THE JOURNAL OF THE VI SIT TO KUMASI 
OF 1tJ. tluYDECOPER 
28 April 1816 to 18 May 1811 
General State Archives. The Hague: 
~chives of t he Dut ch Sett l ements on the Guinea Coast, 
349 : Journal of the Settlements. 
For use in the Department of Hi s t orJ[ and Ins ti tut e of 
African Studies ., Univer s ity of Ghana. only> 
(This transl a tion , by Professor C. W. Irwin, i s provisional, 
and its us e :ii.. s t her ef or e restr i cted . A definit i ve r 
translation, however, will fo l lcw.) 
• 
I .~' 
1 
This morning a t 6 olclock I took a hasty lea ve of the C:·enerc'. l and 
-I;;he others at Elmina. , and set out ,7i th my men a.long the beach . ·. .· e turned 
into the bush behi nd Christena's plantation, and made tow3.rds Abr a Camp . 
,.After travelling for some (1.is t anc e we arrived e,t Foeampong . This villaGe 
we found still inhabited, and we went through it wi thout disturbing anyone . 
Next we arrived. a t Caboceer Esservie I s place, which Vias unoccupied. His 
i s a fine village , and well built. 
The t r ack from Elmina thus f a r coul d be made i n ·G o. a good one quite 
easily. A fen l arge trees would have to be cleared away , but this could 
be done with little trouble . The name of thi s place i s Llllegibli( Annoe . 
Most of i ts inhabitants have f l ed to Elmina or to the Fantes. I rested 
here for a while , an d gave my men a drinl~ from the ches t .l 
"'e set out · again soon, hovrever, for we wanted to spend the night 
at a mor e suitabl e spot. For this reason we passed str aight through Simboe 
without stopping . ~";e noticed that it had been pluncl..ered by the Ashc.r:tis, 
but not burnt • . From Simboe to Afontoe the track was ver y bad for tra-vel -
li~1G i n a harrJl'lo ck, being narrm7 ;J,n;cl inconvecient . Their oifficulties took 
SOille of the heart out of ·my bearers? for a short time ago this trace was 
suitabl e for horses. Along the 1"hole way we saw nothing remarkabl e, 
though the song of the birds i n:, the trees Gave me special pl easure . 
At .A:fonto·e 'He took some food and had a l engthy pull at the gin bottl e . 
" ith this to encourage us, vre set out agai n at once with rener{ed :;ood 
spiri ts , and. so continued UJltil we arrived a t this 'village of 8 d."ellings '. 
It a lso is empty, though undamaged . The Ashant i s made a po i nt of not 
blITninG it bec.au se they use it as a resting place • 
On the way ','Ie met sever a l Ashanti s who. had b een sent by the General 
of the a rmy to Elmina to tell the three officers2 there to return to camiJ 
immediately because their leave of absence had expired lone:; 'since . -
··'ben th8 forward scouts3. of this Ashanti party l earnt from us that 1':e ,[er e 
bound for :l\iu1lasi, they wer e so pleased that they i mmediatel y shouted to 
their companions that they should gi ve way to us. This the remaining 
Ashantis, wi th every appearance of p l easure , did , shouting , " Out of the 
way! Out of the way! Her e comes the son of the Company the.t rules the 
DU'cch fort !" and made so much noise that I could heo.r them from my 
position at the rear of the column. As we went past, each r~2.'l bowed 
deep l y , and with great respect. I gathered from one of them that General 
App i 2J'l is very angry with his envoys. He has sent several messaGes to 
then, but has received no reply. .They have been at Elmina for a lonG time, 
and he has bound. himself nith several powerful oaths to carry them off by 
force as soon as he arrives at Elmina . 
-;ie passeo. through t wo Fante villa:;es , but do not mon their names. 
The envoys at Elmina have sent me a messaGe, sugiSes tine:; that 1 mla_t.t 
them at Simboe. '1 have r eplied, hOI'lever, that 1 i ntend to go as f2,r as 
my people can carry me , and vrill ,,'ai t . for the envoys ther e . (I di d in 
fact ',fait for them in our ' villase of 8 d,7ellin,ss ' until c1armess arrivE:cL, 
but they aid not come.) 
I have reta ined the services of two Ashant i s as guides to show me 
the way , and have had to pay them a bottle of dri~, a handful of cardo_e~ 
tobacco and a pipe. LShort indecipherable passa.;e folloHsJ 
1. Ke l der ; lit: I cellar' ; 
2 . Vaan~i~~, lit. ' ensigns, cornets, sub-lieutenants' . 
3 . :V0o!,;J:.o2er~, lit. ' precursors, forerum,ers, heralds '. 
- ? -
This morning I was up earl y and took a wal k in the bush to see 
whether the soil-was -good-or not. It seemed to me that something could 
be made of it. I discovered several cabbage-like plants,4 which tasted 
excellent . 
I waited for the envoys from Elmina until 9 o'clock, but l earnt 
from passers-by tha t they are not ex-pe-cted to leave there until 'lednesday. 
I therefore ordered my men to pr epare immediately, and we began the 
journey to Abra . 
4t J'.~i]3J!ttin~~ J S1th A£.~il- 1816. 
i7e left our village a t about lw.lf past nine o'clock , and having 
passed througb some 15 or 16 haml ets, arrived safely at this place. 
Twel ve men were here to meet us. They had been sent by Gener a l Appi ah 
to carry my baggage. The §~beldraB§r~ informed me, in the name of his 
master, that I was to s t ay her e until further orders. I sent the man 
back , and a l so his sword, bearing my compliments to the C,eneral, and 
seeking to know i f I mi ght stay the night where I eras . Nleanwhil.e a'grcd.t 
officer,6 arrived, gr eeted me , and told me that he had come to conduct 
me to my provisionaJ, lodgi ngs , where I VJould stay until orders came fror 
the Camp. . 
By this time I was much embl:!.rrassed by the great crowd of sight-
seers that had collected, 3.nd feared for the safety of my possessions . 
I was therefore gl ad to be i n a fairly safe place. The house was well 
equipped, and had two good Vlindows and a door . The press of people 
continuecL, many coming to look at me again and again.- I asked them i n 
friendly manner to leave me in peace for a while , but little attenti on 
was paid to my request. Fi nally, the ' great officer' was good enough 
to post two armed soldiers in front of my hous e , and_ this hel ped a 
great deal. 
This place i s the l eft wing 7 or vanp:uard of the encam-:)ed army. 
Ther e ar e cer tainly more than 3, 000 men he;e in a ll. '- I gave-- the office~ ;; 
a dri nk, which they accepted with hi gh good humour. '"ilien _they had 
f inished their refre shment, they returned with more than a hundred men 
to thank me . They a lso brought the empty bottles back. 
After about an hour, Appi ah ' s ~9-bel~ager returned with orders 
t hat I should enter the Camp immediately. I am bound to say that all 
the men of the vanguard se em very pl eased at my presence. It i s hard 
to put my feelings into words . I am receiving most friendly treatment, 
and everyone is very obliging . But despite all the courtesy the consta 
vis i t i ng has been very tirL~g for me . 
Soon we set off agai n , and arrived at Abram at 4 o'clock. I 
have little to say about this place , e~{cep-c to compl a in about the clamo' n' 
and throng of people. Good God! 'ihat a crowd! I thought to myself, 
"How i s it Going to be possible to get -chrough them wi thout a troop of 
sol diers?" imd indeed i t was with great difficwt y that 17e forc ed our 
way. I had my feet on the soldiers ' heads , which they bore wi th gr eat 
good humour . 
"!hen I had dismounted from my hammock, 11 ' great. officer f of 
Appiah ' s staff came to greet me , and l ed me to a pl ace where there wore 
thr ee huts . These , on Appiah ' s order s , had been cleaned and made 
4. Koplplanten, lit. 'cabbage- pl ants '. 
5. lo;i.:h ., 'BI.-ord-b@larer'. 
6. Groot vaandrtK' 
7. Script here i s al most illeGi bl e. 'Left wing.' i s a poss i ble 
reading , but no mor e th~n that . . 
- ::I -
ready for us , their usua l occupants having . been obligee, to remove them-
selves. Thi s officer is ca lled Cudj o Apannij, a nd he i s renormed as a vel'J 
br a ve lIk'l.n. 
My belongipg$ were stored in my hut, and my flag set up outside. 
I ha(l h2.relly been ins t a lled for a quarfer of a n hour, wh en hro of App i ah : s 
boys brought me t wo wooden bowls Gonta ining roast pork and mashed pechan,:;,8 
They a l so brou ght a message from App i a h informing me that I s hould take 
my rest i n this hut until next day; when he viGula_ provide me17i th better 
ac commodation. He corrunended me into Cudgo Apannij's care. T'ne huts we 
rrere Gi ven ~7ere wretched affairs, s i -Guated right in the mictst. of the 
soldi er s ' quarters. Mine was 5 feet' long , 5 fe et wide a nd most uncomfor t-
abl e . It was noi ev en 5 f eet hiGh. 
I ha.d sat down to eat whe~ I suddenly heard 8. fr i ghtful yelling 
and shout i ng outside. Being .curious, I asked what the' noise meant. To 
my surpri se the a nswer was that the troops of Genera l Barriekie wer e 
t rying to take me by force from those of Genera l Appiah , and l'lGre assembl ed 
outside for the purpose. The r esult was ,the greatest confus ion. Barrieyie 
claims that he i s the youngest of the cornmanders9 a nd that in consequence 
all "hi te men would be put i n his charge. Appiah denies this, and now 
Barriekie is r eady to fight to get me a'.'!ay from Appiah. The dispute 
becaiJE' very serious. P.:pp i ah ' s men, Trith the ir guns at the ready, dared 
Barriekie ' s to come on. Matters reached s uch a pass that I beGan to be 
fr i ghtened . I sent my boy with my staff and chain to Appiah to urge 
that nothing foolhardy be done anCi_ that i t woulct be sensible to settle 
the pal aver at once. But his men shoutea_, "No ! No ! ~7e won't yi eld him 
up. ~;"e ge.ve him lodging f i rst. He shall not go . He is our Elaster, and 
we -.Till di e for him." Le t Barriekie himself come her e if ];le dares. II 
Despite a ll this A.ppi ah went wi th iny boy to see Barriekie i n orcLer to 
settle the pal aver . Hi s men conti m,led to shout, ''''e riill fight!" and 
r efused to let me go . At l ast !!ly boy returned c.nd tol d me that every-
thin3; had been put off unt il the morning . At this everyone calmed down 
immediatel y . Appi ah , however, was still mistrustful, and had 50 men 
s l eep around my hut to pFotect me against poss i ble night attacb I 
'1laS not myse l f quite reassured, and haa_ a ll my own men spend the night 
outside oy hut as well. 
This morrri:ng the soldi er s beGan to quarrel amonG themselves agai n, 
and made enough noi se to r a ise the Devil. The turmoil soon becaoe just 
as bad as it had been the night befo:ce. Once more I sent oy boy ';;i th 
the st(,ff and chain to ask A9pi ah· to settle the affair. A solution to 
the trouble must have been quick l y found, a.nd A.ppi ah appar ently lost 
the argumen-c , for I soon had orders. to move :ny quarters. 
To settle thi s palaver cost me four bottles of drink, for I ha~ 
to pay the men -',ho had kept cjuLrd on my hut durint:; the night and a l so 
had to pay for the use of tho hut itself . I felt I must give i'W o"n men 
a bob;le , too . 
The camp seems to be lh"lusuc.lly ful l of troops. As soon 2.S I 
have pai d my compliments , I \ 'ill GO for a Halk n.nd n'lve a look a'c i-e. 
In Call!J2. -'~~Ffu..1:-s t He.y 1816. 
No nmiS to clay • I have enough provisions to l ast my men 4 days . 
About 12 0 ' clock I r eceived ty,o tr;,-ys of fooe1 from General Appiah, c.nd 
8 . Obscure. !:.~ coul d be pJ:.~!1;B:., from Hal. pisanh = ' bananc. ' 
or her?, presw,labl y , ' p l antai n .' 
9 . Obscure . l'11e sense might be "the !!lost junior of the commanders". 
from the ' great officer' Cudjo Apannij 8 small ~~ntj~s 10 ' and one Li illegibl~~-t  
of gold 1110 buy meat. I was in no position to refuse these gifts, and 
passed them on to my men. 
I .have not yet received permission to go out, nor has any of the 
three generals cOIDIllunica ted ii ith me. ~,:y hut is almos t over-rem with people. 
Some come to greet me in J!.ppiah 's name, some in Barriekie 's. Others cone from 
Aroanqua and others again from Youw Kokroko . They say, "I am the King's son, 
I am the Ydng I s brother," etc ~, and all of them take a drink froe ee . ThoS G 
sent by the generals come preceded by the sword and accompani ed by 8, 10 
and sometimes 15 men. Each has his stool with hiE, and here they sit until 
they have finished their drinks. They say that, if I do not Give them 
something to drL"1k, the royal family will be offended. Six ' grea t officers I 
visi ted r:;e one after the other. I di d not dare refuse their r equests. 
It ',-;as ull.luclcy that I had my 5 ankersll in view and not locked up in chests 
where they mi ght have escaped notice . Altogether my visitors, about 50 in 
all, emptied a good 7 bottles. 
I sent General Appiah' a bottle from the chest and tHO flasks drmm 
from keg . To Barriekie I sent one bo'ttle from the chest and another drmm 
from keg . To ,6.manqua and Yom! Kokroko the same as to Barriekie and, in 
return for my lodging, one bO'Gtle from the chest to Cudjo Apa.nnij. Other-
,;ise, nothi ng of interest to report today. 
This morning General App i ah sent to greet me and. inc:uire after lIlY 
wel f are. I dispatched my boy to pay my compliments in return and to express 
my best thanks for the General's courtesy to''!ar ds me. At te:1 0' clock I 
sent him two fL'1e fowls bakecL in the pan which, so he told. my boy, t a sted 
very good. In exchange he supplieo, me with palm wine and food. 1,;y men, 
however, have not yet received anything from anybody. 
Today Appi ah offered to pl a ce one of his sons in Iily servi ce, giving 
me l eave to t ake the boy with mG and employ hini as I see f i t. The lad 
s eems 1dllinc ana, capabl e, and I have accepted the charge. 
I have become terribly Heary of the constant stream of officers and 
royal relative::; ',,ho come to visit me. 'l'hey are still appearine at my lodGings, 
despite the great numbers .who came yesterday and extorted so much liquor 
from me. Already one and a half chests of drink have been emptied. More-
over, one whole ches t wa s lost on the way here, when one of the bearers 
dropped it and smashed 10 bottles. This is 'a serious matter, for one 
cannot replenish stocks of liquor in these parts. I have consoled myself 
by giving vent to some quite unnecessary abuse, which can do me no good. 
Up to noYi I have neither seen nor spoken to any of the four general s . 
General Appiah he,s sent I'!ord that .he much regrets his inability to visit 
me . I f he cs,me, he says, the other (senerals would suspect him of holding 
secret talks with me. I must not disclose my miss ion until the envoys have 
r eturned from Elmina . ,;nen they are back, then everything ce.n be discussccl 
publicly. This disappointing i nformation does not please me at all. If 
it were not tha t some of the King ' s presents were l eft behind, I would not 
have t he patience to stay here any longer. The matter is out of my hands, 
however, because I do not know when the envoys are to return. 
This afternoon I took a ,7al k through the camp to see ho; : big it .;as . 
Aft er an hour and a half I becrune so tired that I had to come back. It 
woulcl not be possible to reach the end of the camp in a day's march. 
, . . 
--~~'--~---' ',.~' -~--'"~~~--~-~~~-~-:---~ 
10. L~n~J9_ by the dictionary means 'small piece of la,ce'. Could the 
meanin,; here be pieces of trnde cloth used as.currency? 
11. A:ilker, a ke::; of a capacity of 1 aru<:er. I aru<:er = ca. 9 eallons. 
• 5 
General .Ama nqua' s camp is at leas t one hour away from .Appiah I sand Barri ekie IS. 
G·eneral YouwKola-okO"s is 'stillfurther off~' He commands 3,000 troops., and 
my estimate is tha t there -are 'at least 10,000 undE1r the comma nd of Appia h, 
Ama?que.h C'.nd Baf.riekie·:~12 
"\h~n' 1 r eturnee. frpm my walk'; Genera l Appiah' s sword-bearer caEle 
to so~ me. He told me that" whehevening came , I was to move to lodgings 
in:Bar'riekiEi'sciamp~ ' Agre~ment had :finally been reached that ,1 must change 
my lodgings . ' At this ' ne\¥s 1 cleared out of my poor little hut, a nd -set 
out c:. t on ce for my n ,ew house, _with all my baggag e fo llowing behind me, 
my flag going on before, andhccompahied by more than two thousa ;1dElen. 
Singing aFc~y,', the soldiers 'brought~  me into the presence ~f G.e~er8.1Darriekie, 
\lho ;,,' ,: S sitting i n state surrounded by S008 of his officers. ne"g6.Ve my 
bi s ha nd throe times 'and presseo. Iiline _w armly. . I mi.s them provieled Hi th 
a stool and a bottle' of watere d liquor. All watched while I trieo. it; 
Then Darriekie stopd up and s a id that he ,,vias putting; me in the ,c119'.rge of 
a sword-bearer who would conduct me to oY ,l'iew house. ' He added thc. t tf 1, 
lacke d for anytl-iir1g I s110uld let h~, ·lmow . Ho 8~lso told' his peop:Le i;h~.t 
no ono , laS to be a llowed to ph.guo 'or pester mo . ' (This order was in vain; 
I was s oon overlvhelmed e'R n more than before . 
I had been in my house only a short while y"hen the- ,G,eneral came in 
person to ask if I was properly accoIllli1odated . I an(,vrered that I wao? , . 
though to speak truth 1 was f eeling very miserable . :i.: must not forget , 
of course, tha t 1 a m in. a Camp a nd not in a vilJ..age ; Tbis hut l am nOVi 
in ,i s certainly better than the one Twas given by Cudjo Apannij. --:'hen 
1 left there, I gave Aparuii'j 4 fa thorns of pane.e;oeSl13; and a bottle of drink, 
and to the officer who commanded the 50 men who kept watch over me I gave 
t wo fathoms . '.'ihen. Barriekie had been seated for awhile, I l et hiin have 
a dram or hm out 'of one of my bo-Hles . He ,thought,. however, the. t I wa_s 
presentinG h i m with the whole bottle, and took i t a.way with him when he 
l eft. I vr<'etched it go vlith a hea vy hee.rt. 
I hear the .envoys· are due to. a rrive tomorrow morning. I hope this 
is so,for I am not at a ll accustome d to a ' military life. All the time 
I keep hear~!g , now from this direction, now from that, the soup-d of pipes 
a nd horns. I sit trembling in my house, a na. wonder if my bravery vrill soon 
be put to the test and whether I "Iill be .-forceo. to set out for Kumasi without 
waitinG for the arrival of the envoys. l1t- 1 hear fi"om many-. people t ha t · 
Appi ah is definitely resolved to a tta ck Cor:unany. 'rhi s a ction on his part, 
if i t i s to happen, will be solely at the instiGa tion of the }:;lminCt chi ef, 15 
J an Nie ser, a~o.his terregr_.~.Ild~~16 0 •• ••- ·.: ••••• " ••••• 17 Other Ashan-ci s'say 
that il.ppiah has no orders .to ,clo anything other tha n f etch Cudjo Koema 8..."10. 
the res t 'of the Fantes who are il'l hiding at Co=C'.ny. ,I had a few words 
i1ith Appi a h i n the na me of Genera l , Dae~dEil s ,urging him to c,bm;uon,his 
r es ol ve . The matter wa s handled secretl y . Everyone should seek td advancc 
the inoorests. of h i s =ster~nd s uppress an Ul11awful chi ef vrhenev,er thi s 
i s possible .18 -' 
This Jan Ni eser -has often been the cause of disobedi ence on the part 
of t he people of E~a agains~ the Gover=ent. His con~tant incitil1E of 
the popula ilion a nd his numerous . villa inies :rer e the caus e of his being 
thrmm out of Accra' , ' thpugh this banishment does not seem .to have t e.ught 
hiEl much of' a l esson. Thi s wicked man , thi s root of a ll evil, '.'iho has lon[', 
1 2 . The ib.i t'ial figure of the total "10,000" gi ven here is unfortunatel y 
blotted. I t coul d be a 1, a 4 or a 6. 
13 . Meaning un1mown~ but obv:i,o~sly a type. of cl oth . 
14. L<1s t t170 sentences in this par El.gr aph are very obscUre. 
15. Lit., konil}{;, but · chie:f , seems Q better trans l a tion t han 'kinG'. 
1 6 . 'I c. rrc T-1ri :'c.~ '. -.,. 1,. LLr I 
17. Here) -, i n , ori'- ' i n , l -' i s ve.r.JC-..ob Fcure. 
18. litto . 
6 -
been n thorn in the flesh to us, is nOH in a fC'.ir 11r,y to bring down the. 
Goverment of Elmina i tselr'. , Ho sproc.ds wickedness which a ll know ["bout, 
but none dnre speak of. I myself ~~e no bones about snying th~t this 
=n is not only overweening end aob:!' tious but c. ringler,der e.nd e. trouble-
=ker, and if he is not wc.tched carefully by Generc.l D-:.endels, he 17ill 
be Emperor of ElBini:, yet. The !!1.".n Ad::'Iil knOV1S hin Vlell, 1!nd ouch rry be 
le"rnt froD L.dI1Iil by oe"ns of soft words. He is trustworthy,. moreover, 
end l1ill s a y in Nieser' s presence anything the Governor uP,nts him to so.y. 
I !k".ve often heard hiD describe hm7 J2.n Nieser t<"'-lks: "Now I 1!m kinG 
over 1',11. The white Iilen dr.re not do ,:mything to me. They h[:',ve to cone 
to me if they want elnything." I hC'.ve ellso many tines he :',rd hm7 the 
onclerkonin ,19 by neoe Lboe, SeWS to his IJnster (for his is Nieser's 
sltcve, "You are our lor:d. ;[e ~1o.nt no one over us but you," nt which the 
'Eoperor' I nughs in grent glee so that his belly sh~kes. 
TooorrolV I will present my complioents to Generi'.ls Lppiah, l=nquc. 
and Youw Kokroko. There has not been an opportunity before. -Generell 
BGrriekie he s honoured me with n visit, c.nd is provine very c.ffable. 
In the C::tm.l2..L.3rd N§y 1816~ 
This morning I haP. my hammock prepared, ana. "~ent to present L1Y 
compliments to the generc.l s. 
First to my l o.ndlord, who received me in 2. DOSt friehcUy 1Jc, nner. 
He rae.de no comoent on the f :cct thn t I !k".d come, ho,[ever. I PD,id hiT] 
my coopliTIents ste-nding up. 
From there I nent to greet li.ppiah. This I did in the name of 
the Gener2-10f ElIDinc. . l:.gain,. I performed oy dutie s s tnndinc up or, I 
should r C'. ther say, I stood becnuse no stool '17<'. S produced for IJe. 
Froo there to lilll£-nquc,h, who was indisposed. They s "-y he is r:t-:.d, 
and cannot tell one person froD o.nother. The Ci'.use is thought to be 
th".t he put ;' Dc,d WOJ;lC',n to dea th [',nd she hC'. s been vexing his spirit 
I ever since. 
Le,stly I went to Youw Koklmko's CI'..DP, which Iny in flo. t and 
low-lying ground. I quickly ·s:'.::,~ tha t here I vu: s meetinr, a recol gener~.l, 
a nd one who understood his profession. hS soon e.s he leerntof oy 
c.rriva l, he sent ·to I'-sk me to tMe C'. sec,t under 11.. k ,rge tree, since ·he 
VfC'. S not yet reAdy 't'o' receiVe nre' • .. Accordingly I went and s r::. t under this 
tree • . Before long I heard a drum being bea ten. Lt this sicru:l aroed 
soldiers came running from all directions, Vlith their officers follorrinC 
behind them. Everyone o.sseobled under another tree ner,rby. 'Then the 
genera l, splendidly a ttired in a white cloth,20 appeared frOD his 
dwelling and took his seo.t <"-;:1ong his men. rIe ho.d De o..pproo.ch, escorted 
by ::'.11 officer o.nd four soldiers. Lt his r~quest I returned to oy 
hammock and S2, t in it (he wished to see one), o..nd approiched o.ga in. My 
reception W C\ S ;f':\.t for 0. kinG. The Genernl stood up, shook De by the 
h['.11d ·.three tiDes and .offered De the ' stool next to his. liy visit G2.ve 
hio much plensure. He ga ve me a bottle of drink for my be2.rers, which 
I passed on to them and which t~ey finished on the spot. I sto.yed for 
a t leas t o.n hour, then took ~y l~D.ve nnd rode off in my henmock. 
I ha d not been in my house a n hour rrhen Genero.l Yomf Kokroko C['.l:1e 
to p2..y his. compliments to me. ·:,1e sat w.lking for C'- good while. I g;'. ve 
him D. bottle of gin21 from my chest as 0.. present. He is·very intir.1ate 
19·. Lit., 'vice -roy,' but the word is often used by the Dutch in the 
sense of 'second-in-command'. 
20. ;t'C'-7!llli, a diminutive of 12aeln , which comes fror.l Port. pc.no.".;. ·cloth 
wh~ch negroes use to surround . their bodies from the 'fC'-ist to the 
knees or somewhat lower" (Van De,le). 
21. Genev~r (mod. ie~ver), i.e. Hollands, or Dutch, gin~ 
;. 7 -
with me for so short ~ period of acqu~intance. He asked me whether or 
not I h~d brought somethin g for him from Elmina . I s~id I had not, 
explaining that the Gener~l a t Elmina had not known for certain tha t 
there were nore than three generals in the Camp. The envoy whom he, Youw 
Kokroko, had sent to El~ina, had neither swords nor staffs with him, and 
the G ener~l had not known whether to pay him honour or not. This envoy 
had, however, .aske d for a flas , and the General had provided me with 
one. I hact a lso been o~deted to find out the truth a bout the exact 
, number of Ash::tnti gener ,ds whe n I re'iched the C mp. This information 
I no w had, :.<nd I would . wri te to the General and request, that .Jl present 
simila r to thos e alre~dy delivered should be sent to Generai ' Youw 
Kokroko. At this he expressed much satisfaction, and thanked me. 
I will indeed write to General D3endels at the first opp6rtunity, 
and suggest th ' t YOU'I' Kokroko h"s his sh ', r e of favour:s. Reis of the 
8 3mc r a nk as the other g enera ls •.•.• 22 
I have forgotten to mention that Youw Kokroko sent me a bunch of 
b s nnnas a nd 2 chickens. He w3n ted to t ake the flag a~ay with him. I 
told him, ho we ver, t ha t he must be ~a tient until the envoys come back 
from Elmina . Then the other prese n t s will be distributed, and he will 
ge this flaC:' 
4th l--L1y 1816. 
This morning I received greetings from Genera lsppia h ~nd 
Barriekie and sent them mine vil my boy. 
I went for ~ walk today .:l nd found myself outside ~ppiah's hut. I 
therefore called on him. He is a n exc e llent old man, kind-he'irted and 
oblig ing. I had no sooner r eturned home ~nd was bu~j ~rit~ng than he 
walked right i I).to ny hut. Laugh in ;;; , he took me by the band, a na s ) id, 
I1I hav e 'come to see y.ou. You ne ed not send mess.3.ges tOJlle . ·" I invited 
him to sit on .my bed, wh ich he did. I told him t h'Jl t I was very distressed 
th a t the envoys from Elmina had not a rrived yet . He said they wo uld 
definitely b e h e r e tod ay . He ac cepted a dram and wentaw3Y . 
Just at that moment I le~rnt to my gre~t JO Y tha t the e nvoys from 
Elmina had indeed arrived. Before long th6 mos t senior of them, Awarrie 
and Djesie, c ame to sse me. Adoe, however, did not appear. fl.wa rrie 
an~ Djesie c r ee t e d rne bre a st to br e ,s t, after the fashion of the 
Portug u ese ~hen t wo friends mee t after a long parting . They were still 
dressed as for ~ J ourney, and their men had t heir muskets on their 
shotilders~ They told me that t hey had not had the honour of any furth e r 
conversa tion with General Daendels s inc e the time I left, which had 
vexed them. I gave them some thing to drink a nd they went on their way. 
I ~as indeed very glad to see these envoys. They have promised 
me t hat tomorrow they will without fail publicly g ive an account of 
their miSSion, so tho t I will be a ble to l eave here quickly. 
I h3ve bought half a f t t ho g for 3 fathoms of cloth a n d 1 
bottle of drink. 
5th May 1816. 
Las t night there was a general jollifica tion throughout the Camp. 
Drums, flutes and horns sounded and ~ll th e cabocee rs d ~nced. · For the 
\ shant is today i s a good Sunday.23 By l ate 'i t night the clamour uas 
dying down , but with the coming of dawn th e tumult s t a rted up a ga in. 
Fe s tivitie s l asted until about noon or 1 0' clock , when t he se nior ' 
gener a l, ~ ppiah, took his seat on h is chief's stool under a gr eat a rch. 
Th ere he r eceived the gr eetings of everyone present in order of 
seniority. I was th e first 
22. Obscure. 
23. I.e. tbe Kwasi- ~dae . This has reference to theAkan\duana n calendar 
8 -
to be invited to pay my respects, then came General Darri ekie , then a 
I grea t officer I representinG J.,numqua, and then General YOUIl Kokroko. 
After this all the di gnitaries24 I'..nd officers c[Coeup in turn. 
App i ah withdrew for ['. moment to his house and returned with three 
English gold pieces vlhich he gave to me. ':vi th these I bought a sheep, 
which Vl:". S carried to my hut in a gold.en vessel by l'.ppiah I s own ~~rd-
1:>e[Cr~r:., This L1lUn I do.shed 2 fathons of E,.apeECleCi. (He had Dade a point 
of Lsking oy boy if he night ha ve sonething by wa.y of ;<. present.) As 
Appi ah wns leaving the assenbl y, he said to ne tha t I ought nOH to visit 
Ilarri ekie, Ananqua e nd Youw Kokroko and bid then good Dorni ng. This I 
i ooediately did. FroD Ilarrieki e I received e sheepc..nd sone bl'.nanas , a nd 
froD Youw Kokroko another sheep, 10 !.1l:0iI1~ anct 2 bunches of b,:mo.D2.s. 
FroD i:Llanqua, however, I got nothing. T,o the Den who brought the sheep 
to Dy hut I gave 2 fathoDs of E?n~ed each. All this visitirig reDinded 
De of New Year's Day at Eloina, when children run froD house to house 
collecting their presents. To tell the truth, I felt core tha n a little 
c..shaDed . However, to be allowed to visit ~reo.t Den on festive.l dE.ys such 
as this i s a considerable honour. 
Appiah tol d De thc"\t the envoys would not be received in audience 
toda y, this being a dny when no business OtLY be done. lc'c least, this 
i s who.t he said to De in publi c. Later, at about 3 0 'clock, he sent .lOrd 
th:ct he and the other dignit(;.ries were conferrinc (',nd were ready to listen 
to ;-{h2.t I c..nd the envoys had to say to theo. I iClDedi2.tely prepa red ::yself 
anct rode off to the oeeting in ny haDr'_ock . 
Djesie, speaking for all the envoys, described the experiences 
they had ha d at ElBina. He eave his recit.::.l in greo.t dek,il, recoc'_nting all 
tha t had transpired be~.een the wnvoys and the General, listing the 
kindnesses -which he a nd fhe others had ,daily receivecl c..t the Gener a l's 
hands, a nd speaking warmly of the chest of gin and other liquor which had 
been prJbvided. His report '72.S so favourr,ble, indeed, th£'.t it rejoiced 
De to hear it. ' 
Next, Djesie scotched the lies sprer..d abroad by CoeDe, , and told 
the re Ct I truth about the CODD2,ny affeir. ;.711en he hed finished speetldng , 
I took my instructions fron ny pocket and renarked thc. t everything th:>..t 
Coene. he d told then as cooine; froo the chief and ~!rr.1:egre.ndes, of :21I:lina 
we.s nothing but a pack of infeJ:'lous lies. I se.id thr.. t no Dessc.ges, 
ho,lever authentica ted, should be a ccepted by the Ls hantis a s trul y frOD 
Elr.rina unless somebody directly representing the Genero.l of :21wim:. Viere 
present and even then the person present must be able to prove that 
the Genera l ha d in fc.ct sent hin. The hshanti generals expressed 
a greeJ:'lent 17ith this. 
I then spoke to theD very earnestly about General Daende l s's 
wi shes concerning Co~~ny. I sai d it w~s definitely oy superior's 
desire that the Ashantis should not go there, and that it wes hoped 
General Lpp i ah would desist if he ha d an a tta ck on COL1Dany in Dind . To 
these words, however, I received no answer. j~ppiah s,?id the<. t he and his 
coll eaglles would s l eep on the mi1. tter and let De know tomorro17 what 
they had decided. I suspect that they a r e deteroined to -Cake Co=;:my 
a nd, when there, will demand the surrender of a ll the Fr..ntes who have 
t aken refu§e in the tovm. If the Commany people refuse to yield these 
fugi tives up, then the Ashantis will burn the town and kill 0.11 the 
inlk'1.bitants, who will have brought this fate on themselves by their mm 
obstina cy. I cannot, however, sta te a ny of these things with certainty. 
I am oerely repeating here Vlhat the young men in the Ashe..nti £1rDy 
t ell De. 
On the whole I did not really expect thl:'. t e ll my business here 
would be cODpleted tode.y. Meanwhile I thr..rll}:, God that we ho.ve got on 
-:-~----~--~~~-~--- -~. .....- --~-
24. ~ot~£. Perhaps I elders' would be a better transla t:t'.on. 
- 9 -
thus far a nd that I will be nble to contiD1.18'. my journey this coming 
Tuesday . On Mond['.y, we a re told, it is not pernitted to tr2.ve1. I have 
asked Appia:h ~o provide some ~:1en for ;:119 ': 12 as ""n escort [,""1.d 12 to c['.rry 
oy goods. He has prooised to arr~'.n .;e -thi s; 
I have _handed their presents over to the gener als and have given 
General YoU\"; Kokroko his flaG . They D.re a ll -very ple('.sed, and ho..ve asked 
me to vT.ci te to' ,Gener:tl Daen'dels to express their -ch:onlcs. This I will do. 
I hewe als o inquired i'~bout the presents for the King vihich the 
envoys have brought with theo. l,-warrie says he h,"s what he is responsibl e 
for, but cannot speak for Djesie. Adoe, who is iJ"ilanquah ' s envoy, and 
Enp oh,25 who represents Appinh and is J 1 SB his linguist, have not brought 
anything . They so.y tha t t wo chests -of gin were by ill luck dropped and 
the bottles inside snushed to p i eces. To prove the falsity of these ' 
c-bsolute lies , I askod to see the broken ohests, but they 17er e not forth-
coming . I warned the envoys- that unless by to[1orrow the _chests had been 
sent to me, I vroul d tell t he King when I saw hID th(1t his r epresent o..ti-
ves were thieves. They seeoed, however, - to pay no at tention to my threats. • 
The pea ce oade with t he Fantes is as fo J.lows: th(1 t the Asnantis will 
reDllin in Fante- terr itory until Cud-jo KoeITk';. has been capturedjthatso _ 
lC1.g as he is no t in Ashanti ha nds the Fantes oust not take it anise '_ if 
some of their people are1panjared l and sold by the Ashantis, who have t o 
keep theoselves in food whi~e in fore i gn territory; and that the- Fnntes 
oust sinil nrly not object if sooe of their people are done away with for 
similar reasons. Apart froo this, nothing has been decided. Here in the 
Cnop, killing goes_on dail y. I will say nothing of the nurders c6ca use 
the subj ect is too 'horrible. lit is cl ear, however, -~h(1 t (1 true peace has 
by no oe(1ns been concluded yet. 
At Abra r 6t h May 1816. 
Not:ling mppened today. This morning I prepared to leO-ve here, and 
was willing, if n;:;cessary, to travel vlithout an escort. I l"k'we received 
no a nswer from Appiah about COD~ny. It is probably true that he intends 
to go there. This a#ternoo];lJ I sent a ness(1ge to hiD, specific(111.y to get 
ut le8,st SO::lO Ln:foro(1t:i.on on the subject, but in vain. I h~:ve therefore 
tc.ken l eiwe of the other genera l s without r nising tho D2.tter ['.Jain. -
I received froo ·Djesie · a sheep, 2 Lillcgibli726 of gol d and SODe 
bananas , for 'ihich I sa-vG his boy 2 f a thoms of cloth; froo h'larrle- 2 
511egibl~6 of gold, (l chicken c.nd sooe b(1nano.s. I huvo settle d ny 
(1 ccount Hi th my serv['~nt ("'iho is a junior officer of Il.ou-riekie ' s), and GO 
paying hiD. 2 fathoDs of cloth for his s ervices Qnd for the use of the 
huts. He has been of the Groat est va lue to us ~hile we. h:v c been here 
in the- Camp. 
I l earnt yesterday th3t Cobbena Esservie has been seen on 
the r0 3d wi th 6 others. The ~shant is have been out lookin~ for 
them , but none of t he party h3s been capt ured yet~ 
Manqua MJnkbsu, 7th May 1 8 16 . 
Today at 6 O'clock I left Ab r J , trav~11in1 without ~n escort. 
l ppiah definit e ly promised to g i ve me sane men to lCt both 3 S an 
escor t and as " ear ers, but he does rot seem to have m~ant it ~ 
Hy hamrlOck men have thus to carry rIiy lUGgage as ,Je ll as me. 
Bet wee-n Abra and this. pl1j.ce we went through thtrteen villages . 
All -ha'd --b een burnt a nd some of t" e Douses pulled down. The 
distan ce fr om Abra t o he re is ten hoars, for nin e of 0fuich I have 
had t h e honour of wa l k ing on my bare feet. There was no c ~ance 
25. Spelling doubtful. 
26. Looks like::: conventioTh.1.1 synbo1. Ei ght s t and , perhaps , 
for tackies t? 
-10-
whatever of ,.1Y being carried . The pathway was unmade, rough and muddy, \"lith 
numerous l ar,..;e tree-trucks fallen across it. During the whole journey rie 
never had e 'iGn four feet of strai ght track; it was, a case of )to the left 
for two feet, then to the right for three feet l' and so on . The going v7as 
very di fficu '_t , and deiays frequent. 
The vi llaGe 'ire are ir. now was at one time inhabited by three nations, 
Ashantis, Fa1tes and Assins. All traded her~. At ,present, however, there 
are no iiYL'.:tab-,t ants , an cl the village has been :~)art ly burnt ~ 
Before ,~ left Abra, Bo.rr ielde paid me a final visit, and brought me 10, 
barrels of ' ~J.ng' s gunpowder' .27 :n: disc('vered. that these had. been t aopered. 
with a ne. the gunp(;17der adul tera ted , and I refused to accep t then. I asked 
him to send ; he barrela t o the capital, and when I arrive there I will 
discuss the ' a tter with the King. More than t wo ~J c>unds of p owder, mcreover, 
ha ve been st·, len. out of each barrel. 
Ban iek ' e has , a lso promisecl to send after me the gunpowder brought by 
the envoys a,.d intended as a present f rom the Genera l a t Elmina t o the King. 
So fafo I have seen nothing of it. (It is as well I had the full Cl,etails 
of these pre~, ents from th() General before I left.. , Otherwise the King 
would certai' ly not be likely to receive all of them!) . 'During the 
ceremony a t ' 'ne Camp,- Gener al Yow Kokroko said 11:e Hould S:upply men to 
carry this p'-8der to the capital, point~ out tha t he ?ond I will b()th win· 
much honoUL' 'I:,y such an arr·angement • •• But the King will learn the. t ruth 
in the endo . 
During ' "he journey to day we saw _abbaco trees '.and lq.ntas-,- which yie l d 
good. timber : 'or planks, ··an ll a re a l&0 suitable for ships! masts and spars. 
Everyth' :1g in this vil l age aeems very dear. For: a few bananas, vrhich 
we got fr om ' orne Ashantis, I had to pay one gold piece per bunch,29 and even 
then the bar , a in was concl' lded with difficulty and a f ter much ~ha ttering. 
In the Camp " arould not buy anything a t all. Everything, there vmS 
reser ved for -the soldiers. 
T an no" aCGu s t omed t e., s\' ,much vlalkirig, ,and it has made ne very sick. 
I am suff ori: g fro!:'! a severe hea<lache and pains in the knees. According 't" 
what the Ash ~1tis say, I will have to walk f o;r' two <lays before we reach the 
River Bo s f,um ?ra, aft er whi ch I , will he able to ride again. This news has 
made me very 'measy, for I fear t)'le onset of illness. 
During -' ,1e journey today the r a in beat down heavily an o, it has been 
fuining almo : l; all night S0 far- with fearful t4im<ler and light.nd.Jmg. The 
village s in: .les e parts ar ') not separ a ted much one fr'om another. 
In the v::'l2-.!r:l of FO,st>Y-". ( ::E.-..~ ~~.i.etn,e!'t53!\9.1. , fo,~~U,1;:x. 1!3~§.. 
Today a -: s ix 0 ' clock 1'1 e began our journey again with rene.red 
courage . T.o)ur great disa ppointment the track was even '" or s e than i t: 
had been yes~ vr<lay. It wa,c very rugged. throughout, and no one seems to be 
mainta ini:'1.g '; at all~ MOl'e than 50 tree-trucks;, ,{hi ch had been blovrn 
dcvm by sior . .; , l ay a cross i t, and Dade our progress diff icult ' a nd sloVl. 
FroD Ma; Ilia Mankesu t o this place :LS a n e l even hour march, and I 
myself (LiC. t' ) whole dis t a: ', ee on f oot. Along t he way there were no 
villages [" t , ,_1 where we could rest,. He ther efore ha lted for our 
!:'!id<lay r e !3 t 1 '; a place. by ';:he side of the tra ck nea r a wide and swift.ly-
,~lowing s tre: 1 , and there "p.ited for the rearJaost bearers to ca tcb. up. 
,Ie crossG ,l t : ,3 stream by neans of a tree-truck, vlhich l ay across it and 
served as a .! ' i dge. It mu"t have fallen. there na tura lly, for men's hand.s 
could neve:rt 1 we moved ~ it, ',7e a l so Haded through several other streans, 
some of w:licl wer e quite, deep . ','a teli' t aken from beneath the drip-stones 
provi ded & Yr, lderfully ole£'. l." and,refreshing <lrink. . 
':Te hc,ve ;uffered many TIsfortunes on this journey. "e are hungry, 
since nej -':he: money noli' bl a n<lishments can. procure us food. Heavy r ain 
27. Lit.. , ':, l\.on:i,n.e;.' s . ]sru:Ld. 
28 . Shor '; oi ,eWe paS"S'~-f1ere. 
29 . Gues.'wvol". Script is very cbscur"!. May be ' a ekie' again. 
-11-
hns fallen cons t antly a bou t our e.:::trs , a nd an umb r -e lla is use l ess 
beco.use of the t l-j ick!J-es s of fores t through which we have to move , 
I doubt if Rob inson Cruso e b3:d more trouble t·han WE have experienced 
.on this ;sh a nt i j ournej. The who l e way we h0 v e been trud ~in~ 
thr ough Via ter, oft en ' up to .buT be 1 ts. ', At l ast this . evening we 
arrived , hunsry and exhaus t ed , a t this place. I was ~o tired I 
fell asleep on t wo chests ~nd did not awake t ill mo~nin~ . I am 
st ill suffer ing fr oI:! a severe he a dache . ' It' i s woZ:se' th~n' ::ll1y I 
have known be,fore. 
, 
T3nkGBinse \ sie, in Assin , 9 t h May 1816 
We 'set o ff tod ·:lY a t ? o'clock, but node lit tl e proGress •. 
My le cs are nost pa inf u l , and I have bl is tErs on both n~ feet , 
"ihich i s. very unpl~ asant. 
I t rained a ll day, a nd there 'B_S he.~ vy thunder. "e hope to 
reach ,the Riv:e r Pro. tom orrow. '';:-e~ ar~ ve ry hunSTY. Eat inc 1>tnripe 
paw-p lws30~nd Gr een ~an o.naS has g i v6n my me n the belly- ache . 
Wrenki, lOth May 1 816. ~ss in. 
We could not ~e t f ar yeste r day , and tod3y ~~s no better. 
I 3m beine he l d back by my he a da cheg and f06t · bliste r s • . It i s 
unlucky the tr : ck is not. ea.s i e r j if i.twe~e; ny Ele n could C'3.rry 
mo. 
On the "fay \,Je saw '"l huge tiGer in the middle of the pClth . 
H~ must have been hunGry , for he was a~ishinG his t ~ il frpm side to 
sida in J f earsooe Danner~ He ~as sb ~~ose·that L tKough~?~~aving 
a ~hot at him, but found tha t my double -b a rrelled [uri w~s forward 
in the col~mn ~ith my boy. ~ finer an i Dal I have neveriSeen. For 
~ l one time he star ed ~oldly at us, bu~ seeinG us CGOS ~oo close 
boynd~d ,off the tr ack and disappe 3.r ed in a flash . 
Not h av ing been-able to r each. the ~iver , we decided to halt 
for the day in t his vi l laGE. We will cross tomorrow. 
Here the four offi cers , who we re to follow us, caug~t up with 
the column. T~o of them a r e General App i ah ' s men , and t wo are .-
Ba rricki e 's. . i th them is a dora 6f the KinG ' s31 wi th. a larGe" ;:; olden 
p l ate h::mG ing from his ne~k·. He told me he h-::td orders to conduct 
me :'lcross the riv er and that thE 'other three and h e 32 would acconpany 
mc ·to t -he KinG's capital. He has been sent on orders .froCl G.e ner .l l 
YouwKokroko, and has wi th him th ~ 10 b Srre l s of powder which I refused 
~o t ake deliver y of f rom Barriekie. I will not disclose wha t I have 
disc~vered concernin[ - th~se barrels until I am in - th~ pre$ence of 
the King . 
Heavy rain until l ate at niGht. 
Tjetjeweirij, 11th May 1816 . Ass~n. 
iNc set off this morninG at 6 o'c l ockand reach the River Pra 
at ten . ~hile we were r Gstins, a k i nd of canoe appeared_agd~ferried 
us .across. Th is canoe was of ave-Ti1G~. J:? ncth. , but 'ku;roVJ, l£1:e those 
of the coast Negroes. Both ends were very squ~rG. I t ~as , h;wevc r, 
a Good canoeJ.nd nade the cross inc with a heavy lo.ad • 
.,  The 'r iver he r e;p::-l'j'r-lJoth wide and deep. In the dry.qc.'lson its 
vo lune is o uch l ess , and from mid-Oc tober to March OnE,-- does not need 
a cnnoe to Get .:::tcross . 8171811 canoes c .) n safely use it in' the dry, but 
a t the present time they are not practicable , because of the rou~b ­
ness of the wa t ers . 
Tlais i s a- very 1 3.r ce v illaGe ; at tr:lctive"to look o t_ J rrtl wel l 
l a id out . All the nenfolk a r e away at the w~r, ~ nd - t hus th~onl~ 
inhabitants a re women . One of our Guides h.:::ts sent a man on'ah ead to 
l et th e capital know of our arriva l here and to find out on which day 
we should enter it. We n~y have to s t ay whe r e we 3 re for a whil~ and 
t he n continue on s l owly . The Gui~ t e ll me they have orders fr~m 
'\ppi ah that the caboceers of each villaGe, rle enter are to provlCle us nth' 
o . Lit., ~a~a~en . (Papay"J.s are no t quite the S31!lC as p~w-l::Jaws.) 
~1. Dora in erlined in the MS . I am doubtful .:::tbout the first letter. 2. SlC. The arithme tic is obscure here . 
-12. .. 
nIl ViC neecl free. Hut this means nothing . All we a r e r eceiving is a fe1.7 "th 
b unc h os·  of bananas here an d I have been f o-rce d t o '7 i ve my Qen GO 
11CL  Wl 
there ~ b . 
whiah t o buy their f ood . 
Up t o noVl( we have been obligecl to i ssue out a draD or L.. f ' -ink a t each vVlO 0 (u. 
villaGe 'ile have ,passecl through~ The . r esult is tha t oUr .5 C~l:StS are f~S!, . 
being eElptied; If I had mot added. wat er occaai o!)l'.1.11y, the h quor vl~ul th:ve l'l,l II., 
out: a t the. Cnnp ."  IToweve.I' , the two officors whon I sont ,"b  a~ k t EJ.nina Dl.S0 ' . . r inOOkI'It:L"  
hr1.ve or ders t .o ask the General :liD send De cne or wo ad~J. tlonal chests. . . 
is, after all, t he cu::.:i.n' sOlo.ce330f this kine'! of journey. To oo-oh of the officer .. I 
I have given 0. fc.thoo of cloth aml 2 bottles of clrink. (1 sho~d ad~ thc.t, when, I 
we crossed the river, I gave 2 fo.thoms and a bohle t o the fetl.sh poest of Pro. . 
The t wo officers tried very hord t o porsua.cle me t o l e t then have 3 f~thODS of 
J2;,'1.llegocack. but ' in the end ugreed to a.ccep t t he t wo fn t hoDS one. the" drink. _ I 
pr-oois ed t he'\t, if they brought De DY t wo chests of ili°ink fron Elo:in.'.1, I '"culel 
F017c.r d then with (; f [1. thoEls of FP5%oed. They 'iTem aft: nutte:rrin:G ito thensol v~. 
12th. 
- Today we t ook things e[1.sily, o.ml ;.ill leuve t onorrow. May t he Good God 
protect De if I hnve t o travel fO:E' l ong on foot·l 
lie nre 5 cilly" froD the cupito.l l!Im1 ~ The villages heroobouts :::xo quite 
e.x:h.austed b.eco.use of the neecl t o supply the trOops which ho.ve been clrf1rm fran 
theD, o.nd fc.oine rules uveryvlhere. The wifo of the ce.boceor of this VillLGO 
presented .DO ,lith "\;,.0 chickens c.nd WDe yo..ns~ I t hanked her with C1 bottle of 
drink. . 
Very hc.o."Y Fain todD.y, 1c.s.1ting UliI.til nightfull~ 
Asso.m::..."'..D, )Jth M.!:;y 18l6~ As sin; 
'1'oclay I rode i ,n ny hUI'llOck frOD 6 0 ' c l ock in tho noming until 2 in the 
ni'1teIDllloon. The r oue. was very nudely Lll!Id slippery, however, end the danf;crs 
comidemble. Tl'rice I f ell out: of the haDDOck, but:. ho.ppiJ.Jr took no hurt. Two 
of" the benrers hLlve . slight- bruizes OR t he shoulders, Llnd two of the bLlGgnGG. nen 
Th."'..ve beelm bLld1y hur"\; t-hrough stunbling while carrying hee.vy chests. 
tJm'ortunn tely we ho. ve no wound-pL.". '...sters34 with us. Soverc.l of 1ilie Den he. ve 
been cut: about the boe1y by shD..rp st:icks~ 
l' intend to =ke e. list of 0.11 the pi o.ccs we have po.SSGQ through since the 
Pm and will pass through hefor e Vie fini sh our j ourney. Then I will be o.ble to 
tell how lJDJ7LY vd.llnges there em between the Pro. nnd t he capital. 
We VlerG vcry hungry 0. go. in ull toc.o.y. No f ood c ould bo bought in c.:ay of 
the seven villuges; we wont throuGh~ EverythiJrre i s very sc6.rcGl and very 
expensiv;e. In this. nroo. the c1istnnccs. botw801'1 Yillc..ges 11rC sIl"'..ll. Tho -Wile of: 
the ubselmt cc.b.oceer of this ~nc ge.ve De c chickan and 0. bunch of bc.no.nns., nnd 
I tWc,nkcd her \lith u bottle of drink. 
This vi:l.l'.1.gD i s the (')£lpitr~ of -the Ass ins, nnd tho pl(Cce of.' residence of 
the.:iJt King~ 'The whcl e a.reD., hOVlGV8l", i s now Ulil:der t he rule of the Ashnnt i 
KinG. It seeDS t l'l.c.t 0.11 t ho Assins have gone tch the wnr UTitder the cOl'.1r1."'..ncl of.' 
G€Etero.l Appi ah. . 
ffioue in ['1C.Ji't;in: npt;B. This willo,Ge i s. not the cap i1tnl. We sha ll reach 
the capitr..+ t OlJorrow.Y 
£!!tkro~lfP' )4th May .1816. , :.ss¥4 
llrrJ.:WQU here a~ter n. J ourney of nino h ours o.t nbouit; 5 o' clock. 1Je left 
l.ssn.lnJo.n Cot . 6, o.nd C£mo ito :JlIZnng , the cc.pitnl of the Assins a t c.bout li. :.t 
~ ~~nre~s' 3gquost, I Ci SDO\.U!J:t?c1 froD Dy haDDock o.n cl pai d "r y respects "\;0 the_ 
~l> s w:i:fi'~. She was c1rossocl JJiJ! hor hti&l:&J)'B.t l s Flaf;ali<"'.. n~th s.:tlilC1nJ.s on, r'. 
10IIG pipe In. her Douth and c.cuooprurri.ed by a troop of nODen n ith GtmS on thoir 
33. SiemcL . lit: ' om anent'. 
34. Li-lt~, W;stors. IBo.nc1.'1.[iOSI my be (C bett er tr=L..'1.tion~ 
35~ Proba.bly the Quoen Mother ro:tllior than tho K:ingfs ,M e? 
-I}. .. 
shoulders.. Two other women, played on fl1ii;es and hOl:'n8. After greetimg 
her, I ~ent and sat under a Jnrge tree nearby in order to receive her 
oompliments in return. She gave me two chickens and R bmlChes of bnnanns, 
and I thanked her, on the advice of my guide~1 with 2 bott1ea of drink. 
After resting for ['. while He left this capitnl, and tre-velled on 
for a considerable distcmce rrithout stopping • . We had to cross numerous; 
streams, whose w2.ters oo.me up to oUr' w'['l.isi;s an'a. flowed more srd.ftly even 
tlum. the Pra. Several of these st;r:'enms, indeed; seemed to be 'b'llbutaries 
of the Pro.. The last of them we crossed vms four feet deep I1.nd ran extremely 
strongly. Over rivers like these ropes are stretched for trc.vellers to 
' hang ' on to. 
,Assnrman and Anzang villa~es D:I'e well built o.nd l a id out. The place 
we are in now is p1ensant, toO'. We will spend c. few nights here. 
" 
Monsai, 12th M,-~816. The last Assin villc.j@. 
Got under way at d..."wn. The track was reo.sonably dry, though still 
bad for he~runocik travel. I mus~ have oovered half this journey on my bare 
feei; J 
Nothing special ho.ppened tod...'l.Y. An exceptioll<..9.11y t all mountain rears 
. up straight in front of us,, c.nd :E expeot we shc.ll have to go round it. 
16th. 
We havoe not a dvanoed. toduy. The .guides ob~eeted. to any forl'lard 
movemen-tr until the King 1s permission hD.s bGen r¢.ceived. They say the 
messenge£- will be here tomorrow, and will bring orders fr.om the King about 
how we are to prt?ceed• . 
~o~o Assie4-l7th,Mny 1816. Ashanti villnge. 
Today we spent 2 hours climbing the l arge ,mountain I . mentioned earlier, 
and took 1 hour to come ' down agc.in. The pnth up .ms very dif ficult: and 
steep. At the stllIlmit we found three brooks, which ran Vlith 'SHeet, fresh 
wllter. 
We passed through ~;o villc.~p$, neither of any consequence. The . 
first vms called Quisa and the I!ltoOnd Fommom.. At Quisa ,1e saw 0. snake 
impudently s eize a l a r ge chioken vy the neck and try to slip ffi1ay ITith it. 
This happene d in the m...<;.rkot pbco. The w'c. ight of the chhken hampered the 
sru:.ko t s tOvomeIrl;s, hmrover, miId. nne of' the boys jumped up o.nd quiokly 
dispnt qhed it.. It Has an extrGne~ long snako o.nd very beulitif'uJ.. I hD.ve 
had it cl.oD.!Jl.cd UD.d. will koep tho skin. 
• ~th Mv.y :gJ:l6. , 
J: wus up oarly this moriDcl.ng and lDll.d.e ready to continuo the journey. 
Once ugc.ih" howeve:c' , the guides CO.DO to me c.nd said we could not leave 
until the King 1s o.nsv/or had been received. They assured me that, if they 
wero so foolish as t o 0.11011 [1e to procoed vIi thou-t percission, they ran a 
real Ck"\llger of losing their hea ds ll1l1ledio.t ely ,ie arrived in Koe~ssie and 
I, they s a id, would be unlikely to be r e ce ivod in a friendly m...~nner by the 
King~ I ther efore ha d t o be content, [,.!ld [',bode by their vdshes. , 
On this whol e journey we have not s oon much thn* one could cnll 
e.spe.cially r emark:n;blc. The district Hhero rre are nOW is very cold. J[ hD.ve. 
noticed, too , tha t the 'days s een longer than a t Elmina , but one would 
need a good time-picce to Bstablish the truth of t his. 
191fu. 
Nothing happened today~ The nes s enger ha s not yet returned. 
~ede~ssie~ 20th. 
As a r esult of s trong protests on my part we t ravelled a littl e further 
today, m~king for Aka~wa Asie. On the way we net the men we dispa tched 
to see the King. 1hey br-ought the 17E:l l cone news t hat the King sends me his: 
best '7ishos , and ' o.ssures De tho. t he is am'.iting IW arrival with inrpatien'OO'. 
-]4.-
~e has decided th~t ny entry should take place this col!lin[; Wednesday, 
the 22nd, o.nd I !'lust not fo.il hm on thd do.y. He is very pleased tho 
General is sendinG an nnbassador to visit hin. 
We continued, therefore, in hiGh Gooel hunour until rle r enched the 
village belonGinG to the Kine I s son, ,;rho received us in a friendly nanner 
nnel Gave us Good lodGings.. He presented De l7ith a lart..; e fnt shoep and 
10 bunches of pnn~nas. His no.oa is o,/oesoe and this place is called 
Adiaben~ I have y/ritten ,101m all the villaGes frOD the Pro. River onwnrdS 
c.nd will appencl n list of theo o.t the end of this die.ry. 
Addjabin. 21st 1816. 
Tock.y Vie s1;l'.rted on our rmy enrlier thnn usual because, nO\1 the end 
is at least in siGht, we were anxious t o Ge t on. ;J0 passod throuCh 9 
villages, two of then very lC'.rGe ones. The place. we Vlere m now' belongs to 
one of the sons of the late Vice-roy3 6 of Ashanti. In appe,-~ra.nce this 
nan is very like General YOU17 Kokroko. I he"1.cl the plensure of spendinG the 
niGht in his villaGe and of a few hour's conversation with hin. 
He gavo oe L lGI'Ge fLt shoep r.ncl 10 bunches of be.nanas as present:!, 
; and urc eC- ne to visit- hm u,;ain after I ho.d spent sone tine \7i th the King 
and provicleQ His Mr'.jesty woulll. allO\! it. I hnve c.ccep-tod his kind invitation 
e.ncl will certainly visit hin C'.cC'.in if the pressure of business Hill o.llo\7. 
I took oy lenve of :1ir:l Lnd roturneQ to Dy lodGings, but :h"ter in the oveninG 
he called. on oe r.i]1.in nnd. o.cceptod a cup of ten and a Glass of Gin. 
He lms nsked for a \1holo bottle of' ein, nnc'- I hnve prorrised to let hin hnve 
one the dny aftor tonorrow. 
The Kin.G.'s ct1;}2it2:.,l of KQenaglie .. 22nd Mny 1816" 
To<lc.y it looks as i!' I sho.ll before niehtfall hnve the i)'T0a t Good fortu."l 
to see nnd even to spoak 17ith tho KinG of Ashnnti. \7e beGan our journey 
with this expoctation, an:'!. [l.rrivoQ .:1.t the capitnl very enrly. When ne 
arrived. at [I. h11010t co.lled Mekoe, Vie received orders to hnlt, rlhi1e. we 
took refroshBent, sot our clothes in order, etc. 
Froo now on there ar e no ;.:ore villaces by the side of the trnck. 
llilvinG eo.. ten and drunk, we continued on our vmy, nnd a t r-.bout 12 0 I clock 
were oet by four ,il\70rd-beC'..rers, ench with 0. Go ldon sword on his shoulders. 
These Itien G'Teotod DO in His Mn j es ty's nr.ne, anc1 told 00 thnt I end oy Den 
oust wni t for a while with theo in a snall haolet, because tho Genert'.ls 
und cnboceers ho. c1. not yot nrrive c1. at tho capito.l. At this VIe ooved off 
the trnck for r. short distnnce to tho left, nncl \1ere led to a SDc1,ll ho.nlet 
of nbout 'b.1 01ve houses. Hero I hnve concenlecl alloy bo.gGaGe, for the .s~­
bearers WGI'nect 00 thnt it rroul cl bo quite inpossible to he'we oy chests 
carried thrOUGh tho Grecet prGss of poople Yle would oeot on our wt'.y to see 
the Kine. 'ilhen t his hac1 bC0n clone, two mwrd-be[',rers went off to report 
to the KinG tho. t I had o.rrived, a nclV1e 8.Vlnitecl. orclors to proceed further. 
After o.n hour they returned c.ncl told De thC'.t His Ma jesty's elesire wns 
tho. t I -should sot off iLlDedi a toly bocnuse he and his o.sseobly were rmi tinGe 
r ther efore loft :;. t onco, ni th the four sVlOrcl-beo.rors l eC'.dinG tho way. 
TIhen I CI'.L1e into tho tovm itself37 whnt a si,;ht IlIet ny oyesl The 
rond VIIlS so full of peopl e tho. t nei thor s ticks nor sVlords could koep theo 
mmy fron De. Mo.ny blows Vloro raino cl on honels C'.nd backs beforo it vms poss ibl 
for oy Den to cot oy haDoock thrOUGh. -\~·o Vler o in this stiflinG thronG f'or 
ooro tho.n nn hour. 
Ordors thon CnDe thrOUGh tho.t we r:oro to unit until further notico unQer 
a nearby tree, sinco tho C'.ssehbly wns no t in fr.ct yet ree.ely to rocoivo us. 
And so \10 snt under this treG, but the people pres sec closer nnd cl oser, 
stroa.oing in froo ['.11 sidos in tho hopo of cntehinc 0. clic~se of 00. Aftor 
wo ho.(1 be on un0.er the tree for 0. qUc"rtor of r.n hour, a house vms pointed. 
out t o DO o.s 0. poss i blo refUGe whore we niGht be fr oo of cons,tnnt observation 
by the crowd. r:e therofore oovoc1 into this houso 
36. Soe n. 19. 
37. In hct voorsto.c1.t, lit.) 'into tho suburb.' Voors tadt is alwnys 11. 
clifficult word to put into D. suitC'.blo conto:xt. 
-15-
this house and Vlere able to enjoy '[1 raonent's peace •. 
At two o'clock I received orders fron 4 more sword-bearers sent: 
by His Majesty that I was to present myself at the capitai, dressed in proper 
attire_, With all eiGht sVlord-bea:lrers leadine the way, ' I set ouit., reaching 
the cap1tal after half an hour's journey. 
And what a tumult ereded ne therel A kin;, could not have expected 
more honour than was done to oe today. There a;e [.lore than 50 thousand 
people in this place. His Majesty has summoned all the lesser kings fron 
the surrounding country side for today's assenbly. Everyone of them was 
splendidly adorned "ith cold, and each had .~ore than 50 soldiers in his retinue. 
There Vlere colden swords, flutes, horns, and I know lIJIOt \lhn t else in profusion. 
At the ass.embly I counted IClore than 50 large uobrellas «(this fi~e doe..s . 
not include soall ones.) 
vThen I sawall this, I felt very srateful for His Majesty's courtesy 
towards me. I Got out of oy haruJ.ock, and waThed from person to person, ' 
shaldng each by the hand until I cc.oe to the KinG. I bowed to His MaJesty 
three times. No word was spoken durinG these proceedinGs. I must have 
shaken the hands of ~o hundred people today. ThrouGhout the ceremony Dusic 
uas provided by drums, which Hor e in position all around us, and the >?hole 
affair was marked b,' perfect order. Behind the,Kin£; stood at least 100 oelm 
with muskets. They seemed quite as '.1ell disciplined on parade as European 
soldiers. 50 or 60 HODen ner e Grouped around His Majesty, wearinG Golden ' 
ornaments of creat value. But there VIas so nuch to see that I cannot noVi 
recall it all. 
I also had to pay oy complinents to the ICinG's HOmen. They were. 
standing apart from the men. There were a t leas t ZOO of them, all handsome 
and decked Ylith l ar ee p.lcces of fetish Gold. I did not shake hands with 
them for it is not the custon. 
His Majesty led ne to a raised place under a tall tree where I sat to 
receive the appropriate return greetinGS froo the I(inG and from all his coun-
cillors, Generals, captains and others. And nOll I experienced the Glory 
of beine a king myself, sittinG in such najesty as I would have expected to 
find only in Europe,. There Has I, enthroned on a l ar ee NeGro stool on a 
ldnd of platforo, with ny flaG planted about 20 paces in flront of me and 
all ny nen behind. Ec.ch kine in turn cane to Gr eotme, to the accoL~anime~ 
of loud nusic and Great nUL-:lbers. of soldiers, and ridinG in a sort of basket 
under a sreat umbrella. The tines reLk'1.ined in their baskets until they "ere. 
about 10 paces distant fron ne, "hen they disnounted Vlith diGnity and 
advanced towards ne on foot-. Each shook hands cordially ~ec times ami 
then three tines aGain.. These proceedin:~ s hsted fron 3 0 tclock until 6. 
'llhen His Majesty in full splendour came to c;reet mc hinself, sittinc in a' 
basket like the othen, and acconpani ed by wonen carryinG sVlords, Golden 
basins38, Gold and silver water JUGs, etc. He ccne up t )? oe and shook my 
hand three times.. For a t l eas t 5 ninu-ces he stood l ookinG at De, and then 
said, three tines: "WelconeZ Vlelcooe! Welcone!" and, l e,uchinG in a friendly 
way added, l·you will d03 9• I like you. It Then he said once at;ain., '"I'1elcom:eZ-
and'withdrew, accoopanied by a mst thronG of his follo:o;vers. After this 
10 other persons cree ted ne , all of then di Gnified by larGe uobrellas. It 
was past 7 in the eveninG before t he cer enony ended. His Ma jesty's . 
'Great linGUist' approache d, and told ne that I should no'i; folloH hin and he 
would show ne ny 10dSincs. He also offered oe four jars of palo wine, Hhich 
were a prosent. from tho Kine. I accepted these ~7ith pl easure, and set out 
fOlr my house. 
r could h/),ra~y nako my \'fay alone the street because of the crowds 
surroundinG oe. iThen I at last reached oy house, I inoediatoly closed the 
door and freed mys elf of the ioportunities of the publio. 
38. Li1 ;., Gouden punch korman = ' Golden punch bowls'. 
39. ~t., Gij zijt oooi= 'You ~c nico,' or 'You arc handsome.' 
-16 ..... ' 
I saw more than 60 of the most important generals today. 
G.eneral Peekoe (that is, former, G.eneral ', for he is now tbe First ! 
Lingui st ) has sent me two jars of palm wine as a presento 
~rd ,May 1816< 
About 7 o'clock General Poekoe and two of the royal 
sword-bearers came to tell me that His Majesty ~nshed tO ,be informe; 
today of the objects of my ~ission. All the state councillors I 
have been called together for the pt:.::.~poseo, I am to hold myself 
ready for the King IS sumrnons o 
About 18 0 1 clock General Poekoe ,reappeared and conduc.ted me 
in s tate to His Majestyts audience e Accompanied by 25 soldiers 
I was carried in my hammJck very s+owly and in a d i gnified manner 
the length of hlO stree t s to where the assembly was. I could 
discern tne pl ace from a distance because of the 13 or l~ umbrellas 
there. I ,stopped the hammock a Ii t -cle way away, dTsmounted and 
vii th ' my hat under my arm bov18d three time s to :':J.s Maj e sty, who I';, 
gave me his hand and had me sit down a short distance away from I' 
h~mo I was greeted by his three linguists (all generals) and II 
then FEis Majesty asked 'me about my missi on. I was about to speak 
when other .. +inguists Came over <;l.nd told me rus Ma je sty wan ted me 
closer. So'I ap'Jroache<i until I vms only as:r!;e, ~J or tvJO distant, 
. and a stool ,vas uffered me. I demurred, saying it "Tas not la"Tful 
for me to be' sea ted when I \:vas speaking in the name of my 
GovernE~t. Standing before him, therefore, I made thi s speech 
to the King ~ . 
l1your Majestyl The reasons which have prompted my missi on 
are concerned "Tith several very important matters which it is 
not suitable to mention in public. My duty requires that I should 
speak about ti1 em to Your Majesty a lome, and in the security of 
your Palace. I.f your Maj,e sty will n.: __ ... ' ,: it, and will be pleased 
to appoint the time" I shall regard it as a great honour if I 
am permitted to discuss"'these important affairs of state wi th 
you la ter~ II ' -
rus Majesty expressed great delight, and answered, lISay no 
m9reo ']'hat is enough. I understand yoti.~ II 
But, I continued, "I have brought vlith me a few small presents 
for Your Majesty, which come from my master, General Daendels, 
with his affectionate greetings and also with assurances of the 
highe$t esteem from HIs Majesty, the King of. the Netherland.s. 
I hope your l'1ajesty vlill be plea sed to accep t the sIS presents as 
a 'token of my. master! s consideration for yo11,Q 1/Je can speak later 
about other matters a t a time l:our Majesty shall decide ll o
, At t f1i s the King annotmced tha t h8, would r ece ive the pre sents 
in his palace, and ,the assembly broke up. I set off for my h ouse 
' l to f Ei tcl?-theIl'!}, but General Poe;\:oe caught me up to teU me tJ?at 
he would have _t o accompany L:e when I conveyed them to the KlDg . 
I re pJ- ied,"Good o Let us go to my house together" II ", 
, , 
Having , collected t he pr c3ent s , we Ken~ to His Majestyl s 
dvre l linge,i , We had t o go thrcugh several buildings before we reache 
the King~s Qim appartoentso lJIe fOlh'1d him s~ltting in thG midd le 
of a large gro'L'-p of peopl e high up in a kir,j, of galleryo I 
saluted him, and asked if the pre sent s should be opened, to which 
he agreed . The case conta:i..ning' the s t aff was opened fir s t, and 
I pre sented the s~ff to the King vi th these words,_ liMy master 
ordered me to pl"ace t his staff in Your Maje s tY!/3 own harrds. 1l 
ThB King 8.C CBj,.:tCd. h is ' g:i:f'c i,JiC:l e7ery a ppearance of ~elig.ht 
-17-
and laughed aloud. 
; The second presex:t was the umbre lla with the two tuffen 4-0 
whlch I handed over wlth a similar speech. ffis Majesty was 
overjoyed, and asked me to put the umbrella back in its case, 
saying,·lIWe are only Negroes after all. We could never'pack it 
in so neatly ourselves." 
, The third was the ha t. 1he King took it in his hand looked 
at it'" and said, "Well, the Dutch are still the Dutch. Srm ce we 
cut off the trade route, we have not been, recei1T.i..ng presents like 
these from anyone. II (I took this as a good sign, for he made this 
remark in an undertone to his immedia te circle.) 
The fourth was the chest of liquor. I had to take a draft 
from every bottle to prove that there was no harm in any of the 
contents. 
The last was th,e fl ag, which I presented with the words, "My 
master said tha t Your Majesty should place t his flag on top 
of your house, as befits so great a King.!! 
His Majesty said, "But wh;at if" th~, flag becomes worn?" 
"In tha t case," I replied, "the general will send you 
another one." 
, And cthe King said, "That is all right then. I will have a 
flagstaff made.!! 
The whole company exhihlited the greatest pleasure and 
satisfaction as a result of this presenta ti on. I t ook my leave and 
returned home • 
.£I.i-.g,ie'.ht.. 0' clock in the ~vening. At '1 0' clock I was summoned 
se cre tly by His Majesty, \7nO wished me to impart to him the 
confidential intell i gence i~ my possession., I set out a t once, 
and ,on arrival at His Majes ty! s found the fol101A!ing persons 
as sembled, General Poekoe, General Adoe Akwa At ta, Amanqua tia, 
Lrllegibl£! general of the capital, Quatje Coffie, and three 
lingui sts. Ris Ma j esty sat under a l arge umbrella, with 6 soldiers 
behind him. Four l amps were alight. 
After a pause the King gave me a gl ass of neat brandy. It 
was a t l eas t four times the ordinary size of gl ass. 
His Ma je s ty asked if l' had my~er with me. I answered, "Yes " . 
Then he said, "Let me see the paper." 
Giving it back to me, he said, "Read." 
I read a few vlOrds but;he bfoke in, "Yours is not like the 
paper I had from General  Turaine."lfl 
"No," I said. "Thi s is in . dutch, the other was in Englisij,." 
"Very we ll," he sai d. "Tel l me what it all means and wha t 
i s the news you bring me." 
I theref ore consulted my instructions and be gan to translate 
them, article by article, i nto the Negro tongue. 
40. Meaning as yet unkno\m. 
~l. Spelling doubtful. 
... 18-
His Ho.jesty said, "Let your boy speak for ,you." 
IINo; Sir, "I replied. "F.Iie cannot be allowed to. , Moreover, 
hEi would not be able to comprehend the meaning of the Du,tch 
, sufficiently well.'" , 
I!Continu.e, then," said the King.' I will hear you. fl' 
' 'li'hereupon, I tnanslated word 'for l-lordeverything that my 
instructic;ms 'rBaid. At the end everyone present , clapped' their hands • 
togethe r, and e~claimed, "Now all will be ,well. This is 1tlhat we 
have wanted f~r a lOIiLg time." 
His Majesty was very pleased at my ability to speak his language 
and marvelled at it. ffu said? "Wow we can have a chat with each other 
every day. lTo interpreters Inll be nece ssary, and there will be no .. 
need for everyone to know what we say." 
I sat awhile l~ger am exchanged a few more words with His • 
Maj:esty, then to ok my leave and went home. 
About the sho:ctage of the 9 LDlegibl,W' ot gunpowder the King 
);Ias complai~d unceasingly? th~ gh 1 have pointed' out to him that 
the whole cargo has not yet ar rlved. · He should sem to the Camp 
immediately for the remai~der~ . .' ... . . : .. 
I stayed at home for the rest of the day. I ,had been told that ~ 
I shculd not venture out until the King had sent someone to accompany 
me on a round to the state dignitarie~. The need to conform to • 
custom thus restricted me to my house. 
"'R'oday received pre sm ts from King -- three -
Yesterday evening the King warned me through Gen'Elral Poekoe to · 
hold myself in readiness today and awat the arr ival Qf his 
repre sentat1vosi who would then conduct me arcund.the city. I a~ to 
pay my duty calls on a ll the generals, captains, caboc8e rs, etc. 
Two sword-bearers duly arr ived, a ccompanied by others of the King1s • 
entourage, and we made the ralinds. The 1tlhole proceeding rrrust have 
lasted a good 4 hours. According t o a li s t I keptf, we visited 58 
persons. They were mostly the King's brothers, Sisters, nephews, -
uncles, etc. , and various generals and other dign:ltaries. '1 had t o 
trave l the whol e d i stance in my hammock. 
I had hardly been at home for teliJl minutes ':wh~n , v.Drd was brought 
tha t the King wanted t o see me again. I immediate ly went to the 
palace where I fcund him seated among his counciLlors.. We shoOk 
lkmcls nnd I rms ['.sked to sit dorm. ' The Jiilguist- called Adoe Say brought 
me a bottle of arink. 
The lUng sLid, tlTell De again about tho Co;s.1[my )alaver. This mtter 
must not be put off. lVO Bust send Dessengers to Apia, for I have not tola ·. 
hiD to r..tt2,ck Conmany.rt 
1. took out Dy instructions and read but (in translation) the articie 
dea:Ling ;iit h CODLlD,ny. I described ' the . close bonds there now ';lere b€'bileen' 
the Dutch r..n cl the ,English nition. I a lso told the King about the ' un~'!.wful 
' rule over EIr:!inc. Whibh 'Hr. Nieser has obtl1ined" 'by giving prosents tp the 
terregrende~. 1'sO-i ec tho.t Nieser [',nd, the terregrQ.ndes had, conspired together 
, to send Mem to Appir.. - entirely 'Iii thout the Imvded",e of , the General~ 
' their Daster -- in order to persuade Apia to capture Coooany O-nd kill all 
the inhabi tan'ts. I s['..id the Gener " l Has very incensed about this, o.nd lu.'\d 
sent me to Apia to toll hiD thnt he l:'.US t kke no a ction VlhatevoI" ['.lSo.inst 
, Col!llJany. Coooa's Dessage to Apia ,ms dispi,tched quite contrary tq, the 
"General's ,fishes. Since Apia hnd given me no precise or defin,ite answer ' 
ooncernin'g the [',ffair, I was pO\7 r eques ting Bis Maje.sty to send word at- once 
to stop 'any o.ct ion by him. Wo v.-ere oonpletely united with the English: now. 
