GOLD COAST COCOA FARMERS 37 



Cortez, the conqueror of Mexico, sent specimens of 

 cocoa to his royal master, Charles V. of Spain. Spain 

 was the first country to manufacture cocoa, and to her, 

 therefore, belongs the honour of introducing cocoa 

 to the civilized world. 



CHAPTER VII 



GOLD COAST COCOA FARMERS 



PUT on your helmets so that you can lean over the 

 verandah without getting sunstroke, and look at the 

 people who throng the village highway through 

 Nsawam. They are the country relations of the 

 natives we met in Accra; they are dressed in similar 

 costumes to those worn by the blacks we have been 

 meeting daily since we landed, they follow similar 

 customs, and live on the same kind of chop. 



The two principal tribes among the inhabitants of 

 the Gold Coast are the Fantis and the Ashantis. 

 There are several other tribes, who have played and 

 are playing an important part in the history of the 

 country, but they are minor elements as regards 

 numerical strength. 



Most of the natives you are now looking at here 

 in Nsawam are Fantis, but mingling with the crowd 

 there are several Ga folk, who are not of Fanti origin. 



The Fantis form the bulk of the Colony's popula- 

 tion; the Ashantis predominate in the dependency 

 which bears their name. The homelands of the 

 smaller tribes are along the coast; the Gas, for 

 instance, are installed in the coast country round 

 Accra, and for this reason they are often called " Accra 

 people." 



