into the sea; that she was driven upon the coast of Mauritius, whence the English put to sea again to continue the voyage, but that he, the Frenchman, was resolvear to remain there, rather than encounter new hardships; that he had been nearly two years without the sight of a human creature, and that his sole sustenance was the fruit of the date palm and the flesh of turtles. His bodily strength, it seems, had not failed him, but his understanding was considerably impaired. His clothes had gradually fallen to pieces, and he was found in a state approaching to nakedness.

From this period the Dutch were in the practice of calling at Mauritius for water and turtles; but it was not until the year 1644 that they began to think of making a regular establishment upon it. Whatever that esta

blishment might have been, it is certain that it failed of success; for, towards the end of the century, they abandoned the island altogether.

In the mean time, M. de Flacourt, a director of the French East India Company, who had proceeded on a mission to the Island of Madagascar, passed from thence to Mascaregnas, and, finding it unoccupied, formed a settlement upon it in the year 1657, and gave it the name of Bourbon. From Bourbon a few families went to Mauritius, which the Dutch had abandoned, and in 1712 established themselves on the island, changing its name to that of the Isle of France. The neighbouring island of Bourbon, in the heat of revolutionary frenzy, was named, we know not why, Re-union, which, in the servility of adulation, was afterwards sunk in that of Buonaparte; at the same time Port Louis, the capital of the Isle of France, was dignified with the name of Port Napoleon. It is to be hoped, however, that we shall not sanction these names of modern prostitution.

The Isle of France, situated to the eastward of Madagascar, between the 20th and 21st degree of southern latitude, and about 58° 30' of eastern

longitude, is, according to the measurement of the Abbé de la Caille, about 35 miles in length and 23 in breadth. It can scarcely be called a mountainous island, though there are some considerable ranges on the northern and eastern coasts. The chain which encircles the town of Port Louis is considered as the highest; one of the peaked rocks of which bearing a fancied resemblance to the figure of a woman, is estimated at somewhat more than 3000 feet. On the southern, western, and central parts of the island are plains of considerable extent. The greater part of the island was once, and the mountainous and rising grounds are still, covered with wood, among which are several kinds of timber of good quality but, where the approaches to the forest were not difficult, the trees have been so wantonly destroyed, that at present very little remains. Streams of water, but few of them perpetual, rush from the highlands in every direction. The soil is not generally rich. It consists mostly of a brown volcanic rock of argillaceous lava, abounding with iron, which easily crumbles into mould. The shores of the island are girt with reefs of coral rock, in some parts of which, especially at the mouths of the rivers, are intricate passages for small vessels.

In no place is a sandy beach to be found; the margin of little bays or coves are covered with the calcareous fragments of those extraordinary submarine fabricks, supposed to be the work of worms.

The only town in the island is Port Louis, situated in a narrow valley at the head of the harbour of the same name, on the northwestern coast. From the range of broken mountains behind it, a copious rill of water flows through the middle of the

town.

The houses are principally constructed of wood, only a single story in height. In the skirts of the town are the government storehouses, and the military parade: the naval arsenal, we believe, is complete in

all the requisite buildings; but as the tide does not rise above three feet, there are no docks for repairing ships. The port, however, affords every convenience for careening.

On the opposite coast of the island there is another and a more spacious harbour, called Port South East. The Dutch made this their principal port. Being on the windward side of the island, its entrance is easier than that of Port Louis, and from the free circulation of the air, it is a much healthier situation, but as the wind almost perpetually blows into it, the difficulty for ships to get out, counterbalances the advantage of the facility with which they enter. It is supposed, however, that by blowing up a few rocks, a northern passage might be opened, which would remedy the inconvenience.

No data have yet been made public. on which any correct estimate can be formed of the population of the island. The Viscount de Vaux states it, (on his own authority apparently,) in 1779, to consist of 65,000, of which 10,000 were whites and mulattoes, and 55,000 slaves. We have reason to believe that the number is nearly double. Port Louis alone is supposed to contain 30,000 inhabi

tants.

