"Clerk's Report of a Journey to Yiripe"

Yiripe lies two day's journey South of Wovawora - Yiripe people often come to Worawora and Clerk had formed an ambition to see their land, though in fact it comes under the Bremen area. They are politically under Buem, though they are a tribe in themselves, with their own language, and also speak Ewe more readily than Twi. Clerk found there two Christians - one recently arrived had been baptised in Cape Coast. Another named Okra had recently inherited a not inconsiderable amount after his father's deaths, had earlier worked for Dr. Fisch, and had been working for Dr. Hey until his discharge. He had already started to carry out Sunday street preaching. Clerk says 6 of the 7 Yiripe villages grouped closely together, the biggest Male and Kumasi. The people listened to him attentively, since for most it was the first time they had heard the Christian message. They did not make an especially good impression, however - they could be more welcoming to strangers. They are heavily engaged in trading, bringing in spirits and gunpowder from the coast, but have not gained much in cultural terms from this contact - their houses are built of clay, with clay plastered roofs. His return journey took him through Lolobi (Between Yiripe and Akpao) - the people were very friendly there – Beyika, Tetman, Borada, Gyasekan. In Borada the request for a teacher was repeated. In Gyasekan on his outward journey he had baptised a sick Akim man who had in fact been a house servant of Süss, been taken away by his parents but in his last illness wanted baptism. He died the day Clerk returned to Gyasekan. In Worawora 2 Christians have been excluded after 'falling’ but have been replaced by two who have returned baptised from Cape Coast. One feature of his visit to Yiripe was finding people who proclaimed they believed in one God, not the fetishes, and who were selling the amulets of their new faith - the pieces of paper enclosed in the amulets had crude drawings on them.

30.09.1895

30.09.1895

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