that the congregation were in the act of adoration,
(in a prostrate posture,) and the Sultan could barely find room for the
ceremony, by squeezing his body amidst a motley group who occupied the
threshold; and that with great inconvenience; for his head, in lieu of
touching the ground, repeatedly came in contact with the heels of a
slave, who occupied the space before him. This man, finding himself
molested, left off his devotion to enquire into the occasion of it, but
instantly recognizing the features of the sovereign, he started upon his
feet, and would have retired on one side, had he not been restrained by
the forcible grasp with which the Sultan held his hayk, and again
dragged him involuntarily into the posture he had quitted. When prayers
were over, Mulai Soliman desired the attendance of the slave’s master,
whom he reprimanded for not inculcating into the mind of his vassal a
true knowledge of the “law of God.” To the slave he said, “Mark these
words, which have a relation in common to the class you belong to:—on
the throne, in the palace, in the city, or in the field, you shall know
me for the sovereign commander of the faithful by day or night; but in
the Mosque, or at devotions, you shall not know me as what I am, neither
shall you know your own master, for before God the prince and the slave
are equal, and must meet judgment according to their several actions,
without distinction of rank.”
Thus the religion of Islam, as it is properly styled, wherever it
prevails, whether at the splendid courts of Constantinople, Delhi and
Morocco, or in the less ostentatious governments of interior Ethiopia,
is uniform, as well in practice as in its influence upon the minds of
men.
The Moslems of Ashantee, with whom I held communion, were for the most
part men of strong natural parts; all were more or less acquainted with
the doctrine of their prophet, and some, particularly the natives of
Salgha, Yandi, Kook, Nikky, and other parts of the north and east, were
men of education and talent, the majority equalling, perhaps, the
average population of the states of Morocco: for even there the
proportion may exceed ten to one against those who are capable of
expressing their thoughts by written characters. The fidelity and
pointed attention of these Guinea Moors, during my stay among them,
biassed me with a conviction of their sincerity, and thereby established
a mutual understanding and attachment; for when it was discovered that I
was acquainted with the language of their religion, my apartments became
the receptacle for all ranks of that faith, and figuratively speaking, I
was an idol to whom the daily congratulations were paid with an
exactitude and benignity not very unlike devotion.
This will seem strange to some of my readers who have perused the work
of Mr. Bowdich, wherein it appears they treated him with a scowling
inhospitable malignancy, arising from prejudices of a commercial nature.
The truth is, no such feeling ever existed, as far as my information
carried me at Coomassy; but I regret to say it is one of the many
instances abounding in that work, of egotism and hyperbole, assuming the
character of all the zeal and talent of the greatest hero that ever trod
the African plains. But dismissing the evidence of my own conviction of
facts coupled with the confessions of Moslems and idolators, it may be
only requisite to pass judgment agreeably to the author’s
acknowledgments. These men who treated him so unworthily, were, as it
appears in other pages, in habits of strict intimacy with the mission,
whereby reciprocal acts of courtesy were exchanged, and mutual visits
were paid. These men who wantonly insulted the dignity of his public
character, from rival jealousy of European influence in the commerce of
the country, were his daily companions, and they were the identical
parties who furnished him with such materials for his book as are really
deserving of credit. Yet this cordiality, the author would have it
appear, was the result of time and prudence. It were loss of time to
pursue the inquiry further; but as the characters of men may in some
degree gleam through their writings, I will yet trespass upon my
reader’s patience by inserting a few notes of correspondence that were
occasionally written to me by these Moslems, and which are still in my
keeping.
الحمد لله الذي جمل القلم لنا كلام متكلم وجعل قرطاس لنا رسول مرسلا بلد
الي بلد مكان الي مكان ذاك الحبيب اني عبدك يا سيدنا ومولاني &c. صوم
“Praise be unto God who created the use of the pen for conversation, and
who created paper that we may substitute letters for ambassadors, &c.
This (an enclosed MSS.) shews you the route from country to country, and
from place to place, written by your servant for his beloved friend,
master, &c.
(Signed) “Shouma.”
الحمد لله وحده هذا القلم اني يسمع اني جا اليك محبت والخير والكرمة والحب
بالله ورسوله سلم الي مني وسلم عليك يا سيدنا اي نتهن
“Glory is due to God alone. I comprehend what you have written. I hear
your words and return my love, blessing, and gratitude; and may the love
of God and his apostle in peace attend you. May peace dwell with you.
(properly my lord), &c. From me, &c.
(Signed) “Abou Becr ben Touri.”
الحمد لله وحده ثم الحمد لله جعل القلم لنا لسانا متكلم بين الحبيب والحبيب
وبين اخي واخوانه اشهدكم يا ملاكتي ربي اي مرني مسكن صاحب العباد كله وصاحب
السعد انه سعد في بطن امه انه شهد انه لا الله الا الله وان محمد رسول الله
دليله من بركر الر بلدنا فد وصل السعادته الي كل الخلابوبشهادة جماعة كله
وصاحبه الملك اشنتي سي كومن يقول سي ادي اسبي الله جعل الخير والرزم وسعد
بينهما صح صاحبي اصحب المسلمون طول الله عمرك مع الخير والسعد والدرجت مع
الحب الله والحب الناس صح
“Glory be unto God in unity. Be his holy name glorified for the powers
of speech, by which our tongues are made to converse with one loving
friend and another, and between a brother and his brethren. So I bear
witness to you, O ambassador of the great king, truly a benevolent
friend of the blacks of every nation, and a friend to the felicity (of
man) as happiness consists in fidelity, and therefore in sincerity I
bear witness that there is no other God than one God, and that Mohammed
is the Apostle of God. May this guide you in safety to your country, and
may you enjoy ample felicity to the full extent of my friendship; as
there is truth in this invocation, and that you are the friend of the
king of Ashantee, Sai Quamina, &c. &c. God Almighty shower down upon
them both (the king of England and the king of Ashantee) blessings and
abundance, and may he unite their hearts, and cement the friendship
between them permanently.
“My friend—friend of the Moslems, God prolong your life in the enjoyment
of his bounty and benevolence, and may you return again to us with the
love of God and the love of men in sincerity. Written by Mohammed,
commonly called Baba, the Moslem Bashaw of Coomassy.”
الحمل لله وحده ذاك مسكي اعطاه صاحبه وحبيبه قرطاس وقد وصل لنا ذاك جزاك
الله خيرا وطويل الله عمره وعظمه الله بعظمة كثيرامع العافية البدن وصحت
الجسام وحمده واشكره ويرجعك الله الي بلدك بالعافية والقدر صح[124]
“Glory be to God in unity. Kind friend thou didst give some paper to thy
loving friends, and the esteemed donation came to us in safety. May God
multiply his rewards, (may he) prolong thy life and raise thy greatness
to a high renown, with health and strength of body. Praise him therefore
in gratitude, and God will carry you back to your country in vigour, for
omnipotence belongs to him in truth.—From Abdallah ben Ghatta.”
This might suffice to prove the truth of the attachment of these people
personally, and to the interests of the mission, without going to
further quotations, as it is also evidence of a refinement in courtesy.
But it is due to candour and to the welfare of future travellers that I
should circumstantially exonerate this friendly sect from ungrateful
misrepresentation, by an open avowal that I found them disinterested in
their proffers of friendship, liberal to an excess in courtesy, and
staunch to their engagements, when their services, even from the hour I
became acquainted with them, were called for. Devoid of Arabian or
Turkish bigotry, they felt but a very remote interest in those anathemas
of the Koran levelled against Christians and Jews as enemies of the
faith: buried in the wilds of Ethiopia, they could listen passively to
the recitations of early times, when the roar of battles raged in the
north, and religious phrenzy desolated the Asiatic and African plains,
without feeling moved otherwise than by a transient effusion of
gratitude to the Almighty, for promulgating a law which taught them the
heinous offence of idolatry; whilst the religious inveteracy of the
Arabs against the name of Nazarene, or Roumi, they considered something
in the light of a national antipathy, with which locally they had
nothing to do, and which it was not incumbent on them to imbibe
themselves, or to instil into the minds of their children. In the
practice of devotion they were constant and apparently sincere, although
some of them violated the law of temperance, indulging by stealth in
spirituous liquors and palm wine. When taxed with the crime, they would
reply, “God pardon our offences, they are manifold; drinking strong
drinks we know is a relic of the days of ignorance, but it is a custom
of this country which we learn from our mothers.”
The Moslems of Coomassy and Salgha are nearly as jetty-complexioned as
the idolaters themselves; but many from the inland countries are, more
or less, as fair as the northernmost desert Arabs. As another instance
of deviation from the institutions of the Koran, and of which they also
give their mothers the credit, their faces and bodies are cut by
prolongated incisions, the object of which is to distinguish their
respective tribes or nations. The superstitious ceremonies of the Pagans
they deplore with sympathy, and the diabolical custom of offering human
victims for sacrifice they hold in just abhorrence; but still pity is
mingled with their indignation.
The Moslems are the only class of subjects belonging to the kingdom, who
are morally scrupulous in virtues such as we prize ourselves. This the
king is sensible of, and hence the attachment he evinces for the
professors of that faith, is at least politically sincere; but it must
be confessed also, that that monarch is somewhat religiously inclined
towards the followers of Mohammed from a reverential awe of the
universal God, the Father, according to his imagination, of the
creation, of every terrestrial deity, and of those invisible powers,
whose benign or malign actions agitate the world, and inspire the hearts
of men with good or evil propensities. Notwithstanding this sovereign
chuses to adhere faithfully to his Pagan rites in all their manifold
horrors and enormities, he does not neglect to supplicate the Moslems
for their prayers, particularly when oppressed with anxiety, when the
state council is convened on business of emergency, or when the national
priests or necromancers are unable to solve any problem to the
satisfaction of majesty. The talismanic charms fabricated by the
Moslems, it is well known, are esteemed efficacious, according to the
various powers they are supposed to possess; and here is a source of
great emolument, as the article is in public demand from the palace to
the slave’s hut; for every man (not by any means exempting the Moslems)
wears them strung round the neck, either in cases of gold, silver, or
the hairy hide of wild beasts, such as lions, tygers, monkeys,
elephants, sloths, &c. Some are accounted efficacious for the cure of
gunshot wounds, others for the thrust or laceration of steel weapons,
and the poisoned barbs of javelins, or arrows. Some, on the other hand,
are esteemed to possess the virtue of rendering the wearer invulnerable
in the field of battle, and hence are worn as a preservative against the
casualties of war. Besides this class of charms, they have other
cabalistical scraps for averting the evils of natural life: these may
also be subdivided into separate classes; some, for instance, are
specific nostrums in certain diseases of the human frame, some for their
prevention, and some are calculated either to ward off any impending
stroke of fortune, or to raise the proprietor to wealth, happiness and
distinction.
We are told, in Mr. Bowdich’s work, that he received ill-treatment at
Coomassy; a truth which cannot be denied: yet the Moslems had no share
in it, directly or indirectly. On the contrary, it appears by the
general testimony, they advocated the cause of the white men,
notwithstanding public opinion pronounced censure for the indecorous
precipitancy of the party in their conduct to the king, whose orders,
the author, according to his own confession, indignantly spurned at; and
thereby entailed upon himself and his associates a chastisement
humiliating to his personal feelings, and highly offensive to his
dignity, as a public functionary. In reference to this insult, according
to Mr. Bowdich’s statement, the king would not allow him to depart from
his capital on a certain Wednesday, but insisted that it should be the
Monday following, in opposition to every remonstrance: Mr. Bowdich, who
was equally inflexible, insisted upon the king’s compliance, or on
leaving Coomassy “without his approbation.” The king said, he might
break the law if he thought proper, and the other retorted, with a
slight qualification, “he would send for the treaty and tear it in
pieces before him.” The king, in disgust, no doubt, rose abruptly and
retired. In effect, the project was carried into execution that very
day; but the party had scarcely traversed fifty yards through the city,
ere the “gong gongs were beat, and a crowd of swords and musquets
attacked them (as the author expresses himself,) headed by the landlord
Aboidwee, who, in the first rush, seized both luggage and flag.” The
author then narrates a circumstantial account of a _battle_, during
which “his party were attacked with heavy swords and large stones,” and
this battle lasted near a quarter of an hour, although in the sequel it
is admitted that the party did not even draw their swords in self-
defence, or, what was even of primary consideration, in defence of the
proud flag which had been consigned to their vigilance and discretion,
when it was first ravished from their grasp. On the contrary, _the king_
was applied to for rescue from the _murderous_ weapons that flourished
over their heads, and which besides wounding “several of the party, had
well nigh cut short the thread of the narrative by an unmerciful blow
with a scimiter, which, being promptly fended off, only grazed the
author’s face.” This disaster, in the language of Mr. Bowdich, he
considers to have “perfected the impression of his spirit.” Waving this
momentous consideration, may it not be enquired if such a train of rash
proceedings, taking the author’s own words for it, were calculated to
perfect an impression of any thing more weighty? This, in substance, is
what is described in pages 136, 137, &c., of that Mission to Ashantee;
but which, as the affair was revealed to me by the king, by the
caboceers, by the Moslems, and lastly, by several Fantees who were in
the _engagement_, is materially inaccurate—I must say _falsely
embellished_ with incidents that never occurred. During my residence at
court, the king particularly enquired if the king of England was angry
at what had happened to Mr. Bowdich, when he attempted to go away
without permission. He confessed that he gave orders to stop him, but
not to ill use the white men; whereas “some of his people had beaten
them” (flogged was the term) “with sticks, because they would not obey
his last message to return until they discovered that he was serious.
When they were brought back to their house it made him very sorry for
what had occurred; but he was sorry also the white captain should tell
him before the caboceers, that he would go when he chose, for that was
not the custom of the country, nor was it proper.” The king’s
declaration accorded well with that of all ranks who witnessed the
transaction, and of my own servant Coffee, who was in Mr. Bowdich’s
employ at the time. No crowds of musquets, or other fire arms, no
swords, or other offensive weapons, save sticks, were resorted to during
this _engagement of a quarter of an hour’s durance_, and consequently
none were either killed or wounded in the action; but all, all is a
fabrication, if the testimony of above a hundred witnesses is to be
credited before the bare assertion of an individual. What did really
happen to the party was, however, sufficient to leave behind an
indelible stain upon the capacity of Mr. Bowdich as a _plenipotentiary_,
and privately, perhaps I am justified in saying, as a man of mature
understanding. On the other hand, it would be silly to suppose that the
author’s intemperate language, or the misfortune that befel him, were at
all adapted to raise the national reputation of Englishmen; for what he
arrogantly refused the king in full court, he was ultimately induced to
comply with in the midst of public and private insult.[125]
The Moslems who are to be found in Coomassy, are either natives born in
the north-eastern districts, bordering the Volta river, or they are
subjects of various inland kingdoms, whose residence in the capital is
temporary only. The former class is the most numerous, if we include
their slaves or proselytes, whose education is limited to an imperfect
knowledge of the essential prayers and ceremonies of worship which they
practice under the auspices of their masters, who devote a certain
portion of each day to their education. The foreign Moslems, beside
those of Salgha, Yandy, and other parts of Dagomba, and Ghunja, are from
the inland districts bordering the Ghulby and Koara rivers, to instance
the kingdoms and districts of Houssa, Killinga, Magho, Bargho, Marroa,
&c.; and these men, who upon the average are better educated, are
proportionably gifted with knowledge more extensive than their Guinea
brethren possess. Hence it is that the arrival of a well educated man is
announced by public rejoicing, and he is entitled to a degree of
veneration in proportion to his talents. Natives of Cairo, of the great
Desert, of Medina, and Mecca, sometimes (although rarely) visit the
empire, as well as adjacent kingdoms; and the Tunisian and Tripolitan
merchants occasionally penetrate as far. When any of these events
happen, the epoch is commemorated by rejoicings at court also, and a
suitable number of human victims are doomed to bleed in honour of the
visitors. Even the imperial Sherfa tribe extend their travels as far as
this remote district of heathen Africa; and, as the sea presents an
obstacle to their progress southward, they pursue their rambles east and
west to the neighbouring courts, as politics or commerce may invite
their steps. These descendants of the prophet’s family are received at
Ashantee with hospitality unlimited in its scope; they become the
honoured guests of king and ministers, while the population in bulk
venerate them as demi-gods, and look for an increase of wealth in
proportion as they compete in tendering respect and offers of service to
their visitors: for no man is ignorant of the pretensions they set up on
account of their sanctified genealogy, and their consanguinity to kings
and emperors of the past and present day. Expiatory and propitiatory
offerings of all descriptions are tendered to the stranger’s god, as
well as to the national and tutelary deities; the poor commonly make
oblations of the blood of fowls, eggs, pigeons, &c.; the superior
classes of citizens, that of goats or sheep; and the court, that of
slaves and prisoners of war; as was practised under the old Mexican
emperors, who reserved these unhappy men for public sacrifice, on days
dedicated to state ceremony, to religious festivals, rejoicings, or
lamentations.
The degree of respect entertained for the Sherfa by the Guinea Moslems,
is at least equivalent to the homage that is their due in the Barbary
states. These princes, to whatever nation they may belong, enjoy a
precedence over their brethren in faith on all ceremonious occasions;
and this distinction is unreluctantly accorded even by the Bashaw of
Coomassy. In the distribution of presents made by the king, and the
great officers and captains, their share of gold and provisions is at
least equivalent, and it most commonly exceeds the rest in quantity.
There have been three of these princely visitors at Coomassy during the
reign of Sai Quamina, and none ever came so far to the south and west
before; a circumstance that induces the present sovereign of Ashantee to
arrogate to himself a greater degree of glory than his ancestors ever
enjoyed. The last of these princes was the Sheriffe Brahima who was at
court during Mr. Bowdich’s mission in 1817, but who, after a residence
partly at Coomassy and partly at Abomey, the capital of Dahomy, during
the space of nearly three years, quitted the former for Nikky, with an
ample fortune, and in charge of a large caravan of pilgrims, who had
entered into engagements with the Sheriffe for protection to Cairo.
The inhabitants of Morocco, Fez, Taffilet, Suse, or the deserts in their
vicinity, rarely frequent this part of Guinea; nor have the Ashantees
any direct open communication with the Niger between Ghou and Yamina, a
space of nearly six hundred miles horizontal, although they sometimes
visit those regions by circuitous routes, under the guidance of a
friendly Moslem: the reason is that certain hostile kingdoms intervene
both north and west of Ashantee.
The geography of Western Africa, as it is submitted in the Map, is
carefully compiled from a series of manuscripts,[126] and from
information purely native, whose authors were in frequent habits of
traversing the African Continent from south to north, (or vice versâ)
from the forests of Ashantee to the several ports of the Ghulby and
Niger eastward, as far as Bornou, and even Bagharmi, where, it is
stated, the Shary forms a junction with the waters of the Shady in its
course to the Egyptian Nile. Whatever may be the various sentiments of
the learned in African literature, as regards the natural and political
features of the internal parts of this continent, I take no part in the
controversy, neither am I wedded to any theory, however presumptive or
otherwise the evidence may appear. In this avowal, which embraces every
hypothesis, it will be only requisite to repeat that the reader is
naturally at liberty to establish his own reflections upon the materials
before him, while the author of the treatise, whatever may be his
sentiments individually, will simply claim the privilege of asserting,
that it could not concern him either intimately or remotely, if it even
should be shewn by possibility or demonstration, that the Niger, the
Koara, the Ghulby, &c. pour their waters into the eastern or western
ocean, into the northern African sea, (the Mediterranean) or into the
swamps and lakes which have been supposed to exist between the equator
and the tropic of Cancer, and to which the erroneous name of Wangara
seems to have been given. Far be the thought, however, that might
obtrude a shade of disrespect towards the conceptions and prejudices of
the world of science; for many illustrious writers, and others whose
talents are known only in private life, are perhaps in the full
enjoyment of opinions founded upon hypothetical conclusions, and the
assertions of travellers, which as far as philosophical reasoning should
have influence, may possibly claim as much, or more public attention,
than any isolated system whatever, relating to the great rivers of
Africa.
Among the manuscripts furnished by the Moslems for illustrating the
geography of interior Africa, is one whose features are descriptive of
the kingdoms and districts bordering the courses of the Jolliba, Koara,
Ghulby, Shary, Shady, and Nile, to the outlet of the last-mentioned
river at Alexandria, on the Egyptian coast. It was written agreeably to
a desire I expressed, that my informers should substantiate what they
had verbally reported of the courses and names of the great inland
waters. Some trifling passages are not quite intelligible; but as a
point of greater consideration, it is not clear to me whether the
authors intended to trace the Niger from Youry westerly to its source
(in which case Bambouk is to be deemed the reservoir), or that it was
principally designed to give information of the countries upon the
parallel of the Koara, the Jolliba, &c. and between their fountains and
those of the Gambia and Senegal. The manuscript, indeed, supports the
former supposition, yet the latter, after all, would seem to be the most
probable conclusion; for, according to Park, the countries of Foota,
Toura, Foota Joulaba, or Jalo, and Bambook, are watered by the streams
which compose these great western rivers, and consequently the Niger, in
its course eastward, cannot in all human probability intersect so many
rivers, whose inclinations are to the north. It is worthy of remark,
however, that the Moslems should say its Bambara name, Jolliba,
(pronounced Joulaba) is derived from the country Foota Joulaba at the
extremity of a great range of mountains, which form a sort of chain
stretching eastwards, nearly as far as Kong.
In reference to the Appendix to Mr. Bowdich’s work, Nos. 1, 3, and 4,
called “Courses of the Niger or Quolla, by Moors of Haoussa, Bornou, and
Jennie” there is a great coincidence with the manuscript in question in
leading features. If, however, the objection already started, that
Bambouk cannot contain the source of the Niger, be substantially true,
the evidence throws nothing in the scale; that of the Jennie Moor (No.
4) excepted, which it would seem is thus far corroborative of what the
Kong and Manding Moslems report: viz., that the Jolliba rises behind
their country westward, and between that and Melly, in a mountainous
ridge that extends as far as the sea, called Bahar Ahmar, a name which
may be interpreted either the Red River or the River of Savages (and
which I take to be the Gambia): without enumerating places of minor
note, it passes on to Yamina[127], from thence to Sago, Sansanding,
Jennie, Timbuctoo, and Ghou, where the Jolliba ceases to bear that name.
Ghou is the first kingdom westward upon the Koara; it flows then to the
south-east, passing Kaby, and some other states, to Youry: according to
the manuscript, it then runs through Boussa (for the author, besides its
eastern channel, gives it a southern course through Wawa, Kaima,
Khodobari, Khamba, Yarraba, and Ageasse) into the sea at Benin. The
eastern channel, i.e. the Koara, continues to flow away in that
direction, passing Noofee and Atagara to the Sharee, and the Chadee,
from whence it enters Foor and Waddai, until it unites with the Nile.
This manuscript, as it is published, I read over to many Moslems, and
they all agreed that it was correct in substance, although not
sufficiently explicit, because it did not name the southern branch,
called by them the Ghulby Kanbaja, or Shadarba; neither did it state
that it flowed into the salt sea of Benin, by the way of Wawa and
Yarraba, the channel which Mr. Bowdich acknowledges to have expunged,
because he imagined it to be a road instead of what it really was
designed for, a river; hence he merely refers to it as such at
manuscript No. 1, of the Houssa Moor.
In compiling the sketch of a chart at Coomassy, representing the
geographical information I gained of the Moors, it was with some
difficulty they were made to comprehend it; but this was eventually
accomplished, with tolerable satisfaction to myself. Latitude and
longitude it could not be supposed they knew any thing about, for had
they been so qualified, that alone would have argued a pre-eminence over
the Arabs and northern Africans, who are alike ignorant in these
essentials. Journeys of days, half days, and watches[128], according to
their own distribution of time, and according as the Arabs themselves
compute the distance of one place from another, serve them in lieu of
meridional lines and parts. The bearing and relative position of roads,
rivers, kingdoms, &c. they described even with a degree of accuracy.
Shareka and Moghareba, east and west, were terms not unknown to them,
any more than those which express north and south. But their favourite
expressions were the rising or setting Sun; the Sun on the right eye or
on the left, and the Sun full on the cheek, implying the courses or
bearing (relatively) E. and W.—those NE. or NW. and that which pointed
due north. By the same characteristics they described the bearing, and
by days’ journies the distance of one inland kingdom from another,
confirming all they advanced by the testimony of their travelling
manuscripts, and the evidence of those amongst them who had visited the
places they mentioned.
The allowance of sixteen British miles, three-fourths of the same to be
made good on the horizontal distance, I think, from my own experience,
is equivalent to a day’s journey, where the country is intersected by
forest or thicket; or where the surface is interrupted by hills and
mountains. One-fourth reduction from the actual distance by the path, is
certainly not over-rated in proportion to the capricious winding of
roads, such as I travelled over; and I have been credibly assured that
the southern roads exhibit, more or less, the same aspect, whilst those
inclining southward of east, and northward of west, are moreover greatly
impeded by hills, mountains, and ravines.
The impervious forest and thicket, in which most of the capital towns of
Ashantee are embosomed, breaks off in some places about fifty, and in
others sixty miles north-east and west of the metropolis; the roads then
become open, free, and not much inclined to those curvatures, which are
unavoidable in the wilderness of Assin. Hence, from Akeyah, Quahou,
Massy, and the Tando, I imagine that twenty miles, with four-fifths of
that distance to make good for the horizontal distance, will not be
over-rated, for those countries reputed to be champaign land. It should
be recollected, that horses are common inland, throughout the eastern
districts, as far north as the Koara, and that camels are not uncommon.
In the north they are also plentiful; they abound, in short, wherever
the country is adapted to their procreation and use, and the natives of
those parts, as Mr. Bowdich had a fair opportunity of seeing during the
Yam Custom, make use of those valuable animals in their caravans.
I have been in the practice of travelling in the same manner in the
north of Africa. In the year 1814, I travelled, that is, rode, from
Mogadore to Tangier, between which there is a difference of nearly five
degrees of latitude, and about three of longitude, giving an horizontal
distance some trifle short of three hundred and fifty miles, but which
in reality was about four hundred and forty-five, for the road branched
off inland, leaving the direct track, and upon gaining the higher
latitudes, the surface was abrupt and hilly. This journey I performed in
eighteen days, which would almost average twenty-four miles six furlongs
each day. This is what would be termed regular easy travelling, in the
countries of the Gharb, and every where north of the great Desert. The
actual and the horizontal distance in this calculation are at variance
ninety-five miles, which should be accounted for thus:—seventy-four
miles to be reduced by a rate of five-sixths for the angular inclination
of the roads, and twenty-one miles more for diagonal or indirect
courses, a sweep that was made to avoid the plains of a rebellious tribe
of Arabs. But even this is nothing compared with the rate at which
couriers will travel on foot the same distance, as it is no uncommon
thing for those hardy men to perform the journey to Tangier in eleven
days, nay, some few of them are able to accomplish the distance in ten.
But these efforts are put in practice upon cases of emergency only, and
when the express is desired to make his way by night as well as day. By
the same rule the Morocco, Suse, Taffilet roads, &c. are traversed, and
at the same rates. I have journeyed to the capital of this empire in all
seasons of the year, and I invariably found that six days or twenty-five
miles each day was the full average rate[129] without incurring the risk
of fatiguing the cattle. These, which may be termed domestic journeys,
apply exclusively to known places, the towns and cities of the same
empire; whereas the routes leading to foreign parts, and from kingdom to
kingdom, are not traversed so rapidly, whether they are mountainous or
the reverse. In the temperate zone, twenty-four miles by the road is
reckoned a full and complete journey in traversing remote districts, and
twenty miles is estimated as the average; the former making good four-
fifths of the actual distance, would give about nineteen miles one and a
half furlong, and the latter exactly sixteen miles for the horizontal
distance each day.
It has been shewn by an authority no less respectable than the Quarterly
Review[130], that “Mr. Bowdich seems determined to reconcile himself to
every hypothesis that had ever been formed of the course and termination
of the Niger. But the way in which he makes his Quolla to perambulate
the whole of the African Continent, and literally to quarter it with its
divergent branches, some flowing to the east, some to the west, some to
the north, and others again to the south, is not only geographically
absurd, but physically impossible.” I must confess that I am at a loss
to conceive what materials that gentleman could have found at Coomassy
for the arrangement given to his map, in support of an hypothesis of the
texture of which he has submitted no evidence. The Moslems of Coomassy,
with all the elucidation I was capable of giving to the subject, with
his book and map upon the table before us, were unable to comprehend not
only the heterogeneous courses of the rivers, but the very names he has
given to many places, and which, it does appear, have no existence
whatever, except on paper.
It would, perhaps, be an act of injustice to that gentleman, to say I
make no doubt that his system of African geography, which, as he assures
us himself, was checked by the artless prattle of children, was a
fabrication of his own: I do not say so; but this I will affirm, that
the names of kingdoms, cities, rivers, mountains, &c. which might have
been familiar to his hearing at Ashantee, were, as it seems, so
transplanted and shoved about when he constructed his map, that, to use
a hackneyed phrase, “’Tis now so like nothing, that there is nothing
like it.” Nay, it cannot be said to agree with those names of places
which are heaped together in the appendix, many of which are really
deserving of credit. The Gambaro running westerly out of the lake called
Caudee to Timbuctoo; the Quolla going to the rising sun, and uniting to
the Moonda, the Agooawai, the Zaire, or Congo, the Nile, &c.
I would not be thought hostile to any hypothesis, neither do I in the
capacity of reader object to speculations, even such as Mr. Bowdich has
indulged in, provided they are characterised by their proper names. But
as my pen may have been as indignant at these incongruities as my
feelings were at Coomassy, when the author’s map was found to be
useless, it is incumbent on me to point out some of the most palpable
errors, and this I shall do as briefly as possible. Beginning then at
the top of the map, I find a place called Yahoodee, a country or town of
non-existence. Yahoodee simply implies Jews, the tribes of Jews, &c.
which term the Moslems apply to those people of the Mosaic faith who
inhabit the lower Atlas, and the district of Suse. They also apply the
term Yahoodee to the Hebrew or Jewish tribes, whether native Africans or
not, who inhabit Marroa, some parts of Fillany, and the neighbourhood of
Timbuctoo. Of these people I imagine the author of the information
spoke, when he endeavoured to make Mr. Bowdich comprehend the import of
the word Yahoodee. As a nation or a tribe they cannot be inserted with
propriety in any map, for they exist even in a more deplorable state of
servitude and humiliation in those districts than in the empire of
Morocco.
Haoussa, which stands in the neighbourhood of his Yahoodee, he
represents a city with two lakes, &c. giving it the latitude of nineteen
degrees or thereabouts; but which should have been described as a mighty
empire or district whose capital city is Kassina; and Youry, which he
places on the lower river, is Quolla, a powerful kingdom connected with
and dependent upon that metropolis, from which it is distant only
fifteen good journies, east and west. His kingdoms of Barrabadi and
Kallaghee, are totally unknown at Coomassy. His Gambaroo river has no
existence whatever; but Gambaroo is a large city and district eastward
of Kano, and on the south bank of the Koara. Katinna, the city placed
between his kingdom called Kassina and his city of Haoussa, is equally
unknown, unless intended to express the true Kassina, in which case it
is placed as many hundred miles out of its position as the Haoussa city
in relation to the latter, being considered the western limits of that
district: but Haoussa and the tributary kingdoms are upon the Koara. The
towns conducting from the Gambaro to Katinna, are entirely unknown by
name, even to natives of Kassina or other parts of Haoussa. Of the names
scattered between the rivers, and eastward of his Jolliba, some indeed
are known, although the greater portion do not enjoy that advantage.
Taking a peep over the Quolla from Noffee, there will be seen an
extensive desert upon the chart; but which has no existence elsewhere,
if the natives of Nooffee or Noufy, are to be credited, any more than
those long harmonious names in the vicinity of Wawa, spelt Goodoobirree,
Gillimakafoo, Garagooroogee, Paangee, &c. The same rule may be applied
to many more such, and the small writing is commonly erroneous. Of his
kingdoms south of the Koara, and between that river and the Aswada,
(supposing the Roman letters to have that signification) it is to be
lamented that some of them are not yet established; witness his Firrado,
Doolooe, Fobee, Kaybee, and others. But in justice to the author it must
be admitted, that in the midst of such extensive regions he has hit upon
some, perhaps I should have said, many places that really have
existence, although in most cases it appears he has mistaken kingdoms
and districts for towns and cities, and _vice versâ_. In short, there is
little to be commended, besides the names of those provinces which now
constitute the empire of Ashantee. Yet his river Laka, his river Mory,
his river Kaarhalla, and that which he calls Coombo or Zamma, (unless
Komba) are alike unintelligible to natives of those parts. True it is,
there is a town called Coombo; and his river called Mory, or, as it
should be written, Mawry, is a kingdom upon the banks of the Ghulbi, a
river which it seems he never heard of. Gooroma, which is marked as a
kingdom, happens to be the capital city of one of the most puissant
governments of interior Africa. Nay, he did not know that the Volta was
called the Aswada; that there was a great city called Nikky, the
metropolis of Killinga, distant from the Niger or Koara, and the
vicinity of Youry, only thirteen days; that there was a lake in the
dominions of Ashantee called Bouro; (although he will find it written
and published in one of the manuscripts) or that there were provinces in
the empire bearing the name of Akiyah, Ajorah, Yobati, Baboso, &c. All
these inferences may be drawn from his map. Turning from this barren
subject, to the little sketch called “Reported Courses of the Rivers,”
&c. affixed at the corner of the said map, I shall only remark, that his
Oongoora, which is pronounced by the Moslems and Pagans broad and full,
Wankara, nearly as we write it, should be removed from its elevated
station, and be again inserted, in proper characters, in a latitude
considerably lower than his lowest river, (of those running east and
west) and above a thousand miles more to the westward of the longitude
he has assigned it.[131]
It would, perhaps, have astonished the survivors of the mission of 1817,
to be told, that their party had first the honour of exploring a region
so famous in record which has been so long searched after, and of which
it has puzzled so many men of erudition, (transcending our own by far,)
to form a solution agreeably to the writings of the ancients.
