After this, no fighting took place until Colonel Willcocks arrived to carry out the main object of the expedition. Convoys of stores, however, kept pouring in incessantly and, to Lisle's delight, a large box of provisions, which he had bought before starting from Cape Coast, arrived.
Then Colonel Neal arrived, with the Sappers. He and his men built a bridge across the Fum. It was twelve feet above the water, but within thirty-six hours it was swept away.
While the troops were waiting, a runner came in and reported that heavy firing had been heard round Coomassie. On the evening of the 30th of June, news came that Colonel Willcocks would start the next morning. He would have but a small escort of fighting men, but a very large number of carriers, to bring in the stores intended for Coomassie.
Colonel Willcocks reached Fum on the night after leaving the Prah. As the supplies were failing at Kwisa, and another post, Captain Melliss took down a convoy to them, with twenty days' rations, and succeeded in doing so without opposition.
Colonel Willcocks pressed on, leaving all baggage behind. The defeat of the Dompoasis had its effect, and the little column joined Colonel Burroughs's men unopposed. The combined force then pushed on, until they arrived at a town under the sway of the King of Bekwai.
Next morning they marched to Bekwai. Here it was decided to evacuate Kwisa, for a time, and bring up the garrison that had been left there.
The next march was laborious, and wet, as usual. The troops marched into the little village of Amoaful, where Sir Garnet Wolseley had fought the decisive battle of his campaign, and saw many relics of the fight. Signal guns were heard, at various times, acquainting the enemy of our advance. The column stayed here for three days, which both soldiers and carriers enjoyed greatly, for the fatigues of the march had fairly worn out even the sturdy and long-enduring British troops.
Colonel Willcocks went forward with his staff to Esumeja, where the three companies, of which the garrison was composed, had already suffered sixty casualties. The Pioneers, some carriers with hatchets, and some of the Esumeja were sent out, a hundred yards down the road to Kokofu, to cut the bush on each side and build two stockades. This was done to deceive the garrison, there, into the belief that we were about to advance on the place by that road.
The ruse succeeded admirably. The general there sent information to the commander-in-chief of the Ashanti army, and the latter at once despatched a considerable number of men to reinforce the garrison. Thus the resistance along the main road was greatly reduced; and the Kokofu, standing on the defensive, did not harass the force upon its march.
On the evening of the 11th, a starving soldier made his way down from the fort with this message: