he has your head, he very foon wins your heart, and never pretends to fhew the beauty of holiness, till he has convinced you of the truth of it." To conclude, his correfpondence was eagerly cultivated by the learned, by whom he was almoft adored. His converfation was admirably engaging, fenfible, and agreeable, as he could defcant with great judgment and precision upon every subject. His acquaintance was very large and extenfive, and with men of the greatest parts and abilities, by whom he was always highly refpected. His friendfhips were warm and lasting, and uninterrupted; and though by no means devoid of many failings, and however the moral and political part of his character, may have been represented by the oppofite parties, according to their different views and tempers, it is univerfally agreed, that he was a man of great learning, and uncommon abilities, a fine writer, and a most excellent preacher. B The HISTORY of BANOU RASSID. An Oriental Tale. to gratify their inclinations. Zeinabi propofed to her lover, to fly with him to Delly, the capital of Indoftan, and her lover received the proposal with a tranfport of joy, not eafy to be expreffed. They foon found means to effect their purpose; and Zeinabi having taken care to provide herfelf with jewels and gold, to a confiderable value, they procured a convenient habitation in the capital of Delly, and foon after their arrival, the Iman joined their hands. ANOU Raffid, the fon of AbdalMoal, was born in the territories of Cabul. In his early youth, he had been treated with the utmost severity by his father, whom he had never offend ed; and being at laft tired of his cruelty, repaired to the city of Agra, where he had no means of supporting life, but by becoming fervant to a merchant, who employed him in carrying burthens. Thus did one state of diftrefs fucceed to another, and Banou Raffid, who had been before made unhappy by domestic griev- They lived for fome time in a state ances, now fuffered almost as much by of felicity, not to be equalled; but the the drudgery to which he was condemned; angel of death called Zeinabi out of this he, however, preferred his prefent to his world, and Banou Raffid remained informer condition, as the rigour of his fa- confolable for her lofs. Whilft he conther made a much greater impreffion up- tinued plunged in the deepest despair, he on him, than the difficulties which he had received advice from Cabul, that his fato ftruggle with amongst strangers, which ther had paid the debt of nature, and left to him appeared more fupportable, be- him inheriter of all his wealth. He imcause he expected them. His ftate of fer- mediately repaired thither, and took pofvitude did not, however, last long: the feffion of his estate. But notwithstandbeauteous Zeinabi, daughter to the mer- ing his opulence, he found himself more chant with whom he lived, beheld him unhappy than when reduced to the conwith the eyes of affection, the pitied his dition of a flave. The idea of his belovfufferings, and her pity was fon convert- ed Zeinabi, every moment recurred to his ed into love; for Banou Raffid, though memory, and rendered all his enjoyments reduced to the condition of a flave, was taftelefs and infipid. The fage Barud in perfonal beauty equal to the nobleft beheld his fufferings with compassion, and youths of Agra, and had fomething in- as he had by a long course of study, made genuous and ftriking in his countenance, himself perfectly mafter of all the fecrets notwithstanding his mean appearance, of nature, and could cure the diseases of and the fervile employment in which he the mind as well as thofe of the body; was engaged. After feveral secret inter- he prefented him with a potion, whose views, the paffion of Banou Raffid and efficacy was fuch, that it immediately obZeinabi became mutual, and rofe to fuch literated the memory of all paft misfora degree of force, that they were both tunes. Banou Rafid being thus freed ●qually disposed to run any risk, in order from the painful recollection of an irre trievable trievable lofs, applied himself entirely to the improvement of his estate. He caufed a fumptuous palace to be erected, and employed the ableft architects of Cabul in the building of it; but an earthquake foon after happening at Cabul, this fuperb edifice was fwallowed up, and Banou Raffid greatly regretted the pains and expence which it had occafioned him. His revenues, however, being confiderable, he refolved to have recourse to other pleafures, and accordingly caufed his haram to be filled with the brightest beauties, which could be purchased for gold. But Banou Raffid, whofe mind was endowed with fentiment, could find no fatisfaction in the mercenary careffes of his miftreffes. Their embraces foon difgufted him, and he was feized with a languor, which rendered life almoft infupportable. To banish forrow, he had next recourse to the flowing bowl, and past whole nights in, the company of debauchees, in noife, laughter, and folly. These revellings were followed by difeafes, and Banou Rafid, after having lingered a long time, at last recovered his health; but as he had tried every fort of pleasure, and found by experience, that all enjoyments are productive of pain, in proportion as they are exquifite, he refolved for the future to lead a regular life, yet ftill he found himself unhappy; his attachment to his affairs increasing with his temperance and