a kingdom on the western coast of Africa, lying, according to the most probable accounts, between Lat. 8° 30' and 16° 21' South, forming a coast of upwards of 480 miles; but how far it extends from west to east, has never been exactly determined. Angola Proper is bounded on the north by the river Danda, which separates it from Congo; and on the south by the Cunza, by which it is separated from Benguela. This last, however, is now included in the kingdom of Angola, having been conquered by its monarchs, tho' it still retains the name of kingdom, and is included in the dimensions we have just now given. The air here is very hot and unwholesome, and the country mountainous; That part of the kingdom which we have distinguished by the name of Angola Proper, was subject to the kings of Congo in the year 1484, when the Portuguese first discovered the country; but how long it had been so before that time, is impossible to be discovered; as the inhabitants are utterly destitute of Chronology, and have no other way of distinguishing past events but by saying they happened in such a king's reign. Neither, though Angola became a distinct kingdom since its discovery by the Portuguese, is it known with more certainty at what time that revolution happened; or whether the Portuguese were not concerned in afflicting the viceroy of the king of Congo, who governed the province of Angola, to set up for himself.

All accounts agree, that this kingdom was founded by one Ngola, or Angola, from whom it took its name. According to the tradition of the country, this Ngola was a smith, and the inventor of that trade, in which he had been instructed by the demons of the country. In consequence of this, he became exceeding rich, not in gold, silver, or shell-money, which were not at that time in use; but in corn, cattle, and fruits, which were then exchanged in traffic. The country being not long after visited by a grievous famine, Ngola generously relieved his distressed countrymen, and saved the lives of some thousands. In gratitude for this generosity, he was unanimously chosen king; and hence the smith's trade is reckoned among the royal arts of Angola.

According to other accounts which can be more depended upon, Ngola was the king of Congo's viceroy; who, having become powerful by the reduction of several of the neighbouring states, was induced to set up for himself. Dreading, nevertheless, the power of his old master, he chose to send him the usual tribute and presents annually, till he reckoned himself firmly seated on the throne, and had secured it to his descendents. His measures were greatly facilitated by the wars which the king of Congo was then engaged in with the Giasas, a barbarous and cannibal nation in the neighbourhood. These made such a powerful inroad into his dominions, that he was glad to ask assistance from Ngola; not as a subject, but as a friend and ally. This was readily granted; and the two monarchs continued ever after sending presents and assistance to each other, and encouraging a mutual commerce between their subjects.

Ngola lived to a great age, highly respected by his subjects, and in alliance with the king of Congo and the Portuguese, whose numerous settlements on the coast had made them become very powerful. According to the custom of the country, he had many wives and concubines. By his chief favourite he had three daughters, Zunda Riangola, Tumba Riangola, and another whose name is unknown. Towards the latter part of his life, the king's chief care was to secure the crown to the eldest of these; for which purpose he consulted his beloved queen, who encouraged him in the design with all the eloquence in her power. By her advice, he sent for his lieutenant-general, a favourite slave, whom he had created viceroy over the whole kingdom, to acquaint him with his resolution. The artful minister did not fail to applaud his design, though his intention was to defraud the princess, and seize the throne for himself. He accordingly took the opportunity, one day, when that princess and the whole court were employed in sowing their lands, to spread a report that the Angelic enemies had entered the kingdom, and were destroying every thing with fire and sword. In this confusion, the treacherous viceroy conducted the three princesses to the royal palace; and acquainting Ngola with the pretended danger, urged him to betake himself to a speedy flight. The frightened monarch, unable to stir with age, desired his minister to take the most proper means for his safety: whereupon, being a stout young fellow, he takes his majesty on his back, and carries him into a neighbouring wood; where he no sooner had him in a convenient place, than he stabbed him with a dagger. This stratagem was too shallow to remain long concealed; the murderer was quickly discovered, and many of the nobles rose in arms against him; but finding his party too strong to be opposed, they were at last obliged to submit, and suffer him quietly to ascend the throne, upon his publicly declaring that he had not feigned it but with a view of securing it to the young princess Zunda Riangola.

To this princess, the usurper palliated his conduct in the best manner he could; and she had art enough to disguise her resentment to effectually, that he never discovered, nor did she give him the smallest occasion for jealousy. At last, his sudden death gave Zunda an opportunity of ascending the throne peaceably; when she behaved with such moderation and justice, as to gain the love and affection of all her subjects. Her jealous temper prevented her from marrying; and, by giving too much way to it, she came at last to dread as rivals the two sons of her younger sister Tumba, and to form designs against their life. To accomplish her purposes, she ordered them to be brought to court, pretending to have them educated under her own eye. This was declined for some time; but at length the queen prevailed so far as to have the eldest sent to her; whom she no sooner got into her power, than she caused him to be massacred, with all his attendants; only one escaping, all covered with wounds, to carry the dreadful news to the princess and her husband.

On hearing of this bloody act, the afflicted parents immediately fell forth at the head of all their vassals. They were waited for by Queen Zunda at the head of a numerous army; but, no sooner did her soldiers perceive the parents of the deceased prince, than they immediately abandoned the queen to their resentment. Tumba immediately rushed upon her sister, and stabbed her to the heart; after which, she commanded her entrails to be taken out, and thrown into the hole in which her son's body had been cast. Upon this Tumba was crowned queen of Angola, and invited her husband to participate with her in the management of public affairs. This offer he was too wise to accept; and Tumba, upon his refusal, resigned the crown into the hands of her surviving son, named Angola Chilwagani. He proved a great and wise prince, extending his dominions by conquest, and gaining the love of his subjects by the moderation and equity of his government. He was succeeded by one of his younger sons, named Dambo Angola; who no sooner ascended the throne, than he put all his brethren to death, lest they should unite in favour of the eldest. The rest of his reign proved conformable to such a beginning. He was a monster... monsters of cruelty, avarice, lewdness, and faithlessness: death, however, in a short time, happily delivered his subjects from this tyrant; who, notwithstanding his infamous life, was buried with the greatest magnificence; and a mound was erected over his grave, consisting, according to the custom of the country, of a prodigious number of human victims which had been sacrificed to his ghost. Dambi Angola was succeeded by Ngola Chilivagni, a warlike and cruel prince. He conquered many nations, and made the most dreadful inroads into the kingdom of Congo, along the rivers of Danda, Lucalla, Zanda, and Coanza; whose waters were often tinged with the blood of thousands whom he massacred in his excursions. Notwithstanding these horrid butcheries, Ngola Chilivagni showed such generosity to those who readily submitted to him, that he was sure to conquer, not only wherever he came, but wherever he seemed to direct his forces. At last, as if weary of conquest, he planted a tree on the banks of the Coanza, about eight leagues from Loanda San Paulo, as a boundary to his ravages. This tree the Portuguese called Ifanda, or Ifandaura; and afterwards erected a fortress near it.

