Our Stations on the Coast of Africa
The Baptists of the South have abundant reason to thank God
and take courage with reference to their missions on the coast of Africa.
This appears from all the communications from that quarter. We are
happy to present to our readers the most favorable testimony on this
subject, from the Rev. Mr. Rambo, an Episcopalian minister and
missionary, who has recently gone to the coast. Such extracts are culled
as bear on this particular subject. The letter addressed to Elliott Cresson,
Esq., is dated April 14lh and is found in the African Repository for
September. The following are the extracts: -
“I write to you from this point, as you requested in your
letter of February 18th, to tell you something about our tour to-day
up the St. John’s. Having reached this harbor two evenings ago,
we sent your note of introduction to Mr. Benson yesterday
morning, and made him a short visit in the afternoon. He received
us very kindly. He and Messrs. Davis, Cheeseman and Day,
Baptist missionaries, related many interesting facts to us about the
Bassas, which I will mention presently. We made arrangements
with Mr. B. to send us up to Bexley this morning in a boat.
According to agreement, we joined Messrs. Cheeseman and Day
— (the latter being the missionary at Bexley,) and set out in a boat
at 9
'/2
o’clock, rowed by four natives. We were much struck with
the beauty of the scenery of the Cove, just at the confluence of the
three rivers — the Benson, St. John’s and Mechlin. The town of
Bassa lies on the south side of the Benson, and numbers some
three hundred inhabitants; across the bay in which these rivers
empty, at a distance of less than a mile from Bassa, is Edina,
numbering about as many residents as that town.
“The St. John’s opens beautifully, and the scenery
improves, I think, as we ascend it. It is about a half mile wide. Its
banks are clothed with every variety of trees and vines of luxuriant
growth. Occasionally we saw a native hut of simplest structure,
and small coffee or rice plantations of colonists. We stopped at
Factory Island as we ascended the river. Having spent half an hour
here, we prosecuted our journey, being more and more pleased
with the scenery as we neared Bexley. The banks rose higher and
higher, and were more cultivated than below. Neat little
plantations and comfortable houses of colonists told us that we
were passing part of the settlement, and before midday we were
seated in the mission house of the excellent missionary Day. We
spent some three hours with him, very profitably I can assure you.
