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By the foregoing calculation it appears that if intereft of money, freight, commiffions, fhipping, and all other charges, were particularized, we fhould lose from 10 to 20 per cent. by our Cape Appolonia trade; it is not however fo with the governor, who is not faddled with any one charge or expence whatsoever, and for whofe fole emolument it will appear this fort is to be fupported.

GENTLEMEN,

SIN

Annamable, October 15th, 1770.

INCE my laft dated the 1ft of July, I have informed myfelf of feveral other abuses, committed by the committee and their fervants here, which I beg leave to tranfmit you by this opportunity, and fincerely hope they will arrive safe, and in time to be of fervice, when the regulations you propofe making in our fyftem here come under confideration.

Upon Mr. Groffle's death, Auguft the 13th, Mr. Mill fucceeded to the government of Cape Coaft, and at that time had a prodigious quantity of goods at Accra, the greatest part of which his fucceffor, Mr. Drew, has agreed to pay him slaves for, so that that fort and its dependencies are neither more nor less than factories to Mr. Mill, until his ftock there is realized, and we are to suppose the chief is not at liberty till then to dispose of a slave to the fhipping.

The forts of Appolonia, Dixcove, Succondee, and Commenda, are to all intents and purposes factories for the governors of Cape Coast and Annamaboe, who keep them constantly supplied with goods, fo that the private trader has no chance of getting any quantity of gold from these places; and as thofe gentlemen are complimented by the merchants of London and Bristol with the freight of their goods out, in expectation of participating of their favours in trade, they can greatly underfell the private and fair trader, who is obliged to outfit ships at a great expence.

September the 8th, a brig called the Beggar's Benifon, loaded with rum,, and commanded by David Dunn from Bofton, arrived at Cape Coast ;. upon Captain Dunn's coming down here, he informed me that Mr. Groffle owned the one-third of his veffel and cargoe, which he said he would not have mentioned had he (Groffle) been alive, and from the affistance he received from certain gentlemen in London by their fending 3 him.

him letters of credit to Bofton, although a perfect ftranger to them, we have all the reafon imaginable to think another gentleman or gentlemen, in high stations now on the Coaft, are connected alfo with him. Captain Dunn has difpofed of his rum immediately amongst the governor and his dependents, and has had a cargoe of prime afforted dry goods put on board his vessel at Cape Coast, on a pretence of bartering them with him for rum, and the veffel dispatched down to Mumford to purchase slaves, where Captain Dunn has taken poffeffion of the factory which Mr. Groffle occupied there, and has purchased a great many flaves in oppofition to the ship's long boats, and the factories established by private traders at that place; but as there is no poffibility of getting a fight of the bill of fale of Captain Dunn's veffel, or otherwise proving these conjectures, I cannot take upon me to affert them as facts.

Meffrs. Mill and Bell, governors of Cape Coaft and Annamaboe, have jointly, within these few days past, purchased a Rhode Island vessel's cargoe, upon condition that the Captain fhould credit them five months, and give them the use of the veffel during that time to trade jointly for them, wherever they please to send her, and they are now unloading her, and propofe to fend her directly on a trading voyage; query, is this, or is it not flying in the face of the committee and their conftituents? and telling them that they will have factories afloat fince they are prohibited from having them on fhore; and that they are determined to oppose and rival the private trader when and wherever they can ?

Mr. Drew, Chief of Accra, has also bought two floops, which are to fupply the places of two factories which he was obliged to evacuate.

There is scarce a veffel comes on the Coaft either from London or Bristol, but what brings out goods for Mr. Mill and Mr. Bell. Captain Hamilton, in the Jamaica, told us he brought Mr. Mill out 30 tons of goods in that ship; Captain Harriot, in the St. Helena, brought out a large quantity for him; Captain Goodwin, of London, brought out a confiderable quantity; Captain Marshall, of Bristol, brought out Mr. Bell one hundred romauls, and Captain Gullen, of Bristol, has now on board a quantity of goods for them. How, in the of name God, is it poffible for this trade to be ever upon a proper footing, when one of the committee, Mr. Gilbert Rofs,

is the very man, who in conjunction with Mr. Mill's brother fends out the greatest part of these goods, and is no doubt concerned, or has a proper feeling?

The Liverpool people, much to their honour, have to a man refused to let any goods belonging to thefe gentlemen come out in their fhips, although applied to by one Woodall formerly a master of a ship there, and when he found there was no poffibility of getting the goods out in any other manner, he bought a Bermudas floop, and fent her out here, with a large quantity of goods for Mr. Mill, Mr. Grofile, and Mr. Bell, and, in three months after the goods were landed, fhe was fent off from Accra by Mr. Mill with ninety flaves to Penfacola.

