Travels and Life in Ashanti and Jaman

This historic book may have numerous typos, missing text, images, or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1898. Not illustrated. Excerpt: ... CHAPTER XVIII THE COMMERCIAL OUTLOOK A Moral Story--Close of the Treasure-hunting Epoch--Possibilities of Development--Natural Products--Gold--Its Profusion--Native Methods of working--Difficulties of the Gold Industry--Transport--Influence of the Climate--Mode of conducting ordinary Trade--Rubber--Timber--Timber-bearing Trees--Kola--Shea Butter--Indigo--Cotton-- Changing Conditions of Trade--Exaggerated Ideas of the Value of the Interior--Interior Trade--Effects of the construction of a Railroad-- Neglect of Rivers and Water-transport generally--The Volta--The Germans alive to its value. In one of those collections of "Tales for the Young" in which there is sprung upon the unsuspecting juvenile a mine of moral precept, I once encountered a story of which the following is the substance. A certain old man finding (by some process known only to old men in moral stories) that his end was approaching, called his (inevitable) three sons around him and communicated to them the fact that in the vineyard that formed the sole family property there was buried a considerable treasure, but the exact position of this he did not specify. When he had made this gratifying but incomplete communication he died, and the three sons proceeded forth. with to search the vineyard for the buried wealth. But after much promiscuous digging no treasure came to light, and the three young men then decided to systematically dig over the whole of the vineyard. But even after this was done still no treasure was found, and the disappointment of the young men was only partly allayed by observing an immensely increased fecundity on the part of the vines, a consequence of the thorough turning over of the soil. So great, however, was this increase that it presently dawned upon them that thi...