do, we must exclaim, with Kafra the flave-driver," Black men are nothing'

Tvo deferiptions of readers, however, may poffibly complain of difappointment, after the perufal of Mr. Park's travels: but they are fuch as no author will be very ambitious to fatisfy; the one, thofe who purposely afk too much; the other, thofe who are indefinite in the object of their expectations, and know not what it is which they demand. To all other perfons, who, by a fenfe of the obftacles and the means of combating them, tempered the zeal of hope; or who faw a diftinct ob-ject in it, by the light of other travels; the prefent work will appear important, as having confiderably augmented the knowledge of what its most learned commentator calls the moral and phyfical geography of Africa.

The inftructions given to Mr. P. have already been mentioned. In confequence of them, he left England for Africa, 22d May, 1795, and arrived at Pifania, a Britifli factory on the river Gambia, 5th July. The first object of the author, on his arrival at this place, was to learn the Mandingo language, as being generally fpoken in the parts through which he was to travel. On the 2d of December, he left Pifania, accompanied by a negroe fervant who (poke both the English and the Mandingo tongues, and by a negroe boy who spoke the language of the Serawoollies, an inland people. His baggage confifted of provifions for two days, linen, a fmall affortment of beads, amber, and tobacco, an umbrella, a pocket fextant, a magnetic compafs, a thermo

meter, two fowling pieces, two pair of piftols, and other fmall articles. His courfe was easterly towards the kingdom of Woolli; the capital of which, Medina, he reached on the 5th December. He ftopped here a day, and was kindly treated by the king, who tried to diffuade him from the journey; warning him of the fate of major Houghton. On the next day, however, having procured a guide, the traveller purfued his journey, and on the 8th reached Kolor. On the 9th he proceeded, and on the 11th he arrived at Koojar, the frontier town of Woolli. Here he drank a liquor refembling beer, and in fact made from corn previously malted, with bitter roots inftead of hops. To reach the kingdom of Bondou, he was obliged to pass a wilderness of two days journey; in croffing which he was accompanied by three negroes, elephant hunters. On the 13th he reached Tallika the frontier town of Bondou, the inhabitants of which are Mohammedan Foulahs; one of the four great claffes into which the inhabitants on the banks of the Gambia are divided. At Fatteconda, the capital of Bondou, where Mr. P. arrived on the 21ft of December, he was introduced to the king Almami, who had behaved unkindly to major Houghton. The ignorance and cunning of this prince are thus related:

We found the monach fitting upon a mat, and two attendants with him. I repeated what I had before told him concerning the object of my journey, and my reafons for paffing through his country. He feemed, however, but half fatisfied." The notion of travelling for curio

lity, was quite new to him. He thought it impoffible, he faid, that any man in his fenfes would undertake fo dangerous a journey, merely to look at the country, and its inhabitants: however, when I offered to fhew him the contents of my portmanteau, and every thing belonging to me, he was convinced; and it was evident that his fuf picion had arifen from a belief, that every white man muft of neceffity be a trader. When I had delivered my prefents, he feemed well plea fed, and was particularly delighted with the umbrella, which he repeatedly furled and unfurled, to the great admiration of himself and his two attendants; who could not for fome time comprehend the use of this wonderful machine. After this I was about to take my leave, when the king, defiring me to ftop a while, began a long preamble in fayour of the whites; extolling their immenfe wealth, and good difpofitions. He next proceeded to an eulogium on my blue coat, of which the yellow buttons feemed particularly to catch his fancy; and he concluded by entreating me to prefent him with it; afluring me, for my confolation under the lofs of it, that he would wear it on all public occafions, and inform every one who faw it, of my great liberality towards him. The requeft of an African prince, in his own dominions; particularly when made to a ftranger, comes little fhort of a command. It is only a way of obtaining by gentle means, what he can, if he pleases, take by force; and as it was against my intereft to offend him by a refufal, I very quietly took off my coat, the only good one in my poffeffion, and laid it at his feet.'

Leaving Bondou, Mr. Park pros ceeded to the kingdom of Kajaaga; the inhabitants of which are called Serawollies; a trading people, and deriving confiderable profit from the fale of falt and cotton cloths. At Joag, the frontier town, he was ill-treated, and robbed of half his effects by order of Batcheri, king of Kajaaga. Here he embraced a favourable opportunity of profecuting his journey to the kingdom of Kaffon, under the guidance of Demba Sego, the king's nephew: to pay for whole protection, he was plundered of half of his remaining effects by Demba and his father. Eager to quit people who fold their kindnefs at fo dear a rate, Mr. Park, on the 10th of January, 1796, left Teffee, the frontier town of Kasson, on his way to Kooniakary, the capital.

