Letter from Brother Cheeseman
Referring to the climate of the coast and the facilities of laboring
for the salvation of men, brother Cheeseman makes an appeal, which
deserves the serious thought of all Christians. He says: —
Many persons unacquainted with Africa, regard it as a
place unfit to be inhabited by human beings; others regard it death
to land upon these shores. Because of these opinions, many of the
ministry will not embark for Africa: but it should be remembered
that prejudices to Africa have caused many of the reports which
are circulated. Africa is one of the finest countries in the world,
and I presume no country presents a more lofty forest, ever clothed
in verdure the most beautiful, than this. The whole face of the
country, as far as I have traveled up and down the coast, is
beautifully diversified with hills, mountains, valleys, rivers,
rivulets, &c. The land is fertile, producing all the various products
of other tropical regions. Let a man once travel through the
interior of the country, notice the spontaneous growth of trees, the
fertile soil, the pleasant streams which flow in various directions,
affording relief to the weary and thirsty traveler, &c., and he will
return fully convinced that Africa is not a whit behind the most
fertile regions of the earth. With industry and enterprise, Africa
can be made all that is desirable, a happy home for the man of
color.
We are favored with two seasons — wet and dry — but
neither one nor the other incessant. In the wet season we have rain
with intervals of dry weather, and frequently for a month or more
we have scarcely sufficient rain to sustain our gardens. In the dry
season we have frequently gentle showers to cool the atmosphere,
and very rarely is the heat as oppressive as in America in the
months of August and September. For healthiness, Africa will
compare well with any other country in the torrid zone.
Foreigners, until acclimated, suffer somewhat, which would be the
case in going from the high to the low lands of the South.
The interior is healthy, and as elevated positions are known
to be more favorable to health, it might be supposed that intelligent
persons coming to Africa would not be content to settle on the
seaboard, where they will be continually subject to miasmatic
influence. There is a secret in living in Africa, which our friends
have not discovered, or if discovered, not profited by. It requires
physical exercise of the most laborious kind; for want of which,
