are marched about in this miserable manner from one market to another, till those who survive fall into the hands of itinerant Jews; who probably write to Mogodor with a notice of the wreck, and of the opportunity of redeeming the prisoners. The Consul at Mogodor, unable himself to supply funds for their redemption, can do nothing but adopt the circuitous mode of writing to the Consul-general at Tangier. This proceeding occupies nearly a month; and, during this interval, the captives are employed in laborious and unhealthy services, and the younger part of them are in danger of being seduced to become Mohammedans. Mr. Jackson computes that the vessels wrecked on this coast, the loss of which has been learnt by accident, may amount, between the years 1790 and 1806, to the number of thirty, divided as follows: English 17, French 5, American 5, Dutch, Danish, &c. 3. Of the English vessels, the crews were in ramber probably two hundred, for whom he thus accounts: Drowned, killed, or induced to embrace the Mohammedan religion, 80 Dispersed in the Desert from delay in redeeming them, 40 Redeemed, after being in captivity from one to five years, 80 Now, all the misery arising from this dispersion, as well as from the lengthened detention of those who are ultimately released, might be prevented by the simple expedient of placing an adequate sum of money in the hands of the viceconsul, or of a merchant of respectability at Mogodor ;measure which we cannot press too strongly on the attention of our countrymen. -a Commerce. The great emporium of central Africa, the point of assemblage for the caravans which traverse its deserts, is Timbuctoo, a city situated about thirteen hundred miles 6. S. E. of the town of Marocco. It stands in a plain surrounded by sandy eminences, about twelve miles north of the Niger; and its circumference is said to amount to twelve miles: but the houses being spacious, and having, for the most part, no upper apartments, the population is not proportionally great. As it is the resort of nations of various religions, the government has wisely adopted the plan of avoiding interfe rence with their tenets. The police also is said to be very good, and the climate is considered as healthy. The accommodation for travellers is similar to that which has been described in the Empire of Marocco. Camels, horses, drivers, and merchants, rendezvous at a caravansera, or large inn, called a Fondaque, having an open space in the middle, round which are built rooms sufficiently large for a bed and a table. Each 04 merchant merchant hires a room, and proceeds to exchange his com modities till he has invested the whole in the produce of the country; which he endeavours to accomplish before the month of September, in order to be ready for the caravans which take their departure in various directions at that time. The Niger near Timbuctoo is said to be about as wide as the Thames at London, but so rapid in the middle that the boats navigating it must proceed along the banks to avoid the current. A large caravan is called an akkabaah, and consists of several hundred loaded camels, accompanied by their Arab proprietors, who hire them to the merchants at a very moderate rate. They cannot pursue their track across the desert in a direct line, but find it necessary to turn occasionally to the right or the left, according to the situation of certain cultivated spots, interspersed in the desert, like islands in the ocean, and called Oases, from the Arabic Elwah, which serve as watering-places both for men and camels; the hot winds called Shume being often so violent, as to exhale the water that is carried in skins for the use of the travellers. These winds driving the loose sand along the plains, the drifting surface resembles the waves of the ocean, and the desert is hence aptly termed by the Arabs," a sea without water." In 1805, a caravan proceeding from Timbuctoo northward was disappointed of water at one of the usual watering-places, when two thousand men and 1800 camels perished with thirst. The Arabs often prefer travelling in the night, in order to avoid the heat, and are guided in their course by the stars. They generally go between three and four English miles in an hour, and proceed during seven hours in a day but they find it necessary to pass so much time at the Oases, that a journey from Marocco to Timbuctoo is the work of four months. In passing through the respective territories of the different Arab clans or tribes, they are protected, in the name of the tribe, by two or more of the individuals belonging to it. The tribes receive a remuneration for this safe-guard, and are so faithful to their engagement that they would not fail to take ample revenge for any assault which was made against the caravan, while it was under their protection. The habits of the travellers are thus described: Those who have philosophy enough to confine their wants solely to what nature requires, would view the individual happiness of the people who compose the caravans, with approbation. Their food, dress, and accommodation, are simple and natural; proscribed from the use of wine, and intoxicating liquors, by their religion, and ex horted by its principles to temperance, they are commonly satisfied with with a few nourishing dates, and a draft of water; and they will tra vel for weeks successively without any other food; at other times, a little barley-meal and cold water is the extent of their provision, when they undertake a journey of a few weeks across the Desert; living in this abstemious manner, they never complain, but solace themselves with a hope of reaching their native country, singing occasionally during the journey, whenever they approach any habitation, or whenever the camels appear fatigued; these songs are usually sung in trio, and in the chorus all the camel drivers, who have a musical voice, join; it is worthy observation, how much these songs renovate the camels, and the symphony and time they keep surpasses what any one would imagine, who had not heard them. In traversing the Desert, they generally contrive to terminate the day's journey at l'Asaw, a term which they appropriate to our four o'clock, P. M. so that between that period and the setting sun, the tents are pitched, prayers said, and the (Lashaw) supper got ready; after which they sit round in a circle, and talk till sleep overcomes them, and next morning, at break of day, they proceed again on their journey.' One of the principal branches of traffic from the interior of Africa to Marocco is the import of slaves. According to Mr.Jackson's account of their treatment, it is much more humane than the impressions generally entertained of the Moorish character would lead us to expect: These slaves are treated very differently from the unhappy victims who used to be transported from the coast of Guinea, and our settlements on the Gambia, to the West India islands. After suffering those privations, which all who traverse the African Desert must