Nevertheless it is an undoubted fact, authenticated by the testimony of
every Moslem in Coomassy, that Wangara, or Wankara, is a mighty district
(like what was called the province of Africa, where the city of
Aphrodisium stood, and from which that of Mehedia also took its name)
spreading over all that tract of land from Gaman inclusively, or the
Manding States of Enkasy and Ghombati, in the west, to Khimbee, and
Ajasee, in the east; and from N. to S. from Ghofan and Tonouma, down to
the margin of the Atlantic ocean. But I shall submit, as I may find
occasion, such other observations as I am warranted to do, from the
unanimity and confidence which all my informers opposed against any
argument of a character to destroy their testimony.
Whatever class my literary errors may belong to, or however unworthy I
may be to obtrude upon the good sense of the public, I trust I shall not
deserve the imputation of having knowingly misrepresented facts. The map
of Wangara, will at least enjoy the merit of being free from[132]
speculative or conjectural matter, excepting where such speculations are
characterised as such (by dotted lines, &c.) Besides the corroborative
testimony of the manuscript, the two maps stand supported by a mass of
information gleaned from the Moslems of the interior parts. I have
purposely revised my old maps and sketches, expunging from them a
variety of reports which were unsubstantiated by writings in the native
character, and which it was my original intention to publish
connectedly, but with a specific mark, to distinguish those features
which were corroborated by the Arabic, from others which were not so.
Every thing short of ocular demonstration, it cannot be denied, is
defective; or at least liable to error. Latitude and longitude are
unquestionably the criterions by which the mind may satisfy itself of
the relative position of objects: yet where these essentials cannot be
obtained in practice, others, founded upon authority, may be substituted
with more or less pretension to accuracy; and information derived from
these sources may even stand the test of public criticism. Liable as my
own map may be to errors, I shall not deem it inconsistent at a future
day, should my destiny again lead me to the shores of Africa, to
expunge, with my own hand, the faults I may then discover, and publish
to the world any misconceptions, however extensive they may appear.
Such, I conceive, is a duty incumbent upon every man, who, by profession
should, in a course of active service, enjoy local advantages whereby he
may, from time to time, reap information calculated for the public ear.
The kingdom of Ashantee, from west to east, _i.e._ from Gaman to the
Volta River, embraces about four degrees of longitude, including its
recent acquirements in the west; and from south to north, _i.e._ from
Cape Coast Castle to the tributary kingdom Ghofan, about four degrees of
latitude. This is the full extent of what, politically, is modern
Ashantee; for over this tract the king rules with unrivalled sway: every
king, chief, viceroy, or caboceer, being his absolute and unconditional
vassal, as tributaries or not, and most of them holding their
governments by virtue of an appointment from the court. The numerous
kingdoms, or principalities, which in the days of Bosman flourished in
the vicinity of the Gold Coast, have successively been engulphed in the
vortex which has since spread under its modern name of Ashantee, into
that great political association of kingdoms, that have fallen under the
sword of the ruling dynasty, and are now only to be distinguished as
provinces dependent on the court of Coomassy. This is to be understood
as referring to what originally was called the kingdom of Dinkra, the
mountains of Tofal, the kingdom of Wassau or Warsaw, that of Amanaha,
Aowin, Showe, and Toosequa, on its western longitudinal meridian; those
of Soko, Takima, Coransa, Massy, Assin, Fantee, and Ahanta, on the
central meridian; and the districts of Ghofan, Baboso, Banna, Yobati,
Ajorah, Bouromy, Akeyah, Aquahou, Akim, Aquapim, and Aquambo, in the
east, bordering on the Volta.
There is a free and unobstructed communication with all the leading
provinces, by roads or paths, which by way of distinction are
collectively called great roads; and, separately, they bear the name of
the sovereign in whose reign they were cut, or the country they lead to.
These roads are eight in number; not nine as Mr. Bowdich was informed.
The Aowin is the first, leading to the western coast, to Apollonia,
Assinee, Bassam, and Lahou. The second is the Wassau road, leading
through Dinkra to Wassau; from whence it again branches off, east and
west, the former leading to the river Praa, which is crossed to El Mina,
Commenda, Chamah, &c., and the latter striking through Ahanta, to Cape
Three Points, and the European establishments in its vicinity. The third
road is that leading through Assin and Fantee, to the village of
Doonqua, where it forks off in two branches, the one to Annamaboe, and
the other to the Dutch fort at Mouree; which is about four miles
eastward of Cape Coast Castle. The fourth is a road, running south-east,
and north-west; through Juabin, Yomoho, Akim, and part of Aquapim, to
Accra, and the English, Dutch, and Danish settlements in that
neighbourhood. These are the four great maritime causeways, from whence
the Ashantees derive all their supplies of powder, guns, and European
merchandize.
The inland roads of Ashantee are, first, that leading from Coomassy,
north-west, to the ferry of Ensoota or Ensotah, on the River Tando, and
from thence branching off in two directions, the one to the northward,
leading to Bontoko, and Houraboh; the residence of the late king of that
country, (Enkasy, Kong, &c.); the other inclining more westerly, to
Shouy, Soumah, and Sarem in the west. The second road leads through
Takimah west, or Coransah and Banna east, to the River Aswada, and the
mountains of Sarga, the eastern circuit of which leads on to Ghobagho,
and the western to Enkasi, Kong, and Manding. The third is a road cut
through Massy, Coransa, and Banna, easterly to the Aswada, below the
Desert of Ghofan, where it again branches off northward to Ghobagho; and
eastward to Tonoma, and the kingdoms of Dagomba. The fourth, and last
great path, is the one leading to Akiyah; from whence it sprouts out in
two branches, the one easterly to Bouromi and the Volta, the other
inclining to the northward of the lake Bouro, through Ajorah, part of
Yobati, and Baboso, to the Volta again, beyond which is Salgha. The two
last roads are sometimes called the old roads, from their antiquity and
pre-eminence. Besides these, since the recent subjugation of Gaman, the
king employed a considerable body of troops in cutting a path more
westerly through the forest, that would lead to the open plains on the
Tando, and to Gaman, by a route reported to be shorter by two journies
than the old one into which it is made to strike, at the distance of one
watch from Coomassy.
The minor roads and paths are more numerous; the chief of them is one
leading through the north-eastern provinces to a ferry called Goya,
named after the chief town in Bouromy, south of the Bouro Water. Another
of this class proceeds to Quahoe, from whence there is a cross road to
Akim, Aquapim, Accra, Ningo, &c.; and another, branching easterly, to
Aquambo and Dahomy: but it is reckoned extremely hazardous to enter that
kingdom from the side of Ashantee through Aquambo. There is another road
leading from Coomassy to Sumah and Showy, in the west, over the Tando.
Another also, taking through Akeyah, between the Banna road and the
Volta, and leading to the eastern extremity of the Desert, from whence
it is only two good journies to a considerable town of Ghunga, called
Agaga. Several roads of a like importance, lead, more or less, to the
east and west of south, with branches that fork to the principal towns
on the sea coast, and to the forts or factories of the three European
powers, there established: viz. one over the Aquapim Hills, to Ningo,
Pram Pram, and the mouth of the Volta. Another through Akim, to Berracoe
and Winnebah. A third breaks out at Tantum by a branch from the main
track, leading to Annamaboe. Some other branches, besides, extend from
Wassau through the Ahanta country, opening a communication with the
windward settlements, from the Praa to the Ancober rivers. But all these
roads are of comparative insignificance, and many of them are shut up,
from time to time, by fallen timber, swamps, and barriers of matted
vegetation, cemented together by uncommon rains, tornados, or the sudden
rush of torrents from the hills. Neither are the main roads exempt from
these casualties; for sometimes it occurs that the most frequented
tracks are reported by the last traveller to have become impassable, in
which case it is usual for the government to employ men to remove the
obstructions, or to cut a new opening in the parts adjacent, as may be
effected most expeditiously.
The principal towns, as well as most of the superior villages, are
within the track of the high roads: yet there are others, of
distinction, to which access is gained by traversing paths diverging
from the main trunks.
Ashantee, from the latitude of 7° 30′ north, down to the water’s edge,
is a solid rampart of vegetation, extending east and west, from Aquapim
to Ahanta, in the form of one compact forest, either (as it is found
about fifteen miles inland) of the most stupendous character, or (as it
may be seen in the vicinity of the coast) exhibiting an entanglement of
lofty bush, blended with tall trees. The paths that intersect this
forest are unavoidably the most capricious and serpentine. The labour of
cutting them straight would indeed be a severe tax upon the industry of
the nation. But the government, for reasons of a political nature,
connected with the recent aspect of some of the Fantee towns in the
neighbourhood of Forts, does not yet think proper to remove the
impediments of this natural barrier, between the sea coast and the
capital of the empire. Hence the generality of them notwithstanding they
are considered as main roads, are scarcely to be called footpaths.[133]
The roads or paths leading inland are infinitely superior to the others,
and as the forest is cleared on the fourth or fifth day, and in some
places, the third from leaving Coomassy, these tracks extend over vast
plains where there is no great impediment to the traveller, unless the
jungle may have become matted in certain spots. Gaman, Banna, and in
short the greater part of Sarem, in the south, is almost universally
champaign land, in some places variegated by clumps of trees and
shrubbery, scattered in patches widely distant apart. Ghunja beyond the
Volta, as also Dagomba, have also a similar aspect, although hilly, if
not mountainous, in the vicinity of that river; and it has more woods
than Sarem.
The seat of empire is environed by numerous large and small populous
towns, the chief of which is Juabin[134], bearing south-east from
Coomassy, one day’s journey. It is reckoned to be about one third the
size of Coomassy, and its population is estimated at seventy thousand
souls. Below the city is the lake Echouy, at a very inconsiderable
distance, and in the neighbouring hills (for it is inclosed in a natural
amphitheatre) are many small towns and villages, whose inhabitants,
beside their usual occupations, derive extra emoluments from fishing, an
operation which they perform with canoe and circular net, the same as is
practised on the ocean. Many thousands of Fantees, Assins, and Gamans,
are there detained prisoners of war. Of the two first nations some are
considered free, although narrowly watched to prevent their escape to
the sea side: the rest are absolute slaves, having been sold and
transferred in due succession from hand to hand. From their superior
capacity in aquatic employments, they are considered valuable property
by their taskmasters.[135] In short, Echouy, or as it may be also called
Bussem Echouy, and the territory thereabouts may be considered the
Siberia of the Court: for it is also a place of banishment for inferior
ranks of insurgents, whom the king may think proper to spare, or reserve
for future punishment.
Eastward of the lake is a little district of Akim, called Yomoho, whose
chief town is Adumpore. It has also a great population scattered about
in little villages, whose inhabitants are agriculturists, and supply the
markets of Juabin, Bequa, Sarasoo, Dompassy, &c. with corn and yams.
Beyond Yomoho, on the north-east, is the province of Quahou, formerly a
little kingdom of itself. This is reckoned a very fruitful spot, and in
many places the land is clear and open, even down to the Volta, where
there is another valuable fishery that gives employment to many
thousands of the natives of those parts.
The route from Coomassy to the lower part of Aquambo, Aquapim, &c. down
to the mouth of the Aswada or Volta, lies over a very hilly country
greatly intersected by water-courses, many of which incline easterly,
and discharge themselves into the Volta; the banks of which river, on
both sides, are occasionally infested by a banditti, who are sometimes
daring enough to plunder the smaller crooms in its vicinity. The
insurgents are mostly Aquambo negroes, excited to rebellion against
their conquerors the Ashantees, by other branches of the tribe who fled
before the invading army, and have established themselves on the Dahoman
shore; yet, in peaceable times, they are also considered the subjects of
Ashantee. It is reckoned eighteen journies from Coomassy to the mouth of
that river.
The route to Accra lies through Yomoho, Atoa, and Akim.[136] The surface
for the most part is abrupt. The provinces of Akim and Aquapim are
mountainous or hilly; yet many extensive tracts on the eastern frontier
of Akim are entirely free from forest and thicket.
A medical gentleman of the name of Isert, in the service of his Danish
majesty, made several excursive tours in Aquapim, and, as it is
reported, would have travelled further inland had it been agreeable to
the views of the Company. According to the traditions still preserved
amongst the officers of Christiansburg castle, this traveller
experienced much hospitality from the natives, and was greatly delighted
with the beauteous novelties that opened to view as he advanced to the
northward. After passing the chain of hills he found the land to be
open, yet not entirely free from forest. The crooms on the line of path,
unlike the Fantee roads, were numerous, populous, and imposing; and they
scarcely averaged the distance of two miles apart.
The streams are very numerous throughout the Akim and Aquapim provinces;
some of them, particularly after heavy rains, are impassable until the
water subsides. The chief of the rivers crossed by the Akim path between
Coomassy and the coast, are, first, the Dah, which rises at no great
distance from Jamacasi, passing Juabin and falling into the Praa, two
journies westward of the ford at Prassoo.
The second river of magnitude is the Praa, which is crossed between
Anoka and Argosi on the fifth day. This river being a tutelar god is
dignified with the name of Bussem, which may be interpreted sacred,
awful, majestic, holy;[137] it rises in a mountain between Akeya and
Quahou, near a little croom called Sumtasoo, and sacrifices are made at
its spring head, which is said to be a large gaping rock about half way
up the side of the mountain. Here the full vigour of the God is supposed
to exist, yet the water does not always gush out with the same force.
The river Birrum is the third in rank on the Accra route; it rises near
Sonara in Quahou, and falls into the Praa at a very short distance from
Dansansoo.
The Corim, the Sagwa, and the Souho, are streams which rise in the
Aquapim hills, and flowing eastward fall into the Aswada within forty
miles of its mouth.
The river Saccoom, between Accra and Berracoe, has also its rise in the
Aquapim mountains, and a branch of it is crossed at three journies from
Accra.
Accra is scarcely one hundred and sixty miles horizontal distance from
the capital, yet the surface is so rugged, and the paths so obstructed
and circuitous, that the real extent of ground is near two hundred and
forty miles, according to the time it employs the traveller in going
that distance.
Akeyah, Bouromy, Ajorah, Yobati, and Coransah, are reckoned among the
most populous provinces of the empire. The habits of the people are more
commercial and enterprising, and their evil passions less predominant
than those of the Ashantees. This may be, in some degree, attributed to
the great influence of the Moslems in the above-named provinces, in
Bouromi, and in Baboso, where likewise they sojourn in great
numbers.[138] It is also to be observed, that these people, in
conjunction with the inhabitants of Banna, were the vassals, in the
middle of the last century, of the sovereigns of Salgha.
The road leading to Bouromy and the Volta, at Goyah and Odanty, is
frequented by the traders who convey merchandize to the markets on the
confines of Dahomy, for the supply of that empire. The distance to this
ferry is reckoned twelve days good travelling. The path is passably
smooth as far as the mountains of Akeyah, about sixty miles from
Coomassy, yet the forest extends to their very basement. After gaining
access to the opposite side, the path takes through extensive plains,
where trees are only to be met with in detached spots, and sometimes
none will be seen for many miles. The surface is covered with high grass
and jungle, which the inhabitants fire, and employ the ashes to manure
the plantations.
Elephants abound in Bouromy, Yobati, Baboso, and Banna; and hunting
these animals is one of the chief occupations of the people. The natives
of Yobati are reckoned so adroit at the sport, that they can furnish
above a hundred loads of ivory, for Coomassy, in the space of a month,
if required. It would seem that the elephant was an equivalent gift of
Providence in the lieu of those veins of precious ore, which are to be
met with in some districts southward, and westward, where these animals
do not usually herd.
The Moslems are particularly numerous in Yobati, and in all the
provinces to the east and west of north: they live in political
societies governed by their respective princes, who are vassals to the
king, but who enjoy prerogatives exceeding those of any other class of
subjects.
The lake Bouro, a sheet of water of a greater extent than the Echouy
lake, lies to the northward of Yobati, and in the season of rain is
distant from the Volta one watch, or about three hours easy walk. The
Echouy being situated in the land of the heathens, and close to the
capital, is a place of greater renown. It is supposed hence to have
obtained the title of Bussem, being called indiscriminately Echouy, or
Bussem Echouy, the sacred lake.[139] Hypothetical as this may appear, it
is in some degree corroborated by the reports of the Moslems, who affirm
that the title of Bussem was conferred upon it by an ancestor of the
reigning sovereign, in commemoration of a battle gained in its
neighbourhood, over the Akims, when they attacked the royal army by land
and water. During those wars the Echouy was considered the guardian of
the capital against Akim, then the most powerful and warlike tribe of
negroes in the neighbourhood. The water of Echouy, notwithstanding it is
filled by the torrents, and by rain descending from the amphitheatre of
hills, is sometimes brackish, and this happens particularly during the
greatest heat, when the land has been droughty for any length of time.
Yet I never heard Mr. Bowdich’s assertion that the water gave a reddish
hue to the colour of the hair confirmed by the most credulous native; on
the contrary my enquiries extorted a smile, and a reply, that it was
like other water, only “sometimes salt like the sea.” In this property
the Echouy differs from the Bouro, for the latter is perfectly fresh and
pure, at all seasons. The Bouro is also deeper as well as larger, and is
navigated by fishing canoes like the former. If the rains are excessive,
it overflows its natural limits to the extent of many miles, and
sometimes discharges its surplus of waters into the Aswada. A little
river that rises in a mountain between Banna and the little desert of
Ghofan, flows by a south-easterly course into the lake, and contributes,
during the sun’s greatest action, to supply the deficit occasioned by
evaporation. This stream, as the lake rises, inundates and fertilizes
the land periodically on both sides, and the natives plant their fields
as soon as the water subsides. Fish of a large size, and of delicious
flavours, are said to be taken in the lake, and conveyed alive to
Salgha. Many thousands of families also gain a living on its shores by
drying the article, and selling it to traders who make it a profession
to frequent the markets of Dagombah.
Between Bouromi and Akeyah, there is a small stream that has its source
in the mountains of the latter district, and which in its course
easterly to the Aswada, forms a continuation of swampy patches like the
bogs which surround Coomassy on the south and east. To this land they
give the name of Ghorekati غريقة a name synonymous with humid, watery,
and deep.
The distance of Yagy from the capital by the above route will be about
two hundred and fifteen miles.
The route to Daboya and the kingdom of Ghobagho takes northerly through
the districts and provinces of Massy, or Akeya, Coransa, Banna, and the
Desert. The principal towns are Jamakasi, Kikiwhari, Enaso, Sakado,
Kikiwasi, Graga, Dankari, Measi, Batmali, Coransa, Boben, Kerahem,
Kantano, Kaka Caranda, Dawa; then the desert of Ghofan, and the Aswada
river.
The route to Salgha, the metropolis of Ghunja, takes through the
provinces of Akeyah, Ajorah, Bouromi, Yobati, and Baboso: the towns are
numerous, but those of note are Jamacasi, Antoa, Damoka, Akroforom,
Manbon, Adijani, Amatini, Akokoa, Batoda, Atabaho, Yobati, Sakenim,
Yagy, and Salgha.
The route to Kong and Manding, leading on to the great kingdom of Melly
on the Jolliba, intersects the provinces and districts of Massy, Safoy,
Takima, Ghombati, and Enkasy. Here, however, the policy of the natives
(who from about nine degrees to twelve degrees of latitude in this
direction, are principally Moslems) is directly inimical to that of the
court of Ashantee, and consequently there is rarely any commercial
intercourse with the southern Manding tribes, excepting the few who,
after the defeat of Dinkera, submitted to the yoke of vassalage, under
the government of Ashantee, and were permitted to enjoy their
inheritances peaceably in Ghombaty, Sokoo, and the confines of Ghofan.
A few of these people I occasionally saw in Coomassy. They are fairer
complexioned than any of the heathens of these parts, but less robust,
and seemingly less vigorous. Yet the greatest resistance the Ashantees
met with during the campaign in Gaman, is admitted to have originated
with the Mandings, who are the best cavalry troops, as they are also the
best Elephant hunters in any part of Sarem.
Their warlike weapons are scimiters, bows and arrows, darts, and lances
of the old Arab[140] construction, and whose blades, besides being of
the length of sixteen or eighteen inches, are sometimes barbed and
envenomed the same as the arrows with a deadly sort of poison, said to
be known only to the inhabitants, and differing materially from what is
prepared in Ashantee or Banna.
[Illustration: A Moslem of Kong in Military Costume.]
The more easterly kingdoms of Wangara, above the parallel of eight
degrees of latitude, contain a still greater proportion of Moslems than
the western, as far at least to the eastward as the great lake of Ayoh.
The Moslem powers north and north-west of Dahomy are, it is affirmed,
when united, able to raise an army adequate to drive the Dahomans from
their capital, and strike terror into the breasts of the surrounding
nations, as they have done on former occasions. But the Sultan of Zogho,
to whom the Dahomans are tributary, is adverse to these invasions, as
long as they are faithful in their remittances to the Court.
The Natives of Entaa, Mahee, and Gouaso, over the Aswada, are mostly of
a tawny brown complexion, alike in persons, language, and features; but
differing in customs, inasmuch as the tribes of the two last named
provinces, distinguish themselves by scarifying and puncturing various
parts of the body, besides the face, which the Moslems practise in
common.
The metropolis of Ashantee,[141] according to my reckonings, will be
found about nine geographical miles to the southward of the parallel of
seven degrees of north latitude, and in two degrees sixteen minutes or
nearly so of west longitude. It approaches in bearing nigher to the
meridian of Elmina, than any other town on the line of coast, and when
the path is open, the distance by that, which is called the Wassau path
or route, is traversed in less time by one day, and as some say one day
and two watches, than any other station on the sea coast, a proof of its
westerly inclination in regard to the longitudinal meridian of Cape
Coast Castle.
The military resources of Ashantee are great indeed, without casting
into the scale her preponderating influence in Sarem and Dagomba. The
bashaw Mohammed assured me, that the armies of Ashantee that fought in
Gaman, amounted to upwards of eighty thousand men, (without including
the camp attendants, such as women and boys) of whom at one time above
seven thousand were Moslems, who fought under his orders. In this
estimate I speak within bounds, for I am inclined to believe he alluded
to the army of Banna as a distinct force, whose numbers varied from
twenty to twenty-five thousand men, armed with tomahawks, lances,
knives, javelins, and bows and arrows. Of the eighty thousand the King
can put muskets and blunderbusses in the hands of from forty to fifty
thousand. The opposing enemy, including the auxiliary Moslem and Heathen
powers allied to the army of Dinkera, amounted at times to one hundred
and forty thousand men, of whom a great proportion were cavalry. The
issue of that war, which restored the sovereignty of Gaman to the king
of Ashantee, must unquestionably have increased his military strength to
the extent of twenty or thirty thousand more men, although it is true
the relics of those tribes who submitted, or escaped the butcheries,
were not considered worthy to be trusted with arms during my stay at
Court.
The King of Dahomy and his auxiliaries, the bashaw says, can raise
about[142] fifty thousand men, of whom from eight to ten thousand only
are fusileers; the rest are armed with bows and arrows, besides sabres,
and iron maces. This, he says, is the greatest force the Dahomans ever
sent into the field.
The king of Benin is, however, by far the most powerful of the three
monarchs, in regard to the number of his troops, for he can arm two
hundred thousand upon an emergency, but he cannot furnish above ten
thousand with muskets.
The dominions of the Ashantees, east of the Aswada, are considerable,
but do not extend as far as has been represented. Yandy forms no part of
the empire; but it is true that Ashantee influence carries great weight
in the councils of the sovereign of Dagomba. Those which are deemed the
north-east frontier towns are Coobeya, Yansala, Banko, and Toubary, in
Tonouma and Entâa; the town last mentioned serving as a frontier on the
Dahoman side; but in none of these places are Ashantee troops stationed,
the people being left to the government of their caboceers, and the
jurisdiction of their own laws. In fact, they seem to belong rather to
the class of tributaries, than subjects; yet they are compelled, whether
Moslems or heathens, to serve in the wars of the empire. Salgha, the
chief city of these districts, whose station I have assigned 8°. 50′.
latitude, and 0°. 25′. longitude east, is reported to be of twice the
size of Coomassy, and its population, of whom nearly one-sixth part are
Moslems, to be about four hundred thousand souls. The Korannic law is
that which governs the population not only of Tonouma, but also of
Simmer, Ghofan, Ghomba, and the northern tribes of Entâa; and in most of
these places the heathens are, notwithstanding their numerical
superiority, either subservient to it, or they cheerfully comply with a
judicial doctrine whose ministers they are from childhood taught to
respect as apostles of the great God, and whose _fetische_ is thought to
be of greater power and efficacy than any ritual or magical incantation
known among themselves.
The route to central Wangara, leading to the capital of Dahomy, the
Moslems sometimes travel over, but the heathens never. This is a path
which forks off in two branches from Quahou; the upper or northern one
leading through the southern districts of Bouromy to Goyah and the ferry
at Odanty, and the lower or southern one, through Aquambo to the ferry
at Nagho, a capital town now subject to the dominion of Ashantee. The
upper road, by a circuit round the Mahee hills, leads to the towns of
Fosoko, Arico, Chaca, Gholamto, Meami, Atoy, and Abomey.
The land is supposed to be equal in fertility in these parts to that of
Benin, which is universally allowed to be the richest and best
cultivated in any part of Wangara; but the population is not by any
means so great as the latter, for the tribes are constantly harassed by
invasions of the Dahomans, who pursue the same barbarous maxims in their
wars as the Ashantees themselves. The countries to the eastward of
Dahomy, including Ghodau, Yagah, Khimbee, Ayoh, Ajasee, and Benin, are
all heathen, or are governed by heathen monarchs, whose laws and
religion have no relation to the Korannic institutions, but are in a
proportionate degree the same as prevail generally among the heathens,
although in a milder manner, from the more commercial and agricultural
habits of many or most of the tribes in eastern Wangara. The people of
these parts, however, in common with the Moslems, practice circumcision.
The current coin throughout these regions is cowries; not only do they
circulate east of the Aswada, in Dahomy, and Dagomba, but also in the
Ashantee provinces of Bouromy, Baboso, Yobaty, Quahou, Aquambo, and
Inkran, where gold is not found; for the Gold Coast extends no farther
east than Berracoo.
[143]Wangara, as I have already noticed, written ونقرا[144] and
consequently pronounced nearly as we do, excepting that the g should be
blended with the sound of guttural k, imitating the Arabian ق, is that
great strip of land which comprehends the minor districts of Sarem,
Ghunja, and the southern parts of Dagomba, with part of Yarraba in the
south also. Its sweep along the line of coast embraces about six hundred
and sixty geographic miles, i.e. from Cape Lahou, the boundary of
Ashantee, and its Gaman province or kingdom on the west, to the parallel
of longitude that marks the track of the Formoso or Callebar rivers,
which, according to my authors, are its boundaries to the rising sun,
(the east.) The navigation between Benin (and between all those great
streams which intersect the Warree coast,) and the Koara and Ghulby
rivers, is not, as my informers say, to be doubted; and it is possible
to perform the voyage from Benin to Timbuctoo and Sago without setting
foot on shore, although it is not usual to navigate against the streams
of those great waters, the Kadarko, the Shawanka, the Ghulby, the Koara,
Shady or Jolliba, particularly in the rainy season, when the rivers are
full; for although they know of no rapids or cataracts to the south of
Wawa, yet the natural velocity of the streams is so great as to impede
the canoes in a northerly progress, although impelled forward by the
strength of fifty men and more. Two of my informers declared, they had
performed the voyage from north to south, under protection of the sultan
of Youry, as far as the gates of Benin.
Returning to Wangara, the first individual to whom I applied for
information, was the very Bashaw Mohammed known to Mr. Bowdich by the
name of Baba (_father_). Wangara was a subject of interest in our
earliest conversations. Of this man I begged to know where that
celebrated country, its lakes, its rivers, and its swamps existed. The
reply was, “Wangara is a large place; it is not a kingdom, neither is it
a city; but it contains many kingdoms and many cities: the ground you
tread upon is Wangara.” At this explanation I betrayed a mixture of
surprise and incredulity. “Can you doubt what I tell you?” replied the
chief; “if you do, enquire of our people whether I do not speak what is
true.” Shouma, Abou Becr, Cantoma, Mohammed bel Cassim, and some others
who were present, confirmed the assertion, (as did the king himself, on
a day of subsequent enquiry if he knew Wangara,) in terms the most
positive and convincing.[145] Wangara was naturally an object that
claimed a leading interest, from its having been the great focus of
speculation among the learned in Europe. Rivers it has many; for the
eastern confines are exceedingly low; but swamps (except little
incidental ones, such as occur on the Ashantee path) it has none,
besides what may be found on the great tropical Delta, (Warree) during
the season of rain, when in truth the whole eastern country, as far as
the Callebar river, or the Rio del Rey, is more or less swampy, and may
in many places be navigated over in canoes, through the heart of the
lower forest regions, where the trees are at this time to be seen
growing as in the bed of a lake.
In the course of many subsequent meetings, although my enquiries were
reiterated where doubt and conviction were still somewhat at variance,
the replies were uniform:—“This is Wangara, and we believe there is no
other country of that name on our side of the great deserts; but if
there is, we never heard mention of it, and therefore it must be a very
small place.” “Where are the great rivers talked of in the Gharb, (in
Ismaëlia) and which the Arabs say run to Wangara?” “The rivers of
Wangara are numerous; they are such as we have already described,
running into the great salt sea of Benin, and from whence you came (Cape
Coast.) The greatest river of Wangara runs south behind Dahomy, direct
to Warree, and is fifteen long journies to the east of Abomey.” “Is not
this the Koara you speak of?” “No; the Koara is another very great
sea;[146] it runs to Noufy, where it takes three days to cross the
water; from Noufy, the water runs by two or three channels into the Lake
of Shady, and the sea or river so called, passing Bousa, Souy, Kassina,
Yakoo, Kano, and Gambaro, in its course easterly, below Bornou, to the
Bahar Neel (Nile) of Egypt. The Ghulby, after a long eastern course,
inclining to the north, runs into it at Noufy, and the great Benin river
turns from it to the south, cutting from the direction of Wawa, through
Kaima, Khodobari, Agiassy, and Benin. They are all great seas, but the
Koara is the greatest in the universe.” “Is the great river of Benin the
Ghulby that flows from Ghoroma in the kingdom of Magho?”—“It is not that
sea itself, but it is connected with its waters through the lake Noufy.”
This conversation is extracted from a diary, which it was my practice to
keep. On a subject which I deemed of importance, I have preferred
inserting the arguments verbatim, devoid of all embellishments of the
pen, or any bias which a change of language or my own conceptions might
suggest.
I have, in an earlier page, ventured a somewhat anomalous comparison of
Wangara with that district of the north, known by the name of Africa to
Greece and Rome. But, perhaps, it might be more correctly compared with
that vague appellation _Guinea_, by which we describe the country
itself. The discovery of the true position of this district, assuming
the fact upon the grounds I have stated, would, I am aware, incline to a
revolution in the theory of the Niger itself; but as it is no part of my
plan to speculate or infringe upon the prerogatives of the reader, I
shall abstain from any hypothetical conclusions of this nature.
Concerning the course of the Niger itself—the Jolliba of Park, called by
the Arabs, Bahar Neel, Bahar Abied, Bahar Soudan, &c. and by the Wangara
Moslems, Bahar Koara, I never heard of two different opinions in regard
to its termination. South or north of the Great Desert, in Wangara or
Mauritania, the sentiments were the same, that the great flow of water
is easterly to the Egyptian Nile. Yet it must be confessed, that none of
my instructors had ever tracked its course beyond the western limits of
Bornou. It was an orthodox opinion, that the Shady, as well as the
Koara, united its waters with innumerable other large and small rivers
(like the Amazon) which contributed to replenish its channel in the dry
season, when it usually tracks its course mildly; and in the season of
rain when it runs in tempestuous eddies, sweeping off in its current
whole islands of matted vegetation.
The great rivers of Wangara, besides such as exclusively belong to
Ashantee, are, first the Aswada, or Volta, called by the heathens
Adirray. This river rises in a cluster of hills or mountains called
Sarga, bearing north from Coomassy, behind the desert of Ghofan, and
distant seventeen journies, or about two hundred and seventy-two miles
horizontal. Its course through the desert inclines greatly to the
eastward of south, until it passes Yajy, where its general inclination
is southerly, till it discharges itself near Cape St. Paul, and where it
is known to navigators by the name of the Volta. In its course it laves
the provinces of Baboso, passing Salgha, Yobati, Bouromy, Quahou,
Aquambo, and Adampy. In Ghofan it is a narrow stream not much above
ancle deep; but, on the parallel of a town in Tounouma, called Dafoo, it
is broader, and becomes navigable from its junction with another small
river, called Bahar Bourgan. In the neighbourhood of Salgha it is a
great river, as wide according to the testimony of my informers, as from
the quarters I occupied to the palace gate, a distance about equal to
the dimensions of the Thames at Battersea. The lake Bouro, south of the
town of Yajy, does not always overflow its embankments to a great
extent; but only when the rains are heavier than usual. It then runs by
a channel into the Aswada. This inclination of the water of the lake, is
propelled by a stream which rises on the confines of Ghofan, as it has
been stated, and empties itself in the Bouro. In Bouromy, and Quahou,
the Aswada is much wider and deeper than at Salgha, particularly in the
latter province, where its dimensions in some places exceed double the
width before related, and consequently it is greater than the Thames at
London. In Aquamboe, near the mouth of the river, it is so wide that the
human voice at its greatest elevation cannot be heard from the opposite
shore.