The colonists of the isles of France and Bourbon are distinguished for simplicity of manners and hospitality. Here, as every where else, the ladies (far the gayest part of the population) are fond of displaying their figure in dancing. They are in general well made, of good features, in possession of a tolerable share of wit and vivacity, and have more taste than might be expected in so remote and secluded a colony. They marry at an early age, and are remarkable for attention to their domestic duties, and for attachment to their husbands and children. Both men and women,' says Admiral Kempenfelt,' are strong and well made; they breathe a wholesome air, are in continual exercise, and are distinguished for their moderation and

temperance. The women are remarkable for the beauty and elegance of their shape, in which they surpass those of old France

The climate is defoderate, and on the whole, so delightful, that we have little doubt the Isle of France will speedily become the Montpelier of the East, to which the invalids of Hindostan will repair for the restoration of health. We can scarcely venture to pronounce this an advantage to the colonists, unless the making of money cheap, and every thing else dear, may be so considered. According to M. Perron, the greatest heat, excepting on particular occasions, does not rise beyond 82° of Fahrenheit, and the least descends not below 64°. The general range of the mercury, from May and November, when the S. E. trade blows, is from 66 to 72°; and, during the rest of the year, when the winds are variable from the N. W. to N. E. from 66 to 78°. The hurricanes, which seldom fail to take place about once in five years, are commonly in the month of December.

The products of the island, as may be supposed, from its favourable position, are very various. Almost every species of fruit, grain, &c. might be raised, and, in fact, almost every valuable plant has had its trial. The cinnamon, pepper, cocoa, tea plant, and the cantus cochinellifera have indeed failed; but sugar, coffee, cloves, manioc, cotton, and indigo may now be reckoned as the staple commodities of the island. The native trees, shrubs, creepers, and herbaceous plants, are equally numerous and elegant. The inhabitants sow but little grain; two thirds at least, of this ar ticle being drawn from the neighbouring isle. They have few cattle, and depend chiefly for what beef they consume on Madagascar; but they have no want of pigs and poultry. The sea supplies them with various kinds of fish, and the rocks on the coast with crabs, lobsters, and oysters.

The Isle of Bourbon is about 100

miles W.S.W. of the Isle of France. It is nearly circular, without a bay or indent on its coast. It rises gradually, from every side, to a high peaked point, near the centre, which is volcanic, and almost perpetually emitting either flame or smoke. Its altitude has been estimated at 9000 feet above the level of the sea. There are two towns in this island, St. Dennis and St. Paul, the former of which is the principal, being the residence of the Governor, the Supreme Council, and the other public functionaries. Not only is the soil of this island more fertile than that of the Isle of France, but the colonists have a better system of cultivation, and the produce is more abundant. The quantity of grain may be much increased; the plantations of cotton, which is here of a superior quality, may also be extended. The coffee is excellent, being reckoned little inferior to that of Moka.

The population of Bourbon, according to Viscount de Vaux, is stated (but on no better authority, we presume, than before) at 56,000, of which 8000 are whites and mulattoes, and 48,000 slaves. In the pamphlet by · An Officer of the Expedition,' its population is said to consist of 90,346, of which 16,400 are whites and creoles, 3,496 free blacks, and 70,450 slaves. In the same book, the total value of the agricultural produce of Bourbon is estimated at 1,430,800 dollars, and the public revenue at 230,000.

The island of Rodriguez should not be forgotten. Situated to windward of the other two, it was, with great judgment, first taken possession of by Colonel Keating, as the outwork to the others. It is about 18 miles long, by six broad, abounds with wood for fuel, and has a plentiful supply of excellent water.

There

are two good roadsteds for shipping; one on the north, and the other on the south. The climate is delightful; myriads of land turtles are found on it: sea turtles are also abundant on the coast. Three families only inha

bited the island. The Viscount gives us (p. 103.) the history of a M. Le Guat, one of its first settlers. This person was one of the refugee protestants of France, who went from Holland with a view of taking refuge on the isle of Bourbon; finding it, on their arrival, in the possession of the French, they landed on Rodriguez. This little narrative, which is given in the adventurer's own words, is, in our opinion, much the best part of the book; and is, indeed, interesting and amusing in a very high degree.