The same folly and insolence which took place in the breast of Alexander the Great, on account of his rapid conquests, soon puffed up the mind of this petty African tyrant. Because he had conquered and ravaged some of the neighbouring countries, and brought under his subjection a few cowardly barbarians; he first fancied himself invincible, and then that he was a god. He demanded the same respect and adoration that was paid to their other deities; and with this infamous demand his subjects were mean enough to comply. This pretended deity, however, was forced to submit to the fate of other mortals, and died without leaving a successor behind him.

On the decease of Ngola Chilivagni, the states elected Ngingha-Angola-Chilombo-Kicksanda, great-nephew to queen Tumba's husband, as his successor. He proved such a rapacious and cruel tyrant, that his subjects universally wished for his death; which, luckily for them, soon happened. He was interred with the usual pomp and solemnities, particularly that of having a whole hecatomb of human victims sacrificed upon his grave. His son Bandi Angola, who succeeded him, proved yet a greater tyrant than his father; so that he soon became intolerable to his subjects. A general revolt ensued, in which his subjects called in the cannibal Giagas to their assistance. These immediately poured in like a band of hungry dogs hastening to feed upon a carcass; and, having defeated and devoured the forces of the tyrant, besieged him in an inaccessible mountain; where, not being able to come at him, they resolved to reduce him by famine. Bandi Angola, being now reduced to the utmost distress, applied to the king of Congo for assistance. As it was the interest of that prince to hinder the ravenous Giagas from entering into the Angolic dominions, whence they could so easily pass into his own, he did not hesitate at granting his request; and ordered a strong reinforcement of the Portuguese, of whose value he had a high opinion, and of whom he entertained a great number at his court, to march to the assistance of the king of Angola. The command of the army was given to one of the most experienced Portuguese officers; who, depending more on the handful of Europeans under his command, than on the Congolese, attacked the rebels, tho' greatly superior in number; and, having utterly defeated them, restored the king of Angola to his throne.

This essential piece of service so endeared the Portuguese to Bandi Angola, that he took them into his service, and even into his council. Their general became a great favourite of the king, but much more so of his daughter, who conceived a violent passion for him. Unfortunately for them both, the amours was carried on with so little precaution on her part, that the king-general quickly discovered it; and immediately formed a resolution of exterminating the Portuguese all at once. Such violent measures, however, could not be concerted so privately but the princess got some intelligence of it; and having apprized her lover of his danger, he immediately withdrew into Congo, taking with him as who resides many of his countrymen as he conveniently could. The king of Congo expressed such strong resentment against Bandi Angola for his ingratitude, that the Portuguese general would have probably prevailed upon him to declare war against Angola, had he not been obliged to defend his own dominions against a neighbouring prince who then made an invasion. This afforded that general a fair pretence of asking leave to return home; promising to return with such reinforcements as would enable the king of Congo to revenge himself for the affront put upon him by the Angolic monarch. His real intention, however, was, to give the king of Portugal a fair pretence for seizing upon the kingdom of Angola.

On his return to Lisbon, the Portuguese general having laid his plan before the king, it was so well relished by him, that an armament was ordered to be fitted out, well furnished with every necessary for building the king of fortresses, &c. and a sufficient number of men. The wind proving favourable all the way back, the Portuguese soon arrived safe at Loanda San Paulo; whence the general dispatched a messenger to acquaint the king of Congo with his arrival, and to make him some rich presents. These were no sooner gone, than the admiral failed up the Coanza; and, landing without opposition in the kingdom of Angola, set about erecting a fortress in a convenient situation, which was completed in a few days.

The king being informed of the return of the Portuguese, and of their fortifying themselves on advantageous ground, gathered together a numerous army; but his forces, though upwards of 100,000 in number, were utterly defeated by the Portuguese; vast numbers killed, and many more carried into slavery. The admiral now ravaged the whole country, putting all to fire and sword, and making himself master of every advantageous spot of ground. The king, however, had still the good luck to escape all the stratagems that were laid for him; and once more got safe to his inaccessible fortress.

All this time Bandi Angola had himself tyrannized, and allowed his favourites to tyrannize, in such a manner, that his subjects were become no less weary of his government than when they formerly revolted. Being now exasperated beyond measure at the calamitous war of which he had been the occasion, they formed a design of putting an end to his life; and in order to draw him out of his retreat, where he wallowed in all manner of debaucheries, they had recourse to the following stratagem: A deputation was sent, acquainting him with the revolt of one Cuculo Cabazzo; who, at the head of a numerous band, committed the most cruel ravages. They besought his majesty either to levy a sufficient number of troops, and march in person against him, or to allow them to arm themselves against him. The credulous king complied with this last proposal; and granted them leave to raise what forces might be thought necessary. Four days after, notice was sent to the king, that his subjects had attacked the rebels, and had been repulsed with loss; but that, if his majesty would but condescend to animate them with his presence, the fight of him would inspire them with such courage, that they would assuredly prove victorious. This had the desired effect; and the king set out a few days after, without any other precaution than his own guards, to head his army, which was encamped on the banks of the Lucalla. He no sooner appeared in view, than all the chief officers came out to meet him; and, having, under pretence of paying their respects, gradually separated him from his guards, they fell upon him, and dispatched him at once.

Bandi Angola was succeeded by his son Ngola Bandi, whose mother had been a slave; and whose title to the crown was consequently disputable, according to the laws of the country. Of this the new king being well apprized, thought proper to begin his reign by putting to death every person who had opposed his election. He began with the Tendula, or commander of the king's rear-guard; who, by his office, is the chief of the electors, and the person who governs the kingdom during the interregnum. Him he ordered to be put to death, with all his family. These were followed by the principal officers of his father's court; all his concubines, together with their parents and near relations, whom he caused to be cruelly butchered; together with his half-brother, his father's son by a favourite concubine, and then but an infant. He did not spare even the son of his sister Zingha Bandi, whom she had by one of her paramours. The interest of his sister had contributed greatly to raise this tyrant to the throne; and his ingratitude, with the murder of her son, so exasperated her, that she swore to be revenged on him in the same way.