If any harm crne to Co[u:'.lmy, the Genere,l ;70uld be f.ngry and would:j;Je forced 
to intervene. 
T.o all this the King replied, itBut 'Vlhat do the Negroes theDseives s ny.?" 
I thereupon told hiD the truth, ano. did not Bince r:latters~ The,Ne:gr:oes 
of Elrllna, I si'.id, wer e so ilI.'disposed. tht'.t, n ithout o.n'y reference to their 
master, the 'General, they ht1.d conspired with the 'Icing and er..perol', i ' 
Mr • .ro.n Nieser, to send a nessage to Gener r..l Apia, urging him to attack' Co~ 
and slaughter the inhabitants. This had ouch disturbed the General, my maste~, 
and he had sent BO to Apia. to t ell him to pay no attentioh uhatever to this 
messnge. Apia, hovrever, o.lthough I pressed him~ had given De no satisfa.ction 
, in the, Batter.' I therefore WAS noY! requesting His1bjesty to issue orders 
, desd.gned to cance], any projected o.ttack onbor::=l1Y) and to issue them with c.l1 
~peed. 
, : The lUng o.ppe..'!.reo. to b e ['.ore or less angry l~ith Api a, o.nd silid, "l , did 
n6t send Apia Against Conn.-my, but nerely to soek for Cudjo Koeou) S(1ffJ;pku 
o.nd Krala,. I VIill iLmodio,tely dispntoh 2 s"ord~bearors to stop hiD. You,too, 
DUSt send SODeone to Elnina to lot the Gonero.l knOYi of " h['.t my 3es..sage t.o .f.pia. 
, oonsists. I Iii1 1 here o.nd nov! so.y ,a ll there is to be ..said ,in the pr.esence of 
Dy young Den." 
Ho t hen n,'!.de the following spoech to the sworo.-ber.r ers: "Todc".y you will 
go t'o the Cc.op. You " ill tell 'Api n thr. t I ,(lid not order him to = ke nny att ..".ck 
on CODDAny, but Derely to tr['. ck dOVln ['.nd cr.p ture Cudj 0, Koo= , Saffroku [',nel 
Krah"., who hc.vG done injury t o De. No o.ttack wust bo l:lr.de on COl!1l!lnny nt the 
requ0s t of the Elnin['.s ,".nd u i thout the knov/l edge of the General. A king IS 
orders a r e t o be obeyed; those of his subjects e r e mnt. \Thy cli o. he , ,Api a , not 
cocply 1Jith the r equest 'of the envoy t he G(mer,~,l sent to 11iD6 'He is to obey 
no orders except thoso t ha t CODe froD the Generr.l c. t Elninn . If' he dis,obe'ys De , 
the result 17ill be on his mm heD-d . Tell hin f hilt I do not ,fish t o SDe nny 
more disunitY betl7een the English I:.nd the Dutch, r.n d tha t, now w'e ".re a t pec ce, 
]: wish no h:',rD to the English. Tell Apin t o sencl SODeono t o Elminc". to finish 
this po.lnver I',ncl to rlrite a l etter to the English infor Ding theD thc.t, if' fue 
COJ:lll..my people give bc.ck to us the Fr.ntes \;ho hnve t aken r efuge there, there 
Hill be genero.l peo.ce -- ,Ie knm/ the'. t lmocamoe [',nd Mottj e c.re conce,~,led. t here 
o.nd ere be ing protected by the Cou:lany s -- but if they do 1''.ot do t his then \713 
will force thoD to give the r of ug(;" s, up. Tell Api.:'. th,".t thor e is only one king 
of Elnin" [',nd th['. t is thCf Gener o.l. He c l one can give 'orders ".nd no cn e, else. 
Tell Y01117 Kokroko tho. t I did not send hi n s outh to fight ag~,ib:st C6Df.lo.ny , but 
to find out rrhere il.pi". ,r'.s . Tell hi D t o listcn only to tho orders of t he 
General of Elnin['.. If the Genor~.l says, I'St~,y here 1. I he is to ~;to.y ,and 1f the 
Genergl s ,-:ys , 'Do this, r he is t o do it. 'tTnen the lTener"..l of ElDin,". sO-ys 
anything, it is just tho s-:oo o.s if I :ror e s c.ying it." 
When His I'L".. j es ty h['.s finished delivering t hi s nessage , I -:sked hin nbout 
, 1;he,~l,lelJ't.;ing ,nt Dinkir\" . in Soptenber. He said the BOrJJ:k"..ny pc.l. .". .ver ,laS n :core 
'" 'I:l,r'get).t" ~.,tter. He :;IOJ:i:a, hO\7evcr', th:i,nk -0 pout the other c.ncl ',iOul d 10. t er ask me 
to oODJ:lUnicc.te hi s vi m7s' to t"he Gencr ".l ' . ' Not11ing 'could be dono , in e.ny caso, 
until the hlessenger s h.."..d rc. tUrned. I 
-20-
During .the three days we have been here we hav:e, p,ertainly lDIOt lackecl for 
:palm wine. The l\ing sends me every day four Jars a:fZ 5' gallon.s.42 
..•.. 
26th May l8J.6~ 
Earlyth:i:s' morniImg, a:!;; s,u olcIQ'Ck, I was sumno:ood by His Vtajesty and 
asked to write .a. letter to 'the General. I sent for papeI', pel'! and ink and 
moire it at once ~ the palo.c~; It contained a request: to the Genera l from 
the King.. The King asks tuo.t, o.t the first oppIOO:"tui:ri.ty, an order be sent to 
Em-ope for some lemgths of ' old Dutch chintz, some plaiJm red, 'ljlUck end. green 
velvet (rromHglla.!ird. also), some medi'CiJD:e;s and a qururlity of sugar. The last 
two are t ,obe prought back by the be8.rer of the lette;r~ 
I do rot know who told these people that tea i'3 the best cure for all 
Ulnesses~Hi13 Maj;esty and his elders43 axe alway::> aS'king me for tea, and :r 
have brough~ only a soa11 ~uantity with me. I dare not refusefhe'requests, 
atl'd oy: supply is ~usitecI. I have thBrefore besought- the General., in the. 
S8.lD.1l 19-tter tha::tr I ho. ve wri tt.e.n. ito hiD on behalf' of the K.:i.ng, to favour me with 
a few poUJDrlsby returm.~ , 
Ehving some spare time this evening, I t ake too opportUEJi"ty to record that 
this place is very large. Thera c.re a t leas-it 60,000 iDbE.biilrmts., The str,eets 
are very clean and. st~..ight, and the houses excellently built~ The J,.c;l!;t;cr [lJ..""G 
ki:trly '\iall, but mostly of one' storey o:rmly. They are, cGnstruoted of wood. 
fhere is mot: mueh p1rul.~r-work, but what there is has' been Vel"y zreat1y done. 
'Fhe entI'.ances of some of the houses are so odclly D<"'..de '\that ••••4 4. 
The K:i..Jn.g1 S palace is very large and gr.o.rul, particule.rly when one remembers ' 
that it is situ,::.ted so far. in tne bush. At EJ.m.ina I have hep..rd it said that th~ -
mg of the Ashantis has gold and silVier cloors • . This is not true, tho~h he 
does possess d. SEUl.l+ windOW, ,one and a half feot by onei"oot, which has its 
"bco.ns overlaid with golcl~ And, it is the S11IDe with the Isilv q." cloors I .45 I~ 
is very -ttru~,however, the.t th.e King is very riGlh indeed in gold, dIver and 
othGrmetals~ YesterdE.y, ',Ihen I visited hln, I coon:ted. 60 golden' b,eJ.ls. and 
Elore thrul 60 golden pu.tes suspended fran the nech of various slaves.. Tho' 
~g hl.oSel:f had a chain r'oundhis neck /!:t least 3 ella long and en.tiraly 
conposed of 'inita tion 'nelnis bushes. ,46 .fuId.. on the second o ceo.:;; ion that, 
I visited fu:i.n, he had. on another chain which was de oora ted with a11manner 'Of 
shells, aniJ:lE'.ls, etc. Sewn on to his shoes were large pieces of gold and on ' 
his right hand four pieces b.f go~d which tOGether I'lust h,~ve woighed a t let\st 
5P ounoos~ Ndorning his whole body were uertainly 100 OMcoa of gold. The 
stool he sa't on was partly covered with gold; tho'. e.rl':lS were of that ,.meta1 a.nd 
the heads of 'the, nails likewise. In a word, there was gold. ever.ywhere~ Each 
slave. oust have had a gOQd :rive o~es around his :mec.k~ > • 
1t'fuen I hacl finished writing the letter for the King this noming; he ' sa'icl 
to me, llToday I no going to ,tell all oy elders tho contents M' tho nossage 
you have written. Phero' is no ha1'n in my doing SD. If I do not tell then, 
they will say Ida not ·trust theJill. I an their lJas:ter, but it i .13 unwise to let 
theo beoDoo UisBD:lti.sfio d." Thereup([llil he sUlJDonecl a ll tho gonerc.1s and had his 
lingu:ists t ell then the o.ontewts of r:ry ilIDs:t:rfuctions. They all expressecl 
thensolve,s. contonted~ 
I think the King intends to begin construction of the great road ~ the 
cons::!VlJ.efore the end of :~he r c..in;r:'saason •. I go.therec1. as [iuch fron one of the 
~. The word 'each' follows ' gallons' in the IllS, but has boon crossed out. 
[JJ' 
43. Lit;., r>!otep. 
44. ". ~ e.~E: w~~angen oJLplGineL~tloJl5lnd.e..1 z:!-B zelve a;!pvijls nietE.eer 
weot uitte he~J2.9ll!..tt ,Most obs.curo. 
45. Obsoure. 
46. Lit.•  , na6e=C.kt:e oalnis struike~. 
-21-
linguists. 
When I first arrived here I told his W"bjesty that CLurin5 I!ry stay I 
would be entirely at his serv:\.ce and th~t this wa s my master IS desire. 
(There is nqth~g inmy instructions oil the subject, it is true.) His 
Majesty was veFY pl~asEd to hear me , se:;y t his i a;nd remarked , "So long as 
you remain here, you also are a k:j..ng . You e.re my , child. : I , will certuirily 
ask you to do Wha t I require." I s a id 'tha t "since he was a Dtltohman at ,hee.rt:, 
and had always re , arded the Dutch as his brothers, 'and since~ ClorM:v,er, I served , 
the Dutch King, I was completely ready to obeY his orders. This statement of 
mine ga ve him especial plea sure, and he suid aGain,"You are my son and fn:y brother.~ 
Present received from Pbekoo. 
~h Y~y 1816~ , 
I paid. some offi$l calls thisClorning, and ~eeted s.pme 42 people. 
While on my rounds I saw a eunuch, He wa s as fat as 11 pig;41 I also saw 
some women who hadbeon mutila ted for disobedience; their ears, noses, 'and. ' 
even their lips had been cut off. I have never seen the like o.nd ,the sight , 
affected me deeply. Some of the wounds were quite fresh. ' 
Presents re ceived. 
2.Sth May l.§J.6. , 
Presents reoeived. See list. , ', 
The wea ther being bad tocmy, I did. not go out. The f aetthat it itained 
all- day, howev:er, did nut prevent the usual 9rowd. of sightseers from 
visiting me~ During my stay here no day has gone by without a t "least , 
2-300 people calling. I regret most of all tha t I have~ more drink to give 
my visitors~ On most days one of the caboDeers brings; me some palm wine. 
Sent my ovm presents to the King ~ 
29th May 1816. 
Toc1aY is 'Good WedJ!iesdD.y' for the Ashantis ; Everyone goesta . . 
congrn.ilu1at:e the King on this hoJ,y and propitious day, and so I " ent too~ 
As so,on as the King saw IllU com:ilirg, he sim-red a t me very threa teniIrgly. 
I saw his look, but . vnmt up to him and it ;;rc.ssoon clear that he was ·pleased 
I had oome to ' greet him. He , gave me his ham ann said, smiling, " thank you 
for yesterqay," and to;Ld the assembled, compaII(Y what I ru.'1.d sent him. 
Then he r a ised his hand and all the big drU!llS, horns, etc. be gan to 
play~ Amid the o,ilW. he poilnrted to a seat opposite him, arid immedia tely I sa t 
do~rn the music stopped. Soon the'King stood up again to return to his house. 
The musioplayed until he had disappeared, ceasod while he Wt;; S in the house, 
and began as soon a s he came back. Hardly had he r osumed his sa~t when his 
four linguista brought me a very l arge sheep and a bottle .of drink, and pres0f1t ed 
them with the King's com;pliroewts (though IllS Ma jesty 'il'c. s present [Cnd sitting . 
directly in frost of me). I row hc.d t o t ake the sheep away , but first went 
hd, in hamd to thank the King~ Aft er a short tiIoo all t he caboceers stood up-
and took their leave' ~ I did t he s ame, moo r e tur!red h ooe.. On arrival t her e 
I found. that, as usue.l, pa.1n wine he"d been pl!'ov:ided~ 
, , 
During tho ufternoon I went out with the intention of Vis iting sOCle 
fnrms48and. learning s omething about the l ocal [Cgriculture ~ I un not 
competalillt to Sc'ly ~ch about the s oil myseli', not Lk".ving t he necessary 
47. Lit., 'fa t as a noie l • 
liIl. Tuine..EJ Lit ~ , I gardens I ; 
-22-
kno~ledGe; such an investigation should bG carried out by an intelliGent 
and experienced f(1.rmor~ Balm.nas., hm7ever, appec.r to grov; Vlell evory;:;hero. 
Indeed, they are to be seon in such abundance that I CeD hardly think the 
soil is infertile. I can say with certnint.y tha t from Assin right through 
to here the C,7iJ. is very red o..nd stonyr. More than this I cannot sny. 
MOlZ'e presents received o. t DiddD.y. See my Cift schudule. 
Gener a l Poekoe and the linguist, Adoesaij, came to [',sk if they might 
buy cloth. Icouldnni\; easily let then make any purchc.s es, becnuse none 
of my cloth is r er.l ly £§r s [1.1e. At their pressinG r eques t, honever, I gave 
Poekoe 0. whole length, reckoning hc.lf of it as D- present o..nd CIu."Xging 
for the other ho..lf f our English gold pieces. To Adoeso..ij I gave 4. f dhoms 
of cloth as 2. present. One of the King1s children snrr De handling cloth 
nnd wanted t o buy 2 f D- thoms, which request .r could not r efuse, nnd DE:.de 
him a present. of t ha t amount. 
Three of my MmIlock men have askecl f or a dvo.ncos of cloth to be debited 
against the we.ges they will r ece ive on our r eturn to Emina . I h.".ve crc.n;t,e.d 
this request, and have given. them 7 f a thoms, worth 7 LPonventional syobo1( 
of gold.50 . 
30th WlaY 1816. 
More presents r e ceived t oday. See the gift sohedule; 
In the o.fternoon n funera l custom was celobro.. t ed and I went to see it. 
To By sorrow I had t o watch a fine hea lthy youth done to der.th £'. t the inter-
ment; of the corpse. This spe.ctacle wns very horrifying, at least to nnyone 
who vn.lues: ille, but t he AsOOntis l ooked on rrithouit betraying nny emotion. 
As· soon a ll. the KiJlIIg c.rrived on the scene the youth was br ought forv;ard. 
Has right hand was held firmly in a block Off wood~51 A dagger had bcen 
thrust through one cheek and out t he other, so that he could not t a lk or 
cry out. In this nis.er o.ble and harrowing st{'. te he pc.ssed close in front 
of DQ,' and I was ereatly c.ffectod by wbat I sa~7 . I could not, however, 
abate his suffering . He was then kken to L1. posit:iOlD! f a cing the Kin[; in 
the mddle of the op.en spa ce T:-here the cu s t om vms t o tnke place~ After 
some ten minutes his right ho..n d vms i'Ot off with a lo.rge Dreadknife~ He 
ut once fell dovm, and the sema kmif'e was used t o sever his hea d from his 
body~ 
. The King ~sked me if I was not ~f']'o..id: :r said I wo.s not, but toot 
the sight distressed me. "Oht " said the K:ing. "This is nothing. It; 
happens heF.e quite frequemtly~" I learnt from bystanders tha t this ve~ 
nornine t wo Den and a VTODen had Det their den ths in the 8.C..De ,my. 
1st, June 1816. 
I visitcd. the King t odo.:y; and obt a ined sE!.ffipl es of the chintzes and 
velvets he requires~ I will keep t hem t o send t o the Gener ['.l when 
opportunity offers. Othe~Nise , no news , except tha t SODe more pre s ents 
cnne and I have added them t o my sch€dula~ 
jb.rg:i.nul insert ;'C'n: "Nothing happened on the }lIst; M.'l.y~tI 
2JOO. Jmne 1SJ1i;. 
Today Thad the honour of a visit from Flis r;irt jesty, which t ook me quite 
b:y; surprise. ITe hud his rum s t £'.ff in his, hnnd, and was a ccoDpanied by Dore 
than a hundred men, bearing guns bo.mod Vii th galli, S'70r.u.s, gold cups, 
shruls, etc. "Ue sa t toge ther. for D. qW'.rter of o..n hour, and then His Mnjesty 
continued hi s j oUFneY. 
49. Gues swork. Dutch r eads: ~ Ers. lan~. 
50. This s,yobol l ooks like: 'Ell f 
51. Lit., z~ rS,£iter Iu.'1.n:d in een .£:9te blok. 
, . 
-23-
This is the first visit I have hud froD the I~. Very soen ufter 
he hud left one of ~s sword-be~ers caDe buck to Dy house t o sUflmon De 
to the presence. I caught the King up while he was still in the stroet. 
Ire said to DC, II CODe, ny boy, cone \Ii th me." vinen "e re~ched the pc..lc..ce,-
he gv.ve De e.11 his silver ware end c,sked De to have it cleaned. This I 
aBroad to a.rra.n6e~ 
~d June 1816. 
Nothing occurred. today. G€nere. l Poekoe invited my boy to spend the 
night gr..mbling '.7i th hin, which I a llmwcl. 
More presents received, though of little consequence. I un begin-
ning to get ~ littlc rest now ~ ~d un not so tire d ~s I w~s C o IVhilc 0.130. 
!J:th .Junc +8:1.6. 
No nOtlS, Somo presents of Gold ~nd b r..m,nr..s recoived, but little 
of eithor. 
5..th Juno 1816. 
This morning the King sent for ne to tell De ubout the deo.th of 
Gudjo Goemo.. The excellent nc,ture of this news prooptecl His Mo. jesty 
to offer De ['. glnss of gin.52 Our drinks cr,DC froD one of the chests I 
had brought him, "Thich before todt,y he hnd not bronched. The body of 
Gudjo Goeme. has been s ent to Genercl Apia . The jubil~tion is general, 
for now the Fr',ntis will op en the tr.<>.de route to everyone. Tho news 
r.rrived l r..st night. 
6th June 1816. 
One of the hnmmock Den is chronicr.lly ill and I 0.0 nervous lest 
~ he should die here. I ho.ve s ont hiD ba ck to Eloin~ with 12 da ys' 
Dainten.::'.nce. 
o OtherViise, nothing happened. 
7th June: :J.816. 
No news. SODe presents received. 
8th Jw:e :J.81~. 
This ~fternoon I Wr'.S sitting quie tly in my house when I vms 
sunoonod by Gener r,l Poekoe .::'.nd off er ed, ill the nr'.me of the King, ~ very 
young girl for oy wife. I ~ccopted her ,·lith the gr e£'.tost plee.sure . 
Sho is c. nice girl, and will dispel my boredoo by keeping oe cOIi'.p .::'.ny, 
at le<-..s t for half the do.y. Poekoe s r.ys tht. t I De y tr.ke her with De to 
o Elnina, but whether she h~s : be en given t o De a s n present or Derely to help oe get through the eDp ty hours her e , I do notknoY! . 
Othervnse no news. Pres ents r e ceived . 
2.th June . 
Nothing h~ppened. 
;LOth JunG._ 
Nothing hr.ppened . Sooe presonts r ece i ved. 
? 11th June . 
Nothing hC'.ppened . Presents r eceived. 
12th June . 
This morning I l eo.rnt froD Poekoe t ha t t he COVl which h e hn.s been 
sheltering for oe is nbout t o die . I sent sooe b oys t o f e tch t he c.nio<.".l, 
nnd hc.d it killed to provide e. neo.l for :111 oy men. For r.ly own pc.rt I 
did not d".r e to e Oo t C'.ny of the Qeut. Be c~use dis e<.".s 6' is s o rife I hnvo 
been compelled to kill c. sheep ever y dey fr om the 9 th t o the pr esent. 
All would othervnse ho.ve cl i ed. 
-24-
12th~. 
No news. 
Mt1h: _J un-2' 
This naming the King sent for. I:le 1'.nd showed ne tne c"ptnred wife, 
child r.nd sii)ter of Cudjo CoenE'. . They looked very siser2.ble and st,:orved, 
nnd could hardly sbnd upright. They will 0.11 be killed. ',hile I r{C.s 
there, they were being interroGi'.ted ('.bout vP.:i'ious r.lC.tters 17hich I could 
not properly und~rsti'.nd. 
Othernisc, no nev.-s. 
12th June. 
Today I once1'.gnin hnd the privilege of spec.king with the King. I 
took the opportunity to ask hin for his decision reg1'.rdin5 oy oission. 
He sc.icl, "I will let you know my a nswer e.fter this COLlinG N,c.ij' (or 'Good 
Sun~~y'), o.nd will 1'.lso fix 0. day for your depnrture. Sto.y with your oen 
neanwhile. You are alwp.yn "elcone, nnd I 1'.0 ple1'.sod you 2.1"e here. If 
you went £>.vmy, when o.g1'.in would I hnve such 0. good friend nenr ne? 
Everything is going very well," He spoke in so friendly a f[\shion tho.t 
I coulel not say any more. But I did tell hir.1 th1'. t it ,70uld be very 
ple,:,-sant for me to know hO'i1 oc.tters stood rega'rding oy mis!3ion, for then . I 
would wait more e"sily, sinoe the General h1'.d ordered DC to send Qy men 
ba ck if' it appenred'I would bedolr.yed 0. long time. But he said norely, 
"After this Ad"ij you will know everything." 
16th June. 
Todo"..ybeing 'Good Sund.?y' or Addj, the dig;nit1'.ries of the neiGhbour-
hood have assenbled in 1'.11 their glory. The l<ing did ne the honour of 
inviting ne to l1.ooonpanyhin c.nd his elders53 ,. to the feti'sh-plo.ce. I 
acoepted his offer nnd rode there beside Gener<1l Poekoe. 
',,'hen we a rrived r.t the outer go.te of the fetish-plc.ce, everybody s at 
down on one side, while the lung a lone, with Poekoe Md the lincuis ts , 
enterecl. I rena ined outsicle (md did not d.?r e go in. For suoh tenerity 
people h1'.ve he.d their hends out off before 110W. ' -8 s['. t for about half an 
hour, and then suddenly the nusio bo.gnn o.nd everyone stead up to greet the 
King. First Poekoe omJe out, with the others, :'.nd a fter then, the I<in::;, 
who was in his full glory m1d covered " ith l a r ge pieces of Gold. He so.t 
in his b£:.sket .54- The nen Hi th him nurabered nore tha n c. thousr>.ncl. 
~ wns to one side, with ny h1'.nDock by me c.nd.ny hat in my ho.nu. 
",'hen the Y-ing, tr<1ve lling in his bc.sket, a rrivecl opposite ne, he hc.lted 
and considered me for ten or fifteen ninutes. Then he put out his hand, 
shook nine, c.nd s a id, 11 Sir ,55 reQain by ny sid.e. It j\.nd so "we went on 
together. l:hen the oonpc.ny rea ched the po.l i'.oc, the King s ro t under a 
lurge tree, and 2.ccep ted the g~eetings of his elders, one by one. 
On this festiva l dc.y I vms I1ble to see the true nacnificr.noe of the 
King of the Aslk~ntis, a nd of the senior gener£:.l, P~nnguo.tia, and 'of 
Quntje Coffie, Pookoe, Adocn Atta LShort illegible passage~, etc., eto. 
\',nen the greetings ,'{ere over, the I\ing stood up, disapp'co.red for a 
Lloment, a nd returned with 2 sheep, 'which were led ~n behind him. He gave 
one to ne and one to the tonbtoss r:.dor fran l,lalr1.bnr. 5 This ambassndor has 
been here sinoe before the a1i'Qy l eft. He is a Icing , but has in 2.11 this 
tiDe had only one a udience with His H" jesty of Ash1'.nti. They s ay he nny 
vlell be kept here 2. who l e year before he receives DJ:1other. 
~' 'hen we had finished our drinks ~ the King stood up a nd we ['.11 
aooo[:1panieu hin to his pE'.lace, enterlllG ' by one a,oor imc1 le2.ving by £:.nother. 
The assenbly then broke up. 
53. Lit~, t£:9tSin •. 
54. Lit., korf. 
55. Lit., miJn Lloestcr. 
p6. Spelling hIf,TL[;{(li)ubtfUl. 
-25-
I am not in n position t~ say that the King of Ashanti is a man who 
knows what he is about. lie can argue like a l awyer. His disposition 
is a happy one~ and he enGages in much joking and raillery. He is a thick 
set , man~ and well covered. lillien he is seated, he is surrounded - even 
ihen there is no assembly -- by more than a hundred princes.57 All of 
these Den have em elephcmit's-tail switch in their hands, anel they watch to 
see thn.tnot so Buch as a fly alights on the King's body. Yiben he spitsl 
they wipe the floor with their :ringers (as we do 'lVith our feet), and they 
are so quick to perforn this task that they alnost fight for the privilege. 
11th June. 
N'othing happened. Sone presents received fron the senior general, 
AnnnquatiIT, as :per the gift schedule. 
18th June. 
~Today I again had the honour ~f a visit fron the King. lie caDe 
especially to ask ne to write a letter to the GBneral, enclosing Borne 
pieces of chintz and velvet. I said thnt I would willingly do this, provided 
he gave me some indicntion of how oy mission was progressing and how I 
should arrange oatters with regard to my ,men. I pointed out that the 
' charges which Eloina "ill have t® pc.y for their maintanance are growing 
daily. I a lso sc.id that I wished to know whether or not the King intended 
to go to Dinkira to neet the Generc,l. If he did, then It would be appropri ate 
for ne to send oy men bc.ck to Elnina. The King replied, "I will talk to 
you about tha~ t omorrow. M~e sure you are ready t o t ake leave of me,for 
the who goes out on l egitioa.te business ought not to remain out l ong, '58 
a.nd this is true above all in DP..  tters of such grec.t i oportance as we are 
considering now. tl Ffe then talked &wbile e..bout t he clea.ning of his silver 
ware, and sent for 4 s~oons and 4 forks. These he gave to me, together 
with a large salver, and reques ted that my boy should clean them. After, 
this he left. 
l.2ih. 
About 7 o'clock this morninG General Poekoe came to r equest, in the 
King's. naBe~ that I accoDpany hin tm the palace,' bece"use the King was 
holding a council and wished DO to be present. I set out at once with 
Poekoe, and ~ arrival a t the pal ace found assoBbl ed the DoSt seni or 
generals, Quatje Coffie and AdoeD Attn, and tho throe linguists, with the 
King a t their head. I t ook Dy seat noxt to Poekoo's. 
At first we talked about the war. The I<ing tola De that he would 
not be able to go to Dinkire,. He said that, if he did {JO, it would be 
the ruin of Dinkira and all the surrounding villaGes. Even in his own 
,capi t al, he said., he could not Do:ve down the str ee t- without thousands 
of people acconpanying hir.i~ He Proposed, however, t o begin 
constructing the r oad fron his capital through Dinkira and Wassaw a t once, 
on the one condition that I wr ot e by express post to the General to setle 
a snaIl dispute which ha d aris en between Asknti i'.nd Vlassaw. This dispute 
had not been caused by Ashanti, but r ather by the people of Elmina. 
SODe tiDe ago the Eloi=s had sent- envoys by sea t o Accrc..59 and thence 
overlnnd to Ashc"..nti, bringing a request fr on t he Chief of Elnina and his 
terregentes thc..t the Ashantis should he sent to fight the Fantis and: the 
'U1nssnws. The gr ounds nere thnt these t wo nntions were hoping t o Durder 
the chief and t erre gentes of Eloinn, and burn their t o\Tn. He had boen 
putting off sending his soldiers t o punish the Fnntis and the Wassaws, 
~. PJcin:cen. This vlor d can a l so Denn 'prizes' , and perhaps the sense 
here is 'slaves'. 
58. Lit., wani!; die voor £.oeden zaken ui~ [\ t. Lloet nie1t l arrg uit bli . ven. 
::.n !.sMiitf" proVerti ? 
Reading doubtful. 
since it ViaS by no Deans his v;ish that these nations should suffor so 
Grievously a t the h[md.s of a n oneoy , but nO\l tho si tu..'1. tion had, chnnc;ed .. 
The Wo.ssaws had r ecently conf{soatod sooo presonts the E~'1.s wore s ending 
to hm, as KinC of Ashanti, D.nd had tl,lI'lled tho Eloinn envoys. back, rofusine 
to allow them to 0 000 to seo hing He \'ias thDroforo. sODowhat emery ,lith 
tho Wassm'ls; 
Ther e nero" hov/over, no other ioportant pa lavers outstandinG and, in 
order the. t overythinc tl:il:.Jn~ bo arr(ln,;od conveniently a ne1 \7i thout delny,..t he 
wished oe to sc'nd 11. lot tor as s oon as possiblo by the hand of his Aora bO 
to the Genera;(. This l ot tor i s to state tha t if the Gozreral vrants"thcroad 
buili quio~ then, on r ooeipt of the le tt~r, he is to send soooone to the 
Wa!3snvr oaboooer to disouss thu rrhole oattor. Tho oaboooer is to be asked. 
if ho has any other palavor i'rith tho Ashantis and, if the o.nSlTer is, Yes, 
whothor s uoh palavers ol1n bo doal t with by tho ·Ckneral .. Tho \'Tassavrs oust 
r.~ko apoloGY to tho Ashanti lUnG, and drink an oa th in tho presence of tho 
Kine 's r epr esenta tives. This oath Hill bind the YhJ.ssnHs to setUe c.ll 
lIl1ltters . peacefully Hi.th , tho Kine. T11£;;Y Dust furthor swoc.r tha t, ,7hen thG 
envoy hes ::o'~"L::::r')cl b roD :~his oissio!V, t ho I\int; Vlill be "ble to be, 'in the 
oons truotion of t he rond l'Iithout a ny interference, a nd 0.11 parties L11'.y thGn 
live a nd tra de in peaoe one vlith nnother~6l If these t hi nc;s are duly sworn, 
the Kine; will i Doedi ate l y beein proparations for oakinc the roe d. All the 
mtorials are r eady, and tho [len to do tho job hc.vo boen ass i Gned. Tho KinG 
hopes to start on tho £load t hi s oon'l;h o It i s only the [1l1tter of the. 1'.ssuronoe '" ( 
tha t ous:l ba obta iiled froD tho YTassaws tha t is do l ayinc bin, s ince 'l7ithout 
thes e he call11ot £1.110. . the work to prooeed. 
20th. 
_ . The Kine suor':lOned De ['.[;(1.in todD.y .:md, throuch his linGuists, told oe 
tha t h e has elet nilec1 n nunber of officers o.nd Den to becin buildinG tho rond 
'. at onoo . If anwWassa'Us onuse troubl e , 62 he hns\:iven or clers thnt they ['.r e D 
to bC dootroyed. Ho t.1.Skod oe what I thoucht of this ]llaDo I replied that~ 
since it vms the Genoralls des ire that a ll exi stinc pal a vers should be 
oiniL1iz ed as ouch o.s pos s i bl e: nnd thn t ther e shoulcl be no bloodshed1 the, 
KinG nust not on any aooount oarry out this schene o The <::-onor al ho.d cone 
to Ai'rioc. to brinG peace t o the wholo oountry in s o f"r ns vms in his 
pOHer, and had no u ish to spill bl .il. Tho Gener[',l ',TQuld cer.tainly ·open. 
the trade r outos o.nel woul d ·do so wi thout ruin:inc the. v7ass~.H oountry by 
s onclinc ar nies into ito 
At this the Kin e; rlithdrow for (1. Llonent· vli th hi s oounoillors o.nc1 1 on 
thoir r eturn, I " e.s :Lskod Hheru ,the Gonero.l closired to havo the road. I 
ansVfer oel , t.r.Betrle en CooL1.".-nij' o.nel El[1inc. , thouCh Dor e towo.rds t he Elni= s i elor ( 
thon runninG thrOUGh Gr eo. t Coooani j to AS[1J:u.'..nkoen VillnGe , EpOD Vill"r.;e, 
Odekoe Villnc;a r.nd So,n&'1. ['.s f o.r :LS Brunicootl('. , .'.1.nc1 then e.l one;· the · broad 
plain behind Cr.nd!s plnnbtiol1" :Lnd throuGh tho J out 63 villnces to Elnin..'l.. 
RO then :fuJ.clioa ted tho. t t he KinG rl[l.S oost des ir.ous to be t' in the project .'.1. t 
onoe {'.ncl t o clri ve the \"'·['.8sm, s out of their oountry. He so.id tho.t everythinG 
rrould be oa rriod t hrouGh to n oonolus i on o.nc1 tl'h.'1. t he woul e1 elo o.nd thnt he 
would clo wh(1. t his [lO.stor h:Le1 or derod. It woulel l)ot bo nooess ('.ry for the 
Vlass.'.1.H.s to be aotUl',lly renovod froD their hones . 6Jj-
Tho KinG, !1mvcver , W:LS not ye t s [ttisfied, and hol el .".-nother council to 
r ooons i der wh('. t I 11.'1.0. s a i e,"" ITo thon lcl1l1ounood tho. t he did h o.vo ['. pahver 
-~-~--
60. Presur~'1.bly Okra . 
61. The who l o p;:r~ro.ph up to t his point is 1\ ' vory f r ou trnnsl:,-tion indeed 
rmel I 0.[1 no t yot s.",tisfi ocl ';ri th ito The MS is very ho.r el t p. understDnd. 
62 . Lit., LE10~:}<..9.l_::: . .D,k o foolishnoss . i 
63 . ~but, Tont , Zou t , etc? 
64. Thoro is oons i dor"ble oonfusion j..n the t ox t here. It looks :LS if,-
when t ho oounci llor s ro·turne·d , they eliel so 1d thout the KinG, [',nd .thnt 
it wns a linGuist 1'lho oonveyoel t o HUycluooper tho inforontion oont:Linecl 
in tho L'1.st throe sent enoes of this paraGraph. It is by no De['~ cle['~ 
who tho ! is sup~osod to beo 
-27-
that must be settled with the Wassaws, and that the road could not, be built 
without fighting. Having thus chamged his miRd again, he proposed that r sho~d 
write to the General to inform him of the serious nature of this palaver, and 
in my letter that I should suggest that the Was saws swear an oath in the 
presenc~,of the Ashanti ~ at the General's fort (he did no~ say how this 
could ,be arranged) to the effect that they had nothing against the King of 
Ashanti; ~ha~they would render satisfaction to him if t he palaver should be 
settled; that, if the Wassaws promised thi~, the General would himself receive 
what they offf'r by way of compensation 6~d trrui'smit it to Ashanta{7, and then 
the King will order the road to be buil~; and that there shall be no inter-
f.~rence in this road-building on the part of the Wassaws. Not to cause trouble 
will be the. best course for the Wa,ssaws to adopt; otherwise, they will bring 
such ruire on themselves that they will newer recover fro~ it~ 
My latter to the General is also to say that word myst be sent to the ~assaw 
caboceer, Entceffer, to inform him that the Gener,].l will be building a full 
scale road through his country, and that if he shoHS the least enmity as a result 
of this he Hill pay for it with the loss of his villages. 
X would not have opposed the King~s desire to punish the Wassaws had I 
not been convinced that they are amongst the best customers we have. I could 
not have ans\7ered for it, if an army had been let loose on pe'ople "ho have had 
continllOus commercial relations HUh us ana. nho have never failed to come to 
visit us even in time of trouble • 
.IlJ.l these matters having be en thoroughly aired, a further meeting '\las 
arranged for tomorrm:r . 
21st. 
-The Wassa\7 palaver vias r esumed today, and everything discussed yesterday 
Has agreed to. The decision is that tomorrow the messengers will depart for 
E1m:i.na. to arrange for 'ehe oathtakimg. They ;,ill be the:ce in 9 or 10 days, a nd 
will suggest to the Gener al hou the palaver should be settled~ 
Seizimg this moment as m~' opportunity, I e~rnestly besought the King to 
0.11011 my be:crel's to re turn to ElnunE'.. too, but he uould not herer of $t. PEe said, 
ItSo long as, you nre here, y.ou must be cf.rried wher ever you go." After much 
persUE'..sion, hm'Jever, he did ~gree to allovl hnlf of my men to depart. When I 
got bo.ck to my house, I wcrned the men concerned to be r ec.dy to lec.ve tomOrrO'lT 
for Elmino: . My o.nnouncement vms gree t ed \'l ith mc.ny expressions of discontent. 
I expL.1.ined that the costs of our continued sta,y here ',jere a lready too high and 
Here rUlllg higher every day, i'.nt'- th~t ther e wo.s not enough for so l ar ge 0. body 
of men to do. I sc.id, too, th-"t I could not risk keeping them o.ny longer, 
because. I might be obliged to pc.y out of' my orm pocket 0.11 17D,ges due ';ihen 17e 
all eventuD. lly returned to Elminn. There ITr.s 0. long c.rgument,. Jrn the e~9-, 
seeb1g thc t I could o.chieve nothing by persuo.sion, I detuiled the s lc.ves~ 
o.nd the three free negroes to remc~in behind to co.rry the ha,mmock end ~ct o.S 
p<lrters for my br.ggnge, nnd ordered 13 men .-d thout further prevo.ricc tion to retlli""!l 
to thEr coust. I ['.lso s c.id thi'.t, if' they r ef'used to go, I ,/ ould ,Iithold their 
ElminC'. o.llovmnces C'.nd lIlD.intenr.mce from tomorrovl onuc.rds. They reconciled 
themselves o. t lo.st to depo.rting. 
~ 
Todny the King C"'..lllO to see me to c.sk if' the letter for Elmina 17['..S reo.dyo 
I sf'.id i t 1II'..S·_ , tcnd ho'd ..ureO, dy been sonl ed. I shOiled it to him, and in his 
presence g['.ve it t o my messenger; The messenger hnd &lren~ been handed my 
golden chuin nnd etoff and \ias ,to :;let off n,t oi~day. 
o 
The King had ny boy sent to the palace and there ocde hin1 toge theF , 
wi th his mm Accra ' swear thel. t they would be in EJl:linn wi thin 9 * 10 clays. 
He gave: then rZindecipherabl~' of' gold for their subsistence. 
.' 
2.3rd. 
I have not t ns ted [', drop of Gin f or ten or twelve del.Ys. I asked 
the King toCl'l.Y if he would let oe hc.ve back one of the bottles I had 
earlier pres'onted to h~. He s ent, ne,; howevoF, 0.' bottle. of watered run, 
which r accepted and pa ssed on to oy nen. · Otherwise, no news~ 
The King says that the GeneroJ. nust keep 0. thousand of the best guns; 
f or hin: .two each for 500 nen. 
24th Jbne 1816. 
The King sent for ne to tell ne thnt he has had, to halt the express 
nessenge~ I had sont to E~~ at a place about throe hours fron here to 
('..wait, r e ceipt of [', ves sel ,66 he is hc.ving nade out ;)f wood a s a present 
for the General •••••• 67 . o 
25th~ 
Toduy in the o.ft ernoon the I\ing 1 acconpanied by General Poekoe, co.ne 
t o soc ne~ They brouGht with then the glc.sforn His Majesty nentioned 
yesterduy. They waited while I packed it up, emd asked ne to Ylrite the , 
G€neral a l etter about i"t,. Then both the presont and the letter were 
dispatched with ny boy, a nd when the King and Podtoe had seon this done, 
they lef1l;. 
28th~ J' 0 
Frnn the 26t~ until t odnYi no nevrs; 
29th. 
This evening the nn,n r eturned whon I h.'1.c1 sent t o ElniIm on the 26th 
of lr~ st nonth with a letter for the. G€noraJ.~ He brought with hin a reply 
.fron the General, which order ed ne to inquire the King 's intentions ' and 
then r e turn to Elnin..'.1.. If' novlevcr, the I\ing for =y reason wishes. t o r et,"..in 
ny servic~s.. , I aD to stay a while l onger. 
Having' read the General's letter I nade a full r eport of its contemt 
,to the King , including the r enarks concer ning the :reprehensible behc.viour 
of Generd Appiah. I explained thnt the G€nerecl was r equesting thc.t s trict 
Qrders be sent t o the Ashantis, oncanped near Elnina tellinG then t c withdraw 
fran tha t r egi on, because they were a chievirig no useful purpose the~e~ 
. I also spoke about the pc~ver of Anonc:.nnoe, Coe~'1. and Motje, and expluined 
that, in the G€neral's opinion, the !\inC had been conpletely nisled about 
their behaviour. Apia, too~ has not been obeying the !\ing 's orders. To 
all this, His tbjesty listened ~ath ast onishnent, nnd shook his head to 
indica te his displel'.sure.~ 
I handed over t o jhe KinG the sugar, tea , nedicinlils, etc~, th."..t had 
e;cconpanied the Generals letter. ilie was delighted, c.nd thanked ne f*r tue 
trouble I had taken with h."..1£' nn ankeJr of 1'UI:l for ny own us.e. 
loth. 
Nothing hnppenod. 
31s it JuJs 18],.2,. o 
Nothing happened. 
~ 
Toduy the King visited ne, but inparte.d no infornation as t o wha~ he 
wishes t o do followinG the receipt of the new orc,el!S fron the G€ner['.l. 
66~ Li't~, ~..JQ..o.s'!. 
67 ~ Short inde.ciphfiU'able passngO;. 
, -29-
Bie said to ne, "1iTill the Gene.raJ. ~eally ceDe hen?" ][ replied that the Gemere~ 
,lauld certaiJn:ly do so. 
',' 
3rd. 
The King said to De today that I nust- renain here until an answer cones 
back fron Elnina concern!i.ng the Yit.sS.[tw palaver. Ai'ter thut I will be allowad 
to leave at once in order to r eport to the Gener!'.l. . 
I have to record that sone very serious FUDours have been circuhtiJrog 
here these past three days. Th~ are being spread by certian Ashentis who 
haVJe returned fron the coast. Sone aoldiers anong then affirm tha t Mr~ Jan 
Nieser and the Elnina !~rre1Lentes told then (giving it out as positive truth) 
that General Dt.endelB was a very bad raan, who hc.d. been sent out fron Rollam 
to na.ke a dupe of the King of Ashanti; that General Daendels proposed t o 
nurder the who.1e Elninn populc.tion with GUllS; that he had not cone here to 
trade, but to mslec.d the peoples of Ai'rica;that he hncl sent n~ as his envoy 
to trick the Ashanti King into building a grent road through the Wnssaw ' 
country; that, when this road has been finished, the Gener'ul would be able, 
tO Gether ~7i th the Viassaw&,' to plunder the gobels and IJUI'cter the nen and wooen 
of the Ashnnti nation; and 0CJ.Uy sioilarincitenents and villainies~ In all 
this ur; Nieser, bush nigger6~ thnt he is, is in alliance with the foolish 
din-witted elders of Elnina, nenwho constantly oppose the Governoen~ and 
always seek to set theoselves above it:, and who are unn.ble to rer.lise that; 
in. tine of wex. it is only the Governoent- that can keep an eneoy away fron 
then and protect then. In comrexion vii th fuese unworthy runours, I take 
leave to. . ofui&rwe that Mr~ Nieser is a bad' servant to the Governnent, and 
bas long desor~d.to "be brought t o book. He is a gallowsbird (though he 
~y well die in his bed as an honest nan),.and on one pretext or another 
is very likely to be killed'sosner or later by his own people, jus~ as he 
hinsel:f nade away vii th President Koge.nbooo ; 
Aoong other things he has t ole. the Ahromtis tha t lib inteli'llds to arrange 
for the 'sword of the soven q~~rtors' to be t a ken out of the han0~ of Adan 
and given either to Q'llC.lICnh.'l. or to the bonko known as Konnm. Ire intends 
doing this beca use the General is so ~te with Aaao and discloses seeTet 
mtte:rrs to hiD alone, and never to Mr. Nieser~ . Mr'. Niesor ['. lso sc.ys the.t 
he has f ound ' a way t o d::nage the General' a reput['. tion r;i th the negroes. It 
i~ therefore fortunate that the General has the greater part of the negroes 
on his side. Otherwise Mr. Wieser's stateoent to the ~eEientes tha.t the 
Ge:zrero.1 had sent ne to the King of' Ashanti t o ask for troops t o cone and 
nurclor the Elninas would undoubtedly cause panic aeong tho CODDon people~ ' 
If they GOO becnne convinced that the Ashantis were ['.boutto attack thaLl, 
thvy would alnost cortninly try to get in first, and would nurder the General 
and £on his officials before the latter even knew the rea son f or the a ttack 
on then. 
~ advioe to Genernl Daendels is t o carry the a tta ck t o Mr. Hieser, 
and demnnd a disclosure of all his dealinGS with the negroes.. Then the 
General vvill see. Mr. Nies\3r f or what he is p,nd <,-lways ha s boen. The Negroes 
have long wished. to banish Mr. Nies~r froe the to,rn -- he has already boen 
driven for ever fron Aoc~. -- but dare not do so f or f ear he nay be under 
the General's protectii:on. If it .rere not for this Mr. Nieser would have 
been dealt- with in the tine of General e.e Veer. A word. fr an the Genera l 
and the gums brought to roadiness would be quite enOUGh t o deliver' 
~_ fron 1Ur~ Nieser, though this shoul d not bo c. ttcnpted unless there 
are trustworthy soldiers in the fort and a w11rshi p in the roads with 
68~ Lit;, wild.e ner;er The transbtion i s not a mppy one, perli.'.l.ps, but 
this is wha t a coastal ouL.'l.t;to night nell havc said, bad he been speaki.nG 
English. 
cannon-balls able to overawe the town. 
There is not one ne::;ro in Elmina nho ik'1.s n ot soma cOQ.plaint to mclce 
about Nr. Nieser. Every negro would like t o s ee him eone. He is thouGht 
to have suborned hali' the garrison, which is why r refer to the nee (~ for 
a warship_ 
Nothine happened. 
From the 5th uptil t oday nothing of eonsequens e occurred l I 
continually hear rUlJours about the behaviour of Mr. Nieser, .,ho is sayinG 
that the General has not c one to the Coast t o do Good but to bring disas t er 
t o everybody. It is a lso sa id tha t the Gener a l ans invited the Elmina necroes 
into tho f ort for a palaver, thouGh on .who. t subj ect I have not been told. 
r much hope that this l a tter ruoour is not true, ~or I have no , uoubts about 
the General v7ickecln:cs s c:xr Mr~ Nieser's activities; He is up to lmavish tricks 
of a ll kinds. 
10 Jul~1816 . ~ 
Serious news has been r eceived t oday froQ. the a!T\Y of General Youw 
Kokuoko. The report is that 'he has f ought with the Fantis an a. as a result 
has lost a l ar Ge nunber of Den and b vo, of his 'lAea t officerS r. These 
officers were bro thers t o the King. They are said t o ha ve f ouGht very-bra vely 
and to have caused nuch s l aught er anon e; , other opponents. His l.iaj~sty is ' , • 
much affe cted by the death of his brothers, and by way of consolation has 
cut off the heads of SODe F~nti prisoners of wnr . :~ 
I have not wishec". befor e t o speak of the nUlJerous Fantis \7ho h[tVo" been 
beh<iJadecl in the tine I hl1ve be en he~e. To ny certe,in knoYllecge t heI;e have 
been 80 of then; Den , wonen, and Children. Anone; theD was the Peul.69 o£ 
Cudj o Coema:, who [let a Qost Qi sera'ble end . FrOD m dday until eveninG there 
was (b ncing , c.nd aQi d this exci t emenii; f or executioners came up t o the Peul. , 
and one after anot her s t abbed and sliced a t his iJody. Then he uas cut in 
the shoulders with wha le-bone- knives of the type tha t WODen ' use, 70 ano. pepper 
was rubbed into t ho Vl ounds. Then ther e vms mor e cut ting and staboinc in 
the 'sides and fe..ce. His ears were hacked off, t hen hi s nrms. Anel so it V7Emt 
on until he could no l onGer · stand, and .only )chen was his head severed fron 
the body. The head was sent a r ound :the tOl'm, so that everyone coul d see uho 
it was that had been killed. 
llth. 
I hc,ve noted today \vith ouch ooncern tha t Hi s Ma.j esty appears t o be 
paying a ttention t o the basel es s runours beLDf, spread aoong the Ashnntis by 
Mr. Nieser and the te",rreflWtes,. He s eens a littl e cool, anc is no 'loncer 
so well disposed towards l!le as bef or e . Uhen my boy Ce t s baok fron the coo-st-
I will knOVl nore. • • .71 
~. , 
Today I learnt t o Q.y as t onishnent tha t .' the Eloinas hava (~ed 
t o presune t o send anbas sador s t o the KinG. This has boen done by 
peroission of their ohi ef, Mr Nieser, but without the knoV11ec1. . 'e of Governor 
General Da endela. Th.e envoys are t o give the KinG inforDation a l one the 
lines of the rumours I 'have alrendy described. They ~re Goine to de51are 
tha.t everythinG tha t I, in t he General's nano , have t ol d the King is f alse, 
69. Obscure. 
7fJ. :Met vrouwe baleine' messen, Literally, .the translation could bo'vdth 
knives n '1.de f r on f ena le ,7hale-bone' but this sGcr.i~i Urilikclyl ' 
7l-~ Four- or five illegi ble lines f ollow (due to ink showinG thr;mGh fron 
the other s i de of the page). ; . , 
-------------------------------'-J~,.~--------~~~------------------__________ ~ 
and will discree:i t RY )';l;lSsion b:yeyery IJ.eans in their power... They will , ; 
assure the King of the sineero friendship of Mr, Nieser an e:, his terr~1Eo.nde:SJ· 
and " ill insinuate t hat th~ , GeneralIs , friendship for His ~1r>, j es ty is lnsincere. 
Thank God the King he.s not- . yet' Seen these envoys: and has l1ofooaa'a. to %'eIH~iv©ft 
their nessagel I for ny part will keep ray ec.rs open, [Ina will note everythinc 
dmm thc, t I lIaa:r, in order to be able to oake a full report to my naster 
when opportunity off~rs. , I will toll him that he has in the Dutch fort 
a tre.itor, who presents hiqsclf as a white ~~n with 0. black exterior, . 
wherea.s in truth he is a negro through and through, a trouble-naker, a 
disturber of the GovernrlGnt I s peaco. , There will comc a ti;~e vihen the only 
way suitably to rewo.rd WlI'.Nieser will be by fitting 11 halter round his 
nc.ck. 
The entry int q the tovm of the Ekd.na envoys is . fixc c"c for next monday, 
the 15th. Then they will state publicly and in my presence the lies they 
have brought vrith them" I will thus' ha ve the opportunity t o expose their 
iniquity, and will undermine the:j.r reputations so far as lies in my po,7er. , 
The Cabo Corso 'peop1e have 'also sent an embassy, t hough f or what 
puropse I do not y et knOV1, .. 
• 13th July. 
Nothing n ew . 
~ : '. ., :"" 
General Poekoe tells me that I must be present t omorr ow j';nen the Elninc. 
an cl Cabo Corso envoys arrive. I aD gl ad to hee.r this. and will be so. tisfiod 
if I can defend my master D.Gainst tho treachery of Mr, !fieser. , 
15th. 
About 3 o'cloak the I~g held 11 council of notables t o r eceive t he 
envoys fran Elnina and Ce.bo Corso. Those froI'l C2.bo Corso, hm7ever, alone 
appeared. It is said tha t one of the Elnin~ is sick, anc their entry 
into the capital has bQcn postponed until futther orders., The rumours 
t o the de triDent of the General~nyoaster's.reputation ar e now worse 
than ever. The King [>.lreac'cy knows the contonts of tho messaces the Elninas 
have. brought ',7ith them, and. a crioinal could not be WOTae r epresented thiln 
tho Gencral is boing to tho King a t the prescnt tiDe. The Kin/S, however, i s 
prepared t o await patiently the return of his a ccra from Eloina. He eA~ects 
this Dan vdll be <,.bl e to inform hiD if the Gener a l is-, 4-s1;iq.c"c as i,~ ,po.intecl 
or no. 
The r enI purpose of the EJnin..'1.S is t 'o have rae drivon ''.\7I:<.y frop, here 
in disgr a ce [>.nd to cles t roy the good . n[>.me. M ny oas~Jl"; The' King has alreac1.y 
boen told that the General is his decl ar ed. eneny, and lii11 hnve not hing 
t o do 17i ttl the people of Ashe".nti.. It is also beine sa i d tha t I have coDe 
here t o threa t cn the King, and to this His Maj esty i s supposed to have 
r eplied: "This is all very Hell, but supposing the inforoation is correct, 
whe t can I do? I cannot murder the Generals envo.y , nor send ba.ck the 
presents I he'we received trOD hm. ':!nether he brinGS ce good or bad palavers, 
I can do nothing but scnd hiD safely hooe. I can C.O no ... ore, oyen supposing 
these runours are true. " . 
I hear the Cabo Corso ' people he'1.ve brought presents, but do not know 
wha t thes e are. 
The dny before yes t erd.c.y a white horse £l.r:r;ived here for tile King. 
A c£l.r!lel was a lso expected,but is held up on the we.y beca'.lse of swoll en feet. 
These nn~ls have been sent from SaraGG, a p l ace sooe fifteen days from 
here. I 'understand t hey are intended as presEnts for my naster~ I have 
seen the' hors o~ Sho is D. snall beast, ana'nent ana. hnndsome. · 
-32-
c ' 
' God,Shepheri). of Heaven and Earth, may Your blessings be 
'with usl . ' ", : . ' " 
i , '.;:c U:,osit wqr~j tl.lM' J:!Q&pected -Gol\lOrcJ.l· 
It is with the [;re/l,tesi; plia sure that I now have the 
!:fonour' to inform Your Eiceilency of the COnf\id\>rable , 
sa tisi'actiomi I feel. as a result of the meeHngI have 
had tod.a.ywith His )hjesty ~fAshanti. · His Majesty. showed. ' 
. the. . gr eatest .consideration tmva, rds me. ' " . " '. 
. " . ", . " ~. .. . 
; This , morning I had: the 'privile{je of presenting to him 
I!ly grecdngs;upon which occasion'His Majesty asked me if 
I know of the expected arrival at his capital of ' envoys 
from' Emina. r answered that I did b19W of this, and said 
tQhim most .earnestly that i~ : these envoys "brought. any 
·false, reports wi th ~hem about my mas:er't he should clap 
the lot of them in irons and han a them to ' QB to be sen~ 
under strong escor'!; to Elmina and there delivered to my 
master ·for the ras cals they are. His Majesty, l aughing 
aloud, agreed to ' my request:. I ' have therefore thousht it 
proper to inform Your Ex:cellency ~f this encourae;ing attit~.2 r' ~ 
on the part of the I~g . 
The envoys have not yet arrived but, .;r believe, n ill 
be here tomorrow, It will soon be seen how I, as Your 
Eltcrellencyl s, ambassador, will deal ther.J. • 
. ;., .l . : . . :. . 
. . flopl.ng my f a l.thful dutya'!ld at'cachment to Your 
ExceJ!lency i s' apparent in this letter, 
I have .the Honour to subscribe myself, 
:. . J 
, . Yam" Ex:celle,ncy's very LOyal 
and Obedient Servant, 
. ' . ' :liignet:7w..• . Ifuydecoper. 
16~,h JulY. 1816. 
(Not ~e!'lt until the 18th.) \ ' 
The ewep.:i.ne of the. 16th. , 
In order to sift the real intentions of the' Elninas from the numerous ~'~, 
that are ..90inC; abouit, I bought t wo jars of pa.lr:J. wine today and inviied t he 
envoys sent by VII'. Samuel Brewto visit I:le~ To oy horror and aIllIl.zement 
I learn that, so 'the Cabolorso people believe, the. ierxeE!..E-~des from 
EJ.mna, propose to say these terrible·, things _t o ,the King: .. 
, That the Elminas have ~ome to request the King to s end an' army : 
'against COIDl'lany t o plunder i t ~nd then to ',go on to Elmina; raw-der the' 
General and destroy the fort; -thatthe General came t6 the Coast with no 
other purpose than to threaten the King 'of' Ashanti a~d kill the ' ElI!1inas~ 
and -;hat it is for this, rea son that they, t11e Elminas, have come to viSit. 
the King and gain hi s support. 
, Good. Godl This news makes me very apprehensive. Hm, can 'one under ::;-L-':'0. -
the workings of a nind like that of Mr. Nieser.? A nan would have to be a 
mons ter to stir up the Elminas yet a Gain to murder vihi te men. It is eany 
to see hO'fJ this has hap) ene ct. After t he death of President Hcioeenboom no 
punishment ,7hatever Vias neted out to the EJininas, nor even any investiGo.tio:1 
ordered from Europe, They have therefore becone so bold as to tr.y to 
persuade the Ashantis to conimit a uurder -- a murder ofwhibh they, the 
Elninas, can' subsequently plead. ignorance.. They \lill, if they can" l ay 
all the blame on the Ashanti King~ 
The Elminas arc arrivJ_ng tomwrro,r. I shall apprise myself of every,.. 
thing that takes',:place; ancl pass the information to my .master 1~ithout . , 
delay. ~ master must take great care, and- not on any account visit 
Great Commany at this time. May G:od protect him against .all the assaults 
of the devil and frustrate th,e evil designs of those l'ike HI',. Nieser . 
who viish to encompass his death! 72 . . 
17th July, 
At nine 0 1 clock this morning it was reporte cc to the King that, the 
~s envoys Were at Assaforheem and ·were ~,eq'Jesting permission,. Q;n 
their arrival in the capital tomorrow, to present to His .: 1y!ajesty' their 
greetings. The King is already somewhat wary of this iiisreputable emba$sy~ 
JlIle has sent no reply whatever to the;i..r messaGes, though they have sought 
permission to enter his capital three or 'four time, Realizing that they 
were going to receive rio answer from the King; they have now entered the 
capital of their own accord, to the accompanimeat of many expressions of 
contemp-& from the i..'1habitants, To the Ashantis, anyone who arrives . 
without having honour done him by the King is an object of scorn and is 
cursed by the cOJ,ill1on people~ 
Their lies wil;L bring the Elminas down in ruin. They,:. do not' seem 
to ' u..11derstand that the King of the Ashantis is an intelligent man, who will 
quickly see through them, A known scoundrel could not have been received 
vlith less honour than these Elmina$.- Because they could not obtain the 
ear of th~ King, they were obliged ,to have their pafaver with General Paekoe. 
He, however, Gave them no ans,~, and waiked out on theD in the middle of 
the:i..Jz recitanl, They have not seen him since, The I\ing'$ linguists 
similarly imbued with suspicion and mistrust, has a l$o rejected them. They 
have had, therefore, to Hait a ve. .. long tim!> and then withdr~w :without 
receiving any satisfaction or ~ncouragement. Their presents' have not yet . 
been accpted. Tomorro\1 will show whether they will be admit.ted to audience 
and, supposing they gain access, what they will say~ 
I \1ill be careful to record ex~ctly vverything that happons~ I am 
confident the I\:ing's answer vTill,not be contrary to OUlr interests" but, 
I will hold 'my peace n<?w. Everything will be known af'ter · the great aS SEmbly 
has been held. 
18th . 
-Honour continues to b 8 done to me on all sides. The Elminas, on the 
other hand, have not yet spoken to the King, nor have they even 1!DQjItl seen by 
him.ThG4',~ o~s·ewd.ll be publicly stated tomorrow.. Ilanow, however, tha t 
their . lies carui.ot <:lamGe, us. ToOorroYi I "ill knov, whether my presence here, 
has been ,advantageoU$ to my master or not. All will be in the open soon~ 
My reward, however, will have t o be, especially' great, or ·else I ,am not the 
man to be entrusted with such large aff airs of state. ~ I am not abl e 
to crown my labours ~vith suc'cess, I will hand eveJ':)'thmg over to those 
the Government thinks nor e capable of: 'pleadinG its . cause in importc'l.nt pa'laveI's 
like this.. I am convinc0 ,~ that in this present matter my life is a t stake. Tho 
curse of the, Elminas and ,of ' the:it' chiEf, Je.n l!r;h.aser, has noVl been laid, on . 
m:a. The end of i t a l l will lJe my death. I am a yoU!l& man, only just arrived 
in 'the country.73 Mr. Jan N~eseF's tricks are notorious, ye t I am certain 
that all I say can be substantiated. I am being very careful not to say 
anything a bout him that I ca!ll~ot- prove, f or' I ~ow him Viell.74 
72. A r ough paraphrase only. Text here is illegible in places .• 
73. Pas. in het lane'.. gekomen. This seems an o(~(l phra s e to use if Huydecoper 
was a muJ,atto. Its sense may be that Huydecoper t hinks of himself' 
as young, ana.. 'only juit abroad in the land~' 
74. Obscure here, but the sense is riGht, I think. 
J,2th JJlJ,y 1816..!.. 
The envoys have still not seen the Kii+~. even for the plt' pose of greetinG 
him. They sent a message of felicitation to me on behalf of the Chief and 
Under-chief75 of Elmina, and inform me that they have as yet neither b0en 
seen by nor spoken to the King. :;:'~cr . this reaSon they.'do not dare to Greet 
mo in person. As soon as the formalities ~re complete, thoy say, they will 
come to see l!le, 
The men who brought this message extracted no -aord from me. I ansVlered 
all they Said with a mere bow. !lheyare muoh dOVlncast to sec me here, for 
they reaslize tha t,if IW6~ not present, they could. blacken the General's 
character Jll1.lch Dore easily. 
~Oth. ,, ' 
Today the I~g sent for oe to listen to the messaGes brought by the . 
Elminas·. I have already referreo_ frequently to these, but not :.n :full 
detail, because I did not.-wish to involve eyself in their lies. The Kine 
has fi~lly let them pave'theiF say, however, and the following are the 
untruths they spoka: . 
That the Gen!tl'ul,· froethe time of l1is aI'Tival in the country, has ha d 
nothing to do -'7i th the people of Elmina o.nd has not paid the~ their· subsis-
tence. money; that the Ge~eral has driven all the white boys7 out of -~he 
forii;, and the three Govr:rnment boys also; that he has taken away all the 
guns from the fort and fron t >e batteries, and has sent .most of t hem to 
Europe, his object be:i~g to strip Elmin8 .of its defemc6s ana. leave it an 
, easy prey to i tsenemie.s; that the Gener'al 1:&8 interdicted all t l"ade with 
the Elminas, but not with the Viassawsf "that the General is in alliance 
with the COElLlanys. and will not let the Elni"nas make war en .theo; that, howevc:. 
if they presisi;; in' ·bh;i.s war, h'e willsett1e ;the Cor:uuany palaver; with 2;0,00 
ounces of 'goldartd wil); then "teach ElInina Town and its inhabitants such ~ 
lesson with hiS gUns that not.'a stone in . Elminawill re6ain standing; .. 
. '~ . , 
That the King of Ash1mti must thereBore help ElInina to bring about the 
total destruction of r::pWnanY and, this done; must tu.rn against Elmina anl'_, 
i:r the ~neral resis,ts, muSt cause him to bemUrcWred, as 1m3 .done in the 
case of President Hoogenhoorn; tha t, if the King of Ashanti will not supply 
men to fil3ht on th.e . side o£. EJ.m:ilJn. against COI:1.Inc1J1Y, the. ElI:rl..nz.s will de stro:;' 
their homes, floe to Kumasi and live among the Asruintis'; 
That the General is the greatest enemy the Ashnntis ' l1a~e, v.nd has 
been sent . fron Europe to find out just how powerful their King is; that it 
is always heine; said =in Europe that the Ashanti King kills nen everydfJ-.y. .and 
is a very bad man; that the Gen.erClI ha s therefore to try to gain admittance 
to the King's donains an?-, if · successful, will fight Ashanti; but if, on 
the other hand, the Ashantis appear too strong, the General is to shoot 
~ to pieces ancl return to Europe; :ehat the Generalfs sole object in 
sending me to KUI:l.:1.si i(3 to spy 'on the King and a ssess his strength; tr..at 
the Genera l is in aJ.,lianc_e with the Cabo Gorsos .. the COI!lL1al1y:J and. ~hc "In::, se:,IL 
and hafj built a povierful fortress at COL1Il1..<my; that, on r;iy return, with tho 
desired infornation 1 the Geneja1 will begin to set his various plans in 
motion (all this was clained by the envoys as enanating from the Genera1's 
own lipa" having beep overheard, so they said, by one of the bQYS whose:: ;"-C 
the white nen in the fori; ); " . 
That(;jn my " bsence) the General had written to Cabo Corso to ask for-
warshipsfrom England; when E1nrl.na ha~ b een destroyed, these warshipnvould 
be used to take off his [Jen ancl i':1lt heir GOOds i 
~t the General had sent I1n exploring .partY up the River Meober to 
see hOw fur it was navigable by s hips sent.'to ' engage the Ashantis in bl".ttle; 
that it wa s the General's purpose, as soon 'as opportunity off ered, to see 
whether Dinkira, one of , the chl;e:f provinces of the Ashentis, . could not be 
--. -.-.~- ~- ------~------~----------------
75 ; Lii t., onde:ukon:ll:J.g,. 
76. Lit., de B~nken jon[.;Qns. Pres'\lllll).bly this moe.llS, 'mulatto youths.' 
-35-
capturec1, for, if i t could, then its possession would JM.ke an assault on 
the Ashanti c ·.pit a:). oa siGr. t o l aunch; it was fortune. te indeec1 tha t Dinldra 
could not be reachec_ fro- t hG s oa ; news of th!;s. scheme of the G(meral t s 
had beon received a t Elr.ri.na !)efore the General ha d even arrived on the 
CQust:; 
And, further, to prbve tha t the ipSornation they possessed about the 
General I s intentiolllJ totvards the Ash2.nti KinG YlaS true, the Elr;rina envoys 
stated: 
That the Gene:~al ha(l s eized on o of the King's Den and. , placing him 
in the open space outside the f ort, had had him beaten until he nearly 
died -- .and this , despite the f a ct that the [mn was Guilty of no offonce; 
,that, on a~ ea r l ier occa sion, when V ;lO of t ho King 1s criers c?Iile into the 
fort to ask the GeI[eral sODc t hfuG, he had said: "I c10 EOt want to have 
anything to do with Ashtlllti;" and lll1llectia t e ly atta cked them n.nd drove them 
from the f ort; 
That, Quamena Bie toe Aqua ha vin5 thus bsen boatGn, the Elmina 
ter~entes "lent to s ee the Genera l to pacify him and wnrn. him that the 
man belonged to the Ash:-mti r oya l family; . but tha t the G-enero. l hact sent 
them away without P.!l mlswer; a n e. tha t, further, when it wa s u)par ent tha t 
t he Ashanti s ol diers in t he ar ea wer G so a ngry that they. were liable to 
at -Luck the f ort and kill the Gener al, Mr. Nieser a m". the teEEe.Liente~ 
det ormined to TIard ol'f trouble , . had ·p C'. ci:fi e.:~ the injurecl L1ccon with pr e sents; 
That President HooGenboc'n h e.l1. been nurder ect be ca us e , durinS tho r e cent 
war, he a t tempted to han e.. over t o t he Fantis S OTIlO Ashe.:btis who "Ter e 
shelterinG a t Elmina; th1'.t t here ha(l b ·~ en .lJc'illy pa l a vers with Pres i dent 
Hoogenboom a bou t such me.t ter s ; that' an eJ'.c'..i tional cause of his ('.en th hud 
b oen his habit of s hootinG off his ~1.lIlS a t Elp)inu i'ovm 2.no. threat ening to 
burn it to a shes; it was be ce.use of the murder of President HooGenboon 
tha t t he ' Genen11 r efuseci.· to pay sUbsitence a l l owaI?-c e to the ElT;linas o.,n<1 
himself planned to burn tho t own; 
Tha t t he General ha c1 sent ne to KUI:!a si without tGlling t he ol c1ers 
of Elmina and, finally, th~t t hey now decla r ed tha t they spoke on beha lf 
of t h e united pe ople of Elmina in s2.;ying thut everythinG I ha(l t ol c!. the 
King since my arriva l vms utto;'l y f a l se o.nd their a dvice t o .tho King W2.S 
t o dis cr a ce me anc1 ne ver allo;;; me t o roturn to Elnina. 
1 I c'.ie.. as much as I coulc. to r ebut these staten ents but in va in. 
All pres ent had a lroady been bri dod ~nd thore was nothinG I could s ay. 
The King , howover, h2.c, everyon e \7i!b~w t o one side, M el then a skecl me 
stra i ght out if I h2. (1 cone t o Kumasito threat en him. To t his I 
itnswer ed r oundly: "I am 0. whi t enan. Everything ny c.1c'1.stor has s~t clown 
in my instructions I have declared to you. If you 0.C not believe me, I 
c.m ~;rilling (though I had never done t he like before) t o drink and SVlea r un 
oa th tha t a ll I ha ve said in my DUs t erls lInme i s the truth . I da r e swear 
mor eover, t hat ~t is the Elminas thems elves, who ha ve t old Your Ma j esty 
the gr eatest lios conceivabla." 
The KinG r eplied t h", t I vms appar ently no t conpl etelif i n ny mstor's 
confidence , because the Gen er nl had f a iled t e infor m the t er:re>&n"",w 
of my proj e cted. miss i on am'. this he,d irritated t hem. "However," he sai el , 
ItI vfill settl e this t r oubl e oo t wGon you nnd t he Eln:i..nD.s and you ce.n depart 
tOGother. 
I quicl~ a n swor ed t hat I had sent by ny Qaster t o e.chi eve r esults , 
not t o pal.'1.vor. The Elminas must stane. firml y by their accus:'. tions, 
bo cO-us o on my r e t urn I Houla r OI,ort p..;rso'.'!:111y to the Gcmer cl and 17oul c'. 
t ell him Vlor cl for ,mrG. whnt hac1 0en sai d . Nothin,-, coul d b ..... se t t l ed until 
t hen. I could not under tCl.ke any pal e. ver \ii t hout ny ne.s ter I s 
instruction s , nor s:c.y a nythL'1C; ::tt e.ll on my avm responsibility. All I 'IO.S 
-36-
concerned. u i th nm.' vms to hr,vo the King beej:l vii tness to the C\ccusa tion:s 
and threats thr-t mor e being mD..de c.nd to defend my mo..ster D..gc.inst the charges 
being held ag,C'-inst him. ' 
Tho Elminas questioned why I vms dofonding the Genel'nl in this Vlr-y. 
Tgey claimed tha t I Fould n~1:; ,b.c a.oing it if I wero not in his servica, 
and c,ssertod thc..t it vms the 'i1hite Iaen who lk9.d taught ne my trade c.nd 
quickened ·my wits,. I .:ould never beh1ll1gry as long a s l .. took the white 
men t s pO-!'t. I Vlould alw1.).Ys .bo on th.6ir sideo.na. rrouid ' never forsO-ke rilY 
benefactors as long as I lived. The E~~s ,said l too; that they could 
not discuss secro:4s, ~ my presence, be9D..uSe it has long been knmm to whose 
ears such collfidentiai Di1tters would be r ecounted tho mOIaent I had the 
opportunity of doing so. And then they stood like dumb'nen, staring a t me 
in silenca~ 
~. : ,'-
I'told the King that, ' ,7hen I returneu to Elminn, be ri',ust send sone 
of his Qen with me to s ee if these envoys ,1Ould employ the s a me words before 
the Genere.l as they had so froely used in the presence of the King. His 
M,.'1,jesty !!lOuld t 'jen be able to judge for h;Lmself where the truth J2.y. I 
iVouid be willing to SVle,a r t1mt \lhon the tiQe CD1lle , not one of these Elminas 
would do..re ,' to face Jehe General. I assurea. the King thnt I ilQuld neither 
conceal nor f e il to oention everYthing that had kken pliic~ during the 
present palaver. 
The King ga ve instructions tha t no one w<'-s to say e \I'ord about any 
shame thD.. t had been put upon Qo"and tlk9. t j.fanyone ,geve it out that I WD..S 
a liar he would be put to. de O-th. 
He also said tho,t I would ,be, D..iiOVled to drink the purificD. tion oa th 
tha t I longed for~ . 
21st. 
~The Elninas are being abu~ed '. n 0-11 sides because of their attenpt 
to bring ne into disf[wour llith the King c.,nd eIabroil him with t he General. 
Nevertheless I am forced to record thD.. t DOSt Ashantis ha t e and curse 
the GenerD..l, because of his action in ordering Quo.mena Boetu Aquc, to bd 
beaten and . r efusing to grant his reques~ 
22nd. 
~oday the Blninas r ecei ved their pr esents fron the King. These were 
a cow', 2 Ibs 10 ~deciphero.bl.s7, 4G bunches of rommc..s ana. 30 ya.ma. There 
axe' .2li of these Elmines in all., 
~ learnt. tod.c1.y tho/c the requisitions sent . :from Tjetj werry Viilnge 
have long since beon filled by t ho G-6nerc;l~ Io...sked f0r two a nkers of drink 
and '2 IE?ngths of E£.!lo£ged. They have not yet O-rrived hOHevElr, and I ha ve 
sent 2 men to fetch them. I did this vd. th the King I s knowledge. M.o1.intenance 
for these men,:u. ffirdeciphero.bl.2l. r 
~ra. t " 
The Elminas h O-ve killed . their CuW" o.nd have sent me c. piece c:4 it~ 
Thi~ I accepted but gc.ve to ny mew. 
Nothing to do, ex cept live in nemories until I've ha ve the good fortune 
to be in our mm country o.gD.. in ::,nd c O-n t e.lk once L10re vlith, our friends. 
26th . J"uly. 
. Fron the 24th to the 26th I visited the King ago-in o.nd agnin. hoping 
to be ullOl"{ed to a.rink my ua th and purify my Ew..  sirer · of the lies the Eillina s 
huve put him. The King to+d ne I could do' so tomorrO'l'T n.nd I HElnt home 
contented 'i; i th this. 
27th 
r learn todo..y that Mr. Simons ha s b ~ en sont here by the General rlith 
-37-
the KinG's stool. . 77 He is oxpe ctod. u ithin ... few days. 
~~ 
On the 28th I heD:rd t hut the Ell:".ims hu c1 tried s ever a l tbe s to h..we 
un uudionce with the King , but i n vnin. The Icing will not s oe theD. 
To~,y I joined f orces with t h e Elr.inas in' denandL,g un a udience. 
I vms grantod ono , but they Hor o n ot I1 c cor <lod the privileGo. 
The Elninas nr e vor y law, C'.n ::"'. a.re sui'forine gr'c<''1.tly fr oD hunger. 
Ev8ryone de sp ises theD, the KinG not l east. He continunl ly give s out tha t 
he recogniz e s no ruler in Eln inr. but the on 8 Villo supplie s hin VIith his 
powder, guns, drink, e tc. The \"{hite een ar e his DUs t ers" he s ays, r.nel he 
c.1ways ob eys t hoe. He t a lks all tho tir:l", in t hi s way t o his generals, and 
t hey po-ss his r oc.c.rks on t o L,e B-ft erlm r ds. 
Tho boys whoe I s ent to Doe p ci Asie corriv eO': on the 22nd ins te.r.~, but 
without- bringinG bn. ck any l e tters or other gooU. ~7hen h e hoe..rd about 
this" the KinG bocG-De very r.ngry. He bl&1eG Apic'1. .~.nd Barriekie... He. !lc'1.$ 
s ont the snDO boys s trr. i ght br.ck ",-:;ai11 t o toll t h o t wo generals the.t, if' 
t hey do not wcent t o brine; c'..iss r r. c e on theos el ves, they oust forwe.rd 
irmod:L'1.t e l y eve17 t hing the Gener a l he.s sent, including l etters !1nd without 
ocitting any i ten Hhc; cever, If t hey do not, they will soon ':;; oe i7ha t wiJJ. 
befall t heD. The KinG He.s s o Em er y ·thn.t he order ed two r:en (who had done 
hin no harD) t o be butcher ed in t he pr esence o f E\11 his gener als. .After 
this he ca lI:1e<='c c'..o',m 0. litt l e . 
My boya have t hus meen sent ~o.ek f or the Dis sing Boods. For ny part 
I hope they lIi J.l r e turn with ever y t hing , for we c.rG pra ctica lly out of 
cloth and Gritllc, '1.nc. hrwe not hinG t o use .:>3 pres ents to Give oeDbGrs of 
-. the King 's f c.oily n.n l'.. . thGr per s ons who ca ll. 
20th • . 
