who inhabit the middle portions of the Sahara, between Tripoli, Timbuctoo ⚫ and Bornou, and have from the days of the Carthagenians and Romans furnished conductors to the caravans. They are a fine race, tall, erect and handsome, with an imposing air of self-respect and independence. Their skin is not dark, except where browned by the sun. They derive their subsistence from the pasturage of their flocks, trade and plunder, and hold in contempt those who live in houses or cultivate the ground. They carry on an immense traffic in slaves. They have, however, a peculiar civilization, and use written characters, which they have cut on the darkrocks that chequer their territory. The" Tibboos" are found in the eastern part of the desert, and though different in physiognomy, are nearly as black as negroes. They live on the milk of their camels and the scanty produce of a few fertile spots; to which they add the profits of a little trade, and not unfrequently the plunder of caravans. They are themselves, however, exposed to a mightier race of spoilers, the Tuaricks, who once a year at least make a forage into their territory and carry off everything, without resistance, from the cowardly Tibboos, whose only safety is to ascend certain perpendicular rocks with flat tops, beside which they take care to build their towns. They are, nevertheless, gay and thoughtless, delighting, like other Africans, in the song and the dance. But the Tibboos have not the exclusive possession of the eastern desert; the north, near Barca, is possessed by Arabs, the best known of whom are the Hharabyn and Oulad Ali tribes; and the series of oases along the borders of Egypt are inhabited by Bereber To the south also wander several Arab tribes, and to the east the mixed Arab-Bereber tribes of Lawatah and Berdawah. The middle region of the east only, indeed, belongs to the Tibboos.

races.

The Sahara, as already intimated, contains a number of fertile spots or wahs. We have already described those that border on Egypt and acknowledge the supremacy of the Pasha. Of the others, the principal and most important are those of Fezzan, Ghadamis, Asben, Tuat, &c.

FEZZAN lies immediately south of Tripoli, and is a very large oasis, being 300 miles in length by 200 in breadth, but is scarcely distinguished from the desert, as it does not contain a running stream of the least importance. Water, however, is abundant under ground, and by raising it in wells the inhabitants have formed a number of fertile spots in which dates and grain can be reared, and where a few asses and goats, with numerous camels, are fed. The inhabitants chiefly depend on the caravan trade for subsistence, and there are even some extensive native merchants among the Fezzaners. Fezzan contains a population of 70,000, and is governed by a sultan, who is tributary to Tripoli. Its capital is Mourzouk, a considerable town. Germa, the ancient Roman capital, is now much decayed, but still contains some monuments of its former importance. There are several other towns, and one, Traghan, in the south, bordering on the desert, is an industrious place, with a thriving manufactory of carpets. Sockna, in the desert, to the north, on the road to Tripoli, forms a great caravan station.

GHADAMIS, an oasis to the north-west of Fezzan, derives some importance from the passage of caravans from Tripoli and Tunis to Timbuctoo, though these are not so considerable as those which pass through Fezzan. The chief town of the same name is occupied by two hostile tribes, each enclosed by a separate wall. Ghadamis and the surrounding villages exhibit many traces of having been occupied by the Romans.

The principal oases belonging to the Tuaricks are: GHAT, whose inhabitants form a sort of oligarchical republic; in its chief town, of the same

name, is held a great annual fair, which is much frequented by the desert tribes; AHIR, a large town and fertile oasis but little known; MABROUK, small and unimportant; and ASBEN, one of the largest, and whose capital, Aghades, is said to be as large as Tripoli; it is at least one of the principal commercial marts of the Sahara.

In the western desert are the oases at Tuat; Hoden or Wadan; Tisheet; Taudeny; Taghaza; Aroan; and Gualata and Walet. TUAT is inhabited by Arab-Bereber tribes; its chief town is Aghably, and it also contains the town of Ain-el-Ssalah, visited by Major Laing, and which derives its name from certain holy wells. HODEN, TISHEET and TAUDENY are celebrated for their mines of rock salt. AROAN contains a town of 3,000 inhabitants GUALATA and WALET are often confounded, though quite distinct; the one being situated on the route between Senegal and Marocco, and the other on the road to Timbuctoo.

