the account of wilful falsehood, or at least, to an indifference to the cause of truth. I can easily conceive that the caravan merchants in passing from Tonibuctoo to Gallam, or the contrary, might have deceived themselves into a belief, that the principal rivers which they had either crossed or skirted in their way, might communicate with each other: for it appears clearly, by Mr. Park's observations, that the eastern branch of the Senegal, and the western branch of the Joliba, approach very near to each other in the early part of their courses : so that, during the whole journey, the merchants might never be farther distant from a river, to the southward of them, than a few journies. As to the story, so long credited, of the Niger being the parent river from whence all the western rivers were derived, we may remark, that ignorance, in every country through which large rivers take their course, is very ready to derive them all from one source, and that source, very probably, a lake. Within our own times the Burrampooter and Ava rivers were thus described in the maps Pliny reports, that the Euphrates and Tigris are united in Armenia by the medium of a lake ;* and Edrisi, as we have seen, derived the Nile and Niger from one and the same lake.† It will appear that the lake Maberia, taken by D'Anville and Delisle for the head of the Senegal river, or that which runs to the west, is meant for no other than the lake of Dibbie, formed by the river Joliba, or that which runs to the cast; and which Mr. Park's inquiries have brought to our knowledge. Again, we recognize the river Guien, or Guin, of Labat, of D'Anville, and of Delisle, in the northern branch of the same Joliba, issuing out of the lake Dibbie; and which, together with the southern branch of the same lake, forms an island, reported to be 90 or 100 miles in length, named Jinbala by Mr. Park. There is a town on the side of the northern branch, also named Jinbala; but whether the island may take its name from this town, or from the river, whose proper name, from about this point, seems to be Guin, or Jin, I know not. M. D'Anville has described, in * Pliny, lib. vi. c. 27. Thompson believed it. After speaking of the Nile, he says--- In which the full-form'd maids of Afric lave SUMMER, 811. this position, the country of Guinbala, subject to Tonka Quata: the same who is said by Labat, to be sovereign of the country which contains the lake of Maberia, and the river of Guien.* Here, then, we have an explanation of the error of those, who, from the supposed information of the Mandingo mer. chants, supposed the lake Maberia, answering to the Dib bie of Park, to form the source of the Senegal river; and who took the river of Guin, or Jinbala, for a distinct river, instead of a branch issuing from that lake. The Mandingas might very truly have informed the French settlers, that the lake Maberia, and the rivers Joliba and Guin, would convey them to Tombuctoo; but did they say also, that the river of Senegal would convey them into the lake Maberia? The French merchants, perhaps, taking for granted that the navigation was continuous, might never inquire whether their informants were speaking of one or two rivers; and the others might at the same time be speaking of two distinct rivers, and be ignorant of the prepossessions of their inquirers! It may be added, that, whether from the difficulties that grew out of the subject, when the geographical documents came to be analyzed, or whether it was from actual information, both Delisle and D'Anville describe two lakes near each other, one at the supposed head of the Senegal river, the other at that of the Tombuctoo river. I think it most probable, that it was occasioned by the want of their being made to comprehend that the waters ran eastward to, and not westward from, the lake of Maberia; so that when they were told that the Tombuctoo river issued from a lake, they concluded it must be a different one from that at the head of the Senegal. Certain it is, however, that these geographers believed that the waters ran to the west from this lake. I have now brought to a conclusion, what was meant to be said on the subject of the descriptions and mistakes of former geographers; in the course of which it may be observed, that a period of twenty-two centuries has brought matters round again to the same point. And having thus cleared the ground, I next proceed to the more important part of the subject, the proper discoveries of Mr. Park. Labat, Vel ii, p. 161, 163, and iii. p. 361. CHAPTER II. Concerning the Geographical Discoveries of Mr. Park. SINCE the scope and design of Mr. Park's routes have been already set forth in the beginning of the present work, 'it would be useless to say more on that head; and as the particular map of his progress will explain the relative circumstances of the Geography, nothing more will be necessary than to call the attention of the reader to such particulars as may not readily occur to him on inspection of the Map or which, from their nature, cannot well be inserted in it. The discoveries of this gentleman, as has been said before, give a new face to the physical geography of Western Africa. They prove, by the courses of the great rivers, and from other notices, that a belt of mountains, which extends from west to east, occupies the parallels between 10 and 11' degrees of north latitude, and at least between the 2d and 10th degrees of west longitude, from Greenwich. This belt, moreover, other authorities extend some degrees still farther to the west and south, in different branches, and apparently of less height. One of these follows the upper part of the Gambia river; another the Rio Grande, to a low point of its course; and a third