fobriety. The fage Barud was again touched by his diftrefs, and prefented Banou Raflid with another potion, which was of fuch a na ture, as to render the perfon who took it infenfible of all prefent grievances. Banou Raffid being now restored to a perfect tranquility of mind, applied himself to the study of the fciences, and found in the purfuit of knowledge, a fatisfaction fuperior to all the gratifications of fenfe. But when advanced in years, he was feized with the dread of death; and tho entirely fecure from fuffering by the recollection of past misfortunes, and undifturbed by the prefent, he was rendered compleatly unhappy by looking forward to futurity, and the prospect of death imbittered all the enjoyments of his life. As he had twice experienced the effects of Barud's fkill, he had recourse to him a third time; but the fage gave him to understand, that tho' he had remedies against paft and prefent evils, he could never device any against the future, and that death was a tribute to nature, which every mortal was doomed to pay. Banou Raffid, having received this answer, threw himself upon his couch in difpair, and falling foon after into a profound fleep; the angel Gabriel appeared to him, and addreffed him thus: "Omortal! thou haft dedicated thy whole life to the purfuit of vain pleasures, or of fciences equally vain; it is now time for you to apply your heart to wisdom." The old man was fo affected with this exhortation, that he confecrated the remainder of his days to devotion, and at last joyfully met that hour, the expectation of which had before filled him with terror. A DESCRIPTION of the MANNERS, RELIGION, CUSTOMS, &c. of the Inhabitants of WHIDAH on the Slave-Coaft. [concluded.] A LL the children of the Whidanese, both male and female are circumcifed. Whence they derived this custom, none of them can tell. Their ufual anfwer is, they had it from their ancestors. There is no place where greater refpect is fhewn by children to their parents, than at Whidah. They never address them but on their knees. The younger brothers pay great refpect to the elder. On a deficiency in this duty, they are punished by a fine, impofed at the pleasure of the brother. By the death of the father, the eldest son inherits not only his effects, but alfo his women; with whom, from that day, he lives in quality of husband, His own mother is excepted: fhe is now her own mistress, has a house appointed her, and a certain fortune for her subfiltence. This custom prevails as well in the royal palace as among the people. The extraordinary industry with which the Whidanefe apply to commerce and agriculture, does not destroy their tafte for pleasure. They will frequently hazard all they are worth at gaming. When their 1 their money and effects are loft, they stake their wives, whom they account as their flaves, and therefore have a power to fell their children likewife; nay fometimes themselves. So many diforders refulted from this mad paffion, that a late king prohibited all games of hazard, on pain of death. Unhappily, this law died with its author, and gaming is now as fashionable and pernicious as ever. Their mufic is by no means despicable. They have one inftrument, refembling a harp, very agreeable. They play on it with great dexterity, and accompanying it with a fweet voice, dance to the founds in exact time, with a pretty air and manner. They have likewife a kind of kettle drum and trumpet, which they use in war; befides flutes, and several wind inftruments. No other countries on the coaft can boast of fuch good mufic. This country has its peculiar difeafes, as well as its games and pleafures. The air is bad, and fevers are frequent. Thefe often prove fatal to the Europeans: dyfenteries are likewife common. The natives are diligent in the ufe of medicines, and offerings to their gods, for the recovery of the fick. So fearful are they of death, that they cannot fupport the found of the word, without visible emotion; and it is death to pronounce it upon any occafion before the king. Bofman relates, that on his first voyage to this country, he waited before his departure on the king, who owed him an hundred pounds. At taking leave, he asked the monarch who should pay him at his return, in cafe he died? All the by-standers were shocked at the queftion; (which it must be owned, carried with it true Dutch bluntness) but the king, who spoke a little Portuguese, told him, "Not to give himself any concern about that, for he fhould always live." The Dutchman perceived his error, took his leave abruptly, and departed. On his return, he fo frequently rallied them on their weak fears, that in time the word grew familiar to the better fort; and the king, who was a jovial fellow, at laft repeated it as frequently as any of them. But the people of meaner rank retained their old apprehenfions, which nothing could remove. In general, the most violent prejudices accompany the blindeft ig norance. As to religion, the laft mentioned author is of opinion, that the piety of this country is founded upon no other principles, than those of interest and superstition. In the latter, they exceed all other nations: "For allowing (fays he) the ancient heathens to value themfelves upon thirty thousand deities; I dare venture to affirm, that the natives of Whidah may lay juft claim to four times that number." However, he believes they have a faint idea of the one true