Star.
London, England, 1824-08-02 00:00:00

EXTRACT OF A LETTER RECEIVED BY THE DRIVER :

" CAM COAST, iIAT QB.—Since our most disastrous action with
the Ashantees, they have increased in confidence and activity, and
we have been environed with difficulties of all kinds, so that the war
here bears no bright prospects. A skirmish has since taken place,
but without any other result than the advance of the Ashantees
towards Cape Coast; which, in consequence of the want of ord-
nance stores (a most extraordinary neglect rests somewhere), we
have not been able to prevent. Our field movements are now at a
complete stand, and they have been enabled to take up a position
and establish themselves in the gardens of the settlement (about two
miles from the coast.) Our movements must be guided by circum-
stances; but the small quantity of powder and lead we have re-
maining must be reserved to defend the fort in the last extremity.
There is not a musket-ball in the place; and the ships of war can-
not spare us any more than they have : even the lead intended for
houses has been cut up for ammunition. Besides, we have only
twelve effective white troops in the Castle: the others are people of
colour, and Fantres; and the rainy sickly season is commencing.—
In short, Cape Coast is now very sickly; our troops are all called in
to recruit ; we have a scarcity of provisions, by which the white in-
habitants are suffering greatly ; the natives in our favour are net to
be depended upon, and the Ashantees are very powerful, making in
the whole an accumulation of horrible misery. It would be much
to the advantage of our country if the place were abandoned. We
understand the enemy are equally anxious with ourselves for peace,
but their conditions are repugnant to the feelings and principles of
Englishmen; it is, that the lives of the King of Dinkera and his
brother, anther Chief, and the bravest of our allies, should be ren-
dered a sacrifice. It is pretty confidently ascettained,that the Dutch
settlement of Fl Mina supplies the Ashantees with gunpowder,
which tends to protract the war, the inhabitants of the place being
in their favour, and too strong a power for the Governor to con-
trout ; se that the Castle is more a dependency of the town than the
town of the Castle. Colonel Sutherland has arrived from Sierra
Leone, and assumed the command of the forces at Cape Coast;
but Major Chisholm continues in the administration of the Govern-
ment on the Gold Coast. We hear that the bones of Sir Charles
M'Carthy have been dried by a fire, and sent to Cronsajie (the
Ashantee capital), as a national trophy'"
0 Can COAST CAVILS, May 26.

" The state of this place is most dreadful—nothing but war, con-
fusion, and disease. We had another touch at the Ashantees on the
41st of this month, and after a contest of live hours and a half, both
aides ceased Bring. We lost, however, about 150 killed, and up-
wards of 800 wounded. We expect another and more serious brush
very shortly, as the King himself is coming down with strong re-
inforcements. How It will end, Oen only knows; but, in the interim,
you may conceive what is our situation, when I inform you that we
have more than 5,000 strangers (women and children) now in the
town for protection • and such a mass of disease and filth I never
before witnessed. I have now for four months been almost in-
cessantly in the busk, and you may therefore believe that I am, as
indeed we all are, most anxiously looking for a termination to the
present state of things." - _ _

THE EVENING STAR.

LONDON.

MONDAY, AUGUST 2, 1824.
THE FUNDS.