Among the number of our acquisitions must also be included the group, or archipelago, of small islands, situated to the northward, called the Amiranté, Mahé, or Sechelles islands, the principal of which is the Great Sechelles, containing about 600 inhabitants. It abounds with wood and water, and possesses an excellent harbour. Another of these islands, called Praslan, has also a good harbour. They must all now cease to be what they have been, the resort of marauders, and the receptacles of French plunder and slaves from Mozambique, Madagascar, and the Comoro islands.

We now proceed to inquire in what manner, and to what extent, our recent conquests are likely to prove advantageous. In the first place, then, we do not conceive that any immediate benefit to the commercial world will result from the addition of the isles of France and Bourbon to the number of our colonies. As colonial territories merely, we should consider them as of no great importance. With all possible economy, the retention of them must add something to the national expenses. Coffee, cotton, and sugar we cannot be said to want; and these are their principal products. The colonists have little, at present, to give in exchange for the few manufactures of Great Britain and India, which they consume. Except the petty traffic carried on with Americans, consisting chiefly in exchanges of provisions for hard money and lumber, their trade

was confined to the coasts of Madagascar, the Comoro islands, and the Arab settlements on the eastern coast of Africa. This trade consisted in the barter of prize goods, spirits, fire arms, and ammunition, for black cattle, rice, gold dust, elephants' teeth, and slaves. Such was the legitimate commerce of these islands; but of late, a number of small piratical privateers, fitted out by speculative adventurers, infested the channel of Mozambique, plundered the defenceless settlements of the Arabs and Portugueze, and made prize of every embarkation unable to resist them. Having thus worked themselves into a full cargo, they stood to the northward of Zanzibar, crossed to the Mahé islands, and, remaining there till the hurricane season approached, and our squadron was, in consequence, withdrawn, they slipped into Port Louis.

The Americans, we should have added, were likewise the purchasers, or the carriers, of the numerous and valuable cargoes captured from the East India Company.

It is obvious that some of those resources have ceased; but the legal trade will rapidly extend itself to every part of the great island of Madagascar, the Comoro islands, the whole range of the eastern coast of Africa, and thence along the shores of Arabia to the mouth of the Euphrates.

Casting our eyes to the eastward, we may observe how very favourably situated the Isle of France is as a central point of communication with those innumerable islands which constitute the great Asiatic archipelago, from the Phillipines on the north, to Van Dieman's Land on the south, containing a population, probably, not inferior to that of the whole of Hindostan.

The intercourse with those islands has been hitherto carried on by the Dutch, the Americans, the Malays, and the Chinese. They are without the scope of the East India Company's trade, but, unfortunately, not

considered as without the range of its charter.

We feel confident, however, that the time is not far distant, (and the fall of the French islands must hasten the event,) when that bar will be removed which, though closed against British subjects, has unaccountably been open to all the world besides. We pretend not to draw the precise line where exclusion and toleration should meet, but we may be permitted to question the policy of allowing a free and uninterrupted trade in the Indian seas to the Americans, while a British vessel is not permitted to double the Cape of Good Hope! Surely, under the difficulties with which British commerce now labours, it is not too much to hope, that these parts of the East with which the India Company have no immediate intercourse, may be thrown open to the private trader. The plea of a want of capital to embark in Indian commerce, which has been sometimes alleged in justification of the interdiction, appears to us utterly inconclusive, in the present case, judging, as we do, from the example of the Americans. We speak from authority, when we say, that more than 300 of their ships touched at the Isle of France alone, in the course of the year previous to the embargo.

It was a favourite project of the French, before the Revolution, to make the Isle of France, not only the grand entrepôt of their commerce in the East-another Tyre, surpassing the ancient mart in wealth and magnificence-but also to render it the bulwark of all their settlements in Asia, the cradle of future conquests. To them, indeed, it was of infinite importance; but to us, who hold the Cape and Ceylon, it cannot be considered as equally valuable. It will be found, however, particularly useful on account of its safe and commodious harbour, and its abundance of refreshments. The commanding situation of the island not only opens a wide field for commercial enterprize,