lightning. The Peak of Teneriffe is a mountain two miles high, situated on an island on the northwestern coast; it can be seen at the distance of one hundred and twenty miles.

An immense desert extends from east to west, nearly through the whole of Africa, to the very borders of Egypt, in a breadth of eight or nine hundred miles. This separates the northern states from the interior. Ethiopia, which extends from the Mediterranean Sea, all along the Red Sea, comprehends Egypt, Nubia, and Abyssinia; the states to the north of the desert are Barbary and Egypt. To the south of the desert is a vast tract of country, called Negroland, which is about the centre of Africa. Rather to the south of Negroland is Guinea, the celebrated market for gold, which gives name to the English coin. The southern point of all Africa is the country of the Hottentots, of whom modern travellers, and especially missionaries, have given us very interesting accounts; but we shall chiefly confine our attention to those parts connected with negro slavery.

Africa produces the richest and most luxurious fruits, in great abundance; as also many of the most costly and splendid articles of luxury, such as spices, gold, pearls, ivory, ostrich plumes, &c.

Its situation for commerce is highly advantageous, being placed in the centre of the other three quarters of the globe, and having a nearer communication with all the three than either of them has with another.

The natives of Africa are distinguished by their complexion. Along the coasts of the Mediterranean, and in Egypt, the inhabitants are of a tawney complexion; but in most parts, and especially in Negro

land, the people are quite black. This peculiarity gives name to their river, the country, the inhabitants: Negro—Niger—Nigritia—all being variations of a word which signifies black.

Africa was principally peopled by Ham and his descendants. The origin of several nations may be traced back to the names mentioned in Genesis x. and many of them were famous in sacred history: Egypt, as the asylum, and afterwards the house of bondage, to the Israelites, the birth-place of Moses, and the ancient seat of literature and science, wealth and grandeur. The dark complexion of the natives of Africa is alluded to as an emblem of the blackness of human nature by sin, and its incurableness by human means- "Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may they that are accustomed to do evil, learn to do well."—Jer. xiii. 23. Africa is the subject of express prediction, as to its being early visited by the light of the gospel

Princes also shall come out of Egypt: Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto God."—Ps. lxviii. 31; lxxxvii. 4.

King Solomon carried on an extensive traffic with Africa, and imported many of its costly productions; though, from the imperfect knowledge of geography and navigation then acquired, it is not easy to ascertain whether his navies were equipped chiefly for Arabia, Persia, and other parts of Asia, or for Africa; the same uncertainty attends the country of the queen of Sheba, who came from the uttermost parts of the earth to visit Solomon, and hear his wisdom, the fame of which had reached her country: it is probable that she came from some part of Ethiopia, 1 Kings x.; 2 Chron. ix. In later days the gospel was certainly carried to Ethiopia

by the great officer of state of Candace, queen of Ethiopia, who, being a proselyte to the Jewish religion, came to Jerusalem to worship, and on his way home was met by the evangelist Philip, who instructed him in the gospel, and baptized him, Acts viii. After this, many flourishing churches were formed in different parts of Africa, chiefly along the coast of the Mediterranean, and there christianity long flourished. Many eminent wo1thies of the christian church were natives of Africa:— Origen, Tertullian, Cyprian, Augustine, and others, whose names are celebrated in the page of ecclesiastical history. Africa was long distinguished for learning, civilization, riches, enterprize, and power. Carthage, which for centuries vied with Rome as mistress of the world, was a state of Africa.

Africa has now gone back in civilization and intelligence. Ever since its conquest by the Saracens, in the seventh century, Mahometanism and idolatry have overspread almost the whole continent, and general darkness has increased with each succeeding generation, as is uniformly the case where a false religion prevails. In the interior and southern parts of Africa, the natives chiefly live in a savage state, ignorant of the arts of life, and only cultivating the soil just as far as may be necessary for the supply of their simple wants. They are exceedingly expert in hunting and swimining. The poorer classes go nearly or quite naked, but the richer negroes wear thin vests and white caps. We know, alas! but little of the native character of Africans, detached from the vices engendered by slavery; but it appears to be simple, inoffensive, unsuspicious, and hospitable, often marked by a considerable degree of shrewdness and ingenuity,

but sometimes, also, characterized by indolence or love of ease.

There are several European settlements along the western coast of Africa, extending from the river Senegal, to the kingdom of Angola, in Guinea. To these, European traders resort for the purchase of ivory, gold dust, and SLAVES, for which they barter woollen, linen, hardware, and other goods of European manufacture, and spirituous liquors : but before we enter on the particulars of this traffic, it will be necessary to give the young reader some account of the West Indies, to which the importations of human cargoes have been chiefly made. We turn now to the West Indies.

The vast continent of America, and all its islands, were altogether unknown to the ancients, insomuch that, when discovered, they acquired the name of the New World. Towards the close of the fifteenth century, Christopher Columbus, an enterprising navigator, sailed from Spain, on a most adventurous voyage of discovery. He sailed westward, on the Atlantic Ocean, expecting to reach the eastern coasts of Asia, which then went by the general name of India, little imagining that a vast continent intervened. His first discovery was of one of the islands now called the Bahamas, on which he landed, October 12, 1492, and taking possession of it in the names of Ferdinand and Isabella, king and queen of Spain, he gave to it the name of St. Salvador. Concluding that he had arrived near the Asiatic or Indian shore, he imagined that this was one of the Indian islands. Hence, when the new continent was afterwards discovered, the islands which in succession had been discovered by Columbus and others, received the

general designation of the West Indies, and the Old Asiatic continent, that of the East Indies, though they are altogether unconnected with each other.

The general term, West Indies, now includes all those islands in the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea, which extend like an immense chain, in a south-easterly direction, from Bahama to Trinidad, near the coast of South America; also, Honduras, Berbice, and Demerara, on the continent of South America. Of the above-mentioned islands, Cuba, the largest, belongs to Spain; the next in size is St. Domingo, called Hispaniola by the Spaniards, and Hayti by the natives. This, at one time, belonged to France, but, after a severe struggle, the people secured their freedom, and it is now an independent and flourishing state. Jamaica is the next largest: this belongs to England. The smaller islands have been possessed as colonies by the Spaniards, the English, the French, the Dutch, and the Danes; but the greater part of them now belong to the British crown, partly by colonization, and partly by conquest. These islands are very beautiful and fertile. Besides the ordinary productions for home consumption, they produce and export vast quantities of sugar and rum, also, cotton, coffee, mahogany, and woods for dyeing, spices, indigo, arrow-root, &c.: all of them have been hitherto cultivated by slaves. As we know most about those colonies which are under our own government, to those we shall chiefly direct our

attention.

The following is a list of our West India islands: Bahama, Jamaica, Tortola, Bermuda, St. Christopher's, Antigua, Montserrat, Nevis, Dominica, Bar