Sego; in confequence of which, the traveller proceeded eastward along the banks of the Niger.

any

Purfuing his courfe along the banks of the Niger, which are very delightful, Mr. Park paffed through the towns of Modiboo and Kea, and reached Moorzan; here he croffed the Niger to Silla, the end of his journey eastward. The reafons which determined him to proceed no farther are fufficient to juftify him; he was worne down by fick nefs, hunger, and fatigue; he was without article of value to procure provifions; the king of Bambarra's kowries were nearly fpent; if he were to fubfift by charity, he muft rely on Moorish charity; if he continued his journey, it must be through a country fubjected to the power of Moors, and he had experienced the Moors to be merciless fanatics: he might gain no new information; and what he had gained might perifh with him. Before he left Silla, however, he inquired from Moorish and negro traders, the courte of the Niger, and the countries fituated in its vicinity.The information which he received will be found in p. 213-217. We had defigned to extract it, but we perceive that our limits will not admit fo large a quotation. As to the extent of the Niger, Mr. Park's beft informants were ignorant of its termination; defcribing the amazing length of its courfe only in general terms, and faying that they believe it runs to the world's end.

Owing to the fwamps on the fouthern bank of the Niger, Mr. Park was obliged to return weftward on the northern bank. He avoided Sego; and, inftead of retracing his former route, he continued his journey along the Niger;

depending for a precarious fubfistence, and for accommodation, on the charity of the negroes, and fometimes purchafing relief by writing faphies, or charms to procure wealth and avoid misfortunes. In thefe faphies, both the Mohamme dan and pagan natives place a fuperftitious confidence.

At a town called Bammakoo, Mr. Park quitted the Niger, and proceeded to Sibidooloo, the fron tier town of the kingdom of Manding. After having remained here a few days, he purfued his journey to Kamalia, where he was kindly received by a Bufhireen named Kafra Taura. Kafra informed Mr. Park · that it was impoffible to pass the Jalonka wilderness at that season of the year: he offered to lodge and fubfift him till the time when the rivers thould be fordable and the grafs burnt; and finally to take him along with the caravan to Gambia. Influenced by the kindnefs of Kafra, and by the profpect of dangers which awaited him, if he immediately purfued his journey, Mr. Park remained at Kamalia from the. 16th of September to the 19th of April. During this long interval, he was diligent in augmenting his information concerning the climate, the production of the country, the manners, cuftoms, and difpofitions of the natives; and the chief branches of their commerce.

Concerning the difpofition of the women, Mr. Park's teftimony agrees with that of Mr. Ledyard. They are uniformly benevolent.

Among the negroes, plurality of wives is allowed. Although the African hufbands poffefs unlimited authority, they are not cruel, and rarely jealous: inftances of conjugal infidelity are not coinmon.

The Africans have no aftronomical knowledge; and the little which they pretend to know of geography is falle: they imagine that the earth is an extended plain, beyond which is the fea; or river of falt water; and on the farther fhores of which are fituated two countries called Tobaudo-doo and Jong-fang-doo, the land of the white people,' and the land where flaves are fold.' In a chapter on the ftate and fources of flavery in Africa, Mr. Park declines the difcuffion of the queftion how far the fyftem of flavery is promoted by the flave traffic carried on by the nations of Europe, and merely exprefles his belief that, in the prefent unenlightened state of the minds of the Africans, ' a difcontinuance of the flave-trade would not be attended with fuch beneficial effects as many wife and worthy perfons expect.'

On the 19th of April, Mr. Park with Kafra, four flatees, and the caravan of 27 flaves, left Kamalia, and on the 23d they entered the Jallonka wildernefs; which was traverfed on foot, and with great expedition, in five days: the diftance across the wilderness is a hundred miles. After having croffed the black river, a principal branch of the Senegal, the caravan arrived on May 3d at Malacotta; where Mr. Park obtained information of a war which had happened between the kings of Foota Torra and of Jaloff.