The great river that flows between Dahomy and Benin, and which
consequently must be the Logos, is crossed in the forest east of
Tounoma, where it is very narrow and shallow; but it is navigable near
the town of Konjasi, where it bends south-east in its track to the sea
behind Ardrah. The name of it, according to a Moslem of Tounoma, I was
assured, is Komashar (كماشر) from a valuable sort of gum, so called,
which abounds in its neighbourhood, and is collected for the markets of
Yandy and Nikky, where it is sold to the northern traders. This river is
inferior in size to the Aswada, although equally adapted to the purposes
of navigation, they both being exempt from cataracts and dangerous
rapids. From Goyah it is fourteen journies, easterly, to the Komasha, or
about two hundred geographic miles; but from Salgha to the same river,
in the upper part of its course, it is no more than six. Its source is
near Yandy.
Behind the Komashar in the Ayoh country, and upon the parallel of
Salgha, is a lake of very great extent, whose shores the traveller, on
an eastern or western journey, does not quit for two days; the name of
it I know not; but my informers describe it as a fresh water lake, which
had no communication with any river. Zogho is due north of this lake,
from which it is distant six journies, or less than one hundred
horizontal miles. From hence to Abomey it is seven journeys, and to
Benin eleven. Its distance from the Komashar, at the ford, is three
journies only. There are many populous islands in this lake, with towns
and villages, and the natives of these parts are subject to the dominion
of the sultan of Zogho. The tribes of Ayoh inhabit an extensive flat
surface, south of the lake, and they also serve the sovereign of Zogho
as tributaries.
The great river of Benin is among the easternmost of the great Wangara
rivers. From Abomey to this river it is fourteen journies due east; and
from the lake, before-mentioned, to the Kadarko River, a river which is
said to fall into or unite with the Benin, it is but four good journies
through the Yagah country, a country inhabited by a race of heathens;
the same nearly in language, laws, and customs as Ayoh. Khimbee is the
last district or principality in Wangara east; and that also is an
appendage to the throne of Zogho.
This great empire (Zogho), I conceive to be the Gago of Leo; and that
the g, intended doubtless for a soft one, has been inserted by the
translator to express the Arabian characters, ج or ذ which, being nearly
synonimous, are oftentimes indiscriminately used to mark the same sound.
My informers said, in the most positive terms, there was no kingdom
existing between Dahomy and Zogho, except such small ones as were
tributary to the latter, the sultan of which was the most powerful
monarch known in these parts, without excepting the kings of Ashantee or
Benin. They confirmed what Mr. Dalzel reported in his history of the
kingdom of Dahomy; that the sovereigns of this country pay tribute to
Ayoh, which they affirm is the same as Zogho, for these southern tribes
are employed, as occasion may require, to collect it by force of arms.
They call the sultan of Zogho, although a rigid Moslem, the friend of
Dahomy; because that monarch suffers the government of Dahomy to exist
when he might destroy it at his pleasure, for he can lead on an army of
500,000 men, a very great proportion of whom are good cavalry troops,
well armed with short javelins, lances, bows and arrows, and cutting
swords. The affinity, therefore, between Ayoh and Zogho, is the same as
between Ashantee and Inta, or Entâa agreeably to what Mr. Dalzel has
said, for Entâa is also the name of those tribes in Ghunja, who are
settled near the Aswada, and who built the city of Salgha.
The sections of Wangara, as they are now politically divided, were,
according to the traditions of the country, once united in one
consolidated empire, under the government of a king, who resided at
Yandy, and who governed Dahomy and Benin, the latter in tributary
subjection. This southern empire, which was of no long duration, enjoyed
its supremacy before the Arabs were known upon the Niger; and it was
their encroachments chiefly, which, by causing the northern powers to
fall back, contracted the resources of government and ultimately gave
occasion to the tributary kingdoms to shake off their allegiance, (the
tide of conquest flowing from east to west,) some of these sovereigns,
in the sequel, becoming proselytes and others tributaries to the Arabs
and their auxiliaries. Somewhere about the hejyran year 300 (that
memorable epoch when the Arabs were led to expect that some portentous
revolution would occur in the west; or, as it was metaphorically
predicted, the sun would rise in that quarter;) the great empire of
Wangara, which might then have been nearly as extensive as Bornou, was
compelled to receive laws from the natives of the banks of the Koara and
Ghulby. The auxiliary Moslem powers poured their forces into the
northern provinces, establishing their head-quarters at Killinga; from
whence, at that time and for two or three subsequent centuries, they
overawed the surrounding countries to the effect of eliciting tribute in
ivory, slaves, and the produce of the gold mines of Ashantee and Gaman.
Whether the great districts of tropical Africa, such as Ghunja, Sarem,
Dagomba, Killinga, Marroa, Fillany, &c. &c. are indebted to the Arabs
for the names they now bear, I am not able to decide; but that of
Yarraba, as I was assured by many, certainly received its name from the
eastern Arab tribes, as the sound itself implies; as did also Fillany,
from the western, in relation to Taffilet, (east of the Atlas
Mountains), the land which gave birth to the conquerors of the West.
Fillany is the proper name of the tribe of Taffilet. The deplorable
action of war in this country is unquestionably a bar to the attainment
of a correct and lasting system of its geography; and this evil, coupled
with the few incidental opportunities that offer for checking the
reports of travellers, and comparing their writings with those of
ancient or established authority, must ever increase the obstacle as
long, perhaps, as the natives of Europe and Africa shall be found to
have feelings and interests of opposite characters. We need not go far
for a solution of what this problem would give: It may be seen by a
reference to maps of Guinea, which were engraved as recently as the
early part of last century, that upon the Gold Coast only, many kingdoms
enjoyed, in their day, a political and substantial existence; but which
are now no more; or at most they exhibit but a shadow, which gives only
a faint outline of their original splendour, their opulence, and their
vigor; having been, from time to time harassed by cruel wars, of a
tendency to extirpate or expatriate the population in a mass, and their
names as nations. Let the reader refer to the map of Bosman’s
description of Guinea, where he will discover the names of powerful
little kingdoms, such as Dinkera, Akim, Quahou, Aquamboe, Fantyn;
besides those of less note, such as Adom, Coomany, Saboe, Ladincour,
Acron, Agouna, and some others, the most celebrated of which barely
enjoy their present oblivious rank and names as provinces of the
Ashantee Empire, while many places are totally extinct, and their
ancient glory is supplanted by the ingress of a foreign population,
bearing the names of their own tribes, to distinguish the new colony
nationally.
The works of the ancients upon the subject of African kingdoms,
appreciated by the most celebrated geographer of the present age, should
not therefore be rashly rejected; however we may feel inclined to
scepticism, on the ground of natural and permanent distinctions of land
and water.
Another tradition says, that after the decline of power in the east,
Dagomba and Ghunja were both united, more intimately than at present,
and formed one great kingdom, that ruled from Magho to the sea shore of
Dahomy; and that this was the political aspect of western Wangara for
many generations, between the dismemberment of the original Wangara
empire and the first coming of the Europeans; or, as they express it,
the first knowledge their ancestors had of white men; the early
Portuguese navigators.
At another period, when I know not, Kong and the Manding country were
mistresses of Sarem; and they governed many other maritime nations in
the south west. Haoussa, says the Bashaw, was then governed by a
sheriffe, whose armies were composed of Arabs and Africans, from the
north and east. Yarraba, at times, was tributary to it, as well as
Killinga, and Arab fleets ruled the cities and tribes upon the banks of
the Koara, the Ghulby, &c., as did their camel and cavalry armaments by
land, wherever the country was adapted to open warfare. The heathens
then could only find safety in the mountains, in close countries, and in
those extensive forest lands wherewith the continent abounds; for the
Arabs scowered every assailable point, to the effect of exacting
tribute, and propagating the creed of the prophet in nations the most
remote. The Moslem countries of the Koara, continued my informer, in a
tone that evinced envy and regret, owe their religious felicity and the
security they now enjoy to the wisdom of the old Arabian councils, and
the vigour of their horse and camel troops, which the most powerful of
the heathen nations trembled to confront on the plains of north-east
Africa; for most of the northern tribes, as well as those of Wangara,
were possessed of none of those useful animals before they knew their
conquerors. But, he concluded, the same causes which contributed to the
subjugation of Soudan, and the propagation of Islam, in the revolution
of years, aided the converted people, by God’s will, to drive back the
holy nation upon the deserts from whence they came, and where their
posterity still exist, although some Arab tribes are yet to be found on
the Koara, whose influence, comparatively, is not great; and whose
jurisdiction is limited to the government of themselves, and the few
insulated Ethiopian tribes of Moslems in their neighbourhood.
But for these events, it is the opinion of the Moslems of the south,
that every nation, down to the sea coast itself, would have been
converted to the service of Allah, long ere this, and the Koran would
have been known throughout _Africa_; whereas now the Idolaters are
strong in the south; and although they respect the Moslems from the fear
of the most high God, to whom they observe them pray, yet many tribes of
true believers are by them held in subjection, as may be seen at
Ashantee; and are compelled to pay tribute and fight the battles of
heathen princes, whose religion and whose interests are necessarily the
reverse of their own.
The absence of that political co-operation in the north, it is affirmed,
is mainly the cause why the southern believers are checked in their
efforts to propagate God’s worship by dint of arms; for the existing
governments in the vicinity of the great inland waters are supine, and
devoid of that energy which distinguished the career of the Arabs. If I
might hazard an opinion I would say, that the European trade upon the
western and Guinea coasts, particularly the importation of guns, powder,
and rum, operated greatly to the prejudice of the southern Moslem
tribes, by arming so powerfully against them the idolaters of their
neighbourhood.
The Moslems with whom I conversed are agreed that the maritime nations
of heathens maintain their political preponderance on the coast, and
their influence inland, by the use of European arms, the means of
procuring which are necessarily at their command, from the wealth of
Africa, (the gold mines of Wangara), so eagerly sought after by all
nations, from the reign of Solomon[147], being the produce of the soil
they cultivate; and which is defended by such forests, mountains, and
morasses, as defied the strength of the Arabs and their auxiliaries to
approach, in the plenitude of their conquests. The Moslem sovereigns of
Dagomba and Ghunja, and the sultan of Zogho, they assured me, ardently
wished for a free communication with the whites; although the latter,
from political reasons, did not think proper to root out the heathens in
Dahomy, as he might if he had chosen. All these nations ardently desired
such an intercourse, as would procure them the same weapons and
commodities as the Europeans now import to Fantee, Amanaha, and the
windward countries; a commerce which it is not the policy of the
maritime powers, such as Ashantee and Dahomy, to permit; and therefore
the interior states purchase what they require of the manufactures of
the north, at the great markets of Haoussa, Killinga and Sarem, besides
certain other stationary markets, upon the Koara, frequented by the
northern traders.
In reply to a question, if it were possible for me to visit Yandy,
Zogho, and Nikky;—the Bashaw said, it was not to be doubted, that the
name of the king of Ashantee was sufficiently powerful to carry me
safely to those places, or any part of the east to the extent of
Yarraba; (Benin excepted) and if coupled with that of the great white
sultan, my sovereign, it would not only be a sufficient passport, but
gain me the friendship of any court in Soudan. The king of Dahomy also,
he added, would be jealous, and the king of Ashantee would not wish me
to visit his country, because it lies on the sea side: whereas in the
north and eastern districts, where the alliance exists, my visits would
give pleasure to the king and caboceers, who would feel pride in the
envy of other nations.
The great kingdoms or empires of modern Wangara are three in number,
Ashantee, Dahomy, and Benin, and their dependencies. Those of minor
importance contained in the districts of Sarem, Ghunja, Dagomba, and
Yarraba, including the tributaries, are, in the West, Enkasy, Gaman,
Aowin, and Amanaha, or Apollonia; in the centre, Ghofan, Tonouma, Entaa,
Mahee, Gouaso, Kerapy, Popo, Whydah, and Ardrah. In the east, Yagah,
Khimbee, Ajasee, Jaboo, Kosie, and Waree.
The Moslems are scattered over the new provinces of Bouromy, Yobaty,
Baboso, Sokoo, and Takima; but their political sway is confined to the
government of themselves. Enkasy is the first Moslem principality in the
north-west, inhabited by some strayed tribes from Manding. From Coomassy
to Soke Aila, the capital (or market-place) of Enkasy, it is fourteen
journies, and six more to Kong. Agreeably to this, I have placed the
former in 9° 26′ N. lat. 3°. 42′ W. lon. and the latter 10° 12′ lat.
4°—lon. and which I conceive to be very near the truth. Enkasy is
tributary to Kong, and Kong itself pays tribute to Melly, a kingdom in
which the Moslem influence is great, although its sovereign is an
unbeliever.
Ghofan is the first Moslem government in the north beyond Banna, from
which it is separated by the Gaman province of Sokoo, formerly a little
principality, by Banna itself, Baboso, and the Deserts. It is hilly or
mountainous in the NW. and desert in the SE. but it has many extensive
fertile plains, well cultivated, and the country contains a moderate
population, who were the most warlike and active of the enemies of
Ashantee (Kong, and the Manding tribes, perhaps, excepted). Ghofan,
seven years back, was tributary to the sultan of Kong, but since the
subjugation of Gaman, in the late war, the king of Banna, the ally of
the Ashantee empire, has overrun many places in the south, and
established a new frontier upon the river. The Koran is the only
established law here, and at Ghobagho, another Moslem country, to the
north east, now of a greater importance than Ghofan, from which it is
distant only seven journies, or about one hundred and twelve miles; and
from Coomassy to Daboya, its capital, (although the sultan mostly
resides at Botintasy) sixteen journies or two hundred and fifty-six
miles. I have accordingly assigned it the latitude and longitude of 10°
15′ N. and 0° 32′ W.
The Desert, which must be crossed from Ghofan, is an extensive track of
coarse white sand, with a few stunted bushes, whose greatest breadth
from N. to S. is four journies. Water, however, is to be found in
abundance in the Desert; mostly in large stagnant pools, or lakes,
besides the Aswada, and many of its tributary streams, which flow
through the heart of it. The Sarga mountains, which are very lofty, lie
to the westward of Ghobagho, from which the loftiest ridges are distant
five journies; but a branch of them may be seen from Daboya and
Botintasy.
Yandy, the metropolis of Dagomba, is seated in a small district named
Simmer, on the confines of the great forest of Tonouma. It is on the
line of the main road from Salgha, from which it is distant six days to
the NN.E. and from Coomassy twenty-one, or three hundred and thirty
British miles, which would give it about the latitude and longitude of
9° 40′ N. 1° 20′ E. as I have assigned its position on the map. From
Yandy to Abomey, the capital of Dahomy, it is thirteen journies, and to
Benin twenty-eight, giving to the former a distance of two hundred
British miles, and to the latter three hundred and forty. Different from
travelling in Ashantee, all these journies may be performed with
facility, from the general open state of the country, and the use of
horses, and other beasts of burthen. The great forest, or wilderness of
Ghomaty, is five journies distant from Yandy, in the NE., the southern
boundary of which serves also for the boundary of Wangara in that
direction.
The eastern kingdoms and tribes of Wangara, are deemed infinitely more
populous and more civilized than the western: a truth which, I believe,
is not to be questioned, for there agriculture is encouraged, and
commerce exists upon an equal scale with the most commercial people in
Africa. In pursuit of gain the natives of Khimbee, Ajasee, Ghodau,
Benin, and Mazam, wander to the most remote parts of the continent in
caravans, or by means of the great waters that intersect Yarraba and
Killinga.
In all these countries, Benin excepted, horses are plentiful,
particularly in Ayoh and Yagah. Fire arms and gunpowder are, however,
unknown in these parts or very scarce, but their weapons, which they
wield with great dexterity and execution, are much dreaded in that
country. These weapons, which I have seen in Coomassy, are very long
supple lances, barbed and poisoned, targets, bows and arrows, tomahawks
and iron maces, the former of which they are in the practice of
poisoning with a venom more deadly than that which is used by any other
nation, as its operation is said to be sometimes instantaneous, and its
wound, although ever so slight, usually produces death within the lapse
of a few minutes. The troops of the sultan of Zogho are armed in the
same manner, and his subjects, who, although commercial, are as brave as
the Ashantees, and perhaps more enterprising, are proportionably dreaded
by the surrounding nations. Benin itself, although not strictly
tributary to the sovereign of Zogho, frequently sends presents to the
Court of the latter, where, by his ambassadors, the king cultivates the
friendship of a power he has too much reason to fear, from his great
resources inland, and the means he has of insinuating a Dahoman army on
the west over the Lagos river.
Benin itself is rich, and comparatively a civilized well governed
kingdom, superior to Ashantee in the arts and conveniences of life, in
the state of society, and in the administration of the laws, which,
however, have no better foundation than custom and tradition. The spirit
of commerce reigns here, and particularly in the northern provinces, in
its utmost vigour; and the land itself is so fertile and populous, that
it is usual to travel the day long amidst corn fields or plantations, of
which the tall and stunted palm, date, plantain, banana, yam, cassada,
and some kinds of fruit trees besides, occupy the surface of many acres,
which are enclosed with mud walls or bramble, to distinguish them as
private property.
The Moslem traders of Benin are said to navigate on their great rivers,
and the eastern branches which join the Kadarko, the Shoanka, and
Shaderbah.[148] Some of these rivers open a communication with a tribe
of heathens named Gargari, who live in tents, and are not black, but a
red skinned people, yet they are not of the Arabian stock. The best
breeds of horses and mules come from these parts.
On the sea shores of Benin there is no navigation adapted to canoe
voyages, for the sea runs so high, and breaks with such violence upon
the Warree, Kosie, and some parts of the Dahoman coasts, (as I have seen
the effect myself,) that the natives of those parts scarcely ever
venture out of their rivers; and the sea, unlike that of the Gold Coast,
yields them little or no tribute from its stores; but in requital, they
enjoy in security from the surf and the tempest, the most prolific
inland fisheries known any where in Soudan. There is, moreover, an open
navigation, by means of these rivers and lakes, extending from the city
of Benin westward to the Volta, crossing the Cradoo lake, the Lagos,
passing Porto Nova, Whydah, Popo, and Cape St. Paul. On the eastern side
of Benin, the extent of river navigation is not precisely known, unless
to the natives themselves; but it is admitted that there are channels
which intersect all the Warree rivers at right angles, running within
the compass of one or two days from the sea shore, out of the Formosa
river into the Forcados, Dodo, Nun, St. Nicholas, Bartholomew, Callebar,
Bonny, &c.; that the land hereabout is covered with thicket and forest
trees;[149] that the navigation in Warree, although unobstructed by
natural causes, is proportionately dangerous, from the ferocious
character of the people in these parts, and the bands of robbers who
lurk in concealment among the trees, ready to attack the trading canoes.
The sovereign of Benin, powerful as he is, cannot, as my informers say,
exact entire obedience from these people, who are supported in their
independence by the association of numbers of the discontented subjects
of Benin itself, who emigrate to the forests of Warree for personal
security, or to escape the retaliation of violated laws. There are said
to be three great forks which branch off from Ajasse at ten journies
from the sea, to which they run in a course inclining to the east of
south; and all these streams, in their upper courses, are studded with
richly cultivated islands, towns, and villages.
On the western boundary of Wangara is Gaman, formerly a powerful
kingdom, and now a province of the Ashantee empire. Its boundary on the
west is a flat country inhabited by the Mandings; Ghombaty, and Enkasy
bound it on the north. The Tando river separates it from Ashantee Proper
on the east, and Aowin, Amanaha, Lahou, and Bassam on the sea-coast, are
its limits in the south. The town of Bontokoo, the ancient residence of
its sovereigns, bears north-west from Coomassy, from which it is distant
eight journies. I have accordingly assigned its place on the map, 7° 36′
lat. N. 3° 25′ lon. W. Houraboh, the residence of its last king, is five
journies beyond Bontokoo, and its position, by the same calculation,
will stand good at 8° 30′—3° 58′.
[Illustration: A Man & Woman of Gaman.]
Gaman, and particularly its provinces of Ponin, Safoy, and Showy,
contain the richest gold mines known to my informers, in this or any
other part of Africa; who by way of illustration say, that in Ashantee,
Dinkra, and Wassau, the veins of metal are found at the depth of twelve
cubits (twenty-two feet) below the surface, but in these Gaman provinces
at five (nine feet.) The ore is dug principally out of large pits, which
belonged to the late king, in the neighbourhoods of Briquanti and
Kontosoo. The gold from these parts, according to specimens which were
shewn to me, is of a very deep colour, mixed with red gravel and pieces
of white granite. It all falls under the denomination of rock gold, and
is considered of more intrinsic value than that of Ashantee, although
the latter, as it passes for current, is mostly pure. The gold of Gaman,
i.e. the pit gold, is sometimes brought to the Ashantee market in solid
lumps, imbedded in loam and rock, which together would probably weigh
fourteen or fifteen pounds troy, and of pure metal might possibly yield,
if separated from the dross, about one pound or one pound and a half.
But even this, as I was credibly assured, is no sample adequate to
convey a just idea of the richness of the mines, many of which, and of
the richest in ore, are either dedicated to the national gods, or are
deemed, as in Ashantee, too sacred to cut into. Other specimens which
bore the most perfect natural appearances, were displayed daily before
my eyes, in solid lumps, which the caboceers wore attached to the
wrists, during and after the Adai custom, and which would in some
instances, I am inclined to think, weigh as much as four pounds. The
dust gold of Gaman, which is collected by washing in the beds of
torrents during the rains, the same as in Ashantee, Fantee, and Ahanta,
is also higher coloured, cleaner, and better than what is gathered in
any other country[150]. On the banks of the Barra, a stream which rises
near the large Moslem town of Kherabi, and flows south into the Tando or
Assinee river, the Gamans also wash for gold; and during the season of
rain, my informers relate, there is occupation for eight or ten thousand
slaves for two months; and the metal they collect, added to the produce
of the pits, the great bulk of which used formerly to be exported to
Manding and Kong, (where it was manufactured into trinkets, and from
thence transported to the nations of the Jolliba) now finds its way to
Ashantee, from whence it passes in small quantities to the maritime
provinces of Apollonia, Ahanta, Fantee, &c. and is there alloyed before
it reaches the hands of the whites; and the principal part of the metal
is either carried away by the inland traders, or remitted to the
correspondents of the Moslems at Yandy, Salgha, Banko, Wabea, and other
great cities of the north-east districts. In this active state of
currency it shortly reaches Zogho, Salamo, Kook, and last, Nikky, the
metropolis of the great kingdom of Bargho, where also it is transformed
into trinkets and ducats, (Mitskal) and under its new characters is as
rapidly translated to the Koara at Haoussa, or is circulated in the
provinces or neighbouring kingdoms of Wawa, Maury, Kaima, Baman, and
Kandashi. From the Koara and the Ghulby it is circulated through all
parts of Soudan, the Desert, and its kingdoms, Bornou, Egypt, and the
Gharb, but it never finds its way to any of those countries perfectly
pure, and never in its crude state, either as it is dug from the mines,
or in lump or dust as it passes for the medium of exchange in western
Wangara. The Ashantees themselves manufacture a little into trinkets,
chains, breast-plates, and ornaments; it melts away in a moderate equal
proportion in its north-easterly progress, even before it reaches the
kingdoms of Bargho or Magho, where the great manufactories are.
Within the empire, the provinces of Soko and Takima, independent of the
native population, who are heathens, contain many large towns, where the
Moslems live in distinct societies under the jurisdiction of their own
laws, but in subordination to the caboceers, appointed by the king of
Ashantee, or the tributary sovereigns and princes, whose governments
were not violated in the late war. Nomassa, the metropolis of Soko, is
said to contain about a thousand Moslems. In Waraki, the proportion is
even greater than this, and at Kherabi they are permitted to live
entirely by themselves in a city which was described to me to be as
large as Doompassy, and where the head bashaw of the believers resides,
who governs, for the king, the Moslems of the north-west, in number,
probably exceeding 80,000 of both sexes, including the proselytes. But
even at this estimate, as I conceive from the reports of the Bashaw of
Coomassy, the believers who are settled in the north-eastern districts
and provinces of Ashantee west of the Aswada, in Yobati, Bouromy,
Baboso, Coransah, part of Ghofan, and the kingdom of Banna, are
infinitely more numerous, and may, upon the total average, bear a
proportionate relation to the heathens, as one to fifteen.
As the maritime nations, and the Fantees in particular, are, of all the
tribes of Wangara, those with whom the British have hitherto been the
most intimately connected, I shall conclude this chapter with some
information respecting their character. The king of Ashantee alluded to
them in several conferences, public and private: “If I had not loved
white men,” said he, “surely I should not have made peace when the white
flag was displayed, but I would have had the forts where I knew there
was plenty of gold and merchandize. The Fantees wanted to govern the
castle, and they alone were enemies to us both; they formerly ill-used
white men,[151] but they dare not now.” Indeed the king’s observation
was a just one, in every point; for, previous to his visit to the Coast,
it was perhaps hardly known at times whether the British governed
themselves, or were governed by the natives, whose arrogance knew no
moderation, in the plenitude of their strength, and whose maxim it was
to terrify into compliance, by every act that cruelty, falsehood, and
treachery could devise. True, however, it is, and equally humiliating,
that they palliate their sins of this dye by recriminating upon the
whites, whom they accuse of acting towards them unconscientiously, and
without any other regard than to their own proper interests. It was no
uncommon thing for the natives to assemble in arms, at any little
disgust they might take, and shut up the garrisons within their walls.
Cape Coast Castle itself, the redoubted fortification, that, as Mr.
Smith would insinuate, was to bid defiance to the whole power of
Ashantee, has repeatedly experienced this calamity from the natives of
_its town only_; and the last time it happened was but a very few years
back, and since their subjugation by the Ashantees, when the people,
from their house-tops, had almost, I had said, overawed the garrison;
for the cannon-shot could only perforate the mud walls, without
dislodging the enemy from the thatch; while these plied their weapons
effectually through the embrasures, killing the sergeant, and maiming
others; and this disgusting anarchy terminated, as usual, in a
humiliating compromise, wherein each party bound themselves to restore
peace to the other, as it would seem, upon the basis of a mutual
forgiveness. As to the out-forts, excepting, perhaps, Annamaboe, they
have occasionally exchanged masters with the natives: and his _sable
Excellency_ has been seated under the flag-staves, or in the halls of
his deposed predecessors, negotiating at head-quarters for their own
abdication, upon golden terms. What, I would ask, led to the demolition
of the fort at Winnebah, recently, but these very outrages? And what
befel Mr. Meredith himself? Did not the natives drag that gentleman and
another, barefoot, over burning stubble, that lacerated and scorched
their feet at every step,—flogging them, at the same time, in a most
inhuman and degrading manner? and was not Mr. Smith an eye-witness of
this brutality, which in the sequel cost one or both gentlemen their
lives? Can it be denied that matters have been carried to that point of
extremity, that governors in former years have been compelled to fire
their magazines, and blow themselves into the air, to avoid falling into
the hands of an infuriated people? But in palliation of these acts, as
the Fantees relate, if it were practicable to draw out a just list of
aggravations and offences, and enumerate the sins of all, it would
probably be a matter of speculation which way the balance might incline.
The ponderous power of Ashantee, in lieu of contributing to the
insecurity of life and property, _alone guarantees both_ to us, by its
friendship, its _interests_, and the position it occupies in the rear of
its maritime provinces. The Fantees have it no longer in their power, as
the king justly observed, to pursue their rancours so audaciously,
although other tribes may still enjoy such privileges.
In the wantonness of cruelty, it was a common practice with the Fantees
to attack the canoes of white men, drag them on shore, make them carry
the great drum on the tops of their heads, flog them, compel them to pay
ransom, &c. Mr. Swanzy himself, if his own confession may be entitled to
credit, has had the honour, in common with others, of undergoing one or
both operations.[152]
And what are the people of the sea coast, now. I have sat in council at
Cape Coast Castle to arbitrate upon a business relating to Mr.
Blinkarn[153], or Blenkairn, the governor of Apollonia fort, and the
insignificant king of that country; wherein his black majesty, by
threats and insults the most alarming, the most aggravating, extorted
from that gentleman gold and merchandize, exceeding I believe the value
of thirty or forty ounces? And what redress did he obtain? What were the
steps taken to vindicate the honour and inviolability of the British
flag? and lastly, what expedient was resorted to, to check the cupidity
of the petty tyrant on future occasions, and secure the person and
property of this officer from fresh indignities, or the outrages
resistance might bring on his head? These are questions which I, of
course, must answer; _None_[154]! No, not a shadow even of consolation;
but on the contrary, the affected dignity of these legislators having,
perhaps, in contemplation that aspect which was necessary to give
currency to the pecuniary grant of the government, and carry weight in
Downing Street, at the Treasury, or before Parliament, induced its award
so far in favour of the princely robber, that it suggested the necessity
of _censuring the conduct of Mr. Blenkairn_ for having complied with the
demand; as if his loss and the predicament he stood in were not severe
enough, or that he durst have expostulated with the tyrant. This
gentleman made a long stay at head-quarters, and from what I could
learn, he was placed in that critical situation which created a dread at
the thought of returning to the dominions of a despot, who to renew the
expression, had as great, or a greater share in the government of a
British castle than himself, or the Company he represented. Yet it would
seem to have been instilled in the public mind, that the government
there enjoyed power and influence, and that empire belonged to us on the
shores of that continent. The _notes_ alone might suffice to prove that
a veil has hitherto concealed from public observation the actual state
of things as they lately existed. But setting those deeds aside, I
assert, in positive terms, that the Company were never entitled to any
rank as territorial rulers; for they never enjoyed jurisdiction over an
inch of ground upon the continent, if we except those inches
circumscribed by the walls of the castles; to which, as we have seen,
their titles were frequently contested by the maritime towns, and which
they at all times held in insecurity, notwithstanding they paid annual,
quarterly, or monthly tributes, or presents (call them by either term)
to purchase that respect which they were never able to command for their
sovereign’s flag; whether from incompetence or the inadequacy of the
funds at their disposal or not. If any trifling exception deserves to be
registered against this sweeping clause, it is simply this; that the
invasion of Fantee, by the king, and the extirpation or expatriation of
its tribes by the armies of Ashantee in 1807, and subsequently, opened,
as it might seem, a field for the scope of ambition, feeble and
dishonourable as it was, upon the face of the treaty, whereby the title
of the conqueror was acceded to and formally acknowledged; violated,
acknowledged again; violated during the government of Mr. Smith, and
acknowledged once more by his nephew at Coomassy, in 1817.
The political aspect of Cape Coast, after the great invasion of 1807,
and other subsequent movements, with a powerful sovereign, now the liege
monarch, in the rear, and the European castles in the van; the people
reduced, as we see, to the shadow of their former strength, in course of
time naturally threw them to a certain degree into our arms, for that
protection which they knew we could at all times _purchase_ by
negotiation: hence although tribute had been paid over and over again,
they were encouraged to resist the demand _exactly as I landed in the
country_, purposely and sinisterly, as it did appear, to prevent my
journey to court, without awakening my just suspicions; or to gain time
for the climate and disappointed hopes to work their baneful effects on
my constitution. It must be observed, however, that linked as the
interest of blacks and whites may seem to have been in political
feelings, the former, in some towns, could never be brought to forget
the sway they heretofore enjoyed over the councils of the chief
establishments; accordingly we find them, enfeebled as they were,
lording it in the town, compelling the garrison at Cape Coast to seek
safety behind their walls; where they remained shut up, upon an
insignificant quarrel about a man who refused to pay his debts. The
appeal, as usual, was to arms, and some fell in the conflict[155].
As another proof how limited this dependence was, the governors of forts
were never, at any time, able to prevent those horrid systems of murder
and sacrifice connected with the superstitious rituals of the barbarous
pagan religions. I have known many unhappy victims to water the earth
with their blood within gunshot of the walls of castles. At Accra, two
women and as many men were butchered, with every aggravating
circumstance, directly under the ramparts; and all that could be
employed, persuasion, was urged by the governor (the late Mr. Gordon) to
no purpose. At Tantum, during the government of the late Mr. Adamson,
the same class of murders were continually practised with impunity; the
same at Apollonia, Dixcove, Succondee, and Chamah. The only degree of
decency observed at Cape Coast (and that but latterly,) was to compel
the natives to practise their odious massacres at a distance from
observation. Rather than adopt a system of moral and religious policy
which might be found to interfere with long established interests;
rather than pursue maxims of humanity supported by good example; the
people have purposely, I am justified in saying, been suffered to
practise, among other vices, these diabolical tragedies in open day, and
in open spots; or in their houses, and in “the bush.” I should disgust
my readers of the tender sex were I to relate more of the depraved
propensities of these untutored people; suffice it to say generally,
that they inherit all the vice, and much of the infirmity of human
nature; all the evil affections or passions of the whites; all the
malignant and brutal inclinations of savages; and none of those
refinements which do honour to the human heart and understanding. If
this is not a fair picture, let who will contradict it. The humane, the
charitable, and religious in parliament, heretofore used their efforts,
to induce the inculcation of a system of education among the natives;
whereby these unhappy propensities might ultimately be corrected, and
the people enlightened by scriptural and other knowledge. The liberal
vote of £5,000 per annum, in addition to the former grant, was carried
in the House of Commons, expressly to promote that desirable object, in
association with the views anticipated by government when His Majesty
was graciously pleased to honour me with the appointment of consul at
the court of Ashantee.
