their spiritual teacher, and, ere long, had the great satisfaction of seeing them “clothed, in their right mind, and sitting at the feet of Jesus.”  His influence has been almost boundless.  A man of magnificent physical proportions,—­tall, a straight body mounted by a ponderous head, shapely, with a kind eye, benevolent face, a rich cadence in his voice,—­the “black Bishop” Crowther is a princely looking man, who would attract the attention of cultivated people anywhere.  He is a man of eminent piety, broad scholarship, and good works.  He has translated the Bible into the Yoruba language, founded schools, and directed the energies of his people with a matchless zeal.  His beautiful and beneficent life is an argument in favor of the possibilities of Negro manhood so long injured by the dehumanizing influences of slavery.  Others have caught the inspiration that has made Bishop Crowther’s life “as terrible as an army with banners” to the enemies of Christ and humanity, and are working to dissipate the darkness of that land of night.

FOOTNOTES: 

[59] The king of Dahomey is limited to 3,333 wives!  It is hardly fair to suppose that his majesty feels cramped under the ungenerous act that limits the number of his wives.

[60] Savage Africa, p. 51.

[61] Western Africa, p. 207.

CHAPTER V.

THE ASHANTEE EMPIRE.

     ITS LOCATION AND EXTENT.—­ITS FAMOUS KINGS.—­THE ORIGIN OF
     THE ASHANTEES OBSCURE.—­THE WAR WITH DENKERA.—­THE ASHANTEES
     AGAINST THE FIELD CONQUER TWO KINGDOMS AND ANNEX
     THEM.—­DEATH OF OSAI TUTU.—­THE ENVY OF THE KING OF
     DAHOMEY.—­INVASION OF THE ASHANTEE COUNTRY BY THE KING OF
     DAHOMEY.—­HIS DEFEAT SHARED BY HIS ALLIES.—­AKWASI PURSUES
     THE ARMY OF DAHOMEY INTO ITS OWN COUNTRY.—­GETS A MORTAL
     WOUND AND SUFFERS A HUMILIATING DEFEAT.—­THE KING OF DAHOMEY
     SENDS THE ROYAL KUDJOH HIS CONGRATULATIONS.—­KWAMINA DEPOSED
     FOR ATTEMPTING TO INTRODUCE MOHAMMEDANISM INTO THE
     KINGDOM.—­THE ASHANTEES CONQUER THE MOHAMMEDANS.—­NUMEROUS
     WARS.—­INVASION OF THE FANTI COUNTRY.—­DEATH OF SIR CHARLES
     MCCARTHY.—­TREATY.—­PEACE.

The kingdom of Ashantee lies between the Kong Mountains and the vast country of the Fantis.  The country occupied by the Ashantees was, at the first, very small; but by a series of brilliant conquests they finally secured a territory of three hundred square miles.  One of their most renowned kings, Osai Tutu, during the last century, added to Ashantee by conquest the kingdoms of Sarem, Buntuku, Warsaw, Denkera, and Axim.  Very little is known as to the origin of the Ashantees.  They were discovered in the early part of the eighteenth century in the great valley between the Kong Mountains and the river Niger, from whence they were driven by the Moors and Mohammedan