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daughters generally wear black cloth jackets and petticoats, with a large hood drawn over the head.

Begging is not considered so disgraceful here as in other countries: so far from soliciting compassion by an appearance of extreme poverty, a Portuguese puts on his best coat when he goes a begging. There is a great contrast in the manner of living of the Portuguese and the British merchants; the former are penurious and solitary, whilst the hospitality of the latter is unbounded.

I formed a little party, to make an excursion into the interior of the island, in order to glean some knowledge of its natural history. For the execution of our project, we hired a number of mules and as many muleteers, who drive the beasts with a long staff, armed with a pike, with which they goad the animal in the flank, or check his progress by a blow on the face, to regulate the pace of the beast with their own, regardless of the feelings of the rider.

Thus wholly under the guidance of others, we ascended steep acclivities, our road winding along the edges of frightful precipices, across deep ravines, or through swampy thickets of brushwood. We were, however, recompensed with grand and picturesque landscapes, the scenery of the deep valleys especially being magnificent and romantic. We saw only a few trees, and these grew mostly in the deep glens, the tallest and most elegant of which was the ardisia excelsa. The native shrubby plants are chiefly the broom, cytisus, whortle-berry, laurel, myrtle, bram

bles, euphorbia, cortus, a fine-scented jessamine, and wild olives. The common fern is plentiful, also the polopody, maiden-hair, and many cryptogamous plants; wormwood, trefoil, nightshade, bugloss, foxglove, St. John's wort, convolvulus, plantain, and many of our grasses, grow on the sides of the hills, wherever there happens to be soil sufficient to fix their roots. The cultivated plants are, vines, oranges, lemons, citrons, figs, bananas, guavas, apricots, peaches, walnuts, and chesnuts, with other European fruits.

Although the island produces wheat, barley, and rye, more than two-thirds of the grain consumed is imported from the Azores, or America. Wine is the staple commodity, yielding, in different years, from fifteen to twenty-five thousand pipes. The vines are in general trained by basket-work, fixed to espaliers; but, in some vineyards, they are led up trees and high poles. The grapes, when ripe, are picked from the stalk, thrown into a vat, pressed first with the feet, and afterwards by a weighty, wooden lever.

I observed many hogs among the thickets, that had been turned loose to fatten on the roots of fern, which are thought to give them the flavour of game. Goats are pretty numerous, and rabbits are not scarce in the mountains. Among the birds, I noticed hawks, kites, partridges, pigeons, quails, woodcocks, swallows, sparrows, grey canaries, finches, and linnets.

I was agreeably disappointed, in being free from those annoying insects, that are so troublesome in most warm climates. There are but few insects of any kind, and no venomous reptile has ever been known to exist on the island. The honey-bee is not uncommon; but such myriads of lizards I never beheld in any country on a warm, sunny day, they creep from their lurking places, and every rock and stone wall is literally covered with them. They do no injury, except by robbing the vine-gatherers of the juice of their grapes.

After a perilous journey, we arrived safe at Funchall, and, in a few days, took our departure with a fair wind for England, where I hope I shall have the heartfelt satisfaction of meeting all my friends, in perfect health; and as I expect very soon to have the pleasure of embracing you, my dear sisters and brother, and relating, with more minuteness, the wonders I have seen in the course of my long and dangerous travels, I shall here close my narrative, with grateful acknowledgments to that Power that has conducted me so far in safety. Adieu.

ARTHUR MIDDLETON.

INDEX.

A.

Ababde, a tribe of Arabs, their great hospitality, 130.
Aboukir, the first village passed by the travellers after
leaving Alexandria for Rosetta. Some notice of it
and its port, 52.

Abyssinia, journey to, 118.

Achmim, convent at, 123.

Adowa, the capital of the province of Tigre, 161.
Africans, divided into three classes, 8.

Agows, 196. Their superstitious rites, 197-8.
Ainé Dizé, approach to, and description of, 100.
Alata, cataract of, 193.

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Albatrosses, their appearance an indication of land, 250.
Alexandria, the travellers approach it, appearance of
the country, 47. Situation of the city, 48. Its his-
tory and present state, with the most striking ob-
jects in and near it, 49 to 51.

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I

Algiers, kingdom of, anciently Numidia, reduced to a
Roman province by Julius Cæsar, 30.

Algiers, city of, full description of it, with the manners
of the Algerines, 32 to 34.

Algiers, its divisions and character of the people, 35.
Al-hennah, a shrub with which the African ladies

paint their lips, hair, hands, and feet of a tawny co-
lour, 42.

Anecdote of one of the Moorish emperors, showing his
conduct to one of his confidential servants, 21, 22.
Animals at the Cape of Good Hope and the interior
described, 259, 265.

Antelopes, particulars regarding, 184.

Antiquities of Alexandria and Grand Cairo, 49, 50.
Anubis, or dog star, 163.

Atlas, Mount, passage of, 11.

Further described, 30,

Augila, houses, inhabitants, &c. 91.

Arabia Deserta, character of its inhabitants, 140.

Arabs, behaviour of them on being attacked by rob-
bers, 45. Compute distance not by miles, but by
hours, 46. Eat snails, 47.

Architecture, style of, in Dar Fur, 115.
Arkeeko, 151.

Aroosi, country of, 199.

Arzow, salt pits of, 31.

Assar, a cataract of the Nile at, 194.

Ashkoko animal, 140.

Ashmounein, town of, 121.

Assouan, or Syene, cite of, &c. 130, 131.
Axum, ancient capital of Abyssinia, 169.

Bab Baha, 201.

B.

Balsam tree, or Balm of Gilead, 142.
Bamba, 201.

Bambarra, kingdom of, 319.

Barbarossa, anecdote of, 31.

Barbary, the ancient Mauritania, 19.

Barca, desert of, divides Tripoli from Egypt, 44. In-
fested by robbers, 45.

Basing, or Black river, a branch of the Senegal, bam-
boo bridge over, 339.

Bead market, 160.

Beaver, Captain, his attempt to establish the colony
at Bulama, 345.

Bedouins, robbers, 85.

Bees, singular mode by which the Hottentots obtain
their honey, 286.

Begemder, 176.

Benowm, travellers reception at, 314.

Beyla, 212.

Beys, anecdote of their rapacity and tyranny, 67, 68.
Bir-Ambar, 132.

Biserta, its harbour once commodious, but now choked
up, 38.

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