Neither the Dutch, the Danes, nor ourselves, can claim merit for having
ameliorated the heart of the Gold Coast African, or even softened the
barbarous asperity of his nature. But, as may regard recent improvements
in the morals of men, in that country, during the administration of his
excellency, the late Sir Charles M‘Carthy, they are out of the question;
for with the means at his disposal, over a people so greatly reduced in
strength, and as regards the serious interest taken by government in
promoting knowledge, spreading civilization along the coast, and in
short encouraging the prosperity of those colonies by means, which to
them seemed reasonable, advantageous, and promising; there can be no
doubt that some, perhaps many, of the evils I have described to have
existed in my time, were rooted out; for power must exact obedience, and
as a tribute to the memory of Sir Charles, I will say, that few men knew
better than he did how to regulate it, and fewer possessed more ability
or inclination to temper it with indulgence towards the feelings and
interests of those who were dependent upon him.
The Dutch have suffered from the villainous disposition of the people,
both in former and recent years; perhaps, in some instances,
proportionately with ourselves. It is but a short period back, when the
natives of El Mina rose upon their chief governor Hogenboom, (I think
the name was) the predecessor of President Oldenburgh; chased him into
his garden, on the banks of the Salt River, and there murdered him in a
barbarous manner. At Eguira, many years back, it is true, they and their
fort were blown up together into the air. In the Anteese country, at
Adoom, Abocroe, Axim, Accoda, Boutry, Shamah, and other lands in the
west, they have occasionally borne their share of the calamities;
whether they originated in their own mismanagement, or from the natural
fraud, turbulence, and ferocity of the tribes of those parts.
At Succondee, where we are still established, the Anteese negroes, in
former times, burnt our fort, massacred the governor and his garrison,
and plundered the Company’s warehouses, private property and all.
See what Bosman relates of the Adomese negroes, and others inhabiting
the banks of the Praâ or Chamah River, at its outlet in the gulf; for it
is a fair specimen of what they would be, in common with the Ashantees,
and Dahomans at least, if they had the same power as those nations.
“Anqua, the king,” he says, “having, in an engagement, taken five of his
principal Anteese enemies prisoners, he wounded them all over, after
which, with a more than brutal fury, he satiated, though not tired
himself, by sucking their blood at their gaping wounds; but bearing a
more than ordinary grudge against one of them, he caused him to be laid
bound at his feet, and his body to be pierced with hot irons, gathering
the blood that issued from him in a vessel, one half of which he drank
and offered up the rest unto his God.” On another occasion he put to
death one of his wives and a slave, drinking their blood also, as was
his usual practice with his enemies.
At Commenda itself, now the dirty little mass of fishermen’s huts, where
originated (through the insolence of the inhabitants) the existing
quarrel with the king of Ashantee, the people formerly were as turbulent
as they are still, (or were in my time) insolent and despicable: the
Dutch themselves can bear testimony to it. In the early days of which I
speak, and since also, they attacked the fort of that nation from the
tops of their houses, as Cape Coast itself was insulted by them of late
years. The action, on one occasion, lasted five hours during the night,
and although they failed in their object, yet they succeeded in
intercepting a reinforcement, as they landed on the beach, and cut their
throats. The treacherous chief gunner, in the service of the Dutch,
while the massacre was taking place within reach of the cannon, had
nailed up the touch-holes of the pieces, and thereby prevented them
giving any assistance to their comrades, whose slaughter they were
compelled to witness in silence.
Coming eastward to the Fantee country, the same writer says, and he
truly says it, that the English were so horribly plagued by these
people, that they were sometimes confined to their fort and not
permitted to stir out. And if the negroes disliked the governor of the
fort, they made no more to do, than send him packing back to Cape Coast
in a canoe, in contempt; and which, so far from being able to resent, we
were compelled to make peace by a present.
Christiansburg itself, the chief settlement of the Danes, and one of the
best fortifications on the Guinea coast, was once actually taken from
them by the negroes of the leeward coast; and they entirely gutted it of
its stores and property; nor was the castle again restored until the
Danes condescended to send a handsome present to the king of Aquamboe.
In later days the disorders have raged in a moderate equal proportion:
many instances could be deduced to prove, that those tribes from whom we
might have had reason to hope for a greater degree of friendship, and in
whom from local interests, we had a right to expect a greater share of
honesty and attachment, have been the very parties who have wantonly
triumphed in sedition, insult, and knavery.
But, our relations on the Guinea Coast, I am inclined to think, have
never been properly understood; and yet Meredith, a servant of the
company, and who is comparatively a very modern author, has in some way
been suffered to betray the secret: he says, “It may be necessary to
remark that we appear to claim no _right_ of conquest in Africa, as far
as it respects the natives; the company pay _ground rent_ and _water
custom_ at most of their settlements. The people are regulated by their
own laws and customs and will not submit to ours. When they agree to any
laws, between the whites and themselves, they generally break them, if
they operate against the interest of the blacks. The forts have been
maintained for the purposes of trade only; and to enforce laws is
attended with much difficulty, expense, and risk, consequently it is
prudent to avoid hostilities, if they can any way decently be avoided.”
What can be clearer than this? If it is now the object of the
legislature to establish a sovereign controul on the Gold Coast, it
would probably be adviseable in the first instance, to purchase the
Dutch and Danish settlements; then, by a very _different_ kind of
alliance than that which was effected, carry the war to the
neighbourhood of the metropolis.
The connection existing, in my time, between the whites and the natives
of the maritime towns, but chiefly Cape Coast Castle, was indeed in all
matters concerning the inland people, a pure and intimate association of
interest with those of the Coast; having for its object, as Mr. Bowdich
justly remarked, an united effort to profit by the ignorance of the
unsuspecting trader of the interior. I have conversed with several of
the Company’s servants, upon the impolicy, as well as injustice of such
a system; and the usual reply was, “the Governor conducts his trade upon
the same principle as we do, for it has existed time out of memory, and
were we to set our faces against it our goods might remain on hand for
ever, as the town brokers, upon whom we depend to bring us trade, would
give the preference to another, who would comply with established
regulations.” Our neighbours, the Dutch, wisely protect the interest of
the foreign trader, and thereby guarantee their own; the consequence is,
that they enjoy a proportionate mercantile, as well as political
confidence at Coomassy; and the commerce of the interior, for those
reasons chiefly, may be carried to El Mina, in preference to any other
town upon the line of coast, or any other European establishment.
There is no slander, then, in saying, as not only Sir James Yeo, and Mr.
Bowdich, but many others besides have said, that the British and the
blacks were, however compulsively on the part of the former, leagued
together for the purpose of defrauding those Ashantees who might place
some faith in a white countenance; nor those alone, but strangers of all
colours. It has been stated, that the grievances and disorders of this
and other complexions were imaginary and unfounded. Let us see if the
defence will bear the test of investigation; and, in doing so, I shall
commence with the remarks made by Bosman, pages 12 and 13, of the nature
of African commerce in his days.
“At Dikjeschoftt (Dixcove) properly called Infuma, the English built a
small fort, anno 1691. I have often heard the English themselves
complain of this place; for, besides that it is not a place of good
trade, the negroes thereabouts are so intractable, fraudulent,
villainous, and obstinate, that the English cannot deal with them; for
if they have recourse to violence in order to bring them to reason, they
are also opposed by force; and that so warmly, that these five years
past they adventured to besiege them in their fortress, and were very
near taking it; at last, they obliged the English to their terms without
allowing them to exercise any power over them; and hence proceeded an
alliance so strict betwixt them, that they jointly cheated all the
_ships_ that came to trade there, by putting sophisticated gold upon
them, a fraud which they have frequently practised, as they did about
three months past, upon two small English ships (one of which was laden
to the value of £1,700 sterling) for all which the master received only
false gold; so that he lost his whole voyage at once; nor did his
companion suffer much less: and what mostly surprised them was, that
they received it as well from the whites as the negroes. They applied
themselves to the English chief governor on the coast, desiring they
might have their goods returned, or good gold exchanged for the false:
but, to complain to him, was to go to the devil to be confessed; for he,
participating in the fraud, would by no means help them. This cheat has
become so common that it daily happens; but that the whites have
_always_ a hand in it, is what I dare not affirm; however, I am very
sure that this place deserves the name of the false mint of Guinea, of
which every trader who comes to the coast ought to be warned; for the
making of false gold is here so common that it is publickly sold, and
become a perfect trade; the price current being in my time about a
_crown_ in good gold for two pounds sterling of false.”[156]
The Fantees, the natives of Cape Coast, and in general those of the
other maritime towns, enrich themselves by these very means, coupled
with the impositions they practise upon the inland people, as well as
upon us. In reference more particularly to the gold frauds, it may be
observed, that it is usual for the towns-men to call themselves brokers,
because the Ashantees, Dinkrans, Wassaws, Akims, Assins, and others from
the inland parts, on their arrival at the settlements, in times of
intercourse, are in the practice of putting up at the houses of one or
other of the natives who speak a little English, and are in the service
and pay of the whites; and these men receive it pure and unadulterated,
as it passes current in the interior. Before they accompany the trader
to the house of the white merchant, they endeavour, either during the
hours of repose, or as a fit occasion may present itself, to change the
gold, or reduce its value, by the intermixture of what is no other than
coloured brass filings; or if the guest is too much on the alert, they
contrive to do it in the merchant’s apartment, before the face of patron
and guest,—unknown, of course, to the latter, but oftentimes with the
knowledge of the former, who dare not resist the fraud, as they confess,
and as I have repeatedly witnessed myself. Nay, these conscientious
brokers themselves, when taxed with their impositions, will say, “How
can I afford to keep the traders in my house, unless I make a profit by
them?—innocently, as it would seem, imagining that they are entitled to
pay upon two, or perhaps as many more brokerage commissions as they can
secure to themselves. Thus, the emoluments these people were in the
habit of reaping, through their agency, in commerce, amounted, upon an
averaged estimate I made, at 12 or 15 per cent. reduction of the value
of gold, and 10 per cent. at least for frauds,[157] and pay they were in
the habit of exacting from the merchant, making together, at the very
lowest estimate, 20 per cent. reduction from the profits due to the
toils, and upon the property of the British trader, to the detriment of
local and commercial interests in general. Instead, however, of 20 per
cent., they have even been known to cheat and plunder all parties, to
the amount of 50 per cent. and more; but this extensive villainy usually
happens from accidental opportunities, or when the confiding master
trusts his servant to inspect and pack his gold for the London market,
from whence he gains his earliest knowledge of the fraud, by letters
from his correspondent.
Such sentiments as integrity, honour, and even honesty, would inspire,
are wholly unknown or disregarded by these people, be their relations to
the white man intimate and confidential as they may; for the truth of
the matter is, they are strictly and almost exclusively engrossed with
plans and plots, which have no other object than their own proper
interests and feelings. I believe, indeed, that there is no criterion to
judge when the broker would pause in his career of chicanery, as long as
he imagines he is secure from detection; but whether the whites first
set them the example, or that the latter only conformed to established
orders of trade, is what I cannot answer.
An unfortunate French vessel, in 1819, scarcely experienced any better
treatment at Cape Coast Castle itself, than did those English ships
recorded by Bosman. The captain shewed me some of his “brass pan” trash,
mixed with good gold; and I believe he weighed anchor from the Cape
earlier on that account. Some English captains have also been duped by
the same artifice, in my time; and I am justified in saying, that some
of the whites are in the practice of procuring sophisticated metal from
the natives, which they mix with current gold dust already alloyed, and
pass off upon strangers and foreigners, as occasion may offer. Indeed,
those who were the least implicated in the fraud, perhaps, had boxes
containing two separate qualities of metal, the one (designed for the
London market) sifted, or blown, as it is called, out of the other,
which is reserved for the unwary and unsuspecting. Indeed I had a
practical knowledge of these truths, for I suffered a loss of four
ounces of gold, shortly after landing, by the same deception. The term
fraud, in application to the latter instance, may perhaps sound harsh;
for certainly there is a great distinction in the nature of the two
offences, where one man makes a secret trade of the commodity, and the
other merely gets rid of an article to the best profit, which may have
come into his possession in a fair course of trade.
What is no less obnoxious to the true interests of Great Britain, and of
course equally detrimental to the mercantile interests of individuals,
they practise, besides gold frauds, others, such as watering the rum,
and then restoring its pungency with Mallaguetta, Chili, and other
peppers; pulverizing charcoal, and sifting the granulated particles,
which they intermix with the gunpowder; and various tricks besides, in
which, it is degrading to confess, they were not only countenanced, but
imitated by the whites. The king (of Ashantee) is no stranger to these
peculating intrigues, for he assured me that his own purchases, coming
from the governor’s store-room, were alike adulterated; but he
innocently attributed the whole of the cheat to the people of Cape
Coast.
The French nation, enterprizing and renowned in its commercial relations
with the colonies of the East and West Indies, and with Africa itself,
as regards the reigning dynasty, I am inclined to believe reaps as much
or more solid benefit from its system of intercourse with strangers,
than any other European nation, however commercial, speculative, and
enterprizing. The acknowledged vivacity and courtesy of this renowned
and gallant people may in some degree contribute to banish scruples, and
establish the necessary confidence; but those qualifications alone would
certainly be insufficient to promote their relations, to the extent at
which they have been seen to flourish. Looking to Africa only, it will
be apparent, that at Senegal, which is of little local value, as
compared with a station on the gold coast, they have pushed their trade
to a far greater distance inland, than any other European power, not
exempting even the Portuguese in the southern hemisphere; and they
journey by land to their factory at Galam, on the river, with as much
safety, probably, as they would travel from Marseilles to Paris; for the
native kings and princes of those parts are either strictly in alliance
with them, upon terms of mutual interest, or they are bound down by
treaties which they rarely violate; for their interests are, moreover,
consulted, in the payment of annual presents, consisting of the
manufactured goods of France, such as cutlery, cloth, powder, &c. all
which are stipulated for in these covenants, and written down in the
Arabic language.
Thus, moreover, they are permitted to count on the defensive alliance of
the Trassart, Braknart, and other Arab tribes who inhabit that part of
the desert between the Senegal river and Portendic, as also occasionally
in the south, in the kingdom of Cayor, and the tribes adjacent, as far,
may be, as within a few journies of the Gambia.
Fairs or markets might be established on the Gold Coast, upon the
prevailing principle of trade throughout Africa. It is not for us to
change long established maxims, commercial confidences, and rooted
prejudices of such notoriety, but to conform to the customs of the
countries in which we live, (surely as long as they have a tendency to
promote our interest,) and reconcile ourselves to those reasonable
systems of traffic upon which the native reposes his faith, either in
the shape of barter, as the Arabs and Africans of the Desert, of
Numidia, and even of many parts of Mauritania itself conduct it, or in
gold and cowries, as the natives of Wangara are in the practice of
dealing. A weekly, or perhaps monthly fair of this description, at the
settlements, would have no tendency to interrupt the course of trade at
other intervals; and it could not fail, when known and confided in at
Coomassy, if properly conducted, supported, and persevered in, to be
made known to the inland nations, as far as the Koara at least; and the
natives of those parts, if we were upon terms of friendship with the
king of Ashantee, would, it is probable, be permitted to resort to the
sea coast, to purchase of every commodity, save and except guns and
powder; or if that were not permitted, (as I entertain little doubt it
would) the Ashantees themselves would take the same commodities, and
dispose of them again at their own markets, to the traders who come from
Salgha, Yandy, Daboya, and other parts of the north and east.
I have hitherto suggested nothing for the more orderly and more
profitable regulation of trade; for I have hitherto been scrupulous
about intruding my conceptions upon the province of the legislature. I
cannot avoid thinking, that by the practice of a judicious system, such
as the French adopted when Canada belonged to that nation, it would
conduce to establish the fundamental principle of all fellowship and
intercourse—confidence. That once accomplished, would render all the
attempts of the maritime natives to defraud, nugatory; for instead of
placing the broker paramount, it would reduce him to his natural level,
as an auxiliary, and not a dictatorial dependent. The commerce of
Barbary is regulated by daily or weekly markets;—for instance, Morocco,
Fez, Algiers, and Tunis. Eastward of those places, as far as the Persian
Gulf, the practice is the same. In the deserts, and upon the shores of
the Niger; in Dagomba, Killinga, Haoussa, and Marroa, &c. the natives,
whether Arabs or Ethiopians, know no other medium of intercourse, or
they give their confidence to no other. The whites, however, must first
set the example of probity, then rigorously enforce it, as their
influence may admit; and in lieu of suffering the inland trader to take
up his abode at the broker’s house, his independence ought to be
provided for by a public bazaar or inn, free of cost, and adequate to
shelter him and his effects, during his stay upon the coast. The Dutch
come nigher to the feelings of the inland natives than ourselves, but
they might find room for improving their system of commerce also.
[Illustration: A Man & Woman of Banna.]
[Footnote 123: As prejudices may have been excited against the negro
professors of the Moslem faith, by a former publication on Ashantee, and
as their testimony is appealed to in the following pages, the author
claims indulgence for a few preliminary observations intended to rescue
their characters from calumny and misrepresentation.]
[Footnote 124: These notes, and the Arabic manuscripts, I have submitted
together, exactly as they are written, and without regard to the
orthographical errors they contain. In the translations, however, which
are according to our own reading and interpretation, I have judged
proper, for the reader’s convenience, to adhere to the idiom of our
language, by substituting the implied sentiments of the authors, for a
rigid and literal translation of words.]
[Footnote 125: Mr. Bowdich, it seems, must have been unaccountably
deficient in a knowledge of the usages of courts, and the decorum to be
observed towards a crowned head, although that head might be a black
one, else how could he presume, in the face of the world, to avow having
threatened the king with tearing to pieces a treaty of peace and
commerce which had just been ratified and exchanged with a “respectable”
native power, in the names of two sovereigns (of whom one claimed the
tribute of his allegiance); not to enumerate the trading company he
contrived to represent, and whose property in the country might have
warranted the conciliatory steps that were taken for its security at
that time.
Many instances, indeed, occurred, wherein the author’s conduct involved
him in disgraces; and well might the Cape Coast messengers declare
before the king’s ministers, “that his uncle (Mr. Smith) had sent them
as a check upon him, and that he was not doing right in talking so to
the king, but should wait his pleasure in quitting the capital,” &c.
(page 138). In truth, these unlettered children were better informed
than their educated master, of what was due to royalty in any court in
the universe; and Mr. Bowdich ought to have known, that even under
republican forms of government, an envoy does not take what is vulgarly
termed French leave, but waits for passports and a congé.]
[Footnote 126: The manuscripts to which I refer are submitted in the
Appendix, together with their translations, agreeably to my own reading
and the knowledge I derived from the natives.]
[Footnote 127: It is said that Yamina received its name from a prince of
the Ismaelian dynasty, who, by his ambassadors, prevailed upon one of
the early sovereigns to abjure the Pagan rites, and embrace Islam; which
being acceded to, and confirmed by oath, the Sheriffe, as an honourable
epithet, bestowed upon the city the name of يمينا, (from امين, an oath,)
implying it was a city sworn into confederation in defence of the
Koran.]
[Footnote 128: These watches divide the twenty-four hours into nine
parts. The first, at sun-set, is called المغرب, Mogharb; the second,
العشا, Lâshâ; the third, الشفق, Shafak; the fourth, نسف الليل, Nosaf
Leil, (midnight;) the fifth, الفجر, Al Figer, (day-break;) the sixth,
السبح, Sabah, (sun-rise;) the seventh, الغدا, Al Ghadà; the eighth,
الظهر, Dohor, (noon;) the ninth, العسر, Al Aser. Some, however, reckon
no more than five watches, which are necessarily four hours forty-eight
minutes apart. These are Mogharb, Nosaf Leil, Al Figer, Dohor, and Al
Aser. This division of time denotes likewise the hours of prayer, when
it is incumbent on true believers to assemble in the Mosques, or to
congregate in devotional exercises in the field, or in the house.]
[Footnote 129: It is true I have travelled that space in four days, but
I have no room to be vain of the feat, for a gentleman who is now in
England accomplished the same distance in three days, and his horse,
although greatly jaded, survived the fatigue.]
[Footnote 130: No. XLIV. March 1820, p. 292.]
[Footnote 131: Since these sheets were written, accounts have been
transmitted to England of the death of Mr. Bowdich upon the Gambia. As
an author, it is for the public to determine how his untimely end may
affect the world of African literature. As a private man, and a laudable
adventurer in the pestilential climates of that continent, all men of
feeling will deplore a loss that adds another name of some little
distinction to the already inflated list of travellers, whose existence
is now only to be found in the pages of history. I too can mourn,
because there are few to be found possessing as much zeal, enterprize,
and literary talent as Mr. Bowdich was qualified with, notwithstanding
the blunders I lay to his charge in the volume he wrote on Ashantee, or
the revolting egotism and misrepresentation with which it abounds. While
I disclaim the influence of prejudice in regard to this unfortunate
gentleman, I am free to declare that I look to his publication only, the
false colouring it has given to matters of importance, and the
consequent false impression it is calculated to make on the
understanding of the reader; and whether its author be living or not, I
conceive my duty is the same. I will venture to assert, that had he been
still in existence, it would have been impossible, by any effort of the
pen, to have extricated his name, with satisfaction, from the obloquy
associated with my charges. As he is dead, no degree of censure can
affect him. Let him slumber, therefore, in a peaceful distant grave; but
let me undeceive the world in matters connected with a public interest.]
[Footnote 132: When Mr. Bowdich arrived in England, Mr. Cock applied to
me to translate his Arabic manuscripts. I took some pains in doing so,
and those papers which came under my observation did not support the
speculations he subsequently launched into, for they were in a limited
degree supplementary, as his book was already written, with the
reservation, perhaps, of his geographical section.]
[Footnote 133: As it was the universal impression, that all public
disputes ceased with the ratification of the treaty, I did hot hesitate
to urge the necessity of forming a broad open path down to our chief
settlement, offering, as my instructions authorized me, the loan of
tools for that purpose. The king, in reply, said, “I know the white king
is a true friend now, and he can only tell you to ask me that for my
good; but then he lives a long way off, and does not hear what insolent
people the blacks are, when they think the white king is their friend,
and will help them to fight. Now, as soon as my nephew comes back, I
shall make a proper road, that the trade may go to the English.” The
Moslems subsequently corroborated this intention.]
[Footnote 134: Mr. Bowdich has erroneously spelt it Dwabin; the natives
pronounce it as I have written, and the Moslems spell it جوابن which is
the same.]
[Footnote 135: Two of these unhappy men, whom I had an opportunity of
conversing with, assured me, that between Fantees and Assins together,
their numbers now approached to twenty-five thousand, and that above
four times that number had perished, either on the altars of the
metropolis, or by famine, misery, and the cruelty of their masters.]
[Footnote 136: Mr. Bowdich says, that on the route to Accra, the river
Boosempra is crossed on the sixth day, by a tree laid over the stream;
but this is contradicted by general testimony. A messenger who came to
me from Accra travelled to the capital by this route, and he declared
the breadth of the river to be great, adding, “That it was not always
fordable, and that no such thing as a bridge existed there or elsewhere
on that route.” The Birrum river is about ten yards wide at Monosi.]
[Footnote 137: Bussem is the native word for Fetische.]
[Footnote 138: Notwithstanding the Moslems who inhabit the capital are
necessarily induced to espouse the court politics in public life, they
are secretly averse from coalescing with the army, for two simple
reasons; the first is religion, which forbids that the lives and
liberties of “true believers” should be sacrificed to the caprice, or in
the avaricious wars of heathen monarchs; the second is an innate
repugnance to contribute to the aggrandizement of a power that is
already dreaded by the Moslems in general.]
[Footnote 139: There is, as Mr. Bowdich relates, a popular superstition
that the Europeans will cut a water communication from the sea to the
Echouy, the guardian God of the metropolis; but that the Moslems nourish
the legend, I cannot believe; although I do not say they may be unmoved
by a rumour which would flatter their hopes of emancipation from the
yoke of heathen vassalage, mild as it is in respect to them, and place
them in a situation from whence they might draw the same mercantile
resources, as do now the Ashantees, who, by means of powder and shot
alone, support that great political influence. Absurd as the tradition
certainly is, if the Moslems are at all affected by it, it can only be
with a friendly anxiety for its completion.]
[Footnote 140: One of these lances and some darts which I gave to the
late Sir George Collier, were tolerably ingenious specimens of
workmanship. The former was covered alternately with silk, pieces of red
cloth, and tiger’s skin, ornamented with tassels and amulets neatly
cased: the handle was covered with the skin of a snake.]
[Footnote 141: The territory of Ashantee is particularly ill adapted to
surveys upon any trigonometrical principles, or even the application of
astronomical instruments. Choice of stations can never avail in the
country; and accident alone must guide the footsteps of the traveller to
a spot where he can obtain a partial glimpse of the firmament, of scope
sufficient to enable him to make use of an artificial horizon: for where
vegetation, such as I have described its character, does not grow,
houses stand, the former being removed to give place to the latter in
the stations of crooms, or in the land that may have been cleared for
the reception of grain and yams.
A pocket sextant, a compass, a thermometer, and an horizon, were all the
instruments I could procure at Cape Coast antecedently to the journey;
for, on my application to the governor and council for the use of others
(which, it is true, belonged to them privately) I was assured that none
could be procured; or that there were none. To add to my misfortunes,
the sextant was so much disorganized, that after repeated trials, I was
compelled to lay it aside, and the thermometer got broken in Coomassy.]
[Footnote 142: The population of Dahomy, notwithstanding, is infinitely
greater than that of Ashantee properly so called, with the provinces of
Akim, Assin, Fantee, Dinkra, &c. included. It is greater in proportion
to extent of territory, although the character of its wars, as described
in Mr. Dalzel’s history of that kingdom and the conquests of Ardrah,
Whydah, and Popo, is precisely the same as in Ashantee. The most
populous provinces and principalities of Ashantee lie to the northward
of the seventh degree of latitude. That of Bouromy alone can raise
10,000 men, and Coransah, about half that force; Quaho six thousand,
Amanaha, and Aowin (termed the kingdom of Apollonia,) three thousand;
and the great provinces of Soko and Takima twenty thousand. These troops
are to be considered independent of the actual armies of Ashantee, as
also of the auxiliary forces of Banna, of Gaman of the upper provinces
on the banks of the Aswada, and the alliances with the sultan of Yandy,
or the tributaries eastward of that river.]
[Footnote 143: See those very interesting reports in the Quarterly
Review of 1820, No. XLV. Art. “Course of the Niger,” founded upon the
intelligence obtained by the late Mr. Ritchie, a gentleman who sailed
for Tripoli about the same time that I embarked for Guinea, and whose
hopes, as he assured me in England, embraced not only the survey of the
Niger westerly from Bornou, but also the prospect of joining me at
Coomassy, on his anticipated route homeward by the way of Cape Coast.
Mohammed, a native of Timbuctoo, with whom Mr. Ritchie became
acquainted, furnished him with the information his reports convey,
substantiated, as he describes them to be, by the testimony of “Sidi
Hamet Tooghar, the Cadi of Tripoli, who resided many years in the
interior, and by Sidi Mahommed Dghies, late Prime Minister,” &c.
Of Wangara, a place but vaguely known to the northern Moslems, it is a
remarkable coincidence, that one of these reports should actually
corroborate my own information on that point, as the following extract
will shew:—“From Timbuctoo to Wangara is about _twenty-five days’
journey_; the inhabitants bring _gold dust_ to Timbuctoo.” He (Mohammed)
had not been there, but understood it to be in a _southerly_ direction.
Diffident as I may be in obtruding my own opinions on the world, or
biassing the reader’s judgment, I cannot in this instance refrain from
stating my entire conviction of the identity of Ashantee, Gaman, &c. &c.
with the true and only Wangara known to the nations of North Africa;
wonderful as it may seem, that we should have actually colonized the
country for many ages past, without ever having known it even by name.]
[Footnote 144: And by some ونكرا or, adopting the Persian ڭ. ونڭرا]
[Footnote 145: لا ريب فيه وان الله علم “There is no doubt about it,” was
the expression used by the Moslems, “and God knows it is true.”]
[Footnote 146: The Guinea Moslems, in speaking of rivers, invariably
called them seas; بحر their characteristic name of running water, salt
or fresh, to which they subjoin large or small. The terms Wad, Wadai, or
Wadan, properly signifying river, which the Arabs and Northern Africans
commonly use, were not in use among the Wangara Moslems.]
[Footnote 147: I scarcely need observe, that Solomon’s _Wangara_ was on
the eastern shores.]
[Footnote 148: This river is called by the natives of Dagomba, Ghulby
Kanbaja, and by the Haoussa Moslems, Shaderbah. It is remarkable, that
there is a city in the kingdom of Maury, near the Lake Noufy, which is
also called Kanbaja.]
[Footnote 149: I have been at the Dodo, and have seen many of the rivers
between the Formosa and Callebar, and such I know to be the aspect of
the country.]
[Footnote 150: Although Quaho, Akim, and some other parts of the empire
bordering the Volta, formerly yielded much gold, yet, at present, there
are few, if any, pits in those provinces, which pay the working, unless
it should be imagined that the inhabitants have purposely neglected them
of late years, perhaps to avoid the evils they might anticipate from the
cupidity of their conquerors the Ashantees. To the westward of Cape
Coast, in the little district called Adoom, which is one journey inland
of Poho, or three short ones from the sea; and in the neighbourhood of
Taccorary, the natives have many rich mines or pits, where they dig out
the ore and grind it between rubbing stones to separate the metal from
the quartz pebble.]
[Footnote 151: Meredith, in characterizing the natives of the Coast,
says, “They are too well acquainted with our weak condition,” &c. “They
know we are only formidable when surrounded with walls and guns. It was
a most fortunate circumstance for the British character in this country,
that the Ashantees made a trial of their courage and strength against
Annamaboe. If they had attacked any other fort, under similar
circumstances, _they most probably would have succeeded_,” &c. “We hear
of contributions being imposed on our neighbours, forts pillaged,
governors threatened with torture or beheading, others actually
murdered, one gentleman surprized, and now a prisoner,” &c. “Neither
have the British been permitted to enjoy perfect tranquillity. The
governor of this fort (himself at Winnebah) was seriously threatened
twice, by Attah, the late king of Akim. He sent a peremptory message,
demanding a quantity of powder, lead, and guns, accompanied with
threatening language, calculated to excite terror,” &c. “This demand was
not complied with, _but a present was sent to him, as a token of
friendship_,” &c. In a second demand, according to this author, he met a
_polite refusal_, which so irritated him, that he says, we believe, “he
would wish to be revenged,” &c. In consequence, the governor is obliged
to keep within certain limits; and prudence restrains him from walking
any distance from the fort, for fear of being surprized. Again he says,
“Two instances _he is obliged by candour to state_, have come to our
knowledge, of _two governors having been literally flogged_, &c.; one
captain of a ship nearly flogged to death, and another _almost
murdered_, besides other cruelties and indignities too painful to
relate.” Might it not be reasonably asked, if these are the people, as
the Committee would insinuate, for whom we should risk the honour of the
flag so precariously insulated, our property, and our lives, against a
friendly power, who claims their allegiance by right of conquest and
cession, and who, at the same time, meets our overtures with open arms,
and hails our footsteps in the capital, as the treading of demigods? The
Committee are bound to answer the question to their country!]
[Footnote 152: The Fantees, Mr. Meredith writes, “demanded of the Dutch
government forty ounces of gold, under a threat of destroying their fort
at Cormantine, (originally built by ourselves) if the sum should be
denied them. The Dutch government would not comply with their demand; in
consequence of which the Annamaboes marched out, headed by their king;
and as the fort was incapable of making resistance, it was pillaged, the
guns rendered useless, part of the walls levelled, and the artificers
attached to it made prisoners.”]
[Footnote 153: This is the same Captain Blenkairn, who, it seems, has
the command of one division of the forces raised for the defence of the
British settlements on the Gold Coast, and which was too far distant to
share in the action wherein Sir Charles M‘Carthy, and the troops under
his immediate command, sustained that terrible defeat.]
[Footnote 154: Indeed, it must be confessed, that if the united British
garrisons had been conveyed to Apollonia with intent to revenge the
affront, the chances are, that few would have returned to report the
issue of the campaign. This does not argue, however, against the
adoption of a course of policy adequate to the emergency of the
business.]
[Footnote 155: The king once observed to me, that he knew the nations of
Cape Coast were a saucy turbulent people, and that they cheated the
English as much as they did the Ashantees, bidding defiance to the
authority of governors, and treating white men, in common, with
brutality. “If you,” said the monarch, “tell me my master (the king of
England) is agreeable to it, I will bring them all to Coomassy and send
another tribe to live among the whites; I will not kill them, but will
give them land, and a good governor to make them obedient, and if the
people I send should become saucy I will remove them also, or authorize
the whites to cut off their heads.”]
[Footnote 156: As Bosman then wrote upon the subject of sophisticated
gold, and the manner in which it is palmed upon the whites; so I may now
write of what came under my observation; for the same system prevailed
generally, and even the established white merchants were victims to it;
as they took the gold knowing it sometimes to be a fabricated mixture.]
[Footnote 157: One description of fraud or extortion was conducted in
this manner:—An Ashantee would have occasion, let it be supposed, for
guns. The broker would enquire of his employer, _in English_, how much
he would sell for. If the fixed price was seven ackeys a gun, he would
tell the trader nine, and pocket the other two himself, with the
knowledge and consent of his master, who, as I have said before, dare
not resist the imposition, for fear of losing the broker’s services and
connexion. Hence the natives are so anxious to place their children
under the whites, as servants, to learn, as they call it, _proper
sense_; for when once they have a smattering of English, their fortunes
are made, as brokers and rogues.]
