three kingdoms have on all fides very convenient harbours, and are accommodated with navigable rivers in abundance, which convey to them the riches of the fea, and of foreign nations. The advantage of the fea furrounding them, as it is a fecurity against enemies, fo it is also against the violent colds to which the climate would otherwife be expofed; for the tides and conftant motion of the fea fend us in a kindly fort of vapour, which qualifies the natural Sharpness of the air, even to fuch a degree that in fome parts of France and Italy, they feel more of the winter than we do in Eng. Jand. The foil in England and Ireland doth, in a great measure, owe its fertility to the fame caufe; the vapours not only mollifying the air, and by that means nouithing every vegetable, but they alfo furnish ns with gentle fhowers in their proper fea fons, infomuch that our ancestors believed thefe muft needs be the fortunate iflands, so much ta ked of by the ancients, as hay ing of all others the best claim to thofe natural bleffings and delights, with which they made them abound. We fee every day that the convenient fituation of any eftate gives an estimate, and raises its purchase; and, without convenience, life itself would be but a mere refpiration, scarce worth the valuing England, then, most certainly deferves to be valued and preferred to all nations on the earth, having both to fo great an advantage. It is an inland placed as a center to the circular globe, towards which trade may draw a line fro.n the whole circumference: it is blefied with a moderation of every element; no torrid zone fcorches, nor frigid zone benumbs its natives; but a medium influence, firengthens, and beautifies its inhabitants, who are of regular fhapes, neither an unwieldly nor pigmy breed, but fit to endure the toil of war, or peaceful labours in the land; our climate is fo moderate, that the fun neither exhales, mor the cold phlegmatifes the fpirituous parts, but allows a temperature between both; fo that our native imaginations are neither toc airy for confideration, nor too dull for invention; its foil is a mixture and oductive, and where barrennels appears on the fortace, the bowels are enriched with valuable mines. No Alpine mountains, mor Holland bogs, but the land is charmingly diverfified with fpacious plains, beautitul hills, and fruitful vallies; fo that when the parching fun burns up the higher lands, the humble meadows thrive with verdure. Our paftures may be juitly styled excellent, and the verdure of this country ftrikes foreigners with wonder. And when mighty fhowers drown the vales, the hills grow fruitful by watering; our lands, when illed, produce a grateful plenty in return

to labour; our trees in general are lofty and well topped, and afford us all the conveniences we can expect; our kingly oaks fo firmly rib our fhips, that our royal navy, if duly fupported by the effects of a profperous national commerce, will ever prove an invincible bulwark to any daring for our fruits are pleafant and useful for support: our cattle large, healthy, ftrong, and numerous, which are as good as the world produces for labour or for food. Our wool is very good; it is the parent of our chief manufactures, and gives us a plaudit in our cloths, baize, fays, ferges, &c throughout the univerfe. The western parts of England make a great figure in this way? for the plains in Dorfetfhire, Wiltshire, Gloucefterfire, Somerfetfhire, and Hampihire, are in a manner covered with sheep, infomuch that the people of Dorchefter affirm, that there are always fix hundred thousand feeding within fix miles of that town; yet the manufacture demands more wool than all these fheep can furnish, infomuch that they commonly take thirty thousand packs from Ireland, and very near as much yarn ready fpun; it has been computed that in those five counties, there are above one hundred thoufand families maintained by spinning, reckoning fix to a family, exclufive of a weaver` in each, and in many two or three. But it would require a large volume to run through even our capital manufactures; we therefore fhall only mention, that to be convinced of the prodigious benefits refulting from every kind of manufacture, we need only make a journey into any of the counties where they flourish, and look about us, where we shall find the market-tons thick and yet large, well built, populous, and rich, and villages within a mile or two of each other. As for instance, for twenty miles round Exeter in Devonshire; in the neighbourhood of the manufacturing city of Norwich, in Norfolk, where the flußweaving is carried on; in Effex, where the baize trade flourishes; in Wiltshire, from Warminster to Malmbury; in the countiès of Glougefter and Worcester, where the white clothing trade is the grand manufacture; befides the many other counties where the hardware and cutlery manufactories, flourish, &c. &c.