God, to whom they attribute omnipotence and ubiquity. They believe a Being exifts, the Creator of the universe; but they neither pray, nor facrifice to this Being. He is (fay they) too highly exalted to take any concern about them; and the government of the world he leaves to the fetiches. To thefe, as the mediators between God and them, they apply themselves. On a negroe being afked how they performed their divine worship, and what number of gods they might have, he smiling, replied, the queftion greatly perplexed him. "Their number (faid he) is infinite: when we undertake any thing arduous and important, we first look out for a fit deity (a fetiche) to profper the enterprize. Going out of doors with this view, we take the first creature that prefents itself, whether dog, cat, or the loweft reptile, for a god; nay often a ftone, tree, or the like. To this we present an offering, accompanied with a folemn vow, that if the god will favour our defigns, we will henceforward worthip him. If, accordingly, we fucceed, we attribute it to the influence of this new chofen deity, and pay our vow religiously; if, on the contrary, we are difappointed, the god is rejected, and his worship neglected. Thus we make and unmake our gods; we are their masters and fervants; their number depends on our fortune, and perhaps their worship to our folly." The juft manner of thinking in this negroe was owing to his having conversed much with the French, whofe language he spoke perfectly. But the chief fetiche is the fnake, who has here fuch extraordinary honours conferred upon him, as cannot but raise our aftonishment. They invoke this wretched reptile on every occasion, when they stand in need of a divine affiftance. They make the richeft offerings to it; money, filks, ftuffs, live cattle, European as well as African commodities, with elegant entertainments of all kinds, and the best and choiceft food that can be procured, Thefe gifts are made by the people at the inftigation of the priests, who keep them in the profoundeft ignorance, and convert that ignorance to their own advantage, by these enormous impofitions. The king himself is deceived as much as his people. He continually is offering to the temple of the fnake the most valuable things. He is fpurred on by the advice of his courtiers, who fet before him the impoffibility of gaining victories over his enemies, or of enjoying his crown in peace, unless the divine being is first satisfied by the homage paid to his fervant the fnake; and they never fail with the priests to fhare the booty. The origin of the worship of this snake, the negroes affirm to be very ancient ; and it really appears to be fo. Let the rife of it be when it would, we may take it for granted, it was in times of the darkest ftupidity, and has been kept up, as it very likely was first inftituted, by the cunning artifices of those who have known how to profit by it. The kings of Whidah ufed formerly to make annual proceffions to the fnake temple. These were celebrated with great magnificence, and terminated with rich offerings. Prefents of great value were not only made to the deity and his priests, but to the nobility that affifted at the folemnity. The prefent king has with difficulty broke through the custom of making this proceffion; and indeed feems tired of offerings attended with fo great an expence, and fo little advantage. This, Bofman fays, he had an opportunity once of obferving. Finding him one day in a violent rage, he took the liberty of enquiring into the occafion of his majesty's paffion. He frankly replied, he had this year fent much richer offerings than ufual to the snake, in hopes of obtaining a good harveft: that his viceroys urged him to make farther offerings, and the priests threatened him with a barren year, if he refused to comply. "However, says he, I have no in. tention of doing it for if the fnake will not grant a good year, he may let it alone: he will fuffer with me. He cannot hurt me more than he has done, by emptying my coffers, and yet letting my corn rot." There is a very large temple erected for the refidence of this deity; a revenue appointed for its fupport; priests and pontiffs to attend it. In this temple is the great and chief snake, which the negroes are fo credulous as to believe, is the very fame that was placed there from the beginning, when they first had the happiness of being enlightened with the knowledge of this worship: fo of courfe, we may fuppofe, they think he will never die. The priests will take care they fhall never know of its death, and will always have another ready to supply its place. Although this chieftain-fnake is the most honoured, yet all the rest are likewife worshipped, fed, and fondled. No infult or injury dare be committed to any of them by a native, on pain of death; and if an European fhould be fo hardy as to pass an affront on the deity, he would not fail fuffering from its votaries. Of this the English had a tragical instance: for on their first fettling in Whidah, the captain having unfhipped his goods on the fhore, the failors found at night a snake in their magazine, which they ignorantly killed, and threw upon the bank, little dreaming of any bad confequences. The negroes foon difcovered the facrilege, and had it confirmed by the acknowledgment of the English. Shocked at fuch horrid impiety, they were not long in avenging it, by a method no lefs horrible. All