Colonial Office, November 18, 1873.
Secretary of State for the Colonies has  received a Despatch and its Enclosures, of
which the following are copies, from Major-General Sir Garnet Joseph Wolseley, C.B.,
KC.M.G.:-

 

Government House, Cape Coast,  October 15, 1873.

MY LORD,
    I Have the honour to report the result of an operation which I yesterday undertook against hostile tribes in the neighbourhood of Elmina.
    On arriving in this country I found that the Ashantees were established almost within gunshot of our forts near that place; I ascertained, moreover, that they were drawing supplies from the immediate neighbourhood through the agency of a certain man, Boitoo, who is now in the Ashantee camp. Moreover, marauding parties did not fear to approach the town whenever, as frequently happened, special circumstances lead them to hope that they would be able to escape without serious loss. They had recently fired on my surveying parties within a few miles of the town itself; this state of things was mischievous in many ways.
   At a time when we are endeavouring to inspire confidence in the natives we could not afford to have our flag insulted with impunity.
   It was important to cut off from the Ashantees, and from the tribes along the coast with whom they had entered into an alliance, all means of obtaining munitions of war from Elmina. I am most anxious, however, in all cases, to avoid hostile action against any tribes without giving them full opportunity for expressing contrition and/or returning to the allegiance they have sworn to Her Majesty.
    I therefore summoned to appear before me at Elmina the chiefs of the tribes round Elmina which had been conspiring with the Ashantees.
    I received no official answer from them but ascertained that they had sent to the main camp of the Ashantees at Mampon to ask what they were to do. I knew further that the reply given to them had been that "the English might pretend to be very brave, but that the Ashantees were braver," that; " they need have no fear of the English who would not dare to attack them in the bush whilst they were under protection of the Ashantee army." They were in fine to ignore my summons.
    It became evident to me that unless contempt for our threats or promises was to be allowed to spread throughout the country, and unless the kings and chiefs were to believe that punishment would never be inflicted upon those who broke their oaths of allegiance that all had so lately sworn, the emporiums of a secret and hostile traffic must be destroyed. The villages when attacked were not inhabited by woman and children, but in all, especially in Essaman, were found large stores of powder, rum, and other supplies for the Ashantee army.
   (A single child was found in one of the villages, and was taken care of by one of my officers.)
    I have ever since my arrival here wished for an opportunity to strike a blow against the Ashantees in our neighbourhood, which should inspire confidence in the friendly and remove from the hostile the impression that our men cannot act in the bush.
    All details had been previously settled by me in a personal interview which I had on the 11th with Lieutenant-Colonel Wood, V.C., commanding at Elmina. I had desired Lieutenant-Colonel Wood to surround Elmina with a cordon of police during the night of the 13th instant, in order that no information might pass in or out. The troops at Elmina were ordered to be ready to start at daybreak to replace those at Cape Coast Castle, supposed to have left for the Volta.
    All the available force of this station (strength as per margin ^N ) was embarked on the evening of the14th instant on board Her Majesty's "Decoy." These were temporarily replaced in the garrison by sailors kindly placed at my disposal for that purpose by Captain Fremantle. At nine o'clock I myself, with a portion of my staff, embarked on board the " Barracouta," to which ship the marines from Her Majesty's ship " Simoom" had been transferred in the evening. At about four o'clock we landed, and were joined by Lieutenant-Colonel Wood and the force at Elmina. The landing was unfortunately somewhat delayed, as most of the troop boats stranded on the bar at the mouth of the river.
    At 5.30 A.M. we marched upon Essaman, a town about 5 miles north-west of Elmina, and attacked it about 7 o'clock in the morning, meeting with a somewhat vigorous resistance, during the course of which I regret to say that Colonel McNeill, V.C., C.M.G., was seriously, though I have every reason to hope not dangerously, wounded. Captain Fremantle, R.N., was also wounded, but his wound did not prevent him from continuing to superintend, as he had previously done, the action of the artillery, nor from marching with us to the end of the day. Our casualties, of which I enclose details ^N, were few. We took the place and destroyed it.