Without experiencing any extraordinary hardihips, or remarkable accidents, the caravan, after a journey of 500 miles, on the 4th of June 1797, arrived at Medina, the capital of the king of Woolli's dominions, which Mr. Park had left in December, 1795. He proceeded

3

hence to Pifania, and there met with his friend Dr. Laidley, who received him with great joy and fatisfaction as one rifen from the dead. He had now an opportunity of recompenfing his benefactor Kafra, the kind flave-merchant, who parted from him with great regret. On the 17th of June, Mr. Park took his paffage on board an American fhip which had entered the river Gambia in order to purchase slaves, and in 35 days arrived at Antigua; which port they were obliged to make on account of the leakiness of the veffel. On the 24th of November Mr. Park took his paflage in the Chesterfield packet, and arrived in England on the 22d of December, 1797, after an absence of two years and seven months.

The volume concludes with the infertion, entire, of geographical illuftrations and maps by major Rennell. A portrait of Mr. Park, and feveral other plates are alfo introduced.

Africa: yet what he has difcovered and obloved is not inconfiderable, nor of little value. He has given a full and (we prefume) an accurate account of the government and people of Dar-Fûr;* and to have failed in doing this would have merited cenfure, fince he had time and opportunity to make his obfervations, and the inhabitants of the country of Dar-Fûr do not exceed two hundred thousand.

Of Egypt and Syria, the public poffefs many accounts; yet Mr. Browne's remarks and defcriptions generally produce entertainment, and not unfrequently communicate inftruction. We fhall briefly mark his route, and occafionally give

extracts.

Mr. B. arrived at Alexandria in 1792, and his first chapter contains a defcription of this city. One of his primary undertakings was to feek for the ruins of the temple of Jupiter Ammon, in which he was unfuccessful. In his next journey from Alexandria to Rafhid, the flightly defcribes the village of Abukir; now elevated and dignified in the confideration of the world by two memorable events; the late deftruction of the fleet of France, and the murderous defeat of fifteen thousand Turks.

In the chapter concerning Kahira, the author defcribes the Beys, the Mamlûks, the government of Egypt, and the ftate of politics while he was there. We do not feel ourfelves inclined to give any other extract from this chapter, than a remark concerning Mr.

Gray's poetical defcription of Egypt during the inundation of the Nile.

Mr. Gray's well-known defcription of Egypt, as immerled 'under. the influx of the Nile, is exquifitely poetical, but far from juft. In Upper Egypt the river is confined by high banks, which prevent any inundation into the adjacent country. This is alfo the cafe in Lower Egypt, except at the extremities of the Delta, where the Nile is never more than a few feet below the furface of the ground, and where inundation of courfe takes place. But the country, as may be expected, is without habitations. The fertility of Egypt arifes from human art. The lands near the river are watered by machines; and if they extend to any width, canals have been cut. The foil in general is fo rich as to require no manure. It is a pure black mould, free from ftones, and of a very tenacious and unctuous nature. When left un

cultivated, I have observed fissures, arifing from the extreme heat, of which a fpear of fix feet could not reach the bottom.'

In chap. 6. Mr. Browne thus briefly defcribes the charmer of ferpents:

6

Romeili is an open place, of an irregular form, where feats of juggling are performed. The charmers of ferpents alfo feem worthy of remark, their powers appearing extraordinary. The ferpent most common at Kahira is of the viper clafs, and undoubtedly poisonous. If one of them enter a houfe, the charmer is fent for, who uses a certain form of words. I have

VOL. XLI.

feen three ferpents enticed out of the cabin of a fhip, lying near the hore. The operator handled them, and then put them into a bag. At other times I have feen the ferpents twift round the bodies of thefe Pfylli in all directions, without having had their fangs extracted or broken, and without doing them any injury.' At Cobbé, a town in Dar-Für, tuated lat. 14° 11'. long. E. G. 28° 8' the author was detained for a long time, by an order from the fultan Abd-el-rachman-el-rafhid; and here he fuffered a dangerous illnefs, and was robbed by the villainy of his agent who attended him from Kahira.

