Next day the advance began, the orders being that every man was to receive four days’ rations, and each regiment take its own provision and baggage. The advance began at seven o’clock. The road was found strewn with the litter cast away by the retreating enemy. The road was very difficult and boggy. Streams had to be bridged in many places by the engineers, and it took six hours to move as many miles. At one village on the way, a thousand of the enemy assembled to make a stand; but their defence was feeble, and Russell’s regiment carried the place at a rush.
Upon reaching the village of Agamemmoo, the general sent back for the baggage. This did not arrive until nearly four o’clock, and it was then too late to move on in the night. The clearing was a small one, and so close had the troops to lie, that the whole width and length of the street was paved with human bodies. The next day there was fighting during the whole march, the Ashantis having placed several ambushes. The streams and swamps were even more frequent than upon the day preceding, and eight hours were occupied in going six miles, when the camp halted on the river Dah. A flag of truce came in, but as the king did not send the hostages required, preparations were made for an advance at daybreak in the morning. The engineers set to work to bridge the river, and Russell’s regiment waded through, and bivouacked upon the opposite bank.
The night was tremendously wet; but the troops moved forward in high spirits in the morning. The fight commenced as soon as the column had crossed, and was a repetition of that of Amoaful. Lieutenant Saunders, in the front, with his gun cleared the way with grape. The Bonny men, who were in advance, would at last go no farther, and Lieutenant Eyre, adjutant of Wood’s regiment, to which they belonged, was killed.
The Rifles then came forward, and very slowly the advance was continued until the head of the column was within 50 yards of the village. Then the Rifles gave a cheer, and with a sudden rush cleared the way to the open, and carried the village. In the meantime the whole column was engaged in repelling a series of flank attacks. These attacks were most gallantly persevered in by the Ashantis, who at times approached in such masses that the whole bush swayed and moved as they poured forward. Their loss must have been extremely large, for our men lined the road and kept up a tremendous Snider fire upon them. Our own casualties were slight, the road, like almost all roads in the country, being sunk two feet below the level of the surrounding ground; consequently the men were lying in shelter, as behind a breastwork.
The Naval Brigade at one time inflicted great slaughter upon the foe, by remaining perfectly quiet, until the enemy, thinking that they had retired, advanced full of confidence, cheering, when a tremendous fire almost swept them away.
It took us, altogether, nearly six hours from the time our advance began until the rear-guard had gained the village, a distance of only a mile and a half. Coomassie was still six miles off, and had the Ashantis continued to fight with the same desperation, we should not have reached Coomassie that night.
The instant the baggage was all in the village, the advance again began.
At first the Ashantis fought with great determination. But our men pushed steadily forward, and then, advancing at a double, the foes, scared by the onslaught, gave way, and fled at the top of their speed. The whole force now pushed forward, and without further opposition crossed the pestilential swamp which surrounds Coomassie, and entered the town.
The king and the greater portion of his fighting men had retired, and as the provisions were running short, and the force greatly weakened by the number of wounded and of men who had dropped with fever, it was impossible to pursue him in the bush. After a day’s halt, the blood-stained capital was burnt, and the army retired to the coast.