Slike stranica
PDF
ePub

Religion and Government.] Mahometanifm, in its worst form, prevails. throughout the ftates of Barbary. The emperor of Morocco is an arbitrary prince. Algiers is governed by a Prince, called the Dey, elected by the army. The fovereigns of Tunis and Tripoli, called Beys, are not fo independent as the former. Thefe three ftates may be looked upon as republics of foldiers under the protection of the Grand Seignior. Algiers belongs to the Spaniards, and is a neft of pirates. On this coaft ftood the famous city of Carthage, which was destroyed by the Romans. Among the great men Africa has produced, are Tertullian, Cyprian, Julius Africanus, Arnobius, Lactantius and St. Auftin, all bishops of the church. The warriors of note are Hamilcar, Hannibal and Afdrubal. Among the poets are, Terence and Apuleius.

ZAARA, OR THE

DESERT.

IT has Barbary north; Egypt and Nubia eaft; Negroland and Guinea fouth; and the Atlantic weft; 2500 miles long, and 500 broad.

The air of this country is very hot, but wholefome to the natives. The foil is generally fandy and barren, infomuch that the caravans croffing this country, to and from Negroland, are often reduced to great extremities. The inhabitants of this country are wild and ignorant. They have a number of petty princes, but for the most part, have few figns of any government at all. The Mahometan religion is profeffed throughout the country.

NEGRO LA N D.

HIS country lies fouth of Zaara; 2300 miles long, and 700 broad.

near the river Niger, which runs through the country from east to west, and overflows at a certain time of the year like the Nile. The commodities of this country are gold, flaves, elephants-teeth, bees-wax, and fome drugs. There is a well here, whofe water is as fweet as ordinary fugar. The Negroes are an uncivilized, ignorant, crafty, robust people. Their colour is deep black, their hair fhort, like wool, flat nofes, thick lips, and white, even teeth. The Negroes are governed by a number of abfolute princes. The inhabitants are moftly pagans and idolaters.

GUINEA lies fouth of Negroland, 1800 miles long, 600 broad. The foil is preferable to that of Negroland. The inhabitants are more courteous and fenfible; in other refpects the difference is immaterial. The greater part of the poor Negroes in the Weft-Indies and the fouthern ftates, were brought from these two countries,

M m

ETHI

UNDER

[blocks in formation]

NDER the general name of Ethiopia is included all the remaining part of Africa; containing an extent of 3600 miles from north to fouth, and 2000 from eaft to weft. The air of this country is generally exceffive hot, and the foil barren, though on the banks of the rivers it is fertile, and produces rice, citrons, lemons, fugar canes, &c. The Ethiopians are an ignorant, uncivilized, fuperftitious people. Their government is abfolute, lodged in the hands of a great number of princes, the small ones are tributary to the greater. The Mahometan and Pagan religions prevail in Ethiopia.

AFRICAN

ISLAND S.

At the mouth of the Red Sea, is the inland that failors now call

crata, famous for its aloes, which are esteemed the best in the world. Sailing down, fouthward, we come to the island Madagascar, or Lawrence, abounding in cattle and corn, and most of the neceffaries of life, but no fufficient merchandize to induce Europeans to fettle colonies; it has feveral petty favage kings of its own, both Arabs and Negroes, who making war on each other, fell their prifoners for flaves to the fhipping which call here, taking cloaths, utenfils and other neceffaries in

return.

Near it are the four Comorra ifles, whofe petty kings are tributary to the Portuguese; and near thefe lies the. French ifland Bourbon; and a little higher Maurice, fo called by the Dutch, who first touched here in 1598. It is now in poffeffion of the French.

Quitting the eastern world and the Indies, and paffing round the Cape of Good Hope, into the wide Atlantic ocean, the first inland is the fmall, but pleafant St. Helena, at which place all the English Eaft-India fhips ftop to get water and fresh provifions in their way home. Near this are the Guinea islands, St. Matthew, St. Thomas and others, not far from the coaft under the Equinoctial line, belonging to the Portuguese. These were fo named by the failors, who firft found them on St. Helen's, St. Thomas's and St. Matthew's feftivals.

Thence northward, are the Cape Verd iflands, fo called from their verdure. They now belong to the Portuguese, who are furnished from thence with falt and goats fkins.

