fast of the Christian church, in memory of the sufferings and death of Jesus Christ. It is observed on the Friday in holy or passion week; and it is called, by way of eminence, good, because of the blest effects of our Saviour's sufferings, which were a propitiatory or expiating sacrifice for the sins of the world. The commemoration of our Saviour's sufferings has been kept from the very first ages of Christianity, and was always observed as a day of the strictest fasting and humiliation. Among the Saxons it was called Long-Friday; but for what reason, except on account of the long fastings and offices then used, is uncertain. On Good Friday the pope sits on a plain form; and, after service is ended, when the cardinals wait on him back to his chamber, they are obliged to keep a deep silence, as a testimony of their sorrow. In the night of Good-Friday, the Greeks perform the obsequies of our Saviour round a great crucifix, laid on a bed of state, adorned with flowers; these the bishops distribute among the assistants when the office is ended. The Armenians, on this day, set open a holy sepulchre, in imitation of that of mount Calvary.

Good-Hope, or Cape of Good-Hope, a promontory of Africa, where the Dutch have built a good town and fort. It is situated in the country of the Hottentots; for an account of whom, and of the country at large, with its first discovery, see the article Hottentots.

The Cape of Good-Hope has been generally esteemed the most southerly point of Africa, though it is not truly so. In Phillip's Voyage to Botany Bay *, we are told, that the land which projects farthest to the south is a point to the east of it, called by the English Cape Lagallus; a name corrupted from the original Portuguese das Agulhas, which, as well as the French appellation des Aguilles, is descriptive of its form, and would rightly be translated Needle Cape.

On approaching the Cape, a very remarkable eminence may in clear weather be discovered at a considerable distance; and is called the Table-mountain from its appearance, as it terminates in a flat horizontal surface, from which the face of the rock descends almost perpendicularly. In the mild or summer season, which commences in September, and continues till March, the Table Land or Mountain, is sometimes suddenly capped with a white cloud, by some called the spreading of the Table-cloth. When this cloud seems to roll down the steep face of the mountain, it is a sure indication of an approaching gale of wind from the southeast; which generally blows with great violence, and some- sometimes continues a day or more, but in common is of short duration. On the first appearance of this cloud, the ships in Table Bay begin to prepare for it, by striking yards and top-masts, and making everything as snug as possible.—A little to the westward of the Table Land, divided by a small valley, stands on the right hand side of Table Bay a round hill, called the Sugar Loaf; and by many the Lion's Head, as there is a continuance from it contiguous to the sea, called the Lion's Rump; and when you take a general view of the whole, it very much resembles that animal with his head erect. The Sugar Loaf or Lion's Head, and the Lion's Rump, have each a flag-staff on them, by which the approach of ships is made known to the governor, particularising their number, nation, and the quarter from which they come. To the eastward, separated by a small chasm from the Table Land, stands Charles's Mount, well known by the appellation of the Devil's Tower, or Devil's Head; and so called from the violent gusts of wind supposed to issue from it when it partakes of the cap that covers the Table Land, though these gusts are nothing more than a degree of force the wind acquires in coming through the chasm. When this phenomenon appears in the morning, which is by no means so frequent as in the evening, the sailors have a saying, as the Devil's Tower is almost contiguous to the Table Land, that the old gentleman is going to breakfast; if in the middle of the day, that he is going to dinner; and if in the evening, that the cloth is spread for supper. Table-mountain rises about 3567 feet above the level of the sea; the Devil's Tower, about 3368; and the Lion's Head, 2764. In the neighbourhood of the latter lies Constanza, a district consisting of two farms, wherein the famous wines of that name are produced.

The above described high lands form a kind of amphitheatre about the Table-valley, where the Cape-town stands. This is situated at the bottom of the middle height, or Table-mountain; and almost in the centre of the Table Bay, so called from that mountain.—This bay, it is observed in Phillip's Voyage, "cannot properly be called a port, being by no means a station of security; it is exposed to all the violence of the winds which set into it from the sea; and is far from sufficiently secured from those which blow from the land. The gusts which descend from the summit of Table-mountain are sufficient to force ships from their anchors, and even violently to annoy persons on the shore, by detroying any tents or other temporary edifices which may be erected, and raising clouds of fine dust, which produce very troublesome effects. A gale of this kind, from the south-east, blew for three days successively when Captain Cook lay here in his first voyage; at which time, he informs us, the Resolution was the only ship in the harbour that had not dragged her anchors. The storms from the sea are still more formidable; so much so, that ships have frequently been driven by them from their anchorage, and wrecked at the head of the Bay. But these accidents happen chiefly in the quaiet season, or winter months, from May 14. to the same day of August; during which time few ships venture to anchor here. Our fleet arriving later, lay perfectly unmolested as long as it was necessary for it to remain in this station.

False Bay, on the south-east side of the Cape, is more secure than Table Bay during the prevalence of the north-west winds, but still less so in strong gales from the south-east. It is, however, less frequented, being 24 miles of very heavy road distant from Cape Town, whence almost all necessaries must be procured. The most sheltered part of False Bay is a recess on the west side, called Simon's Bay."

