the Mediterranean, to the westward of the mouths of the Nile, and contains 15,000 inhabitants. Rosetta, on the western branch of that river, and Damietta on the eastern, both near the sea, are the only other places of note in the country.

Abyssinia.Immediately to the south of Egypt lies a widely-extended country, called Nubia, covered in the greater part by barren deserts, but watered by the Nile: and adjoining it, still farther south, lies the kingdom of Abyssinia, extending from N. to S. about 660 geographic miles, on a mean breadth of about 500 miles. It touches the Red Sea on the east, but on all other sides is bounded by tracts of desert, or countries very little known. The capital of Abyssinia is Gondar, situated in lat. 12° 34' N., on the top of a hill of considerable height, containing, in time of peace, about 10,000 families. The houses are chiefly of clay, with conical thatched roofs. The religion is the Christian, but strangely corrupted by many peculiar practices: the government is hereditary in the family of an absolute king. Abyssinia is one of the most mountainous countries in the world; the vales however afford a black fertile soil. The chief river is the eastern branch of the Nile, after a considerable course uniting with the western branch which comes from a more distant source in the unknown parts of internal Africa. Coffee, dates, tamarinds, are a few of the vegetable productions of this country. The horses are small but spirited: cattle and buffaloes are numerous, and the forests abound with the lion, the panther, the elephant, and the rhinoceros; the hyæna is so ferocious as to haunt the streets of the towns in the night: the cro. codile and hippopotamus swarm in the lakes and rivers.

Tripoli.-In following the shores of the Mediterranean westward from Egypt, after a dreary tract of sandy desert, appears Tripoli, the capital of a Mahometan state. The

town

town stands in a low situation on the sea, is thinly peopled, and fast tending to decay. The adjoining country produces olives, dates, and a little corn.

Tunis. Still further westward is Tunis, the capital of a district formerly celebrated for its fertility. The people are considered as much more polished than any other Mahometans on that coast. The town, supposed to contain 50,000 people, stands on a lake at the bottom of a deep bay, a few miles from the vestiges of Carthage, once the industrious and prosperous seat of commerce, and long the formidable rival of Rome in its best days. The chief exports from this country are gold-dust, lead, oil, leather, wollen stuffs.

Algiers, or, as it ought to be written, Alger, the capital of an extensive region adjoining to the dominions of Tunis on the west, a noted port on the Mediterranean, is built on a hill, sloping down to the water, and contains about 50,000 inhabitants. The productions of this district are similar to those of Tunis.

Morocco. This kingdom extends chiefly from the strait of Gibraltar along the Atlantic Ocean: the country is mountainous, the celebrated range of Mount Atlas there terminating on the sea, containing mines of iron and copper. The capital city, Morocco, stands in an extensive plain, shaded by palm and other trees, and watered by various streams from Mount Atlas. Other considerable towns are Fez, once the capital of an independent kingdom, Mequinez, Sallee, and Tangier, ports on the ocean. Fez furnishes the best red, and Morocco the best yellow, leather, known in Europe by the name of that place. The natural heat of the climate is in summer tempered by the cool winds from Mount Atlas, always covered with snow. The Moors of the towns are somewhat civilized, and the wandering Arabs of the interior are hospitable, but the Brebers, descendants

from

from the original natives, who gave name to the country Barbary, are a fierce and unpolished race, occupying the fastnesses of the mountains, where they lead a life entirely independent.

The whole of this tract of Africa, extending between the Mediterranean and the pathless sandy deserts of the interior, was in former times remarkable for fertility, and in the hands of industry might still be rendered extremely productive.

Senegal and Gambia.-Proceeding down the western coast of Africa, after passing a long desert tract, appear the great rivers Senegal and Gambia, between which lies the most westerly point of Africa, Cape Verd, under which is the English isle of Goree. The principal productions of those parts are, the gum called Senegal from the name of the river, slaves, gold-dust, wax, ivory.

