346 
MISSION TO ASHANTEE. 
with that of the m'ts f\nd manners. The genius of the Accra Ian- 
giiage differing the most essentially from that of the Ashantee ot 
Fantee, examples from both will be instanced for illustration. I 
have principally consulted two gentlemen, natives of the country, 
but educated in Europe : the one resident between forty and fifty 
years ; the other, who has a respectable knowledge of the grammar 
of the English and French languages, returned from England 
about ten years back, and both are as fluent as the Negroes in the 
Fantee and Accra, the latter being their vernacular tongue. 
Impressed with the ingenious hypothesis of the learned author 
of the Diversions of Purley, my first care has been to investigate 
th§ particles of the Fantee and Accra, considering the languages 
of uncivihsed pepplej to be least advai^epd or removed from the 
their an^agy of sounds is sometimes so disfigured in tlie different dialects of the same 
tongue, as not to be distinguishable ; for the tribes into which a nation is divided, often 
designate the same objects by words altogether heterogeneous. Hence it follows, that we 
are asily mistaken, if, neglecting the study of the inflexions, and consulting only the 
roots, for instance the words which designate the moon, sky, water, and earth, we decide 
on the absolute differences of two idioms from the simple want of resemblance in sounds." 
Humboldt's Personal Narrative, vol. iji. ^. 25.1. 
I am gratified to find, since my return to England, and consequent perusal of the 
Congo publication, that my investigations of these languages have happened to be con- 
sonant with the instrucfeioHs of Mr. Marsden in his letter to Captain Tuckey, as appears 
from the following extract. " Where a longer residence admits of freer intercourse, and 
a mfa,ns^ of acquiring a niore perfect knowledge of the knguage, it will be desirable, 
besidps atteropting to fill up the larger vocabulary, that pains should be taken to examine 
its grammatical structure, and to ascertain, for instance, how the nominative and sub- 
junctive words in a sentence are placed with respect to the verb ; how the adjective with 
regard to the substantiv€ ; how plurals and degrees of comparison are forraed ; whether 
there is any kind of inflexion or variatipn. pf syllables of the same, wqrcj, according teat? 
position in the sentence and connection with other words,; whether the prpnouns personal 
vary according to the rank or sex of the person addressing or person addressed ; and 
whether they ai^§ incprpi^gatedj wit]i .th% verb ; and to. observe any other pecuHarities of 
idipiii tlj^t t]i<^ laugi^ag^ may present; noting the degree of softness,, harshness, indis,-. 