The Portuguese were the next objects of his resentment. There he so much dreaded on account of their valour and policy, that he immediately declared war, resolving not to lay down his arms till he had exterminated them to the last man, or driven them totally out of his dominions. His rashness, however, cost him dear. Myriads of the Angolic poltroons were overthrown by a handful of Portuguese; and the king himself forced to fly, first into the island of Chiconda in the river Conanza, and then into the deserts of Oacco. Here his conquerors, out of great clemency, allowed him to live among the wild beasts, without any other sustenance than what the deserts afforded. He had the misfortune also to lose his queen and two sisters Cambi and Fungi, who were taken prisoners by the Portuguese, but treated very honourably.

The king being informed of the generous treatment of these three princesses, sent an embassy to treat of their ransom, and an exchange of prisoners. This was readily agreed to; but all the misfortunes of the king of Angola had not yet taught him wisdom. The princesses were sent back, laden with presents; but the king refused to perform his part of the agreement, and thereby plunged himself into still greater difficulties. A new Portuguese viceroy being arrived about this time, Ngola was quite at a loss how to excuse the non-performance of his part of the treaty. At last, he had recourse to his exasperated sister Zingha; and having excused, as well as he could, the murder of her son, proposed to send her on a splendid embassy to the viceroy; and, as her embracing the religion of the Portuguese would intitle her more to their favour and confidence, he desired her to consent to it for the present. To this proposal Zingha consented; but without forgetting her resentment. She set out, as plenipotentiary for the king of Angola, with a magnificent retinue, was received with all the honour due to her rank, and lodged in a splendid palace prepared for her.

At the first audience Zingha had of Don John (the Portuguese viceroy), she was greatly surprised to find a flatly elbow-chair prepared for him to fit upon, and for herself only a rich tapestry spread on the floor, with a velvet cushion embroidered with gold, and placed over against the chair of state. Dissembling her displeasure, however, she beckoned to one of the ladies of her retinue, commanded her to lay herself down on her elbows and knees upon the carpet, and sat herself upon her back during the whole time of the audience. She behaved with such address and dignity, as to gain the admiration of the whole council. A proposal was made of entering into an alliance offensive and defensive with the king of Angola, provided he acknowledged himself the vassal of the king of Portugal, and submitted to pay a yearly tribute. To this Zingha replied, that such conditions were indeed fit to be imposed upon those who had been conquered by the sword; but not upon a great and powerful monarch, who only fought their friendship and alliance: upon which, the treaty was concluded on both sides, without any other conditions than the exchange of prisoners. The audience being over, Don John took notice to Zingha, as he conducted her out of the hall, that the lady who had served her as a seat, continued still in the same posture; upon which she replied, That it did not become the ambassadors of a great monarch to make use of the same chair twice, so she looked upon her as a piece of cast-off goods not worthy of further notice.

Zingha was so taken with the honours done her by the Portuguese, and so intent upon observing the order, dress, arms, &c. of their troops, that she staid at Loanda a considerable time, during which she was instructed in the Christian religion, and consented to be baptized in the year 1623, the 46th of her age. Don John and his spouse were her sponsors; who dismissed her soon after, with all possible honours, and on highly satisfied with her reception and success. At her return, she took care to have the articles ratified by her brother; who expressed his approbation of them, and the highest obligations to her. He even went so far as to desire the Viceroy to send him some proper persons to instruct him in the Christian religion, which he said he was very desirous of embracing. This request was immediately granted, and Don Denis de Faria, a negro priest, a native of Angola, was dispatched, along with an officer of distinction, to stand god- godfather to the king. These met at first with a gracious reception; but when they came to talk of baptism, Ngola altered his tone, and told them it was too much below his dignity to receive it from the son of one of his slaves, and sent them both back. This was cried up by the courtiers as a princely act; but Zingha represented that it could not fail to exasperate the viceroy; and tried all possible means to dissuade him from it, but in vain. He suffered, however, his other two sisters, Cambi and Fungi, to be baptized; which was performed in 1625, with a splendor suited to their dignity.

As no experience seems to have been a sufficient antidote against the innate folly of Ngola Bandi, he soon after took it into his head to make war on the Portuguese, and invaded some of their territories. This last action proved his ruin: his troops were all cut off, and himself forced to swim for his life to a small island in the Coanza, about a mile long, and two bow-shots in breadth; whither the Portuguese pursued and surrounded him, so that he had no other chance, but either to fall into their hands, or be devoured by the wild beasts with which the place swarmed. From both these dangers he was relieved by a dose of poison, given him, as was supposed, by his sister Zingha. Before this time, however, he had taken care to send his eldest son to the country of the Giagas, and put him under the care of one of their chiefs called Giaga Caza, whom he befought to take care of him and protect him from his aunt Zingha, as he rightly imagined she would not fail of attempting his life, in order to secure herself on the throne.

Zingha Bandi was crowned queen of Angola, without opposition, in 1627.—She was a very artful woman, endowed with great presence of mind, firm in her resolutions, of an intrepid courage, and a great mistress in the art of disimulation. She inherited a large share of her brother's jealous and cruel temper, to which she would not hesitate to sacrifice her nearest relations, if they gave her the least umbrage.—To this jealousy therefore she resolved to sacrifice her nephew, as well knowing he had a better title to the crown than herself. She made use of the most solemn oaths to draw him out of the hands of his guardian, protesting that she had accepted of the throne with no other view than to preserve it for him. But Giaga, being well acquainted with her temper, was proof against all her oaths and fair speeches.—Zingha, finding this method ineffectual, pretended a desire of resigning the crown to her nephew; to which she said she had no other objection, than that she was afraid he was yet incapable of assuming the reins of government. She therefore desired an interview with him, though ever so short, that she might satisfy herself in this particular, and promised to detain him no longer than Giaga should think necessary. Giaga thought there could be no danger in consenting to a short interview; and therefore sent the unfortunate prince to her, attended by a magnificent retinue. The cruel queen no sooner got him in her power, than she murdered him with her own hand, and caused his body to be thrown into the Coanza, ridding herself, by that inhuman act, of a dangerous rival, as well as revenging herself on her brother, as she had sworn to do, for the murder of her son.

