BEFORE TEE EI2s'G. 
67 
CHAPTER XIII. 
BEFORE THE KING. 
A VIOLENT thunderstorm during the night, depriving us 
of sleep, and obliging us to sit close together in the 
centre of our lonely hut, greatly chilled the sanguine 
hope of the past day. 
But in the early morning the arrival of a sheep and 
yams from the king shewed us he felt some interest in 
us, and as we had fasted long, this was indeed a welcome 
gift. Two bottles of sweet liquor came later on in the 
day. Our next incident was a visit to an adjoining 
village (Duru by name), where a number of chiefs, richly 
attired and covered with ornaments, waited to receive us. 
We made our obeisance to this semi-circle of dignitaries, 
and then sat on chairs provided for us. The whole com- 
pany at once rose to return our salutations, on which our 
people humbly remarked, " This is the nobility of Coo- 
massie." This introductory ceremony completed, the 
grandees went into a house, and commanded us to follow. 
During their long conference, we stood waiting till they 
permitted us to be seated. We were then addressed by 
one of them in the following words : — 
Adu Bofo has sent you to the king. He says you are 
good men — translate to us this letter." He then produced 
from a cloth, in which it had been carefully wrapped, an 
open German letter addressed to us, endorsed on the 
outside, " Shew this letter to no one, or it will cost the 
bearer his life." It was from David Asante, a native mis- 