The only place of note on the coast is the bay and bank of Arguin, to the south of Cape Blanco, containing an island which produces rock salt.

BILAD-ES-SOUDAN, OR NEGROLAND.

SOUDAN, the last and most southern division of the Moghreb of the Arabs, extends from the Atlantic Ocean, eastward to the Region of the Nile, or from 170 W. to 50° E. longitude, and from the borders of the Sahara southward to the Gulf of Guinea, and the chain of mountains which is supposed to extend across the centre of Africa. The region is about 3,000 miles long, and 900 from north to south, varying, however, from the encroachments of the deserts in several parts.

It seems to be divided naturally into three distinct portions, viz:—1. the maritime regions of Guinea and Senegambia; 2. the basin of the river Kawara or Niger, which may be called "Central Soudan ;" and 3. the basin of the great lakes Tchad and Fittre, eastward to the borders of Nubia and Kordofan, to which may be appropriately applied the designation of "Eastern Soudan." The grand characteristics of the region are one great range of mountains, one great river, and one great lake, so that the physical geography of the country, as far as known, is very simple. For an account of these we refer the reader to our general article on Africa.

The coast of Senegambia is remarkably low, and the same flatness extends from the Senegal to Guinea. Immense forests and a crowded undergrowth overshadow the earth, and the damp mould is perpetually increased in depth by the fall and rot of successive vegetations. The current of the rivers is sluggish, owing to the slight inclination of their channels, which are generally broad and shallow, and often contain bars some way up their streams; mud is deposited profusely on their sloping banks, and favors the multiplication of mangroves. Indeed, the surface continues monotonously flat to the foot of the first hills, which swell at last into the great range of the Mountains of Kong. The general appearance of the coast of Guinea from the sea, may be compared, says Mr. Meredith,* to an immense forest; highlands are seen in different directions, crowned with lofty trees and thick underwood. On a nearer prospect, and on a strict examination, the valleys will be found in many places richly planted; and extensive plains, beautifully studded and

* Account of the Gold Coast of Africa.

As we

decorated with clumps of trees and bushes, are also to be seen. advance into the country, where there is more moisture throughout the year than on the coast, and where the fertility of the soil produces the most vigorous vegetation, the woods are so stopped up by its luxuriance as to be almost impenetrable, and the surface is hid under a covering of shrubs, weeds, and herbs. The rivers are seen winding in different directions, flowing rapidly in some places, and in others forming stagnant pools.

The soil in the vicinity of Sierra Leone consists chiefly of a slight stratum of brown gravel, on a semi-vitrified rock of the same color. On the coast of Guinea, from Cape Palmas to the Volta, the soil within five or six miles from the shore is of a silicious nature, and the clumps of hills which are met with in every direction are composed principally of gneiss and granite. Farther inland the sandy soil becomes more and more mixed with decayed animal and vegetable matter, and in the valleys a rich alluvial soil is met with. Water, also, which on the coast is scarce and brackish, becomes in the interior good and plentiful. Further east the maritime flat country becomes broader than on the Gold Coast, and extremely fertile, terminating at last with the swampy delta of the Kawara, which is profusely covered with dense vegetation.

Of the physical features of the interior of Soudan we are unable to give any general satisfactory account. The western part of the country consists of the basin of the Kawara, bordered on the south and west by mountains, on the north by the desert, and having its eastern boundary formed by a range of hills and high ground, which divide it from the basin of the Tchad. The latter, supported on two sides by mountains, is probably a table-land of considerable elevation, the lowest part of which is occupied by the great lake; but in that respect nothing is positively known. Its elevation, however, is certainly not so considerable as to raise it into the cooler regions of the atmosphere, while its situation, in respect of the desert and the sea, open to the one and secluded from the other, necessarily renders the climate hotter than of the maritime regions farther south, and nearer the equator.