Zingha's next scheme was to rid herself of the Portugueses, who had established themselves in such a manner as to be almost entire masters of the country. They had built fortresses on every convenient spot that suited them, especially near her principal towns, which they could level with the ground with the greatest ease. They had engrossed all her commerce, were become very wealthy, and their numbers increased daily; so that they were dreaded not only by her subjects, but by all the neighbouring nations. As Zingha was of a martial temper, she did not long hesitate. She quickly made all necessary provisions, strengthened herself by alliances with the Giagas and other idolatrous nations, and even with the Dutch, and the king of Congo. With this combined force she attacked the Portuguese so suddenly and unexpectedly, that she gained some advantages over them, and the Dutch made themselves masters of San Paulo de Loanda, and soon after of some of the best provinces in the kingdom. This happened in the year 1641; and the Portuguese did not recover these places till the year 1648, when the Dutch were entirely driven out of Angola.

Zingha's successes proved still more short-lived. Her allies the Congoese were so completely overthrown, that they were forced to sue for peace; which the Portuguese did not grant till they had obtained a sufficient number of hostages, and obliged the Congoese to deliver up to them some considerable posts, upon which they immediately erected fortresses. Zingha's troops were now defeated in every battle; and these defeats followed one another so close, that she was soon abandoned, not only by her allies, but by her own troops. She was now constrained to abandon her dominions, and retire to some of the eastern deserts, whither the Portuguese did not think it worth while to follow her.

Zingha being reduced to such distress, the Portuguese, after giving her some time to ruminate on her situation, sent her proposals of peace, upon condition that she should become tributary to the crown of Portugal. This proposal she rejected with scorn; and let them know, that, however her dastardly subjects might submissively and shamefully behave towards them, their queen disdained subjection to any foreign power. On this haughty answer, the Portuguese, to mortify her still more, set up a king in her place.

The person they pitched upon was named Angola Oartii, or They set up Aara, who was of the royal family. Before he was a king, crowned, the Portuguese obliged him to turn Christian; and he was accordingly baptized by the name of John. The new king, however, soon died of grief, at seeing himself so hardly treated by his masters the Portuguese. They quickly set up another, named Philip, who bore the yoke with more patience, and lived to the year 1660.

In the mean time Zingha, exasperated almost to madness at seeing herself deprived of eleven of the best provinces in her dominions, and her authority in the remaining six greatly weakened, renounced the Christian religion, and embraced all the horrid and bloody customs of the Giagas, whom she outdid even in their own barbarity.—We have already hinted the barbarity of this nation in eating human flesh. In this Zingha not only joined them, but took pleasure in devouring the raw flesh of human victims, and drinking their blood while warm, both at her sacrifices and at her public meals.—She affected a martial and heroic spirit, together... Angola.

gether with an utter aversion to the male sex; but, according to the Portuguese, maintained a number of the strongest and loftiest youths, in whose embraces she gave a full scope to her inclinations, and managed matters with such secrecy that her intrigues could never be discovered. At the same time she ordered many of her own sex to be ripped up, when their incontinency was manifested by their pregnancy; and their bodies, with those of the infants, to be cast to wild beasts.

But what made her most admired, as well as dreaded, by her subjects, was a notion that she had by various stratagems inculcated upon them, of her being able to penetrate into the most secret thoughts. To keep up this apprehension, she ordered the bones of her deceased brother to be brought from the island where he was poisoned, locked up in a chest covered with coarse plates of silver, and laid on a fine carpet upon a pedestal. A number of finghillos or priests were ordered to offer sacrifices to these bones, and to keep lamps continually burning before them. To this place she herself frequently repaired, to assist at those rites, which, as she gave out, and everybody believed, engaged the spirit of the deceased to inform her of every thing that was done, said, or even thought, either in the kingdom or out of it.—To procure, however, as much real intelligence as possible, she kept vast numbers of spies all over the kingdom, who constantly gave her notice of what happened in their respective circles; and this she so cunningly improved to her own ends, that her subjects looked upon her as a kind of deity from whom nothing could be concealed.

By such means as these, Zingha gained such authority over the Giagas, that they were ready, at the very first indication of her will, to follow her through the most dreadful dangers, and to engage in the most desperate enterprises. She now made many strenuous and daring efforts to drive out the Portuguese; but though she had, in all probability, more valour and skill than her enemies, the fire-arms gave them such an advantage, that she was always defeated with great loss. Perceiving therefore the folly of attempts of this kind, she contented herself with making continual incursions into their country, carrying off or destroying every thing that fell in her way. Though she spared neither Europeans, nor blacks who were subjects of the mock-monarch she set up by the Portuguese, yet the case of the former was peculiarly dreadful when they happened to be taken prisoners. They were either roasted by a slow fire, or had their flesh cut off in pieces, and devoured before their faces, in the manner related by Mr Bruce of the Abyssinian oxen*. In this manner she infested the Portuguese territories for 28 years, scarce ever allowing them a moment's cessation of arms. Their mock kings were often obliged to shelter themselves from her fury in an inaccessible rock called Macpongo; and they themselves could never hope to enjoy their ill-gotten dominions with any kind of peace so long as this furious queen continued alive. They in vain exhausted all their politics either to reduce her by force, or to mollify her by presents and fair offers. The one she rejected with disdain, and always found means to baffle the other; nor would she hearken to any terms, unless they consented to resign all their conquests. The refusal of this demand was so commonly followed by some marks of her resentment, that it was with the utmost difficulty the Portuguese could prevail on any body to carry their proposals to her; and as for Zingha, she disdained to make any to them, except those of the hostile kind. The terror of her arms procured her a free passage wherever she directed her course; all the inhabitants of a province making no less haste to abandon, than she to invade it. Thus she continued to advance, till at length she was got so far as the small island of Dangii in the river Coanza. The Portuguese now found themselves under a necessity of raising an army of negroes, in order to drive her out of it. Accordingly they surrounded the island, and intrenched themselves along the banks on both sides of the river; but while they were busy at their work, Zingha attacked them with such advantage, that she killed and wounded several hundreds of the blacks, and some of the white men. Elated with this advantage, she was preparing for another attack; when she perceived, to her surprise, that the Portuguese had drawn their lines to close, and raised them to such a height, that they overlooked her whole camp, and could fire upon her naked soldiers as if they shot at a mark.—Thus great numbers of her men were cut off, particularly her chief officers.—The queen, now perceiving the danger of her situation, amused the Portuguese with proposals of an accommodation; and having obtained a truce for three days, crossed the river in the dead of the night, and led her forces to the province of Oacco. The next morning the Portuguese, seeing no human creature upon the island, began to apprehend some new stratagem; but, upon landing some of their troops, they perceived themselves over-reached, and deprived of the fairest opportunity they ever had of forcing her to surrender at discretion.