Farther north are the pleafant Canaries, belonging to the Spaniards, from whence firft came Canary wine, and the beautiful finging birds, called Canary birds. The antients called them the Fortunate Ifles, and placed there the Elyfian fields. They are ten or twelve in number, the chief are Teneriffe, Gomera, Ferro, and Great Canary. The fertile iflands of Madeira lie ftill higher north, and are famous for the best ftomachic wine. They belong to the Portuguese.

** At the conclufion of thefe defcriptions it may not be amifs to refer our readers to a work compiled and printed at a very great expence, and of utility to the public, intituled, A Compleat Geographical Dictionary of the World, by JOHN SEALLY, and ISRAEL LYONS, of Cambridge. Printed for Fielding.

HE varieties among the human race, fays Dr. Percival, enumerat

ed by Linnæus and

THE varttien aus and Buffon, are fix. The firft is found under the polar regions, and comprehends the Laplanders, the Efquimaux Indians, the Samoeid Tartars, the inhabitants of Nova Zembla, the Borandians, the Greenlanders, and the people of Kamfchatka. The vifage of men, in thefe countries, is large and broad; the nofe flat and fhort; the eyes of a yellowish brown, inclining to blacknefs; the cheek bones extremely high; the mouth large; the lips thick, and turning outwards; the voice thin and fqueaking; and the fkin a dark grey colour. The people are fhort in ftature, the generality being about four feet high, and the tallest not more than five. Ignorance, ftupidity, and fuperftition are the mental characteristics of the inhabitants of thefe rigorous climates.

For here

Doze the grofs race. Nor fprightly jeft nor fong,
Nor tenderness they know, nor aught of life,
Beyond the kindred bears that ftalk without.

The Tartar race, comprehending the Chinese, and the Japanese, forms the fecond variety in the human fpecies. Their countenances are broad and wrinkled, even in youth; their nofes fhort and flat; their eyes little, funk in the fockets, and feveral inches afunder; their cheek bones are high; their teeth of a large fize, and feparate from each other; their complexions are olive, and their hair black. Thefe nations, in general, have no religion, no fettled notions of morality, and no decency of behaviour. They are chiefly robbers; their wealth confifts in horfes, and their skill in the management of them.

The third variety of mankind is that of the fouthern Afiatics, or the inhabitants of India. These are of a flender shape, have long, ftraight, black hair, and generally Roman nofes. Thefe people are flothful, luxurious, fubmiffive, cowardly and effeminate..

-The parent Sun himself

Seems o'er this world of flaves to tyrannize;
And, with oppreffive ray, the roseate bloom
Of beauty blafting, gives the gloomy hue,
And features grofs: or worse, to ruthless deeds,
Mad jealoufy, blind rage, and fell revenge,
Their fervid fpirit fires. Love dwells not there,
The foft regards, the tenderness of life,
The heart-thed tear, th' ineffable delight
Of fweet humanity: thefe court the beam
Of milder climes; in felfifh fierce defire,
And the wild fury of voluptuous fenfe,
There loft. The very brute creation there

This rage partakes, and burns with horrid fire.

The negroes of Africa conftitute the fourth ftriking variety in the human fpecies: But they differ widely from each other; thofe of Guinea, for inftance, are extremely ugly, and have an infupportably offenfive fcent; while thofe of Mofambique are reckoned beautiful, and are untainted with any difagreeable fmell. The negroes are, in general, of a

M m 2

black

black colour; and the downy foftnefs of hair which grows upon the fkin, gives a fmoothness to it, refembling that of velvet. The hair of their heads is woolly, fhort and black; but their beards often turn grey, and fometimes white. Their nofes are flat and fhort, their lips thick and tumid, and their teeth of an ivory whiteness.

The intellectual and moral powers of thefe wretched people are uncultivated; and they are fubject to the most barbarous defpotifm. The favage tyrants who rule over them, make war upon each other for bu man plunder! and the wretched victims, bartered for fpiritous liquors, are torn from their families, their friends, and their native land, and configned for life to mifery, toil and bondage. But how am I shocked to inform you, that this infernal commerce is carried on by the humane, the polifhed, the chriftian inhabitants of Europe; nay even by Englishmen, whofe ancestors have bled in the cause of liberty, and whofe breafts ftill glow with the fame generous flame! I cannot give you a more striking proof of the ideas of horror which the captive negroes entertain of the ftate of fervitude they are to undergo, than by relating the following incident from Dr. Goldfinith.