When Captain Howe of the Mafguin of Bristol, and Captain Gullen of the Roebuck from the fame port, anchored at Appolonia, the beginning of this month, feveral traders came off to them, but upon their feeing Mr. Miles the chief going on board the Roebuck, the traders intreated Captain How to hide them in his hold or between decks, which he was obliged to do, as they told him they were afraid of being seen by Mr, Miles trading on board fhips, and when Captain Howe propofed trading with Mr. Miles, he answered that all the gold he took was for Mr. Mill, as he was fupplyed with goods by him, fo that Captain Howe affured me, he did not take 5 ounces of gold at Cape Appolonia this voyage, and when he touched there in his way down the last voyage, he bought upwards of 100 ounces of gold in 4 days at that place, the chief being at that time at Cape Coaft. This relation I had from Captain Howe, who is ready to atteft it, and who declared the fame at Cape Coaft Table. to Mr. Mill, and appealed to Captain Gullen who was prefent for the truth of his affertion.

I am informed by Captain Bold of the ship John of Liverpool, that on or about the first of September he made a proposal to Mr. Green chief. of Tantumquerry, to purchase fome flaves from him, and had offered him the fame price he had paid others, viz. 10 ounces, 6 pennyweight for. men, and 8 ounces, 6 pennyweight for women; and that the faid Green gave him for answer in writing, and alfo told his officer, that he could get a better price from the gentlemen in the forts, and that unless he paid eleven

eleven ounces for men, and nine ounces for women, he would not tråde with him, notwithstanding I had fold captain Bold one hundred slaves at the above price, as did Mr. Johnson, a private trader at Winnebah, and feveral others.

To fuch a pitch of infolence are the natives of this part of the Coast now arrived (from the ruinous and contemptible state of the forts, and the pufillanimity of the wretches who in general govern them) that it is hardly poffible to live upon any tolerable terms with them; fome months ago, the people, living under the protection of our principal fettlement at Cape Coast, catched Mr. Williamson, furgeon of the castle, in the garden, carried him into the Bush or Country, ftripped him naked, and whipped him in a terrible manner, for which infult he was gratified with a flave, which Mr. Grofsle, the then governor, obliged the Caboceer of Cape Ccaft to pay him.

In a little time after, the natives of the English town at Commenda catched Mr. Green (a boy put in as chief of the fort by Mr. Petrie, and who had been guilty of oppreffing and maltreating the inhabitants) stripped him, and flogged him in a most shocking manner, afterwards tied him under the walls of the fort, put him into a three hand canoe, and carried him down to Elmina the principal fettlement of the Dutch, there threw him upon the rocks and left him; after which by the affiftance of an English man of war, he was carried back to his fort, and demanded a pecuniary fatisfaction for the ill treatment he had received, but the town's people refufing to comply with his demands, he immediately fired the town, upon which the inhabitants quitted it, fome of whom are gone over to the Dutch, under whofe protection they now live, and others into the country, fo that we have loft a fine flourishing town (confifting of about 500 inhabitants, who abfolutely faved the English fort in the year 1758, when it was attacked by the Dutch,) by the indifcretion and rapacity of master Green, who inftead of being ignominously discharged the fervice, which he should have been, is now preferred to the command of Tantumquerry fort.

About fix weeks ago as Mr. Drew (who is now member of the council and governor of Accra) was in his way from Winnibah to Cape Coast (being

fent

fent for on public bufinefs) he was panyared or catched by the people of Agah, an English town fituated between Annamaboe and Cormantyne, and by them confined in Cormantyne fort, belonging to the Dutch, upon pretence that he had killed a Caboceer's fon, who was his fervant; and notwithstanding he proved in the fullest manner that the boy died by an accident (having ftepped upon a piece of glass, by which he cut an artery and bled to death) they would not enlarge him till he paid them five flaves, equal to 100l. fterling; and after he went to Cape Coaft, they made a second demand upon him, which prevented his coming on fhore here in his way down, fearing he should fall a fecond time into their hands, being well acquainted with the pufillanimity of the poor creature who governs this fort, and who he knew would fuffer him to be carried off from under the walls, or any other indignity, rather than endanger the lofs of his trade, by having any difpute with the natives; indeed he has often declared publickly, he would not upon any account whatsoever fall out with them: thus the national honour is facrificed to private intereft, by giving up every point to the natives, be it ever fo difgraceful or injurious.

The numberless affronts and difgraces which the chiefs, and others in the committee's fervice, daily receive from the natives; their pufillanimous behaviour on thefe occafions; the ruinous ftate and condition of the forts, deftitute of people and every thing elfe for their defence, is fufficient to deter any man from fettling in this country, where he has no protection or affistance to expect from the forts, aud where he muft lay his account in encountering every fpecies of oppofition, envy, and ill-will from the committee and their fervants.

I must not omit informing you that it is reported here, and I believe with good foundation, that a strong mercantile connection is now forming, or is already formed by Meffrs. Rofs and Mill of London, Mr. Petrie late governor of Cape Coaft, and Mr. Mill the prefent governor; that Petrie proposes coming out if he can as governor a fecond time, and to have the management of the trade, and if he cannot fucceed with the committee, Mr. Mill is to have the direction of their affairs on the Coaft; that Petrie in that cafe is to endeavour to get into the committee, in order to back