the inhabitants of the province affembled, attacked the English, massacred them all to a man, and then confumed their bodies and goods in the fire they had fet to the warehouse. Animals of all kinds are punished with death, for injuring a fnake. In 1697, a hog that had been teazed by one of them, gnashed and devoured it with its teeth: whereupon all the hogs in the kingdom were ordered to be flain, and the order was immediately put in execution; till after fome thousands had expiated by their death, the affront offered to the deity, the king interpofed, and a stop was put to the flaughter. With this care and attendance, thefe ridiculous deities multiply fo faft, that the kingdom fwarms with them. They are a perfect nuisance from their number and familiarity, and crawl about the houses so as to become very inconvenient: yet no one dares diflodge them ot turn them out. These are very large and long, perfectly tame, and no ways mifchievous or hurtful, unless provoked; and they are fure to receive no affronts in Whidah. It muft alfo be acknowledged, that they are of fome fervice: for they have a particular 3. particular enmity to all venomous ferpents, whom they always attack, and most times kill. The highest mark of fuperftition, ignorance, and most amazing credulity in the people, is their fuffering themfelves to be fo grossly impofed upon by the priests, in regard to offering virgins to this fnake. Thefe facerdotal knaves apply to young girls, and tell them that the snake has a mind for them, and therefore they intreat them voluntarily to go to him, offering them liberal promifes; and if thefe fail, ufing many menaces, and denouncing terrible execiations they refufe to comply. After they have perfuaded the girl into their opinion, they order her to embrace the opportunity at night, when the way is clear; then they immediately fall a screaming and howling, as if the fnake had laid hold of her, and was carrying her off. They then adminifter a potion, which presently renders her delirious; and this is believed to be the effect of the fnake's having taken her. She then is carried by the priests to the hofpital, provided on purpose for these occafions, to be cured. Their parents pay an extravagant price for their board and maintenance, and for the medicines applied to her, befides fees for the house. All this goes into the pockets of the priests; and this is the end and intention of the fcheme. The infiuence thefe villains gain over the underftanding is amazing. By the time the girl obtains her liberty, the feems almoft perfuaded of the reality of the cheat contrived by the priests, and convinced that her brain had been actually difordered, and her person seized by the fnake. How ever, to fecure them against revealing the fraud, the priest never fails to threaten them with the most signal vengeance, if they ever harbour fuch fufpicions, or reveal any doubts upon the matter. They have been known to execute their menaces; and women who have blabbed the fecret, have next day been found buried alive. All these particulars might ftartle our belief, were they not attefted by writers of undeniable credit. Neither will it appear ftrange that those who can believe a reptile, or any other inanimate as well as animate thing to be a God, can have the reafon to stop there, and not as well credit the power of that God. On the contrary, they think this a plain proof * of its divinity; and therefore it highly behoves the priests to keep them up to this belief. Besides, next to the diety himfelf, they reverence his minifters; and as they fuppofe them acquainted with all his mysteries, it would be the highest impiety to doubt the veracity of what they declare to be true. The priests and priestesses are fo much refpected, that their very office is a protection for all crimes. Their power is exorbitant, their riches are immense, and their villainy and extortion intolerable. Some of the nobility look upon them as impoftors; but were they to disclose the leaft hint of fuch a thought, poifon would be the confequence. If we have a view to the dark ages of Chriftianity, and to the priefts among all thefe ignorant nations; we fhall think Butler did not much exceed the truth, when he said, Amidft all this abfurdity the negroes have fome glimerings of truth, at least the moft fenfible among them. For they believe the fuperior great, all-wife, and invifible deity punishes vice, and rewards virtue; that he caufes the heavens to thunder, the clouds to rain, the fky to lighten, and the fun to fhine: that his refidence is in the heavens, whence with infinite justice and goodness, by means of the inferior deities, the fnake and other fetiches, he governs the world. They have confused notions of hell, the devil, and departed fpirits. The former they call a fubterraneous abode, where the wicked are punished by fire; and this opinion has been confirmed amongst them by the arrival of a forcerer, (probably a miffionary) who pretended to have come from thence. There, he affirmed, he saw several perfons of the court, particularly the late prime minifter. We conclude with a fhort defcription of the country of Whidah. All Europeans fpeak of it with rapture, and extol it as the most beautiful in the world. The trees are ftrait, tall, and difperfed in the moft regular order, which prefent to the eye fine long groves and avenues, clear of all brushwood and weeds. The verdure of |