The latest and most particular as well as apparently the most just account of the Cape Town, concerning which voyagers have differed very much from one another in their representations, is that given by Mr White in his Journal of a Voyage to New South Wales. From the shipping, he observes, the town appears pleasantly situated, but at the same time small; a deception that arises from its being built in a valley with such stupendous mountains directly behind it. On landing, however, you are surprised, and agreeably disappointed, to find it not only extensive, but well built, and in a good style; the streets spacious, and intersecting each other at right angles with great precision. This exactness in the formation of the streets, when viewed from the Table Land, is observed to be very great. The houses in general are built of stone, cemented together with a glutinous kind of earth which serves as mortar, and afterwards neatly plastered and whitewashed with lime. As to their height they do not in common exceed two stories, on account of the violence of the wind, which at some seasons of the year blows with great strength and fury. For the same reason thatch has been usually preferred to tiles or shingles; but the bad effects that have proceeded from this mode when fires happen, has induced the inhabitants in all their new buildings to give the preference to slates and tiles. The lower parts of the houses, according to the custom of the Dutch nation, are not only uncommonly neat and clean in appearance, but they are really so; and the furniture is rather rich than elegant. But this is by no means the case with the bedrooms or upper apartments; which are very barely and ill furnished. The streets are rough, uneven, and unpaved. But many of the houses have a space flagged before the door; and others have trees planted before them, which form a pleasant shade, and give an agreeable air to the streets.

The only landing-place is at the east end of the town, where there is a wooden quay running some paces into the sea, with several cranes on it for the convenience of loading and unloading the vessels that come along side. To this place excellent water is conveyed by pipes, which makes the watering of ships both easy and expeditious. Close to the quay, on the left hand, stands the castle and principal fortress; a strong extensive work, having excellent accommodations for the troops, and for many of the civil officers belonging to the company. Within the gates, the company have their principal stores; which are spacious as well as convenient. This fort covers and defends the east part of the town and harbour, as Amsterdam fort does the west part. The latter, which has been built since commodore Johnstone's expedition, and wherein both French and Dutch judgment have been united to render it effectual and strong, is admirably planned and calculated to annoy and harass ships coming into the bay. Some smaller detached fortifications extend along the coast, both to the east and west, and make landing, which was not the case before the late war, hazardous and difficult. In a word, Cape Town is at this time fortified with strength, regularity, and judgment.

The governor's house is delightfully situated, nearly in the centre of an extensive garden, the property of the Dutch East India company, usefully planted, and at the same time elegantly laid out. The governor's family make what use they please of the produce of the garden, which is various and abundant; but the original intention of the company in appropriating so extensive a piece of ground to this purpose was, that their hospital, which is generally pretty full when their ships arrive after long voyages, may be well supplied with fruits and vegetables, and likewise that their ships may receive a similar supply. This garden is as public as St James's park; and for its handsome, pleasant, and well-shaded walks, is much frequented by persons of every description, but particularly by the fashionable and gay. At the upper end of the principal walk is a small space walled in for the purpose of confining some large ostriches and a few deer; and a little to the right of this is a small menagerie, in which the company have half a dozen wild animals and about the same number of curious birds.

There are two churches in the town; one large, plain, and unadorned, for the Calvinists, the prevailing sect; and a smaller one for the Lutherans. The hospital, which is large and extensive, is situated at the upper end of the town, close to the company's garden; where the convalescents reap the benefit of a wholesome pure air, perfumed with the exhalations of a great variety of rich fruit trees, aromatic shrubs, and odorous plants and flowers; and likewise have the use of every production of it.

Besides their hospital, the Dutch East India company have several other public buildings, which tend to improve the appearance of the town. The two principal of these are, the stables and a house for their slaves. The former is a handsome range of buildings, capable of containing an incredible number of horses. Those they have at the Cape are small, spirited, and full of life. The latter is a building of considerable extent, where the slaves, both male and female, have separate apartments, in a very comfortable style, to reside in after the fatigues and toil of the day; and there are several officers placed over them, who have commodious apartments, and treat them humanely.

The inhabitants of the Cape, though in their persons large, stout, and athletic, have not all that phlegm about them which is the characteristic of Dutchmen in general. The physical influence of climate may in some degree account for this; for it is well known that in all southern latitudes the temper and disposition of the people are more gay, and that they are more inclined to luxury and amusements of every kind, than the inhabitants of the northern hemisphere. The ladies are lively, good-natured, and familiar; and from a peculiar gay turn, they admit of liberties that would be thought reprehensible in England, though perhaps they as seldom overlap the bounds of virtue as the women of other countries.

The heavy draft work about the Cape is mostly performed by oxen; which are here brought to an uncommon degree of usefulness and docility. It is not uncommon to see 14, 16, and sometimes 18, in one of their teams; when the roads are heavy, they sometimes, though rarely, yoke 20; all which the Hottentots, Malays, and Cape slaves, have in the most perfect subjection and obedience. One of these fellows places himself on the fore part of the waggon, or, when loaded, on the top of the load, and with a tremendous long whip, which from its size he is obliged to hold in both his hands, manages these creatures with inexplicable address. When he finds expedition needful, he can make them keep whatever pace he chooses, either trot or gallop (a gait performed or kept up with difficulty by European oxen), and that with as much ease as if he was driving horses. They likewise manage horses with the same dexterity; and to see one of them driving three, four, five, and sometimes six pair, in hand, with one of these long whips, would make the most complete master of the whip in England cut a delightful figure. Carriages are not very numerous at the Cape, as the inhabitants in general travel in covered waggons, which better suit the roughness of the country. The governor and some few of the principal people keep coaches, which are a good deal in the English style, and always drawn by six horses.

Good Manners. See MANNERS.