This is fufficient to fatisfy an opening mind, as to the truth of all that I have advanced upon this curious and copious fubject. Our land is plentifully veined with many noble, navigable rivers, refreshing the earth, and affording variety and plenty of fith, as well as the conveniency of watercarriage, thereby contributing to domeftic trade, and that happy intercourfe between all parts of the island which communicates its bleffings, and is thereby the parent of univerfal

Fox. But, Sir, there are cabals at all meetings, feparate interef, different views and connexions: and I look no more upon the refolutions of the Hackney meeting, than I would (upon the impofition of the driver of a hackney coach.

Pitt. Poor quibble-are you driven to this? But what think you of the Weft minfter meeting in Weflminfter-hall? You had fix to one on your fide, and yet were obliged to retreat, fhamefully retreat, to harangue out of a tavern window, and leave the field of battle to your opponents,

Fox. That day will ever be memorable. Secret, or more baneful influence there prevailed. The very life of our popular member was aimed at, by means more infidious than thofe of a Ravilliac. Poifonous balls, of the most mortal tendency, were thrown at him, and he moft fortunately escaped. But as this infamous bußnefs is fill under inveftigation, I fall mention no more of it here.

Pitt. A political manœuvre on your fide of the queflion, to raise popular clamour; but the whole affair is fo abfurd in itfelf, confidered as a party matter, that I am aftonished you should introduce it into a ferious argument. It is really aftonishing that a monarch has not the liberty of appointing his own fervants, and continuing them in place, as long as they behave well, the privilege, nay the birthright of the loweft mechanic; but your party want to overthrow the conftitution by every means in your power. You endeavour to withhold the fupplies, and poftpone the mutiny bill, till we shall have no army to defend ourselves, at a time that France and Spain are making the greatest naval preparations, and may, perhaps, at this critical period, in the midit of our diffenfions, and foon without an army, attack us in our vital parts.

Fox. Your comparifon does not hold kings of England are but the first magif. trates, and fhould be guided by the voice of the Parliament, who are the only proper channel of communicating the real fentiments of the people to the throne: but a private man acts only as an individual, and is not refponfible for his conduct but to the laws of his country. As to withholding the fupplies, it is an error; that for the ordnance has already been voted without oppofition; but it would be refcinding the refolutions of the house for the removal of the nominal minifter, who has been substantially done away for feveral weeks paft, if they were to grant all the fupplies he might demand at this junc ture, as it would be an indirect approbation of his measures, as well as the fecret

influence that brought him in. As to the mutiny bill, there is time fufficient to pals that before the 25th of March, if not prevented by the bftinacy of one youth, The bugbear of French and Spanish armaments is all political humbug, meant to terrify us into obedience to the would-be minitter's prefumptive mandates; and we had better be without a standing army. which has ever been pronounced a ftanding evil, than be dragooned at the nod of a foydifant minifler into whatever measures he pleases.

Pitt. Your arguments are all of the fame complexion, and equally inconclufive. I find you are incorrigible, and fo I will leave you.

Fox. And as I find you and I shall never agree in political opinions, and that a coalition between us is as far off as ever, I with you a good night.

New Defcription of the Island of Joanna.

HOUGH this is not the largest, yet it Tmay be reckoned the principal of the Comora Ilands; it claims fovereignty over and exacts tribute from all the others these pretenfions it is however fometimes obliged to affert by the fword, and at prefent meditates an expedition against Mayotta which is in a state of rebellion; the natives on being asked the cause of their war with that people, reply "Motta like America :" they get their fupplies of arms and ammunition from fhips that touch here, and the arrival of fo large a fleet as the prefent will prove very seasonable to them, as it is cuftomary for all to make picfents of arms and powder to this prince when he pays a visit on board, which he does to every one; a falute is the compli ment due on that occafion, but as our guns are fhotted, an apology is made for the omiffion of that ceremony, and the prince readily admits of it, provided he receives a number of cartridges equal to the guns that would have been fired.