Zingha stood no longer in the province whither she had retired, than till she was assured that the Portuguese were retired from the Coanza; and then, crossing that river once more, marched directly towards the kingdom of Metamba, which had been invaded by some of the neighbouring princes. The speed with which she led her forces thither, and recruited her army with multitudes of Giagas, who were all emulous of fighting under her banner, quickly enabled her to recover some of her territories in that kingdom. Beginning now to think herself successful, she again attacked the Portuguese; but was defeated with great loss, so as fortune, to be obliged to send for fresh troops. To complete her misfortune, she received news that the Giaga Caffangi had taken the advantage of her absence, to enter the kingdom of Metamba with a numerous army, had carried off the greatest part of the inhabitants, destroyed all the fruits of the earth, plundered the towns of all that was valuable, and set fire to the rest, leaving that kingdom in a manner desolate. To add to all this, her troops, exasperated at the loss of their wives, children, and goods, which were carried to the farthest corner of Benguela, were all on the point of revolting.

Notwithstanding this terrible and complicated disaster, Zingha behaved with such resolution and address, that the Portuguese, who, according to character, had probably infligated the Giaga against her, were so much afraid of her joining with him in alliance against them, that they dispatched one Anthony Coglio, a learned priest and an excellent negotiator, with Don Don Gaspar Borgia an eminent officer, under pretence of negotiating a peace between them, first to the Giagas, and afterwards to the queen. They met with a very civil reception from the first, who told them that he was very willing to live at peace with that princess, and even to let her enjoy the kingdom of Metamba, though he was the rightful heir to it, provided she would lay down her arms. This answer encouraged the priest to try whether he could prevail on him to embrace the Christian religion; but this was declined by the Giagas in such strong terms, that the priest thought proper to desist, and set out for Zingha's camp.

Our ambassadors, at their first arrival, met with such a polite reception, as made them hope for success; but after she had heard their proposals, she assumed a haughty threatening tone; and told them, in the conclusion of her speech, "That it did not become her dignity to lay down her arms, till she had brought the war she had begun to an honourable conclusion: that as to the Giagas, whose feet she had embraced some years before, and who had furnished her with such a prodigious number of forces to fight in her defence, her honour and interest required that she should still keep them in her service, and under her protection; and lastly, that as to herself, she remembered, indeed, that she had formerly embraced Christianity; but that it was not now a proper season to propose her returning to it, and they ought to remember, that they themselves were the cause of her abandoning it."

Borgia, perceiving that she was not to be wrought upon by religious motives, shifted the topic; and told her, that she had gained honour enough in war, and that it was now high time to think of granting peace and tranquillity to the subjects of two such powerful kingdoms, and accept of the favour and friendship of the king of Portugal, which was offered her by his viceroy. To this the queen made answer, that she was perfectly well acquainted with the valour and strength of the Portuguese, and should esteem it an honour to be allied to that monarch; but that she thought it just that their respective claims to the dominions which she justly inherited from her ancestors, and of which she had unjustly deprived her, should first of all be decided, either by the sword, or by some equitable judges.

Borgia, vainly imagining that he had now obtained enough, set off immediately for Loanda San Paulo; but left the priest, on some pretence or other, to see whether, in the time of sickness, he could make any impression on the inflexible mind of Zingha, who now laboured under a lingering disease. Coglio, however, found all his arts to no purpose; and, upon the queen's recovery, he recommenced the war with more fury than ever.

For some time, hostilities were carried on with various success; Zingha being sometimes victorious, and sometimes defeated. In one attempt of the latter kind, before the fortress of Massangana, she not only lost a great number of men, but had her two sisters Cambi and Fungi taken prisoners, she herself escaping with the utmost difficulty. Exasperated by this loss, she led her troops into some of the best provinces of the Portuguese; and, abandoning them to the fury of the Giagas, reduced them to a mere wilderness. Still, however, she had the mortification to find her losses vastly greater than what she gained; and had now the additional misfortune of losing her sister Fungi, who was put to death by the Portuguese for treachery; and seeing her allies the Dutch totally expelled out of Angola.

Zingha being thus oppressed with a complication of misfortunes, and conscious of the crimes she had committed, began seriously to consider whether such a continued series of disasters was not owing to the displeasure of the God of the Christians. To this opinion she seemed to have inclined; and therefore began to treat with more lenity such Christians as fell into her hands, especially if they happened to be priests or monks. To these she now began to listen with some attention; and ordered them, under severe penalties, to be treated with all possible respect; yet without losing in the least that invincible hatred she had conceived against those who had stripped her of her dominions, or dropping her resolution never to make peace till she had recovered them.

The viceroy, Don Salvador Correa, who had driven out the Dutch, being apprised of the regard shown to the clergy by Queen Zingha, thought proper to send some capuchins to her, in hopes that they might now find her more tractable. But Zingha was still proof against their utmost art; and, when they taxed her with her apostacy, gave them the answer which such hypocrites deserved, namely, that she had been driven to it by the injustice of the Portuguese, themselves; and that if they would consent to restore what they had unjustly taken from her, she would not only return to the Christian religion, but encourage it to the utmost of her power.

The viceroy, being now afraid that Zingha might make an alliance against him with the king of Congo, first raised a powerful army; and then acquainted that monarch, that, if he designed to prevent the total ruin of his dominions, he must immediately make reparation for all the damage he had caused to the Portuguese by his alliance with the Dutch. The fame of the Portuguese valour so intimidated the king, that he submitted to a treaty almost on the viceroy's own terms; and as soon as this treaty was concluded, Don Ruy Pegado, an old experienced officer, was dispatched to Zingha, offering a firm and lasting alliance with her, provided she renounced the Giagan sect, and returned to the bosom of the church. To this embassy she returned the old answer, namely, that the Portuguese themselves had been the occasion of all that had happened; as they had not only stripped her of her hereditary dominions, but dared to proclaim one of her vassals king of Angola; but, provided these dominions were restored, she would immediately embrace Christianity.

All this time the furious Queen Zingha went on with her ravages, notwithstanding the viceroy kept playing her with letters for near three years. At last he had recourse to the execrable artifice of taking advantage of her remorse for her crimes with which Zingha was sometimes affected, in order to procure the peaceable enjoyment of his own ill-gotten conquests.