At Kooniakary, the author was treated kindly by the king, who had feen major Houghton and had prefented him with a horfe. On account of an impending war, which was likely to involve the kingdoms of Kaflon, Kajaaga, Kaarta, and Bambarra, the traveller remained in Kaffon till the 3d of February, when he refumed his journey, and arrived on the 12th at Kemmoo, the capital of Kaarta. Here he was introduced to the king, Daily : who advifed him to return to Kaf fon, or, if he was determined to proceed, to take a circuitous route through the Moorish kingdom of Ludamar, into Bambarra. From Kaarta to Bambarra he could not immediately proceed, without the danger of being apprehended as a fpy. As Mr. Park was unwilling to fpend the rainy feason in the interior, he refolved to follow the route through Ludamar, which Dai

fy

27th of February; and here began his misfortunes. The Moors, unfeeling, proud, ignorant, and fanatical, hiffed, fhouted at, and abused him; they plundered him, and openly; for it was lawful, they faid, for a Mohammedan to plunder a Chriftian. Mr. Park, however, pursued his journey, and on March 14th reached Sampaka, a large town; where he lodged at the house of a negroe who made gunpowder. At the village of Samee, Mr. Park was feized by a party of Moors, and conducted back to Benown, the refidence of Ali. He fuffered here all that religious hatred and fportive cruelty could inflict; folitude and confinement were punishments too light for a forlorn traveller and a Chriftian; and except the perfecution was continual, the malice of the Moors was not fatiffied. His eyes were to have been put out merely because they looked like cat's eyes, and he efcaped death only by the circumftance of a piftol twice miffing fire.

At length, after a variety of hardships, Mr. Park was fortunate enough, on the 2d of July, to escape from the Moors. Traverfing the wilderness, in which he fuffered exceedingly from hunger and thirft, on the 5th of July, he reached a negroe town, called Wawra, belonging to Manfong, king of Bambarra. Continuing his journey from this place, in company with fome inhabitants of Kaarta, he paffed through feveral towns of Bambarra; and on the 21ft of July, he came in fight of Sego, and of the great object of his miflion; the long fought-for

Niger, glittering to the morningfun, as broad as the Thames, at Wefiminfler, and flowing flowly to the eastward.' I haftened to the brink,' fays Mr. Park, and, having drank of the water, liftedup my fervent thanks in prayer, to the great Ruler of all things, for having thus far crowned my endeavours with fuccefs.'

The city of Sego, the capital of Bambarra, confifts of four diftin&t towns, two on the northern and two on the fouthern fide of the Niger. Thefe are furrounded with high mud walls; the houses are built of clay, and are of a fquare form, with flat roofs: the number of inhabitants is nearly thirty thoufand. The boats here used for croffing the Niger, or Joliba (great waters), are compofed of the trunks of two large trees joined together, not fide by fide, but endways. Mr. Park was prevented from crofing over to the fouthern bank of the Niger, by an order from Manfong, king of Bambarra, and was advifed to ipend the night in a diftant village. At this village, however, no one would receive him; and he was preparing to pafs the night on the branches of a tree, in hunger and amid a storm, when he was relieved by a woman who was returning from the labours of the field. was at the hut of this female that his wants were relieved and his forrows fung.*

It

The king of Bambarra having heard, from the Moors of Sego, unfavourable reports of Mr. Park, fent him a bag containing five thoufand kowries, † and an order to quit

Sego;

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

Purluing 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 reasons 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 any article of value to procure provifions; the king of Bam barra'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 leff Silla, however, he inquired from Moorish and negro traders, the courfe 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 best 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 fubfiftence, 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 Mohammedan and pagan natives place a fu perftitious confidence.

At a town called Bammakoo, Mr. Park quitted the Niger, and proceeded to Sibidooloo, the frontier 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 Bushreen named Kafra Taura. Kafra informed Mr. Park that it was impoffible to pass the Jalonka wilderness at that fealon of the year: he offered to lodge and fubfift him till the time when the rivers fhould be fordable and the grafs burnt; and finally to take him along with the caravan to Gambia Influenced by the kindness 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 common.