     I then marched at once for Amquana, a village on the sea-beach, about 5 miles from Essaman; we entirely destroyed it, and sent back from there our wounded direct to Elmina. The men had had a very exhausting march through the bush, where the badness and extreme narrowness of the paths rendered all progress as fatiguing as it was slow. I therefore considered it advisable not to take on to Akimfo and Ampinee more Europeans than could be avoided. The marines were therefore left at Amquana to keep open our communications with Elmina until my return. A few volunteers from them, however, marched on with us.
    According to previous arrangement between Captain Fremantle and myself, the ships had been shelling Akimfo for two hours.
    The blue jackets from Her Majesty's ships " Argus " and " Decoy," under the command of Commander Luxmore and Lieutenant-Commander Hext, joined us on the march to Akimfo, and proved a valuable addition to our force. Our combined attack, thanks to the previous work done by the ships, met with comparatively little resistance; we took and destroyed the village.
    We now marched upon Ampinee, where we met with a somewhat serious opposition from bodies of the enemy posted in the neighbouring bush. On the beach, in front of the town, was the corpse of one of our friendly natives that had been recently decapitated, the right hand having also been hacked off.
    Having most successfully accomplished the objects I had in view, the sailors and marines from Her Majesty's ships " Argus "and "Decoy," re-embarked at Ampinee, the troops remaining there to cover the embarkation until all were safely in their boats. The column then marched leisurely along the beach to Elmina.
    All the operations were conducted by Lieutenant- Colonel Wood, V.C., in accordance with his instructions, to my entire satisfaction.
    The medical arrangements personally superintended by Deputy Surgeon-General Home, V.C., C.B., and the Control arrangements, were most
satisfactory.
    I cannot too strongly express my sense of the cordiality with which Captain Fremantle, R.N., co-operated with me in these operations, nor of the value of the assistance which I received from himself, his officers, and men. I have the honour to enclose a copy of a letter of thanks which I
have addressed to him on the subject.
    In the strict sense of the words as a military operation I do not attach much importance to this expedition. From a quasi-political and general
point of view, I can hardly exaggerate the importance which I do attach to it.
    The success with which the preparations for the enterprise were concealed has impressed, as I have been since assured, all the natives with a notion of our possessing just that kind of power which they most dread, the capacity for striking an unexpected blow.
    The loss to the Ashantees of a source of supply on which they have hitherto relied will prove serious to them, and it will act all the more powerfully, because it will make other tribes along the coast- much more cautious in supplying them.
    It has been the open boast of the Ashantees ever since the fight at Elmina, that though the white men could beat them in the open, the white men would not dare to fight them in the bush.
    Our fight of yesterday was solely in the bush and they never once held their own against us.
    The effect, as encouraging the Fantees and discouraging their enemies, will be, I am assured, very considerable. It is difficult to convey to
your Lordship an impression of the extent to which every petty section of this country is divided between small tribes, apparently interlaced with one another in an almost inextricable territorial confusion. It is almost equally difficult to convey an idea of the native fickleness of which I have daily evidence. Hence it happens that in every part of the country the petty tribes are at any given moment the devoted allies of the Power which they believe to be the strongest on the Coast. I have every hope that in this way yesterday's operations will exercise a beneficial effect in all directions.
    I am positively assured that in another respect the action has been of the utmost importance. Hitherto many of the tribes have looked upon me simply as a new Governor. They did not realize that I had been sent out to undertake the direct and active conduct of military operations. They have all been crying out, as your Lordship is well aware, for some one to take command of their forces.
   In part this has been a mere excuse for neglecting their own share of the work.
   In part it has been the result of mutual jealousy. It required no mere words, but something that should impress their imagination, to make them understood, that they had no longer this excuse, and that the difficulty was solved. Thus I have every reason to hope:—
1st. That those tribes which have hitherto been wavering will now come in to our alliance.
2nd. That there will be an increase in the muster-rolls of the tribes which are friendly.
3rd. That a new spirit will be infused into the actual combatants.
4th. That the Ashantees will be proportionally discouraged.
I have the honour to enclose a Report ^N by Lieutenant Colonel Wood, V.C., on the whole of the operations.
 

I have, &c., G. J. WOLSELEY, Major-General and Administrator, Gold Coast.

To the Right Honourable The Earl of Kimberley.