,I tried e cain toc'...'1.Y t o per sU£.de t he Ki ne ' t o let I:1.e drink ny oath ill 
or dGr t o pr ove to ~o.ll pr e s en t t hf'. t ever y t hing I ho.ve 50. i c1 iro hID in cry 
DC. S t er Is naDO i s t r ue ; If he Hill not ..... 110'\7 this, I ':!i l l not be eble to 
t ell hiD the contGnts of l ottor s s Gnt hor e f roD now on froD EJ,.. ~in~, f or 
it " ill be inposs i~Jle ' f or h iD t o (lis tinl;u ish truth frou fal~·ehood.in oy 
r eei t e.l. SeGing Dy unhb.p i nes s ' t '1.e Kine s a i d , "To.norrow without f <:il I 
vl,ill l e t yO'u . ho.ve your wish." I -Dheref or e went hone sut:UitiQA. 
31st. 
Todc.y ver y ec.rly I '."la H ee, en the Ki nS in or der to purif y ny =s t er's 
nrme E\n c1 WC.S o.t 10.3t per r::i.t tcd t o do s o . 
The Ki n g s ent f or the ElDinc~s, [l.llC'. '(Then they h..'1.cl .'co.ken their seE\ts 
he so.i o. to o e , "1Jhce t have y eu tOMY?" 
I s tood up ;" n c'. to l d hiD t h ,'1. t I 'h..'1.d COOG ·co drink t he oo. t h o.~d pr ove 
ther eby t ha t Gverythin[; I hr.c. s f'. i CL i n the Ik"..L18 of. cy DUster, G-eneraJ, Daendel.s, 
wa s the absolute truth, t lu'1.t oy oas ter ha d r e ce i ved. froo the Kine of Hollend 
the wor ds which I hnc1 r eo.d out fron US ins truct i on, o.nd th.".t everything 
the EJ..minas he 0, s ni d throuGh out t hi s -,ff'..ir Y{oul d bo Gs JGV.blished by oec.ns 
of oy oo.th a s no thinG but infa::ous l i e s .~.no. f e.l sehoods.. 17i t h this the 
KinG nne hi s council lor s v{er e rreli p l eo.s ed, ~.nd shoutecl , "Tho 170r ds of 
whi t e Den a r c '1. 11rays true . If' thGy ';:er e no-it, t :,i s nan \1iJul d no t a sk so 
fre quently t o dri nk the o.".th ." ... . . , 
The Eloina s n o':"r b ecnn t o l ook ver y ciserc.bl e cenc. cl2.r GC not r r.i se thoir 
eye s fr OD t h e; gr ound . T)1ey w<:.r o o. t I ns t convincec1, t ha·t the:i::r execr.";bl e 
plan t o bring s haDe upon Goner c.l Daendol s ;end upon the I:1.aster . in K9.11e.nd 
who ha d s.ent hiD t o Africa hac ' f ['.ilod. . .' 
77; L:i.t.., stoel.Probl'.b l y 'ch['.ir' i s oeo.nt sinco t he Dutch \'Tould lw..rc'Qy 
be s en ding a s t oo l t o t he rlinG of .\sho.nti. 
-38-
The King then aske d. the EJ.nina s., "Tlhc.t, then l"k".ve you people to sny? 
The white rnc.n o.sks that he L:ay drink the odh to prove t hat [.11 he b,o.s 
so.id on behali'. of his DC!.s ter is 8.bsolute truth nnd to prove elso th..".t a ll 
your .words are infnmous lies, full. . of villa:iny e.nd incitemQnt o.nc1 'fit to 
be a.ccursed end condeoned by /'tll honest men. '.'.'hct do you so.y, then? Befend • 
your.selves. She ll ho drink the oc.th or not? The white1:k'1.l1 says you ['.r e 
liars. ~1hn.t .sr.y yoU?tl 
Then Poekoe stood up, nnll snid to the ,King , "',7e have nothinc o..gainst 
the white Dc'1.n' s drinking the Q[1.th, n c:n c1 then, <lulV;0ring ,:;ith eLlotion; 
liThe elders of Elraina ha.ve sont thisembas~y t o us, but its Dembers hc:ve () 
given no sign, Il,or lliwe they spoken any Vior o. to .s hoY{ .whethor wh...'1.t they 
s o.y is the truth or not . Let .the white man defend his .mo.ster~ 
At this everyone burst but l aUGhinG. The Elr'linas \Jere no lonGer showing 
the c6ur[l.Ce they ho..c1 exhibited on thdr arrive.l. They hc:d thouGht to brinG , 
a charge against De, but .it "[l.S cle[l.r toe.ll -;J r esent that I was· '0. ·bet:!;'?.!' 
advoco..te . then th0Y. Troro . \for e three Ash,:'.ntis st-r.nc'.inG with th0 three:E4pina 
envoys:, thus, six in all, six ndvoC[l.tes 9.Gninst DO c,lone.. Yet I was tho only 
one that lw.d do..re c;' to speak in .the a ssembly (1.nd hand proved mys uli' stronger (i 
.. thD.n theo all. The ' King 's wqr '':-s ho.c. b";0n semew-he. t harshly spoken, Gllcl. 
the EJninas an d. thoir friends were so shnken .£'.ucl fe o.rful the. t they could 
. find little t o s ny. Yet ht'ld I ho.d no POl'l'erful a llies on my side, I jJOuJ;d 
certainly. have lost the p~'1.ver, nnd for this r eo.son. The Elninas had 
alrea d.y brj 'gcd the throe Ashantis \-:-ho stood., Iii th them, ancl these Den were 
reD.cly t o l ey into ne. 78 But the Good Goel was r,-i th ne, c.no. h...'l.cl forewe.rned 
the Kine; of the EIDinns ' .pl e-n. God kept Jijle~ >7ho have so oft encClP r.nitt-ed 
m;y'seli' to' His protection, safe o.l(clwmc.roeeJ.. 
The DE.Il Adoes.aij ViUS e~so of e;ree.t service to De. There was nothing • 
that I s a id thut he did not iDnoQietely a nd. o.ccurc.tely convey to the King. 
lTh.en therefore my words were cocp::-.r el!. to those of the Elminus, ninE;. were 
~lvmys f<;)Und t o be trUe. Everyt:i.ne I touched on this c.r th.~.t Wrons done • 
to De Dr ·t o my m ster, he. reported. what I h';>.(1 s ".i d to the Kint; , end by 
oeaJm of his influenee . the Kine VI2. S won over t ODY. side. 
The King wus now convinced that lies haC. indooc. been spoken. He 
thorefo~ had the oc.th br OUGht LD D. copper basin. Once mOre ho ~sked the 
Elminas jI,theyhud unything further to s o.y O-G[>..inst oe which could ' bevlashed 
day by the clrinking of t his oo.th. They, however, reoamed s ilent. 
Addressing Llyself' t o the lUng, I swore ny oath in these worets: 
"I swear thD.t th0 Gener[>..l, Dy master, sent De to you in 0.11 sincerity 
an d. without any hic'_den pL".llS in his Dind; I swe[>..r that [>..11 the powder, shot 
und fir eo.rms which oy =s -cer has hf0U£;ht with hip are for no other purpose 
than t o b e s ol~ L~pe..rtk".lly to 0.11 Dorchunts who cc.re to buy; I swear thut 
oy Ll£'.s t er i s r. c cst sincere friend. of the Asho.ntis nnd will never show any 
el1J14.j;y towr.rc.s their lUnG; I swear that' t ho lling of IiollD.nd i s the best 
friend the KinG of Asl1c".nti hus c.ncl th:lt ho sent the General t o ld'rice.. to 
bring peace and unity; I swoar thc".t· evorything I have said in his nrune is 
the absolut e truth; 
I swear tno.t the G-encre.l e.nel the King of KoIIo.n d LDtend to tr[>..clewith 
[>..11 Den o.s brothers., vlithou:t·· choosing one s i de. or . the ot .her or r.ukinC wc:r, 
c.nd tha t trust OD.y a l wo.ys b e plo.ce{l in then; 1 swe12r tlk"."\; I vm.s not sont 
here to spy on tho King of Ashanti or t o ussess his oilito.ry :.~iGht l7ith 
0.. view later on to l~kinS war on hill • • .79 
_. ..1 8 •. . ;Lit• .,  00 r:rl.j in de vmr to he=bl2cI!.!. 
79. Short illeGiblo p~ssnGe . 
t ·" . 
..3 9-
" 
I SHOar th['..t BVQ.!, ythinij; the, Eloinas have ceDe hero to. t ell the, 1\:i..ng 
is untrue, n.nd c1:'1.I.1Il.c.b;J.y un;trUG, that everythinG they say they hD.ve beGm , 
teld to. se.y by seceene olse, [Cnd this if ene sinGle ,ver d ef all t hat they 
htwo said is true, this cy eo.th will sUrely kill oe~II ' '. 
'(!hen I had speken these V1QrcLs, tho edh wo.:;; 1'.6-.1inistohd.te De throe 
tiDes, o.nd I teek it YTith thogr 0.".test sf'.tisf1'.ctien. The King guclhis 
nebles all pro.ise cl De fer this a ct, c.nd cengrc.tulE'..tecl De en having' wen 
G:! centest: o.5D.inst the Elt:in1'.s, wheD they new leekod D. t eut ef tho oerners • 
of their eyes. lUl tho Ashnntis were convinCG CL of tho unshe...keable truth . . ~ 
ef Dy oause. 
Evotythincwas new cenGiude cl , £cnd, the I\ins 8.sked the EL-:rim'..s whether, • 
in the onp:nge<lciroUDsto.noes" 'theyw.oJ,lld visit no freD tiDe to. tine. 
They d2.1'od nqt say no., The IG..nG then boro.ted thon ,'so.ying , "De you ~t 
knew that this D2.ri is yeur Dastcir? I do net undorstand this , DUtter a t 1'.11. 
Yeu Dust D.t Once visit yeur na$tGrin erder , to. ,grcot]liJ;l. He is ny naster, 
too, o.nd none of us oem epLJoao our '.1."'1.sters." Fran this , the ElninD.s oould 
s oo tho.t the King " D.S on ny"side, [\nc.' they replied., "Tooer-row WO, will ce.ll 
on our 10rd,80 1'.nd presc;nt our cocpljpents t o. hin. ' 
} 
My servant W1'.S r.lso ebliged to. i'..rink the eath D.nd S',70r..r thc.t he knew 
nethinG to the Genere.l' s detri oent, thr.t everything the Eloinas had s ['..i d . 
a"c. inst the Gene rc.l was untrue, :1.llel thr.t, if he kne,,- uy bad things 1'.bout 
the GDnernl and did. not revea l then" h e wished the onth weuld kill hin. 
Repert en 0.11 this s ent te&~y to. Yeur Excellency. 
1..E.i. Au5.uS t- 1816. 
Todt>.y we had. the pler.sure of "- visit frOD ou.:r ,-;r l..1'. test eneDies. 
They rG~.rettec. undertakinG their pr esent c:ls .s i on deeply, r..nd n3sured ne 
they h..".c. nothinG uGai..nst ne ,personally unO. hD..U onlyboen D.ctinc on t,l\\e .order:s, 
of the :ft.crre"'Rentes. I pD.id litt l e D..ttontibn t o ,-,hat they s rdel, o.n;l nerely 
note, it for the r ecorc"-. 
I go.ve then f our j ['..rs of :)[>.L-:1 wine, which they drc.nk gr eedily. Under 
the influel3JCe of the "cine, their Giseries c;".oe pourinC; out·, nne1 they oore-
or less bet.:cecl r..y pardop for t he l i es they h:'..d t ol d . I vms not , iopressed, 
1'.nd will '.,hen occ['..sion offers o2.ke theu f .:;c l thoir Dis c-rie s Dare sorely 
stillo 
2nd AUfjliS t 1816. 
I :ho.ve c"-one :;:'. s [:uoh a s I co.n t o find out whe ther or not it is Mr. 
·Niaser Hl-,d hD.s bo(;n D.dyisine; the t errc5.ell.tes -in this &~ t ter of t he nission 
sent t o K~si ~ith the object of onconpD..ss inG nY,denth. To Dy 
n.nnoyunoe, houever, I hc.ve discovGre", no thinc, yei-. Se crotly I -au,::' 
cOL', inced thnt Mr. Niescr hD..s {s-ui c1ec. the nffc.ir fr en the s t art. TOI:larrm7 
or the dny c.fter I will brinG over on e of t he young Den belonGin~ to the 
Dissien ,".n c1 wifl qu estion hin r.S closely as pos sible. 
hl. 
Nething ho.p. ep ed. 
~ 
:.'ith the Grent est ctiff iculty in the Vlorli', I 'k1.Ilo.::;ed to persu...".de one 
of the younG nen t o visit GO 80. th". t I coul d rine:' out whD..t he kne\? 
of Mr. Nie ser (~n(:' the circUDs't·'.nces surroun<linG the oubo.ssy , froD 'clib 
Eloinas . I wns f ortunate enOUGh t o c iscover th['..t Nx. Nieser i s .indoed 
·d the bOttOD _of evcrythine 
The enbc.ssy ~iL not expect t o rind ne here. Its neobers believed 
th..".t I viCuld :'.. lre ~:dy h,.':.vQ l oftflor AXio by the tine they ".rrived. They 
r ealize now th". t they Vier a ill-aclvised to c1isclOS(l the ob j ects of their 
nis s ion while.t:18.Y wer e s til l c.t tho C;:.r:rp . Their intentions Cf'.r:le to the 
er..r of the J6...nc c.n c1 t hen tbey hL'. ,". 'no choico bu t to stick t o ,w:ho.t t hey hnd 
8v. Lit., b::'.D..s . 
already &aid, even thouGh t he s~~o thinGs h~Q now to bo inp~rted to tho I(Lng 
in Dy presene'e. " They coulet not t'..t th.:o t stn..;o chr,nGe their s tory. If they 
h£.d .:ony iclo~ t hClt :I ' ii'O-,S still ,"'.. t KOeIl'1.Ssie, thoy ,Iould never hc ve t?lkec. about 
the purpose of' their I'd.ssion while [I t the Cnnp. 
Toe1.·\jT the Kine bas s ent coro l::on t o Donpo !J.sio to inquire nfter the 
nissins cloth [.net lCl tters lend tho 2 £'..nkors of drink. 
5th~ 
NothinG hc.P?ened. 
6th • 
. This ~fternoon tho Ki::,g sUDI::on ec, De nml the Elninns to the pabc$ 
11110. c sked us if' V{0 knew nnythine; o.bout tho Cobb~ Esservie pnln,ver -
in pnrtielihr, how ouch Gol d the !J.sTh.'1.ntis hael t e-.ken fron hin. I 
I111sVlere cL that j[ knOVl nothinG of the Gold, but tho. t on tho G€nornl's orders 
I had hl111de (l over the lenst 10 slc.ve s to Djesie, !J.wc.rrie c.nd Adoe~ Sona 
of the r Gst of the story w<'.s knolm t o ce , but the Elnine-s wouJ.e1 be better 
nequc intect rlit h tho f~cts, s ince they hael spent thfee (1.nys palnvoring 
on tho ~.tter' with these self-s~no As.h~ntis, . 
7th. 
One of the l43h~ntis. Yiho , in c.llie-nce with tho ELrinc,s, tried to trc. ctuce 
the G€n.or~l 1'.ncl brinS ovil upon DO , vms to cl{'.y subjocto c'. to c, br on t indi sni ty. 
Tho Kine; hn(1 hin plnce e'. in tho stocks . 
The I\:i.nG i s vory incensed ['.Gninst !J.ppi~ ~nd ~rriekie . He ha s SVlorn 
to punish thoo, not only for steC'.linG t he 2 cnkers of drink ~n(l. the 
P£JleEl?ed. but [', lso f or hol cli ns bnck tho l etters sent b ' the Genor~l. These 
lotters oo.y well hC'.vo b"",n t orn up or throvm ~wc.y. Tho Goner nls know vory 
well thD.t, no r:ntter how busy tho KinG o.ne:. his councillors ho.vo boen , 
with nffnirs of st£'..to , tho lot'cers shoul rl not h~vo boon deL'1.yec1 or cLes troyecl. 
Tho I\:i.ng r efused t o bo pl{'.oc. teil in this Ll~ tter, :',nel. has wi thclr£'..;'m. to his 
pkntnti on. Ho Hill not listen to [',ny entroc,ti os on bohn~ of these two 0 en. 
The e:rink r.n ', tho l eiters ho.vo still not nrrivod. 
The Kine returned this oveninG. 
~ 
' Tocilly Bnrri ok:i.o sent n 'br1O-gnllon j nr nn,l n p ioco of i/,L.".seocloen81 
t o the King with tho r equost thnt thoy be Givon t o DG~ I woulcl not, howevor, 
rece ivo ~o. I co.n a ccopt no t hing until tho l ettors nr o ~roducea; 
I sont Vlore.. to tho Kini.; thc.t ho Dust not t~Jw it ~Diss if I rofusod Gifts 
in this w..".y. 
I unc1.erst:mcl th~, t ..". lonG l otter o.cconpo.ni od t ho presents; Mel thnt 
overyt hing h[1,c1 been l'.ispo. tchecl before tho nroy hr. ('. even set out on its 
roturn j ournoy tG here. I ,'.0 not know '.Ih£1.t i nportc"..nt instructions for c e 
nnll. Vlhr. t inforr.,,":, tion for the Kine this l etter [k'l.Y contdin. Tho KinG hns sent 
0. oesscee to Br.rrieki e sC-:yinC; th<'. t if he s,-,01cs his o-;m c:mmfnll he Hill kuep 
tho lettor nnd ,~,bicl0 by t ho consequences. 
lOth !J.UEustl~16. 
Todr.1.Y tho KinG sont still ;:oro boys t o Api ..". ,'.nel I3:'.rriekie t o fetch 
the Goner[',l ts l ottors. 1.11 tho a.roy chiofs ['.r e ouch in cl.isfr.vour becnuse 
of tho v{c,y in ·.!hich, so tho' sole1i ors S:lY, they h..".ve been trr.cung r.t Elninc. • 
They Mve cl.isoboyo c1 the orelers of tho Emino.. Genorn1; thoy havo solc1 stolon 
prisonors to tho Elninn ocrcl1<".nts t wo or thr;;)e tioos over; {'.n ·.c tho gooels cp-
turod by then thoy h..'1.VO kept for thoDSolvos w:ii'tihout scnclinG ~ portion 
of then, ns custoo clornnel.s , t o t ho I\:i.nC. 
81. Mec.ning Unknovm. (Fourth r,n '. fifth l etter s c.ro C.oubtfuJ.) ~ 
-4J.-
All the Ashantis have been inf'orninc on one e.nother, so ~o KinG 
knows everJ~hinG there is to be 'known. 
The combined army of Apia and Barriekiu ha s been ordere~ to come here 
at once. It has a lready been a t Dompo Asie oore than 36 days, though this 
place is only 12 hours a\~y. Jouw Kokroko's army is the only one that is 
free froo Gcdlt. It is expected here on the 14th instant, and the forces 
of Apia anet Barriekie onchc' 26"fth. lInanqua's will also be here soon. tl2 
11th. 
This evening the akra anc'c other Desscncers r eturne Cl. froG Elmin!'\ r"rith 
letters fr oD the Generc.l. I c10 not yet know the contents of the letters. 
I have sought an ['.udience with the Kine several tioes, but he is too bllSY 
rrith other oatters, and has told me to wait until they have been dealt with. 
Ke and his, generals are cU.s cus s inG the '.7assaw palaver anc_ have time for 
nothinG else. He will ap)oint a day soon li/hen the contents of the letters 
can be made knm·m. 
The originnls of these letters, c1.ated 24th 1.>.ncl 29th May 1816, I still 
havc not seen. I cather they are t h e ones retaine c-:' by Generals Apia and 
Barriekie together ", i th the drink~ cte., and about which the Kine is so 
angry. Their contents are now pres\.lL1ably sooewhat out of elate, because 
the arr::.ies have t e.ken so long on their return joUrney; Nevertheless, 17hen 
they coDe, I vfill read theo to the King and note his ansYlers.. 
I am puzzled that the Genera l does not 1.>.]near to ha ve received my 
letters dated 16th and ultimo ' July, and the copy of oy journal tB 3rd July. 
I sent these with sone Derchants; who were takinG tusks to Emina and asked 
me for a note of co:nendation to r:rg people there. I can guess what has 
happenec, however . The Eloinas ha ve prevailed upon Apia to prevent the 
transoission of all letters to here fron Elni.-,'18. and from JUnine. to here. 
They have done t his by claioing that the Gener2-1 is a be,d Dan anc'c is 
threateninG the King. 
'12th. 
~Optained no audience. 
I learn that the Elnina terrograndes ana Mr . Nieser have aGain sent 
a plea to the iling ur5ing hie t o sup~ly Den for an 2-ttack on English 
Coooany. The KinG has not replied. The nessaee fron the Eloinas was brOUGht 
by the saoe Ashantis who carried the General's let'ters. 
13th. 
ACain I could obtain no audienoe , though I tried several tioes. I 
\Tant to inforo the King how e.ncry the General, ny naster, wi ll be to learn 
that the contents of his l et ters are still unknorm to His 1bjesty. 
All the GenerGls ar o very busy '>lith pal Gvers. Apia 2-nd Barri ekie 
are said to fear for their heads because of the nU\"J.erous irregull:'.rities 
they have comoi ttecl. 
~ , 
No audience!. 
GeneroJ. J01,l\7 Kokroko arrivec'_ toclay with his arDY ancl was received 
with Gr eat cerenony. He has lost 15 oen Clead. 
Today ."e received nore presents of Gold t hat He h.?vG for some tioe 
past . This is good, for the treasury is nearly eopty. Since oy SUp)~ 
of sheep r Gn out , I have been forced t o Give ny nen l5nclecipherabl!U' 
as oaintenance money, I'.ncl have been abl e to persunde theo to accept it 
only Hit h nuch trouble. 
15th. 
Agn.in no audienco . 
The Kilfe i s still palaverinG ,lit:1 his officers. 
FrOD the 1 6th until to cla,y I hnve tried by a ll possi bl e Donna to gain 
access to the lung , but in vain. The KinG sends t o ton me tha t heMs 
no time t o, spare, but that I D,+St not take this amiss. The letters 
will be a t tenC!.ec1 t o in dUG course ana, he will ' Give De a very f avourable 
nnsw~r. 
19th. . . 
I wa s visited today by the ' Kine of 'Manpon, bu nafile Attokru , Olld 
~y Gener a l J ouv/ Ko~oko. To..;rovide for t hec I bouGht 2 beer glasses full 
of run f or 2 ~dec~pherabl21 of gold. 
20th. 
~t the Iline ts request I n ccepted t o-day a }-Gallon anker and 1 piece 
of long paneg?ed froD Gener al , Apia. I also aer eed to a ccept the 2-Gallon 
jar and the piece of glascodeen which &rriekie s ent ue SOJ:le time back. 
The se two generals have f e,llen into deep discr a ce , partly because 
they di d 1IWuy with the Gener nIfs l etter, but o..lso becO-us e they M ve been 
selling at olen prison er s . 
The lling . hus a lready confiscated nor e thun twelve ,hundre d ounces 
of gold .as well a s goods anc1 sl['.vesfron v['.rious of f icer s , nn e'; most of 
the culprits ha ve been f ett eFed and· pl a ced in 10g .83 
No audien~e~ H"ia Maj esty i s s till pnlo.vering . 
21st. 
~Genero.J. Poekoe cone t oday t o t ell. De in t he lUne 's nace thct I oust 
lw-ve pa tience until aft ei' His :i&". j es ty has cel ebmt ed ·his New Year. nxm 
the letters wi ll b e opened. The New Yenr will be h el d durinG the nex t 
f our dnys, the 22n CL, , 23r c1 , 24th 0n'ci, 25th ins t ant. 
I ask ed if it was no t poss i bl e even f or De to spenk to t he lUnG, 
. but r eceived the nnsvler, "Not possi bl e-. II 
22nd • 
-Todny various · cr ec,t er ['.n cl lesser k:f.m.gB84 beuan arr~vJ.!lg : .. her e t o 
itake pcxt in t he New Yeo.r. Ther e nr e f our norses in the town, one of 
which is of noronl s i ze . Three of then bel on5 t o the !ling . 
The canel which I nentionep, SODe t ine ba ck died on t he vmy here. 
The l ength of the 40urney and its nrduous IlDUure were t oo nuch far 
the beast. Baa, f ood o.n cl inexper t cO-r e nlso contributed t o its deL'.th. 
23rd. 24th o.nd ..wh. 
. The se \'lere not audience d['.y s " ,"-ncl it 'rI['.S imposs i bl e even to 1'e2.ch 
the open spuc~ in front of the . pa L.'1.ce , More t han 0. hundred arad fifty 
thou~ o.nd peopl e [Or e present in t he t own, r.lD.ny from the surrouncling districts ~ 
Because of the No'o7 Yeo.r fos tiv.ities I ho.ve hac. the opportunity of 
soeine the !\inc ' s wives . They nunber three thousnnd, ~thr ve hundred and 
thirty-throo. All a r e ver y w'ell turnec". out, .,earmc cos tlY cloths an cl 
s ol d ornnoents.. . 
On the 25th the lune hol d nili kry par acles and t e's t ecl t he 
cnpabilitie s of his offi cer s . 
r h.'we spent a br ee- t de:- 1 of c'!rink ancl cloth ·, bcc('_u se of these 
cel ebr e-tions , o.n il have h1'.c1. to Gi ve t o oy boys f or New Yecx presents notes 
o.f · hand paynbl e a t Eloinu f or t wo f o. thons and for one, f a thoD of cloth 
ill: en ch ca se . 
30th. 
Fron the 26th' until t ocky I ho.vo aske (~ r epeo.tedly f or an audie.;p,~ , 
~. Lit., in c1ubbe~ blokkon en boei..i;!ns i.ies}-J:..;cn..L~~in l!?s!', . 
84. 'Chiefs o.nc"!, par o.raount ehiei's , ' l)Ut t his s cons ::ma chr.on:Lstic. 
-43-
and ~t l~st· one is fixe d for tomorrow. The contents of the letters will 
then be reacl. . 
U]. Hmo A%~st. • . 
This morninG the KinG'sent fOr _flO,. First, he referr e c', to the request 
that the River BosUfJpr2. shol,llel. be explore C\ , statinG thc.t this w~s IDpossible 
for ne-groes since they he(l. no boc. ts. . ; It could be beti:;erdeme by Vlhi te 
men,. 
On the subject of 2. aeetin.:; l.:ith the General, His f.k-:. jesty se-id thd 
he ho.ct [Clready explained that ho could, not lce-ve his cr.pital in order to 
s-cr.y ··in other plC'-cos without ruinint; thon. He looked fon.ard, hoV{ever, 
to 1', visit frofl the GenerLl c.s soon I',S the highvmy85 h['..o. been ,completed. 
Co~cerninG tho me-intennnce of pel:',ce on the Coast·, the KinG said, there 
is no nore to ' be c"-iscussecl . His e-rnies hc.ve :". l rlOst r eturned home, and 
no ~rth cr orcters C2.n or n08 ~1 be Given them. 
These a r e his o.nsY,er s to :theduplicr,te l et:cer of 24th 1l:.'1.y 1816. 
His'ans17er t o the l etter dnted 29th Mq is: He woul d like to'he,ve 
theD(cows , horses, e tc.) . . , 
Re Go.r Ctins the letter of 24th July the King said, "Wh a t cloes the Genere.l 
want me t o'd(D now? Fre wi shes t o snve nenls lives, ::nc yet the WassC'-ws 
will not visit hID t o se etl e: thejlnlo.ver. The Genernl tr.kos the positi on 
the'lt a l1neG,o tintiops he-vy noV[ belm broken off. Neverthele;ss, I will h2.ve 
the hi Ghwe-y De,co; e.ncl e-s q\1ickly cs ppssible.,1t 
. The KinS then o.sked ne , on ny r e't urn to ,1<:1Dino. , to thank the Genere.l 
for iiending hin. the Dirr~)]I·. He i s very anx i ous t o soe the writing desk 
to \Thich the mirror bel onGs , 86 for he cannot illlder s tc.nd who. t Vlris can 1:n 
like.' I s a i cl it ',70uld be s~nt to hin:'" • 
He said. tho. t he Vlo~d let ne t ake ny depc.rture wi thin 0. fe,,; cL.-:.ys .. 
Pr.ino S~tember .1816~ . . 
Toclny Gener C11 Bo.rriekie vms tried in pub lic froD 8 0 r clock in the 
clOrnins 'until 5 e-t niGht c,nc. ho.s boen execra ted on r..11 s ides. It , is fe o.r ecl 
tha.t, even if he cloes net l ose h i s heaCl. , he will bo c~eprived of ",II his 
possessions 2..n c1 rO .. ove0, fr oD his cnboccer I s stoo"1. Thor e 'were six. nen 
opposecl to hID [).t the bee.rinG. 
Other1.7i se no news. 
2nd Sept enber 
Tode.y Genero. l Barrieki e YlC'.S c.e thronec:' fron his stool: 87 All his 
possessions have boen t ('.ken '::'.'I[l.y fron his, nn el h e , who once ho.0.. 30, now 
has only ono wife left. The KinG h['.s o. l so confi sco.t ec1 nIl Bar r i ekiels 
,slaves . 1..".ter nnother pm-son will be electE) el to s it on the stool. 
Barri ekie 15 .::.nkles have buen shc.ckle c:' f or throe days. He ho.s been put 
in l OG and is s till thero. 
~ 
FrOB the 3r cl illltil todny I hc.ve done ny 08S t to rn,ke tho IGnG or eler 
tho cuttinG of the hi Chj:fr.y t o heein , ',)~t his c.nSHer o.l 17("Ys i s, "Good; 
Good. , Fro. ve po. tionce . EverythinG will come out e-ll right." 
~ 
I SOUGht " n o.uc1i6nc6 a ne.., · on b,e i nc 0. (:'l:it tocl to tho Kine's prosenco, 
rcyuosted: thn t hc \loulel bo so rooc". 90S t o c1ri ve the hi"hiny t hrouGh to the 
85. Lit., de fjr oo t o weL. (Fron now on , tro.ns l e-tecl. as Ihichrray l) , 
86. Lit., de s:eie;::;,el secre t ni re . . 
87. Lit., ~ond veB de stoel. IDestool ed l sounds C1TIr.chronistic. 
-44-
~aBt 0.8 quickly nn possible, becaus e the {;o~oro.l 'lrery mush w~nted 
' 0 pay his visit during this- pro ocnt T:lonth. 
At thi s tho Ktn~ bec~me~a iitt l e short wi th me . The r e2sons. 
~ e s:liCi., why the work had not been started before ' now Viere to be 
:ound a t Elmina . EvE:.TC'y r eport he W8.S r eceiving. frorl ther e gave the 
~ener[', l 8 bac: char 8.ct er ,~. ,. He went on, "The c au's e of my present 
ttitude to you is that -me:rC0:ants r e turning trom Elmina bring 
othing but bad news and( illrt.' ports of your mast er, They a ll say 
,ha t the Gener a l is only waiting for your r eturn before destroying 
El mina TO Vlin vIi th his guns." . 
Ago.inst tl!.isatta,ek I def..  e!1ded myself a11d my master . as mueh 
s n ·man could~ ~he King Sa id a t l ast, flIt you will taka the 
hole pa l cver on yours elr and s8ttle it at Eimina so tha t nc 
a l av :o rs. wh['t t ever n.r C) outstanding. I will at onc e l e t you go and . 
,ill b egin.building the highway, But, as ! ,underst and the matter. 
lfour master is n v ery irascible man, and wi~ eertainly burn the 
town." I ' . • ••. 
.. 
I said th?t obviously I dar ed not t ake the whoQe palaver on 
ys elf, but that, if he thought fit, he should send one of his 
O~TI men to accompany me to Elmina to settle it. The aff air was 
at bet 1Neen the Gener a l and the Elminas a'lone. I said, beeause the 
(ing of Roland was a .party to 1 t and must be eonsul t ed. 
Th~ King seemed satisfied with this r eply" and s p.. id, "Now 1 
am convinced that my peop.1e are ~e:uslng your master somewhat too 
:vehem8ntly. But l e t the "General come here. Then it , will be 
seen what manner of ~an he re ally is. I for my part will not 
say 'bad_thi ngs about him." 
And.,~ finally, the King said t "I am f earful les~ the General 
will r >::: ven~e ' 11ims elf because of a ll the accusat ions" 'chat 'have 
been l evelled against him. I kriow all the Elmina s S'ly is not true. 
but I ~m worried ~bout the possibility tha t the General will take 
r evenge against th~~." . 
I s aid tha t · the General would be able bo dea l satisfactorily 
with the Elm
, :i.na s. 
Fbr three days now t have been trying hard to persuade the 
King to order the construotion of -the higb.way~ . All he says is, 
"It will be done." 
Three weeks ago he s ent men to Tando to f Gtch the General'f3 
lett ers, but they n.re not back y et. 
~. 
'N'othing happened. 
I have not spoken to the King sinpe the 9th instant. No 
news on the 10th, 11th or today _ 
1 ~t,h August 1816. • . 
I h3v~ not $poken. to tb9 'King lor the pa.st three d'1Ys. 
Yesterd::w evening I wo.s told th'l t thG :King would let me go 
wi thin ,., f ew d'3.Ys , .." nd would elSo begin bupding the h:i,ghwny • 
.. He , is noW' 'nost distrustful of me b~.quse of the evil news be ing 
r ece ived from Elmiha~ 
" . ' ' . ..: ~ I , I 
16th August.: 
This morning the King sent. fo'r I1~ ' ,~nd, ,;lth' ~ve~~ ~ ign of 
goouwill, said th::.t, 's i nce the ~~~ll r~ins ~~~e ~b Qut , tQ~begin, 
he would ~llow me to l e~ ve v ery s')on :::.nd · would ';:,.iso sto.'rt 
constructing the highw:J.Y. 
45 .... 
When the rains wer e over, the General woul d b e able to visit him. 
He is still puzzled about the d.elay in the rece ipt of the 
letters sent by the General via Tando. It is said that Tando is 
to bring them himself, and that the Genera l told him to do this. 
The small rains have started, 
I impressed once again on the King the sincerity of the 
General's feelings tow&rds him, but a ll he saio was, "Good, Good." 
17th. 
Today two slaves 8,rrived, bearing the original l etter signed 
by the Gene.ral at Elmina on 24th May 1816. They belonged to 
General Barriekie, now dethro.n e d. I read the contents of the 
l etter to the King, who said, "You h a ve told me all this before." 
I said, "That is ' so, b"l.J-t Your IVlajesty wil l now understand 
the General's purpos e al l the better," 
He laughed and said that he had understood perfectly well the 
first time a nd had already given his answer. wbite men, he 
said, were indeed wise r than negroes. 
18th. 
No audience with the King today. 
Yest e rday I saw a number of Malabar negro e s. 88 They were 
dressed like Turks. They live in various of the King's towns, 
and had walked 10 hours to g e t here. One of them told me that 
he knows Tomboektoe, Houssa and Kagna well, but that no Ashanti 
is familiar with thes e places because the King 's highways do not 
. run there. Cong is 60 to 80 hours distant from here, and 
belongs to the King. The King's domains stretch for about 400 
hours. His villages are a t l eas t t e n thousa nd in number, mostly 
. acquir~d by war. This tota l of villages does not include those 
b e longing to the King on the A~cra and Appolonia sides. 
19th. 
All qui e t today . Most of the Kings and caboceers ·hav e 
r e turned to their villages. I now await the King's order for 
the cutting of the highway. 
20th. 
Yest erday a man was abruptly beheaded i n the stree t. The 
r eason was that he had put dishonour on the King by neglecting to 
run away as f ast as h e could wh en the King 's wive s came upon the 
scene. For this he lo s t his h ead in a flash. 
When thes e women are abroad in the s tree ts" they a r e 
accompanied by small boys with staffs. It is their ·s·taffs that 
indicate that the se women a re royal wives . Even the King ' s 
brothers are obliged to. get out of their way , or ru,p the risk of 
losing the ir heads.as the common p eople 00 . No c aboc eer, however 
important h e may be, dares to remain on the street if he sees 
any .of these wom en apprCoching. 
21 st, 
The King has s ent word that he wishes me to attend him 
tomorrow. He 'Nants to t a lk about the highway . 
No othe r news . 
88. See fn. 56 above . The spe lling is quite c l ear this time, 
- 46 -
22nd. 
Early today to the palace', but the King was unable to talk to 
me. All the nobility are discussing with him the matter of my 
departure . I was told to go home and await a further summons. 
This I did. 
About 11 o'clock General Poeko e sent for me. Arriving at the 
palac e I found a ll the royal linguists assembled . They gave me 2 
ounc es of gold as a present, and told me that it was the King's 
will that I should not l eav e yet, not in any ev ent until the highway 
had been strarted. The King had sent me these two ounces, and 
now asked me to be patient and await the return of the messengers 
he h ad sent to Wassaw. He was hoping these messengers woul~ find 
out what answer the Genera l had made to the Wassaws. If they 
returned with good news, he would let me go imme diate l y . If the 
news was bad, he would send an army to cut the highway through and 
bring the Wassaws to a sense of obedience. They were failing to 
carry out the orders of ·their mas.t e r a nd his. In this way , the 
King said, he was ensuring tha t the General's wishes would be 
b+ought to fruition by the quickest possible means. Moreover, 
the General's lett ers had not yet arr ived. All this made me more 
than ever incensed against the Caboceer Tando, who is delaying 
these letters for such .a  long time. " 
The King is well di~os ed towards me again, a nd is convinced 
that the Dutch are his true friends. He is v ery anxious that I . 
should leave so that I can bring the General back with me on my 
next visit. 
23rd • 
.. Today I hoped.to send one of my boys to Elmina, but the King 
forb a de it. .... HEi distrusted the Wassaws, he said, for they had 
prevaricated in their dealings with the General~s messengers. 
I ron not to send any letters to Elmina from now on. If a 
messenger should be panyared by the Wass a ws, the King would have 
to punish them. The General would hot want me back until I had 
completed my mission, even if thi s me ant delaying mY , departure 
longer than expected. 
No news is good news. 
24th. 
No news. Incessant rain. Heavy thunder al l day. 
During the l ast four days it has rained from morning until 
night. The small rains are here and in the bush they are worse 
than the main rainy season. 
29th. 
Heavy rain again today. I fear the rivers will become 
swollen and my r e turn journey will soon be impossible. 
At midday General Jouw Kokroko visited me and saw me sitting 
miserably at table, dining most humbly off a plate of choking 
malaget pat~.8~ He was very sad to see me thus, and asked if I 
sat like this every day. Hearing that I did, h e went home and 
sent me a sheep and 12 yams, so that I CQuld have a better dinner 
tomorrow. I was much touched by his friendship, which f a r 
surpasses that of other persons here. 
8~. Lit., met esn bord malaget van stikkende pate • 
.. - . .- ... -..... ~--....-.--.-,- .--- --- ...-. '~ .- ...... ~. .....- .. - .---.-- ..- ------~--
- 47 -
30th. 
N.o news. Have not seen the: King for several days now. 
Primo October 1816. 
Heavy rain. Did not l eave the house; 
Today is the Small Addaij, or Good Wednesday. I paid my 
respects to the King but, of cours e , could discuss no bU3iness 
. wi th him. 
3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th. 
No news. Heavy rain. Presents received from Boating, 
King of Djuabin. See list. 
7th. 
I went to see the King to ask if the mess engers were yet 
back from Wassaw. lie replied, IINo. Be patient. They. will come. I! 
8th. 
]'fo n ews. He a vy r a in a nd thunder. 
9th . 
I lea rn tha t for 20 days past the King haEi not b een seen in 
public. He is s a id to be busy with hi,S fetish, engage d in the ' 
t a sk of preparing for war. 1Nhether this is true or not I do 
not know. 
11th. 
He avy r a in a ll yesterday and today. No n ews. 
12th. 
I understand a ll tra d e routes h ave been closed, and that no 
merchants are allowed to go to Elmina until a ft er my departure 
thence. Wh e ther this is the truth or not I do not know. 
Fine weather. 
13th. 
Nothing happened. 
14th. Octobe r 1 816. 
I hea r a great f~te will be held h ere next Monday, but the 
occas ion for it I do not yet know. 
Most of the merchants have now left. They have gone to 
Accra, Annamaboe and Cape Coast, well l aden with 50 l arge tusks. 
They say the pr i ces set by the Genera l at El mina are t. oo high and 
a l s o that, now the General is i n a lliance with ~i.r. Ni ( :';Ar, no 
Ashanti will trade at El mi na any more . &r. Ni eser has deceived 
the General into se lling guns at 8 (indec ipher able) and i s being 
a llowed to adult e r ate gunpowder at discretion. He i s destroying 
the trade of Elmina just as he once di d tha t of Accra. It was 
b e c e,us e of a ctions like these that rv~r. Ni eser was expe lled from 
Accra some time back . 
- 48 
The merchants say 1 further, that if the General and lVlr. Nieser are 
one, the Genera l cannot be a friend Qf the Ashantis " for. all 
nations know Mr. Nieser for the greatest scoundrel in the wor ld. 
The merchants a lso say'that Mr. Nieser adulterates barrels of 
pcwder openly and without shame. During their l ast visit to Elmina 
they saw him doing this. At Accra Mr . Nieser us ed to adulterate 
ankers of drink, and now he is no Qoubt doing the same thing at 
Elmina. 
Guns are obtainable at the Cape and other places for 4 or5 
(indecipherable). It is entirely rv:r . Ni eser's f ault that they 
are not obtainable a t Elmina except at the high price of 8 
(indecipherable). 
I have learnt all this from General Quat.je C~ffie, who is well 
versed in commercial matters. He is strongly opposed to the 
construction of a highway to Elmina, and a ll because , Qf Mr . Nieser's 
activities there. 
16th. 
The great f~te I mentioned on the 14th instant is to take 
place on the 20th. Various Fanti envoys are coming here to seek 
the King 's pardon, submit themselves to him and serve him from 
now on. They have money with them with which to buy from him a 
peace settlement. The latter must be arranged before any other 
bus iness can be transacted. 
Heavy rain this eveping. 
To the palace today, but did not see the King. He is busy 
',;ri th his fetish. 
No news yesterday and today. I sought an audience, but 
could n8t obtain it. The King places al l blame on Caboceer Tando, 
and claims that it is he that is holding up my departure. 
His IJiajeoty S88ms ashamed when he sees me. 
20th. 
Today is the Great Ada~j, or Good Sunday. All the chiefs 
have come into the town to greet the Kin ,,; . On these occasions no 
business may be done. The Fanti envoys arrive tomorrow. 
21st. October 1816. 
Today I once again urged the King to be gin the construction 
of the h':.[';hway? but he said thCtt, since the Fanti envoys were 
arri' l~n:; this afternoon, I mus.t wait until they had completed 
their palave r'. I was disappointed, but had to agree to what he 
prcposed. 
The Fantis have seen the King, but with what result I do not 
yet know.  
Today I requested yet again that t.he htghway should be begun, 
but the King said I mus t corltinue to be patient, and not make 
things too difficult for 4im. All woul d be arranged soon. 
Heavy rain tb.is evening. 
- '+9 -
23rd. 
Today the King suggested tha"t, as he had no opportunity to 
begin the construc tion of the highway, I should be allowed .,t9 leave. 
Later on, when he had more time, the highway would be started. He 
realized that for me to spend so long here without being able to 
communic a te with the General might well be dangerous for me. He 
went on, "The General will be very pleased about everything in the 
' end, and I prefer to · have the matter of the highway settled before 
you leave. I have rtdt ·Yet be~n told what the Wassaws wish to do in 
c:mnection wi 1{h, 'this business, and also the letters from the General 
have not yet been sent on by Tando. I am waiting for Tando. I do 
not want you to go before all outsta nding palavers have been 
settled." 
24th. 
Today I was told the purpose of the Fanti mission. It is as 
follows. The Fantis wish to serve and obey the King of Ashanti 
a nd have brought him gola so that their allegiance may be made 
binding. The King, however, has told them that he cannot accept 
them as his subjects until he has consulted the representative of 
Aduokoe. It is Aduokoe whom he recognizes as chief of all the 
Fa ntis. This representative must therefore be summoned and, if he 
approves, the King will acknowledge that everything the Fantis say is 
the truth. If the Fantis wish to transfer their allegiance, they 
must also surrender to him the subsistence90 paid to him by Cape 
. Cors and Annamaboe. If they do not do this, h e wi~l s end his whole 
a rmy to compel the submission of all Fantiland. The Fantis mus.t 
':3.1so pledge them--sel ves never to commit hostilities against Elmina 
. for, if they do, they risk a terrible fate. 
Heavy rain this evening. 
25th. 
Request ed the King tb allow me to leave, for I fe a r for the 
fut~re. He repli ed, "Do not be afraid. The General s ent you to 
me. You must therefore wait. The General will be quit e satisfied 
with y ou." 
26th. 
Today I aga in r equested the King to begin the high we,y so tha t 
I might leave. But h e said, "Be easy in your mind. Your master 
is now sending another envoy a nd so you will be hearing good news 
soon. Do not try to a lte r the cours e of events, for your cause-- is 
good. Go home now a nd await your frienis. They will 1-. ~ here in a 
fe w days a n d you 1JJill be v ery happy. A white man a nd a soldier 
are coming with Ta ndo." 
This news ma d e my h eart leap with joy. I will soon he seeing 
my collea gues h e r e a nd will b e abl e to r e turn home with them. 
27th. 
-y--
During the p a st 5 days mor e than 2 00 men with ivor y a n d g old 
have left for Elmina a lone. The Ki ng has issued stric t orde r s 
tha t no one must write any l e tters. I plan , howev er, to bribe one 
of the soldiers to t ake a l e tt e r f or me t o the Gen e r a l. It may 
be, of cours e , th~t n one of the sold i e r s wil l take the ri s k. 
To my grea t delight Genera l Po eko e v i s i tpd me this aft e r n oon . 
He told me in the King's name t hat I will be we l come at t he pal ace 
every day ·i.f · I wish it, an d may come to t a l k about thi s and th?, t . 
with His Ma jesty . 
90 Lit., Kostg e ld. See Douglas Coombs, ' Th e place of the 
"C ertifica te of Apologi e " in Ghanai a n histor y ,' Tr ans . ~ 
Soc. Ghana., III, 3 CAchj mata 1 9 58), 180-1 f or a-aISCuss i on 
of the meanjn~ af Kostgeld, or 'SUbs istenc e '. 
- 50 -
From this I deduce that I am in fqvour and the Elmina s are not. 
Heavy r a in this evening. 
28th. 
I did not dare io visit His Ma jesty today. He asked why and 
I sent word tha t I had a he adache, and beggec him to excuse me. 
He replied that I ought nevertheless to P'lt in . an appearance a t 
the open place (in front of the pa l ace?) 1~ order to see the oath 
being administ ered to the followers of Barriekie. I went there 
but saw nothing.91 . 
The King is said to have reviewed 1420 men. 96 · Abo Adie has 
been placed on Barrieki e 's stoo l, and Barriekie himself has been 
made the overseer of a small river . 
I had tio conversation with His Ma jesty today . Heavy ·rain 
this evening. 
31st October 1816. 
Attended His Majesty every day for the past thre e days. 
No news . 
Heavy thunder and rain. 
Primo November 1816. 
Today I put it to His Ivla jesty tha t he should be€!;tn the highway, 
but he said, 'II must await the arriva l of the new envoy and hear his ' 
news. I am ,told th~t.th~ General a t Elmina has settled the 
Wassaw palaver. It is possible .:;. lso tha t the General has hea rd 
about the lies told by the El mi nas and is sending someone to find 
out what the.situa tionhere really is." 
Fine weather . ' 
2nd. 
I sat awhile with the great King of the Ashantis today. I 
noted , but did not r emark on the f act , that His fua jesty is full of 
contempt for someone. It is probably the Elminas. I have often 
b een tol d that he says, "Vlhi t e men speak the truth. ' Some other 
people, however, will be found out in the end and disgraced." 
Wi th the 'King this morning. He gave me a bottle of gin, but 
the Elmina s did not ge t a drop. He certainly s eems to have somethi 
against them. They salut ed him, but he did not ev en look in their 
direction. 
The rumours say that the General's envoy , Pi e ter Woortmati, is 
bringing good news with him, and thatth~ King thinks better of 
the General than he c id. But a ll will be known when Pieter arrive s ' 
her e . 
6th November 1816. 
No n ews for the past three days. The r a ins ar e s l ackening 
off' and in a fe w days should be over. 
91. The exact meaning is obscure in these passages. 
- 51 - ' 
Today in my presence the King sent a boy to Tando, with this 
message: That, whether or not Tando came himself, he must at 
least let the General's envoy through; that Tando's actions are 
not pleasing to the court at Koemassie; and that he must rememger 
that he will have ,to render an account of these actions later, 
which account had better be satisfactory. 
I have sent a message myself to Pieter, to the effect that he 
should not wait on Tandp but come straight through with the King"s 
messenger. Pieter is only three days' distant from her~, and Tando 
is still at Dinkira. 
Today another party of merchants left for the Coast, some making 
for Elmina and th~ rest for Kap Kors and Annamaboe. They have 
been complaining very strongly about the changes in trading 
arrangements at ElIilina and put the blame for the altl?rations on 
Mr. Nieser. 
Several large tusks have arrived here for the King. They are 
probably to be sent to the General. 
~ 
The King tells me that Pieter, and Tando a lso, ~illbe here 
within a few days. Otherwise no'news. 
10th. 
No news. 
~. 
His Ma jesty, coming to see me a t my house~ told me that he is 
much distressed to find tha t the Elminas are such liars and are in 
a position to dQ so great a man as the General such harm. 
12th. 
No news. The weat her is excellent now and the rains have 
stopped. 
,13th. 
Today being Good Wednesday, or Smail Aday, a~l the chiefs 
went to greet the King. I did likewise, but was not able to 
speak with him on business. 
1 14th November 1816. 
This aft ernoon Pieter Woortman arrived her e at the capital 
and saluted we and my men. The King i s busy making custom over 
pne of his nephews, and told Pie ter to l odge with his travelling 
compnnion, the caboc eer Tando. He has not yet asked him any 
questions. I have not so f ar r ece ived any l etters nor even seen 
Pieter.92 I imagine both Piet er's and Tando's statements will 
be heard tomorrow. 
His Majesty came to my hous e an~ stayed talking for a full 
hour. He told me that the Elminas were s aying very bad things 
about the General, the King of Holland and me , and a sked if I 
could not ,settle their pa l aver with me before him. 
92. Perhaps the word ' a lone' should be added here to make sense, 
though it i s not in the text. 
- 52 .- , 
I a!15wered that this was for His Majesty himself to decide, buf 
that I certainly could not do anything fbr the Elminas. They well 
. deserved the punishments they would receive at the General' ,s hands. 
The King repli~d that I ought to pers~ade th? 3eneral to 
fo.rgive 'them . The General would be able to co,y, ·T.:)l their future 
behaviour. He hims e lf wa,s convinced that they had wrongfully 
slandered the GeneraL I said merely that it might well be tha t 
the Elminas ought to be punished a little more yet for their great 
indiscretions. ~t this His Ma jesty l aughed aloud. . 
VJhen he left he g2.ve me a sheep and my men 6 'E of gold to 
buy tobacco with. 
Today SerjeantWoortman, Tando and I were with the King. I 
translate~ the' contents of the l e tt e rs ' tor him v ery carefully, a nd 
h a nded over the fine suit of clothing sent by the General. His 
Majesty was delighted with his present, and said to me , with every 
sign of satisfaction, "I am much obliged to the General our master 
for these things." The l e tter addressed to His Majesty also gave 
him much pleasure. 
He said, "These a r e no doubt the clothes of the King our 
master, or h a s the General h ad them made for me ?" 
I . said the ~eneral had had them made especially for His 
Majesty before his departur ·2 from Europe. 
The King then a sked where was the hat tha t went with the. suit. 
I said I had brought him this a lready. He denied, however, that 
this was so, and said thEtt l ater he must be supplied with the hat 
that belonged to the suit. And so I had to promise that the 
General would s and him a nother h a t. 
His Ma j esty then said, "I am v ery pleased the Gen era l is 
coming here. I will be ab l e to discuss everything with him 
p ersoria lly. I wish him. to know tha t I think highly o'L the Dutch 
and we lcome everything that they do to improve my country." 
I said th~t the General h a d given me 15 or 16 days to get 
b ack to Elmina; The Ki ng said tha t he could not let me go 
until a ft e r the Great Aday or Good Sunday which is du e to be held 
on 1st December n ext. ' 
The General is satisfied with t he a rrangements about the 
12 horses and 50 cows, bulls, etc ., but what will be the price, 
the King wished to know, of the s l aves? It h ad been .understood 
tha t the Genera l want ed 100 slaves. I r eplied that' at Elmina 
nowadays a slave fetched 1 (illegiple) 8 'E a t the most, and for 
this r eas on there was no sl av e trade the r e any more. The King 
l aughed a nd s a id nothing. -
I then a sked His Ma jesty whether,Serjeant Woortman might 
' ,leave tomorrow. But h e r eplied, " Well~ now. I will give you my 
answer in the morning. 1I 
He went on, "Now everything i s in order. I , believe now that 
you h ave indeed told me what the Genera i my maste r wished you to 
t e ll me. The Elminas nea rly spoil ed things for you . . I expec t yo 
to discuss everything .with the Gen eral on your r eturn, ~nd there wil 
be a strong bond betw~en us for ever." 
I said to His Majesty, "The General. my master will put me, 
on my r e turn, unde r the Gommand ·of Adam." '::'3 . 
- 53 -
The King said tha t this 'was 'satisfactory to him,' ' but that I 
must nevertheless give ;him my assurance that I would return. ij!3, 
the King, regarded me as his confidant now. If the General c ame 
without me, it would be t aken amiSs. ' 
To this I r eplied that ,I was but an official and had no say 
in ~uch matters. If the General ordered me to, I would ' ofcour~e 
come , but mor e 1 cO\lld not .promise. The 'King said that, in tha t 
ca se ,1 must writ e to the Gener.1. l to make him promise to br:i;ng me, 
which 1 said I would do. 
lhlQ. 
When 1 visited the K~'ng today I a sked him to allow Woortman 
to l eav e early tomorrow morning cmd to take wi th him His Wll').,j ;e q'ty ~ s: 
answers concerning the Wassaw and English Commany palavers a nd the ,' 
matter of the highway. ' "But· he said that I must be patient. ' 
The K,ing gave Woortman for his subsistence 2 ~ and 14 yams,. ' \ 
-\ . 
I wap sick today and did not see the King. Wortman went to 
the pa lac e but did not, howev er, speak with the King. His Majesty 
is making custom over one of his nephews and will be conducting , 
little or no business during the next 3 or 4 days. 
To the King this morning and asked tha t Woortman migJ;it now 'r 
be a llowed to fit His Ma jesty's trous ers, viz. 1 pai r of 
v pantaloons [md 2 pa irs of under-drawers. The King kept us waiting 
• for at l east three hours before seeing us. The coat does not 
fit him, but he tri ed on t he shirt and waistcoat for a moment or . 
t wo. He complained. greatly about how hot they wer e , a nd quickly 
took them off . 
He s a id, II \;Vhen the trous ers are finish(~ d and handed over to 
me by Woortman, I will say goodbye to him and he may l eav e about 
the ,next Great Aday, or Good Sunday. " After this Wo ortman and I 
went home. 
About 12 o'clock at ni ght the King sent for me nnd gave me 
tho following informa tion: 
1st. Tha t since Tando, contrary to His Majesty's orders and 
against His Majesty 's wi shes, made peac e with the Was saws without 
stipulating any conditions, His Ma j esty hes dec ided to r e j ec t th~s 
• peacc treaty; he wi ll, however, abide by the settlement that hip 
good fri end, Genera l Daendels, make s in his behalf; everything Wi ll 
~e finalized when the sum of money agreed on is placed 'in his hands 
and when he r eceives a confirm~tory le tter from the ,Ge~eral; 94 
• 2nd. Tha t it is the custom nmong the negro es that, when a: ·; 
woman commits adult ery and injures her husband thereby , separ a tes 
from him for a time and then wishes for a r econci li ation, she fir $t 
• sends a sheep, chickens, e tc~ on before ber, and the~ later come ~ hers elf to settl e the r ea l matter a t issue ; Tando tft ' his negotl-a-
• tions with the Was s aws has not s tipul a t ed any of thes , things nnd . has thus not been 2,bl e to collect any damage s from thp Wassaws ; 
94. An obscure passage . The transla tion is by no me ans a 
liter a l one , but the s ens e is ri ght, I think. 
- 54 -
3rd. That (illegibl e ) the Akr G took to Elmin 'l the l etters 
containing the r eques t th ~, t thS: Gener:;,l should settle the , 
Wo.SSo.w p:l l ov er, but Tcmdo prev ent z::d the WGs saws froqr go ing there; 
To.ndo cla i med tha t he hims e l f could ~et everything in order; the , 
r esul t WClS t h",t the Wf't ss ,"!.ws, f [;' i1 80 to ""'ppe r\ r before the Gener "' l 
and did not go to Great Comm?,nij eith2r; Tando, with a vi ew to 
filling his own p,ur ss , took the'who l e Datter upon himse lf, "nd 
s~id th~t it wRsthe King 's ~ish th~ t he , Tando , should,arrange 
everyth ing ; he c l ':'. i meo the 'i'i".',ssmvs did not want to go to BI Dina ; 
he a l so told them th ·,t it vms he .;, l one who could sett l e the 
pa l aver ; only if t hey found he c oul~ not do so wa r e the~ t o plac e 
their c aso before th2 Gene r Gl; the r esult of a J,l t his is th~t 
nothing has been achi eved . 
His Ma j es t y has t h er efor o the fo llowing proposals t o make 
to the Wnss e'l,ws: 
(The next page in the di tlry is blank, exc ep t ' for the 
words" " See unde r 6th December 1616".) 
20th. 
! ' We went to fit the King's trous er s for him too ey , wb.ieh 
pieased him v ery we ll. He asked m~ _to writ e t o the Genercl 
r equesti ng tha t a pa i r of sto~kings~ be sent to him via Woortmari 
and a lso som0 cloth trous ers ~6 and drawers for his da ily us e . 
with a roy ':'-! hat. ' 
No news . 
22nd. 
The Ki ng ha s given me v ery f i rml y t o understand t hat I 
cannot l eave here until a ll outstandin~palavers with the General 
have been settled'. I f I go away now, he says, this will l end ' 
credenc e to the r eport s spre o.d pbroa0 by the El minns that the 
Gener a l ha s evi l intentions,with r 2gar~ to Ash~nt i. The Ki ng 
agr 0e s " howev8r, thnt I , should dismiss my boysC'.<.no. bearers i n 
order to r educ e my expenses. He will suppl y me with the' necessary 
men When the time comes f0r me to d epart. I curbeo my distress ~ t 
the r ece i p t of these orders , and was si l ent. It ~ cems tho King 
i s listening to tho El minas aga in. ' 
23rd. 
, I asked ths Ki ng if Woor t man might l cave ,but he saidi 
" Wait until I give you instructions in , thG ~attsr . Now at l a st 
as a result , of your p ersi stence I have d~ cidcd tob ~gin the, 
highwQ.Y. ;' The wo rk will s t art n ~xt Good'Sunday or Great Aday, 
and Bieter can report to thc' General our mnst ,,, r. on the progress 
of this work." 'Hi s Ma j esty added that how the wpr kmen were 
divide~,was no business of mine. He ~o~ld attend to everythi~g, 
and the' General' s wi shes would b e fo l;Lo"veo.. ' 
24th. 
, ,The Ki ng, :again t ook up , the s ugges tion th,J. t I should be 
charged wi th set,.t ling the lria, ssaw pal av er. The cons t o.nt sending , 
of messengers b,Q.¢k and f orth , he says, pro l ongs things undulYi.nn 
more i mpor t ant ~htt er s ar~ del ~yed . ' 
95. Lit., baarz en, ~hich has no meaning in Dutch excep t ss the 
plura l of Baa~, ' a sp i ny-finned river fish ', Baarz en 
here i s probably " corrupt plural of bas , Fr ench fo r 
t stocking t. ' --
96. Li t., een l akense bro ek . 
- 55 -
He proposes thc.t I discuss the who l e thing wi th ny patron,97 
Gener31 Poekoe, and then report back to him. In thi s way a ll tt~ 
various points can b e d~ ~lt with. 
This afternoon various merchants arrived here from Elmina. 
They say tha t the General is not treating th0 Ashantis well at a~ ~ • 
.~ en they bring their wares to him, he forces them to ac c ept in 
exchange goods they do not want, and if they object he t akes 9 
stick to thom. The King is very ilnnoyed c. t this treat:ncnt of hl s 
Dsrchants. I am keeping silent in the matt er. If I v enture 
any r emarks they are li":ely to be rejected, and this will t end t , 
make tho~erchants'r reports seem more truthful than in fact they 
are 9 
I suggested to the King today tha t he should make so~e reply 
to the General ' § letters and also th~t he should fix the time 
when the highway will be opened. His ~Rjesty snj.d the highw~y 
would be begun e~ght d ~ys from now. 
From the 26th until today the A] ~~ ~nd his counci~Jb~s 
discussed t .he fn,lse repcrts c,lrcul :t:;d by the Elminas. The 
Elminss pressed ~ontinuously for ~ho D CCC~~ ,~oe as true of th~ 
reports r oce~J.tly r eceived from the tovin •. I stood f irm, :md . , 
pointed out th'lt I CO"l,:.ld not ;:,110'1\' my mn.stor to be covered with .. 
'lies in this way, ~nf th~t I could not ~gree ~o t~e suggestions 
.' be ing pu'~ forwarCi. I s a id tha t; 1 could not Gllow my master to 1".-
~lackguarded and tha t, togethe~ with Pieter, I would mnke a full 
• Y:;:'cport re t El'Jlina of e'.'er;ything thnt has occurl'ed . 
• So i n70lved in this business h~ve tha Ash~ntis become thnt) when they h eo.rd my r em~\.rks, they immedio.tely thre.1t3ned th'l.t , iI' 
I did indeed tell the Genera .. everythinG, they would consider 
Pieter '1nd me <1.S their enemic;s • They s rci. d , too, thc·,t if . the 
General heard m;y report in f~ll h e would j;" evi t o.bly bur:1 dOl'm th0 
t01Jm of Elmina ane'! destroy tile' botwes 1,v i th his 8},n!l.0l1, 2.r~d in 8) 
doing 1No·ul c' l:.ims elf become an er:emy of the Ashnntis, They,. said 
tho. t unl ess ,1 li stened to the King;s entreati es he would do 
nothing for me~ The El minac, though the white ~en nr~ their 
mnstcrs, have a lways b pen br(;~h ~ is to the Ashrrntis . If th~ ' 
Gener31 hqilrd the who l e story he could not f ai l to ruin Elm~ria. 
It 'wnS ~acause the Ashantis h3d not wnnt ed him to lc~r~ everyt~~~ ~ 
thl2t they bao had me drink the o.3.th, by whi ",1-- I p'..lr~=i(;c· h1m 01' 
• the lie s· the El~it: .l S he.d Plit'J,r:::'rJ. ~im. '1:'he E1 T1C inas, so the 
.. Aq"~nti8 so..id~ had only tolc, lios t ~U'0C:G~' fear • 
I stood firm, 1.n~ stated again that the Ge~ernl Dust be to 11 
'everything! I s1.dd that the KihC W1.S not c0~~ ar~e~ ir tte mattc~ " 
The EJ "'-in-:·.8 J I j.ns':".T: ad, mU3t b() Sutlishe.:'l , eme) i.. ;::.u,,'(l :; not i.,~) j"''1.k2 
~bls~ st~tr~~nts to n King as g~eRt ~s the Kine of L3h~nt~. 
These f "l sf refvrt3 of theirs woul('~ certqinly he.ve c:::.usec1 "- Y.'~~ 
~f I h~d not been here ~n~ hqi not und9Tctood the negro ~onr~u 
As reg~rd.g · the King "-Del what 1: 011C:l', t; ~(j c'o , ::,f be rc .::.d scr,t O::-H= c-
his e;8I1 c r Ct ls on so weictty 2."1,1 ~.r;rp(,r t , <. ~ 8. lY,is3 i on (qS the Gener ' "-
• my m,'lst"r h:ld s ent rna) , aDd -: f ":'''':1 ::\l'. )G;l:;; r rEner"l na.c, sc'nt OE' , 
1':'.8 slel.ye s 6'_ong f':Pt e~w3.rds, [lLd th~ 3 c:"ave il[,d wcr:{L,C i:1 0;':;;02:' ~; 
• to the Kine; 's wi sh '3s apd he,c 'LJ.rtc1c the I\i!'lgC'~~ 'c" ..... 0 0. 'c,ld n::m 'l. __ • tf, on top of a ll this, the); ~ng's own C'lycy had k9I't t~-_-:; S~8"'rc:O 
nc tions secret so thnt t he Kirg hoard about them fr 0ID so~eore el._ 
whn t the:l? Woul ('. not His I\la~csty p'-'.nish the gene~o..l.' sslD.vC 
by cutting off h i s h oad? 
- 56 -
When they heard this question, everyone pres ent wa s 
dumbfounded. The chi efs began to mutter among themselves, "The 
whit e man is right. The whit e man is right. This is serious. 
Villa t shall we do?" 
The King then took me by the hand, 2- nCl said, "Broni e , you 
nre behaving today in a very hard Clnd obstinnte way. Could you 
not do me 0. f avour, and Out out of your book all me ntion of this 
business?" 
I s a id. "No. I c 8.nnot and may not do this. I cannot be 
unf s.ithful to my mast 2r, but must make everything known to him." 
"Then you wish to bring ill' fortune to Elmina ?" 
"No," I said. "My moth(~ r, my wife ::mcl. my children, indeed, 
my whole f amily all liv? a t Elmina. I could hardly wish to harm 
it." 
"Wha t must I do then, Broni e ?" 
I told the King tha t he could not do bett er than l e t me write 
everything down and s end it to the Genera l. For his part he 
could hav e one of his own men accompany me, and this man, spe 3.kine; 
on the King's b eha l f , could entreat the General t o let the Elmina s 
off with but a s mall punishment. It was c erta inly true th0. t 
there was nothin~ the Gener a l would not do for His Ma j esty. This 
would b e tho b es t me thod, I s a id, of persuading the General to b e 
l eni ent. 
The King, however, sCli d t hat he f eared the Genernl would not 
pardon the Elmina s and, i f he did not, this would bring shame upon . 
Ashanti. His 1,a j esty would not li s t en to wha t I said, and insisted 
that I must remove fro m my book everything I ha d written. 
I said ( and it was true ) tha t I ha d prepared thre e lett ers to 
the Councillors a t Elmina r e questing , on the King's behalf, tha t 
they should influenc e the Genera l t o mitig'1 t e the punishment given 
to the Elminas; tha t the forgiveness me t ed out by the Gen er a l 
would thus be a t the King's instigation; thot the Elminas would 
never b e able to t ell these li es ilgc in, sinc e punishment would be 
hanging OV8r them; and tha t, in cons equenc e , the King would b e in 
no danger of suffering dishonour a t t he Gener 8.1's hands. 
But the King b ecame angry, and s a id, "Who among us c an r Ced? 
You t B. lk like this to cheot me , ano. mal<:e me l ose my town, y es, 
even 8. town a s gr eat e.s Elmina . This is no good a t a ll. We must 
decide diff er ently from thi s . Come her e' tODorrow und brigg.toe 
three l e tt ers, and we wi ll s ee wh~t can b e done t o ensure Elmina 's 
well - b eing and t o pacify the Gencr e. l a t the s ame time ." 
I s a id tha t, s i nc e t hti Ge ner a l had told Wortman to stay no 
longe r thiln 2 days, he woul d have to l eave for Elmina this s ame 
evening , and that I int ended to s cnd my entire journa l with him, so 
thil t the Ge ner a l mi ght be a cqua i n t ed with wha t hnd been happening 
here. 
The King r epli ed t hat Woortmnn woul d hav e to st :3.y until 
tomorrow, and thnt it wa s he, the King, who d ecided whRt we envoys 
did in such c a s es as this. Then h e stood up and left us 
perplexed. We wont home . 
29th. 
This morning early the King summoned me and the Elmina s. 
He a sked me if I still int ended to make a full r eport to the 
Gener a l, or if I would r a ther do him a s ervic e and writ e to the 
Genera l wha t he hims elf would dicta te. 
- 57 
Once again I said it was impossible for me to deceive my 
master. If I did so, I would break my oath to the King of 
Holland, and bring disaster on myself. 
tlWell, now,1I said the King. IIYour master at present knowf;3 
nothing of this business. Eve£Ything that has happened, has ' 
happened here in my capital .... 98 .. By making you drink the oatp. 
I have purified the General of all the ill that has been spoken: of 
him. You must now listen to me, and do what I say. It is net 
always necessary that great men know everything that occurs.. ;J-f 
you d'o not do as I ask,. you are inviting the General to ruin my' 
town of Elmina and are :falling out with me and making yourself ~y . 
enemy. But go your ways, and: let everything be upon your Oll\ffi read. II 
At these words of the King's I became very anxious in my 
mind, and decided that I would have to agree to what His .Majesty 
was proposing. It was true, after all, that he was trying to : 
prevent harm to the town of Elmina. 
(I took into account,too, the fact that the Elmi-nas and the ' 
3 linguists had already agr€ed to withdraw all the lies theyha~ 
told and throw themselves on the King's mercy, I felt I had to 
yield a little,99and listen to His Majesty's suggestions.) 
The King then proposed the following, which I agreed to under 
duress, since I did not wish to cause a breach between His 
Majesty and the General: 
, The Elminas said to the King that they feared Your _ 
Excellency 100 because, from the time of your arrival in the co~try 
.. until now, you did not sign any contract with them nor did you ' 
• y transact any business with them; with regard to Your Excellency's 
character and whether you were a friend or an enemy the . Elminas 'had 
no opinion; but because Your Excellency persistently prevented 
, them from marching against Commanij, they had felt it necessary 
(not knowing what Your Excellency had in mind in thus restricting 
their actions), to send to the King of the Ashantis for men, 
because they did not trust Commanij. By making 'me swear the Great 
Oath , the King purified Your Excellency of all the wrong done tQ you 
and with this aspect of the matter the King 'and all his councillors 
are entirely satisfied. The King has now brought about a 
reconciliation between the Elmina s and me, and has. told the Elmj,na s 
very firmly that they must always serve your EXc€ll:enG'JLc. . - -~ . '.. __ . 
faithfully, saying to them~ . "The General is my master and your 
master both. If the Genera l does not trea t you well, he is not· 
my friend" If "you do not obey and serve the General, you are IIJY 
enemies . I will always choose the side which is in the right. "'.' '. 
The Elmina s then asked the King to reconcile the General to ,them 
and seek his pardon for them because they came here without his 
• permission . They s aid they had fail ed to reques-t a perm;tt from 
. the General solely bec aus e of their f ear of Your Excellency. 
To the King ' s suggestion tha t the above should constitute 
the written record of events here I have agreed. I quite~ s ee '" 
that there must .be no unnec essary pa laver bet ween mys elf and the 
Elminas. 101 It is best tha t we follow the King 's wishes or else 
the chief object of my mis s ion will be thrown away • 
• 
, Everything was now done , and the Ki ng s en t for a l arge bottte 
of ,rum and a f a t sheep f or our s us t enance , saying tha t these wer e 
• to show tha t we were fri ends and would r emain so, 
98. Short indecipherable pas s age her e, 
99. Lit., de bot vieren. (ITo pay out a r ope ' i s een touw 
bot vieren.) 
100. At this point t he t ext t akes on t he f or m of a l etter or 
explana tion addres sed directly t o Gener a l Daendels. 
101. There is consider able amplification and par aphras i ng her e. 
The text is highly e lliptica l. 
- 58 -
Ke then Dade all my Den and those of the Elminas swear on their 
lives that everything that had happened here would reoain here, and 
that no-one would re,peat any of ,it at Elnina, lest rumours came to 
the General's ears and caused trouble. Each man had to speak the 
following words: 
"If, when I am in Elnina, I ever ' say one word about this 
palaver between the white man and the Elminas to anyone, whoever 
he may be, I break the Oath of the King of the Ashantis and forfeit 
either my head or the sun of 120 preguns." (A pregun is 2 
(indecipherable)~ 
Woortman had to swear too, and then everything was finished. 
I must state, however, that the true story as originally told by 
the Elminas is accurately recorded in my journal under date 20th 
July, and that I have not dared to remove this entry~ The three 
letters written to their Honours, Messrs. van Voit,'1u2 Malet and 
Oldenburg, were torn up in the presence of the King and all his 
chiefs. This was done on His Majesty's orders. 
The King gave me his hand, and said, "The highw<:J.'Y will be 
begun on Monday. The General our master will then be able to come 
here and enjoy BY hospitality." 
The joy of the Ashantis was unbounded. 
(I have renoved the original report frOID my journal.) 
30th November 1816. 
v~ent to the King, and requested that Woortman night now be 
allowed to depart. His Majesty said he might leave next Tuesday. ' 
Primo Dec emb er 1816. ' 
(Marginal note: tlToday is Great Aday, or Good Sunday.") 
The King asked ne this morning if I were not very hi:1ppy that 
the highway is to be beguri tomorrow. I said I would be a lot . ' 
happier if I myself were taking the news about it to the General. 
The King said, laugh .i.ng, "You cannot go until all palavers are 
finished. You are jealou-s of Fieter because you cannot go with 
him. " 
2nd Decenber. 
This morning in my presence the King issued his instructions 
to the various chiefs who lare to supervise the, construction 'of the , 
highway. They asked for. 6 pregumsor 3 to 8. 103 . I have 
advised the General of this request in my letter of today' s ,date. 
Immediately the money was paid over, the highway was begun. 
It is more than forty feet wide. The King, all his chiefs and I 
went to look at the work this afterno9n. His Majesty was well 
pleased. 
3rd December. 
WoortDan was ready to leave today, but the King stopped him. 
The reason is that the Wassaw envoys are due tomorrow,and the 
King wants Woortman to hear what they have to say before he goes. 
,. . 
102. Spelling doubtful. 
103. Sic. 'Meaning obscure. 
: .) 
- 59 
4th ditto. 
Today the Wassawa arrived. There are 4 of them. They have 
greeted the King and .have been sumptuously received. 
I went to look at the highway, and found the labourers 
working cheerfully away., They tried to persuade .me to send for 
presents r~ them, , .. 
5th. 
T'oday the Was saws disclosed the purpose of their mission. It 
appears to be of small importance. They ~ay that Tando told· 
Caboceer Eltefor that the .Kingwanted to kDow whether Eltefor 
wished to discontinuehis ' allegiance to Ashariti ••• Two chestl3 
of gin have arrived for the King ••• Ev:eryone present expressed' 
contempt for both Tando and the Wassaws. 104 
6th December. 
The King summoned both me and th~ Elminas today with a view 
to .examining with us the Wassa..ws'intentions. .They were asked 
whether they were going to co-operate with the General in settling 
the palaver or whether theyregarcled him as a fool and were 
planning to impose on him and delay the building of the highway. 
The King told them that, if they had anything to say,. they shoul4-
sa,y it. lIlfe assured them that the General would, from; compass:ion 
alone, make allowances for their stupidities if they been guilty 
of any. Hut the Wassaw envoys ans1}To red that .t-hey were only small 
.... boys, and would have to discuss these great- ma.tters with their ' 
. masters. 
At this all the generals, .officers, etc., stood up and, at 
the .King's order, raised their swords and swore this oath to ;the 
honour of our General, · all speaking very seriously. Each in 
t1,lI'n said these W) rds: ' 
"I swear by the Great Oath of Cormantijn that, since the 
General our master has charged the King of the Ashantis With the 
task of building a highway in order that the said General--may 
honour our King by visiting him here .inhis capital, this highwai 
shall be constructed without any changes of ;plan, and that, if 
any man opposes the General's wishes in this matter, I will take 
up arms against him and prove that I am the faithful servant of 
King Saij. 
I further swear that if Eltefor or ' any of .the Wassaws tries 
to deceive the General wi th trickery or opposes his passage (to 
the capital), I will take up arms and will, without mercy, drive 
• Eltefor away from the highway, in order that the highway may be constructed where the General wants it.. This I swear by the 
, Oath of Cormant.i.jn and Saturday. n 
Then the King gave orders that, in honour of the General, 
every man present should pass in turn before me an& -take a second 
bath. And they all very wil lingly held up their swords and, with 
the blades al~ost _t ouching .. my nose, spoke these words: 
• An extremely obscure passage. The nearest I can get t~ ' the 
• Dutch is: "Dat Tando 8lan de Cabocier Eltefor had gaan zeggen, dat de --Koning vpaagd indien El t 'efor hem niet langer wil calio har$Ii.hij hem Tando foefoe ter~~ op de rug moeten gooijen 
ten bewijzen hij de Koning niet meer wil trouwen en zonde 2 
kelders genever voor de Koning. Waarover elk een zeer gr??? 
wierd, en Tando met de Wassasche verragten." 
- GO -
"Bronie, I SW80T by the Gr ea t Oath of Cor mElntijnj I SW0 :lr by 
Sa turday and by my Ki ng Saij j tha t sinc e your mr' st ,:; r t h ,:;' Gen er a l 
wants the highway built, it shall b!f ~Uil t; ::md if 8.nyon e tri e s to 
delay the Gen er a l by prevaricating , ~ I will r emove the v ery 
roof fro m his hous e . . 
