The St. Johns herald., 1896-04-25


 ed to have yielded at every point to the British demands. The Ashantees are marvelously astute and most profound liars, and it is to be hoped that Colonel Sir Francis Scott, governor of the Gold Coast and commander of the present ex
 petition, has exacted serious guarantees from the much married monarch Che has 8, 1888 wives) for the fulfillment of his pledges.
 The British demands include the abo- lition of human sacrifices, which Prem peh has persisted in keeping up in spite of an undertaking not to do so. He will doubtless continue the practice for his own comforts sake, if he can, British coercion notwithstanding.
 When the king dies, certain of his subjects, who happen to have had the misfortune to be born on the same day and to be associated with him during his lifetime, are dispatched to accom- pany him to the land of spirits, while the messengers who convey the news of his death to the surrounding feudatory kings and chiefs are instantly beheaded on delivering their message, in order that they may inform the deceased of the grief his death has caused.
 The defunct monarch is conveyed with weird ceremonies to the sacred mansoleum at Bantama. So sacred, in fact, is this building, that even if bit of the roof falls down, slaves are sacri feed. Here every king has his own small room, which is hung round with clothes and velvets His skeleton is placed in a chair, or basket, and fresh food is placed before it every day.
 The late unlamented King Coffee, after making himself mad with palm wine and gin, used to wash the stools of his ancestors in the blood of two or three men specially murdered for the occasion.
 When prince of the blood dies, all the other princes possess the right of slaughtering every human being they may encounter. This right, however, is not supposed to have been exercised since the thrashing administered to King Coffee by Sir Garnet Wolseley in 1878. Still, during certain ceremonies, when the king is carried through the main thoroughfares of his capital, any man found on the street or looking out of his house is immediately decapitated.
 The fetich worship to which the Ashanti people are entirely given up is responsible for these ghastly customs. Tho fetich house of Kumassi is an ad- junct to the kings palace, and in it are performed the barbaric ceremonies of his religion. The following description of the place was given in recent issue of the London Graphic:
 The structure is built of wattle, daub- cd both inside and out with a thick stucco of clay, the exterior being orna- mented with rough holdings, some of which. as in the porch entering the building, are pierced to show the vari- ous forms of birds and animals used in the design. The upper part of the outer wall is whitewashed; the lower part, for few feet above the ground, is col ored with red earth. The outer door is carefully screened with thick cloths, and the roof is of thatch. Inside we find little ornamentation. unless we can consider the skulls, thighbones and jaw bones which are attached to the inner frame of the door and the walls, and the stains of blood everywhere, in the light of decorations. Around the apart ment are ranged the fetiches or gods themselves. Just what the particular fe- itch may mean at any given time rests solely with the fetich men or priests to explain. Here we have rudely carved figure, armed with a gun and dagger, which has doubtless some potent influ- ence in war, while close by is the sem- blance of a woman's head with an ex- precision on her face worthy of Bellona herself There again the leopard figures, his spots carefully burned into his wood en carcass, which probably plays an i'm portant part when proceedings involving extra cunning, treachery and ferocity are in hand. Huge figures of men and women, executed without the suspicion of regard for decency. which preside over orgies perfectly indescribable, are in evidence. and earthen balls stuck all over with feathers, rude presentations of birds, and calabashes, or gourds, full of what We should term rubbish, tell tales of propitiatory offerings to the spirits ot departed ancestors or minor fetiches. These tales can only be told by the human demons, who are terror to the people through their profession of occult power.
 All things considered, that portion of the civilized world which is not on the grab in Africa, would rejoice were Great Britain to annex Ashanti. She might while she is about it otherwise the present, which is the fifth, is not likely to be the last expedition she will | have to send to Kumassi. The fact is, | Bibles, flannel shirts and pocket hand kerchiefs are thrown away on peoples of this degree of barbarism. Gatling guns and the white mans administra- tion are the only effectual methods of | converting them to gentler habits, as was proved by the French a couple of | years ago in Dahomey, where a similar state of things prevailed