The Express.
London, England, 1862-10-15 00:00:00

DAHOMIAN Araocznas.

The Church Missionary Society have received
from the Governor of Lagos a report by the commander of
her Majesty's ship Griffin, at Little Popo, containing the
substance of a statement mods to him there on the sth of
August by Mr. Euschart, a Dutch merchant of property,
who had just returned to Popo from a forced visit to
Dahomey. The narrative is in the form of a diary, of which
the following is an extract :
"July s.—He [Mr. Euschart] was brought to the market•
place, where he was told many people had been killed the
night before. He first saw the body of Mr. William Doherty
(a Sierra Leone man), late • missionary and church
catechist at Ishagga. The body was crucified against a
large tree, one nail through the forehead, one through the
heart, and one through each hand and foot; the left
arm was bent, and • large cotton umbrella in the grasp.
He was then taken to the market, where the King was
seated on • raised platform, from which be was talking to
the people much ' war palaver,' and promising them an
attack upon Abbeokuta in November. Cowries, cloth, and
rum were then distributed. Ia front of the marketplace
rows of human heads, fresh and gory, were range!, and the
whole place was saturated with blood, the heads evidently
belonging to some of the 'shows prisoners who had been
killed during the night, after having been Wanted in the
most frightful manner.
" Until July 10th Mr. Enechart was ordered to remain
quiet in has house, and not to move or look out after sun.
down.

"July 10.—The ground shook violently--evidently, from
the date, the effect of the earthquake felt at Accra. Mr.
Euschart was at once brought to the market-place, where
he found the King again seated on the relied platform,
surrounded by Amazons ; the King told him that the
ground shaking was his father's spirit, complaining that
' customs were not made proper.' Three Ishagga chiefs
were then brought before the King, and told they were to
go and tell his father that ' customs should be better than
ever.' Each chief was then given a bottle of rum and a
head of cowries, and then decapitated. Twenty-four men
were then brought out, bound in baskets, with their heads
just showing out, and placed on the platform in front of
the King; they. were then thrown down to the people, who
were dancing, singing, and yelling below ; as each man was
thrown down, he was seized and beheaded, the beads being
piled in one heap and the bodies in another ' • every man
who caught a victim and cut off the head received one head
of cowries (about 25.). After all were killed, Mr. Euschsrt
was conducted home.

"July 11.—Taken to another pert of the town where
exactly similar horrors were being perpetrated.
"July 12.—A1l the platforms were taken down, and the
programme appeared to be firing guns, singing, and dancing
all day ; there were no more public sacrifices for ten days,
but it is suposed many took place during the nights.
"July 21.—Taken to see the 'grand customs' at the
palace of the late King, at the gate of which two plat-
forms had been erected; on each platform sixteen men
and four horse, were placed; inside the house was
placed another platform, on which were placed sixteen
women, four horses, and one alligator. The men and
women were all Sierra Leone people captured at Islingp,
and were dressed in European clothes, each group of
sixteen men seated or rather bound in chairs placed round a
table on which glasses of rum were placed for each. The
King then ascended the platform, where he adored the
Dahomian fetish, and seemed to make obeisance to the
prisoners, whose right arms were then loosed to enable
them to take up the glass to drink the King's health.
After the King's health had been drunk, the effects of
the late King were paraded and worshipped by the people as
they passed ; a grand review of the troops then commenced,
and as each marched past the King harangued them, and
promised the sack of Abbeokuta in November. Nearly the
whole of the troops wore firearms ; a few select corps
had rifles, but the greater part were armed with flint-look mus-
kets. The artillery consisted of about 24 gnus (12. pounders).
The number of troops altogether could scarcely be leas than
50.(a/0, including 10.000 Amazons, all apparently well dis-
ciplined troops. After the review was over the prisoners
were beheaded, their heads being backed off with blunt
knives ; at the same time the home and alligator were
despatched, particular care being taken that their blood
should mingle with that of the human prisoners.
Whea all was finished Mr. Euschart was permitted to
leave Abomey, which, it is needless to say, he immediately
did, having received the magnificent viatica of eight heads
of cowries (Ifa.), one piece of eountry cloth, and two flasks
of rum.

" Mr. Emhart firmly believes that Abbeokuta will, with.
out doubt, be attacked by the whole Delximiss army to-
wards the end of November." •

LLII.OZ ARRIVALS OF COTTON FROM BOMBAY.—
Tbs import' of ...piton into Liverpool from Bombay etill ma-
tions large, although the had weather reported in the
Channel mud necesearily retard the program of a great
number of bomeward-bound Indiamen now due at Liver-
pool. On Monday the arrivals from Bombay consisted of
six large ships laden with cotton—win., Morning Light,
having on board 9,479 bola notion ; Coaperdown, with
4,6d3 bales ; Znleika, with 4,194 bales ; Pericles, with
4,766 bales ; and Mathilda Athling, with 1,959 bales. Con-
sidering the small sales which have taken place in Liver-
pool for the last week or so, and the large quantity of
cotton imported from the Bast, the stock in hand must be a
fired deal more than people suppose.

MR. COBDEN M.P.—At a meeting of the Roch-
dale Reform ArisoOiation, held oo Monday evening, it was
resolved : "That Richard Cobden, Esq., M.P. for this
borough, be invited to attend a public meeting on Weds's.
day the 20th inst., or, if more suitable to Mr. Cob-
den, on Thursday the 30th instant, to give an account
of his stewardship daring the last session of parlia-
ment." Mr. Bright, M.P., will be invited to
be present at the meeting. A requisition is in
course of signature at Manchester, desiring the directors of
the Chamber of Commerce to invite Mr. Cobden to meet
the members of the Chamber during his approachiog visit.
It is expected Mr. Cobden will address the Chamber. if he
accepts the invitation, as the subject of the international
montane laws including commercial blockades.