I s wear by the Honour of your Gener a l tha t, if Gny IDGn trie s 
to · prevent the highway now' decided upon fro m being built, he will 
pay for it with his goods, his slave s and his head . I s wear 
th~t t he wi she s of t he Gener nl ' Qur m~ st or .will prev~il.~ 
' . '1 ' 
"i1Tfuen ~ li t his wa s ov ~" r, t h ", Wc'. S S ,n,WS wer e l eft in no doubt th,"',t 
this was no joki ng m~t t er, ~ D d they mut t er ed t erribly qg ~ins t 
T2ndo. They clni med th~ t Tnndo h~d dece i ved them badl y . They 
[\11 s a id th::l t they nolw s r;,w cl e:".rly th~ t thi s welS a ' s eri ous bus iness. 
7th Dec ember. 
Went t o :L ook , o, t t he highw~y t od:::cy. The work is going on well. 
Gener a l Qua tj e Coffie is ' b egi nid.ng t o di g the ro ot s up out of the 
ground. 
, . ..... .. '.," 
WortmGn is r eady t o s e t of f thi s evening . The King D'l.d e 
the f ollowing sp eech to , him: 
"Pie t er! You 2,r8 now r e3.dy to depr.rt, l.cc omp2ni ed by my' 
envoys [Cnd by thos e of the El mina s. Go with Go d 's , bles sing . 
Gree t the Gener a l my I;l[C s t er h eart;lly on behnlf of me nnd ' lI my 
offic ers. ' Te ll hi b tha t , ~lthough t he Elmi nas have done wr ong so 
fa~ : aa . he i s 'c onc er ne d , he mus t , out ofc ons i der nti on f or me ~ , • 
par do n ,and,,: f -or gi ile: 'bhem. . ,The El mi n::is nnd I a r e now uni t ed , {m d 
wi sh !ll wc:Ys , t o' honour 8,nd s c:rV'j h i m' to the ' best of our 8,bil ity . , 
Tell him we . de s ire no ot h i3r m3s~r t han th ~" Dutch , and th~ t he i s 
the chief of ·ue a ll. ' . 
Tell t he Gener a l my mn.st2r t h 'l t I , expect hi m here. wi t h' 2, S: 
little d~ ~ay a s poeS ib l e' ~nd'th~ t t he h i ghway will ~o6n be open. 
With r -egEu;dto t he Was s D,w. pGl o..ver , I a sk t ha t he , l e t 1:. e know by 
expre ss. ,messenger .whet her' t h e Vhs s o.ws i nt end t o' payor no t, so 
tha t I ' c en decide on my c ours e of ac t ion c onc erning them . I~' 
they wi s h t o pl ea s e ~e , thBY will keep out of the wr y~ Other wi se 
t hey wi ll ' becom'e children of death .1f 
!:. ' 
8th Dec emb er ',; , 
No ., time to s pa re" t od 0,Y. I h F',V(; be en ' busy f or some tim') -..vr i ting' 
a l e tt ~r ori the Ki ng fs beha l f to the Gener a l, and t oday h~v~ 
managed , t o fin ish it. Woort m.'ln l eav l':. s t omor r ow. 
This morning a t 5 o'clobk or daybreak Woortman depar t ed. I 
h o..ve urged h i m no t t o spend' 70 do..ys on the r e tur n j ourney , and not 
t o be t r icked by the Ashantis i~ to t ak i ng mor 0 than 14. 
I wa l ked ,for t wo hours down the hi ghway , r.nd fo und it 2:11 
r eady on thi s s i de . All th~t . r em~ins i s for t he r oo t s to be dug 
out of t h e, gr ound . Wh8n r cmoved , the s e roo t s wi ll be handed ' 
ov er to the Que en and h er s l ave-gi r ls for the maki ng 3.nd s weeping 
of fl oors . 106 ' 
,.,-,.,,--. ~' 
-. 
,, ~, .. ,. -. , .. 
105 . Perh8ps "by humbuggi ng him" would b e " b e t "xr transl a ti on . 
106. Lit. , rim ge li jk v l oers t e maken , en s choon t e v egen , 
( Mod . , Dutch ge lijkvloers .. 'on, the ground floor.') 
- 61 -
1Q!h. 
No news,: M~  ey es u"Ir c~  now fixed on the arrival of the General
becaus e r I expect to be able to return hONe with him.' I see very . 
clearly now thqt th8 King hopes to keep me here until His Excellency 
comes, 
From the 11th until todny, no news . Have not spoken with 
the King in a ll this tiNe. 
18th December. 
I went to look at the highway today,. and noticed it was not 
the same width along the whole of its length. I reported this 
to the King, Qnd he said my wishes in the matter would be attended 
to tomorrow. 
The workmen complain bitterly that they are not receiving any 
drink. I told them to wait a little and they would get some. 
In the meantiNc they must c arry on chee rfully. They were 
gra teful for my words, and went back to their tasks yelling and 
singing with excitement. 
SQ:!i.h. 
, Did not see the King. No news yesterday and today. 
v 21 st •. 
No news. 
No n ews y~~t~rday. ' This morning I wrote a letter to the 
General for the King, stating that His Majesty is sending the 
General n slave-girl with ivory and 2 (illegible) 4 E/ in gold,. 
The girl 1s to buy some fine cloth on His Ma j es ty's behalf •. 
On these occasions the King is very pleased when he appends 
his cross. He says, "Look, I ,a lso can write , 'What do you think,. 
is not my hand better than yours?" 
26th December 1816. 
No news sinc e the 24th. I have been three times to examine 
the work on the highway. It is go ing on but slowly, and the 
l abour ers keep asking for drink. 
, 30th. 
Yest erday the King forb nde me to writ e any l e tters of any 
kind either to the Gener a l or to my o~m people without his 
p~rmission. Nor ~fl I to give Rny message s to t he merchants, but 
must pati ently await the r e turn here of the King's Akkra. ' 
• His Majesty is determined that no one sha ll l eave before the answer concerning the Wassaws has been r eceived. He says tha t 
if I send any lett ers I will become a very bad fri end of his • 
• I notic ed today tha t the workmen have not got on much further 
with the construction of t he highway . They ar e b ecoming very 
disgruntl ed. 
31st December 1816. 
No news. 
- 62 -
PrimoJ anu~ry 1817~ , 
.' ': Today being :New Ye ar's de..y I went to call on the King, and 
received fro~ him a pres ent of 1 (illegible) 2 ~ of gold, 1 sheep 
and 10 yams. He asked me what my master would have given me for 
New Year if I had been at Elmina. I said I would certainly have 
received 5 (illegible) from my mast er. ' 
They King said, "Will the present be kept for you, then, 
b ecause you are away?" 
"Without a doubt," I said. "It will be kept for cievGry 
fai thfully. II 
The Elminas r eceived 9 ~. 
4th January 1817. 
Nothing happened from the 2nd until today. The highway is 
going ahead very slowly, a t least on this side of the capital~ 
The Kings of Adi aben A.nd Bekwaij are praised by the people for the 
good work their men ar e doing. 
5th Januilry, 
Today l asked the King if the highway ,might be pushed forward 
more quickly, for it is hardly progressing a t all. He said1 
"I will look at it myself tomorrow, and give orders for the work 
to be speeded up." 
6th d1.tto. 
d • 
Thi.s afternOOn His Majesty and all the chiefs went to look at 
the highway. I. do not. y et ,know wha t they tho'ught of it. I am 
told that the son oft;he most. senior general,Amanquatia. arrived 
last night from Elmina and has brought some lett;ers tor me. ' 
7th .January 1817. 
i " " . 
I .very early this morning I was summoned by the King. His 
Majesty handed me a l ett8r from the Gener a l our mastur which had 
been brought by the son of Amanquati a . It conta ined good news, 
for it praised the fri endly treatment received by him from our 
GeneraL The King was most pleased to receive this report, whi~h 
indicated: the true feelings and good inte'ntions of the General ' 
towardsh.im. ' , 
The lett er, however, a lso touch~d Hi~ Majesty a little on t~e 
r aw . He told me that the Gener a l must understand that in sending 
me he had sent a good friend to the King of the Ashantis, and mu~~ 
therefore not object if I stay here a long time. Nor should th~ : 
General be. vexed. if I am not a llowed to leave until all outstandtng 
matt.ers 'have been d.ecided. For my fail1,l;re to communicate' with ' 
the Gen~ral; His Majesty ~cc epts full r~sponsibility. . From the ' . 
time the Elpina envoys a;r,riyed he.hRd. absolut e ly forbidden the 
wri ting of. l etters. . This prohi bi.tion wG..;s to last until the arrival 
of Tando'. : It wa s Tando, with his' li es and untruths, who had 1 
intermin~bly.delayed matters. Otherwise someone would unquestion-
ably howe. been ~ent to Elminn to s ettle the Wassaw palaver. The 
King repeated tha t he took upon hims elf alone any blame th'l t , might 
otherwise fallon me. He knows I would have written the necessa:ry 
letters to Elmina if I had been a llowed to do so. A settlement ' 
of the whol e matter has been much delayed because .qf t,h~ . Jlntr\rt:;.ll,$ , 
the Elminas have been t elling him. 
Regarding the slaves, cows, horses, etc., His Majesty has 
already s ent an answer to the General Via his ~. 
.- 63-
A report concerning the . highw8.Y hns also b een s ent by the 
s ame means. 
His Me.jesty' s r e fusa'l to allow Ilhy l ett ers to be ' wri tten . 
stems from the sta t ements made by the Elminas on 20th July 1816. 
Becnus e of what they snid, hG decided to institute inquiries vvith 
0. view to finding out, first, wh(~thcr their stll t cments wer O] true 
and, s econdly, whether I hnd <been actiBg against his orders and 
had s ent nny information to the Genera l without bis knowledge. 
If I had in fact been going' behind his back, he would then 2nd 
there hove r efus ed further dealings with the General, and would 
have regarded my mission ns a delibernte' deception. This is why, 
in order to prevent any disunity between my Government and . the King, 
I have adhered to His Majesty's orders, a nd have kept ev erything in 
my head Emd wi thin the pages of my journnl, so thnt I will be in 
a position to r ecount everything personally when I r eturn to 
Elmina and plac e this t:ly journa l on thr; .Council t 3.bl e ther e . Yqur 
Excellency 'lO? must ther efor e not · condemn T1e, for I have nev{;r 
been unfEd thful to Governnent, no, not ev en when our affairs were 
a t their J,owest ebb. Your Excell ency instructed me to behave 
with prudenc e , and I have a l ways r emember ed this cnd have. sought 
to plea.s e the King in all I:ly actions. The Governnent ought not; 
to bllme me in this I:latter; its judgment should r '1 ther f a ll on 
the King of the Ashantis. I . nm sure ther e is no one, apart fron 
my enemi es , who is sE-eking to bring me into disf2.vour with Your 
Exc ellency or to damaGe my good na1l'c , &..11d this is why I am c ont ent 
.I' to let my journa l show how I h,ave ~een conducting myself sinc e my 
arriva l in this pla c e . The King is my witness tha t I hav :·; contin-
ua lly pressed him for per miss i on t o l eave and th"l t iny reque st ha s 
~ a lways be en r efus ed . 
The King said to me, "The Gener a l my mast"r has s ent you to
me, and would not be plea sed if your wer e to depart without mY .  
approva l. The General wotild not like it, moreovqr,if they 
Commanys nnd the Wass ayvs were a t tacked , yet n8i~her of these two 
pa l avers has y et been brought to a s a tisfactory conelusion. 
How then ca n the Gcmeral r 0quirc you to r e turn empty-handed? . 
It wns the General who ask,,, o th3.tthe ne.ti ons might' 'be .. spared 1~6 
and outstanding mattors settled ' by negoti a tion. Otherwise my " 
weapons would long sinc e hav0 driven thE; highway through the 
Wassaw country , though this is precisely wha t the Genernl has 
a l ways hop ed to avoid. You must sta3T here until thes e two 
pa l aVers hav e been settled, or a t leas t until ther e is some 
agreement on t erms." 
The King's arguments have convinc ed me tha t he is in the right, 
and that what I have been saying about l eaving is illconsidered~' 
.§.!h:. 
I again sought the King's permission to l eave . 109 He 
becnme angry, and s a id, "1 agr ee tha t you must on no account 
. offend the Gener a l your l aster. l,rrit; € h i m a l etter, ther efor e , 
which I will s end t o him protcctc'd by IllY s t aff. Beg his pardon for 
your silence. It is certainly true that, if I had not f orbidden 
~ it, you wbuld hav e writt en to him ev ery we ek. 
The Gener a l will pardon you as soon as my boy arrives at 
• Elmina with tho l etter. If he does not, he goes against my 
wishes, for you did not come her ~ on your own account but on h1$, 
107. Huydecoper r el apses here into direct speech again. 
10~. I.e., spar ed the destruction of war. 
109. Sic., though thi s is an odd entr y in vi ew of the s entence 
tha t prec edes it. 
- 64 -
With regard to the Elmina palaver you can make your own 
report to the General, but your book must positively not be 
allowed to leave here before you do. Full responsibility for 
anything that might happen would fallon you if the book were 
to be sent away from here. I have long regarded Elmina village 
as mine. 
The fact that you have not been able to write to the 
General is due to me, and my boy, when he reaches Elmina, will 
explaiI!l. ·,:e·verything to your master on my behalf. If the General 
is truly ' my friend, aS,he says he is, he will surely not accuse 
you of misleading the Government by Y01,IT silence, Go home now, 
and do not be afraid o Wri te a short letter 'to your master, and 
lay everything on me." ' 
The King's words gave me some reassurance, but I was not 
entirely satisfied. I asked him coldly whether or not it was t~ue 
that I had once told him that the General would be angry with me 
if I did not write in full to Elmina. 
To this the King replied, "I see now that you spoke truly 
on that occasion. Nevertheless I am not going to see my town 
of Elmina shot at with cannons and burnt to the ground because of 
the wickedness and villainy of bad rulers. . I told you before 
that I did not believe the Elminas' story; otherwise I would not 
have allowed you to drink. the oath in order to purify your 
master's name, When you did that we all realized that you had 
right on your side." 
Despite these further reassurances from His Majesty, I was 
still not easy. in my mind. I had to agree, however. to a letter 
being dispatch'ed and to not going myself. The letter went off . 
today • 
. : I ventured to ask the King about Djesie; but he would not 
hear a word on the subject. He says Djesie is such a rascal that 
he cannot let me :see him. Djesie has apparently stolen a· great 
deal from the King and is in disgrace. 
Regarding the slaves, cows, horses, etc., intended as r eturn 
presents for the General I have received no answer as yet. The 
King says he will give his r eply when I finally leave. 
9th January 1817. 
Many people visited me today. This was ~olely because of 
.the very friendly rec eption given by the General to the somof 
Amanquatia in Elmina. Now all the Ashanti merchants are intend-
ing to tra,de with the General. The more than two thousand 
merc!;l.ants who went to Annamabo e and Caap Corse are now back home 
again, and most of them r eport heavy losses. The few who went to 
Elmina prais e the General's trading methods very highly, but 
cbmplain about the pref erenc e given to the son of Amanquatia. , 
Everyone is now providing himself with trading notes 110 in order 
to do business with Elmina. 
General Poiko e I s cashier 'or treasurer has been instructed 
by the King to send some 25 ounc es of gold to Elnlina for the 
purpose ofb:),l-ying gunpowder. The King wishes to see if the 
General w)).l, mee t him in the matt er of price, . or whether he will 
treat .him as":on a par with his subj ects. For this reason I have 
thought it necessary to .write . a letter ( which will follow J,.ater) 
to the General, reque s ting him to make a distinction between the 
King's trade and tha t of 'all other persons, and to treat the 
King's repres entatives as he did the son of Amanquatia, By these 
tactics Elmina can gain the whole of the Ashanti trade.· ' 
.~ .. 
110, Lit " ,'b r'ie'fjes VbElr . o.e -negotie. . 
- 65 -
The Ashantis complain very bitterly about the English and their· 
agents, saying that they were very ill received at the Cape. . 
, Affodoe Cudjo and Quassie (illegible) complain that the 
(illegible) at Elmina have treated them very badly. These two 
young men tell me that they had made fine profits trading, but, 
they say, "The white men in the fort gave us their word that the 
account was , settled, but when we were outside the fort we were 
forced by some of the men there to hand over money. 111 These 
men said to us, 'The white men made a mistake in their reckoning; 
you owe us such and such an amount.' We refused to pay and were 
very badly treated."112 
I have no doubt that this story is a tissue of lies but, 
since it will reflect badly on the General's reputation if 
repeated, I feel obliged to report it now. 
I have counted up all the trifles the King is sending to 
market. I wished to test to see whether he was including t:he 
bulk of his goods now or later. 113 
Affodoe Gudjo is now the confidant of Mr. Nieser and 
therefore wants watching. 
10th January 1817. 
Today I went on foot to look at the highway. To my 
, astonishment 1 found that the roots of the trees that have been 
cut down are already growing up again, and there are numerous 
holes at least three feet deep. The men are working very slowly. 
1 learnt this evening, however, that the highway on the 
Insadjiesoe 114 side is well advanced. The overseer is present 
• there all the time himself. 
No news. 
~. 
This being the Great Adaji or Good Sunday, the King gave me 
and the Elminas a sheep to share among us. 
Amanquatia's son has been complaining to his father about 
the brusque reception accorded him by Mr. Nieser. He says he 
went to Mr. Nieser's house to present his father's compliments 
and, when he had been taken into the main room ••• 115 
15th. 
No news from the 13th until today. 1 have noticed that the 
-merchants are now anxious to set out for Elmina without delay. 
Early today His Majesty went to his plantation. He will be 
returning on Monday next. 1 asked if I might accompany him, 
but he said this was out of the question. "1 am going to make 
fetish," he told me, "and wi ll be back very soon." 
• 111. Lit., engels. 
112. This paragraph is very roughly translated. The MS is so 
unclear tha t 1 can make out only three words in four. 
113. Meaning obscure. 
114. Spelling doubtful. 
115. The next five lines are completely illegible. 
- 66 -
19th January 1817. 
From the 17th until tod~y there has been nothing to report. 
The town is . quite empty. Everyone has gone to Brimman with the . 
King. . 
I am very sUrprtp.edthat the King' s ~ has not sent back 
anymess9.ges fibout the state of affairs at Elmina. His 
Majesty gave his positive instructions that he was to send 
someone back within thirty days to let us know whether or not the 
Wassaws were ready tp reach agreement. It appears ' he ~as 
forgotten: these orders. 
20th. 
H1s Majesty returned today in great pomp from Brimman. 
During the' journey back he sent for ID'~ byexpr'ss messenger,. 
I hastened to' obey his order, and met him at a village called 
Kroboe. He asked me to help him put on his suit of clothes. I 
did this and then accompanied him back to the capital, travelling 
in great aplendour. .... ' . 
I must say that His Ma j esty looked ,very well. In all the 
villages along the way men, women and children came running out to 
see him in his uniform. 'All exclaimed that they had never before 
seen such beautiful clothes. The name and hi§h reputation of our 
General were proclaimed aloud, the blessings of God were invoked, 
and the hopes of all the people for his long life were" fervent~;y . .~. 
expressed. Everyone ~xecrated and hooted at the Elmina envoys 
because of the lies they had told about the General their lawful 
master. The women shouted, "0 Lord , l et this General who pleasep 
us SQ well come here so that we may give him proper thanks for the 
great honour he has dune to our King Saij," 
The streets were so full th~tpeople were imploring one 
another to make room 2 0 that everyone could , see the King. 
When I had dressed the King in his clothes, he stood in front 
of a large mirror and praised the General's generosity many times'.' 
He gave me his hand, and said, "Brother, your master is my master. 
When you r eturn home, tell him that I thank him yet again for the 
beautiful things he has sent me. I will always wear these clothe~ 
in the General's honour." 
He said he preferred breeches to trousers, since the ' former 
showed off his calves better, 116 ' . I said the General would 
send him some bre eches as soop as there was an opportunity. 
Today His Majesty summoned me and handed to me two letters 
from the G.eneral. One was addressed to me. I translated mine 
first and then the one addressed to the King. . From His Majesty 1s  
expression I could see that the contents of the letters did not 
please him. He said, "W'aat bad things have you been doing here 
to make the General so angry with you? You have always told me . 
everything that has been in the letters you have received, have 
you not?, As for the return presents of slaves, cows and horses, I 
have always said that I woul~ send them when you leave here. . 
Have you not told your master this in your l e tter?11 
116. Lit., hij wenschte li ever een korte broek te her??1??, 
om zijne kuiten te laten zien. 
- 67 -
I replied, "Although my master states that I am to supply him 
with full information about these matters on my return, I have in 
fact written a full account in my journal and also in the letter I 
sent with Woortman. I do not understand why my master is so di9 - , 
satisfied with .me. He has now requested that Your Majesty let ~e go. 
I woul~ ' th~refore be acting in direct disobedience of his orderS if 
I were to remain here, as you have so often suggested I should, 
un·til . the retw;n o.f your aC.cra. I am clearly out of favour and' I 
certainly do not want my position to become w~rse. My master is 
unlikely to believe that Your Majesty forbade me to c olIimunic ate to 
him the false reports circulated by the Elminas or, indeed, that I 
was unable to leave here without your permission. I will therefore 
not stay here one day longer, and I now request answers to all ttte 
questions which, from time to time, I have translated and put to 
you for your consideration. I will leave here early tomorrow ,: 
morning or, at the latest, on the morning of the day following. 
Please give me your answers." 
To this His Majesty replied, "Very well then, Sir! Your 
master seems to think he has sent you to a king of little importance 
and not to the King of the Ashantis. I have nothing to say to you, 
except that your master apparently does not value my friendship. 
Otherwise he would surely be more patient and would be willing to wait 
until I give you your cong~ in the proper manner. You may go 
tomorrow, but you will hear nothing further from me." 
I said I could not leave him like thiS, and that he could not 
mean me to depart in so abrupt a fashion. It would not be in 
. conformity with the friendship which has always existed between 
the, Ashanti nation and my government. 
"Your master understands perfectly well that, when he insults 
you in his letters, he is insulting me. Go then, and make your. 
report to your master." 
And so, in accordance with my masters immutable instructions, . 
I held my peace and sorrowfully left the palace· 
22nd. 
Sought an audience today, but in vain. The King sent to 
tell me that he had nothing to say to me, and that I should obey my 
orders. I pressed as hard as possible for a different answer, 
but the message came back, "Obey your master's orders. He has 
offended me deeply with these strict orders of his. His last 
two letters have not pleased me." 
I said/to the messengers, "I cannot leave like this, without my 
proper conge." 
But I was again told that I could go, and that a message 
would be sent to the General to thank him for the insult he had paid 
to the King of the Ashantis. The King's young men also assure~ 
me that His Majesty would not see me again and that I might leav~ 
Coemassie tomorrow, since that was what I desired. 
I am in great perplexity. The King wants me to stay; 
the General my master insists that I go. What shall I do? To 
go will irritate the King; not to go will bring me into disfavour 
with. the Government. In the circumstances the General's letter. 
is the best counsellor. I will leave here tomorrow without fail. 
I prefer to risk the King's displeasure than the General's • . 
- 68 -
23rd. 
In accordance with the awful 117 orders repeatedlS received 
from the General, and notwithstanding the refusal of the King to 
give me - permission, I left ,here today • . We began our journey in 
the afternoon, because I was anxious to obey the letter of 8th 
January which said we should not sleep another night in Coemassie. 
We had not been long on the way, however, when various officers, 
barred our passage. They a~ked me where I was going. 
I replied, "To Elmiria." 
"Where is the King's token?118 ' Where is the King's 
svnrc-;'''.Jen~ o ~.:' who should be preceding you? Wi thout these you will 
not be allowed to go beyond Assafoe. You must return." 
I went resolutely on but, on arrival at Assafoe, was opposed 
by Senior Officer Quatje Coffie, w~o asked to be shown the King's 
token. 
I said the King had told me I might leave. 
,"No, Ii he said. "That is untrue. You are travelling 
without the King's permission. Stay here, and I will immediately 
ask the King whether he has given you leave to go or not." 
I was thus prevented from continuing, and my boys had to be 
recalled. 
I had been waiting a good two hours when I saw approaching in 
th.e distance a number of senior officers being carried in Ji tters. 
Coming up to me they nsked sternly in the name of the ,King why I 
was tr3,velling on foot, why I had left at all, and why I had not 
waited until the King arranged for me to depart . with the same 
dignity with which I had come. 
I said. the King knew all'm;i reasons and that I definitely 
wanted to leave. But General Poekoe and the 3 royal linguists 
said that the King most earnestly desired me to return, and would 
speak to me tomorrow about my eventual departure. I rejected " 
what they said, and explained that the King had often told me he 
would let me go. I therefore could not wait any longer and would 
continue on my way. It was no trouble to me to travel to Elmir+a 
on foot, especia lly since my master appeared to think I had only 
been staying in Coemassie for my own pleasU!e. 
But my prot ests were of no avail. " I was brought back to 
Coemassie, and wa s told that the King would s 'ee me tomorrow. I 
was then conveyed, in an extremely irritated frame of mind, to my 
old quarters. However, nothing worse has happened so far. 
24th January 1817.. 
I thought th~ K; ng would summon me today to discuss ,my return 
journey, but nothing hG~ happened. God knows when I will 
finally get away from here. 
Thi s afterno (j~ the King s ent for me to attend an assembly. of 
the chief o::f ic ers. He asked me once more why I wished to leave, 
whether my master wanted to break off all ties of friendship 
with Coemassie, and why my master should want me to go without 
waiting for him, the King, to give me my conge in the proper manner. 
117. Lit., vrezeli~. 
118. Lit., bewijs = 'certificate, proof'. 
- 69 .-
I said my m~ster would never be the cause of a broken 
friendship, but that he wanted me back so that he could send a 
white European 1~9 to replace me. He considers a European would 
promote his interests better than I can, and that I am not a -
suitable person to act as envoy between him and the King of 
Ashanti. . The longer I remain here, he believes, the more likely 
it is that friendship between the two parties will diminish rath~r 
than increase. This is why I have been instructed to leave no 
later than two days after rece'iving the General's letter. If ~ 
do not comply with .this order, my fate will be upon my own head. 
To avoid offending either His Majesty or the General, I had begun 
my journey on the appoi~t ed day, but had been 'panyared' by Senior 
Officer Quatje. 
"But when you asked me if you might leave, did I not say, No? 
Did I not say that you must wait until the accra has returne,d, 
after which I would arrange for you to be conducted to Elmina with 
a small escort?" 
I said the King had indeed used these words, but that I had: 
also said that I would not sleep in Coemassie from the coming 
Thursday onwards 1 because I was sure the General would not belie:ve the King was in 1"actrestraining me. "After this," I went on, 
"Your Majesty said, 'Go ahead, then, and obey your master's orders.' 
When Your Ma jesty told me this, I thought the way was clear for ~e 
to depart. But Your Majesty did not mean it, and ~ ent orders . tp 
Assafoe to bring me back again, and so it has come about~" 
, 
"Am I to understand, then, that you left here solely becausi9 
you feared your master, and not a t all, because you were lacking in 
" r espect for me?" 
"Yes," I said. "I left simply because of the direct order~ 
I received from my mast er. If I have offended Your Majesty 
thereby, I beg your pardon. I r equest that I may be allowed to go. 
My master is very angry with me. Please l e t me l eave today. 
Otherwise the consequenc es will b e serious for me." 
The King replied, "No, I will not allow you to go. You mUpt 
wait. Tomorrow I will s enqmessengers to your master to find out 
the caus e of his displeasure . When thes e messengers have 
r eturned, but not b efore , 'you will be allowed to .l eave within three 
days. Do not ask me about this matter until my men have comeb~ck, 
or we will become bad friends, you and I. · To have given you such 
strict instructions about leaving here, your mast er must have ~ 
something against me. Supposing I had sent one of my boys to 
Elmlna, and had then dispa tched my accra aft er him to t ell him tp 
pack up and go and not to spend even-ane more day there or face the 
~on8equenc e s, and the Gener a l have s a id? Would he not hav e de¢ided 
that I had become his enemy?" 
I could make no answer. 
The King went on! "I could almost beli eve now tha t the Elmina s 
~poke truly, and the Gener a l r eally is my enemy . Do not ask me 
about your departure until my mes s enge r s c ome back from Elmina." · 
There wa s general agreement with the King on a ll side s , and I 
went sorrowfully home • 
• 26th January 1817. 
This morning the Ki ng s ent for me to ask·i f I could t ell him 
how many muskets the Gener a l woulq give him f or 50 preguns. I . 
said I could not s ay, .bec aus e the Gener a l woul d not make t he s ame 
price f ·or the King of Ashanti a s for other and l esser persons. 
119. Thus phrased, presumably, b ecaus e Huydecoper was a mulat t o. 
____- ..:I-.J!~J.Lnon.aa n wh; t P. rnA n' rn i P' h t: h p . t. t. 
- 70 -
28th and 29th. 
No. news. 
Teday the. King had me write a letter to the General. ~e 
asked for various quantities of guns and gunpowder, and also wanted 
to knew how much the General weuld: charge for 10 guns, and what the 
price would be for 10 barrels of powder. He hepes to buy a 
considerable quantity of both these items, but needs exact 
information .as to. price befere he can make his calculations. 
There was a big fire in the town teday. Several houses were 
gutted • 
. ' I have mistak~nly put "23rd January" en teday's letter, and it 
cannot be altered.120 
30th. 121 
The King has told me that his boys will definitely be leaving 
here teday. I will therefore have to. stay in .thisplace fer some 
30 to .35 days. more. I asked what would happe'n if the boys were 
not back by the stipulated time, b,ut the King dismissed. my questien. 
He is sure they will retUrn as pr.omised. 
31st January 1817. 
No news. 
Prime and Secunde February 1817. 
( No·. news. 
No news .... 
4th. 
To. , o.y amazement mybey,Myzang, retU1;'ned today from Elmina 
witheut bringing with him eith$r letterS er other messages from the 
General. I am most discensolate about this. All my friends 
have beceme my enemies. . Many false :reportsare constantly being 
spread abread by the AshantiEi and are beUevedby the peeple here. 
But I think them ef no. censequence. : ' Whe:n, I am back in Elmip,a 
myself, I will be able to set the recerd straight. , 
5th. 
Teday being the Small Adaij, I received 9 ~ fer my subsistence,_ 
and the Elmina enveys and I shared the gift ef a sheep. 
7th. 
No. news yesterday and today. 
~. 
This afternoon a numb er ef heuses were censumed by fire, and 
man was burnt to death. He was on the reof 0.1: ene .of . thehouses 
when the fire· sprang up all around him, and he fell through the roef 
into the inside ef the house. 
12.0." . :1"i t. , van heden on 
121.Sio. There are fo.r . 3..pth JanuarY~· :. 
- 71 -
It was .impossible to help him, and we saw before our eyes the 
spectacle ofa fine young man lamentably engulfed by the flames. 
The cause of this misfortune was the ~trong harmattan. 
300 houses were burnt down, 
9th, 10th, ' 11.th, 12th. 
NO . news~ 
13th • 
. I visited the King today. Laughing, h e said to me, "We have 
offended our master by our delays. When you reach Elmina, you 
will certainly receive c.orrection. And if the General comes h~re" 
I will get my share too. What will our punishment be, my friend? 
.1 matched his banter, saying that ••• 122 the punishment 
would become worse and worse the longer I stayed here. 
The King said, If Be patient. Everythi:qg will be all right, . 
I am only waiting for .the r eturn of the boys I sent to our master 
with a view to persuading him to remit your punishment. When . 
they come back you will certainly be able to leave • . Do not be sad. 
Your master will forgive you. He -now knows the whole story, and 
will r ea lize that it is I who have beEm the cause of his 
dissatisfaction with you." 
~oday the King's t~o horses .died. It ha s been bitterly COld 
here for the past'50 days. ' The air is v ery stimulating and . 
• ~ healthy. The climate would be about equal to that of ~urope.~n 
April. For some time npw I have been suffering frQm ch~llblalped 
hands. 
15th. 
Spoke with the King today about the beauties of Europe. He 
asked me what the white men thought· of him. Did they picture him 
as an ordinary man, or as a savage , who cut other men's heads off 
without cause? He went on, laughing, "Huydecoper, when you ge t 
back home, ask the General tore.present me to the King (W}:l0 is ' 
master of us all) as a righte ous .man. · The nations think of the 
King of Ashanti as a bad ,man. You yourself can bear witness that 
.this is untrue. I do not punish without reason, nor do I make war 
unless there is occasion for it. When our friend, the General, 
comes here, he will see all my actions for himself, and will pra ise 
me in his lett ers to Europe. But tell me, Huydecoper, do you 
• think the Gen eral will still come here?" 
I said there was no doubt of this whatever. The General was 
'only awaiting my r eturn. The King would have to let me go, for 
the General would not come until he had first seen me. 
"Ah, well," said the. King. "You will be l eaving as soon .as 
the boys that I have s ent to the General come back. It will not be 
long now." 
• During thes e last days I have been asking the King if I might 
prepare for my departur e , so as to be r eady to l eave immediatel y 
the accra and the horn-blower arrive. They are expected within a 
day 0r'S0. But the King always replies; "I am waiting for the 
three boys who have gone to find out the reason for your rec a ll, 
122. Three words missing, due to a curling page. 
- 72 -
apd also the current pric e of guns and gunpowder. Until they return 
you cannot leave." 
. (Marginat n~te: , ' flRecei ved ,y.. sheep, thi$Qeing Good Sunday. II) 
~. 
Today the Elmina envoys and the King's ~rg0123 arrived, but 
not the accra. They brought letters dated 18th January~ and ' 
these letters I immediately read out to the King. His Majesty is 
still convinced that the General has been deceiving him and, so far 
from doing anything ab~ut the Commany palaver, is throwing dust in 
his eyes by bringing in irrelevant considerations and thus seeking 
to deceive him all the more. Anything I could say was useless. 
The King became angJi:Y and (next three words illegible) my master. 
I said I could not defend my master with lies. 
25th. 
Asked the King today if I and the Elmina envoys might leave. 
He became very angry and, refusing to answer, slammed the door in 
our faceq., mumbling that he had no wish to keep us here for ever, 
and that he would let us go when it suited him. We were 
contemptuously sent home like bad boys, with no ' chance to discuss 
the dCite of our 'departure further. We protested tha:t our master 
needed us at E1mina, but the, King chose 'not to believe us and would 
not even look in our direction. And so we ca!p.e home in disgr~ce. 
26t.h. 
Today the King of, Dinkira arrived here, accompanied by a hqge 
following, and was splendidly received. He has come to be pre~ent 
at the entry. into , the capital of the armi'es of Apia ~nd Amahquai 
and -also to defend himself against the suspicion,vC:Cced by- some, 
that he is an enemy to the King of Ashanti. lIe arrived with, t1+ree 
hundred soldiers. 
The King is vexed with us today because, he says, we press 'him 
too hard about our departure. Unhappily we are watched wherever 
we go and ,thus cannot run away. 
27th. Feb 1817. 
Various chiefs have been arriving tOfJee the review ,of the 
armies of Apia and Amanqua. 'This r eview wil,l take place next 
Monday. The King has been prevaricating all this time about my 
departure. He is d?termined 'that I shall witness ·the review of ' 
his ' armies before I leave. , I 
No peace today at all. From all directions chiefs, etc., Cire 
arrivirig to see the armies. Everything has bec ome very expensive, ; 
a bunch of plantains costing two tackoes •.· For some days now I 
have not possessed even tuppence 124 with which to buy food. I ' 
cannot reach the King, and so cannot ask him for SUbsistence money •• 
I am reduced to eating fried plantains, and there is great distress 
in my hous e . I cannot even borrow money, and yet we see plain~y 
that the envoys who come regul arly from E1mina are fully "laden w~th 
presents s ent by our master. 
From Primo to ,2nd March. 
Still people are pouring into the town, which is jampacked. 
Most of the newcomers are sle~ping in the streets, for no 
accommodation is to be had. 
1-2-3- •- --S-p-e-ll-i-n-g- -d-o-u-b-tf-u-l ....~..- -----------~------~----------------
124, ~it~~ een dubbelt~e~ ' 
- 73 -
Today the armies of Apia and Amanqua arrived. The"i'e ' was ' 
shooting from ' 10 in the morning until nightfall, and at least 50 
barrels of gUnpowder must have been expended. The two armies 
taken together number some' 30 or 35 thousand. 
This morning there was a heavy thu,nderstorm. Hail 'fell th~ 
size of nlUsket--balls. 1 held some of the ~ail-stones in my han~s 
for severa+ minutes before they melted. 
9th March 1817. . . 
Between the 4th and today there has been a cbntinuousuproar. 
Everywhere in the suburbs there is musket fire and the making of 
custom for the . ~ead. More than 80 people have been put to death, 
and over 100 barrels of powder shot .off. There has been. no chanGe 
to see or speak to the King. Weare suffering severely from hunger 
and have no money to buy food. Fish is unobtainable, and plantains 
now cost 3 tackoes a bunch. .' 
10th, 11th, 12th and 13th instant. 
No news. No audience or speech with the King. 
14th March 1817. 
. Today the goods arrived, having come through Accra. CUdj.o 
Abranta brought 60 panegoeden, 35 five-gallon ankers of gin and 30 
~olls of tobacco. He complained that Mr. Carillon had removed 
. several ankers of drink and had openly wat~red the remaining ankers 
in his own sight and in that of many other persons. 1 said there 
~ought to be 80 pieces of panegoed ~nd 40 five-gallon ankers, but 
he assured the King that he had received the goods as they were now. 
15th. 
I learn that the King has had letters :fromthe King, but 
whether this is true. I know not • . 1 tried to see the .King this 
evening to find out the facts, but could not gain admission. 
Since the armies returned he has not been m1.lch seen in pub;lic. ; 
~. 
Summoned by the King this morning. He handed to me two 
letters from the General dat ed 15th February 1817, the contents of 
which 1 read out to him in translation and demanded an immediate 
answer·. The letters referred to the King' s purchase of powder apd 
guns and also requested the supply, as soon as possible, of several 
thousand pounds of cotton without seeds, and also of a quantity of 
the seeds themSelves. Both of these commodities the General wiShes 
-to buy, and he asks for fulfilment of this order within 16 days • . 
'TIhe King said, "Good. I will give you my reply tomorrow. . My 
thanks for the sugar, t ea, etc •. , though I have not seen them yet. 
' ]I am glad to have the 19 barrels of gunpowder." 
His Majesty object ed strongly to the prices quoted for guns 
and powder, and tri ed to persuade me to fix the~e at 9 ~ per barrel 
• of powder and 4~ ~ for a gun. I contented myself with asking him 
if he thought .that the goods he was being offered had been stolen, 
• and tha t a ll he had to do was to send boys to Elmina to collect them. 
His Majesty is very satisfied with the presents he has received. 
I asked- ·him . .what .. :t;.he~~ wer e because, when packages are received f:r om 
the General, they ar e never" o~ened in my presence. I told the 
King tha t T a lways' knew in advance what he ought torecei ve , because 
the lett ers g'1ve full det a ils. . -J3ut all he 'woulq reply was 'that 
everything, arrived in due .course, that he was very satisfied, and 
that he wished me to thank the Gener a l most warml y. 
- 7'+ -
17th March 1817. 
Early this morning I went to the palace with my Instructions 
and all the letters received from the General. I hOped for an 
answer to everything at onee, but my visit proved valueless. Uo 
matter what r did I could not obtain entry, I went to the palqce 
three times, but d;id not see the King on any occasion • . 
At 7 o'clock this evening Jack Mars arrived with two letteDs 
from the General. I went at once to the King with the news, Q'Ut 
had no be.tter success than before. We had been cooling our heels 
for two hours whem our patron,Poekoe, told us in the. King' Ei name · 
that we must go home and come back in the morning. 
With Jack Mars to the King. The letters were read out in 
. translation and an immediate answer sought, not only to those dat.ed 
5th instant but also to the ones dat~d 15th February. Mars has 
positive instructions to leave here next Friday. All the King · 
would say, however, was that he would give us his answer tomorrow. 
I said that, if he did not answer today, he would bring me into 
disfavour with my government again. 
He replied, "Do not worry. Mars will leave at the appointed 
time." And there' was no more to be said. 
19th. 
Today being theS~all ~daij or Good Wednesday, I called on the 
King, but could not talk business. Mars received 9 ~ and the ' 
Elroinas and I jointly one sheep. 
Employed all possible means to persuade the King to let Jack 
Mars depart, but in vain. His Majesty assur@d me that Mars wou~d 
leave tomorrow morning without fail. "What?" I said. "Is this 
like the waiting Capta in Scholtijs had to. do?"125 But I could not 
move the King. Nor can Mars simply go away, or he will be brought 
back by force as I was. Here in Coemassie one needs the patience 
of Job to stand all that happens. . 
During these past few days I have never ceased trying to 
persuade the King to give me his answers so that Mars can leave. 
His Majesty qas said simply that Mars may go tomorrow and that I 
may attend at the palace with all my letters and Instructions in 
order to receive the royal answers point by point. I said that it 
would once more bring me into disfavour with the General if His 
Majesty kept Mars beyond the stipulated time as he had done in the 
case of Woortmann. But he said,"The General, for my sake, will 
not be angry any more." . 
2'+t~ March 1817. 
This morning a t 7 o'clock the King sent Mars a farewell 
present of 9 ~ of gold and a message to me that he would summon ~s 
both straight away and give us his answers, so that Mars could leave 
tomQrrow. But still we had no success, for His Majesty did not in 
tact 'Summon us, 
, 
Lit •• ~nt ik zeida tn:' 
Scholti.is 0 
- 75 -
Today the armies of Apia and Amanqua arrivea. There was 
shooting from 10 in the morning until nightf~ll, and at least 50; 
bcrrels of gunpowder must have been expended. The two armies 
"traken together number some 30 or 35 thousand. 
This morning there was a heavy thunderstorm. Hall fell th~ 
size of musket-balls. I held some of the h~il-stones in my hanfls 
for severnl.minutes before they melted. 
9th March 1817. 
Between the 4th and today there has been a continuous uproar. 
Everywhere in the suburbs there is musket fire and the making of 
custom for the dead. More than 80 people have been put to deatl1, 
and over 100 barrels of powder shot off. There has been_no chanpe 
to see or speak to the King. We nre suffering severely from hunger 
and have no money to buy food. Fish is unobtainable, and plantains 
now cost 3 tackoes a bunch. 
t 
10th, 11th, 12th and 13th instant. 
No news. No audience or speech with the King. 
14th March 1817. 
Today the goods arriv!3d, having come through Accra. Cudjo 
Abranta brought 60 panegoeden, 35 five-gallon ankers of gin and pO 
""'rolls of tobacco. He complained that Mr. Garillcn had removed 
. several an~ers of drink and had openly watered the remaining ankers 
in his own sight and in .that of many other persons. · 1 said there 
.., ought to be 80 pieces of hanegoe~; and 40 fi ve--galloIf an.l5:ers, D,tit 
he assured the King that e had received the goods as they we~e now. 
15th. 
I learn that the King has had lett ~rs from the King, but 
whether this is true I know not. I tried to see the King tl;tis 
evening to find out the f acts, but could riot gain admission. 
Since the armies returned he has not been much seen in public. 
1§lh. 
Summoned by the King this morning;. He handed to me two 
letters from the General dated 15th February 181, 7, the contents Of 
which I read out to him in translation and demnnded an immediate 
answer,. The letters referred to the King's purchas e of powder and 
guns and also request ed the supply, a s soon as possible , of several 
thousand pounds of cr~ton without seeds, and also of a quantity of 
the seeds themseL o;.;s . Both of these commoditi es the General wi~hes 
' to buy, and he asks for fulfilment of this order within 16 days . 
The King said, "Good. ·· I will give you my reply tomorrow. My 
. thanks for the sugar, tea, etc., though I have not s een them yet. 
:n.:  am glad to hav e the 19 barre ls of gunpowder." 
His Majesty object ed strongly to the pric es quot ed for guns 
and powder, and tri ed to persuade me to fix these a t 9 ~ per barrel 
of powder and 4~ ~ for a gun. I contented mys elf with asking him 
if he thought tha t the goods he was being offered had b een stole~, 
and tha t all h e had to do wa s to send boys to F.'~tna ~c ~ollect them. 
His Majesty is very s a tisfied with the presents he ha s rec eived. 
I asked him what thes e were becaus e , when package s ar e received from 
the Gener al, they are never opened in my presence . I told the 
King tha t I always knew in advanc e what he ought to r eceive, because 
the letters gave full det a ils. But a ll he would r eply was that 
everything arrived in due course, that he was v ery s atisfied, and 
that he wished me to thank the Genera l most warmly. 
- 76 -
28th, 29th, and 20th March 1817. 
ll!fctVE? ' n,ei ther s,poken with the King nor picked up any news. 
31st March '1817. 
This afternoon the 'two swordbegrerA returned who went with the 
accral'to Elm±na. A new Wassaw embassy accompanied them. The 
~ and the-others have remained in Wassaw. I have not heard the 
substance of the new embassy's mission. It seems the accra is 
going to be successful in his attempt to settle the Wassaw affair, 
and that the present highway will link up with one running through 
Was saw country. ' 
Primo April 1817. 
Nothing happened. 
Koemassie, , 2nd April 1817. 
Saij Toetoe Quamie, 
King of all the Ashantis 
To 
His good friend Governor-
General H.W. Daendels 
At 
Elmina 
My dear friend, 
Huydecoper is now leaving and I must advise you, my 
dear friend, that the matter which is in dispute between 
English Commany and me has now reached such a pass that 
I am obliged to regard you as prejudiced and as favouring 
the side of the Commanys rather than my own. 
When my troops were at Abra and ready to march on 
English Commany and Wassaw, you requested through your 
envoy, Huydecoper, that I should not attack Commany. If 
I did so, you said, my actions would displease you. A 
lon~ exchange of letters ensued, and you undertook to sottle 
the affair on my behalf and also to collect for me the 
sums of money that had to be paid. Now all this ha s come 
to nothing, and the Commanys refuse to serve me or to 
render satisfaction to , me. Nevertheless you, my good 
master, prefer that these people should not be attacked. 
What am I to think of you? I c annot believe tha t you 
will now dissociate yours elf from this affair, and let me 
go my own way. 
The Wassaws are willing to serve me. Do you wish 
me to send my armies to destroy them, while letting off , 
scot, free those who cause daily harm to me and my people? 
In truth, this cannot be, my friend. If ,the Commanys 
will not settle their palaver with me, then there is 
nothing for it but for them to t ake up arms and await the 
arrival of my armies. 
You, my good friend and master, are the chief of the 
Elminas and also their protector. Their safety is in 
your hands, The Commanys continually badger the Elminas 
and steal from them. Yet you require that I pay no 
attention to this, and ask that the Commanys be spared. : ' 
This cannot be . If the Commanys will not yield to me, 
there will soon be no Commany. 
- ,77 -
,Let .them be asked once again what is their final word. j' 
If this matter is not. settled and my troops are sent against 
Commany ,ther~eneed be no further talk of satisfaction. C 
, Your friend wishes you, the Governor-Gene~al of the 
Co'ast of Guinea, every b,l essing and all prosperity and ' 
good health. 
This is the mark X of Saij 
Toetoe Quamie, King of all· 
the Ashantis. 
, Done before ,me, 
(Signed) W. Huydecoper. 
P.S. Re~arding the forts which ~our ~xcellency. wishes to 
bUlld al~ng the roads, I wlll glve Your Excellency 
my answer after the Commany affair has been decided. I 
do not yet know whether these forts will he to protect me 
or C0mmany. Soon Your Excellency will have my answer to 
everything. 
, , 
_,_a 4 .• ' • • •. • A.~.~ ~ , ' •• ••• _.~ ...- • • ~ - , - • •••••• 
The above letter was most carefully dictated to me by the 
King today, 2nd April. He asked me if I would take i twi th me·. " 
I had brought along all the General's letters once 'again, but His 
Majesty would not consider them. $0 long as the Commanys, he 
. said, were his mortal enemies, and so long as the General " 
refused to approve the administra.,tiorito 1;;heIDo{ their just 
...... punishment, he would take no decisions on the General ' s +etters. 
of '. ' 
~ It would have been a simple matter, said the King, for the 
~ General to have settled this Commany palaver. If the' sums . of 
money demanded were too .great, they cop.ld"after proper 
negotiation, have beert reduced. It was just this aspect of the 
problem that he had let to the General, He would have been 
very pleased to accept whatever the General was able to collect.:' .. 
and send to him. But now the whole affair had been dragging on 
too long. The Commanys' were refusing even ,to serve him, much 
less to render the satisfaction due ., He had frequently and 
most earnestly requested the General either to deal with these 
people himself or leave them to the Ashantis, but 'this the Generql ,. 
had been unwilling to do, and had, on the contrary, sought ' 
forgiveness for 'them~ ' Inconsequence,said ,the King; he had bee~ 
forc-ed to the 'conclusion that the reports spread abroad by the 
Elminas were true, and that the General was indeed his enemy and 
• an ally of the' Cotnmanys • 
If he had known that the General intended to keep him on a 
• string in this way,128 he would not have withdrawn his armies so 
quickly .He had always considered that he possessed no friends t 
no, nor any brothers or masters, dearer to him than the Dutch. 
~e had always been re ady to open his heart and mind to them at 
all times. But now he could almost believe that these best 
friends of his had failed him, for the General's attitude in the 
t ommany affair had made him very puspicious. He had wri tt en to 
the General in the letter taken by Woortmann that ,he wished to 
consul t with the General, and he had been hoping th'e 'General 
would. visi t , him. , The .General had eft'en said that he was'willing 
to do this. But now, it appes.red, all that was past, and ,the 
o General had 9nly been deceiving him. 
His Majesty continued, liThe Wassawe were willing to 
compromise, ?-nd the General instructed me to treat with them 
b ecause they were afraid to go to Elmina. 
128. Lit., indien hi' te de Generaal de zaak 
maar op s 
- 78 -
They have behaved badly towards both the Elminas and me. Their 
palaver is now finished.129 Shall the obstinate and boastful 
Comm~nys be spared? This cannot be. If they will not serve me, 
I intend to teach them that they are not so important in this 
world that they can palaver with one of the officers of King Saij, 
much less fight against the King himself. It may be that they 
have never served me before. ' This is no matter, They will do 
so now, and I will force them to leave the 'Elminas in peace. 
The only ~eason why I am angry with the Commanys is because, 
during the Fanti wars, they coptinually ill-treated and imposed 
on my village of Elm±na. 
I cannot at present give my answers to all the General's 
letters. This must wait until the General decides either to 
withdraw, altogether from the Commany palaver or to settle it on · 
my behalf. Moreover, when my people were at Caap Cars, the 
English di~ not treat them properly when, making up the accounts. 
The General must do his best to sort this matter out and arrange 
for the due payments t~ be forwarded to me. • 130 
The Wassaws have requested that they pay me ,only ,60 preguns . 
with remission of the remainder. This shows that they ••• 131 
3rd April 1817. 
The King sent for me again today to discuss his private 
trading problems. He reiterated that he could not answer the 
General's letters until be knew His Excellency's intentions with 
regard to the Commanys. ae had appointed the collector, 132 ' 
General Cudjo Abrantja, and his senior horn-blower, officer 
Kwamie Dendoe, to accompany me when I leave, though when this will 
be I do not yet know. , . 
4th and 5th. 
Have neither seen nor' spoken to the King. No news therefore. 
Today was Good Sunday or the Great Adaij. Before a public 
assembly of more than two thousand people, the King handed me 
four young slaves as pres ents for the Geperal, saying, "As soon ' 
as you reach home, give my greetings to the master of us all and 
lIi assure him of my continuing respect. These slave s are from my . 
own household. Two of them have gold about their necks. Of 
these one is called Accra Saij and the other Bossom (illegible). 
The other two slaves have no gold. The General may baptize 
these slaves if he wishes and have them bear his mark. You and 
I, Huydecope~, will speak later about my private trading. 
For yourself here is a young .slave to go with the girl you 
have already received, and also 2 (illegible) 4 ~ in gold and a 
large elephant's tusk. I present these , to you in return for 
the friendship you have shown me and for the services you have 
rendered during your stay here." 
The Elminas have been given a boy tQ pass on to the chief of 
Elmina and as presents for themselves a cloth each4 For their 
subsistence ••• "133 
129. The first three sentences in the paragraph are a rough 
translation only. The text' is most obscure. 
130. Rough translation only. Text is obscure. 
131. The MS unaccountably breaks off here at the bottom of a 
page. On the next page another entry ,begins. 
132. Lit. , qohtvariger ",'coIl-ector of taxes,', etc. 
133. Text again unac.c aunt a1>.+y qQreaks . off. . (I suspect ' these 
breaks a:re- not ' lengthy.) .'. " ", 
- 79 -
These Elmina fellow-subjects of mine are the worst rascals 
C~le could find anywhere in the world. Cud'jo Akon and Akkoe 
have , consistently done our cause as much harm as they could. 
They are traitors through and through. If I had not been here, 
t~o~ps would already have been seht agai~st Commany. All the . 
Kings Officers are persuaded that the General is an enemy of 
Ashanti. ~ecause of my protests the King himself is to some 
extent on ou'\ side" but his subordinates are , by no means of a 
like mind. During the discussion of the Commany palaver they all 
said that, if the General was not prepared to settle it, he had no 
right to expect the King to forgive the Commanys or spare them. 
The General, they said, ,should stop meddling in the Cotirrnany 
palaver, ' and leave it to Ashanti to do as it wishes and enforce 
Commany'~ obedience. 
The 'i~shanti chiefs also say that the General has deliberately 
.deceived the King regarding the building of the highway. , The 
. General's statement that he will visit Coemassie is not believed. 
If the General wants to come here,it is first necessary that the 
Ashantis should be convinced that he is their friend. Many 
accusat,ions haye been levelled at the General from all sides. , 
Th.is is not pleasant, and certainly gives no indication of Asharj,ti 
goodwill. ' , . 
All the time the Elminas are sending via the merchants 
messages to the King asking him for troops and stating that the 
General is hostile to the Ashantis but friendly to the Was saws. 
,. As proof they adduce the fact that the General says he is coming 
here but never does. They are apprehensive that the Dutch wi+l 
•- - desert them and cannot be reassured about this. ' 
7th April 1817. 
From morning until night I have been employing every means 
at my disposal to persuade the King to let me leave ~ere, but in 
vain. He says he will not let me go until his oWIl,-"business 
matters are in order'. In consequence I cannot expect to leave 
unti l some 8 days from today. 
I c an see , very easily through all His Majesty's sub'terfugelp. 
One of his secretaries, who is also his ,uncl e and is named , 
Aquassie Kankema, has always been most loyal to the General. ' , 
He is a very wise old man and was the first friend we made here
I have not dared to merttion his nane before because Coemassie r•  
• poli tios are s'o different from our own. , This man was the only 
member of the court whowould ' speak against the Elminas in the 
• King's presence and denounce their statements f6tthe lies they • were. He was never able to convince the majority, it is true, 
but I cannot fail to praise him for the good opinion he has of 
our government and for the way in which he has defended us. I 
have made him the General's commercial agent here because of his 
loyalty and also becaus e of his close r elationship to the King. 
8th. 
. ' 
Nothing haPFened. ' Did not see the King. -
• 9th April 1817. 
For the whole day I have been in conference with ~he King, ' 
discuss~ his trading ventures. The values he places on guns, 
powder, etc., are quite unacceptabl e . He ha s been trying to 
- 80 -
bludgeon me into agreeing to a price of 4 t for a gun and 12 t for 
a barrel of powder worth 1 (illegible) 12. He makes it .out that 
it will be my fault if these prices are not accepted. I reject~d 
what he said absolutely, and asked if he thought I was foolish 
enough to believe I had the power to fix prices in this .way. ~ut 
despite all my arguments he intends to hold firm, and says that if 
the General will not sell him guns at 4 t and barrels of 
'1000-negro-cartridges '1 34 at the value of 1 (illegible), there 
will be little trading done between the Dutch and Ashanti. 
14th. 
During these last days I have lost no opportunity Of speaking 
to the King or of trying to persuade him to issue the necessary 
orders for me to leave tonight, but to no avail. I was told I 
could not go because the Assin and Assikoema armies are today 
passing ,before His Majesty in review, and he therefore had no time 
to speak to me on business. And so I had to return home, angry 
and disconsolate. This afternoon I was obliged to watch the 
armies shooting off their muskets. Between three and four 
thousand men took part. I could see no point in the display, 
except insofar as it demonstrated that the King of the Ashantis 
is indeed a mighty king. 
The day before yesterday the Was saw palaver was settled. 
Since the General has not chosen to intervene, the King has 
decided that the Wassaws must pay 400 preguns only, instead of 
the 190 (illegible) originally demanded. If the Wassaws refuse 
to agree to this sum, they will lose their heads. 
15th and 16th April. 
No news. Tried all day to see the King, but there was no 
chance of it. The rains have been falling heavily for 8 or 9 
days now. with frequent thunder-storms. 
17th. 
This morning the King had me write a letter to the General. 
He will only accept guns at 4 t each and 1 (illegible), and then 
only if each barrel contains 1000 negro cartridges. 135 I told 
the King that these prices are meaningless. Guns are 8 t at 
Elmina and 1 (illegible) barrels go for 1 (illegible) 10. But 
he became angry with me because I refused to go surety for him. 
He is convinced the General will agree to these prices. 
I also asked the King to take a decision about the 
subsistence money which has long been paid to the King of Akkim, 
but which has now been transferred to the Ashantis by right of 
conquest. If this matter is not settled the Ashantis will not 
be able to trade at Accra with the Dutch, but only with the 
English and Danes. I pointed out that, strictly speaking, only 
the subsistence monies of Dinkira, Elmina, etc., had been 
surrendered to His Majesty. ~ 
18th. 
Did not speak with the King. 
Today I prepared myself to leave Coemassie th~s evening, bpt 
the King prevented me. 
1,4. Lit., kruid van 1000 ne5cr. (See n. 135.) 
1,35. Lit., mids ieder vatje inhoud 1000 neger patroonen. 
- 81 -
He claimed he wanted to send some men to the General to be trained 
88 carpenters and smiths (Three words missing). Consequently I 
,i_ll not be able to leave until the 22nd instant. 
~. 
Received the following farewell gifts~ 
Amanquatia 4 ~ 
Poekoe 5 11 
or r · Quatje Cofr"ie 4 11 
' Cudjo Akroe kroewa ' 4- ,, 1. " 
Adoe Saij 2 t1 
Otie 2 " 
Jouw Kokroko, 1 cloth and 1 pig 
From the King himself 9 11 
Owoesoe Quantabisa, 1 cloth '-
(iilegible ) 1,14 t 136 
21st. 
Today the King placed 3 boys in my charge. Two are 
destined to be carpenters and one a smith. His Majesty said he 
would later send more boys who would serve the General at table, 
and learn how to clean silver-, glassware, plates, etc. 
22nd. 
~ T.oday the King's final permission was granted for me to leaye • 
. First, howeveT, land my party had to swear once more that the 
General was a good f.riE::md to the King and would never desert him 
-- or combine with other nations against him in war; thatthe 
General, for the King's woula. forgive the Elminas for the lies 
they had told about him ,ahd, though he might punish them individ,!," 
ually, thathe would not fight them or destroy their town w ith, ._ 
his cannon, sinc e this would make the Ashantis-very ·angrY'~---
When thes e oaths had been sworn, some malabours brought ' out a 
kind of Bible, and I ha d to kiss this book three times 137 to 
prove to the King that the General was truly his friend. 
Occasie, 22nd April, in the evening. 
Left Coemassie at 5 0 "clock this evening and have stopped 
here to rest ·for the night. From Coe~assie to this plac e the 
highway is completely overgrown. The trees have not yet been cut 
down and the pathway has not been levelled. 
On my departure from Coemassiethe King gave me a salute of ' 
15 guns (the gunfire having , to compete with a thunderstorm). ije 
said the. t, when we reach E.lmina, the General must honour us with 
a similar number of rounds, for this will show he really is a 
friend to -the King of the Ashantis. He has given me as escort, 
and a lso to act later for him in the palavering with the Commanys, 
' two officers named Cudjo Abranta and Quamie Dendoe, accompanied 
bya tjutjus. 138 He wishes to hear from this man's very mouth 
whether the Commanys will fina lly yield to him or not. 
Adiabin, 23rd April~ 
After waiting in vain for my escort I l eft Occasie today and ' 
will stay the night here. I understand · the escort l eft Coemassfe 
this morning. 
136. The addition of this column l eads one to suppos e tha t 
1 (illegible) a 16 t. 
137. Guesswork. The next reads: en mij drie mal en op deze 111 slaar 
138. Criers. 
----~------------------------------------------------------
- 82 -
, ; ,The h,igb.way from Occas.ie to here is very- bad. Ind3(od, 
practioally Ao}~hing has been d9ne to it. There are nUmerous 
large tree's and the 'pathway has not been levelled at all. It 
seems, therefore, 'that the frequent reports made to the King by 
the overseer for this section were false. 
The chief of this place has cleared very well the small 
stretch of the highway that he was responsible for. The roots, 
however, are still in the ground and the surface has not yet been 
made smooth. This chief is at present at Coemassie. 
Assanssie, 146 24th April 1817. 
I waited at Adiabin for the officers, but with no result. ~ 
therefore set out on my journey again. This vi+lage, wher~ I. 
arrived this evening, is very neat and pretty. ' Between Adlabln 
and here the highwa.y has been partly cut through; though the 
stumps and roots are growing again fast. On the ' way we noticed 
three small and wretched villages, all of which accepted gold and 
promised to prepare for the highway by cutting down trees and 
rooting out stumps, but the task has clearly been beyond them •. ~ 
The inhabitants consist mostly of old women. 
We crossed three streams today, all of which ran most , 
dangerously. They must be very bad in the rainy season. Litt+e 
rain has fallen here yet and the track is very dirty. 
Assikanssie, 25th. 
teft Assanssie 139 this morning early, and reached here, 
having passed thro\lgh three villages which hardly deserved the. . 
name. In: several pl'-lees the highway is fairly good, despite the 
roots and tree..;.stumps that still remain. There are many ruts iIi 
the tirack, someo! them five feet deep. This is a very small 
village, containihg possibly 20 people~ 
Ajankremoe ,26th Apbi '1817 • . 
L'eft Assikanssi.e very early this morning and, after passing 
through four wretched villages, arrived at this place, which is 
equally miserable. We are already beginning to sense the onset 
of famine. The countless merchants who have passed this way 
have stripped the f ·orest bare. . I haveSust paid 2 ta,ckoes of 
gold for a bunch of bananas. 
11he highway from Assikanssie .to here is very bad indeed, and 
the presence of more than 100 gold-mining pits makes it very 
dangerous. It is impossible to imagine that the inhab~tants of 
these villages are capable of constructing their share of the 
highway properly. The overseers have shamefully deceived the 
King, His Majesty has been under the impression that the highway 
in these parts was more or less ready for use, He asked me to ' 
make a ' :close inspection of it, and send by report back with ... 
Quamie;. Dendoe. (This officer and his companions have ,riot caught 
up yet.) 
Bettiassie, . 27th Aprii 1817. 
B€tween Ajankremoe and this village the road bas been cieared 
of creepers, but the trees have not yet been cut. . d.6wn. OJqse,; to 
the village 'itself a few tre'es have been fe,LI~d" but this has not 
improved the highway. , , 
We passed three huts' 'belonging to the King's hunters. 
" . I, t , I . 
139. .Spe]}in~ · doubt[1f:);~ .... ! :"" 
- 83 -
Yesterday my bearers complained strongly t~at they were tired, 
and so I did not continue the journey. The delay will not -only . 
benefit my men, but will enable the missing officers to eatch 
me up. 
Insadjusie, 29th April 1817. 
Between Bettiasie and here not a tree has been cut down. The 
falle.n leaves have heen swept to one side, but otherwise no work 
has been done on the highway at all. Yet the overseer for this 
section gave us to understand in Coemassie that the track had been 
cut through and the road cleared. The King is being kept in 
cO,mplete ignorance of what is really happening. The caboceer 
or -chief of this place has made a very good job of one part of his 
sector. He seems to be the only overseer who has done the work 
properly. 
Famine reigns in these parts also. 
The officers whom the King gave me for an escort have l ~till 
not arrived. I will therefore hav e to wait here for them for 
three or four days. I can proceed no further thanher(3 unless 
I have these men with me. 
30th April 1817. 
_ . The officers o.ave still not arrived. No news, except' that 
we are suffering somewhat from hunger. The caboceer and his 
.- - 'secretary'140 have presented me with two bunches of bananas and 6 tackoes of gold • 
1st May 1817. 
This evening one of the officers, Quamie . Ilendo'e; arrivl:?d. , 
Cudjo Abratj a and the tjutjuo, however, have not come yet. I am 
obliged to wait, because without these men I can go no ~ further. 
2nd. 
Sent a letter tc;> the Genera l by express :to, inform hiJ.!l ' of my 
progress . 
I l earn tha t the Gener a l ha s s ent someone to Coemassie. 
This man avoided meeting me by going through Assin. He ha s 
a lready arrived a t Coemassie • 
• 3rd. 
The lett er I wrote yesterday ha s been brought back . ' This 
is due to Cudjo Akon . 141 The chi ef of this plac e has forc ed 
me to tear the l ett er up and l et the express me ssenger go on 
without it. He s ays he is carrying out the orders of the King, 
which are that I must not be permitted to forward any l ett ers or 
writings of any kind. However much I might try to convince him 
that there was no har m i n any of my l ett er s, h e was not to l et me 
write any , not even a few lines . Akon has oft en said openly 
tha t writing is a dangerous business and mus t be di scouraged . 
• Cudjo Abranta 142 has not arrived ye t • 
Today the Ki ng's t~utjuo arrived here. 
140. Lit., secret aris . In Dutch , somet i me s .. 'to'wn clerk'. 
141. Spelling doubtful . 
142. Alterna tive spelling. 
·- 84 -
5th and 6th. 
No news. Cudjo Abrantja has not come yet. 
This afternoon the collector of the King of Ashanti's 
subsistence monies 143 appeared. At Accra' tort, when he 
arrives to collect suhsistence money, he is accustomed to 
receiving a salute of seven guns, and he tnerefore expects to be 
accorded the same honour when he reaches Elmina. We are leaving 
here on the 10th instant. We are suffering badly from hunger, 
and cannot even buy bananas. 
No news. 
9th May. 
Our whole company is now assembled and we will be ready 
tomorrow to shake the dust of this famine-stricken village from 
our shoes • . 
Inbroebajim, 10th May. 
This morning we left Insadjusie and on reaching here found 
that we had no choice but to sleep in the bush. This place i..E? 
named as written above. Along the highway from Insadjusie to 
here the trees have been stripped but none has been cut down. . 
The track is vc~y bad, 
Biepokoko, 11th May • 
. From Inbroebajim to here the track is as bat> as it was 
ye·ster:day. 
Again we had to sleep in the bush. 
. ., 
Caj!'eko~, }?tAMa,y. 
Today We reached the first Wassaw village. It is very small. 
The inh~bitants are hostile to Ashantis and barely consented to 
sell us .some bananas, though the trees hereabouts are heavily 
laden with them. 
A good hour before we reached here the highway finally gave 
out. 
13th. 
Today is 'evil Tuesday,144 for the Ashantis, and all my 
attempts to get them moving were unsuccessful. After ·much 
trouble we were able to persuade the inhabitants to sell us some 
bananas. No presents have been given us by the Wassaws. " 
Prassie, 14th May. 
We were on the march today from very early this morning until 
5 o'clock tonight, keeping to the made track. This track is 
very Aard on the feet, but very smooth. Indeed it is a better 
road for horses than the one from Coemassie to Cairekoe. The 
trees here are all very small and can be cleared away easily. : -" .: 
143 • .tit. , ; kostgelden . 
144~' Li ~ .~' ; de - s-l-egt:e-ri-· d-ingsdag. 
J ~, _ _ 
• i 
- 85 -
The ground, moreover, is uniformly flat. This village has been 
newly buiLt _ o,J).iL$Q , th.t?~.~: ..t (3_~J:l,£Lfood _ 1;;()~, .E~boug,ht. .• . ':£h$, ll1r ge 
,j . trees have been stripped and the saplings are not bearing -yet. 
~amba, 15th May 1817. 
From Frassie to here the track is unmade' and very ,bad. I 
have been on my feet since Cair6koe and they are now sore and 
swollen. Not a bunch of bananas can be had at this pIace, and 
the flen are eating Unripe paw-paws. We arrived here .very late 
because we had so m~ch trouble crossing the River Boss~m Fra. 
I am told this river is full of rocks, and one cannot travel down 
it to the coast in a -boat. 
Bandoe, 16th. 
From Doemamba to here is a considerable journey. It took 
us at· least four hours. I was offered a night's rest' E). t . 
Dadiessie, but declined this with thanks. Twice we h~d to sWlm, 
which delayed us. The rainy season is beginning to make itself 
f elt in these parts. 
The King's envoys have still not arrived. If it had not 
been for these people, I would have been home 10 or 12'days ago. 
-, 17th. No news. Have not set eyes on the caboceetrs of this place,. 
.~Great Commany, 18th May 1817. 
From Bandoe to here is a very long way by a very poor track. 
After we had been waiting here an hour the two officers 
finally caught us up They will leave with us immediately fQr 
Elmina • 
• 
) 
• 
- 86 -
Names of the villages between the River Bosumpra and the 
King's capital: 
••No.   
1. Para sue 
2. Tjetjewerrij 
3. Numiassue 
4. Apadja 
5. Ato biawa sue These are all 
6. Bekkwamin Assin villages 
7. As sarmanij 
8. Anzang (chief village) 
9. Akkrofrome 
10. Monzaij 
11. Quissa 
12. Fommena , 
13. Dompo Assie 
14. Tjabossu 
15. Embedoema 
16. Essamie Enkwanta 
17. Dottie sue 
·18. Akkankewa Assie 
19. . _Adedewa Assie 
20. Samfoe 
21. Kroaba (?Kroala) Ashanti 
22. Edjun Assie villages 
23. Amou affoe 
24. Adjuabinba 
25. As sumandj a 
26.. Biepo sue 
27. Adjumamoe 
28. Adoenkoe 
29. Sakkraka 
30. Adiabin 
31. Di (?De) Dossuwa 0,0.  
32. Konkermassie 
33. Adassie 
34. Enkankewa assie 
35. Okasie 
36. Affafar (?Assafar) heein 
37. Koemassie (the King's capital) 
(List of presents received by W. Huydecoper.) 
(List of presents received by Sjt. Woortman.) 
.. 
- 87 -
LIST OF PRESENTS 
~ 
<H 1 
MONTH o rn 
AND DAY NAMES OF PERSONS'FROM • ~ WHOM PRESENTS RECEIVED ( OlJD rn·~ 
• .Qco)cO 
. 
• • PI • P rn rn rn Q) rn o§ ~ :;: bD Q) IO:l 0 
I 0 .,-l 
0 Poi' & cO til cO :H . ~~ . ()) . N .. E-t.  
1816 
I 'At Abra. Received . 
I 
MAY from: . 
6 Apia (for a sheep) - - - - - - 3 -
11 Barriekie - - 1 - - - :, ""' -
" Jouw Kokroko - - 1 2 2 - .., -
" Djesie - - 1 - - - 2 a -II Awarrie - - - - - - -
~ ! 11 . Cudjo apannij - - - - - - 1; -
, 
: I : 
: i 
...... .' - - 3 2 2 - ~ -
\ ; 
-. : I i At Adiabin. " 21 bwoesoe :~uan\ta 
biesa ' Chief) - - 1 - 10 - 'T -
: 
At Koemasie. 
25 From the King 1 1 1 00 200 4 14 -
27 : General Poekoe - - - 25 20 - -
t! General Adoematta\ , - - 1 10 10 - 4~ 
. t! Quaooe piepie:m. - - - - 6 - 1 -
t! Apia's wife - - - - 2 - -
,~ 28 Saij Cudjo and ~ Sa~j - - - - 6 - 1 -Jouw' , : : ,  \ 
" Assiantijn - - - - 4 - -
~ 29 , Quatje Cof1fie ( Genera )- - - 1 20 10 - . ~ -
30 i " Adjuwa pienaman and - - - - 4 - 1 -
• Ecoea 
" Acioemma - .- 1 8 10 - 8 -
, " Jouwa Odifiee - - 1 - 10 '- -" Quacoe pon - - - - 2 - ~ -
~ " Bekko Saij (Chief) - - - 20 20 - 8 -
" Nuaffer - - - - 4 - 1 -. "I,  Adoe - - - 6 - 1 -Koko - -- - - 4 - 1 -
, 
Carry forward 1 1 9 185 330 8 14 -
• 
4 
- 88 - ' -
... - ',.--
I 
0 CJl 
I=l 
DATES NAMES " CJl·r-! G 0 L D (]) cj 
...... ,. -... . ~ . " • . p:. . I'~ ,.cl-P CJl' i CJl CJl (]) CJl t>§ N ,!xl 
~ bO (]) s 0 rsl t> 
0 .r-! 65 cO .. , 0 P-t >-t &~ 2 \. 
i ~rought forward 1 2 13 24-7 526 13 7 4- , 
,-
1816 '. -
~ 
JUNE 8 Otjirie - - - - 12 - 3 -
" Adoe nunkrie - - - - - - 1 4-
11 Debbera Cudjo - - - - 6 - 1 4-
" Assiantijn -- -- - -
4- , - 1 4-
It Ponwarrij - 6 8 '- 1 4-
; i' .Apia - - - - 6 - 4- - • f. Korrantirilma - - - 12 - - 1 ; -
, 10 bobbia - - - - 4- - 1~ 
: , II Ankra " - - - - 10 - 4- -1 - .~ l ~ n Attawa Kuisie - - - 4- - l ' , 
I -
, 11 Fossue : - - - - 10 - 3 -
i , It 
! .. • 4-do,~ ~ toetoe ." "i - - - - 4- ' - 1}{! 
I : i. Dendoe b±n 6 4- 1 ' e 
, - - - - -11 Qwoesoe 4ckotia - - - - 10 - 3 - I 
I 13 Odur6 - - - - 10 ' - 6 - -II '1'ando - - - - . 6 1 4-
15 ~he ting . - - 1 - - - - - • 
'I 17 Amanquatia - - 1 4-0 20 , - 9 - -. , " Coffie Sram j - - - - 6 i - 1 -
, 30 Odifiee - - 6 1 4-, - -' 
, JULY,  , 5 .Jouw Sekkerij - - - - 10 6 -
; : II , Kwadoe I - - - ,-- 2 i 
25 Quamin Dendoe. 
-- - -- - -
- - - -2 1 -
, It Aboaaje - 3 - 1 -
: OCT , ' 6 Boatin - - - 20 - 1 - -
I 
, SEP: 21 From ;tlie :King : - - - - - 2 - - ~ j 
, 
j j 
., 1 2 15 331 671 , 20 1 4- '" 
; « 
, (signed) W. Huyde;coper. . 
I : -~ 
• Sic. The Sep~eI:lber eIl!try ha s been added after the OGtober one. , I 
I .,,-
, 
, f ; \ , , -
. ..\  ... 
, ·i . I 
; • 
.... _\ ·1 
" 
.. 
- 89 -
N. B. Also received at various times, from the King 1 N 
9 ~ and 3 or 4 sheep, and from Jouw Kokroko 3 ~ gold and 1 sheep. 
Gold 1 12 t 
(signed) W. Huydecoper. 
Serjeant Woortman received in presents from the King 
1 as 2 t 
(added later) 
Woortman, for departure 9 t 
The men 1 as 12 t 
Departure 6 ~ 
My boys 9 t 
1st January 1817. Received as presents for the New Yea+ 
.. :.:..4 . 1 as 2 t, 1 sheep and 16 yams • 
On 5th February received for subsistence 9 ~ and ~ sheep. 
;,.J 
23rd Feb~ ~ sheep. 
19th March ~ do. 
" March as a present from the King 9 ~. 
24th April. Received for my departure 1 sheep, 1 tusk, 
2 as 4 ~ gold, 1 tiger skin, 1 stool with cushions and 1 cloth. 
20th April 1817. Received from the King 9 ~, 
from others 1 - 14 
as2 - 7 
• 
Insadjusue, 30th April 1817. From the Chief and his 
linguist, 6 t acks. 
THE JOUP~~AL OF THE VISIT TO KUMASI 
OF W, tiuYDECOPER 
2£LApril 1816 to 18 Max 1812 
General State Archi ves\ The H~ueg 
Archives of the Dutch Settlements on the Gui nea Coast? 
349 : Journal of the Settlements, 
For use in the Department of HistQT~ an~ Institute of 
African Studies. University of Ghana, onl~, 
(This translation, by Professor G, W, Irwin, is provisional, 
and its use ~s therefore restricted, A definit i ve 
translation, however, will follow,) 
- 1 - INSTITUTE OF AFRICAN STtlDlfS 
This morning at 6 a I clock I -Cook a hasty l eave of the G-eneral and 
the others a t Elmina, and set out Hith my men a lonG the beach . -_-e' turned 
into the bush behind Christena's plantation, and made towards Abr o. Camp • 
.After travelling for some clist ance we arrived at Fo eampong . ~[,hi s village 
we found ' s;l;ill inh.abi-~eci, and we went through it without disturbi ng anyone . 
,Nri):it'we 8.J;Tiyed at Caboceer J;:sser yie's place, which FaS un.0ccupi ed. His 
is. a -fine villag'e ~ and well built. 