Sierra Leon, a settlement formed by Britons for the benevolent purpose of civilising the natives of that quarter of Africa, is situated towards the point where the coast turns eastward into the Gulf of Guinea,

Guinea. Under this general name are contained different portions, called the Grain or Windward coast, the Ivory coast, and the Gold coast: the chief article of exportation by Europeans is slaves, for the cultivation of the American islands and other colonies, This trade commenced under the emperor Charles the Fifth, who in 1517, establishsd it at the instance of Las Casas, who accompanied Columbus in his discovery of America, and the very same person who, ou his return to Europe, distinguished himself by the zeal with which he declaimed against the conduct of his companions towards theun offending natives of the new world, By a late act of the British parliament, the slave-trade, as far as Britons are concerned, is totally abolished.

Beyond Gumea the African coast turns southward, di

vided into a number of states called Benin, Loango, Congo, where the Portuguese have long had some settlements; but very little is known respecting those tracts.

Cape of Good Hope.-It has been customary to regard this celebrated cape as the most southern point of Africa: this however is not the case, for about one hundred miles to the eastward, is a Cape, called corruptedly, Lagullas, or Needle Cape, at least 30 minutes more southerly.

Cape Town is situated in the bottom of a bay, opening to the north-west, called Table Bay, from a remarkable flattopped mountain of that name in the vicinity. The town is large and well-built. The only landing-place is at a small wooden quay near the castle or fort, an extensive work, which with Fort Amsterdam, at the other end of the town, defends the harbour.

The territory belonging to the Dutch, when taken possession of by the British, extended about 500 geographic miles from W. to E., and about 200 from N. to S. The white inhabitants in the town and country were not estimated above 20,000. Great part of this territory is covered with ranges of rocky mountains and barren sandy deserts. Some mountains in the interior abound in excellent copper, and the botanical treasures are peculiarly valuable, many of the most curious and beautiful inha bitants of our hot and green-houses being brought from the Cape. On the south-east of the town are the vineyards which produce the celebrated Cape or Constantia wine, the product of vines originally carried thither by the Dutch from the banks of the Rhine and Burgundy. The natives of this corner of Africa are generally called Hottentots, a race differing in language and customs from all the neighbouring nations.

This southern extremity of Africa was first made known to Europeans by Bartholomew Diaz, who, by the orders of John the Second, King of Portugal, advanced so far on an expe dition

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dition to India by sea in 1486: but there meeting with tempestuous weather, he called the headland he had discovered, Cabo tormentoso, or Stormy cape, a name changed by John into that of Good Hope, from the expectations he now formed of complete success in his commercial and political projects. It was not however until the end of 1497, that Vasco de Gama, another Portuguese commander, actually turned the southern extremity of Africa, and after examining parts of the eastern coast, arrived, in May 1498, at Calicut, on the western shore of the peninsula of India.

In running northerly along the east coast of Africa, from the territory of the Cape of Good Hope to the entrance of the Red Sea, several states are found of which very little is known: the principal are Terra del Natal, Sabia, Sofala, Mozambico, Zanguebar containing the town of Melinda, Ajan and Adel, which borders on Abyssinia.

Of the interior parts of Africa little, comparatively speaking, is yet known; but from the published accounts of the intelligent and adventurous British travellers, Park, Hornemann, Browne, &c. very curious and important information may be procured respecting this interesting but hitherto undiscovered portion of the globe.

Madagascar.-Parallel to the eastern shores of South Africa, and at a distance of about 300 miles from the continent, lies the great island Madagascar, about 840 geographic miles in length, by above 200 in its mean breadth. A chain of mountains extends from the one end to the other, pouring down many streams, rendering it extremely fruitful in sugar-canes, cocoa-nuts, bananas, tobacco, indigo, pepper, amber, gums, with cattle, sheep, and buffaloes in abundance; but no horses, elephants, tigers, or lions.

Isle of France, &c.—To the eastward of Madagascar lie the Isles of France and Reunion, formerly Mauritius and Bourbon. The isle of France has a tolerable harbour, and

produces