"Tschopp to Basel"

In an illness which he suffered in July the Abetifi chief came to visit him. He is friendly disposed, and now and again visits the mission, but Tschopp considers that it would still be a large step before he could become a Christian. There is a fine coffee plantation belonging to the Christians between the mission station and Abetifi town. The children shout at them ‘Awura, awura’ as they pass, and while some of the adults greet them politely others shout that they are hungry and ask for money, others beg for tobacco, others want to take a letter to the coast in order to bring back a load, a woman wants to sell maize. At the Nkwatia entrance to the village salt was being sold, and there was a smithy. By the fireplace in the smithy stood two small idols with human faces. Tschopp bought 2 hoes for the usual price, Fr.1.25. Describing a visit to Nkwatia, he reports near the town a great heap of broken pots - the place where people throw the pots belonging to the dead. Further there was a whole crown of figurines 30cm to 1.3metres in height, standing or lying, with a scrap of cloth round their necks, and neatly engraved faces. Nearby was a little door erected at the side of the path to deny passage into the town of a certain spirit. The preaching is twice mentioned - Tsohopp in Nkwatia preached on God's love, and in Mpraeso Dilger preached on the smallpox epidemic. One of the schoolboys accompanying them was an ex-slave boy from the interior.

10.10.1885

10.10.1885

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