The track from_ Elmina thus f a r coul d' be made i nto a good one quite 
easily . A fer; l a r ge trees would have to· be cleared aVTay, but thi s could 
be done with little troubl e. The name or this p l ace i s Lllleb~bli7 Annoe. 
r..iost of i ts inhabitants have fled tb Elmi na or to the Fantes . I rested 
here for a while'~ and gave my men a dri!1Jc from the ' chest~l 
"'-e set ou t again soon, hOFever, for we wanted to spend the ni ght 
a t a mor e suitabl e spot. For this re2,son we passed strai ght thro\.~gh Si mboe 
wi thout stopping . '-;e noticed that i t had been phmdered by the Ashcor:.tis, 
but not burnt. FrDm Simboe to Lfontoe the track vms very bad for travel-
ling i n a hami"!)ock, being narrow and inconvelrient . The ir difficulties took 
SOIDQ of the heart out of my bearers , for_a short time ago this trace was 
suit-abl e for horses. Along the \,ho1e way we saw nothing remarkable, 
though the song of t he birds i n th~ tr~es gave me special pleasure . 
At Ai'ontoe He took some food and,haa. a lengthy pull at the gin bottle . 
-'i th thi s to encourage us , -rie set out agai n at once VIi th renerle(l :;ooa_ 
spirits , e.nd so continued until ne arrived at this ' village of 8 d,;ellings '. 
I t a lso i s empty, though undamaGed . The Ashant i s made a poi nt of not 
burning it because they use it as a resting p l ace . -
On the way '."08 met severe.l Ashanti s who had beel'lsent by the Genera l 
of the army to Elmina to tell the three officers2 there to return to camp 
immedi ate l y because their l eave of absence had expired lone since . 
".ihen the for w8.rd s couts3 of this J"shanti party learnt from us that rIe "er e 
bound for Kl.lmasi, they were so pleased that they immediately shouted to 
their companions that they should give . way to us . This the rema ining 
Ashanti s , with every appearance of pleasure, did , shouting , " Out of the 
way ! Out of the way! Here comes the son of the Company tha t rules the 
Dutch fort !" and.made so much noise t1:1at I could hear them'from my 
p0 8ition at the rear of the column . AB we went pc.st, each 11laYl bowed 
deeply, and witl;1 great respect . I gathereo_ from one of them that Genera~_ 
Appi2.h is very angry viith his envoys. He has sent sever,:l messaces to 
them, but has received no reply. They have been at Elmina for a lonG -bne, 
and he has bound himself ':ri th sever al powerful oaths to carry them off l)~T 
force as soon as he arrives at Elmina . 
",re passed through two Fante :villa::;es , but do not lmo17 -cheir naI!les. 
---
The envoys at Elmina"have seEt me a messaGe , sUf;sestinc; that I a-;m.i.t 
them at Simboe. I have rep:'ied, ho'''ever , tnat I infend to-go as f.::r as 
my peopl e can carry me , and \,Till -.:ai t for the envoys there . (I d.id in 
. fact Hait for them i n our ' villase of 8 dlTollin2,s ' until darkness arriv r 1, 
but they aid not come.) 
I have retained the services of two Ashantis as guides to show me 
the way , and have had to pay them a bottle of drink , a handi'ul of cardo~e~ 
1 tobacco and a pipe . LShort indecipher.lble passaGe followsJ 
1. Ke l der , lit~ I cellar I ~ 
2 . ~i~~, lit. ' ensiGns , cornets , sub-lieutenants '. 
3. Voorfo~ers, lit. ' precursors, forertuu,ers, heralds '. 
- 2 -
This morning I ' was up 6$.rly and took a walk in the bush to see 
whether toe soil was good or not. It seemed to me that something could 
be made of it. I discovered several cabbage-like plants,4 which tasteii 
excellent • • 
. I waited for the envoys from Elmina until 9 o'clock, but learnt 
from passers-by that they are not expected to leave there until "vednesday. 
I therefore ordered my men to prepare immediately, and we bee;an the 
journey to Abra . 
At Jl..1?r~]31:ttir:!.9..'::.~_~~P~.AP..r:.i.!-. _ 1816. 
He left our village at about half past nine o'clock, and having 
passed through some 15 or 16 hamlets, arrived safely at this place. 
Trvel ve men were here to meet us. They had been sent by General .i\ppiah 
to carry my baggage. The sabG ldra£~t~ informe d me, in the name of lLis 
master, t hat I Tias to stay here until further orders. I'sent the man 
back, and al so his sword, bearing my compliments to the (~eneral, . and 
seeking to know if I might stay the night where I B'as . Nieanwhile a 'gre1.t 
officer ,6 arrived, greeted me, and told me that he had come to conduct 
me to my provis ional lodgings, where I Hould stay until orders came froT. 
the Camp. 
By this time I was much emb~rrassed by the great crowd of si Ght-
seers that had collected, and feared for the safety of my possessions. 
I was therefore glad to be in a fairly s5.fe place. rrhe house was well 
equipped, and had two good windows and a door . The press of people 
continued, many coming to look at me aGain and again. I asked them in .. 
friendJ.y manner to leave me in peace for a while, but little attenti on 
was paid to my request. Finally , the ' great officer' Ha s Good enough 
to post two armed soldiers in front of my house, and this hel ped a 
great deal. 
This place is the left wing 7 or vanguard of the e11camped army. 
There are certc'.inly more than 3,000 men here in all. I gave the offi ce:;,,, 
a drink, which they accepted with high good humour. ilhen they had 
finished their refreshment, they returned with more than a hundred men 
to thank me. They a lso bro~ght the empty bottles back. 
After about an hour, Appi ah ' s sabe ldrager returned with orders 
tha t I should enter the Camp immedia~(;ely;' I am bound to say tha t all 
the men of the vanguard se em very pleased at my presence. It is hard 
to put my feelings into words. I am receivinb most friendly treatment, 
and everyone is very obligjng . But despite all the courtesy the const,u G 
vis i t ing has been very tiring for me. 
Soon we set off again , and arrived at Abram at 4 o'clock. I 
have little to say about this place , except to complain about the cl amou;,' 
and throne:: of people. Good God! ')hat 2. crowd! I thought to myself, 
"How is it boing to be possible 'GO get throU[;h tl1em witho.ut a troop of 
soldiers?" And indeed i t was wi th gr eat c1iffic\J~ ty that '\.'e forced our 
way. I had my feet on the soldi ers ' heads, which they bore with great 
good humour. 
-'·lhen I had di smountc:,d from my hammock, a ' sreat officer' of 
Appiah ' s staff came to greet me, and l ed me to a place where there were 
three huts. These, on Appiah ' s oro_ers, had been cleaned and made 
4. ~o~planten , lit. 'cabbage-plants ''-
5. I,i:\a • .,  '817orc1-b@larer'. 
6. Groot va{t~13.'_ ,. 
7. Script here is almost illeGible. 'L'eft vling ' i s a poss ible 
reading , but no more th;:'.n that. 
- :; 
r eady' for us, thei r usual occupants havi ng been obliged t o remove them-
sel ves . Thi s officer i s call ed ,Cu d j o Apanni j , and he i s renovmed as a ver J 
brave Illf'.n. 
}.[y bel ongi ngs were stored i n my, hut , and my flag set up outs i de . 
I ha il hardly been i nstalled for a quarter of an hour , when two of Au,iah::; 
boys brought lae two wooden bowl s contai ni ng r oast por k and mashed pechang. 8 
They a lso brought a message from App i ah i nforming me that I shoul d take 
my l~est i n this hut until next dC'_y, when he woul d provi de me 17i th bet t er 
accommodation . He commended me i nto Cudgo Apannij ' s car e. The huts Re 
rJere Gi venwere1!Tr etched affairs , situ~tecl r i ght in the r.li dst of the 
solcliers ' quarter s . Mi ne was 5 feet· l ong , 5 feet e7i de and most uncomfor-c-, 
able. It was not even 5 feet hi eh. 
• I had sat dmm to eaJc vlhen I suddenl y heard a fr i ghtful yel ling 
and shouting outsi de. Be i n g curious , I asked what the noi se mecmt . To 
my surprise the answer was that the troops of Gen er a l Bar ri8kie were 
try~ng to take me by force from those of ~eneral Appi ah, and were a ssembled 
outside for the purpose . The result was the greatest confus i on . Barri elcie 
cla iElsihat he i s the youngest of the commander s 9 and that i n consequence 
a ll "hi te men would be put in his charge. Appi ah deni es this, and now 
Barriekie is r eady to fight to get me aV'ay from Appi ah. The di spute 
becone very seri ous. App i ah.' s men , with their guns at the ready, dared 
Barriekie' s to come on . Matters ,reached such a pa ss that I began to be 
f rightened . I sent my boy with my ' staff a.n(l chain to App i ah to urge 
that nothing foolhardy be done and tha t it woulit be sens i ble to settle 
.. the pala ver at once. ' But his men shouted, IINo ! No ! '/e won ' t yield him up. '.'re gave him 10Cl.ging first. He sha.ll not So . He i s our master , e,no.  
'we .rill (lio for him. t1 Let Barriekie hi mself oome her e i f he dares." 
Despite all this Appiah went with my boy to see Barr ieki e in order to 
settle the pal a ver. His men continued to shout, "" 'e "ii ll f i ght ! '! cmd 
refused to let me go. At l ast my boy returned a,nd told me tha t every -
th:L'13 ha d been put off until the Dorni nG• At this everyone ca lmed dO';'ill 
,immediate l y . Appi ah, however, ViaS still mi strustful, and had 50 men 
s l eep around my hut to protec t me against possible night attack. I 
F~S not myself quite rea s s ured , and had all my own men spend the night 
outside Qy hut ~:s 'nell. 
In Camp Abr~O~h April l~. . 
This morning the soldiers beban to qua r re l amonG themselves again, 
and Dade enou gh noise to r a is e the Devil. The turmoil soon becane just ;; 
as bad as it had been 'che night before . Once more I sent ny boy ';.i th 
tho s t [',ff a nd chain to ask L:opi a h to settle the affair. A solution to 
• the troubl e mu s t have been quick l y found, and j,ppi ah appar ently lost tho a r cument , for I soon had or ders 'co move my quarters. 
• To settle thi s pa l aver cost me four bottles of drink, for I haa to p<:y the r!1en who had kept 0u<.rd on my hut durin,:, the ni i5ht a nd a lso 
had to pay for the use of the hut i tsel f . I felt I must ,,, i ve ily O'in men 
8. bot'clc, too . 
The ccmp seems to be ul1usuz.lly full of t roop s . As soon as I 
ha ve p&,i d. ~ny compliments , I nill ~o for ,'). Yi..1.lk I'nd have a look a'c i'c . 
In C~.Jl)!f:-.J~l:.~ i'le.y 1816. 
No l1e',iS tOllay . I have enough provls lons to l as C my men 4 clays . 
About 12 o ' clock I r eceived 'b:,o tr:-ys of food from General Appie.h , L,rHl 
8 . Obscure . Pe cha n,& coul d be p,i esa!lg_, from l\~.r. l2.i sanl;.. = ' banan- ' 
or her e , presunabl y , 'plD.lt:tin.' 
9. Obs cure . The sense might be tithe most junior of the commanders tl • 
- 4 --
from the 'great officer' Cudjo Apannij 8 small ~nt)e~lO and one ~~legibli1 
of gold &0 buy meat. I was in no position to refuse these gifts, and 
passed them on to my men. 
I have not yet received permission to go out, nor has ,any of the 
three generals communicated with me. ~,ly hut is almost over-run ,d th people. 
Some come to g~eet me in Appiah's name, some in Barriekie's. · Others come from 
Junanqua and others again from Youw Kokroko;. They say, "I am the King t s son, 
I am the King 's brother," etc." and all of them t ake a drink from me. Thos e 
sent by the generals come preceded by the sword and accompanied by 8., 10 
and sometimes 15 men. Each has his ·stool with him, and here they sit until 
they have finished their drinks. They say that, if I do not Give them 
something to drink, the royal family will be offended. Six 'great officers' 
visited me one after the other. I did not dare refuse their requests. o 
It was unlucky that I haa_ my 5 ankersll in view and not locked up in chests 
where they might have escaped notice. jl~together my visitors, about 50 in 
all, emptied a good 7 bottles. 
I sent General Appiah a bottle from the chest and t i'iJO flasks arawn 
. from keg. To Barriekie I sent one bottle from the chest and another drawn 
from keg . To Amanqua and You" Kokroko the same as to Bar·riekie and , in 
return for my -.lodging, one bo t tle from the chest to Cudjo Apannij. Other-
wise , nothing of interest to r eport today. 
Thi? morning General Appiah sent to greet me and inquire after my 
welfare. I dispatched my boy to pay my compliments in return and to expre s s Cl 
my best thanks for the General's courtesy towards me. At ten o'clock I 
sen't him two f;L'1e fowls bake a_ in the pan which, so he told my boy, t a sted 
very good. In exchange he supplieo_ me with palm wine and food. My men, 
however~ have not yet received anything from anybody. 
Today Appiah offered, to pla ce one of his sons in my service, giving 
me l eave to t ake the boy with me and employ him as I see fit. The lad 
seems willinG and capable , <,_nd I have accepted the charge. 
I have becom'8 terribly weary of the constant stream of officers and 
royal relativea who come to visit me . They are still appearing at my lodgings, 
despite the great numbers who came yesterday and extorted so much liquor 
from me. .Already one and a half chests of drink have been elllptied. More-
over, one whole .chest ,was lost on the way here, when one of the bearers 
dropped it and smashed 10 bottles~ This is a serious matter, for one 
cannot replenish stoc~s of liquor in these parts. I have consoled myself 
by giving vent to some quite unnecessary abuse, which can do me no good. 
Up to now I have neither seen nor spoken to any of the four generals. 
General Appiah has sent word. that he much regrets his inability to visit 
me. If he came, he says, the other generals would suspect him of holding 
secret talks with me. I must not disclose my mission until the envoys have 
returned from Elmina. iflhen they are back, then everything can be discussed 
publicly. This disappointing information does not please me at all. If 
it were not that some of the lling ' s presents were left behind). I would not 
have the patience to stay here any longer. The matter is out of my hands, 
however·, because I do not know when the envoys are to return., 
This afternoon I took a walk through the camp to see how big it was. 
After an hour and a half I became so tired that I had to eome back. It 
would not be possible to reach the end of the camp in a day's march • 
...... 
10. ~tJe by the.diotionary me~ns 'small piece of lace'. Cbuld the 
meaning here be piec~s of trade cloth used as currency? 
11. Anker, a keg of a capacity of 1 anker. . 1 anker = ea. 9 gallons. 
... 5 
:,. 
General Anlanqua IS da;mlr is !J,t ,least one hoUr aWf:1Y from Appi ah ' s and Barriekie's. 
Gerier£},tci J ouw Kbla:\ok~'!: S" ,is still' furiher off. He corrimands 3,000 troops, and 
my'e&t1.mate ,, is tbat "there are at leastl~,OOO under the command of Appiah, 
lunanquah and Barriekie .12 
ilnen I · returne,d from my walk, Genera l Appiah ' s' svwrd.,.bearer came 
to see me. 'He ' told me ' that, when evening canje, I was to move to lodgings 
i n Barriekie IS cainp. Agreement had ' finally been reached that I must cha nge ' 
mY'lodgi~gs~ At this nElVIS I cleared out of my poor little hut, and set 
out a.t once for my nevv' house, with all mY ,baggage following,behind me , 
my flag ·going on before; and a ccompanied by more than ,two thousand men . 
Singing m;c~y , the"soldier s brought " me into the presence of G-eneral Barriekie, 
rrho ii ,o;. S sitting in st2.te surroUnded by some of his officers. He ga ve my 
his hand three times anclpressedmine warmly., I w'as"'then provi ded 'IIi th 
a stool and a bottle of ,watered liquor. All 'Watched while I tried it. 
T'Den 138,rr,iekie stood up 'and said tha t he ;~as putting ,me in the charge of 
a sVTOrd-bearer who would conduct me to my,new house. He added tha t if I 
lacked for anything I should let him know,. He also tolilh±S ,people tha t 
no 011e VlJ.S to be a llowed to ph.gue or pester me. (This, opCler was i n vain; 
I was soon overwhel med ew n more than before. 
I had been in my house only a shor'c while when the Genera l qame in 
person to ask if I was properly accorrunocLated. I."an'sv~ered that I was , 
though to speak truth I was f eeling very miserable~ " I must not forget, 
of course, ~r~t I am in a Camp a nd not in a viilag~9 This hut I am now 
in i s certainly better than the one I was given by Cudjo Apannij. ';nen 
• I l eft there, I gave Apannij- L, fa thorns of panegoed13 and a bottle of drink, and to tho off±6er who commanded the 50 men who kept watch over me I gave 
two fathoms . ',:iben Barriekie had been seated for a while, I let him have 
a dram or two out of one of my bottles. He thought, however, tha t I was 
presentinG him with the whole bottle, and took it away I'lit h him when he 
left" I We!. tohed i t go ,lith a heavy heart. 
I hear the envoys are due to arrive tomorrow morning. I hope ~hilf ' 
is so, for I am not at a ll accustomed to a military life. _411 the time 
I k eep h earing , now from this dire ction, now from that, the sound of pipes 
ana, horns. I sit trembling i n my house, and, ',I'onde::.- if my bravery wiil soon 
be put to the, test and whether I will be force a, to set out for Kumas i 'wi thout 
waitinG for the arriv a.l of t ho envoys. J1t I hear from many, people that 
Appiah is definitely resolved to attack COGllllany. This a ction on his part, 
if it i s to happen, will be solely at the instiGation of the Elmina chicf,15 
J an Nieser , and his terregra..11,9-es_16 ...... ;:'• •• ~" .•.•. 17 Other Ashantis say 
that l~ppiah has no orders to (10 anything' othor than fetch Cudjo Koema and 
the rest 'of the Fantes who ar o in hiding at Co=ny. I had 8. few words 
" i th Appi ah i n the, name of Genera l Daendels, urging him to <:'.bandon his 
r esOLve . The matter WD. S ,bandIed secr etly. Everyone shoul d seek, to advance 
the interests of his maste~'1.nd suppress an unlarlful chief vlhenever thi s 
is possiblo.lS, 
TIlis Jan Nieser has often been the cause of disobedience on the part 
of the people of ElmiI'la against the Governnent. His constant i nciting of 
the population and his numerous villainies '.Jero the cause' of'" his b~ing 
thronn out of Accra, though this banishment does not seem to ha ve t a UGht 
hw r:J.uch of' a l osson . This wicked man , this root of all evil , ".ho has lonG 
• 
1 2 . The initia l figure of the total "10,000" gi ven, her,e i s unfortunatel y 
blotted. It could be a 1, a L. or a 6. 
13. Meaning unknown, but obviously a type of' c l oth . 
14. Last trlO sentences in this, parv.graph are very' obscure ~ 
15. Lit., k~inG, but 'chief' seems a better trans lp tion t han ' kine '. 
16. rJ~L rrc ~r ·, ri : cc - ' \. l _~.:r ' 
17. Here ) lin , ori ' in , l i s ver.y.......ob r cure. 
18 . l.i t to . 
--------------------------------------------------~~----------
6 -
been n thorn in the flesh tCi us, is now 'in a f c,ir V! f),y to brinG down the 
Goverment of Elmin,e; i tseli'".' Hcsproe-ds wickednoss which a ll know nbout, . 
but none dnre speak of. ' I myselfTIk~ke no bones about s a.ying th~t this 
IDc~n is not only overweening e-nd anbitious but a. ringle~der nnd 0. trouble- o 
lllc'1ker, and if he is not we- tched ca.refully by Gener~l D'C endels, he rrill 
be Emperor of Elmiru:,- yet. The lI1.".n Ad':'..m knows hin vrell, [',nd ouch m,,-y be 
le" rnt fron 1.0.,'1,0 by nee-ns of soft ;;ords. He is trustworthy, moreover, 
e-nd will sny in Nieser' s presence a nything the Governor rTf,nts him to s ny. 
I reve often hee-rd hin describe ho1'7 Je-n Nieser klks: "Now I nm king 
over rcl1. The white nen d '.re not do " nything to me. They hc.ve to cone 
to Iile if they want e-nything . " I h..'Cve " Iso many tines he :crd hoW' the 
onderkonin ' ,19 by naoe l~bo e , s"ys to his Dc,ster (for his is Nieser' s 
sle-ve, "You are ow lord. iJe vmnt no one over Us but you," o.t which the 
'Eoperor' l~uGhs in gre" t glee so tlk'1t his belly sh~kes. 
TorJorrow I will present my complinents to Generi'-ls Lppio.h , fJ:1!:'..llqu.::c 
a.nd Youw Kokroko. There ha s not been u,n opportunity before. Genero.l 
Bnrr;i.ekie he-s honoured me with a. visit,. · :.'.nd is provine very c,fro.ble. 
In theCc:.mp, 3rdMn,y 1816. 
, . This morning I had my hal!llllock prepnred, an el mmt to present Dy 
compliments to ·the generc.ls. 
< First iQ my ILandlor,g: , who receiveo. me in ['. 1:10.St fr:j.. endl y 1:1."',=er. 
He we,de no 'collllJent on the ' f :>.ct thrit I h" d come, hovreve,r. l ' pc,i d hi.r:1 
my c,omplimen~s st=ding up. o 
From th;r~ I, \7ent ·to gr~et l·.ppiah. Thi s I did":im the name of 
the Gener2.1 ,of Elmin1'- . l~gain , I performed Ely duties s trcndin::; up or, I 
should r o.ther say, I : stood because no stool '//.",s pr oduced for De. 
Frol!! t here to l >.l.lU'-nquc,h, who wc.s i ndi spos ed • . They. s'Cy he i s ,-,,:,-0. , 
and ca=ot tell one per son from .a.nother. The cnuse i s thought to be 
th.:'..t he put [" !;k'Cd woI:lt?n · to ' deL'- th [',no. she ha. s been vex i ng "h i s sp i rit 
ever s ince. 
1."..s tly I went to YouV'! KokJroko' s Co.op , which l e-y in flo. t and 
10Vi-lying ground. I quickly se:.7 th8, t here I we-s meetin:; 'a re,". l generc.l, 
and one who understood his prdfess i on. hS soon a.s he l ee-rnt of ny 
o.rriva l, he sent to nsk me to t e,ke' r. se".t under it l .:cr ge· tree, Since he 
Vle- S not yet rea dy to r eceive me . Accordingly I went and snt under this 
tree . Before long I heard .0.. drUm being 'beaten. 1.t this siun 8.l nr ned 
soldiers cane ru=ing from all directions , v!ith their officers followinG 
behind them. Everyone n-s'sel!!bled under another tree ner,rby. Then t:he 
generQl, splendidly a ttired in e. white cloth,20 appeQred fron his 
dwelling and took his sent !'.D.ong his men. He ha d ne :J.pproa ch, escorted 
by o.n ·officer .:md four soldiers • . Lt his rE'lquest I returned to l!!y 
hanmock and s e t in it (he wi shed to s e e one), and approa ched Qgnin. My 
reception wo-s fit for a king . The General stood. up, shook rae by the 
hand three tines nnd offered me the s tool next to his. My visit G9..ve 
him much pleasure. He g<,-ve me a bottle of drink for my bee-rers , which 
I passed on to t hem and which ,tlo!ey finished on the spot. I stayed for 
a t least a n hour, then took ny leave a nd rode off in my haomock. 
I ha d not been in my house .:m hour when Genernl YouwKokrokci. ce,me .~ 
to pay his compl1.ments to me. 'de sa t t a lking for r; good while . I g:.'-ve 
him Q bottle of gin21 from my chest QS c- ·present. He is very intir:lnt e 
--_. --~---------------------------~----------
19. Lit., 'vice-roy,' but the ' word is often' used by: the Dutch in the 
sense of ' second-in-conmand'. 
20 . PO-antje, a diminutive of Ea.'tn, which comes fron Port. E:P..£t"L cloth 
which negroes ' us e to surround their bodies from the .mist to the 
knees or somewhC-t lower" (Van Dale). . 
21. Genever (mod. J..enever), i .. e. Hollands ;or Dutch', gin. 
.. 7 -
with De for so short a period of aci~ai~tance. He asked me whether or 
not I hod brought somethin g for h i m from El mina. I said I had not, 
expla ining that the Gener':llat Elmina had not kno wn for certa in tha t 
there were Dore than three generals i n the Camp; ~he envoy whom he, Youw 
Kokroko, had sent .to Elmi na,had ne i ther s words nor staffs wi th hiD, and 
the Gener~l had not known whether to pay h i m honour or not. This envoy 
had, ho we v.er, asked for a fla .S , and the Gene r al had prov i ded 7,1e with 
one. I had a lso been ordered tQ find out the truth about the exact 
number of Ash~nti genera l s whe n I reached the C mp. This informat~on 
I now had;' and I would write to the Genera l and reques t that a. present 
simila r to thos e already deliv~red shoul d be sent to Gene ra l Youw 
Kokroko. At this he expr essed much sat i sfaction, and thanked me •. 
I wi l l indee d write to General Da endels at the first opportunity, 
and su~gest th . t You,v Kokroko h1.s his s)1 , r e of favours. He is of the 
same rank as t~e other gener a ls •••.• 22 
I have forgotten to mention that Youw Kokrok o sent me a bunch of 
bsnanas a nd 2 chickens. He wqnted to take the fl a g away with him. I 
told him, ho wever, that he must b e pa tient unt i l the envoys come back 
from Elmina. The n t he other presents wi ll be distributed, and he will 
get his fla c: . 
4th HolY 1816 . 
This morning I r e ceived greetings from Generals .ppiah and 
Barriekie and sent them mi ne ViI sy boy. 
I Vient for ,~ wa lk today :md found myself outside !,ppiah' s hut. I 
th e r efore called on him~ He i s a n excellent old man , kind -he a rted and 
oblig ing . I had no sooner returned home a nd wap b usy wri t ing than he 
wCl lked r i gh t int o oy hut . La"Bhins, he t<;lok me by t h~: lnnd, a nd s : i d , 
"I hav e .come to see you . You need not s end mess :lse s to me ." I inv,ite d 
h i m to s it on my bed, wh ich he did . I told h i m th?,t I vias ve ry, distress ed 
th~t the envoys fr om Elmina. h a d .not a rri ved y e t. He s~ij they ~o uld 
def i n i te ly b e here to day . Be a ccept ed a d r a m a nd wen t aw~ y . 
J ust at t ha t moment I l earnt to my gr e ~t JOY th a t the e nvoys f ro n 
Elmi na h~d indeed arrived . Before long the most senior of them, Awarrie 
a n d Djesie, C"lC'lC to s s e me . Adoe, however, did not 3.ppear. !\war rie 
and Djesie : reet e d me breast to br a .B t, ~ ft e r t he fashion of the 
Po rtu Gu e se ,~e n t~o frie nds meet afte r a lo n g pa rt ing . They we r e still 
dressed as for l ~ ourney , and their men had their muskets on their 
shoulders . They told me that they had not had the honour of a ny fu rther 
conversa tion with General Daende l s since the time I left, which had 
vexed them. I gave them something to drir>J~ a nd t hey went on their way. 
I "las indeed ve r y g l ad to see t hese envoys . They have promised 
me th a t . tomorro w t hey will without fail publicly g ive an a ccount of 
their mi ssion, so tha t I will be able to l eave here quickly . 
I have bought half a f , t fto g for 3 fathoms of cloth and 1 
bottle. of drink. 
5th May 1 81 6 . 
Las t night there rn s a general jollification throug hout the Camp . 
Drums, flutes and horns sounded and all th e c~boceers d ~nc e d . For the 
• \s hant i s today i s a good Sunday.23 By l ate ~ t night the cla mour ~as 
dying down , but with the coming of d~wn the tumult s t a rt e d u p 3.[a in. 
Festivities l::lsted until about noon or 1 0' clock, ',..-h e n t he .senior 
gener al, ,ppiah , took his seat on his chief's stool un jer a g r eat a rch. 
There he r e ceived the greetings of e veryone pres en t in orde r of 
seniority. I was the first 
22 . Ob scur e . 
23 . 1. e . the Kwasi - '1daG . This ha s reference to the Akan ,dua n ' n c:11 e nd,:lr 
- 8 -
to be invited to pay my respects, then came Genera l ~~rriekie, then a 
' 81'ea t officer' representinG iiJl18.nqua, and then Genere- l Your; I':okroko. o 
P£ter this all the dignitaries24 and officers cane up in turn. 
lI.ppiah withdrew for p, moment to his house e.nd returned with three o 
English gold pieces Ylhich he gave to me. 'nth these I boubht a sheep, 
which Vl2.. S carried to my hut i n c. golden vessel by Lppiah ' s own 0"-:.2[2'::' 
£,ecre.r:. This !iW.n I dc.shed 2 fathoDs of £8~neg() ed. (He had :Jade :J. point 
of ('.sking ny boy if he n i ght hrtVe something by He,y of '''. present.) As 
Appiah was le~'.Ving the a ssenbly, he se-id to De tha t I ought nOli to visit 
Barriekie, i{Oe-nqug and Youw Kokroko and bid then good norning. This I 
i onediately did. FroD furriekie I received 1'. sbeep and SODe be,naIk1.s, and 
froD Yom/ Kokroko another sheep, 10 :S:!:ntn..ees and 2 bunches of h?,mm2.s. 
FrOD !manqua, hOllever, I got nothing. To the Den who brought the sheep 
to ny hut I gave 2 fathoDs of E?negged each. All this visiting reoinded o 
ne of New Year's Day at Eloina , when children run froD house to hous e 
collecting their presents. To tell the truth, I felt l:' ore than a little 
ashamed. However, to be a llowed to visit :~rea t Den on festi vp.l de.ys such 
as this i s a considerable honour. 
Appiah told 1'1e tlk'1,t the envoys would. not be received in audience 
today, this being a dc.y when no business l:1.'l.y be done. l ... t l east, this 
is what he said to we in public. Le.ter, at about 3 o'clock, he sent rlOrd 
th?t he and the other dignit3.ries vrer e conferring [.nd were rec.dy to listen 
to what I and the envoys had t o say to then. I iDJJedia tcly pr epc.red ::::yself 
ana. rode off to the oeeting in Dy ha=ock . ' 
Djesie, speaking for all the envoys, described the experiences 
they had ha d at Elnine-. He gave his recite.l in great dete.il, reco ,:nting a ll o 
that had transpired between the finvoys und the General, listing the 
kindnesses which he a nd fhe others ha d daily received at the General's 
ha nds, e-nd speaking warmly of the chest of gin and other liquor 1.7hich had 
been prDvided. His report ~as so favour~ble, indeed, t~~t it rejoiced 
De to hear it. 
Next, Djesie scotched the lies spre1'.d abr~ad by Coenc. , e-nd told 
the rea l truth e-bout the COIJIJ2.ny affe.ir. i7hen!fe had finished speakin:; , 
I took my instructions fro m my pocket and reoarked that everythinb that 
Coena had told then as conins from the chief and !e~egra~des , of ~lnina 
was nothing but a pack of infaDous lies. I sC'.id thL'. t no Dessr,ges, 
ho,lever e.uthenticated, should be a ccepted by the Ls ha ntis [1.S truly froD 
ElmiIk~ unless somebody directly representing the General of E1Gina were 
present and even then the person present must be ab le to prove that 
the Genera l had in f a ct sent him. The hshanti, gen er a ls expressed 
agreement with this. 
o 
I then spoke to thera very earnestly e,bout General Daende l s' s 
wishes concerning COQL1c'l.ny. I said it was definitely ray superior's o 
desire that the Ashantis should not go there, and that it Via s hoped 
Genere~ ~ppiah would desist if he ha d an attack on COBDany in ~und. To 
these words, however, I received no C'.nswer. ll.ppiah se.id thc~t he and his 
colleagues woul d sleep on the ma tter and let De know tomorrow what 
they ha d decided. I suspect that they a re deteroined to take COBIDnny 
e.nd , when there, will demand the surrender of all the Fantes. who have 
t aken refu§e in the town. If the Commany people refuse to yield these 
fugitives up, then the Ashantis will bW'n the town and kill a ll the 
inhabitants, ,.ho will have brought this fate on themselves by their mm o 
obstina cy. I cannoJe, how-ever, state any of these things with certainty. 
I am raerely repea ting here vlhat the young men in the Ashanti arI1Y 
t ell me. 
On 'che "~hole I did not really expect thl'.t all my business here 
would be completed today. Meanwhile I th1'.nk God tha t we ha ve got on 
'~-~~~-~"---~ .. "~~-~' -_.-
24. Groote!}.. Perlw.ps 'elders' would be a better transla t~·on. , 
- 9 -
thus f a r and tha t I will be [',ble to continue my journey this cOLling 
Tuesday. On Monday, we are -Gol d , it -is not per!Jit-ced to tr~ vel. I ho. ve 
a sked Appi a h to provicie some Den for :"le: 12 as :::.n escort and 12 to c'.rry 
Dy Goods'. He. has pTom sed to arr~',n,:;e this. 
I have handed their pres,ents over to the gener o.ls and have given 
General YOU17 Kokroko his fl;<; . They are a11 very pleC'..sed , 0..nd howe asked 
me to l'r i te to 'Genera l Dt1ena,els to express their tlv.nks . This I .-viII do. 
I ha ve 2.1so inquired ,.bout the pre'sei1'ts for the King y!hich the 
envoys have brouglit with then. Lwarrie says h\) hr~s what he is re spons:i,.ble 
for, but cannot speo.k for Dj es i e . Adoe, who is inanquah ' s envby, a nd 
Enpoh,25 who r epresents Appiah and i s a l so his linguist, have not brought 
anything . T'ney so.y t hat t wo ches t s 'of gin wer e by ill luck dropped and 
the bottles inside snashed to p i eces . To pr ove the f o.lsity of these 
absolute lies , I ask ed to see tho broken ches t s , but they 'Jer e not forth-
• coming. I wo..rned the envoys tha t unle s s by tODorrow the chests had been sent to me, I Ylould tell the King when I saw hiD tha t his r epre senta ti-
ves were thieves. They se ened, howeyer" to pay no a<cterliion to my threats. 
The peace na.de Hi ththe Fa ntEis ' :is as, follows: ",tha t the Ash[1.~tis will 
renn.in in Fante terr itory until Cud jo ' Koem has been' capture d; ' tha t so 
l C;1g as he i s not in Ashanti ho.nds the Fantes Dust not h '.ke it anise if' 
SO!:le of their people 8.re'panjared' and sold by the Ashantis, who ha ve to 
keep themselves in food whi~e in foreign t erritory; and tha t the Fantes 
nust s inilarly not object if SODe of t heir people are done 2.way vvith for 
sinilar rea sons. Apart froD this, nothing has been decided . Here in , the 
• CaDp , killing goes on daily . I will s a y nothing of the nurders tecause 
the subject is too horrible. It is clear, however, 'oho. t a true peace ha s 
by' no !:lean s been concluded yet . 
£=l Abra. 6th May 1816. 
Not;ling happene d today. This morni ng I prepar 'ed to l or. ve here, and 
was willing, if' necess o.ry, to tra vel ,':ithout an escort. ' I have r ece i ved 
no answer from Ap'pi ah a bout CciDlJD.l1Y. It i s probc.bly true that he intends 
to go t here. This a#ternoolli I sent 2. Dessage to hin, specifico.lly to get 
t'.t l east SO::1e inforrk".ti on ou:the s ubj ect , but i n vc. i n . I hc.ve ther efor e 
tc..ken l eave of the other [;ener o. l s wiJehout r ni s i ng t ho I:'K'.ttor r.~2.in. 
I re~eiv()d froD Djes i e c sheep,. 2 311ogi b'l V 26 of gol cl and sOue 
banmlc'1.s , for 6Whfch I save his boy 2 f a t homs ' of cloth; frOD LwnrriG 2 
Lillegibl§72 . of Gol a" (1 chick0n ,':'.nd SODe b2.nanas . I h2.'I[e , s ettled i:ly 
a ccount 'iii th my ser vant (uho i s r., junior offi cer of R'U'ri ekic ' s), and 8.D 
pa ying him 2 fathoDs of cloth for h i s services and 'for the use of the 
• hut s . He ho.s boen of the croa test va lue to, us ',7hil0 we. h ..: vc been here 
in the C3.Llp • 
• 
I learnt yesterday th3.~ Cobbena Esservie has been seen on 
the ro ad with 6 others. The ~s hant is h3.ve been out lookin,: for 
them , but, none of t ~e party h~s been captured yet . 
Manqua Mcll1kesu , 7th }ILlY l..§l§.. · 
Today at 6 O'clock I left Abr J , travellin ~ without an escort. 
\ppi~h definitely promised to give me sane men t~ lct both d S 'n 
• escort and as "ear<2rs , but h'e does rot seem to have r.Eant i t ~ 
Ny hal1ll"lock men have thus to carry my lUGgage as ,Iell as me . 
Between Abra an~ this place we_went throu~h th i rteen villages. 
All had ~een burnt a nd some of t'e-~ouses ~ulled down . The 
disun,ce fr om _'\.br'a - to he re is ten hours, f;r nine of lkich I have 
had the honour of wa l king on my bare feet . There was no chance 
25 . Spelling doubtful . 
26 . Looks like a COJ1ventionrl.l synbol. ~,iiGht stand , perhaps, 
for 'ackios ' ? 
-10-
wha tever of ;.ty being carriecl. The pathway was unmade, rough and Illudcly , ni th 
numerous lar 3e tree-trucks fallen across it. During the whol e joUrney We 
never had e V0n four feet of straight track; it was a case of 'to the ' left 
for two feet., then to the right for three fee.t, ·' and so on. The going .'las 
ver y di fficu'a , and del ays frequent. 
The vil::'age we are in now was at one time inhabited by three nations, 
Ashantis, Fa:1te,s and Assins. All traded here. At presen~, however, there 
are no dnhab;.tants, and the iV'illage has been partly burnt~ 
Before ,,: left Abra , Barrielde pa i d me a final visit, and brought me 10 
barrels of lI.Jng ' s gunpowder ,.27 :n:disc('vered that these had been tanpered 
with and the gunp0wder adulterated, and I refused t o a c cept then. I asked 
him to send ";he barrels. t o the capital, a nd when I arr:j.ve there I will 
discuss the ""atter with th'l King. Mote than t wo y(lunds of powder, mc:reover, 
have been stolen. out of each barrel~ . 
. Bar;. ieki.e has also promisecl t o send after me :the gunpowder brought by 
the envoys a '.d intended as a present from -the General at Elrnina to the King ' . 
So faf I ha ve seen nothing of it, (It is as Vlell I had the full details 
of these pre; ,ents from t he' General before I left:. Othervlise the King 
would certaLly not be likely t o receive all of thea!) During the 
ceremony a t -:;he Camp, General Youw Kokroko said he 170uld supply men to 
carry t his p.m der t o the capital, po:int~ out that he and I will both win 
much honour oy such an arrangement • •• But the King will learn the truth 
in the end. ' 
During ',he journey tod.ay we saw abbacotrees and lantasJ..,which yield 
good timber " or planks, and are a,Iso . suit a bl'e fot ships I mas ts and spars. 
Ever yth: ng in this vil lage s eems very dear. For a few bananas, vrhich 
we got from ;- ome Ashantis,' I had to pay one gold pi ece p.er bunch,29 and even 
then the. l)ar .,ain was' concl, ided with difficulty and after much, cha tterihg . fl, 
In the Ca.mp:· crould not buy anything t!. t a ll. Everything t ,here was 
reser ved for the soldiers. . 
r an no ' accust0med t o so much v;alking, and it has' made me very sick. 
r am suffod.;, .g from a sever e headache and pains in the !moes. According to " 
what the Ash.- ''ltis 'say, I will have to walk for t wo days before .1e 'reach the, . 
River Bb ssum ?ra, after which I will be ab l e to ride agairi. This news has 
made me very uneasy, for I fear the onset of. illness. 
During '~ 'he j ourney today the rain beat down heavily an o. it has been 
:training dmo;' c all nights0 f alT' with fearful . thun.der and ligh~. The 
villages in . .1 .ese parts are not separated much o~e from another. 
In the vill!,{3 of F?s~:J;.JrJ:E...!~ip, !-e~;t ~.e8.~?tl-l" ff8.tE.l'f;Y;, ?-N.§.. 
Today a" six 0 I clock Vi e began our j ourney' aga in viit h renewed 
courage . To ml: grea tdisa ppointment the track Has even worse than i t 
had been yes~3rday. It was ver y rusg'ed. throughout, and no one s eems to be 
mainta ini :r..g : '; at all~ Mo::,e than 50 tree-truckSi, which had been blown 
dnm by s tor!..=>, lay acr oss i t, and made our progress diff icult and s l m-To 
FroD Jli'la): Ilia Mankesu t o this place i s an e l ev:en hour march, and I 
mysel f diJ. t : -; whole distar.ce on foot. Alon-g the way there were no o 
villages '1, t , '.~ where V16 could rest.. ne therefore halteo. for our 
midday r ef.t F ~ a place. by +'he side of the track nea r a . ride .and swift:Ly-
flowing B~re[ 1 , and there waited for the rearmos t bearer s to catch up. 
'.7e cr osse u. t l' '.s stream by r,eans of a tree-truck, which l ay across it and 
served as a " ·.'idge. It mus t- have fallen there naturally, for men's f1ands 
coul d never 1 lYe moved iit. We a lso 'Iaded through several other streams, ' 
some of vr':1icl were quit e doep. '.-Ta teIi' t aken' from beneath t he drip.-stones 
provided 8. Vi( tderfully cle21:' and refreshing drink. . 
'7e helVe -mffer edmariy rrisfortunes on this journey. ~' ,'e are hung-ry, 
since nei<hel' money nor bl u:1.aislunents can. pr.ocure. us food~ Heavy r ain 
27. Lii t., ' 0 KoniDR' jS_ kru:'·d. . 
, 28. Short b'c ' l'CWe-pa&~fi'ere. . 
29 . Gue.s swm . :. Script i s very c-bscure. May be ' a ckie' aoain. 
-l:L-
has fallen constantly about our ea rs, a nd an umbrella is use l ess 
because of the thickness of fo r es t t hro ugh which we have to movo . 
r doubt if Robinson Crusoe had more trouble than we have experienced 
on this 4shanti journey . The who l e W3Y we have beeb tru dGi n u 
through wa t e r, often up to our belts. 4t l ast this evening we 
arrived , hunsry and exhaus t ed , a t this place. r was so tired I 
fe ll asleep on t wo chests ~nd did not awake till mornin ~ . I &~ 
st ill suffer ing from a seve r e he adache . It is wors e than n ny r 
have known before . 
Tankcoinse l sie, in As sin , 9th May 18 16 
We set off today at 7 o'clock , but nade little pro~ress . 
My l ees are Dos t pa inf u l , and I have blist e rs on both oy feet, 
which is very unpleasant; 
It rained a ll di;ly, and there '-;9.S he.3. vy thunder. ,'e hope to 
reach the Ri ve r Pro. tomorrow . We are very hunGry . Eatinc unripe 
paw- p3ws30 a nd Green ban anas has g i ven my men th e belly - ache . 
Wrenki, lOth May 1 81 6 . ~ss in. 
We could not ;e t f i;l r yesterday, and tod3.y ~as no better . 
I all bein0 held back by my hBadaches and f oot bl i ster s . I t i s 
unlucky the tr-:ck is not easier; if it we r e , my nen could c'3-rry 
me . 
On th e 0ay we saw Q h uge tiGer in t~e mi ddle of th e p~th . 
Hc must have been hungr y , for he was s ~ ishinG his t ~il from side to 
sida i n a fe 3rsome nanner. He ~as so close that I thought of having 
a sho t at him , but found tha t my doub l e -b a rrelled gun w~s forward 
in the column with my boy. A finer an ima l I have n eve r seen. For 
a lon~ time he stared boldly at us, but see inG us cone t oo clos e 
b ounded off the track and d i sappeared in a flash . 
Not having been ab l e to reach th e river, we decided to halt 
for the day in this vil lage. We will cross tomorrow. 
Here the four o f f i cers , who we re to follow us, caUGht up with 
the column. Two of them are General Appiah ' s me n, and t wo are 
Borriekie's. ith them is 1 dora of the KinC ' s3 1 with a larGc :olden 
plate h."l.nGinG from his neck . He told me be h·ad orders to conduct 
me across the river and that the other three and h c32 would acconpany 
m~ to the KinG ' S capita l. He has been sent on orders from Gener ; l 
YOuI' Kokroko , and has wi th him the 10 barre l s of powder which I refused 
to take delivery of from ~arriekie. I will not disclose what I have 
discovered concerninb these barrels until I am in the presence of 
• the King. . Heavy rain until l ate a t niJht. 
Tjetjeweirij, 11th May 181 6 . ~ss in. 
'Ne set off this morninG at 6 0' clock and reach the River Pra 
at ten . ~hile we were r estins , a k i nd of canoe a ppeared a nd ferried 
us across. Th is canoe w~s of averace len[th, but narrow, like those 
of the coast Negroes . Both ends we r e very squarc . It was , ho weve r , 
a Good canoe and nade the crossinc with a heavy load . 
The river here is both wide and deep. In the dry season i ts 
volume is much less , and from mid - October to March one does not nevd 
• a canoe to ~et across . SnaIl canoes Cln safely use it in t he dry , but at thc pres;nt time they are not practicable, because of the rou~b ­
.. ness of the waters . This is a very l a r Ge villase , attractive to look a t 3nd wel l 
l aid out . Al l the menfolk are away at the war , ~nd thus the only 
inhabitants a r e wome n. One of our Guides has sent a Man on ahead to 
l et th e clpital know of our arrival here and to find out on which d~y 
we should ente r it . We may have to stay where we are for a while and 
then continue on s l owly . The Gui~ tell De they have orders fr~m 
i\ppiah that th e clboceers of each villaGe '7e enter are to prov~cle us' i;d1!b 
O . Lit., .~agaden • . (Pap~yas arc no t quite the s:u:'c as paw-1Pw3.) 
~1. Dora l n erl l ned In the MS . I am do~btful about the Iirst letter. 2 • .slC ~ The arithoet ic is obscure here. 
all wo naect free. But this means nothinGe All we nr e r CCe lVJ.llg is n fOrT 
b~chcs of bananas hore and there. I have be on forced t o give my Qon gold with 
which t o buy their food ~ • 
Up to now wo havo bo en obliged to is sue out a dran or tWo of drink a t eaph 
vd.llaGe ViC hav.e j a ssed through~ The result is that oUr 5 chests are fast f) 
being eElptie'd.. If I had not added water occa,aiOIll1.11y, the liquor would h.".ve 1"U1'L 
out: a.t tbe Canp~ IIowe;veI'1 the tlvo officers ,-,hOD I sent , buck to ~ this ~ 
rove orders to ask the (rln:!leraJ.3~ sond DO one or two adQitional chests. Dri.l!lok , 
is, after all, the =in, solO-ce of this kind of jOUl!'l'lley~ To Ek"-Ch of the off;i.oer ;:; 
I hav.e given a f a thon of cloth and 2 bottles of c~ink. (I shculd add tha t; w~~n 
we Cl'os secl the river, I gave 2 f ['.thoms an d a bot-Glc to the fetish priest of Pic.., J 
The tv10 officers tried very hard to persuacte me to let then have .3 f a thoos of, ' 
l§n:egoech but' in the end aGreed to nccopt tho two f a thoD.S and the driDk. I ' 
~oois eel thD.t, if they Drought ne IJY t wo ,ches ts of drink fron Elnina, I vvou::.d , 
reViD.rel then with 6 f a thoms of ff$2{-joed. They wont ~f rrutt:e~ to thensel.ve.li~ Q 
..:_ \-,:.: . 
¥th~ ?~ ., 
Toooy we took tl1.ings easily, and will l GD.ve t ODorrow. Mny the Gooel GQ.d 
protect De if I have'to tro.ve~ f on' long on f ootl 
We, are 5 O.Llys mOD the cc.pit O-l lllOW~ The vill;J.ge,s here£1bou.ts. o.r e quite 
e.xl:uJ.~tea becc.use of the n oecl t o su.pply the , troops. which hc.ve been<1.Im,m f rOrJ. ' 
tileo; . and fanine :rules V'lorJ'Wlier\i. Tho wife of the cab-oc,eer of this villLgO 
p;rr.escuted De ydth t wo C,h:lckens c:.rul s.ODe yans. I tho.n:1wd her with n bo t t l e of 
drink. 
Very heavy Fa in itodny, 1c.ating until nightfo.ll~ 
Asso.m::'...".llI., l.3th l!.-:z".J.,§J.6. fl sin.a.. " 
"I'ocby I rode in uy, hl:'. . nnock fron 6 o'clock ID the norn:i.n.g tmtU , 2 in the 
ni'il:e:r.-noon. The r oo.d was very uuddy mm slippery, however, a.nd the d..1.nf~erS " " 
oolmSideJroble. Tvlic-e I fell ouit of the hannock, buit happily took :tro h\.ll:."t. Two .. 
of the be:1.l'eI's ne ve slighii' bruizes oia the shoulders, <mel two of the bO-ggago uoi 
hc.ve bee,n bo.aly hurt- through stunbl.ing while carrying heDvy chests. -:" . 
'Um'ortunntely \10 hO-veno 'f1OUDd-pL".s tera.34 with us. Soverc.l of the nen h['.vo ' " 
been c:ut about the body by sharp sticks~ , . ,t 
,:[ :intend ito m ke 0. list of a ll the pluOGS r.e have p['.ssecl through since--the 
Prm o.nd will Po.ss through before we finish our j ourliI8Y. Throl I will be o.ble. to 
tell h ow 't1.'1E.Y will.1.ges there em be,tween the Pro. o.nd the co.pitnl.. .>', 
We were very hungry a.go.:in ['.11 toao.y~ No f ood coulel be bought in OEY of" 
-the s even ri11o.ges we w~ througb~ , E'veryth~ is very scnrce o.nd very " 
expetmiV!ee In this are,a: the distances beitvr8en, 'rillages c.re su.1.ll. ':li'he wli'ti Or 
the abs~t ca.b.oceer of this. OlID. go.ve. ne a chicken and a bwmch 0:£ h:J.DD.Jru1s, :,un~': ;' 
I thmrlGCc1 her , lith 0. bottle of drink. 
This ir.i..1J.D.ge i s the . enpiik'1.l of -the Ass ins, o.nd the plnce of rcsiuen-cc or 
thG.:i.l' King~ The Vihcle l.1ll"eo. , however, is noV! Ulil:der the rule of too Ashanti 
King. , It seeus that 0.11 the Assing'have gene tm the war UDder the conoa.nd ~!: 
Gemeral. APpiah. -
!}fotro in no.rg:inl ItJt;B. This 'Willo.G~ is not the ca.pitul~ We shall ~Ch,.  
the cap:t~ t ooorrow.':7 . . o 
1\kkrD~t Jfrth May 1816, ' l.ssin,. , " 
UrlVec1 here after a j oUI'lil:Oy of nine h ours a t abouit: 5 0' cloak. \7e loft " 
As&.1.FI:ltUl c..t , 6, and Cuno to i'JI'IlZm'ilg , the c'c..pitnl of the Assins o.t; nbout JJ.. ' ; .t 
ra:.r be~~5' 35CLuest1 I disnoUl'tlJt~d froD n:y haDDOck O-n d paid. qJ respects t o .iil.le 
K:iJ:;rgls wile. She was dressecl lE! her h1m~t ' S Fe£;alia 17:l.th Sc'1.IU1aJ.s on, p-
long pipe in her DOuifu and o.cc:cnpa.md.ed by a troop of ViOnen >lith guns on t h eir : 
*-'<Y 
33 ; Sieriw.a... lit~ forna.nent~. 
' 34~ . Li~,pleis,ters. S&.nCL..1.ge::> , Day be e be tter trmrsla tion. 
35~ Probnl:ily the Queen Mother ~ther than the King's. wii''e? 
• 
-13-
• shoulders. ~vo other women played on flutes and horns. _~ter greeting her, I went and sut under a large tree nearby in order to reoeive her 
• oompliments in return. ·She gave me nrc ohiokens and R bunohes of bmmnas, and I thnnked her, on · the advice of my guides, ~ith 2 bottlea of drink. 
After resting for ['. while 'lIe left this oapital, and travelled on 
for a considerable distanoe without stopping.' We had to cross numerous 
streams, whose we-tel's came up to our waist:s and'flm,ed more sTI'iftlyeven' 
thD.a the Pro,. Several of these streruns, indeed, seemed to be ' ilr:lbutaries 
of the Pro.. The last of them we crossed was four feet deep A.nd ran extremely 
st:i:-ongly. Over rivers like these ropes are stretohed for trc.vellers, to 
hUng on to. ' ' 
• Assarmnn and Anzang villa?es are well built nnd l a id out. The plaee vie are in now is pleasant; too., We, will spend a few nights here. 
• MonsahJ-.2.th ML:y.)B16. The last Assin viJJe1@i 
Got under way a t dnwn. The tra ok vms reasonably dry, though still 
bad for hrurunock travel. I mus~ have covered half this journey on my bare 
feet J 
Nothing special happened 'today. An exceptionally t a ll moun~'l.in ree~s 
up stlmight in front , of us-, r.nd][ expect we shall have to go r01.IDd it. 
1.6-€h. 
We ha ve not a dvanoed todnYe The guides obGeoted to any fO!"lmrd 
• movement until the King's permission n.'1.S been received. They say the 
messengeit will be here tomorrow, and will bring orders from the King about: 
how we are to prt)oeed. ' ' , 
• 
Do~o AssieJL-l7th Nl1Y. l8l6. Ashanti village. 
Today we spent 2 hours olimbing the large m01.IDtain I mentioned ec.rlier; 
and took I hour to oome down. again. The path up was very diffioult: and 
steep. At the summit 'we f01.IDd three brooks, whioh r an Ylith sweet;, fresh 
wuter. 
We passe,d through t wo vill['.f!:E'.s, ne'ither of any consequence_ The 
first vms celled Quisa and the ~nd' Fommcm.. At Quisa He sc;w 1.1. snake 
impudently soho c. l nrgo ohio-ken uy tho neck nnd try to slip wilay with ito. 
This happoned in the l'rlCI'ket phcee The w"ight of the chJ;cken hc.mpered the 
snc.ke 's r:o'U'~, hOm3'1ter, and 'lIle of the boys; jur:!pod up and quiokly 
diapntoned it.. It nus un extrenely long snake and very benm.t:i.i'uJ.. I b.:lvc 
b.:ld it Olol1lilOd and will keep tho skin•  
• 18th Mv.y W16. 
• I wns up ourly ' this morbing and maac r eady to o~ntinue the journey•  0000 again, h()wevCl:' , the guides c['.oo to me and s a id wo could not l eGvo 
until the I~gls ansrler ,had been received. They ns sured me that, if they 
wero so foolish as t o allow De to proceed without peruission, they ran a 
renl a...~ger of losing their heads iLrrJedia toly we a rrived in Koemnssie and 
i, they s nid, would be unlikely to bo r e ce ived in a friendly manner by the 
King. I therefore he d to be content, and abode by their wishes. 
On this rlhole journey Y,e ha ve not s een LlUch tha t one could ca ll 
• espGI.Cial ly remarkn:ble. The dis trict >There \/0 ure nOW is very cold. i n.~ vc noticed, too, thc. t the days s ooo longer thc.n c. t Elmina, but one Hould 
.. need a ~ood timo-pie ce to establish the truth of this • 
191:!h. 
N'othing n.'1.ppened todny. Tho oes s enger ha s not yet r e turned. 
Adedemnssie~ 20th. 
As a result of strong protests on my part we trc.ve llod c. little fUrther 
today, Dc'\king for .A.lmnk.?\7a As i e. On the way r:e De:t the men we dis po. tched 
to s ee the King. lhey brought tho ,ro lCODe n e\7S thnt t he King sends' mo his 
best \7ishes, end c.ssures·· DC tha t he is cymiting I:Ii1 o.rrivrW.. with lmpCtienoo. 
, 
-:14-
Ke has decided th~t ny entry should t~ke place this comiRG TIednesday, 
the 22nd, nncl I Dust not f " il hiB on th(;t clo.y. He is very ple~se l',. the • 
Gener a l is sendinG a n nDbassndor t o visit him. 
\7e continued, therefore, in hiGh Good hUDour until Vie renched the • 
.village belonGinG to .the.KinG's son, "he r eceived us . in ·e friendly Danne:L" 
an c1 . Gnve us Good lodGings. He presented De with a lc..rCe f nt shuep and. 
10 bunches of bano.nas.· His no.Da is Ovwesoo an cl thil? place is . called 
Adiahen. I have ,\1ritten ,lawn a ll the villages froD the Pra River onwards 
and wi'll appencl ,".. list of then :at the en a: ' of this die.ry • 
. ,',; r.' 
AddlQEin. 21st 1816~ 
To&.y we started on our way ec..rlier thl.'.n usua l because, now' the · end 
is o.t l east in sight ." we were anxious to Get on. 70 passod, throuch9 . 
villc.S<;S', , t we . of theD very krGe ones. 1'he place we Viera :In no.r' belong~ to 
one of the sons .of the 10. te Viee-r'oy3 6 or Ashnnti. . In apjjle~\ranee t his 
nan is very like Gener o.l YOU'R Iillkroko. ~I hn~ the pleasure of spencling the 
niGht in his villa s e Qnd of r. f m7 hour's conversQtion n ith hiD. • 
He Gave [Je c. lc..rGe' Pr.t 'shoop and :lj0bunchea ' of bQnanas' as presents, 
. 1a nd urCe (1 De' to vis it: hiB 3. jl.in (".fter I had' spent SODe tine 'Ri th the King 
and provicLec. His 1bj es ty woulcl allow it. I ho.ve c.ccep-ced his k ind invito.tion 
l'mc, will certc"..inly visit hiD e.u dn if the pressure of business i7ill a llovl' . 
I took py l eave of hin Qnd r eturnee, to i::ly lodGings , but l .. ~ ter in the eveninG 
he . call ed on oe r.GQin ancl o.ccept od' Q cup of t ea Qncl a gl ass of b.in.. 
ff i:l has nsked f or i:.. whole bottle of Gin, anc"-' I hnve pr omised t o l e t hiD hnva 
one the clo.y 1'\fter tODoi"row. 
The Kinr; 's c~kl of K06Daesie .. 22l}d I~l8l6. 
. . Tod8.y it l ooks Gil ix' I sho.11 befor e nichtfo.ll hc.ve the gr Ga t Good fortune 
t o see nnd even t o speak 17ith the IG.nG' of AshQnti. Vie bOGan our journey " 
with this expectc.tion, and a rrived at the eapitr.l very enrly. When we 
arrived et n ho.nlet ca lled Koekoe,.Vie r eceived orders t o hnlt, while. we 
t ook refreshnent., sot oUX":cl othes in. Gl'·dol', etq. 
. . Fro.n novi on there c.re· no [.'ore villnces by the dele of the tro.ek. 
lHhvinC enten and e1runk, we continue a on our wo.y , and 1>.t rcbout 12 0' clock 
were'Det by four .;mor d-bee,r er s , ench Vlith n col clen sword on his shoulders. 
These men Greeted De in His Mn.j os ty' s nr.De , ~mcl. told De thrct I e.11el my men 
oust 1'7rcitfor c. while with thon i n rc sorcll he.nlet , becaus e the Generals 
nnd cc.boceers hac1, not y?: nrrived flt:~he ce.pitnl. At this we moved off 
tho trnck fOr (', short dl S tnnce t o tho' left , c.ncL >lere led. to c. . SDc'1.11 honlet 
of c.bout tvrGlye houses. Here I hnve' 6onc·e11.lecl all Qy bo.gpgc, for the ~. . ~ 
bearers .mrne i.l De thr.t it l'ioul cl be quite ioposs i ble t o h:1.ve lllY chests 
cnrr'iecl: thrOUGh the cr ei:. t prGSS of people He ,lOuld meet on oUr we.y t o sce 
the IG.nt;. ~~'hen t his h11c1 be0n cl.on e , ·two S'l'lOr cl.':'bee,r ers ,lent off to.reporl 
t o the King that I ha d o.rriveel. , l.m el we avmited orders to procoed' f~ther. 
After an hour they r eturned c.nd told De thQt His 1k'1. j es ty's des ire. was 
tl1d I s hould set off. iBnedia t ol y becc.uso he and his assenbly wer e Vrd.i tinge 
'1 ther efore l eft nt once , \'l ith the foui<s~:'brd-bec:rers l ec.cling the 'Ray~ 
IDlen I Cl'.Lle into , the tovm its elf37 whnt 0. si~;ht Clot oy eyes{' The 
rond Has so full of 'peopl o tho. t nei the;r 05 ticks nor sworcl.s could koep then 
mlD.y fron nee lvbny b l ows 'vioro r l'.inocl on hencl.s c.nd backs beforo it was poss i ble 
for oy Den to cot ny hc-:.=ock thrOUGh. ',;'e wor o in this stifline; throng for 
oor e thD.n nn hour. 
Ordors then oane thrOUGh that we ner e to ,{rcit until further . notice und@r 
e. n'earby tree , s ince tho o.ssonbly "ins not in fe.c·t yet rer.ely t o r eceive us . 
Anel so V·Te SQ t uhder this tree , but tho peopl e pressed clo.ile r Q.nd .oloser, .. 
streaning in frob 1'.11 sides in tho hope of c['. tchinG a CliDpse . of ne. Aftor 
we hnd boen uncter the troe f or 0. qu,"- .rter of o.n hour, n house vms pointeel. 
out t o no c.s n poss i bl e r efUGe wher o 1'10 niGht be froe of cons.t o.nt-·obs·ervntion 
by tne crowd. r.'e therofore oovecl. into t h i s house 
36. S'Oe n. 19. 
37. In het · voorst~dt, lit., . 'into .t ho. suburb.' Voors t adt is n~w~ys a 
CI.iff.icuJ.t word to put into 11 suit8.bl o con-cGxt. 
-15~ 
this house und vmr e c.ble to enjoy n ltiooent's peace. 
At two o'clock I received orders fror.l 4 more sword-bearers sent. 
by His Majesty that I was to present myself at the capital, dressed in proper 
a ttire. Wi th all eicht s,lOrd-bea:trers leadinc the ,laY, I set out., reaching 
the capital after half an hour's journey. 
And what a tumult Greeted De there! A kin:; could not have expected 
more honour than was done to ne:.todaY. There are r.lore than 50 thousand. 
people in t his place. His Majesty hus sur~oned all the lesser Icings froo 
the surroundine country side for today's assenbly. Everyone of thelti was 
splenclidly adorned Iii th cold, and each had .,',ore than 50 soildiers ;i;n his retinue. 
There vlClre colden swords, flutes" horns, and I lmow mot nhn t else in profusion~ 
At the ass,embly I counted IJOre than 50 larGe unbrellas ~thiS ficure does 
not include 'sltiall ones.) , 
Ylhen I sm, all t his, I felt very Grateful for His Ma jesty's courtesy 
tovmrds ltie. I Got out of ltiy hanDock, and walked from person to person, ' 
shakinG each by tho hand until I cc-oe to the Kine. I bowed to His , Majesty 
three tioes. No word \'laS spoken durinG these proceedinGs. I must have 
shaken the hands ofmo hundrodpeople toCL... ..y . ThrOUGhout the ceremony Dusie 
\las provided by "drums, which \lere in position all around us, and the " hole 
affair was marked b- ' p erfeot order. Behind the Ki!l[; stood at l east 100 men 
,1i th muskets. They s e emed quite us ',-rell disciplined on parade as European 
soldiers. 50 or 60 170Llen ilere croupea. around His N~jesty, \1eari~1g Golden 
ornaments of crea t va lue. But there ,"/as so ' nuch to see that I cannot now 
re ,call it a ll. ' 
I also haa to pay ny complioents to the King's Homen'. They were 
standine apart from the men. There VlGre at l east 200 of them, all handsome 
and decked Hithlar c e p~cces of fetish cold. I did not skak& hands with 
them for it is not the custori. 
His Majesty l ed ne to a r a ised place under a tall tre e ,{here I sat to 
r eceive the appropriate r e turn gr€c tincsfroo the ~(iriB and from all his coun-
cillors, Generals, capta ins und others. And non Iexperiencod the Clbry 
of beine a king oysel£., sittinG in such najesty as I would have expected to 
find only in Europe. There nus I, enthroned on a larc e NeGro stool on a 
kind of pla tforn, with by flae planted a bout 20 paces in fJront of me ' e.nd 
alloy Den behind. E2.ch kinG in turn car:Ieto er eo t r:I8;' to tlie accoDpani!tieni!; 
of loud ousic e.nd crea t nunbers of soldiers, and ridinc in a sort of ba sket 
under a Great unbrelln . The kincs rennined in their baskets until they were 
about 10 paces distant froD r:Ie, -rlhen t hey disDounted vlith diGnity and 
a dvanced tonards ne on foot. ,Ea ch shook hands cordially ~ec times 2.llId 
• then three tioos asail'l. Thes e' proceedini~ s l a sted fron 3 0 t clock until 6 • 
'lfuen His Majesty in full splendour- cane to E;re E: t DC hios elf, sittinc in a 
basket like the others, a nd a c conpanied by WODen ca rryinG swords, Golden 
bo.sins:38, cold und s ilver wat er JUGs, etc. He cc.ne up ts> ne wid shook my 
hand three times,. , For a t l eas t 5 ninut es he stood lookinG a t ne, and then 
said, three tioes: "\Jelconel ~Teloond \-"e lcooo!" o.nd, l C'.uChinC in a friendly 
way, added., "You will d03 9• I like you." Then he sa id once aea in, r \'ielcOI:rel-
and Vii thc1rew, acconpanied by a Vo.s t thronG of his follo:>Jers'. After this 
10 other persons er eetod ne, ull of t h eo diGnified. by l a r Ge ~brellas. It 
"as past 7 in the eV0l1inc bef or e the cer enony ended. His Ma j esty's 
I Great linGuist'· approc.chcd, o.nd told me t hat I should noy; follem hio and he 
• "ould ShOH De ltiy 10dGincs. He ('.lso offe r e d DC four j a rs of palo wine, which were 0. present froD tho Kine . I a ccept ed t hese -;;ith p l easure, and s et out 
.. fo:rr ny house • 
I could hardly no.ke my ,laY a lone the street b ecaus e of the crowds 
surroundinG De. \"Then I a t L1..si; rea ched oy hous e , I ir:lDedi a tely closed the 
door and freed mys elf of the :importunitie s of t he public. 
38. Li"fr., Gouden punch 1cooncn = ' GoldQn punch bm71s'. 
3~. Lit., Gij zijt nooi= 'You ere nice ,' or 'You ar e hC'~ooe.t 
-16-
I saw more than 60 of the most important generals today. 
General Peekoe (that is, former General; for he is now the First 0 
Linguist) has sent me two-jars of palm wine as a prese:n.t. 
Z,lrd May 181~ , 0 
About 7 9' clock General Poekoe and two of the :, royal: , 
sword-bearers came to tell me that His ~ajesty vQshed ,to be informed 
today of the objects of my rnis$ion. All the state councillors 
have been called together for the pu:;:;pose~ I am to hold myself 
ready for the King1s summons. 
About 19 v1clock General Poekoerec;tppeared and conducted me 
, 'in state to ]lis Majesty! s ·audieD!.ce. AccQmpanied by 25 soldiers 
I was carried in my haIl1'TI-:)cE:: v,ery s+owly and in a dignified manner 
the length of two streets to wher,e the assembly was. I could ' 0 
discern the place from a distance because of the 13 or lY- umbrellas 
there. I s'topped the hammock a lit Ue way away: dismoUnted and 
vii thmy hat under my arm bOv18d three time s to :JJ.s Maje sty, who 0 
gave me his hand and had me sit down a short distance away from 
him. I was greeted by his three linguists (all generals) and 
then His Majesty asked me about my 'mission. I was about to speak 
when other :tingui'sts came over and told me IDs Majesty wan ted me 
closer. So I apDroached until I Wc;tS only a$te:p~) or tvlO,distant, 
and a stool was' ~ffered me. I demurred, saying it was not lawful 
for me to be seated when I was speaking in the name of my 
Governoant. Standing before him, therefore, I made this speech ' 
to the King~ , , 
"Your Maje,styl The reasons \vhieh have :prompted my mIssion 
are concerned 1fri th sevE?ral very important matters which it is 
not suitable " to 'mention in public. My duty requires that I should ~ 
speak about tilem to Your Majesty alone~ and in the security of 
your Palac8 0 If you.r Haj,es:ty will aI:'..u-rit, and \.,rill be pleased 
to appoint the time, I shall regard it as a great honour if I 
ani permitted to discuss"'these important affairs of state wi th 
' you later.u - , 
His Majesty expressed greq.t delight, and ~swered, "Say no 
more. !hat is enough. I understand you." 
But Icoritinued, III have brought \vith me a few small presents 
for Your Majesty, which come from my master? General Daendels, 
with his affectionate gre e tings and also with assurances of the 
highest esteem from ID s Ma jesty, the King of the Netherlandd. 
I l).ope your Majesty vill be pleased to accept these presents as 
a,token of rriy, master1s consideration' for you~ We can speak later o 
about other matters at a time Your Majesty shall decide. tl 
, At :t his the King announced that he would receive the presents 
in his palace, and the assE;mbly broke up. I set off for my house 
" to fetcl),thetjlJi but General Poekoe caught me up to tell me tI:at 
he would have to accompany me ,tvhen I conveyed them to the Klllg. 
I r eplied, "?cod. " Let us go ,td my house together." 
Having collected the presents, we vlent , to His Majestyf s , 
dvie llingo', We had , to go thrcugh several buildings before we reachelli 
, the King t s' mffl appartments. We found him' s;J.tting in the middle 0 
of a large group of people high up in a ki~~ of ga~lery. I 
saluted him, and asked if the presents ,should be opened, to which, 
he agreed. T!he case containing the staff was opened first, and c> 
I presented the s~:ff to the King vi th these words, liMy mc;tster 
ordered me to' :p~'ace this staff in :Wour Majestytll own ha;r;rds. lI 
, The King accepted his gift with every appe~ran?e of delight 
-17-
and laughed aloud. 
I , The second pre sent was the Qmbl"ella with the two ,tuffell 40 
which I handed over "ri th a similar speech. HIs Majesty was 
overjoyed, and asked me to put the umbrella back in its case, 
saying, OWe are only Negroes after all. We could never pack it 
in so neatly ou:rselves." 
The third was the hat. The King took it in his hand, looked 
at itt and said, "Well, the Dutch are still the .Dutch. Since we 
cut off the trade route, we have not been. receinng presents like 
these from anyone." (I took this as a good sign, for he made t his 
r emark in an undertone to his immediate circle.) 
The fourth was the chest of liquor. I had to take a draft 
from every bottle to prove that there ¥as no harm in any of the 
contents. 
'L'he last was the flag, which I presented with the words, "My 
master said that Your Majesty ' should place this flag on top 
of your house, as befits so great a Ring.", 
His Majesty said,. "But what if the flag becomes worn?" 
"In that case," I repliEiq:;; ",tbe. general will send you 
another one. ° '. 
. . And:the -King said, "That is all right then. I will have a 
flags taff made. 1I 
The whole company exhibited the greatellt>pleasure and 
satisfaction as a result of this presenta tion. I took my leave and 
returned home. 
~ir~t otclo~k in the ~vening. At? o'clock I was summoned 
secre tly by His Maje sty, \iho wished me to impart to him t~ 
confidential intell i gence i~ mY pos session. I set out at once, 
and on arrival at His Ma je s tyl s found the following persons 
as sembled, General Poekoe, General Adoe Akwa At t a, Amanquatia, 
lrllegibl£7 general of the capital, Quatje Coffie, and three 
I'inguists. , llis Ma jesty sa t tmdera large umbrella, with 6 soldiers 
behind him. Four lamps were alight. . 
After a pause the King gav~ me a glass of neat brandy. It 
wa s a t least four times ~he ordinary size of gl a ss. 
His Ma jesty a sked if I had my pa'per ",ith me. I answered, "Yes". 
Then he said, IILe t me see t he paper." 
Giving it ba ck t o me , he said, "Read." 
I re ad a f ew words but ;he broke in, "Yours is not like the 
paper I had from Gener a i Turaine."ttl 
• "No," I said. "This is in . dutch, the other wa s in Engli sij.." 
• "Very well," he said. "Tell me what it all means and wha t 
i s the news you br ing me ." 
I theref or e consulted my ins tructi on s and began t o translate 
them, articla by article, i n to the Negr o t ongue . 
lto. Meaning as yet un1p.1o,m. 
~l. Spelling doubtful. 
-18-
Hi s Mc, j e sty said, "Le t your boy speak f or you. II 
"No, Sir, "I replieq. , "lIE cannot be allowed to. Moreover, 
he would not be able to comprehend the meaning of the Dutch -
sufficiently well. II 
IIContinue, then, II said the King. r will hear y ou. II 
Thereupon, I tnanslated word for word ever.ything that my 
instructi9ns'said ... At the end ' eve:cyone present clapped their hands 
together, and exclaime~? "Now all will 'be, well. This is vlhat '\ve 
have wanted for a lOX1g nme. 1I 
His Majesty was very pleased at my ability to speak his languag~ 
and marvelled at it. , Fe said?"N'ow ' we can have ,a chat ,vith each other 
everyday. No interpreters '\nll be neces sary, and there ,..rill be no €) 
need for everyone to know ivhat we, say. II 
. 1 sat awhile Ibnger and exchanged a few more words with His 
Maj;esty" then took my- leave . and w~nt home. 
24th May 1816 
This morning I sought permissirn to ask IJ. ' re.quest of His 
Majesty and this was :1medla.tel1; '~mwdo I dre300.d myself" and went 
to pay my call. His Majesty was' most friendly and, srlvwing me some 
silver ware, asked why such beautiful things .were not.sent to him 
any more. I r ealized that these were the presents the' J)utch GovernmiJl-
had given him from time to time in the past. I replied that the . 
recent lengthy war had prevented the importa tio n of such things , put 
now the sea route was , open;, again the General W:Gul d be br,inging go t)ds. 
of this kind out again apd-'wOlld send some to His Maje..sty. I also 
mentioned that the Ashanti -, env oys had asked in Elmina :for. a si~ver 
cup and that the General had told them that he };':Olld sehrl ;'f-or ' ori~h 
At this His Majesty expr;essed sat:i,s:faction. ' 
. ": .' 
About the shortage of the 9 LD.legibl~ of gilllpowde-r the King 
has complained unceasingly? thmg,h I have poi:p.ted out to him that , ;"';. 
the whole cargo has liot yet ar rived. Ere should semel to the Camp ", 
ilIL1Ilediate'ly for the remainder. 
, I stayed a t home for the rest of the day. ' I had been told tha t 
I ShOlld n 9t venture out until the King had sent someone to a ccompany 
me on a round to the state dignitaries. The need to conform; to 
custom thus restricted me to my house. • 
UToday r~ceived pre SEn ts from King -- three • 
Yesterday evening the King warned me through General Poekoe to 
hold myself in readines s today and ai-TaLt the arrival of his 
repre sentat1v3s, who would then conduct me armnd,' the city-. I am to 
pay my duty callS on all the generals, capt~ins, caboc8ers, etc., 
Two sword-bearer s duly arrived, accompanied by other s of the King! s " 
entourage, and we made the rounds. The whole proce eding must hav~ 
lasted a good 4- hours. According t o a list I ke'pt" we visited 58 
persons. They were mostly the Kingfs brothers, sisters, nephe'\vs, 
uncles , etc. , and various generals and ()ther dign:1taries. I had t~ 
trave l the whol e distance in my hammock. { ' 
I had hardly been at home for teE minutes w~~n, WDrd was bro~ght 
tha t the King wanted to see me again. I immediately went to the 
palace where . I fmnd him seated among his counqill or ,s~ We shoOk 
hands c.nd I we-s e-sked to sit dorm. The ltiJ.guist called Adoe Say brought 
De a bottle of drink. 
The King s ['.i<1, IITeli De again about.the Cor.:[inny palaver. This oatter 
oust not be put off.. We Elust send oessengers to Apia, · forI ha.v~ not told 
• hin to c.tto.ck CQiJI:lC,nY.u 
JL took out oy instructions ana. reed out (in translation:) the article 
dealing .,'fi th CODoD,ny. . I described the close bonds there n0\7 were b€t\.7een 
the Dutch c.n cl the English nation. I a lso told the King 'about the unlc".wful 
rule over Em.inc. which Hr. Nieserhns obtained by giving prosents tel the 
terregrc.ndes. I so,id tho.t Nieser rnd the terreKr£'..nde3 had conspired together 
to send Koeoa to Appia - entiroly r;ithout the Imo~Tledwe of the General, 
their ll.".ster -- in order to porsuede Apia to cl',pture COlJJJany o,nd kill alr 
the· inhabi tents. I sc.id the Gener"l ,II1S very incensed , about t his, Qnd h."'.d 
sent De t o Apia to t oll hin thc.t he nust tc.ke no e ction rrhatever c.gninst 
COI!lJ:lany. Cocoa's oessnge to Apia 'flUS dispo.tched quite contrary to the 
General's wishes. S:i,nce Apia hnd given me no precise or dof.ini te anSi7er 
concerning the cffair, I wes 'non r eques ting Bis ];kt j esty to send word n:\; once 
to stop 'any 1ietion by h:Lm. Wo VlOr e oonpletely united with the English rH:)\1~ 
If nny hn.rEl c,,-"':le to Conoany, the Gener c,l ,;ould .be r.ngry and '70uldbe forced 
to intervene . 
