AFRICAN TOUR, 1866-70.
In August, 1866, it again became the turn of the 1st West India Regiment
to furnish a portion of the garrisons of the Western Coast of Africa.
The system of these garrisons had again been changed, and now consisted
of one battalion divided between Sierra Leone and the Gambia, and half a
battalion distributed between the Gold Coast and Lagos. At this time the
left wing of the 2nd West India Regiment was garrisoning the two latter
colonies, and the 1st West India Regiment was to garrison the two
former.
On the 29th of August, 1866, four companies under Major Anton embarked
at Jamaica in H.M.S. _Simoom_, and proceeded to Africa; two being landed
at the Gambia on the 28th of September, and two at Sierra Leone on the
6th of October. The _Simoom_, returning to the West Indies, embarked the
remaining company at Jamaica in November; and proceeding to Nassau, the
head-quarters and three companies there stationed were also embarked,
the whole arriving at Sierra Leone, under Captain Bravo, on the 31st of
December. The distribution of the regiment now was: Head-quarters, with
A, B, D, E, F, and G Companies at Sierra Leone; C and H Companies at the
Gambia. Major Anton was in command at the latter station, and on the
25th of May, 1867, Lieutenant-Colonel Yonge arrived at Sierra Leone and
assumed command there.
In the beginning of August, 1867, a disturbance of a serious character
occurred on the Gold Coast at Mumford, a town situated half-way between
Cape Coast Castle and Accra; and Lieutenant H.F.S. Bolton, 1st West
India Regiment, who, being temporarily in the employ of the Colonial
Government, was Civil Commandant of the latter town, was despatched with
a party of the 2nd West India Regiment to establish order. The cause of
the disturbance was an old-standing quarrel between two of the native
companies at Mumford, and a conflict had taken place, resulting in a
large number of killed and wounded. On the arrival of the troops the
principal offenders were arrested, and order was restored.
Since the arrival of the regiment in Africa, small detachments had been
furnished from Sierra Leone to Sherbro, Songo-town, and the island of
Bulama, at the mouth of the Jeba River. In September, 1867, the troops
were withdrawn from the latter station.
In October, 1867, Lieutenant Bolton was employed in arresting some
recalcitrant chiefs at Pram-Pram, near Accra, Lieutenant Ness, 2nd West
India Regiment, with a detachment of that corps, acting under his
orders. The service was attended with considerable difficulty and some
danger, and the following general order was published on the subject,
dated Cape Coast Castle, January 15th, 1868:
"The officer commanding the troops has much gratification in publishing
in orders an extract of a letter received from the Horse Guards,
expressing the approval of His Royal Highness the Field-Marshal
Commanding-in-Chief, of the manner in which the difficult duties were
carried out by the officers and troops employed in the recent expedition
to Pram-Pram.
"'The attention of the Field-Marshal Commanding-in-Chief having been
drawn to a despatch, received at the Colonial Office, from the
Administrator-in-Chief of the West Africa settlements, containing a very
favourable account of the conduct of Lieutenant H.F.S. Bolton, of the
1st West India Regiment, and Lieutenant (now Captain) Ness, of the 4th
West India Regiment,[60] and of the troops under their command, on a
recent expedition to some chiefs at Pram-Pram and Ningo, on the Gold
Coast; I am directed to acquaint you that His Royal Highness considers
the report to be highly satisfactory, and I have to request that you
will express to the officers and troops employed on the service in
question, His Royal Highness's approval of the manner in which they
carried out the very difficult duties they had to perform.'"
On the 9th of August, 1868, at the request of the Governor-in-chief, the
garrison of the 2nd West India Regiment on the Gold Coast being much
below its allotted strength, E Company, 1st West India Regiment, 100
strong, proceeded to Cape Coast Castle, under Lieutenant C.J.L. Hill,
and, in consequence of this reduction of the Sierra Leone garrison, the
Songo-town detachment was withdrawn.
In January, 1869, a company under Captain K.R. Niven, with Ensign W.A.
Broome, was despatched to Sherbro Island for the protection of British
subjects, an invasion of that island being hourly expected. The presence
of the troops soon produced the desired effect, and the detachment
returned to Sierra Leone on the 27th of February.
In April, 1869, in consequence of the difficulty experienced by the
Colonial Government in arresting certain rebellious chiefs at the
Amissah River, about twenty miles to the east of Cape Coast Castle, the
police having been attacked and driven off, the Acting Administrator,
Mr. W.H. Simpson, applied for a military party to aid in establishing
the authority of the Government over the people of that place; and, on
the 7th of that month, Lieutenant E.G. Macdonald, 1st West India
Regiment, with twenty-five non-commissioned officers and men of letter
E Company, marched for Anamaboe, leaving that place next morning for
Amissah River. On arriving there the chiefs were captured with some
little difficulty, and the party returned to Cape Coast next day.
On the 1st of April, 1869, the 4th West India Regiment was disbanded,
and the three remaining West India regiments were each augmented by one
company; the detachment of the 4th West India Regiment at Jamaica being
formed into the ninth, or letter "I," Company of the 1st West India
Regiment. On the 30th of September, 1869, it embarked for Honduras in
the brigantine _W.N.Z._, under Major McAuley, arriving at its
destination on the 14th of October.
In May, 1869, the Gambia was visited by a severe epidemic of cholera.
Owing to the sanitary measures adopted by Major W.W.W. Johnston, 1st
West India Regiment, commanding the troops, the regiment escaped with
only eighteen deaths out of the 200 men there stationed between the 5th
of May and the 6th of June, the period when the epidemic was at its
height; while in the town there were more than 1500 deaths, out of a
population of some 5000.
In 1870 the three years' tour of service of the regiment on the West
Coast of Africa expired. The 3rd West India Regiment having been
disbanded, a considerable reduction in the West African garrisons became
necessary, and it was intended that the relief for the eight companies
of the 1st West India Regiment should consist of four companies of the
2nd. On the 24th of May, the head-quarters, with A, B, and F Companies,
under Captain Samson, embarked at Sierra Leone in H.M.S. _Orontes_,
which, proceeding to the Gambia, took on board the two companies there
on the 29th. The head-quarters, with the three companies from Sierra
Leone, landed at Jamaica on the 27th of June, and the _Orontes_ then
sailed for Nassau, where the two companies from the Gambia were
disembarked. On the return of the troopship to the West Coast of Africa
with the four companies of the 2nd West India Regiment, the company of
the 1st West India Regiment at Cape Coast Castle was embarked on the
24th of August, and the remaining two at Sierra Leone on the 27th. All
three proceeded to Jamaica, under the command of Captain J.A. Smith, and
landed at Kingston on the 3rd of October. The distribution of the
regiment was now as follows: head-quarters and six companies at Jamaica,
two at Nassau, and one at Honduras. On the 15th of November, F Company,
under Captain Butler, embarked at Jamaica for Honduras; thus making up
the detachment at that station to two companies.
During the West African tour of 1866-70, two officers succumbed to the
influence of the climate, Lieutenant Gavin having died at Sierra Leone
on the 22nd of February, 1869, and Lieutenant Maturin on the 7th of
December of the same year.
FOOTNOTES:
[Footnote 60: By the Gazette of September 25th, 1867, Lieutenant R.E.D.
Ness, 2nd West India Regiment, was promoted Captain, by purchase, in the
4th West India Regiment.]