CHAPTER IX.
SOUDAN.
ANCIENT AFRICA — DERIVATION OF THE NAME — THE GHARB — SOUDAN —
TRADITIONS — INROADS OF THE OCEAN — NAMES GIVEN BY THE ARABS — ANCIENT
POPULATION — IGNORANCE AND INDIFFERENCE OF THE PAGANS — GREAT DIVISIONS
OF AFRICA, SOUTH OF THE DESERT — GHUNJA — SAREM — DAGOMBA — GANOWA —
BAMBARA — FILLANY — MARROA — KILLINGA — HAOUSSA — YARRABA — THE NIGER —
SHARY — GHULBY — CAPTAIN LAING’S OBSERVATIONS — DESCRIPTION OF ROUTES
MARKED ON THE MAP — JEWS OF SOUDAN — TRAVELS OF THE ASHANTEES —
PRIVILEGES OF MOSLEM TRAVELLERS — CURRENT COIN — WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.
Of all the various names given by the ancients to that vast continent we
now call Africa, those of Lybia and Ethiopia appear to have been the
most generally adopted; and, perhaps, the most comprehensive in relation
to the whole peninsula, as far as actual knowledge, or imagination
prescribed its limits: for it is not to be supposed that Africa beyond
the equator was ever known either to the Carthaginians, Romans, Greeks,
or Vandals, except from vague reports; circulated for the most part
through the channels of upper Egypt, Judea, and the districts of Hejaz
and Yaman, in Arabia, nighest to the opposite shores of the sister
continent. This, at least, may be inferred from the want of records to
prove a contrary fact, in regard, specifically, to the distant inland
parts, and the mode of traversing those regions, as practised by the
Arabs and Moslem Africans of the present age. It is a truth not
unprofitable to pause at here, that the religion propagated by Mohammed
is, of all other doctrines ancient or modern, sacred or profane, the
only one which insures safety to its votaries among the savage hords of
Lybia; and therefore, it would seem, that the ancients, for opposite
reasons, never could traverse even the deserts with that security which
their posterity enjoy. We are told, that so early as six hundred or six
hundred and four years before the birth of Christ, the limits of the
continent were, in some rude degree, known to the Egyptians, from an
actual voyage of circumnavigation, performed in the reign, and by order
of Pharoah Necho, monarch of Egypt; that these ships, we may suppose a
fleet, departed from the Red Sea, (perhaps the port of Suez) doubled the
Cape of Good Hope, the westernmost projections of the land in the north
Atlantic Ocean, and Cape Spartel, at the mouth of the Straits, returning
to the shores of the Nile, by the way of the Mediterranean sea. The
respectable authority from whence this has emanated, scarcely leaves
room to hazard a doubt upon the subject; yet many may, notwithstanding,
feel inclined to disbelieve it; according to the various objections that
might be urged in refutation of the probability, that such frail barks
as were constructed by the ancients should be adequate to a voyage of
that magnitude in unknown seas, and in comparatively high southern
latitude; where the turbulent character of the elements so rigorously
beset the Portuguese in after ages, that in commemoration of their
sufferings, the headland, now the Cape of Good Hope, was anathematized
by the appellation of Stormy, or the Cape of Storms. But admitting that
the same class of vessels, which were capable of navigating all parts of
the Mediterranean and Red Seas, were alike calculated to navigate the
ocean, still there would be room for doubts connected with the manner in
which these mariners supported life; for they could hardly have carried
with them preserved flesh, corn, or dates sufficient to last them out
the voyage; and if the old Africans were disposed as the moderns are,
and have been for generations past, these voyagers could not presume to
effect a landing unless their numbers were sufficient to preserve them
from becoming the slaves of the natives.
Dismissing the train of unavailing conjectures this might lead to, it
may not be amiss to notice what the Arabs say in relation to the
etymology of the word Africa; for they pretend to give a clear explicit
account of its derivation. In the first place it is a term acknowledged
to be of Arabian extraction, as indeed its sound implies; although its
etymology has been, by many, so vaguely handled. The most important in
the list of European reasonings, and one which, in fact, conveys an air
of some plausibility, is, that it derived its name from a certain
Arabian King called Ifraki or Ifriki, who fled before an Assyrian army
into Egypt, and from thence into the deserts of Barca; but finding no
sustenance for his followers, and their herds of cattle, he sent out
scouts westward towards the Cyrenaica, or perhaps the Tripolitana, who
shortly afterwards returned with the joyful tidings of land fit for
pasture and tillage. This tradition, which I must confess I never heard
of, is intended to combine, jointly, not only the derivation of the word
Africa, but of Barbary also, notwithstanding its actual distance from
these Lybian deserts, or from the ancient Syrtis, now called the Gulf of
Sidra, which separates the Tripolitana from the Cyrenaica. To this
effect, it is added, that when the fertile districts were discovered,
the scouts impatiently rushed into the presence of their sovereign,
crying out _ber ber_, signifying in Arabic, land, land; and from that it
derived a name, which, by the Romans, when they became acquainted with
the country, was softened down with a Latin termination to their own
liking, into the word Berberia, or something resembling the sound of
that combination; and which we, claiming, naturally, the same privilege,
have again corrupted to Barbary.
If it be inquired of a modern Arab by what name he distinguishes the
continent of Africa, he will perhaps say there is no specific name for
it, by reason that there are many regions in the southern hemisphere,
which are entirely unknown to us; but that since his countrymen became
masters of the land now enjoyed by their posterity, those great
districts have been jointly distinguished by the appellation of Al
Gharb, or Maghariba, signifying the western land, in relation to its
bearing from Arabia and Syria, the focus of empire under the primitive
Khalifs, whose arms were so ably carried to the margin of the Atlantic
Ocean; the waters of the setting sun. Gharb (which is comparatively a
modern name) he would again subdivide for the different sections,
calling the land and deserts westward of the Nile, comprehending the
whole Cyrenaica and the Lybian desert down to the ancient Syrtis and
southward as far as the present kingdom of Fezzan, Magharib Mokribi, or
the _First Division West_. This is perhaps a more explicit name than
Afrikia (from Mafroka), but both are well understood as relating to this
great tract. The westernmost boundary of the old Tripolitana, properly
so called, and the old Carthageniensis, including the present Bashalics
of Tunis and Algier, and the vice-regency of Tenez, embracing also part
of Telmsen on the line of coast, and south as far perhaps as the old
Roman garrisons of Tuggert, or Worgala, in or on the desert confines,
would be distinguished as Maghareb al Wasat, (al Ouast) or the
_Middlemost, or Central West_; and Moghareb al Woasa, the _Furthermost
West_, if he were a native of the western Mauritania, would be the name
by which he would describe his own country.
The deserts, also, are divided simply in this manner, for the word
Sahara, which is desert, does not imply any particular district, and is
equally applicable to any sterile spot in Arabia, or elsewhere.
Soudan from اسود Aswad, (black) is a general and vague appellation in
use among the Arabs and northern African tribes, as relating
particularly to those nations which border the left bank of the Niger,
although not exclusively so, for they as frequently apply the term in a
far more comprehensive sense, whereby they include the whole of tropical
Africa known to them; and it may consequently be translated with the
greatest propriety _the Land of Negroes_, or _Black People_, for that is
simply the meaning, and no other[158]. Like the word Caffreria, which is
a corruption of the Arabic Kauferau, a term in use among the Arabs of
the sixth and seventh centuries, it is (although not of the reproachful
character of the latter, which implies “the land of infidels”) somewhat
contemptuous in signification, as it then stigmatized the southern
tribes indiscriminately as an inferior order of the creation, of whom
many about that period, and since the wars of the Arabs upon the “Bahar
Soudan” Niger, have embraced the Korannic faith and incorporated
themselves with their conquerors.
The Moslems of Haoussa, Killinga, and Dagomba, however, as also some of
the desert tribes in the west, use Soudan as a generic and proper name,
by which they describe certain very extensive tracts inland. The name,
according to the signification given by the Arabs, is perfectly familiar
to them, and in conversation with foreigners they use it, by adoption;
but still they reject it in their geography, as a term of a vague and
indefinite importance, which is truly the case. Soudan is the name given
by the Wangara Moslems in general, and particularly by those of
Ashantee, to that great strip of land stretching away east and west
along the parallels of the desert, and the great central rivers and
waters from Bambarra in the west to Bornou in the east. These regions
they again subdivide into two parts, calling the first Kably or Soudan;
Kably in reference to its greater approximation to the Kabla of the city
of Mecca (the east) and the latter Gharby, or Soudan Gharby, from its
bearing west, towards the regions of the setting sun. Some also make a
third division of Soudan, “beyond the waters,” and this they call
Wastany Wasat, or Soudan al Wastany, signifying simply Middlemost
Soudan.
Beside these principal divisions, they allow of another Soudan in the
more central parts of the continent, below the southernmost provinces
and kingdoms of the Bornou empire, on the south bank of the Shady; and
this they call Soudan Dakhlata; a term which they admit to be vague, and
which I conceive to be synonimous with interior Ethiopia, for its
meaning is strictly interior Soudan.
Africa, according to traditions I have oftentimes heard repeated by
Arabs (for the Berrebers, or mountain Africans, know little of the
matter), is the old name, somewhat corrupted, by which the land beyond
Nile westwards was called by their ancestors, many ages before the birth
of Christ, and probably long before they had any practical knowledge of
its internal features. This original name, as they pronounce it, was Al
Mafroka, the disunited, or divided land; implying as the general opinion
goes, that it was cut off from the continent of Asia by the course of
the Nile from south to north; for the eastern geographers, it is well
known, included all that tract of land bounded on the east by the
Arabian gulf, and on the west by the river Nile, under the head of Asia.
Another tradition, which however is not so popular, gives it the name
ascribed to it, not from the separation of the land by the course of the
Nile; but from the division caused by the Red Sea; from whence, they
say, the ancient Arabs named the opposite shore Mafroka, the disjointed
or broken land, because they believed the waters to have concentrated
there after the deluge subsided; or that they preserved the tradition of
a subsequent rush of the Indian ocean, whereby the Almighty inflicted a
heavy chastisement for the transgressions of certain tribes in the
Hajaz, or stony Arabia, whose loss may be found on record in the Koran
itself.
Although, as I before remarked, the Berreber tribes know so little of
these traditions, it is a singular truth that they are firmly persuaded
that the African continent originally joined that of Europe in the west,
where the Herculean pillars now stand; and also, that in the same early
age, the land of Mauritania projected a considerable number of leagues
more in the Atlantic Ocean than it now does. No one presumes, however,
to account for the age it happened in; except as they vaguely narrate,
that since the universal deluge the sea broke in upon the land where the
straits of Gibraltar now exist, and spread its waves around to the
extent it now does; sweeping into the abyss myriads of human beings,
with their cattle, and habitations; burying all but the summits of the
highest land, which, together with the tops of mountains, are still to
be seen under the semblance of islands scattered over the surface of the
water. The Arabs and Asiatics in general shew no great respect to this
mountain tale; yet it is worthy of remark, that when the early Moslem
tribes carried their victorious arms to that part of the Spanish coast
opposite the Tingitana[159], the fortunate generals, in pursuing the
system of naming the conquered territory, as caprice or accident might
dictate, without respect to the names by which the Spaniards themselves
called them, any more than they had heretofore respected the old African
names of places (excepting, however, where the Atlas, and other
mountainous ridges bid defiance to their encroachment,) adopted the
African legend, as it agrees with several capes and head-lands, as
Trafalgar and Algezeiras, called by those people Terf al Gharb, and Al
Zeira, or Jazeira, implying part of the Gharb, or Mauritania, and its
island, are expressive of the credit given to the tradition by the old
Africans, literally, and perhaps by the Asiatics, figuratively.
Here, indeed, the imagination might wander into a labyrinth, but which
could lead no where beyond unprofitable conjecture. That the world has
been more than once buried under water, totally or partially, the
accounts of other lands, or the geological researches in our own, might
induce some to conjecture in opposition to chronology, sacred or
profane. If we were to consider the subject of any real importance, and
that some hypothesis must necessarily be established, this great influx
of water eastward might be associated with the effect produced by the
inclination of the currents of the North Atlantic Ocean, from their
vital source of action in the Gulf or Straits of Florida. This, again,
might lead to a supposition, if any one were inclined to speculate so
far, that the New World, as it is called, (the Continent of America) has
been justly so named, or at least, that some mighty revolution in
nature, caused (if it ever was the case) the separation of the two
continents, Europe and Africa, and gave the name of Inland, or Between-
land Sea, to the water that now divides them, as its modern name implies
in the Arabic, as well as the languages of past and present times in
Europe.
It is a popular notion of the modern Africans, as well those of Barbary
as the natives of Sarem, Ghunja, and Dagombah, that the original influx
of inhabitants came from the east, some time after Misraim, the son of
Ham, founded the empire of Egypt; which event took place, according to
our own chronology, 2188 years before the birth of Christ, and 160 years
after Noah’s embarkation.
In quoting the authority of Ashantees, and other natives of Guinea, it
is invariably to be considered, as relating to African Moslems, born in
those parts; for the unlettered heathen is so decidedly ignorant and
disinterested about researches into past ages, that I will venture to
affirm, if he should pretend to describe any thing remote, it will only
be with a view to impose upon the credulity of the enquirer; for his
ordinary replies even to the most simple question regarding the custom
of a neighbouring tribe or nation, is, _How can I tell? I am not of that
country, and I never was there to see_; and so he drops a subject that
would fatigue his understanding, because it neither gives him pleasure,
nor is likely to be productive of advantage. In fact, it would almost
warrant the assertion, that the negro is qualified with knowledge only
that he exists, and that he must one day die. If questioned about his
ancestors, he can only affirm, with the same simplicity, they lived, and
they are dead. And as regards the creation of the world, its political
changes, or any of the records of sacred or profane history, if it did
not put the muscles of his face in motion, to be asked such a question
by a white man, he would at least mildly say, _Enquire of the Moslems,
who pray to the great God, and hold strong fetish; they know these
things, and more: they can tell you; but I am ignorant_. I speak this
upon the most satisfactory information, namely, a practical knowledge of
the habits of indolence, ignorance, and superstition by which their
faculties are obscured, and their understandings bewildered; for during
the many trials I made at Ashantee, and upon the Coast, without casting
in the scale my Barbary experience, every attempt failed me, even in the
most trivial enquiries, to elicit information from the Pagan, either
directly, or through his interpretation; for they are equally given to
misrepresent facts, if they imagine the recital will amuse; added to
which, their very limited knowledge of European dialects is another
insuperable obstacle to the attainment, through their agency, of any,
even the most superficial knowledge whatever. This truth is grafted upon
my mind so positively, that it must be confessed I have but little
respect for books whose authors have compiled them upon negro authority.
Africa south of the Desert is divided into many important sections or
districts, by which certain tracts of land are characterized and known
to the natives of remote countries, who, perhaps, never heard mention of
the kingdoms they contain. Those familiar to my informers were Ghunja,
Sarem, Dagomba, Ganowa, Bambara, Fillany, Marroa, Killinga, Haoussa, and
Yarraba.
These great sections, all within the Torrid Zone, extend east and west
from about 7° of west longitude, to 12° east, or thereabout, and from
the shores of the Gulf to the 17th or 18th parallel of north latitude.
Ghunja, collectively, contains the empires of Ashantee and Dahomy,
exclusive of Gaman in the west, and Banna in the north. The western
boundary of this section is the River Tando, and eastward it stretches
away as far as the Lagos river. Its southern base upon the line of
coast, may therefore be computed at five hundred geographic miles, in
which is included the military and commercial establishments of all the
European nations who traffic in Guinea. Upon the 8th parallel of
latitude, it is more contracted, and does not probably exceed three
hundred and eighty miles; yet here it occupies twenty days to traverse
from its eastern to its western confines, and sixteen from north to
south.
Sarem is separated from the former by the River Tando; yet its eastern
limit northward of Coransah, is the Aswadah river. It stretches away
westerly, _as far as the land that projects into the sea_, (doubtless,
Cape Palmas.) This land they call البر بحري, (Al bir Bahooree) the
maritime country, (west,) and which it is probable Mr. Bowdich mistook
for a kingdom so called, as he has assigned a position to Bahooree, (the
sea-coast) between the 8th and 9th parallels of latitude, behind Gaman.
Sarem contains the kingdoms of Gaman, the tract of land known by the
name of the Ivory Coast, Banna, Takima, Soko, Ghofan, Enkasi, and Kong.
There is no town called Sarem, but the district so named is about five
hundred and thirty or five hundred and forty miles in extent, from east
to west, and it occupies full thirty-six days to traverse from limit to
limit. From north to south it may be about three hundred and seventy
miles in extent; for it also requires twenty-four stages to traverse it
in that direction. Sarem is environed on the east by Dagomba; south, by
Ghunja; north, by the Manding country; and west, or north-west, by the
mountainous district of Ganowa.
Yarraba is the greatest in extent among these southern sections. Its
boundaries are, on the north, Killinga; on the east, unknown districts
of the Soudan, called Dakhlata; on the west, Ghunja and Dagomba; on the
south, Benin and Waree. It is said to occupy the traveller forty days,
in traversing from east to west; but its extent north and south I cannot
speak of with any certainty; however, it may possibly spread as many as
four hundred and sixty geographic miles, reckoning from the southernmost
provinces of the kingdom of Bargho, in Killinga, to the land which runs
parallel with Cape Formosa.
Killinga, which is a district of great political and natural importance
in central Africa, is not inferior in extent to any of these southern
departments, Sarem and Yarraba excepted. It has for its boundaries,
Fillany, on the north-west; the Koara, Marroa, and Haoussa, on the north
and north-east; the kingdom of Yakoo, and the Soudan Dakhlata, east;
Yarraba and Dagomba, south and south-west. The Ghulby river flows
through the heart of it; and beside the kingdom and principalities of
Kambah and Maury, it contains those of Zogho, Baman, Wawa, Kandashy, &c.
The population of Killinga is reckoned to exceed in numbers that of any
other district of an equal surface; and the inhabitants, who, for the
most part, are Moslems, are considered the most opulent people of any in
the south. It may be reckoned, indeed, that the districts of the east,
namely, Haoussa, Killinga, and Yarraba, are in a comparative state of
civilization, and that they enjoy, moreover, the metallic riches of the
earth, which the nations of the west, who in turn become masters of the
Wangara mines, pour into these countries as fast as the precious metal
can be collected, and which is only, as it would seem, held in trust for
the public good, at the expence of much blood, and a barbarous system of
rapine and extortion.
Ganowa is a district bearing north, inclining west from Sarem, which is
its boundary on the south, as is also Bambara on the north, the kingdom
of Melly, and part of Dagomba, on the east. Its surface is, for the most
part, hilly or mountainous, particularly in the west. It is a district
known only to the western Moslems, who journey from Kong, Enkasy, and
Manding, to the Jolliba at Bammakoo, to Kaarta, Woled Omar, (the Ludmar
of Park) and the Desert.
The kingdom of Melly, which lies to the southward of Bambara, and
between that district and Dagomba, is also by some rated among these
sections, as one of equal celebrity, in proportion to its size, and
equally ancient as the rest, over which, however, it has the advantage
of having preserved its original political influence in those parts, and
which, consequently, still entitles it to the rank of kingdom.
Bambara is that district whose western limits the unfortunately renowned
Mungo Park traversed, in his journeys to the Niger. Its ancient
metropolis is Sego, pronounced Sago and Sagho; but it has now many
cities, as well Moslem as Heathen, of equal importance. Its boundaries
are the Great Desert, Massina, and Beroo north; Fillany, east; Dagomba,
Manding, and Melly, south; Kaarta and the Foulah country, west.
Fillany is also a district of much importance in the features of African
geography. The Niger runs through the heart of it, and it is watered by
many other large navigable streams, connected with that river, both in
the northern and southern shores. Its boundaries are Marroa on the north
east, Killinga on the south east, Magho on the south, Bambara on the
west, and the Desert on the north west. It is considered also an
extensive tract, and as my informers supposed (although erroneously) was
tributary to Ismaelia, or the empire of Morocco. That it was conquered
by the Arabian arms and colonized by those people is well authenticated
by the annals of Barbary. The Moslems of Guinea also, admit the fact;
they are aware too that the Arabs have been progressively driven
backward upon the deserts, and many of their conquests wrested from them
by the heathens (a catastrophe which they religiously deplore); yet they
persist in saying, that tribute is exacted, from the people of those
parts, in the name of the Sheriffe of Mauritania, whoever he may be.
Fillany, it is but a reasonable conjecture, derived its name from the
province of Taffilet, behind the Atlas mountains eastward, from whence
all the Mauritanian armaments issued, prior to the Mahadi dynasty, and
the building of the imperial city of Morocco in the Mauritania, properly
so called; and, indeed, where the camps and caravans yet assemble
preparatory to their departure for the east or south.
Fillany, as relating to Taffilet, is perfectly synonimous with it,
although coinciding with the African mode of assimilating the land to
the name of its tribes. Thus the tribes of Taffilet are indiscriminately
called Fillany, exactly as the other is pronounced and spelt in the
Arabic character. Concerning the tribute, which they affirm is still
collected in the name of the Sheriffe, and remitted to him by land,
across the desert, I think I may venture to affirm, that not an atom of
the money ever reaches the treasury of that prince. Perhaps, it may be
employed to subsidize some of the neighbouring Arab tribes, and for
state reasons it is still denominated _heddia_ (tribute or donation) as
heretofore, when the emperors of Morocco were powerful enough to exact
their claim by force of arms, whenever their colonists in Soudan were
remiss in their payments.
The celebrated city of Timbuctoo, or Tombuctoo as it is better known,
still enjoys a supremacy in Fillany, notwithstanding those of Taslima,
Jennie, and Wakwari, are esteemed larger, and more populous; it is
therefore called the head, or metropolis of that district.
Marroa, a district that joins Fillany in the south west, Haoussa in the
south east, the Koara south, and the desert at opposite points of the
compass, is known only to occupy a somewhat remote although central
position between Fillany and Haoussa; its limits I do not presume
otherwise to describe. The land hereabouts is deemed a sort of African
paradise, and the population is proportionably great; numerous streams
intersect the plains, some of which are of great magnitude, rolling
volumes of water southerly or easterly to the Niger.
This district, and some of the eastern provinces of Fillany, were
originally subdued by the Arabs, at a very early period. The Moslems of
Ashantee relate many traditions concerning the early wars of the
Arabians, when they turned their arms beyond the desert, the most
prominent of which relates to an invading army, sent by one of the
Viceroys of Cairowan, during the dynasty of Bani Abbas; somewhere about
the hejyran year 180, which corresponds with that of our own era 796.
These wars were of many years duration, and the “sacred” volume made an
effectual impression on this part of Soudan by the vigorous efforts of
the old Arabs, under several successive Khalifs of that dynasty, from
the magnificent Haroun al Raschid to the reign of that celebrated prince
of the dynasty called Fathemia, Moez al din Allah, who was lineally
descended from the great reformer Mahadi.
A very intelligent Moslem, a native of Nikky, named Jelelly ben Shoam,
who sometimes took a leading part in these historical conversations,
affirmed that Moez, as soon as he had seated himself upon the Egyptian
throne, directed the whole force of the Khalifat against eastern Soudan,
which he ravaged with fire and sword, extending the law (Koran) to
kingdoms of idolaters, that were hitherto unknown to the Arabs. When the
general, whom he called Abdallah ben Iyak, had effected a passage for
the army down to the Koara, he distributed his forces into several
divisions, forming them into naval armaments with which he ravaged many
of the central kingdoms, overaweing others, and inducing many powerful
sovereigns to renounce their diabolical superstitions for a religion of
“purity and peace.” This, which appears to have been the first great
effort of the Arabs beyond the Niger, succeeded beyond all human
calculation, and for many ages after, perhaps until the destruction of
the Khalifat itself, by the Tartar Holagu, tribute was punctually
remitted to the Mediterranean shores, to Cairoan, Mehedia, Cairo, or
Damascus; cities whose former renown still delights the ears and
imaginations of these Ethiopian converts, as it does those of the
present generation of Arabs.
Marroa was thus early reduced to the form of a province, dependent upon
the vice royalty of Cairoan, with which it was so far incorporated as to
be colonized by a population of Arabs, who made that district a sort of
head quarters, or rendezvous for the caravans, to and from the central
Gharb; or that tract of land comprehended between the Tingitana and the
Cyrenaica. The virtue or efficacy of camels and horses is still
venerated in proportion to the _religious_ part they bore in the wars
against their idolatrous ancestors; for both these valuable animals were
introduced by these Arabs, or at least they were not known south of the
Niger, until the Arab supremacy preponderated on that river, and their
influence extended as far as the Ghulby.
Haoussa is a district of no less importance than either Marroa or
Fillany. It is an extensive tract of land, stretching easterly from
these two districts, as far as Rakka or Kano. The Desert is its northern
boundary, and Killinga and the Koara river its southern. It is reckoned
eighteen journies, or about three hundred miles horizontal, from east to
west; and may be as many more from north to south. Youry is a powerful
kingdom of this district, together with several others of less
magnitude, as Konbash, Garanti, and Yandoto, the whole of which are
tributary to the sultan who rules in Kassina.
This district shared the fate of the others, when the Arabs lorded it
over the Niger, and it still contains a remnant of the conqueror’s
posterity, who having escaped a certain great persecution of the
believers, when the Arab garrisons were driven to the deserts, obtained
permission to establish a form of government among themselves, according
to their respective tribes and kindred. The Arab population of these
parts is now estimated at four large tribes, or about two hundred and
fifty thousand souls. Haoussa is described to be of great wealth,
luxuriant, and populous. Beside the Koara, many large navigable streams
intersect the land, and a constant and free communication, by water,
exists between its chief cities and those of Bornou, Yarraba, Benin,
Fillany and Marroa. Independent of this traffick, a more remote
intercourse by caravans is maintained, under limitations, with the
tribes or hordes of Desert Arabs, with Azben, Ferjan, (or Fezzan,) and
even with Egypt. Its boundaries, as given to me by the Bashaw of
Coomassy, are the Desert and Jekky north; the Koara south; Noufy east;
and Marroa west.
Dagomba is a district separating Ghunja from Bambara and Fillany, and
Sarem from Yarraba and Killinga. It is also highly populous, the land
mostly champaign, and well cultivated. Yandy, the chief city, is said to
be at least four times as extensive as the capital of Ashantee. The
length of this district, from north to south, is about two hundred
miles; and from east to west nearly three hundred and thirty. Yandy
enjoys great celebrity all over the African continent for its riches and
its manufactures. The natives are, moreover, highly enterprising and
commercial, and they maintain a constant communication with the
neighbouring kingdoms; but particularly so with Haoussa and Sarem, for
the conveniency of whose traffick their city becomes a depôt, and a
periodical mart, as well for their own manufactures as for those of
Fezzan, Egypt, Smyrna, &c., as also for slaves, gold, and ivory,
collected in and upon the confines of Wangara. Its distance from
Coomassy is but twenty-two days; yet the Ashantees rarely venture so far
from home, unless under the escort and protection of a Moslem.
This district, says the Bashaw, was never subject to the depredations of
the Arabs, yet in former ages, when the spirit of religious enterprise
existed in full vigour among the Moslem nations of east and west Soudan,
the powers on the Niger, and their auxiliaries ravaged many of the
eastern kingdoms; and the navigation of both the Ghulby and Koara, were
almost exclusively under Arabian controul. Even that great section
Yarraba submitted to Korannic jurisdiction, or was compelled to receive
laws from the Moslems of Haoussa, Marroa, and Fillany, whose
preponderating influence, from time to time, affected more or less every
kingdom down almost to the shores of the Atlantic, or that tract which
collectively is termed Wangara. The particular period to which these
traditions refer, nearly corresponds with the year of Christ 1200; for
the prevailing belief is, that the Moslem arms were every where
successful, up to this time; and their religion, indeed, still gained
rapidly over the continent until the commencement of the seventh Hejyran
century, when civil dissentions crept into the state and engaged the
tribes to war with each other, in opposition to the denunciations of the
Koran, and that ostensible maxim of policy which should have harmonized
their councils for the preservation of their political and religious
footing amidst tribes so barbarous and warlike.
As enemies, the Arabs are said never, at any time, to have penetrated
beyond Nikky, which is thirteen days south of the Koara. Two of the most
powerful sovereigns in that neighbourhood, namely those of Magho and
Dzogho embraced their creed by invitation, and deputed ambassadors to
the Arabian head-quarters tendering their submission.
The names of these sections refer particularly to the Moslem system of
geography; from whom, in all probability, they derive an exclusive
origin, as the Ashantees know them, it would seem, through the agency of
the Moslems, and the Fantees know nothing about the matter; but on the
contrary say, “We don’t know that; it is the Crammo’s (Moslems) talk.”
It is presumed, however, that the information is of importance, for
these names are commonly known to every Moslem nation in Africa.
The Moslems of Kong and Manding commonly used the term Wangara, as
relating to Ashantee, Dahomy, and Benin, west of the Formosa. Of the
Niger, well known to them by its Bambara name Joliba, they reported to
this effect; that it has its source in a chain of mountains which bears
west, and something north of the capital of Kong, from whence it is
distant eighteen journies. According to this estimation I conceive, its
fountain may exist in about 11° 15′ latitude north, and 7° 10′ longitude
west of the meridian of Greenwich. The intermediate space comprises a
part of the district called Ganowa, inhabited by the Manding and Falah
(Foulah) tribes. The surface for the first five or six days, they
relate, is inclining to hilly, yet it is by no means abrupt; and forests
alternately abound, but they are not so impervious as those of Ashantee.
After the first hundred miles, the traveller commences ascending a
cluster of lofty mountains, and this labour occupies him six days. The
mountains abound in rivers and rapid torrents, which discharge
themselves on the opposite sides into the Jolliba, and further to the
westward they are so high and steep that no man can ascend to their
summits; which are barren, bleak, and oftentimes covered with snow. They
are inhabited about half way up by ferocious tribes of cannibals. The
source of the river lies about two days distant up the mountains; and is
distant from Coomassy thirty-eight journies, or about five hundred
British miles horizontal.
The river in the neighbourhood, at the head of the mountains, is a small
rapid stream full of cataracts, which foam over a bed of rocky ground,
where it would not be possible to float a canoe. It flows on to a
considerable distance among the valleys and broken ground until it has
cleared the mountains, which it leaves far to the south, as it explores
a channel on the plains of Melly. On the confines of Bambara it is
already a large river, occasioned by the junction of many other rivers
of almost equal magnitude and whose sources are in these mountains. It
passes Yamina, Safana, and Sago, to Massina and Jenny; beyond which it
spreads into a large lake, called Bahar Dibber, or the Sea of Ghimbaba.
The Dibber is very large, and in the season of rain the land on the
opposite side, although high, is not discernible. Beyond Jenny the
river, at the opposite outlet of the lake, inclines to the north till it
reaches Timbuctoo. From thence its track is easterly to Ghou, having
then traversed the district of Fillany. From Ghou it enters Marroa,
passing through Corimen, Kaby, and Zanberma, as it inclines with a
southerly fall to the Youry, and the lake of Noufy. From Youry the river
inclines south-east, passing the cities of Noufy, Homan, and Magamy, in
the form of a great sea, which has several outlets to the south and
three great branches which communicate with the Shady on the east. From
the Shady the river flows, under its new name, to Gambaro, after having
passed Haoussa, Rakka, Yakoo, and Kano. From Gambaro it sweeps a little
to the southward of Bornou, Ghotta, and Arkani, till it enters Bagharmy,
where it forms a junction with the Nile of Egypt. Its course beyond this
is through Kordofan, Foor, Wady, Sennar, Nubia, &c. On the confines of
Habesh, (Abyssinia) it again spreads into a large sea, and its channel
receives the tributary waters of innumerable rivers of the largest size,
of which that called Shary, between Foor and Wady, is best known from
its situation in the land of believers. Indeed, this is the substance of
what was advanced by the Moslems, as well from the east as the west,
natives of Sarem, Dagomba, and Ghunja; or inhabitants of the banks of
the Ghulby and Koara. Briefly, they would say, the great sea flows to
Egypt, and the little one to the salt sea, from whence you came, (the
Guinea Gulf,) but they are both united at Noufy.
The Ghulby is said to flow also easterly upon a parallel with the Koara
itself, which it joins, as has been related, in Haoussa. Admitting this
to be the case, its source may be considered somewhat conjectural. In
truth there was a diversity of opinion upon this topic, some maintaining
that its fountain existed in the chain of mountains before mentioned,
between Kong and the river Ahmar; whilst others affirmed that the Ghulby
itself was a branch separated from the Koara by a ridge of mountains, in
the vicinity of Janny; and that the navigation of this southern limb was
open and unobstructed from Janny to Ghoroma, the capital of Magho,
through Konbory. Perhaps the latter was the prevailing opinion. All my
informers were ignorant of the rivers called in Park’s map, Ba Nimma,
Maniana, Ba, and Moosica: of these names that of Maniana alone was
familiar to them as a nation of idolatrous mountaineers; behind Kong,
and subject to the sovereign of Manding, who was a Moslem. Yet the route
to Sego, on the Niger, by the way of Banna, Ghofan, and Baddin, leads to
a great river or sea, running also easterly, and distant from the
Jolliba but four or five days. This river is named the Yasser.
In reference to the source of the Niger, it was published in a London
paper, of the 14th of January, 1823; that Captain Laing, (the gentleman
who has recently returned from the Gold Coast with official dispatches
of the late disasters in that quarter) saw the hill during his mission
to the interior, “where the Niger (called Timbie) springs. The river
flowing on from the hill of Loma in 9° 15′ north latitude, and 9° 36′
west longitude, marks the boundary between Sangara and Soolimani, the
former bearing to the right of east, and the latter to the left of west.