To 0.11 this the King repJ.,ied, "But who. t do the Negroes thonseives say?". 
]I: thereupon t ol d hiD the. truth, an d did not oince oe.tters~ The Negro·es 
of Elrllna, I . s .-'.id) :wer o so ill-disposed thnt, n ithout l1.Ily refer eIfce to their 
oaster, the General, they hc.d conspired with the 'king t'.nd eoperoll'~' . 
• WJr, .Ten Nieser, to send:' ro EeS So.ge to Gener('.l Apia, urging him to c.tto.ck · Conmany and slaughter the inhabito.nts. This ho.d nuch disturbed the General. OS mast~, 
and he had sent BO to Apia. t o t ell hin to, po.y no attention whatever to this 
messnge .': Apiro, however, a,lthough I pressed him, he,d given De no ~e,tisfaction 
• in the o1:-.tter. I therefor e vms nOYI requesting His · Mo. jes ty to issue orders 
desagned t o cancel o.ny projectod c. tto..ck oil Comx my, nnd to issue·theI!l with 0,11 
speed. 
The King o.ppe£1rea. to be c ore or l ess o.ngry \~i th Apia, [',nd said, "I did 
not send Api a o.g;"inst COL1IJc'1,ny , but.; Der e ly to seek for Cudjo Koer:ic., Saffroku 
[\n9- Kr~la. I will ir.lDodi ,:', t c ly dispo.tch 2 slmrd-bec.r ors to 's top hID. You,too, 
oust send sooeone t o Eloinn to l e t the Genert-l know of " h1'- t oy :!lessage to Apia. 
oonsists. I \'lill her ;; and nOil sa,y 0.11 there is t o be sc i d in the presence of 
ny young Den. II 
He t hen n~".de the follon ing' spue oh to the s\70rd-beo.r ers: -"Tod..-\y you will : 
go to the Croup . You \7ill t ell Api a, tht- t I aid no't order him to make a,ny o.tto.ck 
on CODu.'1,ny, but oerol y to tra ck down a,nd c.:'-pture Cudjo., leo em , Saffroku ;',nd 
• Kr[\la" who hnve done i njury to ne. No ntta,ck Dust bo l;lo.de on COr:If.umy ('.t ·the request of the EloinCts o.nd 17 i t hout the kno"ll edge of the Goner 1'-l. A king IS 
• orders o.r o t o bo obeyed; t hoso of his subjects ,:;,re liIInt. '.Thy (li d he, Ap i o. , not cOEply Idth the request of tho envoy the Genor.:'-l sent t o hin" He is to obey 
no orders except thoso tho.t CODe froo the Gener1'-l Co t Eloin[\, . If he disobeys De , 
the r osult rnll bo on h i s mm he".(1 . Tell hin fh..". t I do not ,dsh to see o,ny 
noro disunity betwoen tho Engli sh ,".nd the .Dutch , r.n e1 thc.t, noY{ we 'Te c.t pec-ce , 
]: Irish no h,--,ro to the English. Tell Ap i I'.· to send· sooeonc to ElDin..? t o finish · 
this ·· po.l [\,ver ~.nd to I,rite 0. l etcer t o the English iD:for oing then th.:'-t, if',-fue 
CODu.".lly peopl e give bo.ck t o us the Fr.ntes ,Iho hc.vo ta,kon r efuge there, there. 
17ill be ~onero.l peo.ce -- ,Ie knOl: th1'- t ilnocarnos end Mott j e o,ro ' conce;-<,l(Jd. ther~ 
• cmd c.re be ing protected by the Co,.TIl'.nys -- but if they do EOt eto this then \7e will force theo to give tho r ofugvvs up. Tell Apio. th.~t there is onl y one king 
of Eloin" ,".nd thc.t i s t ho Gonero.l. He ".lono cc.n give order s ".nd no o~o elae. 
• Tell YOUI7 Kokroko tho. t I did not send hir.1 s outh to fight o.g~,iiIst CODDe.ny , but 
to find out '.7her e Api~, w".s . Tell hiD to lis tcil1 only to tho order s of the 
Gener o.l of Eloinc- . I f the Gonor".l s".ys , 'S t~,y hero 1.' he is to sto.y,and if' the 
Genere. l s ;'.ys, 'Do thi s , I he i s to do it. cT:len tho \7ener".l of ElDin..". so.ys 
anything , it is just the's A ::1e ;"S if I :7ore sr,ying it." 
Whcn His il.". j es ty he.s finishec. delivering t his [leSBo.ge , I c.sked hiD o.bout 
, 'the I)lc~ting. ,\- t Dinkirli\, in Sel':teLlper. He sc. i d the So=.ny pc,l.".ver w!.s "- ::or e 
. urgent ;u:.tter. ll.e '-'70uJn,', h0l7ever, -tlTink ",-bout , the other c.ne. ',iOul d la,ter C1.sk De 
to OODDunico. te hi s vi C17S t o the Gener ".1. . Nothing could bo done , in eny case, 
until t he 1\essenger s ho.a. r"turned. 
-20- .~ J"'It t. .. . 
During the three days "e have been here we have certainly lIIIOt l acked for 
falm vline. The King sends me every day four Jars of 5- gallons.42 
26th May lal6:~ 
Early this morning, at sd.x olc10'Ck, I was sumnolOOd-:by_ ffi.s Ytajesty nnd 
asked to .rrite a letter to the General. I sent for paper, pen and ink and 
m:'oire it at once ~ "!!he palace~It contailmed a request to' the General from 
the King.. The King asks thnt, at the first -oppoctmrl-ty, an order be sent to ' 
Europe for some lemgths of- old Dutch chintz, some plaim red, black end green 
velvet (f-l'on Holln.lId also~ ', sorae mecli'n:i..Jne,.s and a quantity of sugar. The last 
tl70 are to be brought buck ,by the. bearer of the letter~ 
I do mtknbw who told these people tho.t tea is the .best cure for all 
:UJnesses~ !lis MtJ,jesty and his elders43 eX'e always o.sking me for ,teD., o.nd :t 
hc.ve brought; only a small g\Ul.ntity wi the me. I clare not refus.e. fha-requests, 
and my supply is exhaustea:~ I he.ve therefore besought- the General, in the 
SalllB letter thnt I hnve written it0 hiD on bemJ£ of the King, to fuvour I:le with 
a few powmds·by ret~ 
mving some spare time this evening, :r take the opportUEJity to record that 
this pluce is very large. Thero are c.t lensit 6.0,000 inbabit;:mts. The 9treets 
ure very clean and straight, and the houses excellently built~ The letter n.re 
ta.in1y tall, but mostly of one ' storey omly. They are constructed of -wood. 
There is mrtl; mueh plrusjter-work, but whD.t there is h..9.S be em ver y neatly done. 
'lfue entrances of somo of the houses are so oddly t'l.:.-:.de that ••••4 11-
The King's palace is very large and grn.n.d, particularly when ; one rener:j.bers 
that it is situk~ted so far in the bu&h. At Elmina I have heard it said th~t t~c 0_ 
King ' of the Ashantis has gold anc3_ silver doors. This i; not true, though he 
does _possess 0. srnaJ+ window, one and a ha lf' fect by one foot, which has -its 
b~ overlaid with gold~ And it is the same with the 'silv elL" doors! .4-5 It • 
is very true-;, hoy~evor, that; the King is very r:ich il!Ideed in gold, eilver and 
other ~etals~ ,. YesterdRy, when I visited hiD, r counted 60 golden bells and 
[foro than 60 golden ple.tes suspended fron the n?cks of ve.rious ·slaves. The 
King hioselt; ha.d 0. chain round his neck et- least- 3 ells long and enrhirely 
cOr:Ipos,ed of 'initation meIms' bushes.' ~6 And. on the second occasion that 
r visited. fuio, he had on another chain which wa.s decOlrated with all mahner o£ 
sIteJ.+s,animls, etc. SOVillIl on to his shoes were tLarge pieces of,. gold and on 
his right hand four pieces ofgo:}.d which too,ether ~ust h1we weighed c.t least. 
50 ounces; J\.dOlming his wh91e body were certainly 100 -OMces of goliL. The 
s-tool he sat on was partly covered with gold; the eros'viere of tha t metal and . 
the heids of the nails. likewise. In a VloriL, there was gold eveJ:O"Whe~: Each 
slu:ve ~ust have had a goodfh~e OtllmCCS around his neck; 
v7hen I had finished writing the , l etter for the King this DOrning, ne said o 
t o me, "Today ,r am going to tell all my el ders :the contems. M' the message-
:fOu hCl.:ve written. There is 1[0 ha.ru in my doing so. If I do not te 11 then, 
they will sey I do not trust theJill. I an their naster, but it is ~ise to let e 
them becklme clis3at:lsfiod~11 Thereupcoll he sUoooned a ll the generals and had his 
linguists t ell then the c.ontents of my llms:t.ructions. They all e.xpr;essed' 
themselvea contentecl; 
I think the King intends to begin construction of the grea.t road Lto the 
:co['..sjfbefore the end of ';he rc.iny.-senson. I gathered a s rluch frOD one of tho 
'-'2. The word 'each' follows I gallons' in the MS, but has been cross'-eiL out. 
[JJ. 
43. Lit. l' grotem. 
411-. II •• ~~~lgCl.nPien o'p.plein~uitlo~ndeJ _zig ze lve ~ijls niet noer 
weot uit te he:],illLn. tI . Most obscure. 
45. Obscuro. 
46. Lit:., no.gen.'Cc". . kte ~elnis struiken. 
-21-
linguists. 
vThen I first arrived here I told his ~jesty that· during my stay I 
would be entirely at his 5erv~ce and thd this was my master's . Q.esir~ • . 
(There is nothing in my instructions on the subject, it is true.) . His ' 
Majesty was very pleastd to hear me S2,y this, and remarked, "So long as 
you remain here, you also are D. king. ,1'bu are my child. I wili c'ert{linly 
ask you to do what I require." I said' thc1.;t since he wns a Dtltchman at hec,rt 
nnd had always re ,. arded the Dutch as his' brothers, 1),nd since, I!lyreover, l' served 
the Dutch lling, I was completely ready to obey his orders. This stntemerit pf ' 
mine gave him especial pleasure, and he said ac;nin,uyou are my son and my brother. 1S 
Presen~ received frTIm Pbekoe. 
27th YJaY 1816. . . 
I paid. some offioia:1 calls this morning, and greeted sgme 42 people. 
vThile on my rounds I saw a eunuch. He was as fat as a pig; { I also saw 
some women who had been mutilated for !lis,obedience; their ears, noses, .and. 
even their lips had been cut off. I ha'V'e never seen the like and the sight 
affected me deeply. Some of the wounds were quite fresh. 
Presents re ceived. 
28th May 181~ , 
Presents received. See list. 
The weather being badtodily, I did hot go out. The .faet that-it :rninea 
all day, h@wevrer, did not prevent theus.uaJ. crowd. of sightseers from 
visiting me. D1,ll"ing my stay here no day has gone by without at least 
2-300 people calling. I regret; most of all that I have no more drink to give 
llW visitors. On mostc1ays one of the .caboceers brings; me some palm wine. 
Sent my own presents to the lling. 
29th May 1816. . 
Today is 'Good Wecmesd£1y' for the A&hantis~ Everyone goes to 
congrnirulate the King on this holy and propitious dily, nnd so I went too~ 
As soon as the King s aw me coming, he stared at me very 1fu.lt-eateningly. , 
I saw his look, but vn;m;t up to him and it vms soon clear that · he vms pleased 
I had come to',greet him. He gawe me his ham and said, sr:dling, "thank yo~ 
for yesterday," and told the assembied compnl1l(Y whE'.t I had sent him. 
Then he r a ised his hand and all the bigdrUlllS, horns, etc. began to 
play~ Amid the din he poilllrted to a seat opposite him,nnd immediately I sa t 
• dOVin the musie stopped. Soon the King stood up again to return to his house • The music pluyed until he had disappec.red , ceased while he Has in the house, 
und began a s soon as h e came back. HCrdly had he r esumed. his s~t; qhen his 
four l:inguista brought me a very l arge sheep and a bottle of drink, and presented 
them vtith the King's com;plimelilits (though Ifis Majesty vms present and sitting 
d.irectly in front of me). I mow haa t o t ake the sheep away , but first went 
he t in hnmd tn thank the King. After a short tine. a ll t he caboceers stood up 
and took their leave~ I did the same, a l!td returned hone. On arrival there 
I found that, us usU['~, pnln vline had been provided. ,-'. 
\ 
During the afternoon I went out with the intention of ~siting some 
• fnrms48ana learning something about the 10cn1 agriculture; I am not ' competemtt to Sc1.y nuch about the soil myself, not mving the necessnry 
47. Lit., Ife:li' as .'1 mole'. 
48. Tuine;a, Lit., I go.rdens t ~ 
-22-
knoHledCB; such = investigo.ticn should be c~rrioa out by an intelliGent 
n.nd experienced fnrmor~ Bb.mnnas:, hm1ev:er, appeo.r to gI'0\'; woll every;, hero . 
Indeed, they are to be seen in such abundGnce tha t I c~ hardly think the C) 
soil is infertile. I can say with cortaint,y tha t from As~in right through 
t o here the Ct1;i1 is very red and stony,r. More than this I cannot s ny. o 
Mon-a presents received a t n iddo..y. See ny gif't schudulo. 
Genero..l Poekoe and tho linguist, Adoes['.ij, cc.me t o ['..sk if they might 
buy cloth. I co~ld nQ~ easily l e t then Dake any purchases, because none 
of my cloth isrer.lly .£§r 5['. l e ., At their p~Gssing r equest, hOriovor,.I gave 
Poelwe a whol e length, reckoru.ng half of 1 t as a pr o'sent and chc.r gJ.llg 
for the other half f our English gold pieces. To Adoesaij I gav:e 4- f C'.thorns 
of cloth as 2. present. O~e of' the King I s children sun De handling cloth 
o..nd w2.nted t o buy 2 fa thorns, which reques t r could not r efuse, and ~de 
him_a presen~of that amount; . o 
Three of my hE.moock men h~ve asked f or ~dv~nces of cloth t o be debited 
agninst the I'/C'.ges they Hill r 0ceive on our r eturn to EJ..rain~. I h<,.ve [!,y c.nj(,ed 
this request, and have give~ them 7 f a thoms, worth·7°LPonventional synbo1( 
of gold.50 . 
30th May 1816 • . 
More presentsrece,i vecI t od.c.y. See the gift scrrediile.; 
In the ~fternoon n funeral custom was celebrnted: andI'went to see it. 
To my sorrow I had t o wo.t ch, a fine heaithy youth eione to de::cth o.t. the inter-
memtr of the corpse. This spe.c.tacle wns very horrifying, at lenst to =yone 
who walues life, but the Ashantis l ooked on withou~ betraying. any enotion~ 0 
As soon ['..8. the y~ ~rrived on the s.cene the youth vms br ought fo:r:-vmrd. 
Eiis right lmncl was held firmly in 0. block h£ wood~51 A dagger had beep. , . 
thrust through one cheek a nd out t he other, so thaxohe could nDt . t a lk or • 
cry ou.-;~ In this ois,er['~ble :;md hci-rowing ste.te he p~ssed close in front 
of D~, ~nd I was greatly affected by what I S2.w. :[ could not, hOVle,ver, 
aba.w his suf'feI'ing. He 1'To.s then kken t o a posit:iol!ll fa.cing the K:ing :in 
the middle oi tha op.en space 17here the cus t OD ,·ms t o ta.ke p1ace~, Arter 
s omo t en minutes his right hand vmse-ot off with 0. I nrgeoreadkn.ii'e. Re 
nt once fell dovm, and t he sarna knii'e was used t o sever his head frOD his 
body~ 
The King asked me if I WQS not afL'aid~ , I said I vms not, but tho. t 
the sight distressed ce. "0ht " saia'the King. "This is nothing. It ' 
happens here quite. frequemtly~ \I I learnt fron bystanders that this very 
Darning t wo meh nnd 0. wonen had net- thein- deaths in the 5C.ne way~ 
1st June lBl~. o 
I visited the King toda~and obt a ined arumples of the chintzes and 
velvets he requires~ .1 will keep them t o send to the C~ner2.1 when 
opportunity offers. Other wi se, no news, except that sone more pr esent s 
car.!o and I have added ther.! to Dy schedule~ 
.6b~gim:!.l insert:' ("n! IlNot hing happened on the 3,lst fIL.'1.y.-
2Jmd June 1SJ.6. 
Today I had the hoJ:+Our of 0. visit fron His ML'1.jOS ty, which took me quite 
by, surprise~ FEe hud his l'l!eW sta.ff in his, hn.nd, and '\,as acC'oDpanied by DOlre 
than a ' hundred ,nen, bearing guns b~ed Vii th gold, s:v.on-ds, gold cups, 
shcils, eitc. We sa t together for 0. qUc'1.l'ter of an hour, o.nd ,th~nms, :Mn. jesty () 
continued his j ourney.' . . 
49; Guesswork. Dutch r eads: ~nJrs. lang.J. 
50. This synbol l ooks liko: 'Ell' 
51. Lit., zi..iEr, r egt er lli'1.nd in een wte bloke 
-23-
This is the first visit I h~ve had fron the King. Very soon after 
he had left one of lis sword-bocrers cane back to ny house t o S~JDon ~e 
. to tho presence.. I caught the King up while he. ' ''las still in the street. 
He said to r.lC, IIOone , oy boy, cone \lith ne." Vlhen We rea ched the pc.l['.ce, 
he gave De ['.11 his silver ware ::-.nd c. sked De t o ha ve it clenned. This I 
• a Breed to arrange • 
.kS!- June 1816. 
Nothing occurred todo.y. Gener~l Poekoe invited my boy to spend the 
night gr.mbling ,"it h hin, which I a llm7ed. 
More presents received, though of little consequence. I o.n begin-
ning to get a little rest nOll , ['.nd D.r:l not so tired I'.S I was c . while ngo. 
~ JunJL}...§16. 
• No nens. Some pre s ents of goleL r.nd br.n(~nns· received, but little of either. 
• 5ih June 1816. 
This Dorning the King sent for De to tell ne about the death of 
Cudjo Goona . The excellent nc.ture of this news proIlpteil His Mo. jesty 
t o offer n e c. gl nss of gin.52 Our drinks ce'.ne :froD one of the chests I 
had brought hiD, flhich before to~~y he ha d not broa ched. The body of 
Gudj o CoeDe'. ha s beon s ent to Genercl Apia . The jubilation is general, 
for nOH the F<,.ntis will op en the tre.de route to everyone . The nows 
QXTived l ast night~ 
6th June 1816 • 
• One of the ha~~ock r.len is chronica lly ill a nd I D.r.l nervous lest 
h e: should die her e . I h~ve s ont hin ba ck to Eloina vrith 12 da ys t 
• naintenC'.nc e • 
OtherY.ise, nothing happened. 
lth Juno 1816. 
No n eViS. Sooo pres ents r eceived . 
8th June 18J.6. 
This afternoon I ·\,,".s sitting quietly in my hous e when I Vias 
s unnoned by Gener".l Poekoe c.nd off er ed, ill the nei,ne of the King , c. very 
young girl f or Dy wife . I c.ccopted her ~7ith the gr eates t p l ec.sure . 
She i s a nice girl, and. viill dispel my boredoo by keeping De COE'.p[',ny, 
C1. t ler. s t f or half the drcy. Poekoe s ['.ys the. t I n2.y tc.ke her with ne to 
Eloinn , but whethor sh e h['. s been given to De ['.s ['. pres ent or oerely to 
help 'De ge t through the eopty hours her e , I do not knovr . 
Othervn s e no nel' s . Presents r eceived . 
2,.th June . 
Nothing h C1.ppened.' 
J..9J;h June, . 
Nothing hc.pp eneli . Soo e present s r ece i ved. 
11th June . 
Nothing ho.ppened. Presents r ecei ved . 
12th June . 
This c orning I l eo.rnt froD Poekoe t hc. t t he COVT ~hi ch he has been 
sheltering f or De i s about t o die . I son t sooe boys t o fe tch t he an~~l, 
~d hC1.d it killed t o pr ovide ['. oe['.l f or ~ll oy men. For oy own part I 
did not chr e to e,:,- t any of the oeat. Be c[!,use di se['. s e i s so rife I he'we 
been compelled t o kill 0. s heep ever y dr.y fr om the 9 t h t o the present . 
All would other'rliso h['.ve (',i ed . 
52, Lit ., l1l:"tte Genovn.,. 
-24-
1] th , ~\Jll2.' 
]lro news. 
o 
;J,hlh JUne:, 
This Doming tho King sent for De r..nd showed De, the c;:,ptnred wife, 0 
child [~nd sister of Cudj 0 Coer,l!:'.. They ' looked very Diser['.ble and s t::rved, 
=d could hardly stand upright. They ~vill all be killed. ''.bile I rms 
there, they were being irrterrogc.tEid c.bout vcxious r.k."..tters uhich I could 
not properly underst r..nd. ' 
Other,;r:l.se, no news. 
~.2th }une. 
, Todc.y I once o.gain had the privilege of spoc.kinG vd th the Ifug. I 
took the 'opportunity to ask hiD for his decision regarding ny nission. 
He s[ticl, "I will let you knoV/ my o.ns':',er p.fter this CODinG Ada.ij . (or "Good o 
Sund..".y'), c.nd will o.lso fix 0. do.y for your departure. Sto.y with your nen 
neaT:lwhile. You are alvmys welcone, a.nd I c.n plec.sed you nre here. If 
you went mmy, when o.gc.in would I hc. ve such c. good friend ne o.r ne? 
EverythillG is going very well." He spoke in so friendly e. f[tshion thc.t 
I could not s ay a.ny Dore. But I did tell hir:l thc.t it would be very 
ple[ts1'..nt for De to know hO:1 na tters stood regc.rding Dy mission, for then I 
would wc.it more easily, since the G-enere.l ho.d ordered DC -to ' send oJ men ' 
back if it 'appeared I would be dcluyed 0. long time. But he said Derely, 
"After this Ado.ij you will know everything." 
l6thJune. 
To&.... .. y being 'Good Sun~yl'or Ac1£.ij, the dignitc.rics of the neiGhbour-
hood h.-':',ve assenblecl in e..ll their glory. The Kint; did DC the honour of 
invi tine; De to '[l.CCODpo.ny hiD o.nd his elders53 to the f ·etish-plo.ce. I 
accepted his offer and rode there Qesidc GenerQl Poekoe. • 
'. .' hen we arrived r.t the outer B:" te of the fetish-pkce, eve,rybo,dy sc.t 
down on one side, while the King c. lone, with Poekoe ['.nd the linQlis ts , 
entered. I renained outside p.nd did not dc.re -go in. For such teJ::lerity 
people have he.d their hends cut of:f before now. -e sc.t for 1'..bout hnlf Con 
hour, und then suddenly the Busic bo.g~ nnd everyone stood up to greet the 
IfuG. First Poekoe c~ne out, with the others, ',nd 2.fter tlfen, the K:in[:;, 
7-Tho was in his full clory nnd covered with large pieces of gold. . He sc.t 
in his basket.54 The Den vdth him nunbered oore than c. thousnnd . 
,I Wc.s to one side, ,-lith oy ho.r:mo ck by me and oy hat in my hanel. 
• ".'hen the Y>ing, trc.velling in his basket, nrrivec1 opposite ne, he h Q.lted 
and considered me for ten or fifteen cinu'ces.Then he put out his hnnd, 
shook nine, and s3-id, II'Sir ,55 renain by ny sid.e. tI And sd we went on ' 
together. 1,:hen the coopuny rea che cl the pccl noe, the KinS S 2. t under a 0 
krge tree, and ['. cceptecl the gr ee tings of his ' elders, one by one. 
en this festiva l day I Vias ab le to see the true =cnificp.nce of the • 
K:ing of tho Ashuntis, c.nd of the senior general, Pillanguntia, and of 
~untje Coffie, Poekoe, Adoeo l'...  ttc. LShort illegible passageJ, etc., etc. 
\-,ben the greetings ,7ere over, the K:ing stood up, disappec.red for e.. 
Doment, and returned with 2 sheep, which ~ere ~ed ~ behind hin. He gave 
one to me and one to the E\obnssl1.dor from J.!nlabar. 5 . This anbassc.dor has 
been here since before tho urny loft. He is a king , but has in 0.11 this 
tine had only one audience with His Najesty of Ashnnti. They say he nay 
well be kept here c. whole year before he receives ['~other. 0 
I'lhen we had finished our drinks l the KinG stood up und'we ['.11 acconpanied hin to his pc.lace, entorlng by one door .:tnCl. leGving by [',nother. ~ 
The asseobly then broke up. 
53. Lit., groton. 
54. Lit., korf. 
55. Lit., ~eestor. 
~6. Spelling hlGhIy doubtful. 
-25-
I am not in n position tG say that the King of Ashanti is a nan who 
knoVls what he is about. lie can argue like ('l. l awyer. !fiE disposition 
is a happy one, and he enGages in much joking and raillery. He is a thick 
set man, and well covered. Yihen he is seated, he is surrounded - even 
~hen there is no assembly -~ by more than a hundred princes.57 All of 
these men have an elephanitfs-tail switch in their hands, and they watch to 
seo thf..t not so much as a fly alights on the King's body. ii!ben he spits, 
they wipe the floor with their fingers (as we do with our fe0t), and they 
are so quick to perform this task that they almost fight for the privilege. 
1-.i'th June. 
Nothing happened. Some presents received fron the senior general, 
Aoanquntia, as per the ' gift schedule. , 
18th ' June. 
Today I again had the honour ~f a visit fron the King. He came 
especially to ask rae to write a letter to the General, enclosing Bome 
pieces, of chintz ond velvet. I said that I would willingly do this, provided 
he gave me SODe indication of how my mission was progressing and how I 
should arrange ~tters with regard to my men. I poi~ted out that the 
char ge s which EltUna will have te pay for their tl[J.intano.nce are growing 
daily. I also sc.id that I wished to know whether or not the King intended 
to go to Dinkira to nee t the General. If he did, then it would be appropriate 
for me to send ny men bnck to Eloina. The King replied, "I will tc.lk to 
you about tha~ t omorrow. l~e sure you are ready to t~ke leave of me,for 
'he who goes out on l egi tina te business ought not to reLlD.in out l ong, '58 
• and this is true above all in [k"tcers of such great ioportance as we are 
considering now." Ke then talked _bile about the cleaning of his silver 
ware, o.nd sent for 4 &poons and 4 forks. These he gave to me, together 
with a l arge salver, and requested that my boy should clean them. After 
this he left. 
121h• • 
About 7 o'clock this morninG General Poekoe cnme to request, in the 
KinG's. name, that I acconp~y him tm the pal~ce, because the Iang w~s 
holding a council c.nd wished no to be present. I set out nt once with 
Poekoe, and mm arrival a t the pal ace found assombl ed the oost senioF 
generals, Quatje Coffie c.nd Adoen Atta, and tho throe linguists, with the 
King at their hend. I t ook ny seat next to Poekoo's. 
At first we talked about the war. The ICinG tola me that he would 
not be able t o go to Dinkire,. He said tha t, if he did ~O, it would be 
the ruin of Dinkira and all the surrounding villaGes. Even in his own 
capital, he said, he could not mOYe down the street:. without- thousands 
of people nccoopo.ny:inG hir:ij !'Ie proposed, however, t o beGin 
constructing the road fron his capital through Dinkira and Wassaw at once, 
on the one condition that I wr ot e by express post t o the General t o setlfr 
[L smll dispute which had arison between Ashc.nti IUld VTassaw . This dispute 
had not been caus ed by Ashanti, but rather by the peopl e of Elmina,_ 
Sooe tine ago the Elninas had' sentt envoys by sea t o Accr a59 and thence 
overland to AshD.nti, bringin6 a request fron t he Chief of Eluina and his 
terregent es that the Ashantis should be sent to fight the Fantis and tho 
Wl1ssaws. The gr ounds nere that these t wo nntions were hoping t o uurder 
the chief and t erref)entes of ElniIlD. . , Qnd burn their tmm. lie had been 
putting off sendins his soldier s .t o punish the. Fantis and the ~assc.ws, 
PrciJ:roen. This Hor d can also nea~ 'prizes ', c.nd perhaps the sense 
her e is 'slaves'. 
58. Lit. I F.P'~ !22E...£..oeden zaken uit .£l."-t. ooet niet lang uit blijven. 
an :.shnntJ. provcrO ( 
Reading doubtful. 
since it gas by no Deans his wish thai'theso nations should suffer so 
gri evously at the hands of an eneoy, but noVi the situation had chanc edo 
The Wassaws had rocently confiscated SODe presents the Eloinas '-lOre sending o 
to hie, as Kine of Ashanti, and hadtl.!I'Ded the ElDina envoys back, refusine 
to allow thea to CODe to see hiD. Ire was tlwreforc. sonewl).at nn17Y , lith, o 
the Viassaus; 
Thero "oro" hO' lever, no other inportant ' palavors outstandinG and, in 
order that overJthine u:iCU' be a rranc ed eonveniently ancL vlithout delu:>(;b he 
,~ished no to send a let t er as soon a s possible by the hand of his ~ 
to the G:eneref.-. This letter is to state tha t if the tleneral wants the road 
buil~. quickJ.t then 1 on receipt of the letter, he is to send soneone to the . 
Wassaw caboceer to discuss the 17hole ontter. The ct-boceor is to be asked 
if he ha s any other palaver uith the Ashantis and, if the anSller is, Yes, 
whether such pa lavers can be der.lt with by tho ·Gen~al. The Wa;ssags Dust 
make apology to the Ashanti KinG ~ and drink an oath in tho pros onco of the o 
Kinels r opresontatives. This onth ".-ill bind tho \7aSS <1VlS to settle 0.11 
lila tters peo.cefully Hi th t he 1line . Ths,y nus t further swelC.r the, t, ,7hen the 
envoy ht.s =o·~·L. ::;·d /J:""OD .;:.~1is nissio!}(, the K:inL; "ill be o.ble to bee in the 
construction of t he rond without [my interference" nnd a ll parties nay then 
.live a nd trade in pea ce one i7ith nnother~~l If these thinGS are duly sworn, 
the KinG will icrnedia tely begin prepara tions for nnkinG the road. All the 
tlaterials are rea dy, ::mel the .Den to do the job hGVO been assiened. The Ki.nc 
hopes to siK:1.l't on the ;ilOc1.Q. this Donth. It is only the natter of the. assur=ce~ 
that nus:l be obilained fron the Yfa s saws that is delayinG hin, since 'ITithout 
, these he cannot a llow the ';(ork to proceed4 
20th. 
- The Kine sunil0ned ne nc;ain today ana., throuGh ,his linGuists, told ne o 
that he has det ailed e nunbar of officers nnd. Den to beGin buildinG the roa d 
at once ~ If anu VTa ssmrs ca use trouble, 62 he has ,:;i yen ordors tn."... t they 1:',r8 
to be destroyed. Ho a ske o. De wha t y'thouGht of t his plano. I roplied tha:t;~ 
since it was tho General's desire tha t a ll exis tinG pa l avers should be 
oininized a s nuch ::1.S poss ible ancl tha t thero s hould be no bloodshed1 tho, 
' KinG nust not on any account carry out t his schene n The General n..1.d cone 
to Africe~ to brinG peace to the Vlhole country :L"1. so fe.r a s vms in his ' 
p~)'wor, nn6. h::1.d no ;7ish to spill bJ 1. The G-eneru \70uld certa inly open 
the trada routes anc1 would do so wi t houii; ruin:i..nc tho, ,\7a ssEtn coUntry by 
s endinG ar ni e s into it4 
At this the Ilinr; 'I7i thdrew for a Dooent with his councillors, ::::nd~ on 
their r etur:-n, I vms a s-ked wher e the Gener c.: .. eles ire d t o have the road~ r 
answered, RBetwean CODrk"..nij and Eloina, though nore towards the Elnina side ~ 
then runninG thrOUGh Grea i;; CODmm ij -t,o AsaI1mrlwen VillaGe, Epon Villc.c;e, 
Odekoe Villac c and Sanko. a s f a r e.s Brun-Lcoena, I1.n e1. then c-lonG the broad 
plain behind Cl'\nd' s pL.'intation, and Jchr ouCh the J out63 villc-Ges to Elnin.'1.. 0 
l'fu then :iindicn t ed thc- t ' .the Kin,; Vl e.S cost de sirous to be t:in the project a t 
once nn e1 to drive the Y,-a ssaHs out of their co'untry. He s a id tn..'it everythinG 
would be ca l?riod throuCh to c. conclusio'J. ,:c.n c1 tl1c'i t he would do :,nd thn t he 0 
would do whnt his I1.."..s t er ha(l or el.er ed. It woulel Ilot be necess c,ry for the 
Vlnssmis to be a ctUDlly rec ove d fron the.".r hODes. 64 . 
The lunG, horiever, was not ye t sa t ~_sfiod ,\ and holel I1.nother council to 
reconsider wha t I ha d s e.i d? Ke t hen a,:n ouncod t n..'1. t he did hnve a palnv:er 
---~~------- .~-..- ---.. -~. -~-------,-...,....----
PreS1,ll'_1c'ibly Okrl1 . ' ,:, ': 
The '\1holo p;r; Gr o.phup to t his poi!.t is e. vory ,free translo.tion indeed () 
e.nd I C-D not ye t s,~.tisfied -ai th it. The MS is very hard t o understc.nd~ 
Li t . ', Li"ekll9id' q.~k:en _= . nko f(Jolishr.css.! 
Tout, Ton':;" Zou·!t:" etc? . " " 
There is consider<'.ble confus~.on in the text here . It looks as if', 
when the councillors r eturn jd, thoy lid so Iii thout the KinG, I:',nd tha t 
it was n linr'uist ''-lho convc 'lOd t o Huvo.ecoDer t he il'li'orDntion conic'1. inGd 
in the lust three s entences of this pnra[,;o.ph. It- ,is by no Dec.l!llt! clear 
who tho I is supposod to beo 
-27-
that must be settled with the Wassaws, and that the road could not: be built 
without fighting. Having thus ohamged his mimd again, he proposed that T' sho~d 
wr ite to the General to inform him of the serious: nature of this palaver, ano. ' 
in my letter' that I should suggest. that the Wassaws swear an oath in the 
presence of the Ashant;?- , Aocra., at the Generai's fort (he did ncrlt say how this 
could be arranged) to the effe.ct that- they had nothing against the King of 
Ashanti; tha~ ' they would render satisfaotion to him if t he palaver should be 
settled; that, if t he Wassaws promised this, the General would himself receive 
what they offer by way of compensation ~nd transmit it to Ashant~, and then 
the King will order the road to be built; 'dnd that there shall be no inter-
ference in this road-building on the part of t he Wassai~s. Not to cause trouble 
will be the best course for the Wassal7s to adopt; otherwise, they will bring 
such ruin. on themselves that they will newer recover from: it~ 
My latter to the General is also to say that word myst be sent to the Wassaw 
cabooeer, Entceffer, to Worm him that the Gene r ,.:.l will be building a full 
scale road through his o ountry , and t ha t if he shoVls the least enmity as a result 
of this he will pay for it nith the loss of'l1is villages. 
I would not have opposed the King~s desire to punish the Wassaws had I 
not been convinoed that they are amongst t he be s t customers we have. I could 
not have anaYl ered for it, if an army had been let loose on pe'ople r;ho have had,. 
continuous commercial relations Hith us ano. IIho have never failed to come to 
visit us even in time of trouble. 
• All these matters having be en thoroughly aired, a further ,mee ting was arranged for tomorror; . 
21st. 
-The WassaH palaver Has r esumed today, and everything discussed yesterday , 
,ias agreed to. The decision i s that t omorro,[ the me s s engers \lill depart, for 
E1.mi.na. t o arrange for che oathtakilrlg. They will be theloe in 9 or 10 days, a nd 
will suggest to the General hO\7 the pa l aver should be s ettled~ 
Seizirrg this moment o.s m~ opportunity, I e.:'-rnes tly be s ought the King to 
0..11011 my be;"\r elOS to r eturn to Elminc. t oo, but he Ilould not heo..r of :j.t. ITe s o.id, 
'*So l ong 0. 15 you o.re here, you must be cf.r r i ed nher ever you gO.M After much 
persuD,sion, hOVlever, he did o..gree to a lloY! ho..lf of my men to depnrt. When I 
got bo.ck t o my house , I wc.r ned the men concerned to be r ec.dy to l eo..ve tomorro17 
for Elmino. . My o..nnouncement Ylo.S gree t ed uith mr'.ny express ions of dis content. 
I expL.1.il:ted thnt t he cos t s of our continued s t ny here ,-,'ere nlreD.dy t oo high mq.d 
were ris ing higher eve,y do.y, .:'-n(~ tho. t , ther e i'lCl.S not enough for so lo.rge i1. body 
• of men to do. I so.id, t oo , t hr'. t I could n ot r i sk keeping them o.ny longer, beco.use I might be obliged t o pc.y out of my min pooke t 0..11 " r,ges due ':ihen He 
nll event"Lk".lly r eturned t o Elmina. . Ther e IT.:'-S n long o.rgument. Jrn the elld, 
• seeing t ho. t I could o.chieve no t hing by per s ues i on, I de t nileQ. the slo.ves£?--8 iuld -th e three fr ee negroes to r emo.in behind t o c.:'-rry the h:l.lDmOok end ~'. ct o.s 
porters f or my bQggi'.ge, c.nd ordered 13 men i7i t hout f ur t her prevo.ri cf. t i on to re tlli"Il 
to t he coC'..s t. I .:'-lso Dc-ill tho..t, if they r efused t o go, I would ,lithoId t heir 
Elminc. o..llo1ilo..nces o..nd mc.i n t ene-n ce f r om t omOrrOl'I oni7o.rds . They r econoiled 
thems el ves o. t l o.s t t o depo.rting . 
To~~y the King c".me to s ec me to o..sk if the letter for Elmi no. rro.s reo..dy. 
~ :r SQid it \iQS , o..nd rod ;tireo.dy been s onl ed. I sho'.led it to him, and in hi s 
pr esence gQve it t o my messenger, The messenger h.:'-d 2lrena, been b.ru:iI.ded my 
golden ohQin .:'-nd s t2.i':t' and " as -to ~ e t off Ilt DilJ-day,•  
• 
o 
The King had ny boy s ent to the palace and there DUde hin, together 
with his mvn Accra ' swear that they would be in Eloinnwithin 9 ~ 10 days~ 
He gnve: theo rLindecipherubl~/ of o gold for their subsistence. 
2.3rd.. , 
I hnve not tasted 0. drop of bin for f&n or tl'lelve dc. . ys. I asked. 
the ICing today if he would let De have back one of the bottles I had 
earlier presented t o hiJp.. He' s ent De" howevor, a bottle. of watered ruo, 
which' I ' accepted and passed on to I:lY nen. Otherwise, no news~ 
The King says that the General nust keep a thousand. of the best guns 
for hin: two ' each for 5'00 nen. 
2b-th JUne 1816,-
The ICing sent for ne to tell ne that he has had to halt the express 
nessenger I had sent to Eloinn at a place about three hours ' fron here to • 
('.wait, r eceipt of 0. ves sel ,66 he is having nade out ;)f wood as 0. presont 
for the' General •••••• 67 
25th~ 
Today in the aftern~on the ICing, o.coonpanied by General Poekoe, cane 
t o see ne~ They brought with then the g1o.sfopn His Majesty nentioned 
yesterday. They waited while I po.ckecl it up., o.nd o.sked ne to Vlri te the 
General a letter about it.~ Then both the present and the letter 'were 
dispatched with oy boy, and when the King and Podtoe had seon this done, 
they left. 0 
28th~ 
~Froo the,26th until t oday, no nevrs; • 
29th. 
This evening the [k~ r eturmed whon I'had sent t o Eloina on the 26th 
of last nonth with a latter for the General~ Ee breught with hin 0. repJ.:,y 
fr on the Gener al, which ordered ne to inquire the ~g fs intentions and 
then r eturn t o Elnina. If. howevCJt', the ICing for any re[1.son wi shes t o r et.."..in 
oy services" I an to stay 0. while l onger. 
kaving'read the General's l etter I nade n full report of its contemt 
,t o the King, including the reoarks concerning the reprehensible behaviour 
of Gener o.l Appinh. I ,explained thc..t the Genero.l ~7as r equesting thc,t s trict 
orders be sent t o the Ashantis ancanped near Eloina tellinG then t o withdraw 
fron tha t r egi on, beco.use they were a chieving no useful purpose there ~ 
, I also spoke about the palaver of Anonannoe, Coe[k~ and Motjc, and explained 0 
, .. tho.t,in th,eGeneral1s opinion, the ICinG had been coopletcly oisled about { 
their behaviour. Apia, t oo , has not been obeying the I(ingts orders. To 
,all this, His IIbjesty listene d. with astonishoent, o..ncl shook his head t o 
indicat e his displeD.sure~ 
I fu'1.nded over t o jhe ICing the SUf;o.F, tea , nedie.:i.nes, etc ~, the".. t had 
accoopanied the GenernIs l etter. He vms delighted, o..ncl thenkecl ne f4r the 
trouble I had t aken with hnlf nn anke]!'" of run for oy orm use~ 
.loth. 
, Nothing hE'_ppenod. 
31st; Jul.! 1816. 
Nothing happened. 
~ 
Today the King visited ne, but iopaxted no infornation as t o what he 
vrishes to do following the receipt- of the new orc.ors froD the Genorc.l~ 
66 !At" ~elluQ.as . . 
67 Sho:rt :i;'deo;phrarablo pp,ssage~ 
Eie se.id t o rie, "Will the GencrU :t'eally cctle b.€re?" I replied that the GelOOrrJ.. 
,{QuId certaimly do so. 
The King said. to De todt:>.y that I DUSt" rorrain hcre until an answer CODeS 
back froD Elrllna conceI'liring the 'Ihssaw palaver. After that I will bc allow~d. 
to leave at once in or (ler to report to the Generr,l. 
I have to recorc~ tha t SODe vcry scrious ruoours havc been cil'cuktiJmg 
here these past threc days. Th~ arc being spread by certian Ashe.ntis who 
hn'WB r eturned. £'roo the coast. Sorre soldiers aI:long therr affirm tho.t ~rr~ J(1JlIl 
Nieser and the Elnina i~rregentes t ol d then (giving it OQt e.s positive truth) 
• that UelOOr'a.I Dn.e1lldels wes a very bad rann, who h... .. c1 becn sent out from Rollanl t o Dikc 11 dupe of the King 0f Ashanti; tha t Genernl Dc-endels propose d t o 
rrur<il.er the whole Elrrina popu1D. tion with GUllS; ,th.~ t he had not OODe hero to 
• trade, but to mslee-d the peoples of ,Ai'riOD.j that he ho.cl sent De o.s his envoy to trick the As~~ti King ~to building 0. great r ond through the Wo.ssaw ' 
country ; that, when this r oad has been finished, the Genej~al "ould be nble, 
t OGother with the Vh::.ssmrs" t o plunder the gOGUs an d. nurcter the nen o.nd women 
of the Ashanti nation; and n~ 'sinilnr incitenents ond villninies~ In o.il 
this l.tr:"; Kieser, bush nigger6~r the... . t he is, is in a llinnce with the f oolish 
<liI:l-witted eldcrs of EJJJinc., Ben who cons tontly oppose the Governr.lent o.nd 
nlwo.ys soek to set theOBelves e.bove it, and who are uno.blo t o reo.lise tho.t, 
in tine of we.!? it is only the Governoent- that can keep an eneny o;way fron 
then ond protect then. In coruruexion Vii th ihese unworthy runours, I t o.ke 
• leave to. . obs$rve thnt Mr. Nie.ser is a bad servo.nt t o the Governnent, and has l ong desorwed t o be brought t o book. 'He is D, gallows,bird (though he 
oay well di e in his bed as nn honest nan), .end on one pre t ext or another 
• is very likely to be killed sooner or l a t er by his own people, just as he hioself' oade [!.way vii th President Kogenboon; 
Anong other t hings he has t old the Al3.rurtis tha t Jlh intends t o o.rrnnge 
for the 'sword of the seven qUEl,rtors' t o be t a ken out of the hands of Adan 
and given either to Q'lU1nd.nh..'l. or to the bonko known as Konnua. lfe intends 
doing this be en us e the Gener e.l is so ~te with Ar~ und discloses secret 
oot ters to bin alone, and never t o Mr. Nieser~ . V~· . Niesor c. l so says thnt 
he has f ound a wo.y to d,".D[!.Ge the Genernl' s. repute. tion 1':i th the net;roes.. It 
iQ; therefore f ortunnire thnt the Genernl has the greo.t er part of the negroes 
on his side. Otherwise Mr. Nieser's s t atenent t o the !p,ETI>Gcp.tes tha t the 
Gemrc.1 had sent ne t o t he King of Ashanti t o ask for troops t o cone and 
nurcler the ElTIino.s would undoubtodly cause panic anong the ooonon people~ ' 
If they GOO, beoane convinced tha t the Ashnntis were nbout t o attack theLl, 
• they would aloos t certainly try to get in first, and would ourd.er the General nnd &ll his official s before the latter even knew the reason for the attack 
on then • 
• ~ ndvics to General Deendels i s t o carry the attack to Er. Ni eser, 
and demand a discl osure of all his dealinGS with t he neGroes. Then the 
Generc.l will see Mr. Nieser f or what he is o.nd nl ways has been. The Negroes 
hnve l on G wished to bani sh Mr. NiesDr fron the to,~ -- ho hus already becn 
driven for ever fron Accr.:'_ -- but d..'1.re not c10 so for f ear he nc.y be under 
the General's pr ot e cti:on. I f it ,mre not for this 1'ir ~ Nieser would hn va 
been dealt: with in the tine of Genero.1 de Veer. A wor d fr on the Genernl 
and the gums brought t o r eadiness would be quite enOUGh to deliver -
9 ~- fron Yor. Nieser, though this should not be c.ttonpted unless there 
are trustworthy soldiers in the fort and a m'.rship in the roadll with 
• 
68~ Lit ~. wild.a ner,cr The translc. tion i s not 0. MPW one , perhaps, but 
this is who. t 0. coe.stal oulc... . tto oight Hell rove sai d, had he been spenkin(; 
EnGlish. 
-30-
cannon-ba lls able t o ove:m,vre the town. 
There is not one ne70 in Elmina uho hE!.S not some cowpl aint to make • 
about Nr. Nieser. Every negro .~ould like t ot-see him gone . He is tho'ught 
to have suborned hali' the garrison, which is why I refer to the need. for 
a warship. • 
Nothine happened, 
From the 5th until today noth;i.ng of oonsequense occurred~ .1 
continually hear runours about the'bep?-viour of Mr . Nieser, uho is sayinG o 
that the General has not cone to the Coast to do good but to bring disaster 
t o everybody. It is a lso said that the General ins invited the Elmina n ecroes o 
into the fort for a palaver, though on what subject I have not been told. 
r much hope t hat this l atter runour is not true, for I h2. . 1e np d.oubts about 
the General vTickeeln:ess (li" Mr. Nieser's activities. He is up to knavish tricks 
of all kinds. 
10 Julx..1816. 
Serious news has been received today fron the arI'lY of General Youw 
Kok:zi-oko. The r epor t is that he has f ought 1yith the Fantis and as 'a r esult 
has lost a l arGe Dunber of Den and t wo .of his 'creat officer8'. These 
officers were brothers t o the King. They are said. to ha ve fought very bravely 
a nd to have causeel much s l aught er 2.nong other opponents. His J;iajesty is o · 
nuch affectecl by the death of his. brothers, and by way of cOIl&.olation hns 
cut off the heads of sone Fanti prisoners of ,mr. 
I have not wish€c'. before t o speak of the nuncrous Fantis Vlho have been 
beheadecl in the tir:le.>I have been here. To ny certain knovlledge the~e have 
been 00 of then, men, wonen, and Children. Anont; then was the Peul. 9 of 
Cudjo Coema:, Wl'lO Det a nost miserable end. Fron niclday until eveninG there 
was (lancing , and ami d this ex.ci tement for executioners cane up to the Peul 
and one after a~other ' s t p.bbed. an~ slipeel at his l)ocly. Then he u~s cut in 
the shoulcle:rs ,nth whale-bone kn~ves of' the type that WODen use, ' O ano. pepper 
was rubbed into t he 17ounds. Then therevlas more cutting and s t a bbing in 
the sides and face. "His ears were hackM off, then his E!.rms . .And.· so it went 
on until he could nc longer stand, and onl y then was his head severed fron 
th(3 body. The head was sent around. the . town, so that everyone could see who 
i;t was that had been killed. 
~ ,_ 0 
I b... .. ve noted today with ouch concern that Hi s M8.j esty appears :to be 
paying a ttention to the baseless runours beLDg spread aDong the Ashnntis by 
Mr. Niese.r nnd the terrec;entes.. Itc seeDS a little cool, anc. is no l onser 0 
so ~"{G ll disposed towarcls I!le e.s before. Yihen ny lJoy Gets back frOD the coast-
I will knOVI pore • • .71 
~. 
Today I l eo.rnil; ttl ny astonishnent the. t . the EL-::tinas have. (larecl 
t o presune to senel anbassadors to the KinG. This has been clone by 
pernission of their chief, lfa- Nieser, but without the knowlec'.:::e of Governor 
General DaendGls. The envoys are to give the King inforDatibn al ons the 0 
lines of the rumours I 'have i lreE!.cly described. They are GoinG to dG~e 
that everything tha t I, in t he Gener al's nane., . have tolcl t~e ICing is f'alse, 
o 
69. Obscure. 
70. Me'!: vro'uwe bal.eine me.ssen!. Literally, the trn.nslation could. be ' ylith 
knives n l.de fron fenale .7hale-bone', but this seCf.1S unlikelyJ 
7l~ FoUl?" or five illeGible lines follow (due to ink showinc through frOD 
the other side of the page). 
-31-
and .;ill discredit L,1Y Llission 1;liY. every !:leans ;.in . th~ir power..- They will 
as sure the King of the siilccl"c;friendshipof Mr, Nieser an,:, his terreJ.EaIJ-desJ 
anc". nill insinuate that the General's friel1clship for His }ie. j es ty is insincere. 
Thank God the King hl:':s nair yet seen these envoysaneL has l'O~a. to ~eo~iV§d 
their message! I for my part will keep Qy eurs open, anc1 will note evcrythinc 
down tho.t I kar,' in .order to be e.ble to nake a full report to my naster 
when opportunity offe~s~ I wi11 tell him that hc has in the Dutch fort 
a traitor, who presents hiLlself · as a white n~l1 with a black exterior, 
wheref!.s in truth he is a neGro throu,gh and through; a trouble-Daker, a 
disturber of the GovernDont's peacc~ There will come. e. tL:e vihen the only 
way suitably to reward Mr. Nieser will be .by fitting a halter round his 
neck. 
The entry into .the town of the Elmina envoys is fixe ,:' for next mondny, 
the 15th. Then they will st&te publioly and in my presence the lies they 
have brought .lith them~ I Vlill thuS have the opportunity to expose their 
iniquity, and will undermine their reputations se far as lies in my pOYler. 
The Cabo Corso people-have o.lso s ont an embassy, though for what 
puropse I do not yet know, 
13th July. .. ,; 
Nothing new, 
illh,. 
General Poekoe tells De the:t I must be presEmt tomorrow when the Eloiru;.. 
an cl Cabo Corso envoys arrive. I am glD.c. to hee.r this, and will be satisfied 
if I can defenel my .. master aGainst the treachery of Mr. Nieser. 
15th. 
About 3 o'clock the King held a council of note-bles to receive the 
envoys froD Eloina and Ce..bo Corso~ Those from Cabo, Corso,hovTGvor 1 o.lone 
o.ppeared. It is said: tha t one of · thc , Eloin~~ is sick, ane their entry 
into the capital ~~s boon postponed until further orders. The rumours 
t o the de trimont of the General, my DUster's .reputation are now worse 
than ever. The I~~g ~lrea~y knows t~e contonts of tho mos snces the Elminas 
havo brought 17ith them, and a crioinal could not be ",ores repr,es.en,ted th.im 
tho General is boinG to tho King a t thepres ont tine. The KinB, hbwevor, is 
prepo.rod t o o.wait: pa tiently the return of his a ccra from, ;Eloina.· He e:h."Pects 
this nan will be <,-ble to inforlJ. hiLl if tho Gen~is as bac:' as is pninte<l 
or no. ~ c.) 
Tho reo.l purpose of tho Eloinas is to ' have ')::18 clriv8n C',no.y from hore 
in disbT a ce anel to cles t l'oy tho goo(1 name M my maste:rr. The King has a lreo.c.y 
boen t old that tho Gonera l is his eleclc..rea oneoy, [md i'iill havo no thing 
• to do viith tho people of Ashe.nti. It is 111so beinB sf!. id. thd I have CODG hore t o threa ton the King , o.nd to this His lvIa jesty i s supposed to ha vo 
replied: "This is a ll very nell, but supposinG the infornation is correct1 
what can I do? I cannot murder the G€nernis envoy, nor sonel back the ' 
presonts I have received from hin. 17hether ho brines De t;ooel or bad palavers, 
I can do nothing but s ond hiLl safely hooe. I can eto no .. ,oro, oven supposing 
these ruoours nro true." ., . 
I henr- the Gabo Corso peoplo have brought presents, but do not know 
. what these are. 
The day before yes t erde..y a white horse a rrived here for t he King . 
A co.mel was a lso expected, but is hol d up' on the wo.y beC£'.use of s,wllen f oet. 
These animnls have been .sent froo Sara00, 0. place sooo fift een &~ys from 
here. I understanC!. they nre intended ns pres1ll!l-ts for ny ous t er . I l'k~ve 
Q seen the horsc~ She is 0. snall boast, and ne o. t and handsome. 
-32-
16th; 
GOd, Sh~pherd of He~veh and Earth, may Your blessinGs be 
,wi;thual, , , , , • 
'1iC" ," ,Uost, worthy unl I!map'coted, <1oDO~<0.r , , n' 
, His with the i";reatest pleasure' t 'hi1 t I now have the 
Honour to , inform Your Excellency" of the considerable 
satisfac'tiol!) I feel as a result of the meeting I have • 
bac1 toC'cay with His Majesty of, Ashq.nti. His Maj-esty showed 
the Greatest consideration tQ\'vards me. 
This morning I had the priviles e of presenting to him 
my greetings, upon which occasion His 1hjesty asked me if 
I know of the expected arrival at his capital of'cnvoys 
" from Elm1na. r answered tha,t 1 did, know of this, and said 
tohiln most earnsstly. . that if thes"e envoys h!cught any 
fals,e reports with them about my Daster, he should clap 
the lot of them in irons and hanc1. them to L;e to be sent-
, un:der strong esoo1''l; to Elmina and there delivered to my 
master for the rascals they are~ His Majesty, l a ughing 
aloud, agreed to my request,. I have therefore thow;ht it 
proper to inform Tour Excellency of this encourac;Lng attit',~r' ~ 
on the part of the I\ing. 
The envoys have not yet ' arrived but, I believe, Vliii 
be here t omorrow. It will soon be seen how I, as Your 
EKcre~.ucy'a, ~bassaQ_ol!", will. deal ther.:J • 
. Hoping' ;Uy f a ithful d~ty and at-cachment to Your 
Exce llency is apparent in this letter, 
I have the Honour tq subscribe mys elf', 
:Yow:, Excelleneyt,s very Loyal 
- .,' ,andObedie,n.:t Servant, 
ljignei[W. H-uyd~coper. 
16thJ:Uy' 1816. 
(Not sent until the 18th.) 
The evening of the, 16th, 
In order to sift the real intentions of" the Elninas from the nllI!lGrous:r'L:.: , 
that are doing abouit, I bought two jura of palm wine today and invited the 
envoys sent by WlI'. Sa:muel Brew to visit me~ . To ny horror and amazement 
I learn tha t, so the CaboQ:>rso people beli,eve, the, torregandes from 
Eloina propose to say these terrible th:i,ngs to tb? KinG: ' ~~.~- , , 
, ' - c 
, -That .,the Elminas have come to request tho KLng to send an army 
aisainst C6inmany to plunder it and then to.go on to Elmina, Durdor the 
General ano_de s troy the fort; thi t the G€neral came to the Coast ,lith no 
other purpose than to threaten the King of Ashanti and kill the EL~inas; 
and that it is for this; reason that they, the Elminas, have come to visit 
the King and ga in his support~ 
Good. Godl This neV1S makes me very apprehensive. How can one undersL-o:;' 
the workings of a Dind like that of Mr. Nieser? A ban would have to be a 
mons te,!' yO stir up the Elninas yet a Ga in. to \llurder, whi te ben. rt is easy 
,to see h01'J this has hap) enec1.A:fter the death of President, Ho?e;enboom no 
punishment \7hatever Vias metec:L ,.~ut to the E1minas, nor even :any o i~vestiGo.tio:1 
ordered frolll ,Europe.. ' ,They lilive the~efore be-CODe so bold as tc try to , 
persuade the A;>hantis to commit a Burder -- a murder of whic!l they, the o 
ElL--dnas, can subsequently plead. ignorance. They l7ill, if they can;) lay 
• 
a ll the blame on the Ashanti King; 
. The Elminas are arri vJ.ng tOIULdrrovr. I sha ll appris e myse Ji' of every-
thing that takes place, and pass the information to my master without 
delay. ~ master must take sreat care, e.nd not on any account visit 
. Gr'3a t Commany at t his time. May ~d protect him against all the assaults 
of the devil and frustrate the evil designs of those like l Ir .• Nieser 
who y;ish to encom~ass his dea thl 72 
17th Jul,L ' 
At nine o'clock this ~orning it was reported to the King that the 
Elminas envoys were a t Assaforhe em and were reques ting permission, on 
their arrival in the capital tomorr.ow, to present to His Majesty their 
gr eetings. The EJ,ng is alreacly somewhat wary of this disreputable em.bassy. 
Be has sent no r eply whatever to their messaGes, though they have s ought 
perrr>.ission to enter his capital three or four time, Realizing tha t they 
wer e going to receive no answer from the King , they have n ow entered t he 
() capita l of their own accord., to the accompanimeat of many expre ssions of 
contemp~ from the inhabitants, To the Ashantis, anyone who arrives 
v/ithout having honour done him by the King is an object of scorn and is 
cursed by the co~mon people. 
Their lies will bring the Elminas down.in ruin. They do not ' s eem. 
t o understand tha t the King of the Ashantis is a n intelligent man, Vlho will 
quickly s ee through them. A known scoundrel could not have been r e ceived 
with less hcnour than these Elm.inasi Because they could not obta in the 
ear of the King, they were obliged to have t heir palaver .rith Gener a l Poekoe. 
He, however, gave them no ans• • a nd walked out on theo in the midale of" 
o t heu r ecitanl. ~hey have not s e en him since. The Kingts linguis ts 
s imilarly imbued with suspicion and mistrust, has a lso rej e cteci them. They 
have had, therefore, to VTait a ve.,. Ions t :i.mv and then witlWr c. W Hi thout 
r e ceiving any satisfa ction or encouragement. Their presents have not yet 
been accptecl. Tomorrow will show whether they will be adJnitted to audience 
and, supposing they gain access, what they will say; 
I will be careful to r e cord exactly everything that happons ~ I am 
confident the King" s answer will not b e contrary to O\Xlr inter es ts, but, 
I will hold my p oace now. Everything vrill be kno'l'm after the grea t as s enbly 
has been h el d . 
18th 
- Honour continuos t o bG done to me on a ll sides. The Elminas, on the 
other hand , have not yet spoken t o the King , nor have they even 1!D0Jm s em by 
him. Their , case ydll be publicly s t a t ed tomorrow. I krnow, however, t hat 
their lies cannot daOD-be us . TO!aCU'rcm I will know' Yfhe ther my pr esence here 
o has been advantageous t o my master or not. All will be in the op en soon~ 
!fly reward, hOTIever, Viill have t o be e speci a l ly great, or e l s e I am not t he 
o man t o b e entrusted 'ilith s uch large aff a irs of stat e . It I am. not abl e 
t o Cr01'ffi my l abours \7ith suc cess, I will hand eveT,Ything over t o t hose 
the Government thinks Dor e capable. of pl eadinG its cause li1 impor~~nt palaver s 
like t hi s . I am convince l. that in thi s pr esent mat ter my life is a t stake . The 
curse of the Elminas and of t he:ir ch ief, Jen l!f:h.aser, has nOTI been lai d on 
~. The end of i t a l l Vlill lJe ny death. I 8m a young man , only j us t arrived 
i n the country.73 Mr. Jan NieseF ' s tr i cks are notor ious , yet I am cer t a in 
t hat all I say can be subs t antiat ed. I an being very careful not to say 
anything about him t hat I cannot . pr ove , f or I know him vloll . 74 
o 72. A r ough par aphras.e. only. Text here is illegible in places. • 
7.3. Pa s, in h et l ancl r; ekomen. This seems an 0 ('-<1 phras e to use if Huyde copor 
was a mulat t o . Its sense may be tha~ Huydecoper t hinks of himself 
a s yo1.ll1g." an a. ' onl y just abr oad i n the lo.ncl~ f 
74. Obscure her e , bu t t he sense is ribht , I th~. 
,- , .' 
J:.2th JUJ;y 1816. , " " 
The envoys Mve still. not seen the King, ' e\ten for the' plr pose of greetinG 
him. They sent a message of felicitatiox} to Be on behalf .of the Chief anCl 
Unde~chief75 of Elmina, and in.form me ' that they have as yet neither bGen 
seen by nor spoken to ,the' King. ;:'11'o;t, this I'Gason they do not dD,re to Greet 
me in person. As soon as the formalities aI'e complete, they say, they will 
come to, see 6e. 
~e Iilen who bro\lghtthis message ex~cted. no word froLl me. I ansfTcred 
all theytlaid. with' ame,.,ebow. ', '!aley aFE) muoh downeast to see me here, for 
they reaslize tha.t,ifIW6~ not present,fhey coula. blacken the Genera l's 
character much Dore ea~ily. J 
.' 
20th. ' " 
~- Today the King sent for ne to listen to the messaGes brought :by the 
Elminas. I have alr,e,C\dy referTeo. frequently to,these, but not :n full 
detail, because l ald not wish to involve myself in their lies. The Kine 
has fiDally let them have their say, however, and the fol+owing are the 
" untruths they spOke,: 
~e.tthe Gen\;)~al"frolJthe time of his ,..rrival ih the country, has had 
nothing to do with, the peopie ofEJ.rnirui.\.end has not paid theI;l thea sub:,?is-
tence money(that tlieGeneral 'has drivel all the white boys7b, CDut of -Ghe 
fort" and the three Government ' ,boys also; that he has' taken away all the 
guns 'from the fort and frOB t ' ~' batteries, and has sent most of them to 
Europe, his object being to strip Elmina ,of its defences Q-nd leave it an 
easy prey to its enemie.s; that the Genera l bl.. interdic:i;i!d all tl~a.de with, 
the ElDinas, but not with the Wassaws; that the General "iS in (llliance 
with the Commanys and will not let the Eloin?-s rna.1(& war on them; that, hC7ievc,: 
if they pr~sist; in this war; he will settle the COIJIDany palaver with 2,000 .: 
ounces of gold anG. vd.ll then teach Elmina Town and its inhabitants such a ' 
lesson with his guns that not a stone in Elnrlna will r eoain standingJ .. 
That the KinG of l\..shanti must ther~oreh~lp Elminato brine about the 
total destruction of OOIlUllq.ny' imd, th,is done; mus;!; turn agai!ls't 'ElInina C1l1''. , 
if the General resis-ts, muSt cause him to be murdaj:'ed. as T.aS done in the , 
case ' o'f Pr,~sident Hoogenhooro;. that, if ' the King of Ashanti \Yi.ll riot, supply 
men to 'figh;t on the side a£. ~ i:>.gainst OOI:lIilc1l1Y, the Elninas will dest-~c~· ," 
their , homes, floe to Kumasi andliv e aElOng' the As4antis; ;', , 
That the Genera:l:-,:i.s the greatest enemy theAshantishave,'anil. has 
been sent from Europe -to :fincl'<out just how powerful their Xing is; that it' 
is always beinG said ill E1,lropethat the Ashanti King kills men everydJiy and <, 
is a very baCl man; that the Gen-erq.l has therefore to try to gain adinit'tanc0 
to , the King's domains and, i:t' sucoessful,. will tiGht Ashanti, but if, on 
the other hand, the Ashantis appenr too strong, the General is ,to shoot 
Kl.I:nh. to pieces and. return to Europe; that the General fS sole object in 
sending me to Kuoasi is to spy on the King and assess his strength; that 
the General is in alliance with the Cabo ,Gom>os,. the CooonnY' .ina ,~e -:r~", ~,';iJ..'I ~ 
and hal') built a pov;erful fortress at Cor,1IJlEl..ny;,the;t, on cry return, vlith the 
desired. inforr:Jation, theGene~, wJ..:Ll, hegin to set 'his various pla:ns in 
motion (all this was claimed by the envoys a s emanating'fromthe~G€ne:;,al's 
own lips, having been ovorhenrd., so they .said,. hy. ene >ef' thB boys' who s;::~' -
the I1hi te non in' the fort ); ( ' \ 
Tha~(~ny absence) the General had written to Cabo Corso to ask for 
warshipS from England; when EJ..rnina had been destroyed, these warshipnvould 
be used to take off his oen and t,Utheir GOOds. 
~::w..t- the General had sent an exploring party up the River Ancober to 
sees 116w fror it was navigable by s hips sent' to engase the Asht".ntis in battle; 
that it was the General's, purpose, as soon I).S opportunity off ered, to see 
whether Dinkira, one of the chl~ provinces of the AshEntis, could not be 
75; Lii t., ond.2!7..koni.tl,g. 
76. Lit., de Blanken jon£;;gn,s' PreSUllk'1.bly this means 'mulatto youths. t 
captured" for, if i t could, then its possession would IIU1ke an as sault on 
the Ashanti c ' pita:). easier to l aunch; it-wa s fortu=te indo ed, that Dinldra 
could not be reached fro ' the SGa ; . .n evis of thls, scheme of the General's 
had po on received a t Elo.ino. before the General h(1e1 even arrived on the 
Cons1;;; 
• And, further, to prbve that the inforIJi1tion they possessed about the; 
General's intGntio~ toware1s the Ashcmti KinG was true, the Elo.ina envoys 
stated: 
That the Gener al had s eizod on e of the King's men and, placing him 
in the open space outside tho fort,. ,had had him beaten until he nearly 
died -- and this, despite the f act that the Q,fm 'fTaS Guilty of no offencG; 
that, on an eiwlier occasion, when ' tvl'O of tho King's criers came into the 
fort to ask the Gerreral sonethins, he had sai<l: "'I do not want to have 
• anything to do with Ashnuti," and inmec'ciately attncked them o.nd drove them from the fort; 
• That, Qua:mena Bietoe Aqua having thus bGen beaten, the Elm:i.n:". terregentes VlGnt to se o the General to pacify him and vmrn. him that the 
man belonged to the Ashdlti royal family; put tha t the Genera l had sent 
them away without an answer; an d that, f,urther, when it wa s a}par ent that 
t he Ashanti s ol di ers in the area were so angry that they vVGre liable to 
at 'cack the f ort and kill the General, Mr. Nieser an('. the teEIe.Lismt~.-L 
determinec1. to .mrd off trouble, ha d pa cifie::' the ir:jurccl rilc'Cl'l with presents; 
Thr,t President HooGenbocrI h l'"c1. been LlUrdereo. be ca usc, durinG the recont 
"lar, he a t tempted to hane:' over t o the FJ'mtis some Ashantis who r!er e 
• shelterinG a t Elmina ; tha t t here ha d b ~en =ny palavers with Prosic.ent Hoogenboom about such me/cters; t ha t an ar'c'..i tional ca us e of h.is c'.eath hCtQ 
boen his habit of shooting of f his guns a t El."1im, ~own and throatening to 
burn it to ashes; it was be ca us e of t he murder of Prosident HooGonboora 
tha t t he Gene:..-al r efuse ei. to Day sUbsitence a llowance to tho El.T:linas and 
hims eli' planned to burn the to~m; 
Tha t t he General had s ent me to Kur::asi without t elling the elo.ers 
of Elmina and, finally, t ha;.t they now de clar e cl. t hat they spoke on boho.lf 
of t he united p e ople of Elmina in sgying tho.. t ev~rything I had told the 
King since my arriva l wns uttor l y fals e o..nd their a dvice t o the King was 
t o dis t:;r a ce me !m c1 never allovi' rle to roturn to ElDina; 
1 I c..i c. as much a s I coule. to r ebut these stat ements but , in va in. • 
All pre s~nt had a lready been brided and there was nothing I could say. 
The 'K:i.ng , however, h9_cl everyone wi~~v[· .to one side , nnel thon a ske d mo 
stra i ght out if I hc.(l cOrle t o Kumasi t o threat en him. To t his I 
• ansYfOr ed r oundly: "I am a white rJelD . Everything rly 'ik1.stor ha s sCit clown in my instructions I have c'le c,l ared to you. I f you (l.c not believe De, I 
11m willing (thoUGh I hacl never done t he like b.8for e ) t o drink a nd swear an 
• oath tha t 'all I have s a i d in my nas t er1s JOOme i s ' tho trut h . I da r e swear mor eover ' , that it is the Elm:i.n:as thems,e ive s who ha ve t ci ld Your Ma j esty 
t he gr ec.test lios conceivable.." 
The lunG r eplied thr'. t I vras appar~ntly not coepl etelv in my o..'Cstor's 
confide'nco , becaus e the Genor al had f p.iled t o infor m t he t~J!'n"!A s 
of my proj e ctecl miss i on an e'. this he.d irri t['.tod t hera. "Ho>lever, It he s9.i d , 
DI will settl e this troubl e bet w0en you ancl t he E:ln:i..IID.s 0.nd you cc,n depart 
together • 
• I quicl~ ans"ored that I ho..d sent by my master t o achi eve results ~ 
not t o pale'wor. The Elminas must stc.nd f irmly by their accuse.tions, 
• be c0.us e on my r eturn I woul d r Ol,ort p..;rso:,o..lly t o the Gener <::.l ancl l'Joule'. 
t ell him wor d for wor d. wh['.t hael. lLon sai d . Not hin::, coul d bc sottl ed until 
then. I could not undertake any paI n ver Iii thout oy .. rlns ter I s 
instructions , nor sc.y anyt hine,; nt ['.11 on my own responsibility . All I Has 
ooncernect Yl i th nm, vms to hc.ve the King bec..f witness to the o. cousu tiolJS 
and threats th~t ~ere being mo.de end to defend my ~ste~' o.gcinst the oharges 
being held o.go.inst him. 
The EJ..mina.s questioned why I was defending .the ·Genelo;l in this vmy. 
Tgey olaimed tha t I \,ould not be doing it 'if I \Ter e not in his s ervioa, o 
and o.sserted tho.t it vlQ. s the ~vhite raen who hc'1.d taught me ray tra de o.nd 
quiokened my \7i ts. r would nove;t' be hungry as long as I took the white 
men 1 s part. I \'7 ould a l wo.ys be on their · side ano. "muld never forseke my :, " 
benefaotors: e. s long a s I liv ed~ . The EJ.rniik"'.ssaid., too, thu t they et)uld 
not discuss seorets in my presenoe, be cause it has long boen knovlflto whose 
ears suoh oonfidential no.tters would be r e counted the moment I hed the 
opportunity of doing so. And then they stood like du.rnbmen, sta ring a t me 
. in silenoG.~ . 
J[ told the King tha t, Ylhen r · r eturne o_ to Elraina, he raust send. sorae 0 
of his men ,,'lith ·i:ne to :'l ee if these envoys vlOuld eraploy the s a me ,lOrds before 
the Genero.l a s they had s o fr eely used in the pres ence of. the King. His 
Ma jesty ~'i ould t 'Jen be r.ble to judge for himself wher e tnB truth lzy. I 0 
would be willing to. S'V/13ar thu t Ifhen the time cNne , not one of these Elmino.8 
would dare to f a ce t he Gener iil. I a s sured the King that . I \7ould neither 
oonceal nor f 6..il to mention everything tha t had t c.ken plaoe during ·tha · 
present pa l aver'. 
The King gave instruotions that no on e vias to say·o. word about any 
shame tlla t had b een put upon .rae , a nd t hc"it. i f c nyone ga ve it out tha t I was 
a liar he would be put to dea th. 
He also s a id that I \vOllld be o.llOiiied to dri nk the purifioa tion oath 
tha t I longed for. 
21st. 
-The Eluinas ar e be ing abused en a ll s ides becaus e of their attempt 
to br ing ne into dis f ['. vour iiith t he King a nd erabroil him n i th t l1e Genero.l. 
Neverthele s s I a[')' forced to r ecord t ha t nost Ashantis ha t e an d curse 
the Gener o.l, because of his action in ordering Quamena Boetu AqUe"- to be. 
bent en and r efus ing t o grant his reques~ 
22nd. 
~oday the lDnina s re~eived t heir pr es ents from the King. The s e were 
e. oow, 2 l.bs 10 ~deoiphero.bl.s7, 40 bunches of' ik"..rm=.s a nd 30 yam.s.. The:re 
are 2V of these Elmin:a s in all. 
I learnt tod..1.Y tho.t the r e quisitions sent from TjetSe'7erry Viilage 
ha ve 19n9 s~ce been fill ed by t he Generc:.i'. • . l asked for tvro ankers of drink 
and 2 l engths: of' E.9:n~oe d. They ho.ve not yet ,-,_rrived hm7ever, a nd I he.ve o 
s ent 2 raell to f etch them. I did t his with the King I s knowl edge. Mn.intenancs_ 
for thes e men,:n. £i:Wleciphero.bli!. o 
23rd. . 
The Elraina s ho.ve killed their ouW and helVe s ent me L . pieoe r4 it. 
This ;J;" .o.coepted but gave to my men. 
Nothing :t o do, except live in nemories until we he.ve t he good fortune 
to be in our ovm country o.ga in c.nd ca n t a lk once [lore with our friends. 
26th July. o 
Fro[')' t he 24th to the 26th I vis ited t he King o.go.in o.nd o.go.in hoping 
to be a llovred t o axink my unt h and purify my rae-s tell' of t he lies the Elraina s 
have put ·him. o The King to~d me I could do s o tomorroV'r and I rrent hone 
contentea_ with this. . ' 
27th 
r learn todnyihat Mr . Simons ha s bven sent her e .by the Gener o.l with 
-37-
tho King 's stool.T7 He is expectoG. r;ithin <'-: few Ck'1.ys. 
• ~ On the 28th I hO<1.rd that the Elci~as had tried several tioes to have 
nn nudience with the King , but in ve.in. The King \1ill not s ee the6~: . 
ToCk".y I joined f orees with the Elr.inas in clepL'.n cU.J.lg en audience. 
I vms granted ono, but 'they 170re not accorded the . privilege. 
The EL:l:lrk"'s e.r e very Hl" , em:_ ere sufferinG t;ro..'1,tly fron hunger. 
Everyone despises then, the KinG not least. He -continually gives out that 
he recognizes no ruler in ElDin.:'. but the one VTllo supplie s hib 'i!ith his 
pOHo_er, guns, drink, etc. The ,,{hi te Den are his =st ers., he se.ys, r.nCl. he 
• nlw.:'.ys obeys then. He tc.lks 0.11 tho tiDe in this way t o his generals, end 
they po-ss his r OI:'_t'_rks on t o ['.0 <1.fterwe.rds. 
.' ~. . . . 
• The boys whon I sent to Donpo Asie2_rrived on the 22nd inste_:r..t, but 
without- bringing back any letters or other 500<1$ . \7hen he hoard about 
this" .the Kine; bo cnne very r.nGI'Y. He blanes Ap4'1."-nd. Barriekio. He has 
~ont the sane boys streight beck ·r.::;nin t o tol l the two generals tbc_t, ll' 
they do not wcmt to brinG cisGrGce on theDselves, they DUSt form:_rd 
iuoecl:L.,,-toly evel"ything the Genero.l hE'-S sont, including letters e.nd without 
or.'itting o.ny i teD l:7hGtever. If they do not, they will soon 'see i1hat will 
befe_ll them. The KinG VlP_S so Em ery th8.t he ordered: t;,o c en ( who had done 
hio no ham) to be butchered· in the presence of 0.11 his genere_ls. .After 
this he cl'.J.Ded clo-,m 0. little,. 
• My boya havo thus bGon sGnt bc.ck for the oissing goods. For ny pnrt 
I bope they \7i U r eturn with everything , for we c.r e practica.lly out vf 
• cloth and c1rin1c, "-nd hn.vo no thins to USG .:\s presents to Give l:lenbGrs of' 
the King IS fl'-oily n.nc:' e ther persons who ca ll. 