necessarily and equally submit to, masters, as well as servants and slaves, they are conveyed to Fas and Marocco, and after being exhibited in the sock, or public market-place, they are sold to the highest bidder, who carries them to his home, where, if found faithful, they are considered as members of the family, and allowed an intercourse with the (horraht) free-born women of the household. Being in the daily habit of hearing the Arabic language spoken, they soon acquire a partial knowledge of it, and the Mohammedan religion teaching the unity of God, they readily reject paganism, and embrace Mohammedanism; their Mooselmin masters then instil into their vacant minds, ready to receive the first impression, the fundamental principles of the Mooselmin doctrine; the more intelligent learn to read and write, and afterwards acquire a partial knowledge of the Koran; and such as can read and understand one chapter, from that time procure their emancipation from slavery, and the master exults in having converted an infidel, and in full faith, expects favour from heaven for the action, and for having liberated a slave. When these people do not turn their minds to reading, and learning the principles of Mohammedanism, they generally obtain their freedom after eight or ten years servitude; for the more conscientious Mooselmin consider them as servants, and purchase them for about the same sum that they would pay in wages to a servant during the above period; at the expiration of which term, by giving them their liberty, they, they, according to their religious opinions, acquire a blessing from" God, for having done an act, which a Mooselmin considers more meritorious in the sight of Heaven, than the sacrifice of a gcat, or even of a camel. This liberation is entirely voluntary on the part of the owner; and I have known some slaves so attached to their masters from good treatment, that when they have been offered their liberty, they have actually refused it, preferring to continue in servitude. It should not, however, be supposed, that the Arabs and Moors are always inclined thus to liberate these degraded people; on the con. trary, some of them, particularly the latter, are obdurate, and make an infamous traffic of them, by purchasing, and afterwards intermarrying them, for the purposes of propagation and of sale, when they are placed in the public market-place, and there turned about, and examined in order to ascertain their value.' Having now furnished our readers with ample specimens of Mr. Jackson's views on particular topics, it remains that we make a few remarks on the general merits of his book. We have already alluded to the imperfections of his style, and we might adduce a great variety of examples in support of the stricture. In one place, (page 12.) we have campaign' for champaign; in another, (162.) obligated' for obliged; and, in a third, (240.) we find him unacquainted with the distinction between astrology and astronomy. The severity of criticism ought, however, in some measure to be disarmed by an apology in the preface, which expresses that a plain relation of facts was all that the author had in view, and by the consideration that his profession is not literary but mercantile. Our opinion is that the reader who expects in this book considerable novelty of local information will be gratified but that he who carries expectation farther, and looks for skilful arrangement and enlightened conclusions, will be disappointed. Another circumstance also deserves to be noticed. author, while he gives the strongest proofs of his own veracity, is not sufficiently distrustful of that of others. Much of his information is founded on the hear-say evidence of a rude people; yet the substance of their reports is communicated by him to the public, unaccompanied by those cautions which ought invariably to be applied to such doubtful testimony. Mr. Jackson promises eventually a farther volume on the political history of Marocco;' and we shall learn with pleasure that the intention is carried into effect, provided that he adopts the plan of laying facts and circumstances before us, and avoids the field of speculation. His authorities, also, should be distinctly given; all of which, in our judgment, may be accomplished without expanding the book to the size of a costly quarto. The We must add that Mr. Jackson has devoted one of his chapters, the ninth, to remarks on the Mohammedan religion; the the character of which discussion is similar to that of the rest of the book. It corrects several popular errors in regard to the Mohammedan creed, and discovers, considerable knowlege of its particular tenets, but evinces little felicity of illustration on grounds of general reasoning.-The maps and views are very neatly executed; and the former, which represent the Empire of Marocco and the route to Timbuctoo, though on a small scale, are perhaps the most accurate delineations of these unknown regions that we possess. MONTHLY CATALOGUE, For OCTOBER, 1809. LAW. Art. 12. Art. 13. Scintilla Juris, or an Argument which hath been generally discussed under that Title, &c. against Mr. Sugden's Observations on that Subject. By W H. Rowe, Esq. of Lincoln's Inn. 8vo. p. 60. Stratford. 1809. The third section of the first chapter of Mr. Sugden's volume has called forth very warm and spirited animadversions from Mr Rowe, whose former notions on the subject Mr. S. had very freely criticized. Mr. Sugden has not yet taken any notice of his shrewd and intelligent antagonist; and till he has done this, we should be premature in giving an opinion on the matter in dispute: more especially when it is considered that it is a point on which Mr. Fearne and Chief Justice Willes have taken different sides. We shall only observe that Mr. Rowe seems to us more fairly to construe the statute, and the cases which have been decided on it; while it appears to us equally clear that the Scintilla is a very forced device, not only unsupported by the statute, but directly contradictory of the intention and wholly out of the contemplation of the powers of it. That it was intended to accomplish all that Mr. Fearne and Mr. Sugden suppose it to effect, we entertain not the slightest doubt: but has the act been penned so as to do this? Has it been drawn up so as to perform what its framers proposed? How came this obvious consideration not to occupy the attention of either of the acute and ingenious combatants? All the puzzle, we suspect, will be found to have been occasioned by the want of a few additional words in the statute, or perhaps of a slight variation in the wording of it.-The industry with which Mr. Sugden has collected the cases which relate to his subject, his arrange. ment of them, and his discernment of their bearing and effect, intitle him to considerable praise. The clearness and distinctness which characterized his former volume will also be generally found to give value to the pages before us; but if his judgment appears to be more mature, he |