The climate of Soudan, generally, is one of tropical intensity. There are only two seasons, the one of which may be considered as a moderate summer, and the other as a continuance of burning dog-days. During the whole year, the sun at meridian is insupportable. This intensity, however, varies with locality and elevation, but every part is subject at one season or another to tempests, rains, and elemental furies peculiar to equatorial regions; but the earth still prospers, and vegetation is everywhere of the most luxuriant character, while animal life is correspondingly depressed, and extinguished by the most formidable diseases, arising from the decay of the herbs and leaves that everywhere cover the land. Few spots, indeed, enjoy a moderate and agreeable temperature, nor can it be said that either natives or foreigners are free for one day in the year from one nuisance or another. The natural productions, even as far as known, are very various and valuable. Gold is abundant in many of the streams, and the mountain of Natakon is said to be an almost entire mass of gold, united with earth, iron, and emery. Gold also seems to abound throughout all the mountains of Kong; and a portion of Guinea has been named the Gold Coast, from the abundance of that metal which is, or used to be, brought from the interior. We know also that iron is forged in several places; and no doubt other metals will be found in abundance when the pioneers of civilization shall have succeeded in reaching their localities.

The forests contain cocoa-nut trees, palms, mangoes, bananas, papaws,

citrons, oranges, pomegranates, and sycamores; the locust tree, which yields an agreeable beverage; the shea or butter tree; the tallow tree; the teak, and many others, among which the immense baobab stands pre-eminent. Its fruit, called monkey's bread, affords abundant food for the negroes. Of aromatic plants, are pimento, Spanish pepper, cardamom, and ginger. Cotton, indigo, and valuable gums are supplied to commerce, and alimentary plants, as maize, millet, rice, yams, cassada, potatoes, pulse, plantains, guavas, &c. are met with in great abundance. Tobacco grows everywhere, and the growth of the sugar-cane is spontaneous. The exuberance of the aloe, balsams, lilies, and amaranths, gives the flora of these countries a degree of magnificence which is quite surprising to foreigners. But, perhaps, the most singular feature of the vegetation, is the height to which the Guinea grass grows. This plant forms immense thickets, from ten to thirty feet high, where herds of elephants and boars wander unseen. In the dry season it withers, and then, in order to clear the ground, the natives set it on fire. When kindled, the fire spreads with fearful rapidity, forming by night long lines of light, and by day filling the air with columns of smoke; and it is this practice which appears to furnish the most natural explanation of the "torrents of fire" seen by Hanno, the Carthagenian, in his voyage of discovery.

Elephants, monkeys, antelopes, deer, rats, and squirrels, are, perhaps, more numerous in Soudan than in any other part of the world. The elephant here lives in a state of nature, and is nowhere tamed. The riverhorse grows to an immense size; but the rhinoceros is unknown. The lion is here more common than the panther and leopard. The hyæna and jackal prowl among the jungles; the giraffe is found in the deserts; and the zebra, which lives in droves, contributes to the sport of the wild hunters. Monkeys abound in the forests. The most remarkable of these is the chinpanzee, (Simia-troglodytes,) which, though approximating less in form to the human being than the ourang-outang of the Eastern Archipelago, appears to be more intelligent. It is evidently the connecting link between man and the brute creation. The lemur and the sloth inhabit the western districts, and the boar peoples the marshy forests. The horse and the ass

are also found, but they are a degenerate race. The negroes rear beeves, buffaloes, sheep, and goats. Birds exist in great numbers, and in boundless variety, and of the most beautiful plumage; and the whole region is infested with noxious and venomous insects and reptiles. Cameleons, crocodiles, lizards, land-crabs, guanas, scorpions, centipedes, and a variety of snakes, some of which are of enormous size, are among the most common. In the forests the termites display their astonishing industry and destructiveness. There are also numerous swarms of wild bees, whose honey and wax are objects of trade among the negroes. The lakes and rivers abound with fish, and the sea yields to the natives a thousand finny treasures. Turtle and ovsters are also very abundant.