The geographical scite of Loma was ascertained by taking the bearings of
two points, and from the well known accuracy of Captain Laing, there can
be no doubt of the observations being correct.” This officer started on
the 16th April, and returned the 29th October.
The rout from Ghofan to that part of the Niger, which is in the vicinity
of Sago or Sego, takes through the kingdoms of Ghobagho, Kasogho, and
Safany, the latter of which is tributary to Melly, another kingdom
westward, of greater power than either of the others; and which is
separated from the Manding states (most of whom pay a tribute to it
notwithstanding,) by a chain of high mountains called Jibbel Kaunagh,
probably the same mountains observed by Park from the Niger. The chief
towns on this route, after crossing the desert, are Lankantira, Katary,
Botintasy, and Daboya the capital of Ghobagho. The route from thence
inclines to the NNW. taking through the towns of Denkary, Bonough,
Bouasa, Cabary, and Yaba (a city of greater extent than Salgha). From
Yaba the traveller proceeds through several other towns, which are
marked on the map and described in the manuscript, until he alights on
the banks of a great river, called by the natives of those parts Bahar
Yasser.[160] At this station, to which I have assigned the latitude and
longitude of 12° 50′ north and 2° west, it is usual for the traveller to
stop several days at a city of some magnitude, called Borma from the
island on which it is seated. Kow, which is a city of great magnitude in
Safany, is distant from the Yasser river one easy journey, and from Kow
to Sago, in a direction still inclining to the westward of north, it is
no more than four journies. The usual track pursued by the traders from
Ashantee is to Kantano in Banna, a city little inferior in size and
population to Coomassy itself, and from this station to Sago, or any
part of the Niger in Bambara, it is no more than twenty seven days’
journies, or eighteen from Daboya. From Sago to Jenny it is no more than
four water journies, or ten long ones by land.
The north banks of the Niger, westward of the Dibber lake, were little
known to my informers, except that they knew them to be populous,
containing many tribes of heathens and Moslems intermixed. But south of
the river, in the kingdom of Konbory, they described many large towns
and cities, some of which, as Taslima and Fedanky, were inhabited by a
population exclusively Moslem. The Korannic law governs all these parts,
or the people from choice and the veneration they have for Moslems
conform to its tenets in civil matters.
Camels and horses abound in all these parts, as well as in Manding, and
the people are warlike as well as commercial. The houses of the
inhabitants are flat-roofed, and constructed, for the most part, with
clay, although not differing materially in architecture from such as may
be seen in the northern states of Africa, on the Mediterranean shores;
they are not built, however, higher than those of Ashantee, with the
exception only of a few, which are two stories. The common luza,
(almond) the tûta, (mulberry) the luzal hendi, (cocoa) and many of the
productions of North Africa, grow spontaneously in these parts, blended
with the palm, date, plantain, and a variety of other species, such as
may be found everywhere in the Torrid Zone.
Janny is a very large city in the kingdom of Massina, and Ghimballa a
district or principality bordering the river, and having a town called
by the same name, which is seated one journey from the Dibber lake, on
its northern shores. Massina is the most westerly kingdom of Fillany.
From Janny it is reckoned seven or eight land journies to Timbuctoo; and
it is usual to travel the distance on horses or camels through Ghimbala,
in preference to performing the voyage across the Dibber, which, besides
its southerly inclination, is subject to storms, the merchant being
moreover harassed by canoes belonging to the petty kings and chiefs who
live on its banks, and who are in the practice of extorting goods and
money.
The Arab tribe called Woled Moghata, inhabit the desert confines behind
Massina; and in travelling to their douars, or encampments, from Janny,
you fall in with a large river, on the 10th day, which flows to the
south-east, (perhaps south;) the name of it, however, was not known.
Neither these Arabs nor the neighbouring African tribes use fire-arms;
they may indeed have possession of a few, which they purchase or take
from the natives of the Senegal and Gambia; but gunpowder being at all
times a scarce commodity, these weapons are not in much repute. The fact
may be, that the inland people of those districts are debarred a free
traffic in those commodities by their maritime neighbours, the same as
the practice is among the Ashantees and Dahomans. Many of the chiefs,
however, have a few, which they exhibit with great ostentation on days
of ceremony. Beyond the river which flows through the country of the
Woled Moghata, is the great and populous district of Marroa, of which
the kingdom of Foulaha, containing the tributary states or
principalities of Ghou and Kaby, are the westernmost boundaries. Atogho
and Zanberma are kingdoms on the south bank of the Koara, opposite the
former, in the district of Fillany. The Great Desert approaches the
river at Sago, within the distance of twelve journies; this desert,
called by way of distinction Sahara Azki, or the Pure Desert, is the
most barren of vegetation of any known in these parts; and the traveller
can seldom procure water for his cattle, under the lapse of ten or
twelve days.
The second route falling under description, is that leading from Salgha
to the right of north through Tonouma, part of Ghobagho, Ghomba, and
Mousee, to the powerful kingdom of Magho, whose capital city is Ghoroma.
There are two roads by which the traders journey,—one taking north from
Salgha to the city of Betariby, the other inclining more easterly,
through Banko and Caja to Yandy, in the country of Simmer. The former,
however, is considered the more direct route; and as such it is
preferred by travellers whose object may be to visit Ghoroma direct. The
towns between Betariby and the Ghulby, are Yashily, Deghony, and Wabia,
a capital city, as large as Coomassy, and a territory purely Moslem. The
great wilderness of Ghomaty, frequented by the elephant-hunters, lies to
the right or eastward of this, stretching off to the neighbourhood of
the city of Zogho itself, from which it is distant a single journey
only.[161] From Wabia the road leads through Kousagho, Jakolshi, Sakoya,
and Coltega, to Boughori, (a city of the heathens, of very considerable
magnitude;) from thence it is only one journey to the Ghulby, بحر غلبي,
in the kingdom of Magho, passing through the town of Batili.
This, which is a circuitous route to Haoussa, (for the Niger itself they
rarely or never visit between the parallels of 1° west, and 6° or 7°
east,) is often preferred by the traders who visit Haoussa, on account
either of the commercial habits of the people, or their proximity to the
great fairs[162] and markets, which are generally holden weekly in the
vicinity of the Koara, and to which the merchants from all parts of the
north-east are in the constant practice of resorting. Ghoroma is on the
north bank of the Ghulby, and distant from Batili one journey by water,
or three by land. By this road it is seventeen journeys from Salgha to
Ghoroma; but by the way of Yandy it is one day more, the track upon
either parallel bearing to the right of north.
The traders who visit Magho generally proceed northward to the little
tributary heathen kingdom of Ghotto, to which there is a communication
by water, either by the overflowing or connexion of a lake, called by
the Moslems Konzagha, and which lies to the north-east of Ghoroma, at
six journeys distant. The River Ghulby is parted from at the great city
of Andary, a capital station of the traders, on the second day. The lake
itself is considerably more than one journey in length, from east to
west, and the water of it is perfectly pure and sweet-flavoured. To
Ghoroma I have accordingly assigned the latitude of 12° 25″ north
longitude, 1.33 east. Nearly upon the parallel of Popo, and to Andary, I
have given 12° 34 latitude, 2° 12 longitude, which would place it on a
line nearly with Whydah.
Magho is a kingdom which contains a mixed population of Moslems and
Heathens,—the former enjoying the government. The sultan[163] is one of
the most powerful princes south of the Koara, and may, as my informer
stated, vie in rank with the sultan of Bargho, his eastern neighbour.
The dominions of the sovereign extend right and left of north to Atogho,
(a principality of heathens south of the Koara and Konbory,) where the
population again is mixed. The people of these parts, Moslems or
Heathens, are highly commercial and enterprizing.
From Magho the traders sometimes drop down the Ghulby to Kook, Nikky, or
Rougha; but there is another route leading inland through many towns,
which may be referred to in the chart or native MSS. leading also to
Nikky, the metropolis of Killinga, and the great kingdom of Bargho. From
Nikky, the Haoussa road leads over the Ghulby, to Wory and other towns
in the north-east, through the heart of Bargho, and from thence to its
tributary kingdom of Wawa, as it will fall under description next in
order. The road from Nikky to Kassina, below the Noufy lake, takes
through the kingdoms of Maury, Kandashi and Souy, leaving Kaima and
Atagara, two other powerful states; the former Moslem, and the latter
Heathen, in the south and south-east. The track of country on this route
is mostly champaign, rich, and fruitful, well watered with innumerable
small rivers, and some great ones, which it is affirmed flow southerly,
and fall into the sea in the neighbourhood of Benin.
Two or three journies eastward of Nikky is a lake of moderate
dimensions, called Makaro, which they relate, has no connexion with the
River Ghulby; and the water of it is said to be brackish, or salt. Salt
is also dug out of the earth hereabouts, and transported to all parts of
the south and west, as also to the markets of Nikky, Youry, Boussa,
Kook, Kassina, &c. To this lake I have assigned the latitude of 12°
north, and 6° 30 east. The chief towns in its neighbourhood are Ghora
and Ghatagha,—the latter a very large and populous city, inhabited by a
great proportion of Moslems, and resorted to from all parts of Soudan.
From Ghatagha, the route to Kassina inclines to the left of east,[164]
through Fogha, Toukani, Bakoridi, and Conka, to Kanbaja, along the track
pursued by the Ghulby in its course to the Noufy. Some of the other
principal towns are Kaado, Fakaro, Ghosi, Rekena, and Marina, which is a
city of the very first rank, and the metropolis of Souy. To this place I
have assigned a position, 13° 28″ north latitude, 11° 10″ east
longitude. It bears south-east from the Noufy lake, from which it is
distant two journies. The Moslem law prevails throughout these
districts. At Fakaro, Kaado, and Kanbaja, the governments are in the
hands of these people, who rule a mixed population of Moslems and
Idolaters; but the latter are not tolerated in any part of the kingdom
of Souy. The intercourse between Bornou and Souy is very great, and both
nations are skilled in manufactures. The land is said to be amazingly
rich and productive in corn and fruits. The city itself is said to be as
large as Yandy, which is the largest in the south, upon that parallel,
or below it. The fairs which are held here are resorted to by people not
only from all parts of Haoussa, but also from Bournou, Yakoo, Gambaroo,
Maury, and Bargho. The heathen kingdom of Yakoo, the capital of which is
Saghona, bears easterly from Marina, inclining, perhaps, a little to the
south, as it is below the lake called Shady. Still further to the south-
east is the negro kingdom of Gambaro, which, as well as Yakoo, are
sometimes tributary to Bornou. From Marina the road leads northerly over
a river called Ghulby Kerba, to a small town called also Souy, from
whence, after crossing a second large river, whose name is unknown to
me, it will lead to Rouma, also a large city of the Moslems, and an
important place of trade. From Marina to Rouma it is four good journies,
and from Rouma to Kassina, which bears north of it, it is four more,
over the great eastern outlet of the lake Noufy, called the Koara Raba,
or Koara Rafa, through the towns of Cooney, Mayo, Moro, Malabo, and New
Birini, (built after another city of this name, and of great renown.)
Old Birini, which is still a place of some importance, bears about west
north west of Kassina, from which it is distant three journies. To
Kassina I have assigned the latitude of 15° 12″ north, longitude, 11°
50″ east, it being about nine hundred geographic miles from Coomassy, or
seventy-three journies, by the foregoing route through Magho, Bargho,
and Maury, and sixty-eight hard travelling by a direct path.
There is a river, the Moslems relate, of very great dimensions, and
which serves as the boundary on the lakes, between Bornou and Haoussa
and the desert. This river, which they name Bahar Bairam, comes out of
Bornou, and falls into the Koara, somewhere between the Noufy and Shady,
or perhaps into one or the other of them. To go from Kassina to Rakka
and Kano, two large principalities of the Moslems, on the banks of the
Shady, it is usual to cross the Bairam, I think the first or second day.
Haoussa is separated on the north-east from the desert, and Sokory, a
place of some importance, on its confines, by a chain or cluster of
small mountains, called Jibbel Taurica. The Felatah tribes inhabit all
the country hereabouts. The sultan of Kassina, which is a city no way
inferior to those of the first class in Africa, is supreme in Haoussa,
receiving tribute from all parts of it, including the lesser kingdoms of
Youry, Konbash, Bousa, Garanty, and Yandoso. The Felattah tribes, and
the Arab territory of Jekhy, I think, stand in the same relation to this
monarch, who is a rigid Moslem, and whose dominions in the east contain
none who do not conform to the faith. The Moslems, in fact, compose the
great bulk of the population of Haoussa, and its government is
exclusively in their hands. Jekhy, which is a station of much greater
renown than Sokory, is distant from Kassina twenty journies, in a north-
west direction. It is a rocky or stony district, inhabited by a branch
of a tribe of Arabs called Woled Gormah. From Jekhy the caravans and
traders explore their way to all parts of the north and north-west,—to
Taffilet, Algier, Akabli, Tunis, Tripoli, &c.
There is a route from Janny to Jekhy, as may be seen in one of the MSS.
by dropping down the Dibber to Alfine, and from thence, by land, through
Kasoo, Dansoo, Sakam, Boghfom, and Aty, then over the Koara to
Kankawansa, Henkonta, Dankasado, Dody, Kamana, and Jekhy, from whence to
Azban it is twenty-three day’s journey, and to Egypt (Cairo) one
hundred. This is the usual track of pilgrimage performed by the natives
of the west and south-west, besides those of Safany, Melly, Manding,
Konbory, &c. Haoussa and Marroa are, perhaps, the most important
commercial districts in central Africa, and their manufactures of cotton
goods, carpets, trinkets, and cutlery, some of which I have seen, are
little, if any thing, inferior to those of Mauritania. Horses and camels
abound everywhere, and the inhabitants fight with bows, arrows, darts,
and lances, in common with most or all of the inland nations. The
population of these parts must indeed be great, if it is true, as
related, that, like Benin itself, or superior to it, there is scarcely a
piece of waste land to be seen, or where corn and other nutritious
vegetables are not cultivated by the inhabitants, who, I think the
Bashaw told me, here make use of the plough, and I believe nowhere else
south of the Niger, unless that instrument may be used in Bornou. Some
of the mosques and public inns in Kassina, Old and New Berini and
Marina, as well as in Haoussa and Marroa, in general are said to be very
elegant structures, having marble basins and fountains for ablution. The
palaces of the sovereigns are built with proportionate magnificence.
Akom in Bornou is considered a sort of metropolitan sovereignty or
principality; for here the sultan, it is said, chiefly resides, who
rules the whole empire, to the confines of the Desert, Nubia, and
Sennar. Bornou is considered the greatest monarchy in Africa, without
exception. The inhabitants are Moslems, not only there, but probably
from the 8th or 9th parallel of longitude upon the Koara and Shady, to
the shores of the Red Sea, excepting some insulated tribes, as it is
stated, of Christians, and perhaps Jews, the former living independent
in the mountains, and the latter in subserviency to the believers.
The city of Bornou is stated at twenty journies to the east of Kassina.
Ganem, Bagharny, Foor, and Wady, are eastward in rotation from Bornou,
on the southern route to Masser (Egypt) and the Holy Land, called Shem,
or Shemo. The principal stages, or places where pilgrims and travellers
alight to refresh, are marked in the map called Soudan, from Wady to
Upper Egypt. The Shary is a great river, running easterly into the Nile,
at Sennar. More than these general outlines of Bornou and the districts
eastward of that empire, I dare not take upon myself to give, for all
those countries were but imperfectly known to my informers, as they
confessed themselves. From Wady to Egypt it is fifty-three days direct,
or sixty by the usual track through the heart of Sennar and Nubia.
Another route called, by way of distinction, the direct track from
Coomassy, or from Salgha to Youry in Haoussa, takes from the Aswada
river through Tonouma, Simmer, and the mountains of Gofil and Yarako to
Zogho, the metropolis of the kingdom so called. From thence through part
of Killinga to the Ghulby, in the neighbourhood of Nikky or Kook; then
over the river to the kingdom of Bargho and that part of Killinga which
stretches away to the south western banks of the Koara, and which
contains the kingdoms and principalities of Baman and Zamberma in the
west; and Batako, Wawa, and Fagh, in the east. This is a road as well
beaten, and, perhaps, as safe as any in Africa; and by this channel
there is a constant communication kept up with Haoussa, Killinga, Kaima,
Maury, Atagaru, and Yakoo. The towns on this route (from Salgha) are
Bokoky, Yanomo, and Kanyasha[165]; the last mentioned a city of great
renown in Tonouma. From Kanyasha, to Kadanki, Cabouto, and Konjasi
another city of some magnitude near the neighbourhood of the Komashar
river, or perhaps a branch of it, which explores a course through Dahomy
in its passage to the sea; and which I imagine to be the Logos, or
connected with that river. From Konjasi the road leads on to Zonkoma,
Jadagho, and Keno, another capital city of Dagomba, where the Moslems
are very powerful. From Keno, over the mountains to Gofil, a frontier
town of Zogho, on the south west. These mountains, which are described
to be very lofty, precipitous, and barren, and which usually occupy the
traveller three days, to traverse from south west to north east, are the
natural boundaries between Zogho and that part of Dagomba which is
governed by the sovereigns of Yandy, the former power having from time
to time made great encroachments on the latter district. To Gofil, which
is eleven journies E.SE. from Salgha, or about one hundred and seventy
British miles, (horizontal) I have assigned the latitude of 9° 45′
north, longitude 2° 39′ east. The Yagah tribes, who are heathens, lay to
the right of it, or easterly. The Ayoh, and their lake, are in the
south; the latter distant from it five good stages. Khimbee, and the
“land of the great waters which flow to Benin,” are still further to the
east.
From Gofil the road leads on to Arjou, Motom, and over another chain of
mountains in Zogho, of two good days march to Yarakoo, from whence it is
one more journey to the city of Zogho. This, as I have elsewhere
observed, is a place of very great importance as regards its relations
both commercial and political, with all parts of Wangara; and with
Killinga, Haoussa, Dagomba, and Yarraba. Its influence between the
longitudinal parallels of the Volta and Callebar rivers, is said to be
bounded only by the ocean.
The Moslems are incredibly numerous in these parts; the government
exclusively belongs to them, and more than half the population of the
empire are probably of the Mohammedan faith. To Zogho I have assigned
the latitude 10° 27′, longitude 3° 34′ east, and which I have reason to
think will not be found to be many miles from its true position. It is
distant from the ocean at the nighest point of approximation (near its
parallel, the Logos river,) twenty journies or little more than three
hundred horizontal miles. And Yandy, to which I have assigned 9° 42′
north latitude, 1° 14′ east longitude, is distant from the sea coast in
the neighbourhood of Whydah no more than fifteen journies, or about two
hundred and forty horizontal miles.
From Zogho the traders journey forward to Dankou, then over a forest of
small dimensions to Salano, a town of considerable note. The route then
inclines north, through Jambodo, Sooso, and Corerey to the capital city
of Kook, a station of the Moslems, and a place of great trade on the
Ghulby. To Kook I have assigned a station in my map at 11° 50′ latitude
north, and 4° 45′ east longitude. From Kook to Nikky the capital of
Bargho, or Killinga, it is no more than two stages by land. The whole
distance from Salgha to Nikky being no more than twenty-five journeys,
or about four hundred miles (horizontal distance). This will assign to
Nikky a station at the latitude 12° 7′ north, longitude 5° 12′ east.
From Nikky to the Niger, in the neighbourhood of Youry (the most
powerful of the kingdoms tributary to the government of Haoussa,) it is
no more than twelve days, or short of two hundred miles horizontal,
making the whole distance from Salgha to that station upon its banks, no
more than thirty-eight moderate journies, or fifty-two from Coomassy.
The towns on the route from Nikky to Youry are, first Rougha, a place of
great magnitude on the Ghulby; over that river to Sabonsara; then Wory,
a city also of the first class in Baman; then Roa, Ghado, Doshi, Confi,
and Wado, the metropolis of Wawa. From Wado to Sholo, and Ghasaghasa,
where the Koara is crossed over to Youry, which is distant about half a
day from the river. To Youry, therefore, I have assigned the latitude of
14° 30′ north, longitude 7° 33′ east. The Noufy lake and town are seven
journies to the east or south east of Youry; Bousa is midway on that
track, and it is eight journies more to Kassina, by the route north of
the Koara. From Youry to Timbuctoo it is twenty-six journies westerly by
the route north of the Koara, through Kaby and Ghou. Bargho, better
known to the eastern Moslems by the name of Killinga, is a kingdom of
equal renown with Zogho, and the Moslems are, in most of its districts,
in greater numbers than the heathens.[166]
The Jews of Soudan are, according to my informers, divided into many
large and small tribes, with whose names they are unacquainted. Their
mode of life in some countries is pastoral; but the towns are filled
with traders and artificers of that faith, who gain a subsistence at
their several employments, in the service of the Moslems, under whose
government they live as vassals. This, in reference to Mr. Bowdich’s
kingdom of “Yahoodie,” I may be permitted to say, is the only state of
society in which that oppressed nation is suffered to live; and the
tribes, without security in their possessions, without public revenue or
arms, are hourly exposed to insult and rapine from the blind zeal and
active bigotry by which their lords are animated in those countries. The
lands occupied by these people cover a wide extent, between Massina and
Kaby. They are said to be mingled also with the upper Foulaha tribes,
eastward of Timbuctoo, and in many parts of Marroa they have
inheritances or are employed as artificers in the cities and towns; “As
we live among the heathens,” said the Bashaw, “so do the Jews in Marroa
and Fillany with our brethren; but they are not esteemed like us, for
they are a people hardened in their sins and obstinate in infidelity;
the anger of God is upon them, and therefore are they given to the rule
of the Moslems, until they shall become incorporated with the faithful.
The tribes are not black, but of a colour resembling the Arabs of the
north. But what is more material, these Soudanic Jews are reported to
have been the original inhabitants thereabout, before the Arabs were
acquainted with central Africa. They are, perhaps, distinguished from
the Hebrews, the posterity of Abraham, inasmuch as I never heard them
described under the appellation of Bani Israel; although that name must
have been familiar to the Moslems from the pages of the Koran; and I
found, in antecedent conversations, upon the subject of Egypt, they were
well informed of the events which befel the children of Israel in the
days of Moses. The estimation in which the Moslems of Wangara hold the
glorious reign of Solomon, King of Israel, is equal to that of their
northern brethren; and does not materially vary from the translations
that have been given of the works of Arabian authors who have written
fictitious popular tales known in Europe as such, and which occasionally
refer to that age or the relics of that miraculous power over the
elements and invisible spirits with which Solomon was entrusted. I shall
not, however, tire the patience of the reader with what might be too
marvellous for the comprehension of any but a Moslem. It will be
sufficient to say, that the introduction of the Jews to Soudan is a
subject worthy of investigation. If my information be well grounded, and
a correspondence could by any means be opened with these insulated
tribes, much important information relative to the early ages in Africa,
might be derived through their agency, as they would have been the first
people, it is presumed, who were gifted with the art of writing. These
tribes, whether Hebrew or African, wandered, it is believed, originally
from the neighbourhood of Upper Egypt, while the children of Israel were
held in captivity.
The countries westward of Gaman are but little known to the Ashantees,
who court no alliance in that quarter, nor does an Ashantee trader ever
venture his person beyond the distance of fourteen journies west. In the
north they sometimes travel as far as Aughoa, the capital of the heathen
kingdom of Mousee, whose position is to the south of Magho, and to the
east of Kasogho. Aughoa is distant from Coomassie twenty-five journies
by the Salgha and Yandy Roads, which would give a distance of three
hundred and sixty British miles. Their object in frequenting this place
is to collect that vegetable substance called in Park’s Travels by the
name of Shea Butter, although oftentimes they draw their supplies from a
forest in Banna, near the town of Kantano its capital, where it does not
grow so spontaneous, nor are the trees so prolific.
The Ashantees now constantly visit Ghofan, south of the Aswada, and
sometimes also Baddim,[167] a district in Manding by a circuitous route,
avoiding the territory of Kong, which is considered politically hostile
to their country, and occasionally, although very rarely, they visit the
Niger at Sago, where the Moslems say a remnant of one of the tribes fled
during a former reign, and are to this day retained in the service of
the king of that country, but in these journies they must first consult
their safety by a religious escort, or by their ability to obtain the
use of the king’s name.
Eastward, the Ashantees rarely visit Dahomy, and never Benin. Between
the feelings of the three courts there is a rankling, although somewhat
torpid inclination to hostility, founded upon jealousy and maritime
influence. As regards Dahomy, Mr. Bowdich was misinformed if he was told
that the kings of Ashantee and Dahomy had but once exchanged
compliments, for it is a practice which is politically adopted on
various occasions. At Benin, the Ashantees have no friends, consequently
there is no correspondence between the two courts.
The NE. is mainly the track of amity and alliance, and this, which is
one of the most beaten roads in Africa, the Ashantees travel over
without scruple, but mostly in the society of Moslems, to Salgha,
Tonoma, Ghamba, Yandy, and other parts of Dagomba. Sometimes these
traders extend their journies to Kook, Makrari, Nikky, &c. and
sometimes, although less frequently, to the Koara at Haoussa. But in
these latter excursions they require the aid of the Moslems as religious
protectors.
More to the northward of east, there is another great track leading
through Dagomba to the great kingdom of Magho on the Ghulby. This road
the traders are also familiar with, and they now and then extend their
journey as far as Ghoroma, and more rarely to the northward of that
station, but never without the usual precaution. It is a fact of
notoriety in the countries of Wangara, that no heathen can be perfectly
secure in his person and property beyond the precincts of his
sovereign’s jurisdiction, excepting, however, the character of
ambassador, whose person should be held inviolate, that of king’s
merchant or trader which is equally sacred, hunters of elephants in the
king’s name, and on his account; and lastly, men of rank, or others
whose influence or interest at court is powerful enough to gain for them
a travelling protection by the use of the king’s name, and
recommendation to other sovereigns and princes. These, and only such
characters, are passports for the subjects of Ashantee, by which they
may travel in security, and this maxim, I am credibly assured, relates
not only to the empire in question, but also to all the heathen kingdoms
thereabouts. It is the practice to arrest all strangers upon the
confines, and conduct them to court, where the _palaver_ is discussed,
and the fate of the intruder, should he have ventured without the
necessary precautions, terminates either in detention, slavery, or
death. Hence the favour of using the king’s name is great, and the king
of Ashantee never confers it except upon those whom he has confidence
in, as men of ability and prudence.
The Moslems, as it has been stated, may travel secure and unmolested in
all known parts of the African continent, yet such of them as are
subject to the rule of heathen princes, will not willingly venture their
persons in the territory of a hostile state; like the heathens they may
not pursue a direct journey to the place of their destination, avoiding
thereby the capital cities and abodes of princes and sovereigns, but
must directly shape a course to the metropolis of each kingdom, there to
participate in the hospitality of the court, to make known their
intentions, and to claim the protection of the sovereign as far as his
influence may extend,[168] and all this may be accomplished by the
Moslem with or without a present, as his property or circumstances
suggest themselves to his royal host. Nay, on the journey from Coomassy
to Haoussa, he seldom disburses a mitskal of gold or cowrees (the value
of ten shillings) but, on the contrary, is frequently a gainer by the
generosity of princes, and his daily wants are moreover liberally
supplied at their expence, and oftentimes with unbounded hospitality.
The river of Sago and Janny is called by the natives of those countries
Joulaba, (or Jolliba) they have also distinct names for the other
rivers, that flow into and from the Dibber, but the Arabs call the water
Bahar Neel, or Neel Zakhar, the swelling Nile.
Ghimbala, the Jimbala of Park, is a sort of principality dependent upon
the sovereign of Massina, and Wakwari is the metropolis of the country.
I did not meet with a man who had visited the celebrated city of
Timbuctoo, although I conversed with two or three whose travels extended
to Sago and Janny. The travellers frequently saw canoes and caravans
arrive at Janny, from the interior, by the way of Walet Tuano, or
Timbuctoo; the latter journey, which they also performed by land,
occupied seven days, the route lying through Ghimbala and Massina. The
journey from Janny to Walet, cities purely Moslem, took up ten days, in
the direction of the Great Desert, west of Massina. The Moslems were
reported to be very numerous on the southern plains; but the unbelievers
were not less so in the mountains which separate Fillany from Bambara,
and the greater proportion of both sects marked their faces and bodies
with cuts or punctures, to distinguish the tribes they belonged to, the
same as is practised in Sarem and Ghunja. During my informer’s residence
at Janny, he had seen many opulent traders arrive from Ismaelia
(Mauritania), from Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli. Those from the north and
east came by the way, either of Mobaruka, Woled Gormah, Woled Mohata, or
Jekky. It was usual with these traders to arrive in Soudan about the
close of the rains, and return homewards at all seasons; but more
frequently when the river began to swell and the rains were far
advanced. The natives of the Niger, according to this authority, were as
black as most of the Wangara tribes; and the Arabs, called Woled
Moghata, were few, if any, shades lighter. Between Safany and Ghimbala,
the houses are all flat roofed, and built of clay, the same as the
mosques; but where lime is to be procured the natives use a thick wash,
which looks much brighter than the white or grey clay of Ashantee. In
some countries, however, they build with stone and mortar, and the
houses of the rich are generally of two stories; i.e. the ground floor,
as it may be called, raised two or three feet, and another floor above
it; upon this principle the palaces of Calamby, Sago, Baâ, Taslima, and
Janny, are all constructed.
Couries are the current coin of the Niger, and of most or of all the
interior parts of the continent, excepting the westernmost countries of
Wangara, Ashantee, Gaman, and some of their dependencies, where gold
also is found. Large payments, however, are usually made in Upper Soudan
in coin, in manufactured trinket gold, or by bartering one commodity for
another, and paying the balance in couries, salt, or grain; but in the
countries before named (as the gold mines exist no where else) the
people use the crude metal in lump or dust for the same purpose. In
Salgha, Zogho, Nikky, Bargho, Youry, and the eastern countries, the
people either use a substantial or a nominal coin, of the same name and
value, and this is called mitskal, a thin gold coin, varying in its
value in proportion to the weight. It is the same, in fact, which is the
national coin of Mauritania, and of most of the Arabian and Turkish
governments. This piece of money is esteemed of high antiquity, having
been introduced into Soudan beyond the Niger, as it is related, as early
as the second or third hejyran centuries, and many, it is added, are
still current which were fabricated at Damascus, Baghdad, Mehedia, and
Morocco, during the reigns of the houses or dynasties of Abbas and
Ismaelouni. The mitskal has a general circulation, even in countries
where it is not a national coin; nor do the Ashantees refuse them in
payment; but such of them as are esteemed by the Moslems for antiquity
and the epoch of a celebrated prince are highly prized by the heathens,
who, when they are to be procured, give a great price for them, for the
purpose of dedicating to their patron gods, and wearing on days
appropriated to religious ceremony. In fact, some of these mitskals are
the fetische of the sovereign and nobles.[169]
In Entaa, Tonouma, Ghobagho, Zogho, and many neighbouring countries the
mitskal which is employed as the medium of exchange, is considered
nevertheless a nominal coin, for they are not manufactured in those
countries; they are only partially current from the influx of specie
brought by the northern traders. Nikky, the capital of Bargho or
Killinga, is the great mint of Soudan, south of the Niger, as Bornou is
that of the north; such was the similitude used by my informers, who
shewed me two pieces of money of that description, which were stamped,
as clearly as I could discern, with characters similar to the mitskal of
Morocco, although the impression, from the purity of the metal, was too
much defaced to enable me to trace the year, or the whole of the
writing. I was told they were the coin of Killinga, and that they were
current not only in Wangara, but also in Bambara, Marroa, Fillany,
Haoussa, some parts of the Desert, and even in Egypt. Thirteen of these
mitskals (metsakol in the plural) were considered in Ashantee equivalent
to the Benda,[170] or two ounces of pure gold. Thus supposing 11_s._
2_d._ to be an average value for the mitskal, it would shew the true
value of pure gold in Ashantee, 3_l._ 12_s._ 7_d._ sterling, the ounce
weight of that country, which may be about sixteen grains heavier than
our ounce troy; reducing it therefore, in sterling money, to 3_l._
10_s._ or thereabouts.
The minkali of Park is evidently no other than the true mitskal, and the
value in sterling money, at which his editor has estimated it, _i.e._
12_s._ 6_d._ is, as it would seem, overrated 2_s._ a trifle more or
less. This mistake cannot indeed be satisfactorily accounted for, as it
rests entirely with that unfortunate traveller, who describes the weight
of the minkali about eighty grains, and its value in British currency,
as before quoted; whereas I seldom have had possession of one of those
coins that would turn the scale at seventy four grains, and they were
not to be rejected at sixty-eight or sixty-seven. It is probable that
circumstanced as Park was at Sansanding, the sales he effected are what,
commercially speaking, would deserve the name of sacrifices; for his
object was to disencumber himself of those bulky packages which could
not conveniently be stowed in the canoe, and of such articles as could
be dispensed with, for the more portable coin in gold and cowries, hence
the profits calculated upon his account of sales, must not be considered
by any means equivalent to what a Barbary merchant would realize for the
same articles.
The mitskal is, according to a tradition in the north, even of older
standing than the first emigrations of the Arabian tribes; but the
Guinea Moslems trace their circulation, in Soudan, to the conquests
effected by those tribes in Marroa, Fillany, Killinga, &c. before and
after the celebrated dynasty of Mohahidouni, or Mahadi.
The following, shewing the relative value of the mitskal in cowries, as
furnished by the Bashaw, may not be uninteresting to the reader.
COWRIES.
In Dahomy and Benin it is equivalent to 4500.