30th • . / 
I triee. C.U'-l!l -CO C'_D_Y to persuc.de the Kine; t o let no drink ny oath in 
or dGr t o pr ove to c_ll pr esent th,_t ovor ything I ho.ve s ,?i cL t o hin in r:ry 
res tel:' Is =0 i s true; . If he v'Ji11 not c_lloH this, I -iJi ll not be" c. ble to 
tGll hiD tho contents OI~ ' lotter s sGnt hore ':fron now on . from El ,in::_ , for 
it ,Till bG iDposs.i o l o f or hiD tq clisthl.:,"Uish truth fro;:: falsehood in QY '; 
rGci tl',l. Seeing ny illLh.ap iness the Kine; s .:.i d, "Tonorrow without f 8.il I 
vrill l e t you hc.ve your wish.u I ther0fore "Tont hODo saC:i.s:ri.wl. 
jl.st. 
Todo.y very er,rly -r uc. i teel. ,: n the IG.nS in order to purify ny mster I s 
• 11<"..08 o.nd was 0. t l o.s t :-,Jor r.i tt\., (1_ to do so . 
The KinG s ont for thG Elnino.s, nnel ',7hGn they ho.(l t c_ken their seo,ts 
he sa i o_ to ne , "'Clh..,,-t have y ou toclny,?1l 
I stood up r.n c". told hiD th."_t r fL.'\d CODe -co drink the ol.'_th o.nd prove 
thereby t hat Gvorythin£; I hUt s ,".i L in the IU'Lle of c:y res ter, GeneraJ, Daendels, 
was the o.bsolute truth, tfL.,,-t L:y nc'1.ster h'-Jo d received fron t he Kine of Hollc.nd 
the words which r hi'..cl rec.d out fron lII'S instruction., o..nd tlh,,-t everything 
the ElrninD-s hc.d s ni d thrOUGh out t his ";f f''.ir "euld be .Gs ix.'1.blished by nec.ns 
of ny oo.th o. s no thinG ;mt inf',:cc;us Hos ,,,-nd fc.lsehoods.. i1i th this the 
KinG nnd his coUhcillors VlCre ,1ell plonsed, ~,ncl shouteel , liThe .70rds of 
• whi t o Den a.ru ~, lll8.Ys true. If' .thoy; \'~re no-t, t ;,is Lun Hould no t c.sk so 
frequently to drink the o".th." 
• < Tho Eloin8.s no'.:! -becc.n t o l ook very oiserC'-ble GnL c'b_rocl not r n.ise their 
eyes fron th" (7ound. They w"r" c.i;. l l'. s t convincecl t hc.t their e::'ecr c.bl e 
plan to brinG s hnne upon Genoro.l Dn.endols :cnu upon thG oester in Hollc.hd 
who had s.ent hiD t o Af'rica ha c!, f ['.ilcd. 
77; Lit., stoel..Probr_bly 'chr.ir' is [lenni; sinCL: t he Dutch would harely 
bo sendins ~ stool to the ;~nc of Ashnnti. 
-38-
The King then asked the Elcinas, "I~.t, then ha ve you people to say? 0 
The' white IIl£..n nsks tha t he L'.ay drink the ' 01'. th to prove tho. t c..ll he tk'1.S 
s2..id on behalf of his DO-ster is absolute truth o.nd to prove a lso th£'. t all 
your words are infa1I\ous; lies ,fuJ.:;.. of villainy [\nd inciteBent ,am'. fit to e 
be accursed "nd cortdeoned by all honest tlen. ',''hat do 'you so.yj then? Defend 
yourselves. Shall ho (lrink the oc. th or not'l , The white lik"'..l1 says you£'.re 
liars. i1h.c'1.t sc..y you?" • ' 
Then Poekoe stood up, ['.nel sai d to the King, 'u-,7e have 'nothinG against 
the whito =n's drinking the oa th," 1111(1 then, quivering with enotion, 
"1he elders of Elminn ha ve s ent t hi s embassy t o us, but its n embers h2..ve 
given no sibTI , nor have thoy spoken £'.ny ,.'Oree to shoH 'whether Wtk".t they 
sey i s the t-.cuth or not,. Let the white =n defend his mo.ster~ 
() 
At if;his everyone burst· out l a u:::.;hinG. The Elr:d.nas Hor e no longer showing 
the couraGe they hael exhibited on their arrival. They h1'.d thouGht to brinG 
[1 cho.rge [1sainst ne, but it vms clec.r t o a ll ;'Jresent that"I was'a better 0 
advoca te then they. Trore Her o three AshC:IDtis - stancling with tho three EJ..i::Jine. 
envoys:, thus, six in a ll, six' 6.dvoce tes ,,-gainst no o.lone. Yot I was the only 
one."that had ilil.re cl to spoak in the a ssembly nnd he..nd proved Bys 8lf stronger 
thi:-.i:i theD o.ll. The King 's 17or ('.s had. b e- en somewhe. t' harshly spoken, !'-Pd 
the EJninns e.nd their' friends were so ' shnken 2-m'c f earful t ht':i; they ' could 
f inel little t o s ay. Yet had I ! had no ' powerful a llies on my side, I 'itould 
c~rt,,-in1y have lost tho p~":.ver, o.nd for t his r enson. The Elc.inas hed 
already brj bed the throe ' Ashantis v:ho stooel i7i th them, ant. these men 'Nere 
r eaely t o l e.y into me. 78 , But , the Good God was -,-i t h De, e'.nd [mel forewerne cl 
the King of the EIDinC'.S I phn. Goa: kept J,ile; "ho ha Voo so oftencQPDDii:t-ed 
myself to Hi s protect ion, sa f e nnel unharmed. 
The D.cn Adoesaij vms als 0 of grec. t service t o tle . There '18.S rlothiEg .. 
that ,I?a i d tha t he -did not iDno(~c.tely and eccure t e ly convey, to the EiEg. 
,\Then there:rore my wordS w,ere coDpo.r ed to those of the Elrnihe'.s, nine were 
e.l ways f ounel t o be, true. Everytioe I touched on: this cr th.~.t ,iron E; clone 
t o De or t o my master, he repor ted whc1,t I had s :'1.i el t o the King , ~nel by 
Deal!!!S of his inf'luence thee Kine v7e'.S won over t o my s ide. ' 
The King was now convinced tha t lies had indcc(l_ been spoken.. 'He 
thorefo!Y') h,std the oc.th br oubht ill <'- copper bo.s in. Once more he askeel the 
E:h'1inas if they had ;:;nything f.tn-ther to sny aGeinsit; De which could b e washed 
dtl.,y by- the ¢\i':i.nkiilg of t h i s oc..th. They, however,. r eoained siient. 
Address:jng mYs ell' to the KinG, I swore my oath in these words: 
":r 'sv{e~i- the'.t the G-ene:t'e'.l, my master; sent ne t o you in till sir{cerity 0 
ana without any hiC',den pL":.llS in his mind; I swear the t e.ll the powder, shot 
an d fir ell.I'I:lS which Dy Llaster has bf'0ught with hin e.r e for no other purpose 
t he.n to be s ol.cc mpE'.rtia lly t o 0.11 oerchc.nts who cc.r e t o buy; I swenr the'. t c 
Dy I:k"..s t er is e CGst sincere fri end of the Ashentis end wi l l never show any 
erllJrl. ty tower ds their KinG; I SW9c":.r t hat t ho IGng of lio llend i s the ho st 
friend the KinG of As l1c":.nti has ('.nel "that ho sent the Gen er al t o lti'ricE', to 
bring pea ce and unity; I sweC'.r the t everything I have seid in his n&l.e is 
the a.bsolute truth; . 
I swear the. t ' the Genore.l and the King of IiOllancl intend to trade with 
a ll Den a s brothers, without cho,Qsing one sido ' or the ot her or EJD.kinS wnr, 
e'.nd tha t trust Day a l wO-Ys be pluce cl in theDj 1 swea r th.:'1.t I was not sont 0 
here t o s,py on the King of Ashanti or to as se ss hi s oilitary ~ibht with 
a view later on to [:laking war on hi-. • • .79 
o 
78. Lit., 00 rllJ J.D , (le wnr t o lW1J2el!.! 
79. Short illeGiblo pc-ssaGe . 
-39-
... ~{ 
• I S\7011r' th['. i ,ovo'. ythint\ the Elninas have CODO her.e to t ell the King is untrue, nndCk"1Dl1f'.bly 'untrue, that everythin'g they se.y they have beem 
told to se,y by soceone. :01s8 1 C'.ncl j;h:j.s ,if one sin[;le ,word of all' -chat they 
• havo sl1id is true, this cy oo.th.wili su;rely 10.:11 De~tI 
Uhen I had spoken theso 'worClB, tho or. th 'Wo,s c.Clr,.:i.nis~ \3re<l, to De throe 
tiDes, .:1.nd I took it '-lith :tho' g r an. tost ,s .:: tisfa0tion~ TheL King miC_, his 
nobles a ll prc.isecl DO for this a ct, and congr c tulated De on ha ving won 
c~ contest o.gc.inst the Ele inE'.s, WhOD they now l ookod c.t out of tho cornors 
of their eyes. All the Ashllntis wero convincec'. of tho unshc.kea ble truth 
of Dy cuus,e . 
Evc:ryt'hinc wus now concl\lde el , r.no. tho KinG G.sked the EliJ.inas whether, 
in the cl;l,.n.nged circUDsto.nces, they Vioulct visit De froD tiDe t o tiDe. " • 
• They d:'.reel ncit s ay no, The KinG, then borc. tecl then , saying , "Do you m -t -
knOVI' t hat this mn is yQUJI." oaster? I 'do no t understand this m 'j;tcr E'.t c.il. 
You [lust r.t once vis_it your IJ.uster in or c\.0r to [;r oet hiD • . He is :Dy [caster, 
• too ,nnd- none of us ca n opp ose our '_"-'1.sters:." ,FreD this the EIDirlL'.S could 
s oo the.t the King we.s on oy sido , - a nd they replied, "Tooorrow W0 will call 
on our 10rcl. ,80 ani presont' our cocpliDentsto hiD. 
My s orvc.nt wr.s a lso obliged to CLrink the onth r.nel s-,:;or.r tha t he know , 
n othint; t o the Genere.l' s clotri IJ.ent, thd everythin g the EJninas ho.c1 s o..id 
a, ,n. inst the GBnorQ..l was untrue, :mel the.t, if he knew :;ucy bl1d thinGs I'..bou1>.- -: 
the GDnera l a.m1 cliel not revec.l theo , he -w~shecl the 00. th WQulc1 kill h:U1~ 
Rep ort on 1111 this s ent t oG'1.Y to Your Excellency•  
• 1st A~$t 1816. 
Tod..?y we h8oel- the plensure of., r. visit froo 0$ :;r ce. test enEmi es . 
They re~,rcttec underte.kinG their pr esent r i s,s i on cl eoply, r.nd ,";ssured De 
they h..::.(', ·not hinG D.J'.inst De personcn.lly ['.nel hud only been o.cting on t he orders 
of the ~~5entes. I pa.icl littlec.ttention ,t o whnt they sdel, o.n a. Elerely, 
note it for the r ecore:'. 
I t;o.ve' theo f our j nrs of" ;,:>0.10 wine, Vlhich they <lr~nk gr eeclily. . Under 
• the influel'.UCo of the "'line, their Di s er i es c".ne pourins out", am1 they oore 
or l ess be r~cecl. Dy pe.rdon for the l i es t hey ho.cl t ol d . I Ims not :ibpres sed, 
c.no. Vlill ,<[hen occe.sion offers n l'..ko theD f 001 the ir ni sc.ri es oore sorely 
still. 
2nd AUGust 1816. 
I he.ve ('lono a s couch a s I cnn t o finel out whe thor or not it i s Mr . 
Nie-sor \7h:o hus bo e:n ncLvisinG t ho terr05.o!1.tes in this =tter of 'che o i s s_i on 
• , sont t o', Kuoc.s i rlith the ob j ect of oncoopo.ssinG oy denth. To ny n.nnoycmct), hOllever, I h2.ve di scovoro ,l_ no thin.:, yet. Secre tly I 0.[1 
c OL<;;inced th.n.t N'tr . Ni e sor h:'..13 Guicleo. the o.ff o.ir fr '~o tho ste.rt:. ' TOIJW'TOVl 
or tho cl.".y ,'1.fter I .,ill brine; ovor cn c of t he y c·un,:; Don be l onGinG to tho 
o i ss i on ,".n el. " i ll question h i.'J r.s c10sc. ly as pos s i bl e • 
.3r l"' . 
Nothinc k.p ~noc1 . 
~ 
\!i th the Gro ntest eUff iculty.in the \70rlc1. I ; .:mo.God t o porslU'.de one 
of tho younG Den to v i sit no 80 th".t I coul cl ~~inC,- out 17ho.t he knen 
• of Mr. Niosor anc'. tho circUDst '.nce s surrounc1inc; tho ook.ssy fron the 
Eloinc.s . I w;s f ortune. te onoue;h t o C_iscover the.t N.r . Nioiler i s inc.ood , 
• • c.t the bottoo _of ,o vcrything 
Tho eobo.ssy cli c'. hot expect t o find DO here . I ts oenbers bolieved 
tho.t I vmuld o.lrc~.cly ho.vo l eft flor i\xio by tho tiDe they ~.rrived . They 
r eo.l i ZG nOli tho. t they "iur e .ill-.::,ll.visocl t o ,".isclose the ob jects of their 
ois s i on whilo t l1.ey wer e sti l l o.t the Cr.rro . Their intentions c,n.~.lc t o the 
eeu' of the 16.nt; .o.n cl the_no' j;1Lq,y ho.,'- no ch~ico bu t t o stick to who.t ·,they h'td 
-40-
alrcndy said, even though the s~~o thinGs hac now to be iopnrtcd to the King 
in ny preseI),ce. , Th?y coulu not "t thn t stn,;o chnnG6 thoir s tory. If t hey 
M el nny i d,q[i; t hnt I wns still " t Koermssie, thoy v!Qulct never hc.v6 t3.1ke el I'.bout 
the purpose of their ['~ssion while nt the Ca.np., 
Todny the Kine bc.s s ent nor e ;~;en t o Donpo Asic to inquire nfter the 
rossins cloth " nel. lctters " n C', tho 2 ankors of c1rink. 
,Wl~ 
NothinG hnppened. 
6th. 
This nft ernoon the Ki,:,g sUDDon eC', ne nn ll the ElDinns t o the pC11D.C~ , 
~.nc c.ske d ,us if we knew a.nythini; nbout tho Cobbinn Ess ervie palnver -
in pnrtiC1,i1D.r, hoY, ouch Gol d the Asha.ntis roel t nken fron hin. I 
nnswered th..'l. t I Imow nothint; of the Gold, but the. t on the Genoral t s orders 
I haIT hnnded oVer t he lea st 10 sle.ves t o Dj esie, Awnrrie end' Adoe. Sona 
of tho r ost of the story wrcs Imo\'m t o ne , but the ElDinc.s , wou1c!. be bet cClJ:" 
a cquc.inteel with tho f e.cts, s ince they hacl spent thtlee c1nys pnla.vering 
on tho XX'"tter with the s e s eJi'-snno Ashc.ntis. 
7th. 
One of tho Lshe.ntis i-7ho , in e.llic.nce with the Elr.1i.rle..s, triee1. to tre.duce 
the Genorr-l 1'..ncl brine evil upon DO , vms t oel.."y subjectocl t o e. br o£'. t indiGnity. 
Tho KinG hNl hin pl[',co c1. in tho stocks. 
The KinG i s very incensed £'.t.;rcinst Appi rc o.nd R<>..rri okie. He h1::.s sworn 
t o punish then, not onl y for sto('.linS the 2 ankers of drink e.nC, the 
.lli!:!l,,£&oed. but ['"ls o f or hol c1inG back tho l etters 1/ont b , tho Genore.1. Those 
lettors nay well hc.vo b""n t orn up or throvm r:.wny. Tho Genorc.1s know vurj 
well thu.t, no nnt ter how busy tho King r-nc. his cou.ncillors ho.vo boen , , 
with £'.ff nirs of st£'.te , tho lot 'c or s shoul d n ot he.vo beon del D.yed or dc stroyeel. 
The King refusod t o bo pl o.c<'- t ee i n this ne. t t el', :onel has v1i thc1r2"1r7n to his 
plc.ntc. tion. Ho will not lis ton t o f'.ny ontro£'.ti es on bohr"~ of thoso two n en. 
The c1rink £'.n ', the l ottors rove still not o.rrived. 
The I~C r oturnoe this oveninG_ 
~ 
TO,day &"rriGkie sent 0. t VJO- go.llon j nr r"nrl a p i oce of ~,,-scodeen81 
to tho King with tho r oquost th£'. t they bo Given to no . I woulet not, howevor, 
receive ~D. I co.n a. ccep t nothing until the l etters :'-r e £roctuceC4 
I sont wore'.. t o t h e Kin;.; tho.t ho Dust not t ~,ke i t £'.ni ss if r efusod Gift s 
in thi.s vmy. 
I under stnnd th~t 0. lone l otter nceonpnnied tho pr esents, nnd th..~t 
overyt hing h~el b0en c".ispo.tchect bofor o the nrny h£'. ,1. even s et out on i ts 
r oturn j ournoy t c her e . I (~O not know llho.t inportant instructions for c o 
c.nc1. liho. t infor n .".. tL)n for the Kine this l etter n:w cont£'.in. The Kine h£'.s sent 
a ness£'.Ge t o B{;rrieki e so.yinC thrct if ho s voks his own, clownfnll he " ill k eep 
t ho l et t er o.ncl <~.bide by t he consequences. 
!,9th 1.u,Sust. 1816. 
To<1'1Y the Kine s ont s till ;:oro boys t o Ap:k".. c,nel Bo.rriekie t o fotch o 
tho Gonor £'.l's l ettor s . All t ho <"r ny chiefs nr e Duch in ('.i sfr,vour beca.use 
of th0 .my in '.:hich, so the' soleli ors so.y , thoy hc.ve beon trr,c1.ing "t , ElI:'~o. . 
They Ik"-ve c1.isoboyocl tho orc1.er s of t ho Elnina. Gonornl; they havo sold stolon o 
prisonors t o tho Elr,:ina r.1or chtmts trw or throe tines over; r.me the gooels cp-
turod by theD thoy h..we kopt. f or t hens olves w:tthout senclinG 0. portion 
of then, 0.8 cus t on c.er:nn ds, t o tho I~b . 
81. Moo.ning Bnknovm. (Fourth ,~_ _n ', fifth l otter s I'.r o C.oubtful) ~ 
All the Ashantis have b8en ini'orninG on on8 another, so ~o KinG 
knows everythinG there is to be known. 
The combined army of Apia and Barriekie has Deen ordered to come here 
at once. It has alreacty beep, a~ Dompo Asie more tl1an >36 d.e.ys, though thill 
• place is only 12 hours away. Jou:u Kokroko I s army is the only one that is 
free from guilt. It is expected here on the 14th instant, ane1 the forces 
of Apia and Barriekie on -ehe 26:11h. Al:!anqua's will also be here soon.82 
llth. 
This evening the akra ano. other messenGers re t urned from Elmina with 
letters frOB the Genert:',l. I do not yet knovt.the 'contents of the letters. 
I have sought Em [mdience with the Kine severa l' tines, b'ut he is too busy 
Hith other natters, anct has told me to wait until they have been dealt with. -
Ke and his generals are Cciscussing tl;le \"lassaw palaver and have tine for 
• nothing else . He will ap')oint a day'soon 17hen the oontents of the letters can be macle knmm. 
• The originals of these letters, lLe.ted. 24th ~mcl 29th May 11316, I still 
have not seen. I cather they are t h e ones reta inec!. b;y Generals Apia [md 
Barriekie together ,_-i th the drink, 0te., and.' about which the Kine is so 
angry. Their contents are now presunably sonewhe,t out oi' date, because 
the a rrc.ies have t e,ken so long on their return journey; Nevertheless, when 
they come, I ,vil1 rea d then to the King e.nd note his answers:. 
I am puzzled that the Generai does not ap:Jear to have reoeived my 
letters dated 16th and, ultimo Jul~, and the oopy of Qy journal to 3rd July. 
I sent these with SOQe Llerohants: who Here takinG tusks to Elm:ina a1:ld aBked 
• me for a note of co' nencbtion to r-:w: p eo:p1e there, :I can guess what ha s happ ened , howover. The .Elninas he,ve prevailed upon Apia to prevent the 
.. transmssion of a ll lett ers to here fr on ElDina and from Elnina to here. , They have done t his by ola ining that the General is a bad 'n an. an d. is 
threa teninG the King . 
12th. 
-----O~ined no audienoo. 
I learn tha t the E1nina telT9£ r andes ana Mr. Nieser h E'-ve age.in sent', 
a plea to the !\ing urginG hin t o sUp:? lY, r.1en for an at tack on En81ish 
Connany.The KinG ha s no t replied. The 'n essa e e fron the Elninas was brouGht-
by the s anG Asha-ntis who oarried the GeneralIs ' letters • . 
13th. 
AGain I ooulc1 ob t a in no audienoe , t hough I tried severa l tines. I 
pant to infoJ"rl t he King how anGry the Gener al, ny nas t er, ,rill be to learn 
• tha t t he oontents of hi s l etter s ar e still unknorm t o His Ma jesty•  
All t he Genera l s ar Q ver y busy Hi t h pal avers. Api a ,o,nel Barriekie 
• are sa i d t o fear for their heads yeoaus o of the nuoer ous irregulexities they have comnitted. 
~ 
No audienco; 
General .10\1\7 Kokroko arr;ive (~ t oc1ay with hi s ar oy am~ \'Jas r e0ei ve d 
rdth Gr ea t oerooony . He has los t 15 Den el end . 
Today tie r eceived Dar e p r esents of Gol d t ha t He he,ve f or some tine 
• past. This i s good, f or tho treasury i s nea r l y eopty. Since oy SUp?~ of sheep r an out, I ha ve bo en f or ced t o gi ve oy Den 1 ~ndeoipherabl2f 
as t1c'1.intena nce money , an(l ha ve been able t o persuade theo t o a ooept- i1; 
• only ",ith ouoh troubl e • 
\ 
15th. 
ilt;n.in no audienco . 
The I<ime i s s till pal aver i nC ,vi t h his off ioer s . 
82. A snaIl, highly obs cure pa ssn :;e ot:l~tted her e . :):t conoerns t he paynent 
of oaintehrnoe [loney. 
--42-
·. 
18th. 
FrOD the 1 6th until today I hc.ve tried by n11 poss i ble ne1J.ns t o gain 
access to the King, but in va in. The lUnG sends to tell ne tha t he has 
no time t o spare, but tha t I Dust not. take this ami ss. The l etters 
will be attendecf to in due .course· ancl. he will: Give DC a very f 1J.vourable 
answer. 
19th • . 
I was visited. to cl.ay by the KinG of ilianpon, bu nane Attokra, end' 
by (j-enera l J ouw Kokroko. To..;rovide for then I bouGht 2 beerGlasses full 
of rum for 2 ~deoipherabl~ of sold. 
20th. 
----Xt the lUne 's r equest I l1cceptec!. to-day a }-G1J.11on anJ<:er and 1 piece 
of long ~e&ged froD Genera l Apia. I a lso acreed to accept . the 2-gallan 
jar and 'the pi e ce of glas co~een . whi ch Barri ekie sent De s6~e time back. 
These two genere,ls have fe.lled: into deep disbr ace , partly because 
they di d mmy with the Genero,l' s 1.eHer, I but o.l so beco.us e they hn ve been 
selling atolen prisoners. ,., . 
The lUnG ' has alrel1dy confiscated Dore then t welve hundred ounces 
o~ gQl a. as ' well D..S [SQods o.ncl. s l c..ves froD vc..rious offi cers, . nne.. most of 
. the culprits have been fettere d o.nc't placed in 105.83 . 
No l1udience; Hia 1hjesty is still pal avering. 
21 st . 
~Generc.l Poekoe cnne to&~y to tell De in the ICinG' s naoe that I Dust o 
have patience until a ftefl His Ifhjesty hascel ebr2.ted his New Year. Then 
the letters will be open ed. The New Yec.r will be hele.. durinG the next 
four days, t~e 22nd, 2~rcl , 2L~ih ;me1 25 t h instant ;. 
I asked if it W1J.S not poss i bl e even for De to speak t o the IG.n8 , 
but received the [msYler, "Not possibl e .• lt 
22nd • 
-Todny various cr ee.ter o.nd lesser :Jd.m:g884 becan arrivine:; here to 
itB..ke part in the New ' Yel1r. Ther e are four horses in the town, one of 
which :i,s of nor n.-11 s i ze. Three of t heD bel ons to the lUng . 
The cane l which I nenti.oned SODe tir~e bnck died on the VrD.y here. 
The length of the u.ourney 2onc!. i t s nrduous no ~e were too ouch f'cr 
the beast . Had f ooel. and inexpert Co.r8 o. lso contributed to its dec>.th. 
23rd. 24th~nd ~h. () 
These vrere not 1ludience do.ys , C'.nc1 it 17o.S :j.npossible ·. even to re2.ch 
the open space in f r ont of t he pal~ce , More tha n a. hundred ctr.ld fifty 
thousa.ng..peopl e ['..re present . in the town, mo.ny from t he: su+rouneling di stricts, o 
Because of ' the Ne';l Ye~r fost iY-itie s I huve hf. c:'. the opportunity of 
seeinG the IG.ng t s Hives . They nunber three t houslmd, thr0e hundred and 
thirty-thr0e . All a r e very well turnoc' out, "earins costly cloths an c. 
so l d or mments. . 
On the 25th the lunG hol d Dilitury par,ndes and tested the 
cc>,pabili t i es of his officers. (> . . 
I h~ve spent a Great c1e.n .l of e"rink ancl clo.th bocuuse of these 
celebr~tions, nnd hD.ve hue" to Give to OJ' boys for New Year presents not es 0 
of Lk".nd payabl E) a t Emina for two f c.thons und for one f nthoD of cloth 
in each case. 
30th. 
FroD the 26th unti l tod(',y I h['..ve aske D. repeo.too~y for an audience 
~. Lit., in ci.ublxll e b l okkon e n boe i"j.ens ... ;es l 2...;en,J - '~.~loK. . 
8l:t-. 'Chiefs o.nc1 l)a.r~Dount chiefs,' but this SCODS o.nll.chronis tic. 
-43-
,'~-~ .....- ...... 
and d lr..st one is fixc el f6rtomorrow:, The ,contents ..of the letters will 
th,e n be rer..c1. .. ~: - . ", ."" 
~o AUl,,'Us,i. 
This rJorniilG t he Y.Jn C; sent far rJe. First, he referre (~ to the request 
th['.t the River' Bosunpr['. shoulc1 boo explored, statinG, thc..t this wc..s inpossible 
for. negroes since they h2.(' no b?c..ts. It could be better done by white . 
men. 
On the subject of ['. J:1.~etinG ''\hth the General,; His mjesty se.ic, t~~,t 
he h['.cl. r..lre2.dy explained th['.t he coulc:' not lcr..ve his. cr.pital 'in: orc1~r to 
stc-y in other plc-ces without ruin.int; then. He looked for\',ard , hali,ever, ' 
to a visit frorJ the Gener:-.l c.s soon '[>.s the highifl'.y85 .hed been completed. ' 
. -r" ' , 
• Concerninc the llc-interi[l;nce ,0,( pec-ce on the ,Const, the King. saicL, there 
i s no ,nore to be c.iscussecl . , His 'c.rmes ,have ['.lDost, returned home, anQ 
no 1hrth cr· ordersc[m or" nG 8J. be ai{rtin theQ. 
o ." , ,- . 
These c.re his ['.nswers to the duplic:,.te let'cer of 24th May 1816. 
'.; 
• His .:tnsyrer t o the letter dD.t ed 29th Mc.y i l?, : II<:l, yroulQ like to he.ve 
, then (cows, horses, etc.) ' ,I , . 
. -" ' -. " .; ," .' :"! -!. .~. [ , 
Ree;c.r din[; the letter of 24th Juiy Jthe Kini'; sc-icl, IIYlha t does the Geriera l ' 
wqnt me. to do now~ ffe wishes to 's,we nel1,l s lives, ,~.n c'. yet the We.ssaws 
will not visit him to seJtle the ,p,f11a ver. Th~ Generr..i tr..kes the position 
th..'1t c..ll negotiD.tions hr..ve novr bepn br oken off~, Nevertheless, I viill hD.ve 
the .hiChwc.y lX'.c.e, 1'.n c1 c.s ~uickly h:S:~~sible.it ' 
The King then ask~d ' ne, 'on n~ r e turn' to Elninc.., to thnnk the General 
for. scndinG hiD the iUrrOli'. He is very nn."dous tosGe , the ,~Vriting desk 
to >Thich the mirror billonGs 186 for h.e cannot uno:ers tc..nd' 'riha t this can 1:0 
:like • . :L s r.. id. it ;70u,l d be· sent t o hin., ., 
He said. tho.t :he Houl-d l<;t ne t D.ke ny dep~ture " ithin ~ few ckys. 
t:1.Prino ~temb0r _] .816. 
Toda y Generc.l Bc.rrielde WeS tried in public frci i:.1 8 0' clock in the 
nornint; until 5 c.t ni Ght <"1 rlt'. hns boen execrc:.teCL on, <"111 s ides . It is :fe[!.red 
that, even if' he tcoes not lose his he8.(1 , he will be c1eprived of 2.11 his 
possossions c.ncl ro_'ove (~ fr aIl his caboceer 1 s stool. Ther'U"\'iere six nen 
opposecl to h.in at t he hec.rinG' 
Othervlise no new.s., .. 
2nd S.3!..teober 
Toc1.~.y Generc. l Barriekie YT['.S c.e thronoc'. froo his sto·01.87 All his 
pos sessions hrevc been t ::'.kon ~.1':D.y :t:ron 'his, ::'.nd h e , who once hc-c1 30, non 
has only ono \7ife left. The I\in[; hns~lso confiscc.ted all Bo.noiekie's 
slnves. Lc.tor ".nether p-erson will be elected to s it on the s tool. 
Bc..rriekio's ankles hc.vo b00n shc..cklec. f or three days. He hc..s been put 
, in lOG and is still thero. 
!tiL. 
Fran the 3r d until tOGD.y I h~ve dono oy Lost to m.ko tho KinG or eer 
the cut t int.' of tho hichw1'.y t o be~in , alit his c.nS\7er nl >l"-Ys is I " Good, 
Good. ffo.ve p c. tience .. EverythinG will come ou t c.ll riGht." 
• .2..th. u I soucht 0n a udi en ce n.ncl, · on beine o.c'ni ttod 1;0' tho KiDe'S pr osonco, . 
re 'luostccl ' thnt ho 1I0uld bo so ~'o oQ g,s t o l1rivo tho hi 111."1.y throuGh to the 
85. Lit.~ de fjroot o ,'re,£,. (Fron norr on , trD.nslc..ted c.s Ihishrray l) 
86. Lit., do s£ie4 01 secrc t~ire. 
87. Lit., ontroond vc~ de stoel. ' IDestoolcd ' sounds c..nc.chroni stic. 
44-
C<>flSt 8:s " quicklY ,').8 posSible, because' the ~l'B.l .e"f7 ~ w~nte.d 
to pay his visit during this p~e8ent month. 
At thi s the King bec ~me a ~ittl e short with me . 'The ' r e~s ons; 
he sai d; why the, work h2d not be en stGrt'ed before now 1!Jer e to be 
found a t Elmina . Evc ~y r~port he "wqs r ec eiving froc ther e gave the 
Gener p.I a b o'(" char acter. He went 'On , "The c aus e of my p:re s ent 
a ttitude t o you is that me rchants r e turning fro m Elmina bring.' 
nothingbu"tbe.d news and , ill r epoI'ts of your mas t er, They a ll say 
tha t the . ,G~n eral is only waiti~g for your r eturn befbr e de stroying 
Elnina , TQ'i'lIl wi t h hi s gi.l-ns.'" ' , 
". . .• 
Against this att ack I def ended myself and my mast er as 'mueh 
a s a nan could. The King s a id a t l ast, "If you willtako the 
whole palC'.ver on yours elf and s ettle i t nt Elminn so tha t nC' 
pa l llv ::: rs wnttt ever ar e outstanding, I will a t onc e l e t yo u gO qnd . 
will b egin building the highwllY. But, as I underst and thematte rl 
your lH:lS~ (; r i s a v er y irascib l e man. and wiU certainly burn the 
town ." ' , , 
I s a id tha t obviously I dar ed not t 2.k e the who l e palaver on 
myself, but tha t, if he thought fit, he -should send orie of his 
own men to ac~ ompany . me to Elmina to settle it. The affair was 
not b et ween the General and the, Elminasalone, I said, l>e-eause the 
Ki ng elf Holand was a pa:rty to it and must be consul t ed. ' " 
Th~ King s eemed satisfied with this r eply, and s Rid i "Now t 
am convlnced tha t my people are a".~ing your mas t e r somewhat too 
v ehement l y. But l e t the General oome here, Then it will be 
s een what J?arm13,r of man h~ re 8.11y is:. I for my part will not 
say baq. t h l:qg? about hima . < . ' 
. ',""' .," 
And, fina lly, the King said, ."! ani f earful. l est the G€lneral 
will r ovenf6 hi mse l f because of a ll t he accusations that have 
been l e 'l7" elledagains t hi~ I know a lFthe Elm1ria s S3.y ;[s not true~ 
but I am worri ed ~bout the possibility tha t t he Genera l w111 take 
r evenge against t~~m." 
I s a id thLrt t he Gener al would b e abl e to deal satisfaetori.Iy 
with the El minas. 
For thr ee days now I hav e been trying hand to :p€rsuade the 
King to order the c onstruction of the hignwas~ All he says is, 
"It wi ll .l:J e done.. "; .  ' 
Thre e weeks ago he· s ent men to Tando to f Gtc.h the General·s 
l etter s ', but they lir e no t back yet. 
Nothing happened. 
l have no t spoken t o the King s inc e the 9 th instant. No 
news on ,the '19th, 11 th ,or today ' ;r , 
? 
15th August 1816. 
I hav e nOet ,' spol<::en: t q , t ;h o King f or tl;le pa~.t; threo. d::ws~ : ' 0, 
Yest erday 'evening :Iwris ' t o-ld th·}t the; Ki ng "~iOu id l e t ' ne go, 
, .. within ", f ew d0.Ys~ ;tpd~oul~  ,:\ l .so begin buil~i~g .. ~~e hi ghw:cy. 
He is now mo st distrustful of me b~,quse of the e"l)'l1 new's be ing o 
r ece ived from Elmina . 
" . .' ,'. . l, ' 
~ . ," , .... , 
16th August. . , 
This morning the King s ent fo r ne ~nd, with every sign ?f 
goodwill, snid th,~. t, sinc e the sm~l l r~ins we r e ~bout to begln, 
h e would ~llow me to l e~ ve v ery S00n :',nd would ',",, 1 80 'st ::crt 
constructing the highw~y. 
- 45 -
When the rains were over, the General would b e able to visit him. 
He is still puzzled about the d.e lay in the receipt of the 
letters sent by the General via Tando. It is said that Tando is 
to bring them hims e lf, and that the General told him to do this. 
The small rains have started. 
I impressed once again on the King the sincerity of the 
General's feelings towards him, but a ll he saic1 was, "Good, Good." 
17th. 
Today two slaves arrived, b earing the original letter signed 
by the General at Elmina .. on 24th May 1816. They belonged to 
General Barriekie, now dethroned. I read the contents of the 
letter to the King, who said, "You have told me a ll this before." 
I said, "That is so, but Your IVlajesty will now understand 
the General's purpos e all the better." . 
He laughed and ~aidthat he had understood perfectly well the 
first time a nd had already given his answer. "lfuite men, he 
said, were inde e d wise r than negroes. 
18th. 
No audience with the King today. 88 
Yest erday I saw a number of Malabar negro e s. They were 
dress ed like Turks. They live in various of the King' e t.ovms, 
and had walked 10 hours to g e t here. One of them told me that 
he knows Tomboektoe, Houssa and Kagna well, but that no Ashanti 
is familiar with thes e places because the King's highways do not 
run there. Cong is 60 to 80 hours distant from here, and _ 
belongs to the King. The King's domains stretch for about 400 
hours. His villages are at least t en thousand in number, mostly 
acquired by war . This total of villages does not include those 
belonging to the King on the Accra and Appolonia sides. 
All quiet today. Most of the Kings and caboceers have 
returned to their vil~ages. I now await the King 's order for 
the cutting of the highway. 
20th. 
Yesterday a man was abruptly behea ded in the street. The 
reason was that he had put dishonour on the King by neglect ing to 
run away as fast as he could when the King 's wives came upon the 
scene. For this he lost his h ead in a flash. 
vVhen thes e wom en are abroad in the streets , they are 
accompani ed by small boys with staffs. It is their staffs that 
indicate that the se women a r e royal wives . Even the King's 
brothers are obliged to get out of their way , or run the risk of 
losing their heads as the common p eople do. No caboceer , however 
important he may be, dares to remain on the street if he sees 
• any of thes e women apprcoching. 
• 21 st • The King has sent word that he wishes me to attend him 
tomorrow. He wants to t a lk about the highvmy . 
No othe r news. 
88. See fn. 56 above . The spelling is quite clear this time. 
- 46 -
22nd. 
Early today to the palace, but the King was unable to t a lk to 
me. All the nobility are discussing with him the matter of my 
departure . I was told to go home a nd await a furthe r summons. 
This I did. 
About 11 o'clock General Poeko e sent for me. Arriving a t the 
palac e I found a ll the royal linguists assembled. The y gave me 2 
ounces of gold as a present, and told me tha t it was the King's 
.will that I should not l eave yet, not in a ny event until the highway 
had been st~art ed . The King had sent me these t wo ounces, and 
now a ske d me to be patient and await the return of the messengers 
he had sent to Wassaw. He was hoping these messengers would find 
out what answer the Genera l had made to the Wassaws. If they 
returned with good news, he would let me go imme diat e l y. If the 
news was- bad, he would s end a ri a rmy to cut the high way through and 
bring the Wassaws to a sense of obedience. They were f a iling to 
carry out the orders of their mast er and his. In this way, the 
King said, h e was ensuring tha t the General's wishes would be 
brought to fruition by the quickest possible means. Moreover, 
the General's l etters had not yet arrived. All this made me more 
than ever incensed against the Caboc eer Ta ndo, who i s delaying 
these letters for such.a ~ong time. 
The King i s well di~os ed towards me again, a nd is convinc e d 
that the Dutch a r e his true friends. He is v ery anxious tha t I 
should le a ve so tha t I can bring the General b ack with me on my 
next visit. 
23rd. 
Today I hoped to send one of my boys to Elmina, but the King 
forb a de it. He distrusted the Wassaws, he said, for they h a d 
prevaricat e d in their dea lings with the General's messengers. 
I am not to send a ny lett ers to Elmina from now on. If a 
messenge r should be panyared by the Wass a ws, the King woul~ have 
to punish the m. The Gener a l would not want me b a ck until I h a d 
complet e d my mission, even if thi s me a nt delaying my departure 
longer than exp ected. 
No n ews is good n ews . 
24th. 
No news. Incessant rain. Heavy thunde r a ll day. 
During the l ast four days it h as r a i ned from morn i ng until 
night. The small r a ins are here and in t he b ush the y are worse 
than the main r a iny season. 
29th. 
Heavy r ain again today. I fe a r the rivers will become 
swol l en and my r e turn journey will : soon b e impossible. 
At midday Genera l Jouw Kokroko visited me and s aw me sitting 
miserably a t t a bl e , dining most humbly off a pla t e of choking 0 
malage t pat~. 8Y He was v ery sad to see me thus, a nd aske d if I 
s a t like this every day. Hearing that I did, he went home and 
sent me a sheep a nd 12 y a ms , so tha t I could have a better dinner 0 
tomorrow. I was much touched by his fri endship, which f a r 
surpasses that of othe r p ersons h ere. 
89. Lit., me t eenbord malaget v a n stikkende pate~ 
, .. ..... . --... ..... ....~ ......-~"'---~-----.,-~ , ..... --..-~.--...-- .~-.--~-
', .1..  : 
- 47 -
No news • 
• Have not seen the King for several days novlT . 
Primo October 1816. 
• 
Heavy rain. Did not l eave the house. 
2nd. 
Today is the Small Addaij, or Good Wednesday. I paid my 
respects tb the King but, of cQurse, c6uld discuss no busine~s 
with him. 
3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th. 
• No news. Heavy rain. Presents received from Boating ., 
King of Djuabin. See list • 
• 7th. 
I went to see the King to ask if the messengers were yet . 
back from Wassaw. He replied, "No. Be patient. They will come." 
8th. 
No news. Heavy rain and thunder. 
9th. 
I learn tha t for 20 days past the King ha s not been seen in 
• public. He is said to be busy with his fetish, engaged in the t a sk of preparing for war. Whether this is true or not I do not know. 
11th. 
He avy r a in all yesterday and today. No n ews. 
12th. 
I understand a ll tra d e routes h ave been closed, and that no 
merchants are allowed to go to El mina until aft er my departure 
thence. Whether this is the truth or not I do not know. 
Fine weather • 
• 
Nothing happened. 
• 
14th. October 1816. 
I hear a great f ete will b e h e ld h er e next Monday, but the 
occasion for it I do not yet know. 
Most of the merchants have now left. They have gone to 
• Ac c ra, Annamaboe ~nd Cape Coa st, well l aden with 50 l ar~e tus ks. 
They say the pric es set by the General at Elmina Rr e too high and 
• a l so tha t, now the Genera l is i n a lliance with ~r . Ni ! ~8 r, no Ashanti will trade at El mina any more . kr . Nieser has d ece i ved 
the General into se lling guns at 8 (indecipherabl e ) and i s being 
8.11owe d to adult er ate gunpowder a t discret i on . He i s destroying 
the trade of Elmina just as h e once di d th~t of Accra. It was 
b ecause of a ctions like these that N.r. Nieser was expe lled from 
Accra some time b a ck. 
- 48 
The merchants say, further , that if the General and Nlr . Nieser are 
one, the Genera l cannot be a friend of the Ashantis, for all 
nations know Mr. Nieser for the greatest scoundrel in the world. 
The merchants a lso say that Mr. Nieser adulterates barrels of 
powder openly and without shame. During their 1as t visit to Elrriina 
they saw him doing this. At Accra Mr. Nieser used to adulte~ate 
ankers of drink, and now he is no doubt doing the same thing at 
Elmina. 
Guns are obtainable at the Cape and other places for .4 or 5 
(indecipherable). It is entirely Mr. Nieser's fault that they 
are not obtainabl e at Elmina excep t at the high price of 8 
(indecipherable). 
I have learnt all this from General Quatje Coffie, who is well 
versed in commercial matters. He is strongly opposed to the 
constr<uc tion of a hi ghway to Elmina, and a ll becaus.e of IV,r. Nieser' s 
activities there, \ 
The great ~te I mentioned on the 14th instant is to t ake 
place on the 20th. Various Fant! env6ys are coming here to seek 
the King's pardon, submit themselves to him and serve him from 
now on. They have money with them with whiCh to buy from him a 
peace settlement. The latter must be arranged before any other 
business can be transacted. .. 
Heavy rain this evening . 
To the palace today, but did not see the King, He ' is busy 
wi th hi$ fetish. 
19 t h •.. 
No n ews yesterday and .today. I sought an audi ence, but 
could not obtain it. The King places a ll blame on Caboc e er Tando, 
and claims that it is he that is holding up my departure. 
His V;ajesty S82ms a shamed when he sees me. 
20th. 
Today is the Great Adaij, or Good Sunday. All the chiefs 
have come into the town to greet the Kin,,; . On these occasions no 
business may be done. The Fanti envoys arrive tomorrow. 
~1st. October 1816~ 
Today I once again urged the King to begin the construction 
of the highway, but he said that, since the Fanti envoys were ·· 
arriving this aftE;rnoon, I mUM wait until they had completed 
their palaver. I was disappointed, but had to agr ee to what he 
proposed. 
The Fantis have seen the King , but with what result I do not 
yet know. 
Today I requested yet· again that the highway should be begun, 
but the King said I must continue to be patient, and not make 
things too difficult fOr· him. All would be arranged soon. 
Heavy rain this evening. 
- 49 -
23rd. 
Today the King suggested th~t, as h e h ad no opportunity to 
begin the construction of the highway, I should be allowed to leave. 
La ter 'on, when he had more time , the highway would be started. lie 
rea lized that for me to spend so long here without being able to 
communicate with the Gen er a l might well be da ngerous for me. He 
went on, liThe General will be very pleased about ev erything in the 
end, and I prefer to have the ma tt er of the highway settled b efor e 
you leave . I h ave not yet been told what the Wassaws wish to do in 
c')nnection with this business, and a lso the l ett ers from the Genera l 
have not ye t b een sent on ~y Ta ndo. I am waiting for Tando. I do 
not vmnt you to go before air outst a nding palavers h ave been 
settled." ' 
24th • 
• Today I was told t he purpose of the Fanti mission. It is a s 
follows. The Fanti s wish to serve and obey the King of Ashanti 
and h ave brought him gold so that their a llegi ance may be made 
b inding. The King , however, has told them that he cannot accep t 
them as his subjects until he has consulted the representat i ve of 
Aduoko e. It is Aduokoe whom h e r ec ogniz es as chief of a ll the 
Fant i s. This representa tive must therefore be summoned and, if he 
approves, the King will acknowl edge that everything the Fantis say is 
the truth. If the Fantis wish to transfer their a lleg i ance , they 
must a l so s urrender to him the subsistence90 paid to h im by Cape . 
Cors and Anhamaboe. If they do not do this, he will s end hi s whole 
a rmy to compe l the submission of a ll Fantiland. The Fantis must 
a l so pledge them-selves never to commit hostilities against Elmina 
for, if they do, they ri sk a terrible fat e . ' . 
Heavy rain this evening. 
Requested the King to a llow me to l eave, fo r I f ear for the 
future. He replied, liDo not be afraid. The Gener a l sent you to 
me. You must therefore wait. The General wi ll be quite satisfied 
with you. II 
26th. 
Today I again r equested the Ki ng to begin the highwe.y so that 
I might l eave. But he said, IIBe easy in your mind. Your master 
is now sending another·envoy and so you wi ll be hearing good news 
soon. Do not try to a lter the course of events, for your cause is 
• good. Go hO.me now and await your fri enis. They wi ll r , '" here in a 
few days and you will be very happy. A white man ~nd a so ldi er 
are coming with Tando. 1I 
This news made my heart leap with joy. I wi ll soon he seeing 
my co lleagues here and will be ab l e to return home with them~ 
27th. 
During the past 5 days more than 200 men .with ivory a nd go~d 
have left for Elmina a lone. The King has issued strict orders 
that no one must write a ny l etters . I plan, however, to bribe one 
~f the soldiers to take a lett er for me to the Genera l. It may 
be, of cours e , th~ t none of the soldiers will t ake the r~sk. 
• To my great delight Genera l Po ekoe visited me this a ft ernoon . 
He told me in the King's name that I will be welcome at t he palace 
every day if I wish it, ano may come to t a lk about this and th". t 
with His Majesty . 
Lit., Kostge ld. Se e Douglas Coombs , 'The place of the 
"Certifica te of Apologie ll in Ghanaian history,' Trans . ~ 
Soc. Ghana ., III, 3 (Acbimota 19 58),180-1 for e-arscussion 
of the meanjng of Kostgeld , or ' SUbsist ence'. 
- 50 -
From this I deduce that I am in favou~ and the Elminas are not. 
Heavy r a in this evening. 
28th. 
I did not dare to visit His Majes ty today. He asked why and 
I sent word th~t I had a he adache, and begge~ him to excuse me. · 
He replied that I ought nevertheless to P'lt in a n appearance at 
the open place (in front of the palace?) 1~ order to See the oath 
being administ ered to the followers of Barriekie. I went ther:e 
but saw nothing.91 
The King is said to have reviewed 1420 men. 96 Abo Adie has 
been placed on Barriekie's stool, and Barriekie himself has been 
made the overseer of a small river. 
I had no conversation with His lViajesty today. Heavy rain 
this evening. 
31st October 1816. 
Attended His Majesty every day for the past three days. 
No news. 
Heavy thunder a nd rain. 
Primo November 1816. 
T09-ay 1 put. it to His ha jesty tha t he should begin the highway, 
but he se,id, "I must await the arrj,va l of the new envoy and hEar his 
news. I am told tha t the General at El mina has settled the 
Wassaw palaver. It is possibl e. 3.1so that the Genera l has heara 
about the lies told by the Elmi nas ano is sending someone to find 
out what the situation here r eally is." 
Fine weather. 
2nd. 
I sat awhile with the great King of the Ashantis today . I ' 
noted , but did not r emark on the f ac t, tha t His ~ajesty is full of 
contempt for someone. It is probably the Elminas. I have often 
been tol d thnt he says, "Whi t f' men speak the truth. Some other 
people, however, will be found out in the end and disgraced." 
With the King this morning. He gave me a bottl e of gin, but 
the Elmina s did not ge t a drop. ,He certainly seems to have something 
against them. They saluted him, but he'did not even look in their 
direction. 
The rumours say that the General's envoy, Pieter Woortman, is 
bringing good news with him, and tha t the King thinks better of 
the General than he cid. But a ll will be kno~n when Pieter arrives 
here. 
6th November 1816. 
No news for the past thre e days. The r a ins are slackening 
off and in a fe w days should be over. 
91. The exact meaning is obscure in these passages. 
- 51 ;.. 
7th. 
Today in my presence the King sent a boy to Tando, with this 
message: That, whether or not Tando came himself, he must at 
least let the. General's envoy through; that .Tando's actions are 
not pleasing to the court at Koemassiej and that he must remember 
-that he will have to render an account of these actions later, 
which account had better be satisfactory. 
I hqve sent a I'1e ssage myself to Pieter, to the effect that he 
should :pqt wait on Tandp but come straight. through with the King's 
messenge~.Pieter is only three days' distant from here; and Tando 
is stillst Dinkira. 
8th. 
Today another party of merchants left for the Coast, .some makip! 
for Elmina and th .:; rest for; Kap Kars and Ann.amaboe. They have 
been complaining very strongly about the changes in trading 
arrangements at Elmina and put the blame for the alterations on 
Mr. Nieser. 
Several large tusks have arrived here for the King. They are 
probably to be sent to the General. 
The King tells me that Pieter, and Tando also, will be here 
within a few days. Otherwise no news. , 
10th. 
No news. 
11th. 
His Ma jesty, coming to see me ' a t my house, told me that he is 
much distressed to find that the Elminas are such liars and are in 
a position to do so great a man as the General such harm. 
No news. The weather is excell ent now and the rains have 
stopped. 
13th. 
Today being Good Wednesday, or Small Aday, all the chiefs 
went to greet the King. I did likewise, but was not able to 
speak with him on business. 
14th November 1816. 
This afternoon Piet er Woortman arrived here at the capital 
and saluted me and my men. The King is busy making custom over 
one of his nephews , and told Pieter to l odge with his travelling 
companion, the cabocee r Tando. He has not yet asked him any 
questions. I have not . so far received any l etters nor even seen 
Pieter.92 I imagine both Pieter's and Tando 's statements wi ll 
ebe heard tomorrow. 
His Majesty came to my house and stayed talking for a full 
• hour. He told me that the Elminas were saying very bad. things 
~bout the General, the King of Holland and me, and asked if I 
could not settle their palaver with me before him. 
92. Perhaps the word ' a lone ' should be added here to make sense, 
though it is not in the text. 
- 52 -
I a~swered that this was for His Majesty himself to decide, but 
that I certainly could not do anything for the Elminas. They well 
deserved the punishments they would receive at the General's hands. 
The King replied tha'e .'£ ought to persuade th 2! :}eneral to 
forgive them. The General would be able to cor' Tol their future 
behaviour. He himself was convinced that they had wrongfully 
slandered the General. I said merely that it might well be that 
the Elminas ought to be punished a little more yet for their great 
indiscretions. At this His Ma jesty laughed aloud, 
When he left he g a ve me a sheep and my men 6 ~ of gold to 
buy tobacco with. 
Today Serjeant Woortman , Tando and 1 were with the King. I 
transl~ted the content~6f the l etters t~rhim very carefully, a nd 
h anded over the fin e suit of clothing sent by the General. His 
Majesty was delighted with his present, and said to me , with every 
sign of satisfaction, "I am much obliged to the General our master 
for these things." The l ett er addressed to His Majesty a lso gave 
. him much pleasure. 
He said, "Thes e are no doubt the clothes of the King our 
master, or h ? s the General had them made for me?" 
I said the Genera l had had them made especially for His 
Majesty before his departure from Europe. 
The King then asked where was the hat tha t went with the suit. 
I said I had brought him this a lready. He denied, however, that 
this was so, and said th,at·dater he must be supplied with the hat 
that belonged to the suit. And so I h ad to promise that the 
General would s2nd him a nother hat. 
His Nia j esty then said, "I am v e ry pleased the Genera l is 
coming here. I will be able to discuss everything with him 
personally. I wish him to know that I think highly of the Dutch 
and we lcome everything that they do to improve my country." 
I said th~t the General had given me 15 or 16 days to get 
back to Elmina. The King said that he could not let me go 
until after the Great Aday or Good Sunday which is du e to be held 
on 1st December next. 
The General is satisfied with the arr angements about the 
12 horses and 50 cows, bulls, etc. , but what wi ll be the price, 
the King wished to know, of the slaves? It had been understood 
thQt the General want ed 100 slaves. I replied that at Elmina 
, nowadays a slave f etched 1 (illegible) 8 ~ at the most, and for 
this reason there was no slave trade there a nymore. The King 
l a ughed and said nothing. 
I then asked His Majesty whether Serjeant Woortman might 
l eave tomorrow. But he replied, " Well, now. I will g ive you my 
answer in the morning." 
He went on, "Now everything is in order. I believe nOI;' that ., 
you have indeed told me what the General my master wished you to 
tell me. The Elminas nearly spoiled things for you. I expect you 
to discuss everything with" the General on your return a nd there wi ll~ 
be a strong bond between us for ever. " 
I said to His Majesty, "The General my master will put me, 
on my return, unde r the q()mmand of Adam." ':;13 
- 5~ -
The Ki:q.g said, that this was satisfactory t'o him, but that I 
must nevertheless give him my assurance that I would return. H~, 
.. the King, regarded me as his confidaat now. If ~he General came without me, it would be taken amiss • 
To this I r eplied that I was but an official and had no say 
• in such matters. If the General ordered me to, I would of course 
come, but more I could not promise . The King said that, in tha t 
ca s e , I must writ e ~oth~, Gener~l to make him promise to bring fue; 
which I said I would do.> ' 
1§!h. 
When I visited the King today I aSked him to allow Woortman 
to leave early tomorrow morning and to take wfth him ,His Majesty's 
answers concerning the Was saw and English Commany palavers and the 
• matter of 'the highway.. But he said that I must be patient. 
The King gave Woortman for his subsistence 2 t and 1~ yams • 
• 
17th., 
I was sick today and did not see the King. Wortman went to . 
the pa lac e but did not, however, speak with the King. His Majesty 
is making custom over one of his nephews and will be cond~cting 
little or no business during the next 3 or 4 days. 
,_  18th. To the King this morning and asked that Woortman might now 
be a llowed to fit His Ma jesty's trousers, viz; 1 pair of 
pant a loons and 2 pairs of under-drawers. The King kept us wait~ng 
f or at l east three hours before seeing us. The co a t does not 
fit him, but he tri ed on the shirt and waistcoat for a moment or 
t wo. He complained greatly about how hot they were , and quickly . 
took them off. 
He sa id, " \;Vhen the trouS 2r s a r e finish(~ d and handed OVGr to 
me by Woortman, I will say goo dbye t o him and he may l eav e about 
t he next Great Aday or Good Sunday." Aft er this Woortman and I 
went home . 
About 12 o'clock a t ni ght t he King sent for me and gave me 
the following i nforma tion: 
• 1st. Tha t sinc e Tando, contrar y to His Ma j esty's orders apd agains t His Ma j esty's wishes, made peace with the Was saws without 
s tipul ating any conditions, His Ma j esty has decided to r e j ect this 
• peace treat y ; he will, however, ab ide by the s ett l ement tha t hi p good fri end, General Dnendels, make s in hi s behalf; everything Will 
be f ina liz ed when t he s um of money ngr eed on is placed in his hapds 
and when he r ec eives a confirmatory l ett er fro m the Ga~eral; 94 , 
2nd. Tha t it is t he cus t om among the negro es that, when a , 
womnn commits adult ery and injur e s her husband ther eby , s eparate~ 
fr om him for a time and then wi s hes f or a r econcili a tion, she fir s t 
s onds a sheep, chickens , e t c . on before her, and th€.- l ater comes 
,-hers elf to s ettl e the r eal matt er at i ssue j Tando til his negotia -
ti ons with the Was s aws has not s t ipula t ed any of thes , t hings 'md 
.has thus not been able to collec t Bny damages f r om th p Nnssawsj 
94. An obscure pas s age . The trans l a t i on is by no me nns a 
liter a l ono , but the s ense is r i ght, I t hink. 
- 54 -
3rd. ~hat (illegibl e ) the Akra took to Elmin~ the l e tt er s 
conta ining the r eques t th~t t h9 Gener a l should s ettl e the 
W['.. SS [?,W pal av er 1 but T~ndo prevent8d the Wnss E'..ws from going ther e ; 
Tando c~uimed tha t he hims elf could s e t everything in order; the 
r esul t W:.:'c S t h'~. t t he W[', s s ,':"'.ws f :"',il e(l to ::ppe::cr be f or 2 the Gener nl 
and did not go to Great Comm'mi j ei ~her; To.ndo, \,vi th n vi ew t o 
filling hi s ovm pur s€" to ok t he whol e lJ3. tt er upon hims elf, ".nQ 
s~i d t h".t i t was t he King 's wish th , t he , Tando, should arr ~nge 
everything; he cl :'.i mec the '·V<:l.s s mvs did not W:'lnt : to go to El minG. ; 
he also t o l d t hem t h - t it vm s he [" l one who ooul cJ . s ett l e the' 
p~laver ; . onlt if they fo vnd he coul~ not do so war e they t o plnc e 
th~ ir c a se ' btfore th8 Gen er a l; the r esult of a ] . ~ this i s th~t 
nothing has b een ~chi eved . 
His ~a j es ty has therefor e the fo llowing ~roposal~ t o mnke 
to the 1Nass ['.ws: 
(The next paDe in the di nry is blank, exc ept f or the 
. words, "See under 6th Dec emb er 1816".) -
We we nt to fit the Ring 's trous er s for hi m t0 0.P.y , which 
plea s ed h i m v ery we ll. Be asked m~ ~to wri t G t o the Gener 2~ 
r eque,s ting t hn.t (l pnir o f ' sto~kings'j, ~ e s ent to him vi ::. Woortman 
::.nd'3.l so sorr; :, clot h trous er s 'j6 . a nd drawer s f or his da ily us c , 
with it r oy: l ha t. . 
.. 
No news . 
-22-n.d.  
The Ki ng h ?s' giv en me v er y f i rml y t o underst s.nd t hat I 
cannot l eove here unti l a ll out standing pal av 2rs with t he Gener a l 
hav e been s ettled. If I go away n OV'T , he says , t his will l end 
credenc e t o the r eport s spr ead abroa d by t ho El minas that t he 
Gen er a l has evi l int entions with r egar d t o Ashnnti. The King 
agr 2es , howeve r' , tha t I sh.ou:l d .di s mi ss my boys c.nd bear er s i n 
order t o r edUC 8 my expens es . He will s upply me with the necessa.ry 
Den wh en tho t ime comes for me t o d e-part, I eur b e0. my di stress ' q t 
the r eceipt of thc~e orders , and was-s ilent . I~ s ; ems t ho King 
is listening t o t he El mi nas ags i ri . 
I asked th ~-j Ki ng i f iVoor t man !:li ght . l eClve , but he .s a i d , 
"Wait until I give you ins t ruc tions i n ' the ma tt er . Now at l ast 
as a r esult of your p er s i stence I hav 0 de c ided t o b 8gin the 
highway . The work will s t art n ·;jx t Good Sunday or Gr ee.t Aday, 
and Bie t er c an r epo r t t o the- Gener nl our mast ·j r on the progr ess 
of thi s work." His Ma j es t y added tha t how the wor km8n wer e 
divided was no business of mi ne . He woul d a ttend to ev eryt hing , 
and the Gener a l' s wi she s woul d b e f ollowed . 
The King 8.gai n t ook u~, t he suggest i on t h.'lt I 'should be 
cha r ged "'ith se ttling thee Wassaw pnl av er. The c onst o..nt s ending 
of mes senge r s ba CK 'and f orth , he says, pr ol ongs things undulY1D(1 
more i mportent matt ers ar e de l ayed . 
'. I ":, 
95. Lit., baarz en~ whi 6h h8. s no menning in Dutch excep t 3 S the 
plura l of Baar s , ' a spinj-finned river fi sh' • . Baarz en 
h er e i s probab l y ,) 60rrup t plura l of bns , Fr ench f or 
'stocking '. . 11' .: --
96. Li t., een l alcC ris~/ br oek. 
- 55 ,-' " 
He propo,se s thil t I di s cus s t h e w'hol e thing wi.t h ny p a t r on, 97 . 
Cen c r :t l' Poekoe, and th,en r eport .b a c k to h i m, . I n thi s way a ll t h e 
• v~ri ous p oint s c a n b e d ealt with . 
Thi s a ft e rnoon v a rious mercha nts a rrive d her e f r om Elmin S!. . 
• They s a j t h a t the Gener a l i~ not treating t h e Ash antis ~e ll a t nl:. 
i[cl en they bring their wares to him, he forc e s t hem to acc ept rn 
0xchang t3 g oods they do not w::mtj 3.n d if they ob j ect he t e kes D. 
s tick to them. The K:Lng i s v ery 2.nnoye d 2. t this treat ment of hl S 
u:rchant s. I am k eeping sil ent in the ma tt er. If I v enture 
nny r €mar k s t hey a re li~ely to be rejected, and this will t e nd t o 
make tho mercha nts' r reports s eem more truthful than in f~ct they ' 
ar e • 
.2 :7' t h. 
• I s ugges ted t o t h e King toda y t h a t h e shoul ~ make some reply 
to the Gen e r a l's letters a nd a l s o tha t h e should f ix the time 
';Jhen t he hi gh w9.y will be open ed . Hi s r:,Et j e sty sa i d the hi ghw'7 
woul d b e b egun eigh t d~ys from now . 
From t he 26th unt il t c dny tlE .. Ki "g; .,-nd his cou:".c i 110rs 
d i s cuss e d t h e f a ls e r~p0rt s c ifc ~ - . ~ ~ d by t h e El mi n a s. The 
E~min ~ s p r esse d con~iLuously fo r ~he ~ ccc~~ ~c e a~ t~ue of t he 
r eports re ce~t ly ~ e c e ived fr om the t07rr"_ I s t ood firm? a nd 
p o::"nt ed out t h n.t I c O'J. l d no t 8.1.10w my m.:-ts t,; r to b o c OY2r ed with 
• l i es i n thi s way . a nd th·-: t I co~u ld n 0 t r,gr ee to the .su ggesti ons oo ing ..i1.:t fo rwar d. I s a i d ·tlYl '':; r c c. u ~d n o t e-llow my mas t e r to 0.; binckg~ard~d end t hat , t oge t h er ~tth Pie t er, I woul d.make . a , ~ul1 
r ep or t n t :c<;Imina of eVE- ryt hin:; t h n t h a s O C C J.rr,,~ d, 
• 
,So i~vo l ved i n t hi s busi~ e ss ~ ~ve tha As~nntis b ecome th~t , 
wh en t&~y he~rd my r em3r ks, t hey i r nediG t e l y t~re~ t ~n ~~ th~t , if 
I d id i nd e ed t ell the Genor o. l everytil i.C'~'!; I t h ey would' c ons i de r 
~i 8 t ~r ~n~ me n s t h c i r en em i e s. Th eJ sai d , too, t h Rt i f t h e 
G-o:1or .'l. l h e\rcc m;y repor t i n full h o WO",l}. a inevi t a~) ly bc:rn down t n t; 
',co'v'm cf El 'LinEt a n o d e s t roy t he' 1o.o1.1.s es wi th 11.::" 3 OD.D:10n ' ~ (c,nd i n y::'-
doing woulc t. i ms o; f b ecome a n ehewy of t :rte A::;h, n ci s. Th ey s.~d ?-
thnt ~~l e ~s I li s t en e (] t o t h e King ' s Entr eati es h e wcul d do 
nothing f or me . The Zlminas , thou~h t h e whit e ~en ~r _ t h e i r 
~nst ~rs, h ave Rl wnys b een brott~rs to t h e Ast~ntis . I f the 
Gener :} l h p·:irC! t he who l e s t or y he cou l d no t f n i l t o ruin Elmine.., 
It WC\ S b ,) c aus c the Ash[mti s had. n ot \J~.nt o d him t o l e~.rn eV2ryth ~ ·· ~ 
t h r t th0~T 11.8.0 11.3.d me drink the o :3. t l::. , . by wh :i ~l' I ]Jurif i e d h im o~· 
• "ehe lies the El f') ir. , s h e.d PU L .lr:rL ~i: l. 'l':J.e bl ~=';:12, s, s o thc 
~Q "' ~rlti s s ;ii:i , h a d onl y told li e s th L·',1.:G~. i e3.r. 
• I stood firm, ~n~ stat ed o.~[in ~h8~ th0 G~~rrnl mLs t be to~' 
ove~ythi~g , I s~ id thn~ t~c Einr ~~~ a~t cn~=0r~e~ j~ t~~ m~tt~. 
'1:1e El ":'lin-,::; ) I i. ns::'J~(,C:'- , rc'..l"C "00 punl.r['E'c1 , J.Jl-j t~1,0]·~t" .:-lot to mn.:;;: 
~QlS~ strt.m_:1ts to Q Ki n: c ~ g r 0Rt ~G t~, hln~ Gf A~hnnt i. 
~~8 S 8 f ' l sr r epo r ts 0 ~ their] ~~U~~ ce[~<inl! h~vc c ~us cd ~ ~. 
i f I 11. ,cl not br;en nere t:'.n C' h. '.:'l not. und8rs ':'OCCt the negro t onne; 
As r eg ~ r(l. s t he King~nd Wh:lt L' ('U{71,t. 0 ,'0, :, f :'r, h -0. s2nt one: r 
his c;cIleL l l o on s. wc ir::r.~y :- ,,1 J.w.pcrCr;T"~ [' r:,~'::.~ i cl' (.'lS the Gener c ,-,-
r:l~'" m ·~~ st v r h~ld S Gn "0 IT.e ), 8!l ..~  :..f -t,I-:,::'L 'l.L0 ~h.e2 ~'~c.ler'!l i:~;1.C_ se~t or r._ 
• h~_s s l 3.\" 28 n l ong !.1 ft er wn..:"df: [1, •• :1 th::' 3 slhve l'~d 11'O~ '{0rl . j n (l"-'r;s:. ~ 
TO the Ki 1(3 I s wi ,s''lGS a nd I ll.] m~c1c tht. Ki:1S" C''':' C to b~ '1 o',d n::n: ..,. , 
• if, o.'l top of a ll this, tr~ 1\.~~g I 3 0·,''11 cy.[r;/ b,,(1 kept the sl8.v",'., 
. rnt ions r ecre t s e t h n t t he K~ng heard abou t tLem fr om SO~Gora e:-~ 
1ilhGt the.'l? Woul r"l not J i. s I\,aJesty pc-ni sh t'"l(' gene r ,: :!. \ s Eln-c?...: 
by cut t i ng off h is head? . 
: J' 
- 56 -
When they heai'd this question, eVeryone pres ent wa s 
dumbfounded. The chi efs began t o mutt er among thems elves , "The 
whit e man is right, The whit e man is right. This is s erious. 
Wll.n t sha ll we do ?" 
The King then took me by the hand, and s a id, "Broni e , you 
ar e behaving t oday in a very hnrd cmd obstinate way . Coul d you 
not do me a f avour, and cut out of your book all mention of this 
bus iness? " 
I s a id. "No. I c annot and may not do this. I cannot be 
unf c.. ithful to my mC1.st er, but must make everything known to him," 
"Them yo u wi sh to brine,:: ill for tune to Elmina?" 
"No," I sai d . "My moth (~ r , my wife ane. my children, indeed, 
my who l e family a ll live ot El mina . I could hardly wish to harm 
it." 
"Wha t must I c1cO then, Broni e ?" 
I t o l d the King that he could not do bet t er than l e t me writ e 
everything down and s end it t o the Genera l. For his part he 
c oul d have one of his own men accompany me , and thi s man , speaking 
on t he King 's b eha l f, could entreat the General to let the Elmina s 
off with but a small punishment. It was c erta i n l y true that 
t here wa s nothing the Genera l would not do f or Hi s ~a j esty. This 
would be the b est method , I said, of p ersuading the General to be 
l enient. 
The King, however, s a id tha~ he feared the Genera l would not 
pardon thc; Elmina s and, if he did not, this woul d bring shame upon 
Ashanti. His l\.a j es t y wo uld not listen to wha t I said, and insisted 
that I must r emov e fr om my book everything I had ·writt en. 
I said ( and it was true) tha t I had prepared three l ett ers t o 
the Councillors a t Elmina r eques ting, on the King 's beha lf, tha t 
they should influence the General to mitig8t e thc puni shment given 
to the El minas j that t he forgiveness me t ed out by the Genera l . 
would thus be a t the King 's instiga tionj tha t the Elminas would 
nev er be ab l e t o t e l l these lies a gain, since punishment would be 
ha nging OV9r them; and that, in consequenc e , the King would be in 
no danger of suffering dishonour a t the Genera l's hands. 
But the King b ecame angry, and s a id, "VVho among us c an r C2.d? 
You t G.lk like this to che o. t me , and. make me l os e my town, y es, 
even 8. town as great e.s Elmina. This is no good 8.t a ll. We mus t 
dec ide differently fr om this. Come here' tODorrow and bring . tae 
t hr ee l ett ers, and we wi ll s s e wha t can be done to ensure Elmina 's 
well-bei ng a nd to pacify the Gener s l a t the same time ." 
I s a id tha t, sinc e the Gener a l had told Wortman to stay no 
l onge r than 2 days , he woul d hav e to l eave for Elmina this s ame 
evening, a nd that I int end ed to s end my ent ire j ourna l with him, so 
tha t the Gen er a l might be acqua i nt ed with what had been happening 
here. 
The King r epli ed tha t Woortmnn woul d hav2 t o St!3.y unt il 
tomorrow, and thClt it wa s he, tho King, who decided wha t we envoys 
did in such ca ses a s this. Then h e stood up and l eft us 
perpl exed. We went home. 
29th. • 
This morning early the King summoned me and the Elminas. 
He a ske d me if I sti ll intended t o make a full r eport to the 
Genera l, or if I would r a ther do him a service and writ e to the 
Genera l what he himself would dictate. 
- 57 
Once again I said it was impossible for me t 'o dec!3ive my 
master. If I did so, I would break my oath to the King of 
Holland, and bring disaster on myself. 
"Well, now," said the King. "Your master at present know~ 
nothing of this business. Eve~thing that has happened, has 
happened here in my capital ••• 98 By making you drink the oat~ 
I have purified the Genera l of all the ill that hns been spoken' of 
him. You must now listen to me, and do what I say. It is not 
~lways necessary that great men know everything that occurs_ ~f 
you do not do a s I ask, you are inviting the General to rUin ,!:lY 
town of Elmina and are falling out with me and making yourself roy 
ene!:lY. But go your ways, and let everything be upon your own head." 
. "f
At these words of the King's I became very anxious in my 
mind, and decided that I would have to agree to what His Majesty 
was proposing. ' It was true, after all, that he was trying to 
prevent harm to the town of Elmina. 
(I took into account, too, the f act that the Elminas and tre 
3 linguists had already ag~ed to withdraw ,all the lies they ha~ 
told and throw themselves on the King's mercy. I felt I had to 
yield a little,99 and listen to His Majesty's suggestions.) 
The King then proposed the following, which I agreed to unger 
duress, since I did not wish to cause a breach between His 
Majesty and the General: 
The Elminas said to the King that they feared Your 
Excellency 100 because, from the time of your arrival in the co~try 
until now, you did not sign any contract with, them nor did you 
transa~t any business with them; with regard ·to Your'Exce-B:-ertcy' s 
character and whether 'you were a friend or an enemy the Elminas 'h ad 
no opinion; but because Your Excellency persistently prevented 
them from marching against Commanij, they had felt it necessary 
(not knowing what Your Excellency had in mind in thus restricting 
their actions), to send to the King of the Ashantis for men , 
because they did not trust Commanij. By :making tue ·swear the Grea t 
Oath, the King purified Your Excellency of all the wrong done tq you 
and ' wi th this a spect of the matter the King and all his councill'ors 
are entirely satisfied. The King has now brought about a 
reconciliation between the Elminas and me, and has told the Elminas 
very firmly that they must a l ways serve your Excellency - , 
faithfully, saying to them~ "The General is my master and y~ur 
master both. If the General does not trea t you well, he isno~ 
my friend, If you do not obey and serve the General, you are my 
enemies_ I wi ll always choose the side which is in the right. II' 
The Elminas then asked the King to reconcile the General to them 
and seek his pardon for them because they came here without his 
permission. They said they had failed to request a permit fro m 
the General solely because of their fear of Your Excellency. 
To the King's suggestion that the above should constitute 
the written record of events here I have agreed. I quite see 
that there must be no unnecessary palaver between myself and the 
Elminas. 101 It is best that we follow the King's wishes or else 
the chief object of my mission will be thrown away. 
• Everything was now- done, and the King sent for a large bottle 
.of  rum and a fat sheep for our sustenance, saying that these were to show that we were friends and would r emain so • ------------------------------~~---------------------------
98. Short indecipherable ~assage here. 
99. Lit., de bot vieren. ('To payout a rope' is een touw 
bot vieren.) 
100. At this point the text takes on the form of a letter or 
explanation addressed directly to Gener al Daendels. 
101. There is considerable amplification and paraphrasing her e . 
The text is highly elliptica l. 
- 58 -
Ke then oade all my men and those of the Elminas swear on their 
lives thnt everything that had happened here would rG~ain here, and 
that no-one would repeat any of it at Elmina, lest rumours came to 
the General's ears and cnused trouble. Each man had to speak the 
following words: 
"If, when I am in Elmina, I ever say one word about this 
palaver between the white man and the Elminas to anyone, whoever 
he may be, I break th~ Oath of the King of the Ashantis and forfeit 
either my head or the sum of 120 preguns." (A pregun is 2 
(indecipherable). . 
Woortman had to swear too, and then everything was finished. 
I must state, however, that the true story as originally told by 
the Elminas is accurately recorded in my journal under date 20th 
July, and tha't I have not dared to remove this entry" The three 
letters written to their Honours, Messrs. van Voit,1u2 Malet and 
Oldenburg, were torn up in the presence of the King and all his 
chiefs. This was done on His Majesty's orders. 
The King gave me his hand, and said, liThe highway will be 
begun on Monday. The .General our master will then be able to cone 
here and enjoy ny hospitality." 
The joy of the Ashantis was unbounded. 
(I have removed the original report from my journal.) 
30th N,ovembe!' 1816. 
Went to the King, and requested that Woortman might now be 
allowed to depart. His Majesty said he might leave next Tuesday. 
Primo December 1816. 
(Marginal note: "Today is Great Aday, or Good Sunday.") 
The King asked me this morning if I were not very happy that 
the highway is to be begun tomorrow. I . said I . would be a lot 
happier if I myself were taking the news about it to the General. . 
The 'King said, . laughirrg, lIyou cannot go until all palavers are . 
finished. You are jealous of Pieter because you cannot go with 
him_" 
2nd December. 
This morning in my presence the King issued his instructions 
to the various chiefs who are to supervise the construction of. the 
highway. They asked for 6 pregums or 3 to 8. 103 . I have . 
advised the General of this request in my letter of today's .date. 
Immediately the money was paid over, the highway was begun. 
It is more than forty feet wide. The King, all his chiefs and I 
went to look at the" work this afternoon. His Majesty was well 
pleased. 
3rd December. 
Woortman was ready to leave today, but the King stopped him. 
The reason is that the . Wassaw envoys are due tomorrow, and the o· 
K__in_g_ _w__a_n_ts_ _W__o_o_rt_m_a_n_ _t_o_ _h_e_a_r_ _-w_h_a_t_ _t_h_e_y_ _h_a_v_e_ _to__ _s_a_y_ b__e fore he goes. ~---------------o 
102. Spelling doubtful~ 
103-. Sic. Meaning obscure. 
- 59 
4th ditto. 
Today the Wassawa arrived.) ' There are 4 of them. They have 
greeted the King and have been sumptuously received. 
I went to look at the highway, and found the labourers 
working cheerfully away. They tried to persuade me to send for 
presents f~them. 
Today the Wassaw8 :disclosed the purpose of their mission. It 
appears to be of small importance. They ~ay that Tando told ' 
Caboceer Eltefor that the King wanted to koow whether Eltefor 
wished to discontinue his allegiance to Ashanti • • , Two chest~ 
of gin have arrived for the King .ee Everyone present expressed 
contempt for both Tando and the Was saws. 104- --
6th December. 