A Guinea captain was, by diftrefs of weather, driven into a certain harbour, with a lading of fickly flaves, who took every opportunity to throw themselves over-board, when brought upon deck for the benefit of freth air. The captain perceiving, among others, a female flave attempting to drown herfelf, pitched upon her as a proper example for the rest. As he fuppofed that they did not know the terrors attending death, he ordered the woman to be tied with a rope under the arm-pits, and let down into the water. When the poor creature was thus plunged in, and about half way down, fhe was heard to give a terrible fhriek, which at first was afcribed to her fears of drowning; but foon after, the water appeared red around her, fhe was drawn up, and it was found that a fhark, which had followed the fhip, had bitten her off from the middle.'

The native inhabitants of America make a fifth race of men. They are of a copper colour, have black, thick, ftraight hair, flat nofes, high cheek bones, and fmall eyes. They paint the body and face of various colours, and eradicate the hair of their beards and other parts, as a deformity. Their limbs are not fo large and robuft as thofe of the Europeans. They endure hunger, thirtt, and pain with astonishing firmnefs and patience; and, though cruel to their enemies, they are kind and juft to each other.

The Europeans may be confidered as the laft variety of the human kind. They enjoy fingular advantages from the fairness of their complexions. The face of the African Black, or of the olive-coloured Afiatic, is a very imperfect index of the mind, and preferves the fame fettled fhade in joy and forrow, confidence and fhame, anger and defpair, fickness and health. The English are faid to be of the fairest of the Europeans; and we may therefore prefume, that their countenances beft exprefs the variations of the paffions and viciffitudes of difeafe. But the intellectual and moral characteristics of the different nations, which compofe this quarter of the globe, are of inore importance to be known. Thefe, however, become gradually lefs difcernible, as fashion, learning, and commerce prevail more univerfally.'

APPEN

APPENDIX.

NOTE

I.

was

HE following note will correct what was faid, page 87, in respect

THE

• A diftinction must be made between the arret of 1785 and that of 1787. The firft grants privileges in certain cafes to all neutrals, the fecond is entirely in favour of the Americans. But both are for their advantage. Whenever they fhall enjoy a permanent and folid government, on whofe measures fome reliance may be given, then it may be expected that the king of France will give effect to the difpofition which his majefty has conftantly harboured towards the United States. But no regulation can be folid which is not founded on reciprocal advantage. To obtain, a nation should be able to grant. That has not been the case with the United States towards France. They have not ever been able to make good the treaty of commerce on which their first connection with France is grounded. Many grievances exift against the United States, where the few French navigators have been liable to many inconveniences from the fickleness and imperfection of the laws of individual states. Juftice must be the first bafis on which induftry may repofe. France will always grant more than fhe may receive, but her fubjects must find in the United States protecting and folid laws. That will certainly be the effect of a wife and a general government. It may then be pronounced that the æra of the new conftitution will also be the era of a renewal of a lasting and useful connection between two nations, who have no motive for rivalship, and who have many natural reasons to be strongly connected befides what fentiment may inspire.'

NOTE II.

The following Extract from the Journals of Mr. ELKANAH WATSON, a gentleman who has travelled extenfively both in Europe and America, merits a place in a book of this kind, and would have been inferted in the body of the work, had the journals been timely received.

When the extent of America is confidered, boldly fronting the old world-bleffed with every climate-capable of every production-abounding with the best harbours and rivers on the globe, and already overfpread with three millions of fouls, moftly defcendents of Englishmen-inheriting all their ancient enthufiafm for liberty, and enterprizing almoft to a fault-what may be expected from fuch a people in fuch a country?The partial hand of nature has laid off America upon a much larger fcale than any other part of the world. Hills in America are mountains in Europe-brooks are rivers, and ponds are fwelled into lakes. In fhort the map of the world cannot exhibit a country uniting fo many natural advantages, fo pleasingly diversified, and that offers fuch abundant and eafy refources to agriculture and commerce.

In

« PrethodnaNastavi »