In Salgha, Bouromy, and Banna to 4300.
In Yandy 4200.
In Zogho 4000.
In Nikky 3800.
On the Niger at Haoussa between 3500 and 3400.
The mitskal of Nikky, I was informed, never varied from the standard
that passed for currency in all parts of the continent; and it was not
the usual practice to weigh them as the Ashantees do gold dust. The same
mitskal was the coin of Janny and Sago, as well as Youry, Kassina, Wawa,
Boussa, &c. They are also circulated in Kambah, Magho, and Manding; but
where they did not abound, the value in cowries, rock or dust gold, and
merchandize to that amount, was established in most countries and served
as a standard medium of currency, by which the natives computed large
sums.
Besides the coin of the Arabians, many or most of the African tribes
beyond the Volta, make use of the same weights and measures. Thus the
Khroba is a corn measure, containing about two pecks; the Kantar, is one
hundred pounds (the same probably as the Mauritanian, which is
equivalent to one hundred weight and six pounds English, or one hundred
and eighteen pounds). The ratal is a single pound; the kama is a fathom;
and the kaâla the cubit measure of twenty-two inches, which they
subdivide into three spans.
[Footnote 158: If what may be described with the greatest simplicity,
suitable to the understandings of all men, is also the most beautiful,
as many are inclined to believe, these names of the Arabs are not to be
called trifling.]
[Footnote 159: This happened in the reign of the Khalifa Walid ben
Abdalmalek the 6th sovereign of the dynasty called Bani Ommeya (Ommiade)
who governed the empire about ten years and six months, namely, till the
year of Christ 715.]
[Footnote 160: In the construction of my map, it may be necessary to
remind the reader, that I have studied nothing as regards the probable
termination of rivers, &c.; not conceiving myself warranted to do so in
a work of this kind: but where the natives described water to exist, or
any other local object, there I have simply inserted it, leaving all
speculative matter out of the question; so that the map itself is no
other than a compilation of their own, at least founded upon their
authority exclusively.]
[Footnote 161: All the countries in this direction, from Ghobago and
Mousee to the kingdom of Kaima, are considered only in the light of
provinces or principalities of the great kingdom of Zogho, whose sultan
receives tribute or presents from most of the neighbouring nations,
Dahomy and Benin included.]
[Footnote 162: Fairs and public markets are common in all parts of
Soudan, as well as in the states beyond the deserts. The African,
indeed, gives his confidence to no other medium of intercourse. Even
among the ferocious tribes of Guinea, the people are in the enjoyment of
their weekly or monthly markets.]
[Footnote 163: The name of the reigning monarch, as described to me,—I
think it will be seen in the MSS. is مَرِبَي شِخْيِ, Mariba Sheikhy.]
[Footnote 164: This is the city of which mention has been already made,
that its name is the same as a great southern river called Shaderbah, or
Bahar Kanbaja.]
[Footnote 165: From Kanyash or Kanjasa there is another main road,
leading a little to the right (east) of north, through Masoko, to the
great cities of Dagomba, Banko, and Yandy; the former as prosperous and
extensive, and the latter more so than Coomassy. From Yandy the traders
frequent the Ghulby by another road, leading to the city of Kisba, in
the principality of Simmer; easterly and on to Arigoh, the wilderness of
Ghomaty and Banano, or Grogary in the little kingdom of Kambah. All
these countries are either Moslem, or under Moslem laws.]
[Footnote 166: The other list of routes, their bearing, distance, &c. in
day’s journies, according to the Moslem maps, or manuscripts, caravan
and pilgrim tracks, &c., it has not been deemed essential to copy here,
as they may be referred to by the reader in a more systematical
arrangement in the little map entitled Soudan.]
[Footnote 167: Perhaps the Baedo of Park.]
[Footnote 168: This is also the simple method practised by the Arabs and
the northern nations of Africa, in journeying from the shores of the Red
Sea, from Syria, Egypt, Tripoli, Tunis, Algiers, &c. to the remote parts
of the Continent. Such, moreover, is the practice of the Mauritanian
Arabs and Africans, in their excursions over the desert to Soudan, for
every sheikh of a tribe looks either for a present or a visit by which
he may confer the sacred rights of hospitality, and receive the
stranger’s acknowledgments. Without these formalities it is by no means
safe to pass from one district to another, unless the caravan is of
sufficient magnitude to afford protection to itself. I cannot help
thinking that the misfortune which befel Mungo Park was owing to the
neglect of these indispensable precautions, without which a voyage down
the Niger would be impracticable, unless indeed it were possible to fit
out a vessel of the class of gun-brigs for that service. By a reference
to the journal of Amadi Fatouma, it will be seen that the influence of
the king of Bambara afforded protection to the white men as far as
Janny, where it does not appear that any other attention was paid to the
sovereign, than by sending on shore a piece of Baft; an attack was then
made on the party in the Dibber Lake, which ended in the defeat of the
aggressors, who were unprovided with fire arms. In passing Rakbara and
Timbuctoo, it would seem that no notice whatever was taken of the
sovereign, nor any present sent on shore to him, so that to me it does
not seem surprising that the party were so constantly assailed by war
canoes from Janny to Kaffo, or that they encountered so many obstacles
on the voyage to Youry. The story of Mr. Park’s death was no secret with
any of the Moslems in Coomassy, and it happened precisely as Mr. Bowdich
has related, which, in point of fact, agrees with the journal of Isaaco.
The capital of Youry is distant from the river a short day’s journey,
and it is said, that when the king sent provisions to the canoe, he
entreated by message, that the white chief would visit him on shore, and
he would meet him near the waterside, an intention which that sovereign
put in practice, but was irritated at finding the canoe would not wait,
and had already gained an offing from the port; for Park, anxious, no
doubt, for the prosecution of the voyage, quitted his anchorage without
thinking it incumbent on him to pay his respects to the king, although
the public curiosity or suspicion was excited by his detention two days
on the river in gleaning information of Amadi Fatouma. It is the opinion
of the Moslems, that no present was sent in return for the provisions,
and if so, the conjecture of Park’s editor, that they were withheld from
the king by the chief, is well founded. When the king sent his army to
Boussa, the Moslems say it was done to bring the white men back by
force, but their destruction was never meditated; and the king, when the
catastrophe was related to him, punished his officer with fine and
imprisonment.]
[Footnote 169: According to the weight and rate of currency given to the
mitskal in Morocco, Fez, and other parts of the Gharb, the average value
of what passes for a full weight coin, does not exceed 10s. 9d.
sterling. It is true, however, that a few of the old coin, of that
denomination, are worth something more, but I think I may venture to
say, they rarely ever exceed 11s. or 11s. 3d. in sterling value.]
[Footnote 170: The names given by the Arabs to several denominations of
coin carry their importance in the meaning, which is metaphorical or
otherwise. These people, indeed, are pretty well known even in Europe,
as professors of acute sayings. When a Mauritanian is disappointed in a
scheme that requires the assistance of friends or money, it is usual for
him to retort acrimoniously, “God rest the souls of the old Arabs, who
first gave the name of countenance (or face) to money:” enigmatically
implying a curse upon the obduracy of the rich, whose arrogance is
kindled by the wealth they possess. This word of the Arabs is وجه Wajoh
or Oujoh, and in strictness it has many appropriate meanings besides
countenance or visage, such as honour, purity, respect, reason,
primitive prince, &c. but its common signification is as I have stated.
The small copper coins, something less in value than our farthings, are
by the same people called فلس (Falas) which means poverty, indigence,
want, &c. and to a stranger it is a scene of comic novelty to hear the
Arabs dispute together, as they frequently do in money matters,
exchanging, with animated gesture, the words wajoh, oujine, tiltoujou,
arbaa, falas, &c.—One two, three, four countenances and poverty.]
APPENDIX.
* * * * *
No. I.
APPOINTMENT OF THE AUTHOR, AS CONSUL AT COOMASSY.
In the name and on the behalf of His Majesty.
(Signed) GEORGE P. R.
George the Third, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, to all to whom these
presents shall come, greeting;
We, being desirous to maintain the peace and establish a good
correspondence between us, our subjects and the Kingdom of Ashantee in
Africa, and to advance and encourage the trade and commerce that has
been made and now is between our dominions and the said Kingdom, have
thought fit to appoint some person well qualified to discharge the
office of Consul there; and whereas we are well assured of the ability
of our trusty and well-beloved Joseph Dupuis, Esq. and of his loyalty,
experience, diligence, and fidelity; We, therefore, for the purposes
abovementioned, and for the greater benefit, and the good, and more
orderly government of our English merchants and other our subjects
trading thither, or residing at Coomassy, the capital city of the said
Kingdom of Ashantee, or within any of the dominions of the said kingdom,
have nominated, constituted, and appointed, and by these presents do
nominate, constitute, and appoint him, the said Joseph Dupuis, to be our
Agent and Consul at Coomassy aforesaid, hereby giving and granting unto
him the said Joseph Dupuis, full power and authority by all lawful ways
and means, to aid and protect as well our said merchants and other our
subjects trading, or that shall trade, or have any commerce with the
said Kingdom of Ashantee, or that do, or shall reside at Coomassy
aforesaid, or within the dominions of the said Kingdom of Ashantee
aforesaid, as also all and every of their goods, wares, and merchandises
there, and their ships and vessels and trade aforesaid; and also, as our
said Agent and Consul, to use his utmost endeavours to preserve and keep
all our said merchants and subjects in their rights and freedoms there,
and also to examine and hear, and as much as in him lies to compose and
determine all and all manner of differences, contentions, suits, and
variances that shall or may happen or arise, or that are now depending
at Coomassy aforesaid, or within any of the dominions of the Kingdom of
Ashantee as aforesaid, between our said merchants and subjects, or any
of them, and to do and execute, from time to time, all and every other
act or acts, thing or things, that may advance and encrease, and be for
the benefit of trade and mutual commerce between our said kingdoms and
the ports in the Kingdom of Ashantee aforesaid: To have, hold and
exercise the said trust and employment of our Agent and Consul at
Coomassy as aforesaid, during our pleasure, together with all
privileges, immunities, allowances, rewards, profits, and advantages to
our Agent and Consul there, anyways belonging or appertaining. Wherefore
we will, and by these presents, do strictly charge and command all and
every our said merchants and other our subjects coming into, trading or
residing in the Kingdom of Ashantee aforesaid, or any of the dominions
thereof, to own and acknowledge the said Joseph Dupuis as our Agent and
Consul there, in and by all due respects and regards to the said trust
belonging or appertaining, for and during the continuance of this our
commission and authority to him in that behalf hereby granted as
aforesaid, and also to permit and suffer him the said Joseph Dupuis to
have, receive and enjoy all such and the like privileges, immunities,
and allowances, rewards, profits, benefits, and advantages whatsoever,
as do or ought to belong to our Agent or Consul, by reason of the said
trust and employment; and we do also, in a friendly manner, pray and
desire the King of Ashantee aforesaid, and all others in public
authority there, whom it may any way concern, that they receive and
admit him, the said Joseph Dupuis, for our Agent and Consul in the said
city and dominions thereunto belonging, and upon all his reasonable
requests to do him that justice, and afford him that assistance which
may testify their friendship to us, and which we shall upon all
occasions be ready to acknowledge.
Given at our Court, at Carlton House, the twenty-sixth day of January,
1818, in the fifty-eighth year of our reign.
By command of His Royal Highness the Prince Regent, in the name and on
the behalf of His Majesty.
(Signed) BATHURST.
No. II
TREATY MADE WITH THE KING OF ASHANTEE, BY MR. BOWDICH, IN THE NAME OF
THE GOVERNOR AND COUNCIL, &c.[171]
TREATY made and entered into by Thomas Edward Bowdich, Esquire, in the
name of the Governor and Council at Cape Coast Castle, on the Gold Coast
of Africa, and on behalf of the British Government, and Zey Tootoo
Quamina, King of Ashantee, and its Dependencies.
1st. There shall be perpetual peace and harmony between the British
subjects in this country, and the subjects of the King of Ashantee.
2d. The same shall exist between the subjects of the King of Ashantee,
and all nations of Africa residing under the protection of the company’s
forts and settlements on the Gold Coast; and it is hereby agreed that
there are no palavers now existing, and that neither party has any claim
upon the other.
3d. The King of Ashantee guarantees the people of Cape Coast from the
hostilities threatened by the people of Elmina.
4th. In order to avert the horrors of war, it is agreed that in any case
of aggression on the part of the natives under British protection, the
king shall complain thereof to the governor-in-chief, to obtain redress;
and that he will in no instance resort to hostilities without
endeavouring, as much as possible, to effect an amicable arrangement.
5th. The King of Ashantee agrees to permit a British officer to reside
constantly at his capital, for the purpose of instituting and preserving
a regular communication with the governor-in-chief at Cape Coast Castle.
6th. The King of Ashantee pledges himself to countenance, promote, and
encourage the trade of his subjects with Cape Coast Castle and its
dependencies, to the extent of his power.
7th. The governors of the respective forts shall at all times afford
every protection in their power to the persons and property of the
people of Ashantee, who may resort to the water side.
8th. The governor-in-chief reserves to himself the right of punishing
any Ashantee guilty of secondary offences, but in case of any crime of
magnitude, he will send the offender to the king, to be dealt with
according to the laws of his country.
9th. The king agrees to commit children to the care of the governor-
in-chief for education at Cape Coast Castle, in the full confidence of
the good intentions of the British government, and the benefits to be
derived therefrom.
10th. The king promises to make diligent inquiries respecting the
officers attached to the Mission of Major John Peddie and Captain Thomas
Campbell, and to influence and oblige the neighbouring kingdoms and his
tributaries, to befriend them as the subjects of the British government.
The mark of ZEY X TOOTO QUAMINA.
(Signed) THOMAS EDWARD BOWDICH.
In the presence of
(Signed) WILLIAM HUTCHINSON.
HENRY TEDLIE.
* * * * *
No. III.
TREATY MADE WITH THE KING OF ASHANTEE, BY THE AUTHOR, ON BEHALF OF HIS
MAJESTY.
TREATY made and entered into by Joseph Dupuis, Esquire, his Britannic
Majesty’s Consul for the Kingdom of Ashantee in Africa, in the name and
on behalf of the British Government, with Sai Totoo Quamina, King of
Ashantee and its dependencies.
1st. The King of Ashantee agrees to receive and acknowledge Joseph
Dupuis, Esquire, as his Majesty’s Consul at Coomassy, to the full intent
and meaning of his commission, and if at any time ill health should
oblige the said Joseph Dupuis to leave this country, the king will
receive and acknowledge any gentleman that he may appoint to succeed
him.
2d. The King of Ashantee having taken _his sacred_ oath of allegiance
and fidelity to the crown of Great Britain, in the person of His Royal
Highness the Prince Regent, makes known to all to whom these presents
shall come, that he will with all his power and influence, support, aid,
and protect the British interests, in this country, and that he will, if
necessary, on all occasions, march his armies to any part of the
country, where the interests of Great Britain may require their aid and
assistance.
3d. The claim recently made by the King of Ashantee, on the governor of
Cape Coast Castle, amounting to one thousand six hundred ounces of gold,
or £6,400 is hereby acknowledged to be relinquished; and it is agreed
that there are now no differences or palavers existing between the King
of Ashantee and the Governor, or between the king and any other of His
Britannic Majesty’s subjects, collectively or individually.
4th. The King of Ashantee agrees and binds himself to support and
encourage the commerce of this country with Cape Coast and its
dependencies, by all the means in his power; and pledges himself not to
allow any differences that may occur to interrupt the trade with the
English merchants on the Coast.
5th. The King of Ashantee claims the Fantee territory as his dominions,
which the consul, on the part of the British government, accedes to, in
consideration and on the express condition that the king agrees to
acknowledge the natives, residing under British protection, entitled to
the benefit of British laws, and to be amenable to them only in case of
any act of aggression on their part.
6th. After the final adjustment of the present claims upon the natives
of Cape Coast, the King binds himself to submit all future complaints to
the Consul only, and on no account whatever to make war with the
natives, at any of the English settlements, without first allowing the
consul an opportunity of settling such differences.
7th. The consul, on the part of the British government, guarantees all
the protection in his power to the subjects of the king of Ashantee, who
may have any commerce with the British Settlements on the Coast.
8th. The consul binds himself on the part of the British government and
the governor and council, to keep half the path that is at present made
between Cape Coast and Ashantee well cleared, and the king of Ashantee
agrees to keep the other half of the path constantly in good order, so
that there shall always be a free and easy communication with the
Ashantee dominions.
9th. It is expressly agreed and understood that the consul shall at all
times be at liberty to visit the capital of Ashantee, and to take his
departure therefrom, whenever he may think fit, without being subject to
any interruption or detention, and that the consul’s residence may
either be at Coomassy, or at Cape Coast, as he may, from time to time,
deem expedient for the public good; but if at any time during the
consul’s absence from Coomassy, the king of Ashantee has any complaint
or palaver against the natives of the British Settlements the same is to
be submitted to the consul at Cape Coast, and if it cannot be settled
without his presence at Coomassy, it is agreed that the consul shall
immediately proceed to the capital on all such occasions.
10th. The king of Ashantee having publicly and repeatedly complained of
the exorbitant prices charged on the notes he holds from the forts, for
the goods he receives in payment of those notes; and in consequence of
the manifest dissatisfaction expressed by the king on this subject in
particular, the consul, in order to obviate any objections to the
ratification of the present treaty, concedes this point to the king,
agreeing in future to take upon himself the payment of those notes: and
the king declares he will not from henceforth receive any payment of
those notes, except through the medium of the consul.
11th. The king on the part of his principal captains and counsellors
hereby acknowledges to their having also taken the oath of allegiance
and fidelity to the crown of Great Britain.
12th. In virtue of this treaty, it is mutually agreed and expressly
understood, that all former treaties between the king of Ashantee and
the authorities of Cape Coast Castle, on the behalf of his Majesty’s
government, particularly the treaty of 1817, are from henceforth to
become null and void, and are hereby declared so accordingly.
Given under our Hands and Seals, at the King’s Palace, at the capital
Coomassy, this 23d Day of March, in the Year of our Lord, 1820, and in
the Fifty-ninth Year of the Reign of His Majesty George III. &c.
The mark of X SAII TOOTOO QUAMINA.
JOSEPH DUPUIS.
In the presence of
BENJAMIN SALMON.
FRANCIS COLLINS.
DAVID MILL GRAVES.
* * * * *
Supplementary articles annexed to the General Treaty entered into this
day between Sai Tooto Quamina, King of Ashantee, on the one part, and
Consul Dupuis on behalf of His British Majesty’s Government on the other
part, which articles are hereby considered to be equally binding to the
said contracting parties as if they were inserted in the primary or
general treaty itself.
1st. The King of Ashantee having, by force of arms, subdued the kingdom
of Gaman or Buntooko, which he now governs in full and undisputed
sovereignty; and whereas, from political motives, it has been deemed
prudent to station troops in Amanaha, on the banks of the Assinee River,
and other parts of the said kingdom, to prevent the inhabitants from
trading or holding any communication with the sea coast; the king now
pledges himself, in virtue of this article, to remove the before-
mentioned obstacles to the commerce of the kingdom of Buntooko or Gaman;
and he guarantees the same privileges of trade to the natives of that
country, which the Ashantees themselves enjoy, provided their
intercourse with the sea coast is confined to Cape Coast Castle, or any
other of the British forts and settlements on the Gold Coast. In
promotion of this object the king has already nearly completed a road
forming a direct communication to the heart of the said country of
Gaman, and he hereby binds himself to support, aid, and encourage the
trade of that country.
2d. The King of Ashantee being decidedly averse to relinquishing his
claim on the natives of Cape Coast Town, and in consequence of certain
private negotiations which are now pending through the medium of Mr.
Smith, the Governor of Cape Coast Castle, on behalf of the parties
concerned; (and whereas, the consul possesses no authority to guarantee
payment to the king of any sum of money on behalf of the natives of Cape
Coast beyond the limit of one hundred ounces of gold, which has only
tended to excite the king’s anger and indignation) as well as for other
reasons unnecessary to introduce in this treaty, it is hereby stipulated
that the natives of Cape Coast Town, being subjects of the King of
Ashantee, are excluded from participating in the benefits of either of
the treaties, as the king is resolved to eradicate from his dominions
the seeds of disobedience and insubordination; nevertheless, in
consideration of the friendship existing between him and the King of
England, and as the King of Ashantee is particularly anxious to convince
the world of the sincerity of his regard for the honour and dignity, as
well as the interests of the British Government and people, he will
endeavour, as much as possible, to avoid giving offence either to the
consul or to the authorities of Cape Coast Castle, directly or
indirectly, and, therefore, whatever plans the King of Ashantee may
think advisable to adopt, in order to bring his people under due
subjection, he binds himself not to destroy the town of Cape Coast, nor
will he allow a gun to be fired in the town, or suffer his troops to
commit any act of hostility or depredation therein on the inhabitants or
on their property; and in particular as regards the white part of the
population, to say all the free merchants and traders, he guarantees to
them not only full security of person and property, but also full
protection in case of need. Moreover, the king will not suffer his
difference with the Cape Coast people to interfere with his plans for
the promotion and extension of the commerce between the interior and the
British settlements on the sea coast, which he promises shall be
immediately restored.[172]
3d. (Not granted.) The King of Ashantee agrees to permit and promises to
encourage the establishment of schools at Doonqua, for the religious
instruction of his people, and the king, moreover, guarantees perfect
security and protection there to any English merchant or others of his
Britannic Majesty’s subjects in person and effects.
4th. The King of Ashantee pledges himself for the security and
protection in person and property, to missionaries or others, being
subjects of his Britannic Majesty, who may wish to establish themselves
in any part of his territory for the purpose of propagating the
Christian religion; and the king hereby cordially invites to his country
such well-disposed men.
Given under our hands and seals at the King’s Palace at the capital of
Ashantee, this twenty-third day of March, in the year of our Lord,
1820, and in the fifty-ninth year of the reign of His Majesty George
III. &c. &c. &c.
The mark of X SAII TOOTO QUAMINA.
JOSEPH DUPUIS.
In the presence of
(Signed) BENJAMIN SALMON.
FRANCIS COLLINS.
DAVID MILL GRAVES.
GEOGRAPHICAL DOCUMENTS.
For the convenience of investigation, it has been deemed requisite to
separate from the body of the work the materials which give authority to
the geography as depicted in the maps, and described more fully in the
sections of Wangara and Soudan. The most essential among a voluminous
packet of MSS. are submitted in their native character (the Arabic)
affording thereby all the facility the author can give to the more acute
researches of the learned in oriental literature. These, together with
some others, which are too bulky, or too vaguely written, and tortured
with repetitions to admit of an insertion in their native garb, were
composed chiefly by those Moslems, whose names are mentioned in the
work, and who corroborated many or most of their statements by the
authority of a variety of travelling guides and directions, such as are
commonly used by the caravans of the north, and by these people also in
their journies to and from the kingdoms of the Niger.
The description they gave of the courses of the rivers, of the positions
of lakes and other natural objects, of their bearing, distance, &c. from
Coomassy, or other inland city, was equally supported by the testimony
of the African road books and manuscripts, although the names of some
places, which may be found in the maps, are not to be traced in those
MSS. which I have considered of importance to submit in their foreign
characters.
No. 4.
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم الحمد لله الذه جعل القلم لنا كلام متكلم وجعل
قرطاس لنا رسولا مرسلا بلد الي بلد مكان الي مكان وطرالي وطرهذ قرطاس تعرف
طريق غُنْجَا سَلْغَ اسم البلد يوم الخروج سَلْغَ دَنْغَ يَنُومُ يوم خرج
دَنْغُ كَنْيَاشَيا يوم خرج كَنْيَاشيا كَدَنْقِي يوم خرج كَدَنْقِي
كَبَاَوتُ : يوم خرج كَبَاَوتُ كَنْجَسِ : يوم خرج كَنْجَس الي خلع ليس بلد
يوم خرج خلع تُوْنُومَ يوم خرج فيه بحر بينهما ويجوز الي زُنْكُمَا : يوم
خرج زُنْكُمَا جَبْذُغُ يوم خرج بلد جَبْذُغُ اي ليس بلد خلع يوم خرج في
بلد كِنُوْ اذه خرج كِنُوْ ليس بلد حتي ثلاث ايام وهو موضع جبل كثير ثم خرج
الي بلدِ غُفلْ يوم خرج غُفلْ الي بلد اَرْجُو يوم خرج ارجو الي بلد مُتُمْ
اي اسم بلد يوم خرج متم يَرَاكِوُ يوم خرج يراكو الي بلد ذُغُ وهو قرية
الكبير يوم خرج ذُغُ الي بلد دَنْكُنْ يدخل فه خلع ليس بلد حتي ثلاث ايام
ثم دخل الي بلد يسمي سَلَمُو ايوم خرج سَلَمُوا جَنْبُدُ ايوم خرج
جَنْبُدُو الي صُسُوا اي بحر صغير يوم خرج صسوا كُرِرِ يوم خرج كُرِرِ الي
بلد كُوكَ يوم خرج كُوكَ مكَرَارَي يوم خرج مَكَرَارَي الي بلد نِكِ وهو
قرية عظيمة يوم خرج نِكِ رُغَ يوم خرج رُغَ قطع الغلبِيِ الي بلد مَكَبَرا
يوم خرج مَكَبَرا سَابُنْ سَارَّا يوم خرج سابن سارا وُرِ يوم خرج وُرِ
شَابَنْدِيَا يوم خرج شابنديا رُعَ يوم خرج رع غَاذُ يوم خرج غاذُ دُوشِ
يوم خرج دوشِ كُنْفِ يوم خرج كنف وَادُ يوم خرج واد بَتَكُوا ليس بلد ومن
بتكوا كَدَرْكُ ليس بلد ومن كَدَرْكُ شُلُ يوم خرج شُلُ الي غَسَغَسَ وامّا
بحر كبير ليس مثله في بلدنا المسما كُوَرَا يوم خرج غسغس يدخل في قرية
يَاوُري قرية عظيمة ومن ياوري الي كُنْبَاشَ ستة ايام ومن كنباش الي بلد
غَرَنْتِ خمسة ايام ومن غرنت الي بلد يَنْدُوتُ خمسة ايام ومن يَنْدُوتُ
الي بلد كَثِينَ سبعة ايام هذا بلد كَثِين قرية عظيمة وهو راس حَوْسَ : ومن
حَوْسَ الي فِرْزَانَ اربعين ايام ومن بلد فرزان الي بَلَدْ مَصَرْ اربعين
ايام ومن بلد مصر الي طُونَسَي ثلاتين ايام من بلد طونس الي مَكَةَ اثنا
عشر ايام ومن مكة الي بيت الله اربعين ايام ليلا والنهار وهو وسط الدنيا
ومن بلد مدينة الي شَامُ عشرون يوم ليلا والنهار ومن شام الي بيت المقدس
عشرون ايام هنا جبل فيه اسمه طور سينا وعلي هذه جبل كلام الله النبي موسي
عليه السلام وهو قبر النبي موسي عليه السلام سمعنا اخري علي جبل طور سينا
وهو قبر النبي ادم عليه السلام واما جبل خمسة اختارا سينا عزوجل واها اول
هن جبل طور سينا وجبل مكة وجبل بيت المقدس وجبل المدينة وجبل شام وهذا روي
عن اي رسول الله صلي الله عليه وسلام في سيدنا نصراني ان انما يعلم شي
واملاءً هذه الورقة الي صُومُ حبيب شي وصلي الله علي نبي بعده امين
TRANSLATION OF No. 4.
In the name of God, the merciful, the compassionate, &c. &c. This is a
direction from country to country, &c. taking the departure from Salgha,
the chief city of Ghunja.
From Salgha in one day to Dangho, from Dangho, through Yanomo, to
Kanyasha one day; from Kanyasha in one day to Kadanki, and from Kadanki
to Cabouto in one day; from Cabouto one day to Konjasi. After leaving
Konjasi, you enter a small wilderness leading through Tonouma. One
journey more leads to a little river, beyond which is Zonkoma.[173] From
Zonkoma to Jadogho one day, and then a wilderness over which you proceed
to Keno one day. From Keno you must travel three days over a great range
of mountains, which will convey you to Ghofil. From Ghofil in one day to
Arjo, from Arjo (over the little river Komba) in one day to Motom. From
Motom (over mountains) three days to Yarako. From Yarako to Zogho, it is
one journey: Zogho is a great city. From Dagho to Dankon, one day, and
the road then leads through a forest of three journies, to a country
called Salamo. From Salamo proceed on to Jambodo (a long journey) and
from Jambodo to Sooso, one journey, where there is a small river بحر
صغير From Sooso it is one long journey to Corery, and from Corery travel
on to Kooka (on the Ghulby.) From Kooka to Makrara (one day.) From
Makrara, in one day, you will arrive at Nikky, which is a very large
city, and from Nikky in one day to Rougha, and from thence (over the
Ghulby) to Makaba. From Makaba to Sabonsara, one day, and from Sabonsara
to Wory, one day. From Wory through Snabendia to Roa, and from Roa to
Ghado. From Ghado in one day to Doshi, from Doshi to Confi and from
thence to Wado. After leaving Wado you enter the country of Batako,
which is a district so named (very mountainous.) From thence to Sholo it
is one day, and from Sholo to Ghasaghasa one day more, where there is a
great sea or river, the like of which is no where to be found: it is
called Koara كُوَرَا From Ghasaghasa (cross over the Koara) and in one
day you will reach the city of Youry, which is a very great city.
From Youry to the country of Konbash, it is seven days’ journey. From
Konbash to the country of Gharanti, it is five days more; from thence to
Yandoso it is also five days, and from Yandoto to Kassina is seven
journies. Kassina is a mighty city, the metropolis (head) of Haoussa.
In travelling from Haoussa (in the high northern road to Egypt and the
Holyland) proceed to Ferjan Fezzan, which is a journey of forty days;
from Ferjan to Masser (perhaps the confines of Egypt) it is forty days
more; and to Toonasa thirty days. From Toonassa to Mecca is twelve[174]
days. From Mecca to the Holy City Shamor (Syria) it is forty hard
journies: this country stands in the centre of the world. From Medina to
Syria it is twenty full journies, and from Syria to Jerusalem is twenty
more.
In this land is the mountain Tor, of Sinai, on the summit of which God
conversed with the Prophet Moses,[175] upon whom be peace, &c. and he
was entombed therein. The peace of God, &c.[176]
And this is a direction to the country of the Prophet of God, on whom be
peace, &c. for the service of our friend (master) the Christian, &c.
written by his loving friend Souma, and now pray to God, &c.—Amen.[177]
This is termed the main eastern road.
No. 5.
This relates to the direct route from Ashantee (Coomassy) to Salgha, a
journey of fifteen days. Its writer was a native of Ghunjah, whose
sovereign had granted him permission to visit the Court of Ashantee. He
had been several times to Haoussa, &c. as also to Dahomy and Benin in
the east.
الحمد لله الذه جعل القلم لنا لسانا وجعل قرطاس لنا رسولا مكان الي مكان
البلد الي البلد وطرالي وطرثم خرج من بلد كُمَاسِي اِلَي بلد سَلْغَ من يوم
خرج كماسي الي جَمَقَسي : اَنْتُوَ : دَمُكَاي : اَكُرُفُرُمْ : أَكيَا اسم
جبل فيه البلد : مَنْبُنْ : دِنْكِنِي : اَدِجَانِي : اَجُورَا : اَمَتِنِي
: اَكُكُوَا : بَتُودَا : اَتَبَابُوْا : يُبْعَتِي وفيه الماء الكبير اسم
الماء بُوْرُوْا : كُلاً : سَكِنِم : يَاجِي : وفيه البحر كثير اَسْوَدَ
البحر : بَابُصُوْا اسم البر الماء خرج كماسي الي سلغ ايام انتهن :
TRANSLATION OF No. 5.
Glory be unto God, for the use of speech, the knowledge of writing, &c.
This is a direction for travelling, &c.[178] by the route from Coomassy
to Salgha. Leaving Coomassy, you arrive the first day at Jamakasi, the
second at Antoa, the third at Damoka, the fourth at Akoroforom, the
fifth you enter Akeyah, which is the name of a mountainous country; then
to Manbon, and from Manbon to Dinkeny; then to Adijani, and Ajora,
Amatini, and Akokoa (each one day.) From Akokoa to Batoda, and from
thence to Yobati, in which there is a large water or lake (وفيه الماء
الكبير) and the name of the lake is Bouro. Then to Coulan and Sakenim
and Yaji. In the last named country is a large river _sea_ (بحر كتير)
the name of which is Aswada (the black river) and the name of the land
on the banks of the river is Babosoo. This is the end of the journey to
Salgha (for that city is on the opposite bank of the river.”)
The subsequent part of the manuscript falls next under consideration. It
runs as follows:—
No. 6.