The King summoned both me and the Elminas today with a view 
to examining with us the Wassaws' intentio:Q.s. ..They were asked 
whether they were going to co-operate with the General in, settling 
the palaver or whether they regarded him as a fool and were _' 
planning to impope on ,him and delay the building of the highwai~ 
The King told them ,that, if tney had anything to say, they should 
say it. me assured them that the General WOUld, fro~ compassiorr _ 
alone, make allowances for their stupidities if they been guilty ' 
of any. But the Wassaw envoys ans1}To red that t,hey were only smal:L 
boys, and would have to discuss these great matters with their ' 
• masters. ' ' 
• At this all the generals, officers, etc., stood u.p and, at the, King's order, raised their swords and swore this oath to the' 
honour of our General, alJ speaking very seriously. Each in 
turn said these WJ rds: ' 
"I swear by the Great Oath of Cormantijn that, since the 
General our master ha s charged the King of the Ashantis with the 
task of buildin~ a highway in order that the said General may 
honour our King by visiting him here in his capital, this highway 
shall be constructed without any changes of plan, and that, if 
any man opposes the General's wishes in this matter, I will take 
up arms against him and prove that I am the faithful servant of 
King Saij. 
I further swear that if Elt efor or any of the Wassaws tries 
to deceive the General with trickery or oppos e s his passage (to 
the capital), I will take up arms and will, without mercy, drive 
Eltefor away from the highway, in order that the highway may be 
constructed wher e the General wants it. This I swear by the 
Oa th of Oor1I!-ant':'jnand Saturday." 
Then the King gave orders that, in honour of the General, 
every man present should pass in turn befor e me and take a second 
oath. And they all very wil lingly held up their swords and, wi th 
the blades a lmost touching my nose, ,spoke these words: 
An extremely obscure passage. The nearest I can get to the 
Dutch is: "Da t Tando 8lrul de Cabocier Elt efor had gaan zeggen, 
• dat _de Koning vraagd indien Eltefor hemniet langer wil calio haren hij hem Tando , foefoe t err e op de rug moeten gooijen _ 
t~n bewijz en hij de Koning niet meer wil trouwen en zonde 2 
kelders genever voor de Koning. Waarover elk ,een zeer gr??? 
wierd, eon Tando met de Wassasche verrag-t-en." -, 
~ GO -
11 Bronie, I swcr:.r bY' the Great Oath of Cormi'mti'jnj I SWG£\ r by 
Saturday a nd by my King Sa ij; that since your m~st 3 r th0 General 
wants the highway built" it .shall b,,; built; 8.nd if anyone tries to 
delay the General by prev,e.ricating,'/05 I will remove the v e ry 
roof f;romhis house,' " ' .. ' , 
I s wear by the Honour, of your Gene r a l- that , if any man tries 
to prevent the .highway now decided upon from being built, he will 
pay fo~ it wi th his goods, his slaves and his head. I swear 
th~. t the wishes of the Gener::l our mr'ste r will prev:-'.il." 
Wh en ,'-' 11 this wa s over, the,.iN:.>.ss.':.ws were l eft in no doubt th,'>.t 
this was no joking ~att er, r no they muttered terribly ~g ~inst 
T£'ndo. 'They cl r, i med th~ t T,":.ndo h ::... c1 dece ive d them b a dly. They 
"0.11 s a id th:J, t they .now s aw cle:-:.rly thctthis was a s erious business. 
7th Decem'Qer: 
Went t o look O.t the highw2.y todc.y. The work is going on we ll. 
Gene r a l Qua tje Coffie is beginning to dig the ro ots up out of the 
ground. 
Wo'rtman is r e a-dy t o s e t off thi s evening. The King r;t'Jde 
the following speech to him: "'( .... 
"Pie t er! YoU; , s.re now r e D,dy to d ep r,rt, ,'l.c'compe.nied by my 
envoys ;,'lhd by thos e of the El mina,s. . Go with God' sblessing. 
GTee t the Gener-al, my l'1.2.st e r heartily on behalf of me o.no '.n my 
officers., :: Tell ,him tha t , 'llthough the Elmina s ha v e done wrong so 
f aT G S he is concerne d,. h e mmft, out of considerntion for me" • 
p a rdon and forgive; them. The Elmina s ::cnd I . Rr e noil, uni t cd, :lnd . 
wish~alwtysto honour a nd s erv8 .him to the best of our abili ty. 
Tell him we desire no otherm9.st cj(' than the Dutch, and th ...... t he is , 
the chi e f of ~s a ll. ,' c . ' 
' ... { . ,~L· 
Tell the General my ma ste r that I expect him her e wi ,th'?~ s 
littl e, :ue l ay a s possibl e c n d th:l t t h e highwD.y wi ll soon PE~ open.·.o, 
With r ega rd to the Wassaw p 01o.v E:r, I ask ' tha t h e l e t me ·know by 
express messenger whether the W,~Ss o.ws · int end t o ',po.y or ,not; so 
tha t I c rm decide ~on my covrs e Of a ction concerning ' them •. '~ If 
they wish to pleDs e me, they will k eep out of the wo y • . Other wise 
they wi ll ·become ~hildre!l0f death~1t . 
8th Decemb er. 
No time to spare todoy. I h a v q be en busy for Borne tiffi a writing 
0. l ett er on the King 's beha lf to the Genera l, a nd today h a v e 
mana g e d t o finish it •. Woor t !Ilan l e 3.Vf S tomorrow. 
This morning 0. t 5 0' clock or dnybre,9.k Woortman depa rted. I 
h e.ve urged him not to sp end 70 days on the r eturn journey, a nd n ot 
to be tricked by the Ashantis irito taking·mor e than 14. 
I wa l lr,ed for two hours down the hi ghway, [md fOill,ldit a ll ' 
r eady oD, this side. All thnt r emains is for, the roots to be dug 
out of the ground. When r emoved, th0se'r'oo t s wi ll be h anded 
over to the Que en [md h~?r s l a v e -girls f,or the ma king and swe eping " 
of floor s. 106 
------------------------------------------------------------~--_Q 
105. Perh0ps Itby humbugging himlt WOUld. b e £1 bet',er translE',tion. 
106. Lit., om gelijk vlo ers t e maken, en schoon t e vegen. 
(Mod. Dutch gelijkv~ = 'on the ground floor. ') 
- 61 ~ 
1Q!h. 
No new$. My ey e El nr C) now fixed on the arrival of the General, 
b ecause I expect to be abl e to return ho~e with him. I s e e very 
clearly now th"l,t . the King hopes to keep me h ere until His Excelleney 
comes. 
17th. 
From the 11th until today; no news. Have not spoken with 
the King in a ll this ti~e. 
18th Decemb er. 
I went to look at the highway today, and notic ed it wa s not 
• the sarno width along the whol e of its length. I report ed thi$ 
to the King, and he s a id my wishes in the matter would be attended 
• to tomorrow • 
The workmen complain bitterly that they ar e not receiving any 
drink, I told the~ to wui t 0.. li ttl-e and they would get some . 
In the meo..nti~(: they ~ust c arry on cheerfully. They were 
gr a t eful for my words, and went back to their tasks yel1!ng and ' 
singing with excitement. 
-20th. Did hot s e e the King. No news y esterday and today, 
• 21 st; 
• No ,news. 
23rd. 
No lle~s·: ye st er~ay: This morning I wrote a l e t ter to the 
Gener a l for the King , sta ting tha t His Ma jesty is s ending the 
Gene r nl ~ slave -girl with ivory und 2 (illegibl e ) 4 E/ in gold~ 
The girl 1s to buy some fine cloth on His Ma j e styf~ behalf, 
On the s e occ a sions the King is v ery pleas ed when he appends 
his . cross.. He s ays , "Look, I a lso can write . Wha t do you think .. 
i s not my hand be tt er than y ours?" 
28th December 1816. 
No n ews s inc e th~ 24th. I hav e b een three time s to exa~ine 
the work on the h i ghway. It i s going on but slowl y , and the 
l ab'ourcrs keep asking f or drink . 
30th. 
Yest er day the King forb nde me to write c;tny l e tters of ;~,ny 
kind either to t he Gener a l or .t o my own peopl e wi thout his 
permi ssion. Nor ~m I to give ~ny messages t o the merc hants, but 
must' pa tient l y await the re turn here of t he Ki ng 's Akkr a . 
His Ma j esty is de t er mi ned t ha t no one shall l eave bef or e the 
• answer conc erning the Was saws has b een r ec e ived. He s ays tha t 
if I s end any l et ters I will b ecome a 'very b ad f ri end of his. 
• I notic ed today that t he workmen have not got on Duch further 
with the construction of the highway. They ar e b ec omi ng very 
disgruntl ed., 
31st Dec ember 1816. 
No news. 
- 62 -
Primo January 1817. 
Today being New Year's day I went to callan the King,' and 
received from him a pres ent of 1 (illegible) 2 ~ of gold, 1 sheep 
and 10 yams. He ' asked me what my master would have given ~e for 
New Year if I had been a t Elmin~. I said I would certainly have 
received 5 (illegible) from my mast er. 
They King said, "Will the pres ent b e kept'for you, then, 
because you are away?" 
"Without a doubt," I s a id. "It will be kept for me v, c; ry 
f a ithfully." 
The Elminas r ec ei vod 9 ~. 
4th January 1817. 
Nothing happened from the 2nd until today. The highway is 
going ahead very slowly, a t leas t on this side of the capita l; 
The Kings of Adiaben Rnd Bekwaij ar e praised by the people for the 
good work their men ar e doing . 
5th J anu8.ry,' 
'J:oday I asked the King if the highway 'mi ght be pushed f orward 
more quickly, fo r it is har dl y pr ogr e ssing a t a ll. He said i 
"I will look a t it mys elf tomorrow, and give orders for the work 
to be speeded up." 
6th d1. ttQ., , 
'. This aft ernoon His Ma j esty and all the ,chiefs went to loo~ at 
the highway. I'do not yet know wha t they thought of it . I am 
to,ld tha t the son of the most s enior genera l, Amanquatia. arrived 
~ast night from Elmina and has brought so me l ett ers tQ~ me . 
7th J anuary 1817. 
. Very 'early this morning I was summoned by the King , His 
Ma j esty handed me a l ett8r from the Gener a l our mast~r which had 
been brought by the son of A~anquatia. It conta ined good news, 
, for it praised the fri endly treat ment r eceived .by him from our 
Gener al. The King was most pleas ed to r eceive -thiS r eport, whieh 
' indica t ed t he true fe e lings and good intentions ·of the General 
towards him. 
The lett er, however, a lso touched His Maj esty a little on the 
r aw . He told me that the Gener a l must under s t and th~t in sending 
me he had s ent a good friend to the King of the Ashantis, and mu~ t 
therefore not obj ect if I stay her e a long time. Nor should the ' 
General be vexed if I am not allowed to l eave until all outs~and~~g 
matters have been decided. . For my f ailure to communicate with : 
the Gener al, His Ma j esty accepts full re~ponsibility. From the 
time the Elmina envoys arrived he had absolute ly forbidden the 
writing of l ett ers~ This prohibition was to l ast until the arrival 
of Tando. 'It was Tando, with his li es and untruths, who had . 
interminably del ayed matters. Otherwis e someone would unquestion- ~ 
ably have been s ent to Elminn to s et t l e the Wass aw palaver, The 
King r epeat ed that he took upon hims elf alone any blame th~ t mi ght 
other wise f allon me . He knows I would hav8 written the neyess ary ~ 
letters to Elmina if I had been a llowed to do so. A settlement . 
of the whol e matt er has b een much del ayed becaus e of the untruths 
the Elminas have been t elling him. 
Regarding the slaves, cows, hors es, etc., ,His Majesty has 
already s ent an answer to the General vi a his ~. 
~ 63 -
A r eport concerning the hi ghway has also b een sent by the 
same means. 
His MB.jesty' s r efus a l to allowllny l ett ers to b e written 
stems from the statements made by the El~inas on 20th July 1816, 
Becnus e of what they said, he decided to institute inquiries with 
~ view to finding out, first, wh8ther their stat Gm~nts wer~ tru~ 
and, s econdly, whether I had b een. acting against'his orders and 
had s ~nt any ihfo r mat iori to the General without his knowledge. 
If I had in f act been going behind his back~ he would then and 
ther e hc.v 8 r efus e d further deillings with the General, and would 
have regarded my mission as a deliber a t e dec eption. This is why, 
in order to prevent any disunity b et ween my Government and tho King, 
I have adher ed to His Mn j esty's orders, and h flv s, kept everything in 
my head and within the. pages of my journal, so tha t I will be in 
a position to r iC- count everything pr:;rsonally wh en I r eturn to . 
Elmina and plac e this IJy journa l on the; ,Council t abl e thor e . Your . 
Excellency 107 must ther efor e not condemn De , fo;r I have n ev '; r 
been unfa ithful to Governnent, no, not ev en when our aff a irs were 
a t their lowes t ebb. Your Excellency i nstructed me to behav e 
with prudence, and I have a lways r emember ed this and have sought 
to ple r3s c the King in all roy actions. The Goverm:Jont ought not 
to blaroe me in this matt er; its judgment should r a ther f a llon 
the King of the Ashantis, I am sure ther e is no one, apart froD 
my enemies, who is s eeking to bring me into disfn.vour with Your 
Excellency or to daroaEs my good na~e , and this is why I am c ont ent 
, to let my journa l show how I have ~een conducting mys elf since my arrival in ' this pla c e . The King is my witness tha t Ihe.v :c contin-
ua lly pres sed him for p er mis sion to l eave and thqt my request ha s 
a lways be en r efus e d • 
• The King said to me, "The Gener a l roy mas t ,;:r;' ha s sent you iio 
me, and would not be plea sed if your wer e to depart without roy 
approva l. The General woul~ not like it, mo r eover, if they 
Commanys nnd the Wassaws wer e a t tacked, ye t n ei,ther of these tWQ 
pa l avers ha s y e t b een brough t to n s a tisfaptory conclusion, 
How then can the General r equire you to r e turn empty-hatided? • 
It was the Gen eral who 8.Skfj0. th::c t the n1:ltions might be spared 1'~8 
and outstanding mat t ers settled by n egotia tion. Otherwise roy 
weapons would l on~ sinc~ h aV2 driven the hi ghway through the 
Wassaw country, though this i s precis ely wha t the Gener nl ha s 
a l ways hoped to avoid. You roust stay h er e. until thes e t wo 
pa lavers hav e been settled, or a t leas t until there is soroe 
agr eeroGnt on terms," 
It The King's arguments hav e convinc ed cie t hat he is in the right, 
and that what I hav e be en 'saying about l eaving is illcorisldered ~ , 
r again sought the King's p ermiss i on to l eav e. 109 He 
b ec ane angry, and s aid , "I agree tha t you must on no account 
offend the Gener a l your l aster. 1Nri t e him a l etter, ther efor e , 
which I will s end t o hin prot cct c, d by roy staff . Beg his pardon · for 
your silence. It is c ertainly true that; if I had no t forbidd en 
it, you would hav e writt en to him ev ery w~ek • 
• The Gener a l will pardon you as soon as my boy f1.rriv8s a t 
Elmina with the l etter. If he does not, he goes against ny 
• wishes, for you did not come her ,~ on your own account but on h1~ • 
107. Huydecoper r el apses here into direc t speech again. 
108. I, e ., spa r ed the destructi on of war, 
1~ Sic., though this i s an odd entr y in vi ew of the s ent ence 
tha t prec edes it. 
With regard to the Elmina palaver you can make your own 
report to the General, but your book must positively not be 
allowed to leave here before you do. Full responsibility for 
anything that might happen would fallon you if the book were 
'to be sent away from here. I have long regarded Elmina village 
as mine. ' . 
The fact that you have not been able to write to the 
General is due to me, and my boy, when he reaches Elmina, will 
expla~n everything to your master on my behalf. If the General 
is truly my friend, as he says he is, he will surely not accuse 
you of misleading the Government by your silence. Go home now, 
and do not be afraid. Write a short letter to your master, and 
lay everything on me." 
The King's words gave me some reassurance, but I was not 
entirely satisfied. I asked him coldly whether Or not it was true 
that I had once told him that the General would Qe angry with me ' 
if I d~d not write in full to Elmina. 
To this the King replied, "I see now that you spoke truly 
on that occasion. Nevertheless I am not going to see my town 
of Elmina shot at with cannons and burnt to the ground because of 
the wickedness and villainy of bad rulers. I told you before 
that I did not believe the Elminas' story; otherwise I would not 
have allowed you to drink the oath in order to purify your 
master~s name. When you did that we all realized that you had 
right on your side." 
Despite these further reassurances from His Majesty, I was 
still not easy in my mind. I had to agree, however, to a letter 
.being dispatched and to not going myself. The letter went off 
today~ , 
I ventured to ask the King about Djesie, but he would not 
hear a word on the subject. He says Djesie is such a rascal that 
he cannot, l!;!t me see him. Djesie has apparently stolen a great 
deal from the King and is in disgrace. 
Regarding the slaves, cows, horses, etc., intended as return 
presents for the General I have received no answer as yet. The 
King says he will give his reply when I finally . leave. 
9th January 1817. 
Many people visit~d me today. This was solely because of 
the very friendly reception given by the General to the somof 
Amanquatia in Elmina.Now all the Ashanti merchants are intend-
ing to trade with the General. The more than two thousand 
merchants who went to Annamaboe and Caap Corse are now back home 
again, anq. most of them report heavy losses. The few wh0went to 
Elmina praise the General's trading methods very highly, but 
complain about the preference given to the son of Amanquatia. 
Everyone is nOw providing himself with trading notes 110 in order 
to do business with Elmina. ' 
General Poikoe's cashier or treasurer has been instructed 
by the King to send some 25 ounces of gold to Elmina for the o 
purpose of buying gunpowder. The King wishes to see if the 
General will meet him in the matter of price, or whether he will 
tJ:'eat ,p-im as on a par with his subjects. For this :r;'eason I have o 
thought it ri.~(% ssary to write a letter (which will follow later) 
to the General, requesting him to make a distinction bet~een the 
King's trade and that of all other p ersons, and to treat , the 
King's representatives as he did the son of Amanquat~a." ,By these 
tactics Elmina can gain the whole of the Ashanti trade. 
- 65 -
The Ashantis complain very bitterly about the English and their 
agents, saying that they were very ill received at the Cape. 
_ Affodoe Cudjo and Quassie (illegible) complain that the 
(illegible) at Elmina have treated them very badly. These two 
young men tell me that they had made fine profits trading, but; 
they say, "The white m~n in the fort gave us their word that the 
account was settled, but when we were outside the fort we were 
forced by some of the men there to hand over money. 111 These 
men said to us, 'The white men made a mistake in their reckoning; 
you owe us such and such an amount.' We refused to pay and were 
very badly treated."112 
I have no doubt that this story is a tissue of lies but, 
since it will reflect badly on the General's reputation if 
repeated, I feel obliged to report it now. 
I have counted up all the trifles the King is sending to 
market. I wished to test to see whether he was including !;he , -
bulk of his goods now or later. 113 
Affodoe Gudjo is now the confidant of Mr. Nieser and 
therefore wants watching. 
10th January 1817. 
Today I went on foot to look at the highway. To my 
astonishment I found that the roots of the trees that have been -
• cut down are already growing up again, and there are numerous holes at least three feet deep. The men are working very slowly. 
• I learnt this evening, however, that the highway on the 
Insadjiesoe 114- side is well advanced. The overseer is present 
there all the time himself. 
No news. 
This being the Great Adaji or Good Sunday, the King gave me 
and the Elminas a sheep to share among us. 
Amanquatia's son has been complaining to his father about 
the brusque reception accorded him by Mr. Nieser. He says he 
went to Mr. Nieser's house to present his father's compliments 
and, when he had been taken into the main room ••• 115 
15th. 
No news from the 13th until today. I have noticed that tqe 
merchants are now anxious to set out for Elmina wi thout delay. 
Early today His Majesty went to his plantation. He will be 
returning on Monday next. I asked if I might accompany him, 
but he said this was out of the question. "I am going to make 
• fetish," he told me, "and will be back very soon." 
• 111. Lit., engels. 
112 .. This paragraph is very roughly translated. The MS is so 
unclear tha t I can make out only three words in four. 
113. Meaning obscure. 
114-. Spelling doubtful. 
115. The next f~ve lines are completely illegible. 
- 66 -
19th January 1817. 
From 1:;he 17thuntil .today there has been nothing to report. 
The town is quite empty. ,Everyone has gone to Brimman with the 
King. 
I am very surprised that the King's accra has not sent back 
any messages abo,ut thest.ate of affairs at Elmina. His ' 
Majesty gave his positive instructions that he was to send 
someone back within thirty days to let us know whether or not the 
Wassaws .were ready .to reach agreement. It appears he has 
forgotten these orders~ 
20th. 
His Majesty returne'd today in gr:eat pomp from Brimman. 
During the journey back h.e . sent for me by exprss messenger'. 
I hastened to obey his order, and met him at a village called 
Kroboe. He asked me to help him put on his suit of clothes. I 
did this and then accompanied him back to the capital, travelling 
in great splendour. . 
I must say that His Majesty looked very well. In all the 
villages along the way men, women and children came running out to 
see him in his uniform .. All exclaimed that they had never before 
seen such beautiful clothes. The name and high reputation of our 
General were proclaimed aloud, the blessings of God were invoked, 
and the hopes of all the people for his long life were ., fervently 
expressed. Everyone ,execrated and hooted at the Elmina envoys 
because of the lies they had told about the General , their lawful 
master. The women shouted, "0 Lord, let this General who pleases 
us ~ow~ll come here so that we may give him proper thanks for the 
great honour he has done to our King Saij. II 
The streets were so full toat people were imploring one 
another to make room so that everyone coulO see the King. 
Vfuen I had dressed the King in his clothes, he stood in front 
of a large mirror and praised the General's generosity many times. 
He gave me his hand, and said, IIBrother, your master is my master. 
When you r eturn home, tell him that I thank him yet again for the , 
beautiful things he has sent me. I will always wear these clothes 
in the "G eneral's honour . II 
He said he preferred breeches to trousers, since the former 
showed off his calves better. 116 _ I said the General would ' 
send him some breecheS as soon as ther e was an opportunity. 
21st. 
Today His Majesty summoned me and handed to me two letters 
from the General. One was addressed to me. I translated mine 
first and then the one addressed to the King. From His Majesty's 
expression I could see that the contents of the letters did not ' 
please him. He saiel , IIWhat bad things have you been doing here 
to make the General so angry with you? You have always told me ' 
everything that hilS been in the le'tters you have received, have 
you not? . As for the return, presents of slaves, cow.s and horses, 1 ' 0 
have always said ' that I woulo. send them when you leave ' here. ,: 
Have you not told your master this in your letter~n 
116. Lit., hij wenschte Hever een korte broek 1:;e he'r???,??, 
om zijne kuiten te laten zien. 
- 67 -
I replied, "Although my master states that r am to supply him 
with full information about these matters on my return, I have in 
fact written a full account in my journal and also in the letter r 
sent with Woontman. r do not understand why my master is so dis-
satisfied with me. He has now requested that Your Majesty let ~e go. 
r would ' therefore be acting ind,irect disobedience Of his orders if 
rwer~ td remain here, as you have so often suggested r should, 
until the return of your accra. r am clearly out of favour and I 
certainly do not want my position to become w~rse. My master ts 
unlikely to believe that Your Majesty forbade me to communicate to 
him the false reports circulated by the Elminas or, indeed, that r 
was unable to leave here without your permission. r will therefore 
not stay here one day longer, and r now request answers to all the 
questions which, from time to time, r have translated and put to 
you for your consideration. r will leave here early tomorrow 
morning or, at the latest, on the morning of the day following. 
Please give ine your answers." 
To this His Majesty replied, "Very well then, Sir! Your 
master seems to think he has sent you to a king of little importance 
and not to the King of the Ashantis. . r have nothing to say to you, 
except that your master apparently does not value my friendship. 
Otherwise he would surely be more patient and would be willing to wait 
until r give you your cong~ in the proper manner. You may go 
tomorrow, but you will hear nothing further from me." 
I said I could not leave him like this, and that he could not 
mean me to depart in so abrupt a fashion. It would not be in 
, conformity with the friendship which has always existed between 
the Ashanti nation and my government. 
"Your master understands perfectly well that, when he insults 
you in his letters, he is insulting me. Go then, and make your 
report to your master." 
And so, in accordance with my masters immutable instructions, 
I held my peace and sorrowfully left the palace-
Sought an audience today, but in vain. The King sent to 
tell me that he had nothing to say to me, and that I should obey my 
orders. I pressed as hard as possible for a different answer, 
but the message came back, "Obey your master's orders. He has 
offended me deeply with thes e strict orders of his. His last 
• two letters have not pleased me." 
! said~to the messengers, "I cannot leave like this, without; my 
proper conge." ' 
But I was again told that r could go, and tha t a message 
would be sent to the General to thank him for the insult he had paid 
to the King of the Ashantis. The King's young men also assured 
me that His Majesty would not see me again and that I might leave 
Coemassie tomorrow, since that was what I desired. 
I am in great perplexity. The King wants me to stay; 
~he General my master insists that I go. What shall I do? To 
go wil l irritate the King; not to go wi ll bring me into disfavour 
.with the Government. In the circumstances the General's letter. 
is the best couns ellor. I will l eave here tomorrow without fail. 
I prefer to risk the King's displeasure than the General's. , 
- 68 -
23rd. 
In accordance with the awful 117 orde'rs repeatedly received 
from the General, and notwithstanding the refusal of the King to 
give me ~ permission, I left here today. We began our journey in 
the afternoon, because I ,vas anxious to obey the letter of 8th ' 
January which said we should not sleep another night in Coemassie. 
We had not been long on the way, however, when various officers , 
barred our passage. They asked me where I was going. 
I replied, "To Elmina." 
' ''Where is the King's token?118 Where is the King's 
sW8r~,,:1.)eo.~ 8:-_' who shOi,;cld be preceding you? Wi thout these you will 
not b~ , allowed to go beyond Assafoe. You must return." 
I went resolutely on but, on arrival at Assafoe, was opposed 
by Senior Officer Quatje Coffie, who asked to be shown the King's 
token. 
I said the King had told me I might leave. 
"No," he said. IITb,at is untrue. You are travelling 
without the King's permission. Stay here, and I will immediately 
'ask the King whether he has given you leave to go or not." 
I was thus prevented from continuing, and my boys had to be 
recalled. 
I had been waiting a good two hours when I saw approaching in 
the distance a number of senior officers being carried in litters. 
Coming up to me they asked sternly in the name of the King whY I 
was tre.V'elling on foot, whY T had left at all, and whY I had not 
waited ,until the King arranged for me to depart with the same 
dignity with which I had come. 
I s,aid the King knew all. my reasons and that I definitely 
want'ed to leave. , ,Bitt ' General Poekoe and the 3 royal linguists 
said that the King mos t earnestly desired me to return, and·would 
speak to me tomorrow about my eventual departure. I rejected 
what they said, and explained that the King had ,often told me he 
would let me go. I therefore could not wait any longer and would 
con~inueon my way. It , was no trouble to me to travel to Elmina 
oIifoot~ especially since my masterapp_eared to think I had only 
been staying in Coemassie for my own pleasure. . 
But my protests were of no avail. I was brought back to 
Coemassie, and was told that the King would see me tomorrow. I 
was then conveyed, in an extremely irritated frame of mind, to my 
old quarters. However, nothing worse has happened so far. 
24th January 1817. 
, I thought the K-i ng would summon m'e today to discuss my return 
journey, but nothi ng h&~ happened. God knows· when I will 
finally get away from here. 
25tho 
,, 'J;'hi s afternoo:J. t he King sent for me to attend an assembly of , 
the cl),i,ef officers. He asked me once more ,why I wished to leave, 
whether my master wanted to break off all ties of friendship 
'wi th Coemassie, and wlW my master should want me to go without 
waiting 'for him, the King, to give me my cong~ in the proper manner. 
117. Lit., vrezelijk. 
118, Lit., bewijs ~ 'certificate, proof'. 
- 69 -
I said my master would never be the cause of a broken 
friendship, but that he wanted me back so that he could send a, 
whi te European 1~9 to replace me. He considers a European wouUl 
promote his interests better than I can, and that I am not a 
suitable person to act as envoy between him , and the King of 
Ashanti. The longer I remain here, he believes, the more likely 
it is that ' friendship between the two parties will diminish rather 
than increase., , This is why I have been instructed to leave no 
later than two days after receiving the General's letter. If I 
do not comply with this order, my fate will be upon my own head. 
To avoid offending either His Majesty or the General, I had begun 
my journey on the appointed day, but had been'panyared' by Senior 
Officer Quatje. 
"But when you asked me if you might leave, did I not say, No? 
Did I not say t .hat you must wait until the accra has returned, 
after which I would arrange for you to be conducted to Elmina with 
a small escort?" 
I said the King had indeed used these words, .but that 'I had 
also said that I would not sleep in Coemassie from ~he coming 
Thursday onwards, because I was sure the General would not believe 
the King was in fact restraining me. "After this," I went on, 
"Your Majesty said,'Go ahead, then, and obey your master's orders.' 
When Your Majesty told me this, I thought the way was clear for me 
to depart. But Your Majesty did not mean it, and sent orders to 
Assafoe to bring me back again, and so it has come about. II, 
"Am I to understand, then, that you left here solely ,becausl3 
you feared your master, and not at all ~ecause Y9u were · lacking ~n 
respect for me?" 
"Yes," I said. "I left simply because of the direct orderFl 
I received from my mast er. If I have offended Your Majesty 
thereby, I beg your pardon. I r equest that I may be allow€d to go. 
My master is very angry with me. Please let me leave today. 
Otherwise the consequences will b e serious for me." 
The King replied, "No, I will not allow you to go. You must 
wait. Tomorrow I will send messengers to your master to find oyt 
the cause of his displeasure. When thes e messengers have ' 
returned, but not before , you will be a llowed to leave within th+,ee 
days. Do not ask me about this matt er until my men have come back, 
or we will b ecome bad friends, you and I. To have given you such 
strict instructions about l eaving h ere, your mast er must have 
something against me. Supposing I had sent one of my boys to 
• Elmina, and had then dispatched my ~ after him to t ell him tp 
pack up and go and not to spend even one more day ther e or face the 
• consequences, and the Gener a l have said? Would he not have de~ided that I had become his enemy?" 
I could make no answer. 
The King went on, "I could almost believe now that the Elminas 
spoke truly, and the General really is my enemy. Do not ask me 
about your departure until my mess engers CD me back from Elmina.'" 
There was general agreement with the King on a ll sides, and I 
~ went sorrowfully home. 
~ 26th January 1812. 
This morning the King sent for me to ask i£ I could tell hi~ 
how many muskets the General would give him for 50 preguns. I 
said I could not say, because the General would not make the s ame 
price for the King of Ashanti as for other and lesser ' persoris. 
119. Thus phrased, presumably, because Huydecoper was a mul atto. 
I European white man" might be better. 
- 70 -
28th and 29th. 
No news, 
Today the King p.ad me write ,a letter to the General. He 
asked for various quantities of guns and gunpowder, and also wanted 
to know how much the General would charge for 10 guns, and what the 
price would b~ for 10 barrels of powder. He hopes to buy a 
consid~rable quantity of both these items. but needs exact 
information as to price before he can make his caldulations. 
There was a big fire in the town today. Several houses were 
gutted. 
I have mistakG111y 'put "23rd January" on today's letter, and it 
cannot be altered. 120 . 
30th. 121 
The King has told me that his boys will definitely be leaving 
here today. I will therefore have to stay in this place for some 
30 to 3.5 days more. I asked wha"t would happen if the boys were 
not back by the stipulated time, b,ut the King dismissed my question. 
He is sure they will return as promis e~. 
31st January 1817. 
No news. 
Primo and Secunde February 1817. 
No news .. 
No news ., 
To , o.y 'amazement my boy, Myzang, r eturned today from Elmina :' 
without bringing with him either letters 'or other messages from the 
General. I am most disconsolate about this. All my fri ends 
have become my enemies. Many false reports are constantly being 
spread abroad by the Ashantis and are believed by the people here. 
But I think them of noconsequ~nce. When I am back in Elmina 
myself, I will be able to set the record straight. 
5th. 
Today being the Small Adaij, I received 9 ~ for my subsistence, 
and the Elmina envoys and I shared the gift of a sheep. 
No news yesterday and today. 
8th. .0 
This afternoon a number of houses were consumed by fir e , and 
man was burnt to death. He was on the roof of one Gfthe houses .... 0 
when the fir e sprang up all around him, and he fell through the roof 
into the ips ide of the house. 
.., 
120. Lit., tekend on 
121..[ Sic. two entri?Js for 30th January_ 
- 71 -
It was impossible, to help him, and we saw before our eyes the 
sp ectacle of a fine young man lamentably engulfed by the flames. 
The cause of this misfortune was the strong harmattan. 
300 houses were burnt down. 
9th, 10th, 11th, 12th. 
No news. 
13th. 
• 
I visited the King today. Laughing, he said to me, "We have 
offended our master by our delays. When you r each Elmina, you , 
will certainly receive correction. And if the General comes here 
I will get my share too. What will our punishment be, my frl,e~d?1I 
I matched his banter, saying that • _ • 122 the punishment 
would become worse and worse the longer I stayed here. 
The King said', "Be .patient. Everything will be all right ~ 
I am' only waiting for the r eturn of the boys I sent to our mast er 
with a view to persuading him to remit your punishment. Wheh 
they ' come back you will certainly be able to leave • • Do not be sad. 
Your master will forgive you. He now knows the whole story, and 
will r ealize that it is I who have been the cause of his 
dissatisfaction with you." 
~. 
• Today tb,e King's two hors es died. It ha s been bitterly cold h ere for the past 50 days. The air is very stimulating and 
healthy. The climate would be about equal to that of ~urope . in 
• April. For some time now I have been suffering from ch~llblalned 
hands. 
15th. 
Spoke with the King today about the beauti es of Europ e . ~e 
asked me what the whit e men thought of him. Did they picture him 
a s an ordinary man, or as a savage , who cut other men's heads off 
without cause? He went on, l aughing, "Huydecoper, when . you ge t 
back home , ask the Gener a l to repres ent me to the King (who is 
master of us all) as a right eous man. The na tions think of the' 
King of Ashanti as a bad man. You yourself can bear wi tness .that 
this is untrue. I do not punish without r eason, nor do I make war 
unl ess ther e is occasion for it. When our fri end, the General, 
• comes here , he will s ee all my actions for hims elf, and will prais e 
me in his l e tt ers to Europe . But t ell me , Huydecoper, do you 
think the General will still come her e?" 
I said ther e was no doubt of this wha t eveE. The Gener al was 
only awaiting my retur~. The King would have to l et me go, for 
the General would not come until 'he had fir s t seen me, 
"Ah, weI1," said the King. "You will be l eaving a s soon as 
the boys that I have s ent to the Gener a l come back . It will not be 
long now." 
23rd • 
• ' During these l ast days I have been asking the Ki ng if I mi ght 
prepare for my departur e , so a s to be r eady t o l eave immediate l y 
the ~ and the horn-blower arrive . They are expected within a 
day or so. But the King a l ways r epli es, " I am wai ting for the 
three boys who have gone to find out the r eason for your r ecall , 
122. Three words missing , due to a curling page . . .' 
- 72 -
and also the current price of guns and gunpowder. Until they return 
you.cannot leave." 
(Margina+note: ,i1 Received ~ sheep, this being Good Sunday.") 
24th. 
Today the Elmina envoys anQ the King's ~gtR0123 arrived but 
not the accra. They brought letters dated JanUar.y, and. .' . 
these let"t"ers I immediately reac1 out to the King. Hi~ Majesty is 
still convinoed that the General has been deceiving him and, so far 
from doing anything about the Commany palaver, is throwing dust in 
his eyes by bringing in irrelevant considerations and thus seeking 
to deceive him all the more. . Anything I ' co~ld say was useless. 
The King became ang~ and (next ·three words illegible) my master. 
I said I co~ld not defend my master with lies. ' 
Asked the King today if I and the Elmina envoys might leave. 
He became very angry and, refusing to answer, slammed the door in 
our faGeq.. mumbling that he had no · wish to keep us here ,for ever, 
and that he would let us go when it suited him. We were 
, contemptuously sent home like bad boys, with no chance to discuss 
the date of our departure further. We protested that our master 
needed us at Elmina, but the King ohose not to believe us and would 
not even look in bur direction. And so we came home in disgr~ce. 
Today the King of Dinklra arrived here, accompanied by a hu@e 
following, and was splendidly received. He has come to be present 
at the entry into the capital of the armies of Apia and ,Anianquai 
and 'also ,to defend himself against the suspicion, 'Veiced by sQm~, 
that he is an enemy to the King of Ashanti.He arrived with three 
hundred soldiers. 
The King is vexed with us today because, he says, we press him 
too hard about our departure. Unhappily we are watched wherever 
we go ' and thus canno-t rim ,away. 
27th. Feb 1817.. 
Varibus chiefs have been arriving to see the r'eview of the 
armies ,pf Apia and Amanqua.· This review will take place next 
Monday~ ; The. King has been prevaric,ating all this time about my 
dep,arture. 'He is, determined that I shall wi tness .the review of 
his armies, before I ;leave. . 
28th. 
, ,No peace today at all. From all directions chiefs, etc,., are 
arriv~ng to ' See the.armies. Everything has become very expensive, 
a bunch of plantains costing two tackoes, For some days now I 
have not possessed even tuppence 124 with which to buy food. I 
cannot reach the , King, and so cannot ask him for subsistence money. 
I am reduced to eating fried plantains, and there is great,dist~ess 
in my house. ' 'I ' ca.miot even borrow money, and yet we see plainly 
that the envoys who come regularly from Elmina are fully laden with 
presents sent by our master. ~ 
From Primo to 2nd March. 
Still people a.re pouring into the town, which is jampacked, 
Most of the newcomers are sleeping in the , streets, for no . 
accommodation ' is to be had-; 
123. -- Spelling doubtful. 
124, Lit •• een dubbelt.1e. • 
- 73 -
Today the armies ,of Apia and Amanqua arrived. There was 
shooting from 10 in the. morning until nightfall, and at least 50 
barrels -cif gunpowder must, haVe been expended. The two armies 
take~ together. number some 30 or 35 thousand. 
This morning there was a heavy thunderstorm. Hail fell the 
size . of musket,..balls. ' 1 held some of the hail-stones in my hands 
for several m;inutes before they melted. 
9th March 1817. 
Between the 4th and today there has been a continuous uproar. 
Everywhere in the suburbs there is musket fire and the making of 
custom for the dead. More than 80 people have been put to death, 
and over 100 barrels of powder shot off. There has been.no chance 
to see or speak to the ~ing. We are suffering severely from hunger 
and have no money to buy food. Fish is unobtainable, and plantains 
now cost 3 tackoes a·bunch. 
10th, 11th, 12th and 13th instant. 
No news. No audience or speech with the King. 
14th March 1817. 
Today the goods arrived, having come through Accra. Cudjo 
Abranta brought 60 panegoeden, 35 five-gallon ankers of gin and '30 
rolls of tobacco. He complained that Mr. Carillon had removed 
• several ankers of drink and had openly watered the remaining ankers 
in his own sight and in that of many other persons. I said there 
ought to be 80 pieces of ~anegoed and 40 five-gallon ankers, but 
he assured the King thate had received the goods as they were now. 
15th. 
1 learn that the King has had letters f'rom the King, but 
whether this is true 1 know not. , 1 tried to see the King this 
evening to find out the facts, ·but could not gain admission. 
Since the armies returned he has not been much seen in public. 
Summoned by the King this morning. He handed to me two 
letters from the General dat ed 15th February 1817, the contents of 
which I read out to him in translation and demanded an immediate 
• answer·. The letters referred to the King t s purchas e of powder and ' 
guns and also requested the supply, as soon as possible, of several 
thousand pounds of cotton without seeds, and also of a quantity of 
the seeds themselves. Both of these commodities the General wishes 
to buy, and he asks for fulfilment of this order within 16 days. 
The King said, "Good. I will give you my reply tomorrow. My 
thanks for the sugar,·tea, etc., though I have not seen them yet. 
:IT am glad to have the 19 barrels of gunpowder.'" 
His Majesty objected strongly to the pric es quot Qd for guns ~_ 
and powder, and tried to persuade me to fix these a t 9 ~ per barre l 
of powder and 4~ ~ for a gun. I contented myself with asking him 
tf he thought tha t the goods he was being offered had b een stolen, 
and tha t all he had to do was to send boys to Elmina to collect them • 
• His Majesty is very s a tisfied with the presents he has r ec eived. 
I asked him what ~~esEl __ w:er..e , bec_a:u.~ ~ . _when .packages 8L'e received fron --
the General, . they: are never opene d in my presence. . I to~q the . -: ~. 
King that I always knew ·. in advance what he ought to re-ce ive , because 
the lett ers gave full deta ils. But ali he would ~eply' was that . 
everything arrived ill due course, that he was v ery satisfied, and 
that he wished me ' to thank the Genera l most warIIfly. 
-74 -
17th March 1817. 
Early this morning I went to the palace with my Instructions 
and all the letters received from the General. I hoped for an 
answer to everything at once, but my visit proved valueless. liTo 
matter what I did I could not obtain entry. I went to the palace 
three times, but did not see the King on any occasion. 
At 7: o'clock this evening Jack Mars arrived with two letters 
from the General. I went at once to the King with the news, out 
had no better success than before. We had been cooling our heels 
for two hours when our patron,Poekoe, told us in the King's name 
that we must go home and come back in the morning. 
Wi th Jack Mars to the King. The let,ters were read out in 
translation and an immediate answer sought, not only to those dated 
5th instant but also to the ones dated 15th February. Mars has 
positive instructions to leave here next Friday. All the King 
would say, however, was that he would give us his answer tomorrow. 
I said thnt, if he did not answer today, he would bring me into 
~isfavour with my government again. 
He replied, "Do not worry. Mars will leave at the appointed 
time." And there was no more to be s aid. 
19th. 
Today being the Small Adaij or Good Wednesday, I called on the 
King, but could not talk business. Mars received 9 ~ and the 
Elminas and I jointly one sheep • 
. 20th • . 
Employed all possible means to persuade the King to let Jack 
Mars depart, but in vain. His Majesty assured me that Mars would 
leave tomorrow morning without fail. "What?" I said. "Is tp.is 
like the waiting Captain Scholtijs had to do?"125 But I could ~ot 
move the King. Nor can Mars simply go away, or he will be brought 
back by force as I was. Here in Coemassie one needs the patience 
of Job to stand all that happens. 
23rd. 
During these past few days I have never ceased trying to ' 
persuade the King to give me his answers so that Mars can leave. 
His Majesty has said simply that Mars may go tomorrow and that I 
may attend at the palace with all my letters and Instructions in 
order to receive the royal answers point by point. I said that it 
would once more bring me into disfavour with the General if His 
Majesty kept Mars beyond the stipulated time as he had done in tp.e 
case of Wobrtmann. But he said, "The General, for my sake, will 
not be angry any more." . 
24th March 1817. 
This morning a t 7 o'clock the King sent Mars a farewell e 
present of 9 ~ of gold and a message to me that he would summon ~s 
both straight away and give us his answers, so that Mars could leave 
tomQrrow. But still we had no success,for His Majesty did not ~n e 
fact 'E\ummon us. 
, 
125. Lit., unt ik icido tn:' 
Sclioltijs 0 
. ... 
75 -
I went to him again this evening, but he said he had no time 
to spare and that I should return tomorrow morning with Mars and 
~ bring my letters and Instructions. He will give us his replies 
then and Mars can leave immediately afterwards • 
• 
This evening Jack Mars is getting ready for his departure 
from Coemassie at 5 o'clock tomorrow morning. As ordered I went 
to see the King, taking with me all my letters and Instructions. 
He said he had no time whatever to spare, but the Mars could leave 
tomorrow and would take with him the King's decision about the ' 
supply of cotton seeds. These will have to be planted during the 
cOming rainy season. He could not at present obtain the quantity 
of cotton asked for, but would send some in a little while. He 
wished first to see if the General would meet him in the matter of 
price. 100 potinds of cotton without seeds he could not supply 
o for 1, (illegible). Cotton seeds are always hard to obtain, because their owners keep them themselves for planting out, Ten pounds of 
cotton with, the ' see.ds removed weigh only 5~ pounds, and thus a 
hundred pounds of seedless cotton will be very expensive. 
In his letter to the General the King requests that he may b,e 
) supplied from with Europe with some silver utensils, such as soup 
bowls, large baSins, etc., in exchange both for the cotton already 
delivered and for that still to be sent (~ree illegible words). 
The King's replies to the other letters and to my Instructions 
~ he will give not to Mars but later to me, and I may expect to lea~e 
Coemassie within 8 or 10 days. T learn that the Viceroy of' Elmina, 
.126 by name Aboe, . is coming here to put the King further against 
the General and to ask for .troops for an attack on English Commany. 
Anandako, Affodoe Cudjo an,d Quassie Bonkoe are enemiesto the 
General and seek, in alliance with Mr. Ni8ser, to bring all my 
good work to nothing. Affodoe Cudjo and Quassie Bonkoe ill-treat 
the common people continually in the General's name. Many 
reports of their wicked behaviour are circulated here. 
26th March. 
Jack Mars left at 5 o'clock this morning. He has been given 
9 days to get to Elmina. 
The Fanti envoys who were her sometime ago are back again~ 
They report that caboceers Amona Annoe and Aduckoe have now 
o surrendered to the King of Ashanti all claims to the subsistence 
money 127 of Annamaboe and Cape Cors, tha t the Fanti caboc eers 
o have all agreed to pay gre at sums of money to the Ashantis, and 
that the Fantis will now' serve the King,. Aduckoe, however, was not 
represented in the previous embassy and has sent men with the 
present one. He has to pay 1,000 pregunS, and if he does not the 
King will seize his person, for it was Aduckoe who said he would 
make war on the King. He has now withdrawn this boast and agrees 
to serve Ashanti. 
27th. 
o I hear that the King and sever al of his chiefs have been 
collecting cotton and that their wives are busy removing the seeds 
0 0 that I can take a quantity of pure cotton Wi t h me when I go. 
I do not know if this is true. 
126. Lit., onderkoning. 
127. Lit., kostgelden. (See n. 90 above.) 
- 76 -
28th, 29th, and 30th March 1817. 
~ve neither spoken with. the King nor picked up any news. 
31 st March 1817. 
This afternoon the two sworab ebrer~ returned who went with th~ 
~ to Elmina. A new Wassaw embassy accompanied them. .The 
accra and the othe*s have remained in Was s aw. I have not heard the 
substance of the new embassy's mission. It seems the ~ is 
going to be successful .in his attempt to settle the Wassaw affair, 
and that the present highway will link up with one running through 
Wassaw country. 
Primo April 1817. 
Nothing happened. 
Koemassie, 2nd April 1817. " 
Saij Toetoe Quamie, 
King of all the Ashantis 
To 
His good friend Governor-
General H.W. Daendels 
At 
Elmiha 
My dear friend, 
Huydecoper is now leaving and I must advis e you, my 
dear friend, tha t the matter which ' is in dispute betwe en 
English Commany and me has now rea ched such a pass tha t 
I am obliged to regard you as prejudiced and a s favoUring 
the side of the Commanys r a ther than my own. 
When my tr,oops were at Abra and ready to march on 
English Oommany arid Wassaw, you requested thro:ugh your 
envoy, Huydecoper, that I should not attack Cpmmany. If 
I did so, you said, my actions would displease you. A 
.long exchange of letters ensued, and you undertook to s ottle 
the affair on my behalf and also to collect for me th,e" 
sums of money that had to be paid. .Now all this ha s come 
to nothing, and the Commanys refuse to s erve ·me or to 
render satisfaction 'to . me. Nevertheless you, my good 
master, prefer that these people should not be attacked. 
What am I to think of you? I cannot believe tha t you 
will now dissociate yours elf from this affair, and let me 
go my own way_ 
The Wassaws are willing to serve me. Do you wish 
me to send my armies to destroy them, while letting off 
scot free those who cause daily harm tome and my people? 
In truth, this cannot be, my friend.' If the Commanys 
will not settle their palaver with me, then there is 
nothing for it but for them to t ake up arms and await the 
arrival of my armies. 
You, my good friend and master, are the chief of the 
Elminas and also their protector. Their safety is in 
your hands, The Commanys continually badger the Elminas 
and steal from them. Yet you require that I pay no ' 
at,tention to this, and ask that the CQmmanys be spared. 
This' cannot be . If the Commanys will not yield to me, 
there will soon be no Commany. 
", .' 
- 77 -
Let them be asked once again what is their final word. 
If this matter is not settled and my troops are sent against 
, Commany, there ne~d be no further talk of satisfaction. : 
Your friend wishes you, the Governor-General of the ' 
' Coast of Guinea, every blessing and all prosperi~yand 
good health. 
This is the mark X of Sa}j 
Toetoe Quamie, King of all 
the Ashantis. 
Done before me, 
'(Signed) W. Huydecoper. 
P.S. Regarding the forts which Your Excellenc.ywish:esto : 
build along the roads, I will give Your Excellency ' 
my answer. after the Commany affair has been decided. I 
do not yet know whether these forts will be to protect me 
or Commany. Soon Your Excellency will have my answer to 
everything. ' 
The above letter was most ' carefully dictated to me by the 
King today, 2nd April. He asked me if I would take it with me. 
I had brought along all the Genera'l' s letters once again, but . His 
Majesty would not consider them. So long as the CQmmaEYs, he 
said, were his mortal enemies, and so long as the General 
,refused to approve .the administration to them of their just 
punishment, he would take no decisions on the General's lette::s. 
It would have been a simple matter, said the King, for the 
General to have settled this Commany palaver. If the sums of 
money demanded were ' too ' great, they could,' after proper 
negotiation, have been reduced. It was just th~s aspect of the 
problem that he had let to the General. He would have been 
very pleased to accept whateVer the General was abl~ to collect 
and send ,to him. But now the whole affair had been dragging on 
to.o long. The Commanys were refusing even to serve him, much 
less to .render the satisfaction , due. He had frequently and 
most earnest.ly requested the General either to deal with these 
people himself or leave them to the Ashantis, but this the General 
had been unwilling to do, and had, on the contrary, sought 
forgiveness for them. In con.sequence, said the King, he had bee~ 
forced to the conclusion that the reports sp'read abroad by the 
Elminas were true, and that the General waslndeed his enemy and 
an ally of the Commanys • 
• If he had known that the General intended to keep him on a 
string in this way,128 he would not have withdrawn his armies so 
• quickly. He had always considered that h e posse~s~d.no friends, no, nor any brothers or masters, d earer to him than the Dutch. 
He had always been ready to open his h eart and mind to 1:;hi:iiii a t 
all times~ But now he could almost believe that thesebi3st 
friends of his had fail ed him, for the General's attitude in the 
Commany affair had made him very suspicious. He had writt en to 
the General in the ietter taken by Woortmann that he wished to ' 
consult with the General, and he had been hoping the General 
would visit him. The General had often said that he was wi lling 
eto do this. But now, i~ appeared, all that was past, and the 
General had only been deceiving him. 
o His Ma j esty continued, "The Wassawfl wer e willing to 
compromise, and the General instructed me to treat with them 
b ecause they wer e afraid to go to Elmina. 
128. Lit., indien hi~ te voren geweten had, de Generaal de zaak 
maar op seep touw zoude houden. 
- 78 -
They have behaved badly towards both the Elminas and me. Their 
palaver is now finished.129 Shall the obstinate and boastful 
Commanys be spared? This cannot be. If they will not serve me, 
I intend to teach them that they are not so important in this 
world that they can palaver with one of the officers of King Saij, 
much less fight against the King himself. It may be that they 
have never served me before. This is no matter. They will do 
so now, and I will force them to leave the Elminas in 'peace. 
The only reason why I am angry with the Commanys is because, 
during the Faritiwars, they continually ill-treated and imposed: 
on my village of ElmiRa. 
I cannot at present give my answers to all the General's 
letters A This must wait until the General decides either to 
withdraw altogether from the Commany palaver or to settle it on 
my behalf. Moreover, when my people were at Caap Cors, the 
English did not treat them properly when making up the accounts. 
The General must do his best to sort this matter out and arrange 
for the due payments to be forwarded to me. • 130 
The Wassaws have requested that they pay me only 60 preguns 
with remission of the remainder. This shows that they .•• 131 
3rd April 1817. 
T.he King sent for me again today to discuss his private 
trading problems. He reiterated that he could not answer the . 
Gen~ral's letters until be knew His Excellency's intentions with 
regard to the Commanys. He had appointed the collector, 132 
General Cudjo Abrantja, and his . seni'or horn-blower, officer 
KW,amie Dendo,e, to accompany me when I leave, though when this will 
be I do not yet know. 
4th and 5th. 
Have n.either seen nor spoken· to the King. No news therefore. 
6th • 
. Today was Good Sunday or the Great Adaij. Before a public 
assembly of more than two thousand people, the King handed me 
four young slaves as presents for the General, saying, "As soon 
as you reach home, give my gre etings to the master of us all and 
assure him of my continuing respect. These slaves are from my 
own household. Two of them have gold about their necks. Of 
these one is called Accra Saij and the other'Bossom (illegible) .. 
The other two slaves have no gold. The General may baptize 
these slaves if he wishes and have them bear his mark. You and 
I, Huydecoper, will speak later about my private trading. 
For yourself here is a young slave to go with the girl you 
have already received, and also 2 (illegible) 4 }t in gold and a ' 
large elephant's tusk. I present these to you in return ·for 
the friendship you have shown me and for the services you have 
rendered during your stay here." 
The Elminas have been given a boy to pass onto the chief of 
Elmina and as presents for themselves a eloth each. For their _ 
subsistence ••• "133 
129. The first three sentences in the paragraph are a rough • 
translation only. The text is most obscure. 
130. Rough translation only. Text is obscure .• 
131. The MS unaccountably breaks off here at the bottom of a 
page. On the next page another entry begins. 
132. Lit., ontvanger = .'collector of taxes', etc. . 
133._ Text_again unacco.untably break!:! off. (I suspect these 
breaks arencit lengthy.) 
- 79 -
These Elmina fellow-subjects of mine ar e the worst r a sc als -
ene could find anywhere in the world. Cudjo Akon and Akkoe 
have consistently done our cause as much harm a s they could. 
They are traitors through and through. If I had not been here, 
troo,ps would already have been sent against Commany. All the l 
Kings Officers are persuaded that the Gene~al is an enemy of 
Ashanti. ~ecause of my protests the King himself is to some 
extent on ou\ side, but his subordinates are by no means of a 
like mind. During the discussion of the Commany palaver they all 
said that, if the General was not prepared to settle it, he had no 
right to expect the King to forgive the Commanys or spare them. 
The General, they said, should stop meddling in the Commany 
pa l aver, and leave it to Ashanti to do as it 'wishes and enforce 
Commany ' ~ obedience. 
The / Ashanti chiefs also say tha t the General has deliber a t ely 
deceived the King regarding the building of the highway. ~he 
Gen er al's statement tha t he will visit Coemassie is not believe4. 
If the General wants to come here, it is first necessary tha t the 
Ashantis should be convinced tha t he . is their friend. Many 
accusations have been l evelled at the General from all sides. , 
This is not pleasant, and certainly gives no indica tion of Ashanti · 
goodwill. 
All the time the Elminas are . sending vi a the merchants 
messages to the King asking him for troops and stating that the 
General is hostile to the Ashantis but friendly to the Wassaws. 
• As proof they adduce the f act that the General s ays ·he is coming 
here but never does. They are apprehensive tha t the Dutch witl 
desert · them and cannot be r eassured about this. 
7th April 1817 . 
From morning until night I hav e b een employing ev er y means 
a t my disposa l to persuade the King to let me leave here , but in 
va i n. He s ays he will not l et me go until his own business 
ma tters ar e in order . In consequenc e I cannot expect . to. leave 
until some 8 days from today . 
I c an s.ee ver y easily through a ll Hi s Ma j esty's subteFfuge :;; . 
One of his s ecretari es, who is a lso hi s unc l e and is named . 
Aquassi e Kankema , ha s a l ways been most loyal to the Gener al. 
He is a very wis e old man and was the fir s t fri end we made her e
I have not dar ed to ment ion his nane before bec aus e Co emas sie r 
• politios ar e s o differ ent fr om our own. This man was the only memb er of t he court who would speak against t he Elminas in the 
King ' s pres enc e and denounce ' t heir sta t ement s for the li es they 
wer e . He was never able t o conv i nce t he najority, it i s true, 
but I cannot f ail to prai se hin f or the good opini on he has of 
our government and fo r t he way i n which he has def ended us. I 
have made him the General 's commercial agent here because of hi s 
loyal ty and a l s o b ecause of hi s c l ose re l ati onship to t he Ki ng. 
No t hi ng happened. Di d not see the King. 
9th April 1817. 
For t he who l e day I have been in conference with ~he King, . 
discuss~ his trading ventures. The values he places on guns, 
powder , e t c ., are quite unacceptable. He has been trying to ' 
- 80 -
bludgeon me into agreeing to a price of 4 t for a gun and 12 t ~or 
a barrel of powder worth 1 (illegible) 12. He makes it out t~at 
it will be my fault if these prices are not accepted. I rejected . 
what he said absolutely, and asked if he thought I was foolish 
enough to believe I had' the power to fix prices in this way. But 
despite all my arguments he intends to hold firm, and says that . if 
the General will not sell him guns at 4 t and barrels of 
'1000-negro-cartridges '1 34 at· the value of 1 (illegible), there 
will be little trading done b~tween the Dutch and Ashanti. 
14th. 
During these last days I have lost no opportunity of speaking 
to the King or of trying to persuade him to issue the necessary , 
orders for me to leave tonight, but to no avail. I was told I 
could not go because the Assin and AssiKoema armies are today . 
passing before His Majesty in review, and he therefore had no time 
to speak to me on business. And so I had to return home, angrY 
and disconsolate. This afternoon I was obliged to watch the. 
armies shooting off their muskets. Between three and four 
thousand men took part. I could see no point in the display, 
except insofar as it demonstrated that the King of the Ashantis 
is indeed a mighty king. 
The day before yesterday the Was saw palaver was settled. 
Since the General has not chosen to intervene, .the King has 
decided that the Wassaws must pay 400 preguns only, instead of 
the 190 (illegible) originally demanded. If the Wassaws refuse 
to agree to this sum, they will lose their heads. 
15th and 16th April. 
Nb news. Tried all day to see the King, but there was no 
chance of it. The rains have been falling heavily for 8 or 9 
days now, with frequent thunder-storms. 
17th. 
This mo~ning the King had me write a letter to the General, 
He will only accept guns at 4 t each and 1 (illegible), and then 
only if each barrel contains 1000 negro cartridges. 135 I told 
the King that these prices are meaningless. Guns are 8 t at 
Elmina and 1 (illegible) barrels go fOr 1 (illegible) 10. But 
he became angry with me because I refused to go surety for him. 
He is convinced the General will agree to these prices. 
I also asked the King to take a decision about the 
subsistence money which has long been paid to the King of Akkim, 
but which has now been transferred to the Ashantis by right of 
conquest. If this matter is not settled the Ashantis will not 
be able to trade at Accra with the Dutch, but only with the 
English and Danes. I pointed out that, strictly speaking, only 
the SUbsistence monies of Dinkira, Elmina, etc., had been 
surrendered to His Majesty. 
Did not speak with the King. • 
• 
Today I prepared myself to leave Coemassie this evening, but 
the King prevented me. 
llJ4.L1t., kruid van 1000 ne€jor. (See n. 135.) 
1,35. Lit., mids ieder vatje inhoud 1000 neger patroonen. 
- 81 -
He claimed he wanted to send some men to the General to be trained 
ns carpenters and smiths (Three words missing). Consequently I 
~ , ll not be able to leave until the 22nd instant. 
t " 
Received the following farewell ,gifts: 
Amanquatia 4 ~ 
Poekoe 5 " 
Quatje Coffie 4 II 
Cudjo Akroe kroewa 4 11 
Adoe Saij 2 II 
Otie 2 " 
, Jouw Kokroko, 1 cloth and 1 pig 
From the King himself 9 " 
Owoesoe Quantabisa, 1 cloth 
(illegible) 1,14 ~ 136 
Todt;l.y the King placed 3 boys in my charge. Two are 
destined to be carpenters and One a smith. His Majesty said he 
would later send; more boys who ' would serve the General at table, 
and learn how ,to clean ,silYE:lr, glassware, plates, ,etc. 
22nd. 
Today' the King's ·finaJ.;permission was granted for me to leave. 
First, however, I nna. my party had to swear once more that the 
General was a gOOd friend to the King and would never desert him 
or combine with other nations against him in war;,-- that the 
General, for the King's would forgive the ' Elminas for the lies 
they had told about him ,anI, though he might punish them individ-
ually, ' that he would not fight them or destroy their town with , 
his cannon, since this would .make the Ashantis very angry. 
When these oaths had be en sworn, some malabours brought out a 
kind of Bible, and I had to kiss this book three times 137 to 
prove to the King that the General was truly his friend. 
Occasie , 22nd A~~l, in the eveping. 
Left Coemassie at 5 o'clock this evening and have stopped 
here to r est for the night. From Coemassie to this place the 
highwny is completely overgrown. The trees have not yet been cut 
down and the pathway has not been l evel l ed. 
On my departure from Coemassie the King gave me a salute of 
15 guns (the gunfire having to compete with a thunderstorm). lie 
said that, when we reach Elmina, the Gener a ] must honour us with 
a similar number of rounds, for this will show he really is a 
friend to the King of the Ashantis. He has given me as escort, 
and also to · act l ater for him in the pa l avering with the Commanys, 
two officers named Cudjo Abranta and Quami e Dendoe, ac compani ed 
by a tjutjus. 138 He wishes to hear fro m this man's very mouth 
whether the Commanys will finally yi e ld to him or not. 
o 
Adiabin, 23rd April. 
o After waiting in vain for my escort I l ef t Occas i e today and 
will stay the night her e . I understand the escort l eft Coemassie 
this morning. 
""' ,. 
136. The addition of t hi s column l eads one to suppose that 
1 (illegible ) a 16 ~. 
137. Guesswork. The next r eads: en mij drie mal en op deze ??? slaar: 
138. Cri ers. 
- 82 -
The highway from Occasie to here is very bad. IndG2d, 
practically nothing has been done to it. There are numerous 
large trees and the pathway has not been levelled at all. It 
seems, therefore, that the frequent reports made to the King by 
the overseer for this section were false. 
The chief .of tb.i~ . place has cleared very well the small 
stretch of the -highway that p.e was responsible for. The roots, 
however, are still in the ground and the surface has not yet been 
made smooth. •. This chief is at present at Coemassie. 
Assanssie. 146 24th Ap:dl1817i 
I waited at Adiabin for . the officers, but with no result. I 
therefore set out on my journey again. - This village, where I 
arrived this evening, is very neat and pretty. Between Adiabin-
and here the highway has been partly cut through, though the 
stumps and roots are growing again fast. . On the way we noticed ' 
three small and wretched villages, all of which accepted gold and 
promised to prepare for the highway by cutting dewn trees and 
reeting out stumps, but the task has clearly been beyond them. 
The inhabitants consist mestly of old women. 
We crossed three streams today, all -cif which ran most 
dangerously. - They must be very bad in the rainy season. Little 
rain has f?llen here yet and the track is very dirty. 
, 
Assikan~sie,25th. 
Left Assanssie 139 this morning early, and reached here, 
having passed through three villages which hardly deserved the 
name. In several pls.ces the highway is fairly good, despite the 
roets and tree-stu:mps that still remain. . There are many ruts in 
the _~rack, some of ,them five feet deep. Thi~ is a very small 
village, containing possibly 20 peop~e. 
Ajankremoe,26th April 1817. 
Left, Assikanssie very early this morning and, after passing 
through four wretched villages, arrived at this place, which is 
equally miserable. We are already beginning to sense the onset 
of famine. The countless merchants who have passe~ this way .. 
have stripped the forest bare. I have just paid 2 t~ckees of 
gold for a bunch of bananas. 
" ., ' . 
'Ilhe highway from Assikanssie to :here i .s very bad indeed, ano. 
the presence of more than 100 gold-mining pits makes it very 
dangereus. It is impossible to imagine that the inhabitants .of 
these villages are capable .of censtructing their share o·f the 
highway properly. ._ The .overseers have shamefully deceived the 
King. ' His Majesty has been under the .impressien that the highwa;Y 
in these parts was mere or less ready for use. He asked me te ' 
make .. _a close inspection of it, and send by report back 'wi th - -
Quamie Dendoe. (This ' officerand his ' companionshav:e ,not -caught 
up yet.) , 
~ '. .. 
Bettiassie. 27th April 1817. 
Between Ajankremoe and this village the road has been ' cleared 
.of creepers, but the trees have net yet been cut dbwn. Close te 
the village itself a few trees have been felled, .but this has not 
improved the highway. . 
. . ,... ,., " ...... " 
We passed three huts belenging ts the King's hunters • 
." . 
- 83 
Yesterday my bearers complained strongly that they were tired, 
and so I did not cqntinue the journey. The delay will not only 
benefit my men, but will enable the missing officers to catch 
me up. 
Insadjusie, 29th April 1817. 
Between Bettiasie and here not a tree has been cut down. The 
fallen leaves have been swept to one side, but otherwise no work 
has been done on the highwny at all. Yet the overseer for this 
section gave us to understand in Coemassie that the track had been 
cut through and the road cleared. ~he King is being kept in 
complete ignorance of what is really happening. The caboceer 
or chief of this place has made a very good job of one part of ,his 
sector. He seems to be the only overseer who hns done the work 
properly. 
Famine reigns in these parts also. 
The officers whom the King gave me for an escort have still 
not arrived. I will therefore have to wait here for them for 
three or four days. I can proceed no further than here unless 
I have these men with me. 
30th April 1817. 
The officers have still not arrived. No news, except' that 
we are suffering somewhat from hunger. The caboceer and his 
'secretary'140 have presented me with two bunches of bananas ~d 
6 tackoe~ of gold. ' 
1st May 1817. 
This evening one of the officers, Quamie Dendoe, arrived. 
Cudjo Abratja and the ~jutjuo, however, have not come yet. I am 
obliged to wait, because without these men I can go no further. 
Sent a letter to the General by express .. to"...inf. orrn him of my \ 
progress. 
I learn that the Generai has sent someone to Coemassie. 
This man avoided meeting me by going through AssiJ:!... He has 
• already arrived at Coemassie • 
3rd. 
The letter I wrote yesterday has been brought back. This 
is due to Cudjo Akon. 141 The chief of this place has forced 
me to tear the letter up and let the express messenger go on 
without it. He says he is carrying out the orders of the King. 
which are that I must not be permitted to forward any letters or 
writings of any kind. However much I might try to convince him 
that there was no harm in any of my letters, he was not to let me 
write any, not even a few lines. Akon has often said openly 
that writing is a dangerous business and must be discouraged. 
Cudjo Abranta 142 has not arrived yet • 
• 
Today the King's tjutjuo arrived here. 
140. Lit., secretaris t In Dutch, sometimes ~ 'town clerk'. 
141. Spelling doubtful. 
142 •. Alternative spelling. 
- 84 -
~th o.nd 6th. 
None.w~~ Cudjo Abro.ntja ho.s not come yet. 
7th. 
Tb-is afternoon the, : coll~G~or o,r the King of Ashanti' s 
subsistence monies 143 appeared. At Accra fo~t, when he 
arrives to oollect subsistence money, he is accus,tomed to 
receiving a salute of seven guns, and he therefore expects to ~e 
accorded the saae honour when he reaches Elmina. We are leaving 
here on the 10th instant. We 'o.re suffering badly from hunger, 
anq cannot even buy bananas. 
No news. 
9th May. 
Our whole oompany is now asse~bled and we will be ready 
tomorrow to shake the dust of this famine-stricken village from 
o'U+"shoes, 
Inbroebajim. 10th May, 
. ; , 
This , morn~ng we lett Insadjusie and on reaching here found 
that ' we ' haq. no choice but to sleep in the bush, This place is 
nam~das written above. Along the highway froo Insadjusie to 
here the trees have been stripped but none has been cut down. 
The track is v~;y bad. 
B~epofoko. 11th Ma~. 
, ; ~' Fr9TIl Inbroebajil!l to here the tro.ck is as bo.(1 as it was 
yest. ~r.? :,E;W . , ' .' 
A~ain w~ ha~ to sleep in the bush. 
, ' 
C~~:~,k?e? ,12th .May. 
,. , ~oday we reached the first Wassaw villag8. It is very small. 
The inhri,bitants are hO!3tile to Ashantis and bnrely consented to , 
Elel:),. " US sqme oant,1,ne,s t 1{nou~h the trees he:r;eabouts are heavily 
1?4~:p. " ~i th them~ . , 
~ gooC!. hO\1r Qe~ore we reached here the highway finally gave 
out, 
, ," .. ' '" 
13th. 
~oqay is 'evil Tuesday\144 for the Ashantis, and all my 
attempt~ to get them moving were unsuccessful, After much 
troub;Le we ' wer~ aple to persuade the inhabitants to sell us some 
__~ a~Cj.:q~s t . No ~resents have b,een given us by the Wasse,ws, 
Prg:ssie, 14thMa~. 
, " • Jo' "'- ', ' , , 
We were on the march to'day from very early this morning until 
5 0' clock tonight, keeping to the made. tt'ack. This track is " 
very llarq on the feet, but very smooth. Indeed it is a bet~er 
road for horses than tne one from Coemassie to Cair~koe. : The 
trees here are all very small and can be cleared o.way eo.sily. 
( , ' 
143. ~it •• kostgel,, d;x en,  
1~~ :f"H" de s~:f1~en ~in6sdag, 
- 85 -
The ground, moreover, is uniformly fl a t. This village has been 
newly built and so there is no food to be bought. The large 
trees have been stripped and the saplings are :qot })eari~gy:et • 
-' •• • ~¥ . '~ ...... , ., • "'.'- • .'  ~.' .. 
Doemambd,' -12fh~ ' May"'1817' ~ 
From Prassie :to here the track is unmade and. very bad. I 
have been on ny feet since Cairekoe and they are now sore and 
swollen. Not a bunch of bananas can be had at this plac e , and 
the Den are eating unripe paw-paws. We arrived here very late 
because we had so much trouble crossing the River Bossum Pra. 
I am told this river is full of rocks, and one cannot .travel down 
it to the coast in a boat. 
Bandoe, 16th. 
From Doemamba to here is a considerable journey. " It took 
. us at least four hoUrs. I was offered a night's rest .· a t 
Dadiessie, but declined this with thanks. Twice we had to swim, 
which delayed us. The rainy season is beginning to make itself 
felt in these parts~ 
The King's envqys have still not arrived. If it' had not 
been for these people, I would have been home 10 or 12 .days ago~ 
No news. Have :not set eyes on the caboce~rs of this place. 
Great Commany, 18th Jlliay 1817. 
From Bandoe to here is a very long way by a very poqrtrack. 
After we had been waiting here an hour the two offic'ers 
finally caught us up ; They will leave with us immediate~y fQr 
Elmina. . 
o 
• 
- G6 -
Names of the villages between the River Bosumpra and the 
King's capital: 
No. 
1. Para sue 
2. Tjetjewerrij 
3. Numiassue 
4. il.padja 
5. il.to biawa sue These are all 
6. Bekkwamin Assin villages 
7. il.ssarmanij 
8. il.nzang (chief village) 
9. .Akkrofrome 
10. Monzaij 
11. Quissa 
12. Fommena 
13. . Dompo il.ssie 
14. Tjabossu 
15. . Embedoema 
1E? Essamie Erikwanta if 
17~ Dottie sue 
18. .Akkankewa Assie 
19. Adedewa Assie 
20. Samfoe 
21. Kroaba (?Kroala) Ashanti 
22. Edjun Assie villages 
23. Amou affoe 
24. Adjuabinba 
25. Assumandja 
26~ Biepo sue 
27. Adjumamoe 
28. Adoenkoe 
29. Sakkraka 
30. Adiabin 
31. Di (?De) Dossuwa 
32. Konkermassie 
33. Adassie 
34. Enkankewa assie 
35. Okasie 
36. Affafar (?Assafar) heein 
37. Koemassie (the King's capital) 
(List of pr esents received by W. Huydecoper.) 
(List of presents received by Sjt. Woortman.) 
. " 
. 
~ 87 -
r' • • 1._ . ,,- ,,-, :,  i 
LIST OF PRESENTS 
\ 
: 
" 
F ' _,_· <H .. -...... ,-- .. ... 
MONTH 
DAY NAMES OF PERSONS FROM 
om 
AND • q WHOM PRESENTS RECEIVED . m·,..; 
('-OLD 
• (J)cO . m 
m•  m PI .d+> (J) m•  ()~ ~ 
~ bD (J) S () 
0 ''''; §j cO ~~ . ill . . (1j. 0 p..., ()) "- ~. ~ E-l  
1816 At Abra. Received . 
MAY : from: 
6 Apia (for a sheep) - - - - - - , 3 -
, " Barriekie , - - 1 - - - ,'  - -
" Jouw Kokroko - - '1 2 2 - . .." 
If Djesie ' , ;,  - - 1 - - -
-
, 2 -
. n ,· Awarrie , : , - - - - - ~ ~ -." -Cudjo apan~ij - - - - - - ' 1 -
: 
: ! 
I - - 3 2 2 - ~ -
, ; 
! : I 
At : Adiabin.: , , . ,\  
21 Ow@esoe ~uanta 
~iesa Chief) - - 1 - 10 - ~ -
i 
At Koemasie. 
i 
25 From the King 1 1 1 hoo ~OO 4 14 -
27 General Poekoe - - - 25 20 _ i ? -
11 Ge~erai Adoematta - - 1 10 10 - ! 4~ I 
11 Quacoe lpiepiem - - - - 6 - , 1 - I 
11 Apia's wife - - - - 2 - 1 -
D 28 Saij Cudjo and Saij - - - - 6 - . 2 -Jouw 
I 
" Assiantijn - - - - 4 - '+ -
29 Qua tje Coffie (General) - - 1 20 10 - 8 - : 
~ 
30 Adjuwa pienaman and - - - - 4 - 1, -
Ecoea .. .--
~ 
11 Ado emma - - 1 8 10 - 8 -
If Jouwa Odifi ee - - 1 - 10 - Q _. 
" Quacoe pon - - - - 2 - 1 -
" Bekko Saij ( Chi ef) - - - 20 20 - ~ -
" NUaff er - - - - 4 - 1 -
11 Ado e - - - - 6 - -- 1 -" Koko - - - 4 1 - I 
Carry forward 1 1 9 h85 33 0 8 1~ -
- 88 -
DATES NAMES G 0 L D 
• 
ot:I~  
 
o 
o 
Brought forward 1 2 13 247 526 13 7 4 
1816 
JUNE 8 Otjir;ie 12 '3 
n Adoe nunkrie 1 4 
" Debbera Cudjo 6 1 4 ' 
" Assiantijn 4 1 4 
" Ponwarrij 6 8 -:I 4 
It Apia ' 6 4 
n Kbrrantirmna 12 1 
10 ' Cobbi~ . 4 1~ 
I, Ankra' 10 4 
" Attawla Kuisie : 4 1 
" Fossu~ : I 10 3 
" Adoe toet~e ." ! 4 1~ , 
h Dendoe bi~ . . 6 4 1 -
11 Owoesoe Ackotia 10 3; 
13 Oduro : i ! 10 6 : 
I' Tando 6 1: 4 
15 The King , 1 
17 Amanquatia 1 40 20 9 ! 
II Coffi~ Sr~m 6 1 1 
30 O<;lifi¢e . 6 1 4 
J 
JULY ' 5 Jouw $ekkerij 10 6 : 
\I . Kwadoe ; 2 
25 Quamin Dendoe 2 1 
t1 Aboadje 3 1 
OCT E? . Boatin 20 1 -
'. 
SEp1 : 21 From the King , 2 -
, : 1 2 15 331 671 20 1 4 c 
~~~~~~--------,-!-~ ------~~~--~--~~--~~--~ i i 
(signed) W. HUydecoper .• 
1. SiG. ~he September: enti'y ha s been added after the October one. 
- 89 -
N. B. Also received at various times from the King 1 &e 
9 ~ and 3 or 4 sheep, and from Jouw Kokroko 3 ~ gold and 1 sheep. 
Gold 1 12 t 
(signed) W. Huydecoper. 
Serjeant Woortman received in presents from the King 
1 as 2 ~ 
(added later) 
Woortman, for departure 9 t 
The men 1 as 12 ~ 
Departure 6 ~ 
My boys 9 ~ 
1st January 1817. Received as pres ents for the New Yea+ 
1 as 2 t, 1 sheep and 16 yams. 
On 5th February received for sUbsistence 9 ~ and ~ sheep. 
23rd Feb. ~ sheep. 
19th March ~ do. 
" March as a present from the King 9 ~. 
24th April. Received for my departure 1 sheep, 1 tusk, 
2 as 4 ~ gold, 1 tiger skin, 1 stool with cushions and 1 cloth. 
20th April 1817. Received fro m the King 9 ~, 
from others 1 - 14 
":) ae2 - 7 
Insadjusue , 30th April 1817. From the Chi ef and his 
linguist, 6 t ackS.