It is easy to see, that had this viceroy, or the priests he employed, really intended to convert Zingha to Christianity, they ought to have so far fettered her example as at least to abandon part of the countries of which they had robbed her. But, instead of this, they impiously made use of the sacred name of our Saviour in order to deter a poor savage African from recovering what justly belonged to her: A piece of conduct which it is doubtful. doubtful whether it was more antichristian, or mean in itself; especially if we consider that their antagonist was a woman, who fought against them under every possible disadvantage; and, by having recourse to this stratagem, they in effect confessed her to be invincible.

Queen Zingha, at last, came to incline so much to return to the Christian religion, that a general murmur ran through her army; to quiet which, she had recourse to many stratagems, too tedious here to enumerate particularly. The principal one was, to cause the fingillos or priests command her, in the presence of four of her officers, to return to Christianity; and this, as if they had received it as a revelation from the spirit of her deceased brother, who, according to their account, was damned to eternity. Five of the fingillos having acted a farce of this kind, the queen asked the officers who were present, their opinion of what they had heard and seen, and their advice how to ought to act. To this they replied, "that the matter depended wholly upon her will; that, let her act in it as she pleased, she would always find her subjects ready to approve of and conform to it, and think it most for their honour and advantage to follow her example."

When she thought, by artifices of this kind, that the minds of her subjects were sufficiently prepared for hearing her sentiments openly, Zingha drew up her army (in 1653), and putting herself at their head, with a majestic, yet seemingly joyful aspect, she let fly an arrow, with her usual strength and vigour, and then turning to them, "Who is there (says she) that is strong enough to stand against my arms, or to resist the force of this arm?" On this, they all fell a-clapping their hands, and cried out three times successively, "O glorious and mighty queen, none, none, none, will ever be able to conquer you."—Encouraged by their acclamations, Zingha now made a speech, in which she acquainted them with her renouncing the feet of the Giagas, and of her return to Christianity; giving at the same time liberty to those who chose to abandon her on this account to go where they would; and such was their attachment to her, that even in such a sudden and important change in her resolutions they expressed no uneasiness, but on the contrary applauded her to the highest degree.

The Portuguese, after having been harassed in a terrible manner for 28 years, and at last obliged basely to profane the name of their Saviour to procure a peace, began now freely to enjoy the rewards of their villany. A treaty was unanimously set on foot between the viceroy and Zingha; which, however, was not easily concluded. She demanded the release of her sister Cambi, whose Christian name was Donna Barbara; and the Portuguese demanded a ransom of 200 slaves, or an equivalent in money. This Zingha did not well relish; and, being pressed to compliance, threatened them with a more furious war than any they had yet experienced. Upon this the viceroy was obliged to have recourse to the usual method of leading priests to persuade her to comply through motives of religion. These detestable hypocrites effected their purpose, and the slaves were sent, as if Christianity required the delivering up innocent people to those who had no lawful authority over them: but not being able to conclude a lasting peace about the cession of the Angolic provinces, they were forced to conclude a short truce, and send back her

This princess was received by Zingha in a very affectionate manner; and, some time after, the queen, her mind being probably weakened through the infirmities of old age, not only was thoroughly reconciled to the Portuguese, but looked upon them as her best friends. She encouraged the Christian religion; had a church built in her capital; made several laws against Paganism; and, to encourage marriages, she herself wedded a handsome young fellow in the 75th year of her age.

The Portuguese now imagining they would at last gain their point, proposed to her the following terms, as the basis of a lasting treaty between the two nations.

1. "That they should yield to her, as a present, some of the countries of which they had already robbed her.

2. "That, in consideration of the said present, which should in no way be interpreted as an infatuation, the queen should pay yearly a certain acknowledgment to the king of Portugal, who should be at liberty to withdraw the said present whenever she failed of making the said acknowledgment.

3. "That a free commerce should be opened between those two states, as well for slaves, as for other merchandizes.

4. "That the queen should molest none of the lords that were feudatory to the Portuguese, whatever damages and ravages they might have committed during the late wars between them.

5. "That she should restore all the Portuguese slaves that had taken refuge in her dominions.

6. "That she should deliver up the Giaga Colanda, who had revolted from the Portuguese, upon condition that his crime should go unpunished."

The queen, having now a thorough view of the deep-rooted villany of those with whom she had to do, conceived such displeasure against the Portuguese, that she fell sick. During this sickness, father Anthony, her chief confident, and a creature of the viceroy, never left off soliciting her to make her peace with God, and to accept of the terms offered her by the Portuguese; but Zingha, though worn out with age and sickness, had still the good sense to perceive, that there was no connection between making her peace with God, and complying with such infamous terms; and therefore gave the following answer, which, under such circumstances, shows a magnanimity scarce equalled in any age or in any country.

1. "That as to her conversion, as it was neither owing to any desire of obtaining a peace, or other worldly motives, but the Divine Grace by which she was recalled, she was resolved to persevere in it to her last breath.

2. "That, as to her going over to the Giagan sect, she had in a great measure been forced to it by the Portuguese viceroy.

3. "That the king of Portugal would do a generous act in restoring some of her Angolic dominions; but it would be more so, were he to restore them all.

4. "That as to her paying homage to him, neither her mind nor heart were safe enough to consent to it; and that as she had refused the proposal while she lived among the Giagas, much more did she think herself above it, now she was a Christian queen, and owed neither tribute nor homage to any but to the Supreme Power, from..." from whom she had received both her being and her kingdom: That, nevertheless, if she could be convinced that there was any thing in her dominions that would be acceptable to his Portuguese majesty, she would voluntarily make him a present of it; and as to the rest of the articles, such was her desire of making a firm and lasting peace with them, that she should make no difficulty of consenting to them."

This answer was not altogether satisfactory to the viceroy; but the priest, finding it impossible to make any impression upon her mind, easily prevailed upon him to consent to the following terms.

1. "That the river Lucalla should be the boundary between the dominions of the Portuguese and of Queen Zingha.

2. "That neither side should thenceforth give any reception to the fugitive slaves of the other, but send them back without any delay, together with the prisoners which had been taken during the last war.

3. "That the queen should remain wholly free and exempt from all tribute and homage whatever, provided she agreed to the other articles."

These terms were at last signed by the queen and viceroy in the month of April 1657, and ratified by the king of Portugal in the month of November the same year.—The only difficulty the queen had concerning this treaty was with regard to the Giaga Colanda; and the manner in which she extricated herself from it, with her subsequent behaviour, cannot fail to give us an high idea of the mental abilities of our heroine.