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم هذا اسم البلد سلغ ومن سلغ الي كَاكَشِي : ذَفُ :
تُورُ : يَنْسَلَا : بِتَرِبِي : يَشِيلِي : دِغُنِي : وَبِيَا : قِرِسَاغُ
جَاكُالِيشِي سَاكُويَا : كُالْتِغَ : بُوغُرِ : بَتِلي غُلْبِيِ اسم الماء
كوقِي : دِدِرِه كُنْغُبُ : مَاغُ : البلد كبير سلطان فيه اسم سلطان
مَرِبَاشِاقِي اسم قرية غُرُمَا : قِينَاغَ : تَادي : بلغ عَنْظَر : اسم
الماءِ غُلْبي : ذَبُغُ : دَتُكُرُوي : بَامَنْ اسم البلد كبير اسم سلطان
البلد ذَفُر : دِتِقِي غلبي كُنْذَغَ الماء كبير : يَانْغُذِي : مَاجُورِ :
كُابُغُ : سَبَاوَ بَتِقَتِي : يْتَنَا : كَتِ : قِيقِيدِي : تَنْتَثِ :
تِيدَذِيمَا : دَقُ : جَتَاوُ : ذَغُرِتُرِ : نَاتَاغُ : مَاكُرُا اسم لماء
فيه البلد : كُنْفِين ذِغُ كَنبَار : غُورُا الْماء كثير : غَاتَاغَ :
فُوْغَ : تُوكَانِي : بَاقُرِذِ : فَاغْ اسم جبل فيه البلد كُونْكَا :
مَوْرِ : بِرِنِي كَبِ اسم سلطن محمد : غُلْبِي كَنْبَاجَ كَاعَادُوا :
رَغَا : فَكَارُ غُاشِيْي فَوَي : رِقِينَا : كُتُتُرِ : مَرِنَا :
كَانْدَوشِ اسم البلد اتني اسم سُوْوِ كَبيرً : كَاسُوَي تَلاتَ اسم سُوْوِ
فيه الماء كثيربُرُمِ مَاغَمِ اسم سلطان بَاوَي جُرُمِ : كُمِي : مُرُمُي
الَبُ : برنِي كَسينَا بِرِنِي البلد كَثير البلد هوسي : يِوم اخرج كَسينَا
الي البلد اَذْبَنْ اربعين يوما ومن بلد اَذْبَنْ الي بلد فِرْجَنْ اربعين
يوما يوم خرج فَرْجَنْ الي بلد مَصَرْ اربعين يوما يوم خرج مصر الي بلد مكة
عشرين يوما ليلا والنهار من مكة اِلي المدينة رسول الله صلي الله عليه وسلم
عشرة يام ليلا ونهار يوم خرج المدينة الي عراو عشرة يوما ليلا والنهار من
يوم خرج عراو الي ببيت المقدس عشرة ايام ليلا والنهار من يوم خرج بيت
المقدس الي شام عشرة ايام ليلا والنهاري الشام كاربابا السماء في الشام
انتهن كلام اسم البلد اي انثهن اسم المكاتبا محمد كامعتي المقلبْ كنتوما
وما صاحبه ابوبكر توريا
TRANSLATION OF No. 6. (TO THE GHULBY AT MAGHO.)
In the name of God, the merciful, the compassionate. This is a direction
(by the route NNE.) &c. from Salgha to the interior countries. Salgha to
Kakashi then Dafo, Touro, Yansala, Betareby, Yashely, Deghony, Wabeya,
Keresago, Jakolishi, Sakoya, Coultegha, Boughori, Batili to the river
Ghulbi at Coky, (or which is the name of the water of Kook) (Proceed on)
to Dedery, Conghobo, and then Magho, which is a large kingdom or country
governed by a Sultan whose name is Mariba Sheky; the name of his capital
city is Ghoroma, (on the other side the river.) Kenagha (is next, and
then) Tady, Balogho, Andari, where the name of the water is still the
Ghulby; Zabogho, Datokoro, Baman,—which is the name of a large country,
governed by a sultan called Zafory Detaki. The river Ghulby next, and
then to a very large water (a lake) called Konzagha; Yangodi, Majori,
and Kobogho, (are all on the road which leads on to the mountains called
Fagh) in the kingdom of Wawa.
(The towns in succession) from the Konzagha lake are Sabawa, Batikati,
Etana, Kati, Kikidi, Tentati, Tedadema, Dako, Jata, Zaghore Touri,
Natagho, and Makoro:—this is the name of a lake or great water standing
in the country; Confi, Digho, Cabar, Ghoro; where the water is very
broad: Ghatagha, Fougha, Tokani, Bakoridi, and Fagh, which is the name
of the mountains in this country. Then through Conka, to the kingdom of
Maury; from Maury to Berini, Cabi. The name of the sultan (of Maury) is
Mohammed. Then (over the) Ghulbi, Kanbaja, (called also Shaderbah,) to
Kadoa. Then (by land) to Rago, Fakaro, Ghoshi, Fawa, Rekena, Kototori,
Marina. Kandashi is the name of this country—and great Souy is the name
of the next. There is also another place called Souy, where the water is
very large, and bears the name of Bouromi Maghami. The name of the
sultan is Bawa Jouromi. Then Komi, Moromalabo, Barni, (and lastly)
Kassina. This is a very large country, for it is Haoussa.
Leaving Kassina (for the north) you will travel on to Azban (Azben) in
forty days, and from Azban to Ferjan (Fezzan) it is forty journies more.
Leaving Ferjan you will arrive in forty days at Egypt; and from Egypt to
Mecca it is twenty journies, hard travelling (literally night and day).
From Mecca (back) to Medina, the city of the Apostle, with peace,
prayer, &c. &c. it is ten days hard travelling. Leaving Medina you will
arrive at Arou in ten days more, at the same pace; from Arou to
Jerusalem, it is ten journies, and from Jerusalem to Shem it is also ten
journies. This land is nigh unto Heaven, and here is the finish.
The name of the writer is Mohammed Camati, alias[179] (i.e. as he is
called by the Pagans) Cantoma, in company with his friend Aboubecr
Touria, (or Ben Touri.)
No. 7.
الحمد لله وحده ذاك باب الي المكرم حبيبه هو يقول لنا سعلتني بخبر مسير
اشنتي الي بلد سلغ خمسة عشر يوما وسَلْغَ الي بلد دَغُمْبَ يَانْديِ ستة
ايام ومن يَانْديِ الي بلد ظُغُ ومن ظُغُ الي كانْغَ تمانية اياما وعشرة
ايام يقول القريه ملكه نك ومن نِكِ الي كُوَرَا ثلاتة عسر ايام ومن كُوَرَا
الي يَاوُرِ يوم واحد ومن يَاوُرِ ثلاثين يوما ومن غُبَاغُ الي موسي سبع
ايام ومن موسي الي كَسُغُ اربع ايام ومن كَسُغُ الَي سَفَنِ ثماني ايام ومن
سفنِ الي جَنّيي تمانيه ايام[180]
TRANSLATION OF No. 7.
Glory be unto God in unity. This chapter (of knowledge) is directed to
the esteemed and beloved friend who solicited us to furnish him with
information for travelling, (through this country,) &c.
From Ashantee first to the country of Salgha, which is fifteen journies.
From Salgha to the country of Dagomba, i.e. Yandi, (the capital city)
which is six days. From Yandi to the country of Zogho, and from Zogho to
that of Killinga, which (together) make a journey of eighteen days. The
capital city (of Killinga) belonging to the king, is called Nikky. From
Nikky to the river Koara it is thirteen journies more, and from the
Koara to Youry it is but a single day. From Youry (back) to Ghobagho it
is thirty days; from Ghobagho to Mousee it is seven days; from Mousee to
Kasogho it is four days. From Kasogho to Safany it is eight days, and
from Safany to Jany (or Jinnie) it is eight days more.
This, which is the preliminary part of the manuscript, exhibits the
lines of communication between Lower Guinea and the districts of
Haoussa, Fillany, &c. The supplementary part is as follows:
No. 8.
ومِن هنا كُمَاسِ الي جَمَكَاسِ ومن جَمَكَاسِ الي تَتَرُمْ ومن تَتَرُمْ
الي كِكِوَرِ الي يِنَسُ الي سَكَدُ ماسِ اسم البلد الي ذُنْكُرِ كُنْتَي
الي قُرَنْسَحْ الي بوبِي الي كِرَحِمْ الي كَنْتَنُو الي كَاكَا الي
كَرَنْدَ الي دَوَ الي صَحْرَا اقَلَا بلا بيت بحر فيه الي تري الي غُفَنْ
بلد مسلمون ومن غرفن الي ولد سلطان بلده الي لَنْكَنتِر اليِ كَتَر اِلي
بُتنْتَاسِ الي فرغ دَبُيَ الي صُولَبِ الي غُبَيْغُ الي دَنْكَيْرِ الي
بُنْغُ الي بُعَسَ الي كَبَرِ الي يَعْبَ الي يجَيْغُ الي بَدِمْ الي
كَنْجَخَ الي بَغِي الي صِيلَيْ الي كُبَرْ الي كَاِيْ الي فُرَ الي صُمْبُ
الي بُرْمُ جزايرا بحر الي كُوْ الي قَلَمْب الي كُيْنِي الي البلد بَفُرُ
الي شَيُوغُ الي سفن بلد كبير فيه الجَامِحُ الي نُنْوُ الي كَرُ الي
بُرَدِ الي دُرَّ الي كرْنَي الي بحر الي قُدَيْ الي سُوْنُ الي فير الي
سَيْدَنكِرا الي فِلنكِ الي بلد بَاء بلد مسلم ومن بَاء الي كُنْبُرِ الي
تَسْلِيمَ الفقية صاحب الحرمة ولو الله الي نُمُ دُغُ الي طُمَ يُعْمَا الي
جني بلد كبير المسلمون الي البحر في السغبنة خمسة عشر ايام وفي سفر في البر
ثلاتين يوم الي طغبوط الي جخ بلد ملح كالحجر ومن الحخر طاح في الطريق الي
مصر والي البحر كبير الي مصر
TRANSLATION OF No. 8.
Moreover, from hence—Coomassy, to Jamacasi, from Jamacasi to Tataroom,
and from Tataroom to Kikiwhari. From Kikiwhari to Enaso, and to Sakado,
which is the (chief city of) the country called Massy. (From Sakado) to
Donkori, to Conta, and from thence to Coransah. From Coransah to Boubin,
to Kerahem, to Kantano to Kaka, to Caranda to Dawa, and the Desert—where
there is no resting place, and through which the river runs[181] بحر
فيه. When you get through it (the Desert, which is two days journey from
N. to S.) you will arrive at Ghofan, a country of the Moslems. And from
Ghofan to the country of the King’s Son, and to Lankantera. From thence
through Katari to Botintasi, and Daboya. From Daboya proceed to Solaba,
and (or through) Ghobagho. From Ghobagho to Dankairy, to Bonough to
Bouasa, to Cabari to Yaâba, Ejagho to Baddim, to Kanjakha to Baghi, to
Sela to Kobar, to Kaii—or Karey—to Foura, to Soumbo and Bourma, which is
an island in the river (جزاير البحر). From Bourma to Kou, to Calambi to
Couini, to Baforo to Shougho (Sego) in Safani. This (last named place)
is a large country, with churches (mosques) in it. From Safani to Nouno,
to Karou to Bouradi, to Dorra to Kerba, to the river (again) to Kooda to
Soonore, to Fee to Feer, to Sadankera to Felanki, to Baâ, a country of
Moslems. And from Baâ, and Conbori, to Taslima,[182] the country of holy
(religion) resignation and learning (which is governed by a chief (of
the family) sacred to God’s service, &c. From Taslima to Noumodogho, to
Toumayama to Jennie, which is a large country of Moslems.
From Jennie to the sea, whereon ships sail (it is a journey of) fifteen
days by water, and then by land thirty days more until you get
afterwards to Jekhy, a salinous, rocky, or stony country: and from these
rocks you will fall in the direct track for Egypt, whose sea is the
great sea, &c.[183]
The following MS. is a route by the same author, from Jennie to Bornou:
No. 9.
بلد اَلْفَايَنء الي نكري الفاين الي تاركَسصُ دنسو الي سَكُمْ ومن سكم الي
ابوغي فوم ومن بُوْغِي فومُ الي اءتِي كثيرة الماء ومن اءتي قطع البحر الي
الحجر كبير ومن الحجر الي كَنكَوَنْسُ ومن كنكونس الي الي اءهِنكُنْتَ ومن
هنكنت الي اءدَنكَسَضُ قطع البحر تلك اليوم الي دُدِ ومن دُدِ الي كَمَنَ
ومن كَمَنَ الي حُنَفُوكُي الن الجبل الكبير الي الصحراء الي اَكُومْ بلد
سلطن سلطان الكبير ومن ذالك اليوم صُكُرْيي الي صحرا الي فُونِ ومن فُونِ
الي تَمَي الي تِغُوْا ومن تِغُوْا اَلي وُضُ صرخ الي بيط فيه بِرني
TRANSLATION OF No. 9.
First, the country of Alfine; and from Alfine to Casou Dousou, and then
to Sakam, and from Sakam to Boghifom, from Boghifom to Aty or Aowati,
where the water (of the river) is very great. From Aowati, cross the
river, (the Koara) and land at the large rocks; from whence proceed on
to Kankawansa, and from Kankawansa to Henkonta. From Henkonta to
Dankasado (again) cross a river, (sea) and rest the day at Dody. From
Dody to Kamana, and from Kamana to Honafokon; and then to a great range
of mountains, on the other side of which is the Desert. The next place
is Akom, the country of the king of kings بلد سلطن سلطن الكبير (meaning
the sultan of Bornou.) Then Sokori, then the Desert, and Foony. And from
Foony to Tama, Tegho, Woso or Wodo, and Bornou.
The following MS. describing the journey to Kassina, was written by a
native of that country, but recently arrived at Coomassy on a trading
speculation from the former city: like the MS. No. 3, it leads to Magho
on the Ghulby, and from thence eastward along its shores.
No. 10.
الحمد لله السلام عليكم &c. : جَمَاكَاسِي : مَاجُوكْوَسِي : اَدِجَنِ :
اَمَاتِنِي : اَتَابُوبُو : بَنَايْي : يَاجِي : سَلَاغَي : بُوكُوكِي
ذَافُوا : دُورُوَا يَنْسَلَا : كُوبِيَ : لَّااجَا : يَنْدِي : كَرِدُسِ
سَاكوْغُوا بَاكِي غُلوبِي دَاج : تُودُو : كُوكُوجُو : مَاغُو : تَادِه :
بَالَغُوُ : فَضَلِي : ذَابِغَا : يَنْقَا : يَرْمِسِ : كُودِبِيَي
:يَنْبُوتِي : طَاغُو : غُوغَيِ : فَادِسِك دَنْسَرِكَي : كَيَا : دَغَابُو
: عَثْقَالِي : عَلُومَاغُو : دَاوَا : لَاغَامَنَ : كُمُسِي : دَابَاغُو :
سَامِيَ : غُلْبي : مَعُار : رُوغَا : تُودُو : بَاكِين كُوَراء : رِدّبَا
: بلِيدِء : دُوسِ رُوغَا : دَاوَا : فَوْغَا : كُوقُوبُو : دِهبِي داج
كُوكَ كَابِي غُلُبِي : كَلَابَيْنَ : سَلَا : سَاغَارَ : دُورُوَا :
بُوكَوُرِ : كُمْسيِ : غَدُو ذَامَاج : سَارَ : نُوفَوَا : دُورُعِ :
مَارِكِي رُومَا : مَيْوُا بِرِنِ كَاسِينَ
TRANSLATION OF No. 10.
Glory be unto God, and peace unto you, &c. (The places) are Jamakasi,
Majokoasi, Adijani, Amateny, Ataboba, Banaa. Then Yajy and Salgha. From
Salgha to Bokoky, Zafo, Dorowa, Yansala, Coobeya, Laja, and then Yandi.
From Yandi to Cardosi, Sakogho, Baki, and (the next journey is to) the
river Ghulbi. From the Ghulbi (go to) Dajy, Todoge, Kokojo to Magho; and
from thence to Tady, Balagho, Fadaly, Dahegha, Yanka, Yarmesy, Kodeba,
Yanboti, Tagho, Ghogha, Fadeseka, Dansareka, Caya, Daghabo Atkali,
Alomagho, Dawa, Lagamana, Komosy, Dabakou, Sameya, Alomoan, Maury,
Rougha, Todo, and then (you are on the banks of the) Koara (the Koara
Rafa.) Then Redaba, Beledy, Dosyrouga, Doua, Fougha, Kotobo, Deby, Dajy,
Kooka, Cabi, and then the river Ghulbi again. From thence to Kalabaina,
Sala, Saghara, Droo, Bokory, Komsi, Ghado, Damaji, Sara, Nofawa (the
country of Niffy) Darâa, Mariki, Rouma, Mayo, Berini, (and lastly)
Kassina.
The following is a sketch from a native chart, describing distance, &c.
It was taken from an original in the possession of a man named Mohammed
Shallum, al Marouy, a native of Maroa, who travelled in company with the
Sheriffe Brahim, and was left in Ghunja when that prince departed.[184]
No. 11.
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم مسهلة سفر من بلد حَوْسَا يَوْرِي الي قرية بُرْنُو
يقاله بِرِنِي علي البحر كُوَرَا ومن برنو الي البحر شَادِي والبحر نِيلُ :
ومن يوري الي كَسينَا خمسه وعسر يوما ومن كسين الي قرية كَنُ تسع يوما ومن
قرية كن الي قرية برنو اشهر واما سلطان برنو هو سلطان دنيا كلهم لامثله في
الدنيا ومن برنو الي البحر يقاله شَرِ ثلثين يوما ومن شر الي البحر يقال له
شدي اربعة ايام واما كبير بحر شاد انه كورا يدخل فيه ومن شاد الي فُرْ سبعة
ايام ومن فُرْ الي وَدايِ خمس ايام ومن وداي الي قرية مَصَرْ خمسين يوم
وثلاث يوما ومن مصر الي قرية المدينا ومكة اربعين يوما ليلا والنهار وفيه
بيت الله وهو وَسَطْا دنيا ومن مكة الي قرية مدينة عشر يوما ليلا والنهر
ومن قرية المدينة الي قرية شام عشرين يوما ومن شَامُ الي بيت المقدس عشر
يوما وفيه جبل اسمه طور سينيي وعلي راس هذا جبل كلام الله لموس وتحت جبل
طور سينيي فقبر موسي
TRANSLATION OF No. 11.
In the name of God, the merciful, &c. This is a direction for travelling
from Haoussa (the kingdom of) Youry to the city of Bornou, called
Berini, by water upon the Koara, and from Bornou to the sea Shady and
the sea Nile.
From Youry to Kassina, it is fifteen days. From Kassina to the city of
Kano, nine days. From Kano to the city of Bornou it is one month;—and
the sultan of this country, whose equal exists nowhere else, governs all
the land. Then from Bornou to the sea called Shary, it is thirty days;
and from Shary to the sea called Shady it is four days. The Shady is a
large sea because the Koara runs into it. From the Shady to Foor it is
seven days, and from Foor to Wady five days more. Then from Wady to the
city of Egypt, (Masser or Cairo) it is fifty-three days; from Cairo to
Medina and Mecca it is forty days hard travelling. The Temple of God
stands in it, (the Caaba) and the city itself stands in the middle of
the world. From Mecca to the city of Medina it is ten days hard
travelling; and from Medina to the capital of Syria (Damascus) it is
twenty days, from whence (the city of Shem) to the city of Jerusalem it
is ten days, and the mountain called Tor of Sinai[185] is in it, upon
the top of which God conversed with the Prophet Moses, and the mountain
Tor of Sinai fell and buried Moses.
Another chart or manuscript in the possession of this man was called
مسهلة سفر من بلد غنجا الي حوسا ومن خرج من قرية سلطان حتا يبيت علي البحر
كوار بحر ليس متله “A travelling guide from the country of Ghunja to that
of Haoussa, from the time you leave the city of the king (Coomassy)
until you alight upon the banks of the sea called Koara:—a sea (river)
whose equal no where exists.” It will be unnecessary, however, to insert
this document as it deviates but little from MS. No. 1, than which, in
regard to time, and distance, it is less precise.
* * * * *
The author of this work, who is also the editor and translator of the
Arabic it contains, deems it right to announce to the oriental scholar,
that some trifling errors have intruded themselves amongst the
characters of that language which precede the Appendix:—an elucidation
however may be briefly given. There is a distinction between the
formations of oriental and occidental Arabic; and notwithstanding the
characters of both are nearly the same, the difference trifling as it is
in other respects—د is material as regards the letters ف and ق which the
African Arabs, and the natives of that Continent universally write with
single dots; the former at bottom, the latter at top. The author
consequently, to whom, from custom, the occidental style is most
familiar had already commenced the work of publication, and had
proceeded in his corrections nearly to the extent described before he
discovered that no such type as an occidental one could be procured. For
ف therefore it will be necessary in the part foregoing the Appendix to
read ق
THE END.
[Footnote 171: See Note, p. 139.]
[Footnote 172: The Articles No. 1 and 2 of the Supplementary Treaty,
were inserted at the particular request of the King of Ashantee, to
shew, as he said, without disguise, his friendship for white men, and,
at the same time, his determined policy as regarded the people of Cape
Coast. Originally this monarch intended to have written a letter to the
King of England, containing sentiments to this effect; but changing his
intention after the general treaty had been signed, he desired his
ambassadors to explain his sentiments at the British court as they are
here recorded. The propriety of writing them down in a treaty, he
affirmed, was manifest, as the Governor and white men would know his
immutable policy and the public sentiments of his captains.]
[Footnote 173: This river is by some called the Komashar, and is said to
fall into the great river of Dahomy—the Lagos.]
[Footnote 174: The author of this MS. seems to have made a slip of the
pen in the description of the distance between Tunis and Mecca; or,
which is very probable, he intended to have written the name of some
other city bearing a relation in sound to that of Tunis. The words,
however, are من بلد طونس الي مكة اثنا عشر ايام as they are translated.]
[Footnote 175: There exists a current tradition resting upon the
authority of the chapter of the Koran, intitled Al Araf, that when the
Almighty divested himself of the awful attributes of his omnipotence,
which none of mortal race could look upon and live, he appointed his
servant Moses to meet him near a certain mountain called Al Zabbar. But
the Prophet doubtful if he was in the presence of his Creator, cried
out, “O Lord! shew me thy glory that I may behold thee.” To which the
Almighty answered, thou shalt not in any wise behold me; but look at the
mountain, and if it is still rooted in its place, then, indeed, thou
shalt see my glory. Moses turned his head in that direction, as the
attributes of Divine Majesty blazed on the mountain, and reduced it to
dust, throwing the Prophet also into a deep swoon.]
[Footnote 176: The concluding parts of the MSS. which are chiefly of a
religious character, coupled, moreover, with a description of mountains
known to my informers, I have not deemed it necessary to translate, as
the neighbourhoods of Egypt and Syria may be better known to the
European than the tropical African in the west.]
[Footnote 177: There existed a feeling of emulation among the followers
of Mohammed, to anticipate any conjecture I might form that they were
deficient in a knowledge of their scriptures, and of the land sacred to
the memory of the Prophets Shouma, who never travelled to the northward
of the kingdom of Haoussa; but as he did not wish to be thought inferior
to others who were more intimately acquainted with the countries he
attempted to describe, beyond the Koara, he probably wrote the
supplementary part from his gleanings among the Haoussa Moslems,
established in Coomassy.]
[Footnote 178: The preliminary and some superfluous parts of the MS. it
is conceived may be generally omitted.]
[Footnote 179: This manuscript is the copy from another original
document, which the author preserved with great care to serve him as a
travelling guide by the least fatiguing route to Arabia, where he
intended to go on a pilgrimage as soon as the king granted him
permission, or that he could arrange his affairs satisfactorily.
Another manuscript, written by a Mohammedan chief, who had been many
years established (as a courtier and trader) at Ashantee, will be
perused with interest, as its supplement is a route to the Jolliba at
Sego and Jinnie. The author was a native of Ghomba, in Dagombah; he was
the celebrated Bashaw, commonly called Sheikh or Alkaid Baba—a name
which he derived from his advanced age. During his youthful days he had
travelled through many kingdoms in the East; yet he had never been
either at Timbuctoo or Jinnie.
The author had resided some time at the courts of Zogho, Bargho, Magho,
and Kambah. The Joliba he always spoke of as a river distinct from the
Koara, being separated by a sea or lake, which he sometimes called Bahar
Ghimbala, and at others Bahar Deby, or Zeby. The Joliba he conceived to
be inferior, by far, in dimensions, as well as in the multitude of lakes
and large populous islands the Koara abounds with.]
[Footnote 180: Contrary to what Mr. Bowdich has insinuated, I did not
meet with the slightest interruption, neither was I annoyed by
suspicious glances during my geographical researches in the society of
the north eastern Moslems. The king and his ministers were early
apprised of the intimacy that existed, and of our daily occupation; but
so far was he from resenting the familiarity, that it gave him great
pleasure, and which he evinced by making it, from time to time, a topic
of conversation, in which he would frequently talk of neighbouring
kingdoms; of Dahomy, Sarem, Dagomba, &c. At the same time it must be
admitted, that the king or his ministers were tacitly averse to an
intimacy with the Kong, Ghofan, and Manding Moslems, who were taken in
arms against him during the last Bontoko war: yet the king, himself,
never even hinted at the jealousy which it was but natural for him to
feel on the occasion.]
[Footnote 181: This is the Bahar Aswada, as it is called by the Moslems:
the other name by which it is distinguished by the Idolators is
Adirrai.]
[Footnote 182: Whatever may be the prevailing opinion concerning the
tribes and nations of interior Ethiopia, it is not to be doubted that
many powerful states and principalities are exclusively Mohammedan;
indeed, from such accounts as are deserving of credit, it appears that
the proportion of Moslems is nearly upon a par with the idolatrous
population, between the Aswada and the Koara Rivers, on the Haoussa
road. In Ghunja, beyond the Aswada or Volta, excluding Dahomy and its
tributary states, the Moslems are supposed to exceed in numbers the
idolaters. In Dagomba, Ghomba, Zogho, Kambah, and Kook, they are very
numerous: In Bargho and Killinga they enjoy independent governments,
reaching even to the banks of the Koara.]
[Footnote 183: The author candidly admitted his incompetence to give any
intimate description of the countries eastward of Bornou, as his
geographical knowledge was limited to the capital of that empire; but he
professed capacity to describe with accuracy the interior features of
the continent as far as the Koara, both geographically and politically.
In the north and west he maintained that the creed of the Prophet had
not made as much progress as in central Africa, and the states eastward
of Dagomba and Killinga: and this he accounted for in a manner by no
means unsatisfactory. The former regions, he said, beyond Ghobagho, were
for the most part either mountainous or hilly, and were beside clothed
in impenetrable forests and thickets, from whence the natives (who, in
certain districts were more barbarous than the Ashantees,) were able to
oppose the Moslem arms successfully, where cavalry, besides being
scarce, could not act: whereas the latter districts being champaign
land, and the Arabian horse and camel (from having been early introduced
there) being abundant, the Moslem princes, tributaries of Bornou on the
south of Koara, reduced nation after nation, compelling some, the most
assailable, to renounce idolatry, and all to pay tribute; which, like
the Arabs, they collect by flying camps, and large squadrons of horse
and camel. The King of Ashantee, it was added, owed his safety to the
same causes, added to a maritime intercourse by which he obtained those
scarce articles, powder and guns.]
[Footnote 184: The author, who called himself El Hadge ben Saido, was
the only man amongst my associates who had performed the pilgrimage; and
consequently the only one of the party who enjoyed the title of Hadge.
His education, however, was but an imperfect one, and his writing, like
that of some others, betrays the fact. This man was particularly
communicative, and anxious, as he affirmed, that I should know his
country, (Houssa) which was of more importance in every shape than
Ghunja and Dagombah put together.]
[Footnote 185: The author is evidently under a mistake in placing the
mountain Tor, or Sinai, in the neighbourhood of Jerusalem, from which it
is distant ten journies south. Another circumstance worthy of notice is,
that he places Wady to the eastward, or northward and eastward of Foor:
i.e. in the journey to Egypt from Ghunja, the traveller, as he
describes, must necessarily traverse Foor, or Dar Foor, before he enters
Wady, called also Dar Wady.]
ERRATA.
* * * * *
INTRODUCTION.
Page xix. lines 10 and 11, for “report of the king’s death did lose
ground,” read, did not lose ground.
—— xxiv. line 1, for “ ong,” read long.
—— xxv. lines 25 and 26, for “as if sensible last,” read, as if
sensible at last.
—— xxxvii. line 19, omitted direction;—To the Governor and Council.
JOURNAL.
Page 18. lines 17 and 18, for “Mimosa Scandriensis,” read Bauhinea
Scandens.
—— 64. line 15, for “Benjamin,” read Benzoin.
—— 73. in the note, for “العلمير,” read العلمين
—— 77. line 4, for “lions,” read loins.
—— 123. line 24, the asterisk at line 24, following “told me,” should
fall at line 25, following Annamaboe.
—— 177. line 4, for “جْوُرْجْ,” read جُورجْ
WANGARA.
Page XXIV. line 6, for “Kambah,” read Komba.
—— XXXIII. —— The marks of reference to the notes at the bottom of the
page should be reversed thus, No. 1, the *, No. 2, the †.
—— XXXVII. line 13, for “the capital,” read their capital.
—— LVII. note, line 6, for “in the neighbourhood of Jaccorary,” read,
and in the neighbourhood of Taccorary.
SOUDAN.
Page LXXX. line 28, for “Soudan Dakhlala,” read Soudan Dakhlata.
—— LXXXIX. line 6, for “Holagul,” read Holagu.
—— XCI. line 29, for “east of the Formosa,” read west, &c.
—— XCIV. line 12, for “Joolimani,” read Soolimani.
—— XCV. line 17, for “Tastima,” read Taslima.
—— XCVII. line 19, for “Takolshi,” read Jakolshi.
—— XCVIII. line 11, for “Kouzagha,” read Konzagha.
—— —— line 24, for “Koubory,” read Konbory.
—— XCIX. line 18, for “Callio Makaro,” read Makaro.
—— —— note, for “Vahar Kanbaja,” read Bahar, &c.
—— C. line 1, for “Hanbaja,” read Kanbaja.
—— CI. line 13, for “Kassima,” read Kassina.
—— CII. line 13, for “south of the desert,” read south of the Niger.
—— CIV. line 28, latitude and longitude of Yandy redundant, having
been recorded in Wangara
—— CX. line 2, in the note, for, “Kakbara,” read Rakbara.
APPENDIX.
Page CXXIV. line 7, of the Arabic, for “اسع,” read اسم
—— CXXV. line 4, ditto for “ومر يندوت,” read &c. ومن
—— —— line 7, ditto for “ومر شام,” read &c. ومن
The author, in apologising to the public for such a list of errata as
the foregoing, begs to observe, that he was seized with a dangerous
illness during the progress of the publication, which consequently
deprived him of the advantage of correcting _some_ of the proofs, daily,
as they came from press. That by the great professional skill of his
medical attendant, (Dr. Herbert of Grafton Street,) he was able, after
the lapse of a fortnight, to attend to the task of correction; but too
late to remedy the evil, particularly as regards the section “Soudan.”
Transcriber's note:
The changes in the ERRATA have been done.
The placement of diacritics in Arabic words has been adjusted to
match the author's translations and transliterations, particularly
in the GEOGRAPHICAL DOCUMENTS.
Page iv, Changed: "Conclusion of the Nogotiations" to: "Negotiations"
Page i, Changed: "the Govenor of Cape Coast Castle" to: "Governor"
Page vi, Changed: "I did only under symptons" to: "symptoms"
Page xxx, Changed: "if the govenor will have war" to: "governor"
Page xxxv, Changed: "live in frienship with the whites" to:
"friendship"
Page 71, Changed: "and strings of human teeh were" to: "teeth"
Page 96, Changed: "that his feelings had beeen wounded" to: "been"
Page 117, Changed: "between a Moslem and an Ashanteee" to: "Ashantee"
Page 155, Added ” after: "he must certainly kill you."
Page 157, Added ” after: "near the great water (Niger.)"
Page 160-161, Moved ” from after: "the great God himself." to after:
"one God, the merciful," and added “ before: "Ah!” said the king"
Page 168-169, Changed: "millions lions of untutored heathens" to:
"millions of untutored heathens"
Page 175, Added ” after: "make you this present,"
Page 176, footnote 66, Changed: "in common with he maritime natives"
to: "the"
Page 185, Changed: "I “replied, It was impossible" to: "I replied, “It
was impossible"
Page 190, Missing ref. to note 76 placed after: "decline taking them
on board the ship.”"
Page 211, footnote 91, Changed: "opposite to it an asks the priest"
to: "and"
Page 221-223, footnote 100, Changed: "sailed from Cape Coast Castle,
March 22, 1814" to: "1824"
Page 224, Changed: "CHAPTER VI." to: "CHAPTER VII."
Page 234, Changed: "near Bassam and Cape Lahon" to: "Lahou"
Page 237, Moved “ from before: "a short time before I parted" to
before: "would have served your king’s"
Page 246, Missing ref. to note 114 placed after: "and courageous upon
this nation."
Page 248, Changed: "consisting of 50,000, men gained" to: "consisting
of 50,000 men, gained"
Page 254, Changed: "of salt and malaqueta pepper" to: "malagueta"
Page VII-IX, A few maghrebi qaf ڧ have been changed into regular
qaf ق (See note at the end of p. CXXXV)
Page XIX, footnote 128, Changed: "called المغرف, Mogharb" to: "المغرب"
Page XXXIV, Changed: "The Moselms are particularly numerous" to:
"Moslems"
Page XXXVII, Changed: "length of sixteeen or eighteen" to: "sixteen"
Page CI, Changed: "Youry, Koubash, Bousa, Garanty" to: "Konbash"
Page CII, Changed: "Koubory" to: "Konbory"
Page CIII, Changed: "Kadanki, Cabouto, and Koujasi" to: "Konjasi"
Page CIII, Changed: "to Zoukoma, Jadagho, and Keno" to: "Zonkoma"
Page CV, Changed: "over that river to Sabousara" to: "Sabonsara"
Page CXXXV, Changed: "سفر من بلد عنجا" to: "غنجا"
Some minor punctuation changes have been done silently.
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