Next day the anchor was hove and the ship's
head turned to the west; and two days later, after a pleasant and
uneventful voyage, she was again off Cape Coast, and Frank, taking
leave of his kind entertainers, returned on shore and reported
himself as ready to perform any duty that might be assigned to him.
Until the force advanced, he had nothing to do, and spent a good
deal of his time watching the carriers starting with provisions
for the Prah, and the doings of the negroes.
The order had now been passed by the chiefs at a meeting called by
Sir Garnet, that every able bodied man should work as a carrier,
and while parties of men were sent to the villages round to fetch
in people thence, hunts took place in Cape Coast itself. Every
negro found in the streets was seized by the police; protestation,
indignation, and resistance, were equally in vain. An arm or
the loin cloth was firmly griped, and the victim was run into the
castle yard, amid the laughter of the lookers on, who consisted,
after the first quarter of an hour, of women only. Then the search
began in the houses, the chiefs indicating the localities in which
men were likely to be found. Some police were set to watch outside
while others went in to search.
Pages:
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357
358
359
360
361
362
363
364
365
366
367
368
369