This Giagan chief, weary of the Portuguese yoke, had retired from them, at the head of 1000 stout soldiers, and a much greater number of slaves, some leagues beyond the river Lucalla, and put himself under the queen's protection. This he readily granted, as he was very able to be servicable to her in case the perfidious conduct of the Portuguese should oblige her to renew the war. She could not therefore but look upon it as unjust and dishonourable, to deliver up a brave chief who had devoted himself to her service, and whom she had taken under her special protection, to a nation whose perfidy she was so well acquainted with. To save her honour, therefore, some time before the ratification of the treaty, she sent privately for the Giaga, and acquainted him with the demand of the Portuguese; telling him, at the same time, that though she doubted not of the viceroy's keeping his word, and forgiving his offence, yet she advised him to go out of her dominions, and settle himself and his men in some distant country from the Portuguese frontiers; but forbade him, on pain of her highest displeasure, to commit the least outrage or hostility within their dominions.

The Giaga thanked her majesty, and seemed to acquiesce with her advice, but did not follow it. On the contrary, he had no sooner reached his fortress, than he set himself about fortifying it in such a manner as looked rather like defiance than defence; and, having gathered a considerable army, soon spread a general terror around him. Of this the Portuguese failed not to complain to the queen; who immediately marched against him, surprised and defeated his army; and he himself being killed in the action, his head was cut off and sent to the Portuguese.

This was among the last memorable actions performed by this famous queen; who, now finding herself unfit for the fatigues of war, contented herself (in 1658), with dispatching an old experienced general against a neighbouring prince who had invaded her territories. He proved no less successful than herself, and quickly forced the aggressor to submit to her terms. She now gave herself up to study the best method of propagating Christianity among her subjects; and for this purpose sent a solemn embassy to Rome, to pay homage to the Pope in her name, and to request a fresh supply of missionaries. To this letter she received an answer from his Holiness in 1662; and it was read in the church, that same year, in the most public and solemn manner. The day appointed was the 15th of July; on which she repaired to the church at the head of a numerous retinue, and having the letter hanging about her neck in a purse made of cloth of gold. The concourse was so great, that the church could not contain one half of the people, so that none were admitted but persons of rank. The father having finished the mass, read the letter at the altar in the Portuguese language; and the secretary interpreted it in that of the country. The queen, who had stood all the while it was reading, went towards at receiving the altar, and on her knees received it from the father; and having kissed it, and sworn afresh upon the gospel to continue in obedience to the church of Rome, kissed the letter again, put it into the purse, and returned to the palace amidst the shouts and acclamations of many thousands of her subjects. On that day she gave a magnificent treat to the Portuguese resident, and to all her court, in two great porticos, and herself vouchsafed to eat after the European manner; that is, sitting on a stately elbow chair, with a high table before her, covered with the finest linen, and with dishes, plates, knives, and forks, all of silver gilt. She bestowed some largesses upon her chief officers, released a good number of slaves, and at night appeared at the head of her ladies of honour, both she and they drest in the Amazonian manner. They performed a kind of combat, in which the queen, tho' upwards of 80 years of age, behaved with as great vigour and activity as any woman of 50 could have done.

Her life, however, was not lengthened in proportion to her vigour and activity: for in the month of September she was seized with an inflammation in her throat; which, in December, having seized her breast and lungs, she expired on the 17th of that month, and was succeeded by her sister Barbara.

The deceased queen was buried with extraordinary pomp; and, out of regard to her, Barbara was inaugurated a second and third time, with the greatest pomp, and the most joyful acclamations.—She was a very zealous Christian, but far short of her sister's abilities, and had the misfortune of being in the decline of life, lame, and almost blind. Besides this, she had been married to a proud, ill-natured husband; who had dared, even in the late queen's time, to treat her not only with contempt, but with brutish cruelty; though to her he owed all his fortune and advancement, being himself no more than the son of a slave.

This ungrateful wretch, whose name was Mona Zingha, soon after his marriage with the princess Barbara, used her with such cruelty, that she was obliged to take refuge in the palace, from whence he had the infatuation immediately to fetch her. This so exasperated queen Zingha. Zingha, that she had well nigh ordered him to be cut in pieces before her face; but pardoned him at the request of father Anthony, who probably knew he was privy to some religious secrets which he might, in a case of such emergency, have disclosed. On Barbara's accession to the throne, however, he not only redoubled his cruelty to her, in hopes of getting the management of affairs entirely into his own hands, but invented the most hellish accusations against Anthony himself, with a design to extirpate both him and his religion. He gave out that the late queen had been poisoned by some favourite European dishes, with which brother Ignatio used to regale her during her last illness; and attributed his wife's lameness and blindness to some sorceries or charms used by the convent against her. He had even persuaded, or rather forced, his queen to consent that some of the finghillos or priests should be brought to countercharm her ill-health.

Father Anthony, far from being intimidated at the accusations brought against him, repaired immediately to the palace; where he boldly reprimanded the queen for giving ear to these jugglers, threatening at the same time to leave her dominions, and carry off with him all the crosses, and other religious utensils, from which alone they could have any benefit. The queen returned a very submissive answer; and promised to deliver up the counter-charms which she at that time had upon her, before sunset; which she accordingly did, and sent them to the convent by the hands of her secretary. This so exasperated her husband, and all the Giagan sect, that they resolved upon the destruction of all the priests and Europeans, and even the queen herself. This, however, was found improper to be attempted; and Mona Zingha was so much chagrined at his disappointment, that he retired to his own estate; giving out, that he designed to meddle no more with state-affairs; but, in reality, to concert measures for engrossing the sovereignty to himself, and to deprive his wife of her life and crown.

To accomplish his wicked purpose, he sent a messenger to her, desiring her to repair to his house, where he had something of importance to communicate; but the declining the invitation by the advice of father Anthony, he found himself disappointed, and begged leave to retire to a neighbouring province, which was under his government; but here he was again disappointed, and forbid to stir out of the province of Metamba. The queen was, however, guilty of an error not long after, in sending Mona Zingha at the head of an army to quell a revolt on the frontiers. On his returning victorious, he thought himself strong enough to revive the ancient Giagan rites, and therefore ordered 100 slaves to be sacrificed to the manes of the deceased queen. Though the queen was immediately apprised of his intention, and dispatched a messenger expressly commanding him to desist; yet Mona, by distributing some presents, particularly some European wines, among the counsellors, effected his purpose with impunity. He did not forget to send some of this wine to father Antony; but, to prevent suspicion, pretended him only with a small quantity, to be used, as he said, at the mas; adding, that, if it proved agreeable, he would supply him with a larger quantity. The unsuspecting priest drank about two glasses of it; and in about a quarter of an hour was seized with violent convulsions in his bowels, and other symptoms of being poisoned. By proper assistance, however, he recovered; yet so far was he disabled by this dose, that he was obliged to abandon his mission.

