MISSION TO ASHANTEE. 
45 
the glass was broken ; Mr. James expressed his regret, and offered 
to procure more ; the King replied, " the path we had come was 
bad and overgrown, that we had many people to look after and 
waved our excuses with superior courtesy. He desired the linguists 
to say, " this shewed him that the English were a great people, 
that they wished to be friends with him, to be as one with the 
Ashantees ; that this made him much pleasure to see, (and to 
repeat again and again,) " that he thanked the King of England, 
the Governor at Cape Coast, and the officers who brought the 
presents much, very much/' He made very liberal presents of 
liquor to our people, and delivered the distinct presents to his four 
principal caboceers in our sight. 
We learned from Quashie, the Accra linguist, the favourable 
reports he had collected through his intimacy with some of the 
principal men. All the caboceers, he said, had thought we had 
come for bad, to spy the country ; the King thought so too a little, 
but much fetish was made, and all shewed that we meant well, and 
now the King thought so ; the mulatto sent by General Daendels, 
directly after Mr. Hydecoper, and who arrived just before us, had 
sent to the King for a pass to go back, and the King told him, that 
he would give him this message, " that the King had thought to do 
good to the Dutch, but now he sees their white mens faces,, he 
should do good ta the English.'" This mulatto man (who is not in 
the service, but a free man of Elmina town) visited us afterwards, 
and his complaints and sentiments confirmed these reports in our 
favour. 
On "Wednesday morning the King's sisters (one the eaboceer of 
the largest Ashantee town near the frontier) paid us a visit of 
ceremony, and retired to receive our's in return ; their manners 
were courteous and dignified, and they were handed with a sur- 
prising pohteness by the captains in attendance. 
