The Africans have no astronomical 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 state 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 expreffes his belief that, in the present unenlightened ftate 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 wilderness; which was traversed on foot, and with great expedition, in five days: the diftance across the wilderness is a hundred miles. After having crossed 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 hardships, 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 rilen 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 passage in the Chesterfield packet, and arrived in England on the 22d of December, 1797, after an absence of two years and feven 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 obferved 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-Für; 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 firft 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 unfuccefsful. In his next journey from Alexandria to Rahid, 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 Mamluks, 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 immerfed under the influx of the Nile, is exquisitely 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 uncultivated, I have obferved fiffures, 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:

Romeili is an open place, of an irregular form, where feats of juggling are performed. The charmers of ferpents alfo feem wor thy of remark, their powers appearing extraordinary. The ferpen! moft common at Kahira is of the viper clafs, and undoubtedly poisonous. If one of them enter a house, the charmer is fent for, who ufes a certain form of words. I have

VOL. XLI.

feen

feen three ferpents enticed out of the cabin of a fhip, lying near the fhore. The operator handled them, and then put them into a bag. At other times I have seen the ferpents twift round the bodies of these 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, fituated lat. 149 11'. long. E. G. 29' 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 illness, 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 Mamlûk govern

ment:

A circumflance had recently occurred, tending to paint the character of the people under the Mamluk government. A cafhef, but not of the highest order, under Murad Bev, who had been difgraced a thort 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 thoufand 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 bafkets, and put into a fmall boat of his train. He then fet off for Kabira. On arriving at a village a little way up the river, the baskets 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

of

of the grand caravan from Mecca. The street 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 Hajais, or pilgrims, were carried in litters, (tattarawan), 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 Pafha of Da mafcus, who is commonly the Bmirel-Hadje, or chief of the caravan by office. First appeared three hundred dellis, or cavalry, mounted on Arabian horfes, variously armed and clothed, but on the whole forming no mean difplay. These were fucceeded by fifteen men on dromedaries, with mufquefoons, or large carbines, placed before them, and turning on a fwivel, in every direction. This deftructive inftrument of war is faid 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 Pafia of Tripoli's Janizaries, well clothed and armed; that Pasha himself, with his officers, and the remainder of his guard. Next was the tattarawan belonging to the Pash of Damafcus, another body of four hundred delis, 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 Muggrebins, or weftern Arabs, on foot. Then paffed. the pafha's three tails, (generally of white horfes) borne by three men on horfeback; twelve horfes, a (pafla of two tails has only fix) richly caparisoned, and each bear ing a filver target and a fabre; fixt led dromedaries, in beautiful houfings; numbers of the chief perfons of the city followed, among whom were the aga of the Janizaries, the governor of the caftle, and the mohaffel. 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 ulual repaft.'

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 useful if more methodically difpofed. The want of arrangement is indeed a material evil; and if the author confeffes this want, Kk 2

he

clearly and comprehenfively enough, to form a bafis for fubfequent refearches. You have feen as diftinctly as I am able to fhew, who thofe nations originally were, whence and when they removed toward their final stations; and in our future annual difcourfes, I propofe to enlarge on the particular advantages to our country and to mankind, which may refult from our fedulous and united inquiries into the hiftory, science, and arts of thefe Afiatic regi ons, especially of the British dominions in India, which we may confider as the centre (not of the human race, but) of our common exertions to promote its true intereft; and we fall concur, I truft, in opinion, that the race of man, to advance whofe manly happiness is our duty, and will of courfe be our endeavour, cannot long be happy without virtue, nor actively virtuous without freedom, nor fecurely free without rational knowledge."

Afiatic hiftory, civil and natural, is the fubject of his tenth discourse. He begins with civil hiftory, contrary to the rule laid down by lord Bacon, and gives a general outline of it. He informs us with ftrict truth," that all our hiftorical refearches have confirmed the Mofaic accounts of the primitive world ;" and he well obferves, that our teftimony on that fubject ought to have the greater weight; because, if the refult of our obfervations had been totally different, we should nevertheless have published them, not indeed with equal pleafure, but with equal confidence; for truth is mighty; and whatever be its confequences muft always prevail."

The eleventh, and laft difcourfe, which fir William Jones delivered about fix weeks before his death,

was on the philofophy of the Afiatics, of which he gives a very full and copious account; but from which we fhall not at prefent make any extracts, because the fubject is far too abftrufe to be interefting to the great majority of our readers, and because we have not room 'to comment on it, with that precifion and minutenefs which it demands.

Upon the whole, these discourses must be esteemed the most valuabie of all fir William Jones's writings. Taken collectively, they add largely to the ftock of general knowledge; for they contain a variety of new and curious materials, whereby the philofopher may illuftrate the history of man, and the politician may advance the wealth, profperity, and happiness of nations. As to the ftyle of the dif fertations, it is always eafy, flowing, perfpicuous, and highly claf fical; fometimes rifing into clo quence, and never finking into tameness: yet it is occafionally tedious, owing to an extreme amplification of the periods; a mode of writing in which Cicero indeed excelled, but which is certainly unfuitable to the genius of our language. Even Clarendon's "period of a mile," (as Hayley terms it,) is often feeble, nothwithstanding that fire and energy of mind which he unquestionably poffeffed; and we therefore think fir William judged ill in endeavouring to imitate him. The capacious and affociating minds, however, of both these great men, had a natural tendency to lapfe into fuch a ftyle.

The next tract in the first volume of fir William Jones's works, is a differtation on the orthography of

Afiatic