The route of Mr. Browne on his

return from Dar-Fûr was through Kahira, and thence to Damiatt. On the occafion of mentioning this latter place, he relates an anecdote defcriptive of the character of the people under the Mamluk govern

ment:

A circumftance had recently occurred, tending to paint the character of the people under the Mamluk government. A cafhef, but not of the highest order, under Murád Bey, who had been difgraced a fhort time before, retired to Damiatt to avoid his master's anger. He had not long refided there, when, having heard more favourable tidings, he made an inquiry for fome perfon, capable of exchanging for him a fum in Turkith money, for the like in that of Europe current in the country. Accordingly three Jews were found, who promifed to fupply him according to his defire. They went round the city, and borrowed much

in addition to what they already poffeffed, and at length carried to the cafhef to the amount of between five and fix thousand patackes. He was no fooner furnished with the money, than he directed the Jews to be murdered, and his boats being ready, caufed their bodies to be packed in baskets, and put into a fmall boat of his train. He then fet off for Kahira. On arriving at a village a little way up the river, the balkets were difembarked, and he ordered them to be fafely lodged till further directions fhould be given. It was fome time before the villagers took notice of the packages, or dared to open them in the abfence of the owner. at length having obferved a quantity of blood near one of them, and entertaining fufpicions, they opened the three, and news was immediately carried to Damiatt that the three Jews had been found in this condition. Thofe under whofe cognizance fuch accidents are, made a memorial of the whole affair to Murad Bey. He replied only by loud laughter, faying, "Are they not three dogs? There is an end of them."

But

At Damiatt, the author embarked for Yaffe, at which place he arrived after a paffage of five days; he vifited Jerufalem, Beruth, Naplofa, Nazareth, Acré,* Tyre, Tripoli, Antioch, Aleppo, Damascus; and from Antioch he proceeded to Conftantinople.

At Damafcus, the author faw the entrance of the grand caravan from Mecca :

On the day after my arrival, I was entertained with the entrance

of

of the grand caravan from Mecca. The treet was lined for fome miles, for fuch is its length, with innumerable fpectators, all impreffed with curiofity, fome with anxiety to fee their friends and relations, many with reverence for the facred proceffion. Some of the more opulent Hajaîs, or pilgrims, were carried in litters, (tattarawán), but the greater number in a kind of panniers, two and two, placed on the back of camels. They did not appear much fatigued, though it was faid they had fuffered from the

want of water.

On the Saturday following, was the entrance of the Paha of Damafcus, who is commonly the Emirel Hadje, or chief of the caravan by office. First appeared three hundred dellis, or cavalry, mounted on Arabian horses, varioufly armed and clothed, but on the whole forming no mean difplay. Thefe were fucceeded by fifteen men on dromedaries, with mufquetoons, or large carbines, placed before them, and turning on a swivel, in every direction. This deftructive inftrument of war is said to have paffed from the Perfians to the Syrians. Some of the great officers of the city followed, well mounted, and decently attired. Then came part of the Pasha of Tripoli's Janizaries, well clothed and armed; that Fafla himself, with his officers, and the remainder of his guard. Next was the tattarawân belonging to the Pash of Damafcus, another body of four hundred dellis, a company of thirty mufquetoons, a hundred and fifty Albanians, in uniform, and marching two and two, like our troops. Before the latter was borne the standard of the prophet, Senjiak Sherifi, of green filk, with

fentences of the korân embroidered in gold, and the magnificent canopy brought from Mecca, guarded by a ftrong body of Muggrebîns, or weftern Arabs, on foot. Then passed the pafha's three tails, (generally of white horses) borne by three men on horfeback; twelve horses, a (paha of two tails has only fix) richly caparifoned, and each bearing a filver target and a fabre; fix led dromedaries, in beautiful houfings; numbers of the chief persons of the city followed, among whom were the aga of the Janizaries, the governor of the castle, and the mo→ haffel. Laft came the pasha himfelf, in a habit of green cloth adorned with fur of the black fox, preceded by his two fons, the eldest about fourteen, all mounted on the moft fpirited steeds of Arabia, and followed by his household troops, to the number of four hundred, well armed and mounted. More than a hundred camels preceded the reft, bearing the tents and baggage of the Pafha. The whole was conducted without any noife or tumult, to the great credit of the Damafcene mob, who had been waiting feveral hours without their ufual repast.'

Refpecting all works of the nature of that before us, in order to determine the writer's claim to public regard and gratitude, the fum and novelty of the information communicated are principally to be confidered. We have already faid that Mr. Browne relates many new and important facts: but they might have been told in a narrower compafs, and would have been more ufeful if more methodically difpofed. The want of arrange. ment is indeed a material evil; and if the author confeffes this want,

Kk 2

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