The queen's infirmities in the mean time daily increasing, Mona Zingha was soon delivered from all further opposition on her part, by her death, which happened on the 24th of March, 1666. Upon this, Mona Zingha made all possible haste to get himself elected king; and immediately renounced the Christian religion, raising a persecution at the same time against its professors. He even wrote to the Portuguese viceroy, acquainting him with his having renounced Christianity, which he had only embraced out of complaisance to his queen, and with his design to revive the Giagan rites.

To show that he meant to be as good as his word, he ordered all the children under six years of age, that could be found, to be sacrificed in honour of their infernal deities. He also recalled the finghillos, and heaped many favours upon them; so that they became entirely devoted to his purposes. He also caused many of his subjects to be privately poisoned; and then gave out, that their unaccountable deaths were owing to their having abandoned the religion of their ancestors, and embraced Christianity; which he styled the religion of a parcel of famished strangers, who, thro' their extreme misery, had been forced to leave their native country, and seek for a livelihood in the richest provinces of Africa.

By these and such like stratagems he almost entirely extirpated Christianity, and any appearances of civilization which had been introduced among his subjects. His career, however, was stopped by Don John the prince's Barbara's first husband, from whom she had been divorced on account of his having another wife. He soon compelled the usurper to fly into an island in the Coanza; but not having the precaution to reduce him entirely, Mona Zingha found means to retrieve his affairs, and at last defeated and killed Don John himself, by which he became master of the throne without any further opposition. He was no sooner re-established, than he began to pursue his butcheries with more fury than ever; when, on a sudden, Don Francisco, the son of Don John, appeared at the head of an army in opposition to the usurper; and in the first engagement Mona Zingha being defeated and killed, Don Francisco became sole master of the empire.

Here we are obliged to conclude our history; no further accounts, which can be depended upon, having ever appeared; neither is it known whether this prince kept to the terms of the alliance made by Queen Zingha with the Portuguese or not.—Certain it is, however, that the Portuguese have preserved their conquests, and for some time allowed the natives of these provinces which are under their power to choose a king for themselves, or rather they chose him for them, as we have already noticed. These kings enjoyed only a mere shadow of royalty; their whole grandeur consisting in being allowed to breed peacocks, and adorn themselves with their feathers, which was forbidden to their subjects under pain of perpetual slavery.—The last of these kings was named Ngola Sedefio, who, disliking an empty name of royalty, revolted from the Portuguese, and carried on a long war with them; but being at last defeated and killed, his head was cut off, salted, and sent to Lisbon in pickle. After this the Portugese Angola.

The Portuguese seem not to have thought it safe to trust their Angolic subjects even with the name of a king of their own, but have vested the power entirely in their viceroy; but as to the extent of his dominions, and how matters stand between him and that race of Angolic princes who have preserved their liberty, we are entirely in the dark.

Being so much in the dark as to these particulars, it is impossible we can say anything with regard to the division of the present kingdom, or the extent and number of its provinces. When in its greatest splendor, the kingdom of Angola contained the following provinces: Chellama, Sumbi, Benguela, Rimbá, Sieta, High and Low Bembea, Temba, Oacco, Cabezzo, Lubolo, Loanda, Bengo, Danda, Mofiche, Higher and Lower Ilamba, Orají, and Embacca. The provinces conquered by the Portuguese during the wars abovementioned were, Danda, Mofiche, Bengo, the higher and lower Ilamba, Orají, Embacca, Benguela, Sieta, Cabezzo, Lubolo, and Oacco. Of all these we have given a particular description under their respective names.

The principal rivers in this kingdom are those already mentioned, viz. the Danda and Coanza. The Coanza is large, deep, and rapid. It empties itself into the Atlantic ocean about Latitude 9° 20' S. twelve leagues south of Loanda the capital of the kingdom. It is navigable for 150 miles, and abounds with variety of fish. It forms several islands, has some cataracts, and one in particular which bears its name. As for its source, and the length of ground it crosses from east to west before it comes to the Portuguese settlement, it is absolutely unknown, as well as the countries thro' which it runs. Its mouth, which runs between the capes Palmerino and Legó, is above a league wide; the northern shore is the deepest, and along which the vessels sail. The fall of this river into the ocean is so rapid, that the sea appears quite muddy for two or three leagues below it. Its mouth is not easily perceived from the open sea, by reason of an island quite covered with high trees which lies just before it. The two principal islands formed by this river are called Massan-dor and Motchiamia. The one is six leagues long, and about two miles broad: it is very fertile in maize, millet, and some other grains, which are reaped at three different seasons of the year. It produces likewise vast quantities of manioc, a root, of which they make a coarse kind of meal, which serves instead of bread. Here also grow great numbers of palm and other fruit trees of various kinds. The island of Motchiamia is four or five miles long, and one in breadth, mostly plain, and producing variety of roots and herbs. It likewise abounds in cattle; and there were formerly five or six Portuguese families settled upon it, who drove a considerable trade in these commodities, and likewise in slaves.

Concerning the river Danda we know little or nothing: only, that though its mouth is not above 70 or 80 miles distant from that of the Coanza, yet their distance grows considerably wider as you penetrate further into the inlands, as to be much above twice if not thrice that space; though how much, is not exactly known.

As for cities, there are none in this kingdom, except what belong to the Portuguese; and even of these we know little or nothing. Queen Zingha indeed founded a city in the kingdom of Metamba, of which a description is given under that article. The manner, religion, and dress, &c. of the inhabitants, being a mix of those of the Congoese and Giagas, fall to be mentioned under these two articles.

Angola Pea, the name of a shrub much cultivated in the West Indies, whither it was brought from Africa, of which it is a native. It grows to the height of four feet, lives four years, and is useful throughout its whole duration. It bears husks, which contain five or six grains of a species of a very wholesome and very nourishing pea. Every part belonging to this shrub is remarkable for some particular virtue. Its blossom is good for a cough; its leaves, when boiled, are applied to wounds; and of the ashes of this plant is made a lixivium, which cleanses ulcers, and dissipates external inflammations of the skin. It flourishes equally in lands naturally barren, and in those which have been exhausted. For this reason, the best managers amongst the colonists never fail to sow it on all those parts of their estates, which in other hands would remain uncultivated.