Coast Castle, and no decision on their cases has been given.

"At the present rate of advance the war will be over before anything is decided about them. Perhaps this may be the General's object.* The sentences have of themselves produced a great effect."

*This was in fact so. It is stated in a despatch of about this date.

SURPRISES A CONVOY-THE ATTACK UPON BORBORASSI
-CAPTAIN NICOL'S DEATH.

ONE of the most curious results of the erratic nature of the postal service from the Gold Coast was this. It is now almost impossible to convince anyone that we were not surprised, or something very like surprised at

Amoaful. The reason is very simple. The more

important events were telegraphed, or in some way or other sent home as rapidly as possible. The intermediate ones which led up to them, did not arrive till the intense interest of fresh events had caused these minor matters not to receive attention.

That we were in no sense surprised the next extracts prove abundantly. The first was, as will be seen, in the post and unalterable, five days before the attack at Amoaful. In it the general locality is accurately defined. In the subsequent letter, two days later, the site of the coming fight is elaborately described. I think I am not wrong in stating that Captain Buller, as head of the

intelligence department, had informed Sir Garnet before we left the Prah, that Amoaful would be the site of the coming fight, and that the Ashantees would, if beaten there, make a serious resistance once more, and once only, before we entered Coomassie. For the rest the letters speak for themselves.

"FOMMANAH, Jan. 25th, Midnight.

"The outposts are pushed on as far as the Bahrein River. The King of Adansi, whose palace is now occupied by Sir Garnet Wolseley and the staff, is known to be lurking about, but he cannot be in very great force, and we shall probably look him up in a day or two. If any important fight takes place it will probably be about twelve miles from Coomassie. They can hardly get their troops together nearer, and they would not have a bad position about there. We ought to be there in about five days or sooner.

"This station and the whole country on this side of the Adansi Hills are most healthy."

66 'FOMMANAH, Jan. 27th.

"We have had a slight brush with the Ashantees, chiefly important as showing that they are making efforts to collect their army again, and that the success of our negotiations is likely to depend on the rapidity with which we are able to advance. I mentioned to you at the close of my telegraphic message by last mail that it was intended to beat up the quarters of a certain chief of Adansi who was known to be prowling about; the said

THE ATTACK ON ATOBIASI.

311

chief having the strong inducement for action which is afforded by the fact that the General and his staff are in full occupation of his palace at Fommanah.

"It had been ascertained by our scouts that some force -apparently a considerable one-lay to the west, towards the Wassaw and Denkerah road, thus threatening our left on the advance. A portion of this force was known to be in occupation of Atobiasi. There is a certain road-that which I have above spoken of as the Denkerah and Wassaw road-which is marked in your home maps" (i.e., on the maps in use in England previous to the corrections made in consequence of the expedition) "as slowly converging with the main road towards Coomassie. According to the best of our belief at present, the two in fact meet at a point a little north of Becwa or Becqua (the Bequoi of the old map *), which is in reality about a mile west of Amoaful. The whole line of villages - Humassie, Atobiasi, Ambimbingua-is thus in reality from a mile to two miles distant from the main road; not twelve or thirteen as it is represented in the map. A trumpet at Becqua,' say the scouts, 'is heard at Amoaful.'

"The force of scouts which was to lead the attack on Atobiasi the following day slept on the evening of the 25th in a cleared and entrenched space at Kiang Booasu. Along the Bahrein River, were Russell's regiment and Rait's Artillery. In the morning of the 26th the Naval Brigade and two companies of the Rifles were pushed

*It must be remembered that all these names are merely the result of English phonetic spelling. There is no written Fantee character.

out in support of the native regiment in case of accidents. Long, however, before their arrival within gun-shot, the whole affair was settled. The scouts crept stealthily up to the village, which was found to be still occupied, but in much less considerable force than had previously been the case. The main body of those who had held it, and who are variously estimated at 500 or 1,000 men, had in fact deserted the place, and only about 50 were left in occupation. In a short time the scouts had nearly surrounded them, and rushed in as usual, completely surprising our careless foe. The Ashantees, taken utterly unawares, bolted out of the village, leaving some arms behind, and abandoning it altogether. Only a stray shot or two came from them at all in the village; and it was not till they gained rising ground outside to the west that they commenced a pretty brisk fire from the bush. This was, however, soon silenced by our men, who chased them for half a mile or more. Two Ashantees were killed in the village. The number left in the bush is as usual very uncertain.

"Two prisoners were made, one of them being the head scout of the King of Adansi, a man against whom our scouts had a special grudge. They first met with him in the present campaign at Essiaman, when that village was captured; then again at the time when the Adansi Hills were seized; and all along he has made himself so very conspicuous on the opposite side, that they had sworn to catch him. I fear, however, that, despite their acknowledgment of his skill, no very generous feeling as against a worthy rival