An the inhabitants of Soudan are of the negro or Ethiopic family, but among them are numerous varieties; some being more or less dark, or making a nearer approach to the Caucasian than others. Of these we must particularly distinguish the "Foulahs," who are widely diffused over Africa. The great majority of the nation is found about the sources of the Gambia and the Rio Grande, but colonies of them are also found about the Senegal and other rivers. There are likewise tribes of them to the south of Fezzan, and on the confines of Bornou, where they are called Fellatahs. They also inhabit Massina and Timbuctoo, on the Kawara, and have established a wide

empire in Haoussa. They have attained to some degree of civilization, and live in cities; and, besides engaging in some of the minor manufactures, they carry on an extensive commerce with the natives of Barbary and the Nile. Frugality and temperance generally prevail among them. They are eloquently expressive, and seem to have a strong feeling of harmony. The women are remarkably industrious and prolific. Those in the interior are all Mahomedans, and the Mandingoes have carried that religion with them even down to the west coast; but the mountains of Kong seem to have formed an insuperable obstacle to the progress of Islam into the maritime regions of Guinea, where Fetichism is the prevalent faith.

1.-Western Soudan.

The western region of Soudan is commonly divided in Senegambia and Guinea, the dividing line being usually fixed at Cape Mount.

I. SENEGAMBIA, with few unimportant exceptions, is possessed by a number of nations or petty states, all belonging to the three great families of Iolofs, Foulahs, and Mandingoes, who are distinguished by the constitutions and forms of their respective governments. This is everywhere, indeed, monarchical but is sacerdotal and elective among the Foulahs; hereditary and despotic among the Mandingoes; and mixed and feudal among the Iolofs. But, in the midst of all these states, there exist mercantile villages, which are leagued together for mutual protection. The two principal of these, that of the Serrawollis, and that of the Diolas, have extended their transactions from the coasts far into Soudan, and are indefatigable in carrying on an extensive and varied trade.

Of

The "Foulah States" were formerly governed by Saltiques (warriors); but the sovereign power is now in the hands of a religious chief, who, like the Moslem Khalifs, takes the title of " Emir-el-Moumenyn, (commander of the faithful.) He is chosen in each state by a council of kiernoes, or princes, under whose control he is, and can do nothing without their consent. the Foulah states, the following are the principal: FOUTA-TORO, on the left bank of the Senegal; BONDOU, whose capital is Jebané, to the south-east of Fouta-Toro; FOUTA-JALO, about the sources of the Senegal, Gambia, Rio Grande, &c.; KAsso, south of the Senegal, near the fails of Felou and Gouina; and FOULADOO, the principal town of which is Bangassi, the best fortified of all the towns of western Soudan.

The "Iolof States" are governed by princes whose titles vary in each; the crown, however, always descends hereditarily in the same family. The principal states are as follow: WALLO, the king of which is called" Brak,” is situated near the mouth of the Senegal, and is completely under the influence of the French. KAYOR, whose king is entitled " Damel," is one of the most considerable states, extending south from the Senegal to beyond Cape Verde; BAOL, whose king is entitled "Teyn," and whose capital is Lambaye; and SYN, to the south of Baol, whose king's title is "Bour." IOLOF itself, properly so called, formerly the nucleus of a considerable state, but now much reduced, and of which all the other Iolof states are only dismembered portions, is governed by a "Bour," who resides at Warghogh, east of Cape Verde. The country contains vast forests of gum-trees, particularly of gum-copal: it produces also an abundance of ivory, skins, and honey.

SALUM, which is partly Iolof, and partly Mandingo, is situated on the northern bank of the Gambia.