The king lives at a town about twelve miles off on the east fide of the ifland, two princes of the blood refide here; on going their round of vifits they fail not to ask for every thing they fee which ftrikes their fancy, and, of courfe the honour of making a prefent to a prince, induces one at firð readily to grant what they request; but no fooner is that done than they make fresh applications till we are reduced to the rude neceffity of putting the negative on mott of them. Thefe great perfonages are very richly dressed, and attended by a numerous fuite of flaves, who like their princely maflers are much ftruck with the objects they fee, but ufe lefs ceremony in their manner of obtaining them: thefe

black

black princes (for that is the complexion of them and all the inhabitants) have by fome means or other obtained the titles of Prince of Wales and Prince Will, the former has, I fuppofe, been jocofely called fo by tome Englishmen, as being the heir apparent, and the natives have adopted the term, not the only one they borrow from ; they bave an officer ftiled Purfer Jack, who feems to be at the head of the finance department; of dukes they have a prodigious number, who entertain us at their hotels for a dollar per day, and give us for dinner very good rice and curry; thefe noblemen, together with a numerous tribe of others of all ranks, make the earliest, application to every one to folicit the honour of his company and custom, even before the hip has let go its anchor they come along-fide in their canoes and produce written certificates of their honefty and abilities from thofe who have been here before, the purport of which is to inform you that the bearer has given them good cheer, washed their linen well, and fupplied their fhip punctually with all forts of refreshments. The effect is ftriking and fingular on entering the road, to fee a vaft number of canoes which are made of trunks of trees hollowed out with three er four black fellows in each, their faces turned towards the front of the canoe with paddles formed like a fpade, digging away in the water, and moving with no fmall velocity: to keep these cockle-fhells Ready, and prevent them from over fet. ting, they have what is termed an out, rigging: it is compofed of two poles laid acrofs the upper part of the canoe, and extending feveral feet beyond the edges thereof on each fide, joined at the extres mities by two flat pieces of wood, fo that it appears like a fquare frame laid across the canoe; they are very long, but fo nar row that one perfon only can fit breadth ways. The price of every article here is regulated, and each fhip has its contractor, who engages to fupply it with neceffariesa: the established rate, but I believe it is in many cafes exceeded by the great demand and the eagerness of half starved people to obtain fresh ftock.

We find no other animals for our fea provifions but bullocks, goats and fowls, the feafon for oranges is paft, but we get most other tropical fruits, and whatever we want, bave only to give in a lift to a duke, and he provides us therewith: this, you will fay, is a new character for a duke to appear in, and fuch it feems to be, but it is in fact only owing to the mode, they are their own stewards, and difpofe of the produce of their eftates themselves, which Boblemen of other countries do by the intermediate aid of an agent; they at leaft

act confiftent with their characters by an urbanity of manners, which one is furprized to meet with in a people inhabiting a fmall spot fecluded from the reft of the civilized world. They have a regular form of government, and exercise the Mahometan religion; both were introduced by Arabians, who paffed over from the continent and fubdued the country; the originai Joanna natives are by no means thoroughly reconciled to this ufurpation, and ftill look upon their conquerors with an evil eye. Like their fentiments fo are the colours of thefe two races of men very different; the Arabs have not fo deep tinge as the others, being of a yellowif copper complexion, with better features and a more animated countenance; they confider a black fireak under the eyes and black teeth as ornamental: the former they make every day at their toilets with a painting brush dipt in a kind of ointment, the latter is principally caused by the chewing of the betel nut; this cuftom, which prevails in all eastern countries, anfwers to the fashion of fmoking tobacco or taking fruff with us, except that with them it is more general: no one is without a purfe or bag of betel, and it is looked on as a piece of civility to offer it to your friend, when you meet him or take leave; it is a small nut of the size of a filberd, that grows on a creeping plant like a vine; together with the betel nuts are chewed the leaves of the areca (a kinė of palm tree) and a fmall quantity of chir nam or lime, made of calcined fhells is added.

Their religion licenfes a plurality of wives, and likewife concubines; they are extremely jealous of them, and never allow any man to fee the women, but female strangers are admitted into the Harem, and fome English ladies, whofe curiofity has led them there, make favourable reports of their beauty and richness of ap parel, difplayed in a profusion of orna ments of gold, filver and beads, in form of necklaces, bracelets, and ear-rings; they wear half a dozen or more in each, through holes bored all along the outer rim of the ear.

The men feem not to look with an eye of indifference on our fair country-women, notwithstanding they are of fo different a complexion; one of the first rank among them being much finitten with an English young lady, withed to make a purchate of her at the price of five thousand dollars, but on being informed that the lady would fetch at least twenty times that fum in India, he lamented that, her value was so far fuperior to what he could afford to give.

These people are very temperate and abftemious, wins being forbidden them by

the