appears to shut up the western coast of Guinea. Accordingly, this chain approaches much nearer to the equatorial parts of Africa, than was before supposed; and thus me are enabled to understand fully what Abulfedat meant, when he said, that after the continent of Africa has extended southward‡ from the Strait of Gibraltar to the neighborhood of the Equator, it turns to the east, passing at the back of the mountains of Komri, which, give rise to the Nile. The mountains in question, then ought to be those intended by Abulfeda, who by the name * *Meaning Serra Leona, &c. &c. Prolegomena. + Abulfeda in effect, leterally meant southward; for like Ptolemy and Strabo, he had no idea that the coast of Africa projected to the westward beyond the Streights, but rather supposed it to tend to the eastward of south. When the above is considered. we can understand that Abulfeda supposed the bays of Benin and St. Thomas to be 11 or 12 degrees more to the east, than they really are; and he might well suppose, of Komri, evidently meant to express the Mountains of the Moon, from which Ptolemy derives the remote source of the Nile.* As Abulfeda supposed the source of the Nile to be very far to the south or south-west, in which I agree generally with him, this chain may be supposed to pass onward from the abovementioned quarter to the east, and south of east, shutting up Abyssinia on the south. This, at least, seems the only way in which we can fairly under stand Abulfeda; in confirmation of whose description, a part of the ridge has been actually found by Mr Park.tAccording to Leo, p. 249, the country of Melli is bordered on the south by mountains; and these must be nearly in the same parallel with the mountains of Kong, seen by Mr. Park. Mr. Beaufoy was informed, that the countries on the south and south-west of the Niger, lying opposite to, and to the westward of, Kassina, were also mountainous and woody. In particular in the line between Kassina and As sentai, the country is said to be formed of a succession of hills, with woods of a vast extent, and some mountains of a stupendous height. As the source of the Nile is confessedly very far to the South of the parallel of 10 degrees north, this chain of moun→ tains, admitting it to continue its general easterly course, must bend to the southward after it passes Kong and Melli, in order to pass above the sources of the Nile, the princi pal of which I conceive to be situated in the country of Dars foor. The highest part of the portion of this chain pointed out by Mr. Park's discoveries, is situated between the 5th and that "the sea came in at the back of the mountains that gave rise to the Nile. That the Nile of Egypt, and not the Niger, is meant, we learn in an. other place in the same author, where he speaks of the Egyptian Nile, and traces it to Egypt. Prolegomena, article Rivers. * Komri, or rather Kummerce, is the Arabic term for lunar, and is the adjective of Kummer, the moon. [Mr Hastings.] †The mountains of Kong were seen by Mr. Park; but no other part of the chain. * African Association, 1790 and 1791, quarto ed. p. 117, 123; octavo, 176, 186. Also quarto, 174; octavo 260. As two editions of this work are in the hands of the public, I have referred to both throughout this work, distinguishing them respective. ly by Q. and O. 9th degrees of west longitude; for within this space are situated, the sources of the Gambia, which run to the westnorth-west; of the Senegal running to the north-west; and of the Joliba, or Niger, to the east-north-east.* There is, however, a general slope of the country, extending to a great distance northward, formed by a gradation of summits of lesser mountains and hills, as is shewn by the early part of the course of the rivers; in particular that of the Niger, which appears to run nearly 100 miles on a northerly course, before it turns finally to the eastward. A large portion of the tract bordering on the northern foot of the mountains, from whence the branches of the Senegal river issue, is covered with thick forests. Mr. Park's track, on his return, lay through these woods; one part of which is named the Jallonka Wilderness, in which no habitations were seen during five days of forced marching. The hardships endured, even by the free men of this caravan, almost exceed belief.t The head of the principal branch of the Senegal river is about 80 geographical miles to the west of that of the Joliba; and the head of the Gambia, is again about 100 west of the Senegal. The branches of the latter are very numerous, and intersect the country for about 200 miles from east to west, in the line of the caravan route; and it was this circumstance that detained Mr. Park, during a great part. of the periodical rainy season, in Manding; a state of things, perhaps, little expected, in a country regarded here as the most thirsty on the globe.‡ We may conclude, that similar circumstances take place with respect to the Joliba, only, that as its course is such as to intercept all the streams that descend from the Kong mountains on the south, whilst Mr. Park's travels along it were confined to the northern bank, he had no opportunity of knowing it, any farther than by seeing various openings on that side, and by being told that he could not possibly * The Rio Grande has its source very far to the south of this chain; first running to the north, till it touches the foot of this very ridge of mountains, by which it is turned to the west. [Vide Mr. Watt's Plan and Journal.] †The caravan in question was composed chiefly of slaves going from Manding to the ports of the Gambia. There is in Africa a rainy season, and also a periodical change of wind, as in the same latitudes in India: In effect, à Monsoon. |