THE WESLEYAN MISSIONARY NOTICES, RELATING PRINCIPALLY TO THE FOREIGN MISSIONS FIRST ESTABLISHED BY THE REV. JOHN WESLEY, A.M., THE REV. DR. COKE, AND NOW CARRIED ON UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE METHODIST CONFERENCE. NEW SERIES. VOLUME VIII. FOR THE YEAR 1850. VOLUME XVI. FROM THE COMMENCEMENT LONDON: SOLD AT THE WESLEYAN MISSION-HOUSE, BISHOPSGATE-STREET-WITHIN. 1850. WESLEYAN MISSIONARY NOTICES, &c., JANUARY, 1850. BEFORE proceeding to the selection of Articles for this first Number of a new year, consisting of the customary Extracts from our own Missionary Correspondence, and containing intelligence from our Foreign Stations, we judge that it may not be found uninteresting or unprofitable to take some brief Notice of an important PARLIAMENTARY PAPER, published near the close of the last Session, by order of the Honourable the House of Commons, and dated "Colonial Office, Downing Street, 14th June, 1849." It is entitled, "Copy of Dispatches from the Lieutenant Governor of the Gold Coast, giving an Account of [the Government] Missions to the KING of ASHANTEE and DAHOMEY." Both these Missions were undertaken, by direction of the British Government, with the laudable view of promoting an honourable and legitimate Trade among the African Nations of those extensive regions, and thereby preparing the way for an ultimate abandonment on their part of the accursed Traffic in Slaves. This philanthropic and Christian endeavour, though most ably and zealously conducted by Mr. Cruickshank, was lamentably unsuccessful, as far as the King of Dahomey is concerned; but the narrative, is deeply interesting, and suggests much matter of sad and melancholy tendency, in reference to these "dark places of the earth' so preeminently the "habitations of cruelty" and of misery. The Dispatch of Lieutenant Governor Winniett to Earl Grey, describing at length his recent Visit to the King of Ashantee, is of a somewhat more cheering and hopeful character;—a circumstance which must be in a great degree ascribed to the fact of Ashantee having been previously visited by our Missionary, Mr. Freeman, and subsequently by several of his co-adjutors in our Gold-Coast Mission, and to the good impression made by even that very inadequate measure of light and influence which Christianity has thus conveyed to the Monarch and people of Kumasi. Into the more general aspects of the subject illustrated in these Papers it is not our province here to enter. But we are persuaded that a few Extracts, bearing directly on our Missionary affairs, though they must necessarily be brief, miscellaneous, and desultory, will be acceptable to the friends of Africa, and to the supporters of our Work in that part of the world, as affording incidental illustrations of the value of our incipient efforts, and independent testimonies from a high quarter of the opinion entertained respecting them by competent judges,—as well as evincing the large population of the country, and the extensive field for probable usefulness which might be embraced, if we could sufficiently increase our evangelical agencies in that direction. VOL. VIII. NEW SERIES. JANUARY, 1850. B COPY OF A DISPATCH FROM LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR WINNIETT, TO EARL GREY. "Cape-Coast Castle, Nov. 15th, 1848. (Received April 6th, 1849.) "I HAVE now the honour of transmitting to your Lordship my despatch, descriptive of my recent visit to the King of Ashantee; and thinking that there may be incidents connected there with, the interesting character of which can be more easily described in a journal than in any other way, I have prepared the despatch in that form. From it, your Lordship will receive information respecting my progress from day to day during my journey, and also of the character of my intercourse with the King. "2. On receiving the presents which were sent out by your Lordship's directions, I immediately corresponded with the King; and finding that he was desirous to see me, I at once commenced preparations for the journey. "3. Our travelling party consisted of myself, Captain Powell of the 1st West India regiment, commanding a detachment consisting of forty-eight of his men as a guard of honour; the Rev. Mr. Freeman of the Wesleyan Missionary Society, who acted as my Secretary, and about one hundred and fifty men, consisting of the band, hammock-men, carriers of luggage, and servants. "4. The most easy and convenient mode of travelling in this part of the world, where the climate is so inimical to all kinds of beasts of burden that they cannot be successfully employed, is a light hammock attached to a pole, and covered with an awning. In this kind of conveyance, the native hammock-men, two at a time, will carry a person of ordinary weight a distance of about four miles; they are then relieved by two fresh men, and thus they continue to relieve and change to the end of a day's journey, the average extent of which is twenty-five miles. "5. With these brief remarks, I now beg to insert, for your Lordship's information, a copy of my Journal, commencing on the 28th of September last, and closing on the 4th of November. and after refreshing ourselves, and giving the soldiers and people a little time to rest, we proceeded to Akroful, a village a few miles distant from Assaybu. Whilst we rested a short time in this village, the headmen came to visit me, and present me some palm wine. In this place there is a small Christian society of the natives, under the care of the Wesleyan Missionaries; and I was pleased to observe a small chapel in the course of erection, and nearly finished, chiefly by the personal labours of this little band of native Christians. At 45 minutes after noon, we reached Dunkwa, and took quarters for the night in the school-house occupied by the Wesleyan Missionary Society. Here I was received by Otu, a Fanti Chief, and the successor of Payntree, mentioned so honourably by Bowditch in his account of his journey to Kumasi in 1817. He (Otu) had come over from Abakrampa, the place of his residence, distant about ten miles from Dunkwa, accompanied by many of his Captains and people, to meet me, and bid me welcome to that part of the Fanti country, which is under his control. After resting a little from the fatigues of my journey, I spent some time in conversation with Otu and his Captains. Shortly after our arrival, I received from Otu a present, consisting of two sheep, some yams and bunches of plantain; with which token of good feeling and attachment I felt much gratified. Dunkwa is well situated on high ground, near to a good supply of water at all seasons of the year, and surrounded by fine plantations of plantain and banana. It is one of the largest of the Fanti krums or villages, and has a population of about 1,200 souls. "The Wesleyan school here is of recent establishment; but it contains thirty-eight children, and promises well. "Among the Captains of Otu, who had collected together to meet me at Dunkwa, was Owisi, the Chief of Domonasi, a place about twelve miles distant from Dunkwa. At this place, also, the Wesleyan Missionary Society have a considerable establishment; it being one of their principal Stations or heads of Circuits. "September 30th, Saturday.-At 6, 30 A. M. Otu and his Captains came to the Mission-house to take leave of me, and we then proceeded to Yankumasi, the chief krum and residence of Assin Chibbu, one of the refugee Captains from the old Assin country, beyond the river Prah. By Chibbu I was also kindly received, and presented with a fine sheep. "Yankumasi is about half the size of Dunkwa, pleasantly situated and well watered. About midway betwixt Dunkwa and Yankumasi, I found, sitting at the entrance of a little village near the path, Quashie Auka, a very intelligent Fanti Chief, and a neighbour of Otu's. He saluted me as I passed, and presented me with a sheep. His residence is at Donasi, about eight miles distant from the place where I met him. "At Donasi there is also a Wesleyan school, containing forty-two scholars. "After taking breakfast at Yankumasi, we proceeded to Mansu, which place we reached at 2 P. M. Gabri, the Chief of Mansu, another Assin refugee, was out in the street ready to receive me, accompanied by his Captains and many of his people. "Shortly after our arrival at Mansu, Chibbu came up from Yankumasi, having followed me a distance of about sixteen miles, by way of testifying his good-will. "Mansu is well situated near a small river, and surrounded by a fine fertile tract of country; it has a population of about 500 souls. "At Mansu, the Wesleyan Missionary Society have a small school establishment, containing twelve children as boarders. I took up my quarters in the school-house, which is a convenient recent building, containing several rooms and a small chapel. "October 1st, Sunday.At 10, 30 A.M. I attended divine worship in the little chapel in the Mission-house. "October 24, Monday.At 2 P.M. we reached Fusu whye, and took up quarters for the night. Here I was kindly received by the Chief. "This village is one of the most extensive of any on the road, though of very recent origin; for Mr. Freeman informs me, that when he first visited Kumasi in 1839, this village did not exist. Its population cannot be less than one thousand. The existence of this fine large village on a spot which in 1839 was covered with forest, is not the only proof of a rapidly-increasing population: for, within the range of the last forty miles over which we travelled before reaching Fusuwhye, Mr. Freeman pointed out several villages of considerable extent, which had no existence in 1839; and these are all built by the Assin refugees, who occupy all the country betwixt Yankumasi and the River Prah, taking in a range of about sixty. six miles. "October 4th, Wednesday.-At 6 A. M. we commenced crossing the river, and in about an hour, the people having all passed over by several trips of a large canoe, we began our journey in the territories of the King of Ashantee. "October 9th, Monday.-At 5, 20 A. M., we proceeded on our way; and about 7, 30 A.M. I received a message from the King, begging that I would rest awhile at the next village, (Karsi,) about five miles distant from Kumasi, that he might have time to prepare for my public reception early in the after "After halting for a short time, we proceeded to the entrance of the first street, and then formed in order of procession. After a brief delay of about twenty minutes, during which a large party of the King's soldiers fired a salute about one hundred yards distant from us, we moved on to the market-place, where the King and his Chiefs were seated under their large umbrellas, according to the custom of the country on the reception of strangers of distinction. They, with their numerous Captains and attendants, occupied three sides of a large square, and formed a continuous line of heads, extending about six hundred yards, and about ten yards in depth. After we had passed along about three-fourths of the line, we found the King surrounded by about twenty officers of his household, and a large number of messengers, with their goldhandled swords and canes of office. Several very large umbrellas, some consisting of silk velvet of different colours, shaded him and his suite from the rays of the sun. The King's chair was richly decorated with gold; and the display of golden ornaments about his own person and those of his suite was most magnificent. "The King of Ashantee is about six feet high, stout, and strong built, and appears to be about from fifty-two to fifty-six years of age. He is a man of mild and pleasing countenance, and |