Under this title, in the Encyclopaedia, we have given directions for soldering silver, brass, and iron; but there are other metals which must sometimes be soldered; and the following account of different solders, taken from the Philosophical Magazine, may be useful to many of our readers.

"When lead, tin, and bismuth, are mixed in a certain proportion, they produce a metal exceedingly fusible, which is known by the name of soft solder; but which, from its singular properties, may be applied with advantage to many other useful purposes. Newton, and after him Kraft and Muffenbrock, observed, that five parts of bismuth, three of tin, and two of lead, allowed five parts of bismuth, four of tin, and one part of lead, melted with a heat of 220 degrees of Fahrenheit; and they found that various mixtures of this kind were fusible by a heat not much greater than that of boiling water. At a later period, V. Rose, a German naturalist, discovered, that a mixture of four parts of bismuth, two of tin, and two of lead, as Kunkel recommended for soldering tin; and D'Arcey, among the French, that a mixture of eight parts of bismuth, three of tin, and five of lead; or eight of bismuth, four of tin, and four of lead; or eight of bismuth, two of tin; and six of lead; also sixteen of bismuth, seven of tin, and nine of lead—all melted, or at least became soft, in boiling water.

According to the experiments made by Professor Genelin, reflecting the fusion of these three metals, a mixture, consisting of two parts of bismuth, one part of tin, and one part of lead, which is the same as Rose proposed, gave a metal that was fused in boiling water. A mixture of six or more parts of bismuth, six of tin, and three of lead, or one part of bismuth, two parts of tin, and two of lead, gave, according to Klein, the solder used by the tin button-makers. The same workmen use also for soldering, according to Klein, a mixture of four parts of bismuth, three parts of tin, and five parts of lead. Among the many soft solders employed by the tin-men, a mixture of one part of bismuth, two parts of tin, and one part of lead, is, according to Klein, very much employed. Reflecting this kind of solder, the experiments of Professor Genelin give the following result: One part of bismuth, two parts of tin, and one part of lead, melt in boiling water. According to Klein, the tin-men employ for soldering a mixture of one part of bismuth, twenty-four parts of tin, and four parts of lead. Eight parts of bismuth, three of tin, and five of lead, gave a metal exceedingly like tin in its colour and brightness, but very brittle; in water beginning to boil, it became not only soft, but was completely fused. This imitation, however, may be better accomplished by the mixture of Professor Lichtenberg, which consists of five parts of bismuth, three Soudan, literally signifies the country of the negroes; but it is likewise used as one of the names of an African kingdom, otherwise called Dar-Fur. We know not that this kingdom has been visited by any European besides Mr Browne, who places it between the 11th and 16th degrees of north latitude, and between the 26th and 30th degrees of east longitude. These numbers are not exact: it does not reach so far east as the 30th degree, nor so far north as the 16th; but on his map minutes are not marked. On the north, it is bounded by a desert which separates it from Egypt; on the east, by Kordofan, which is now subject to Soudan, and lies between it and Senaar; and on the south and east, by countries of which the names are hardly known. Mr Browne was induced to visit Soudan in hopes of being able to trace the Bahr-el-abiad, or true Nile, to its source; but he was disappointed; for that river rises in mountains considerably farther south than the limits of this kingdom; and the Sultan, a cruel and capricious tyrant, detained him a prisoner at large almost three years.

Soudan, or Dar-Fur, abounds with towns or villages, ill built, of clay, and none of them very large. Of these it is not worth while to give an account. Its seasons are divided into rainy and dry. The perennial rains, which fall in Dar-Fur from the middle of June till the middle of September in greater or less quantity, but generally both frequent and violent, suddenly invest the face of the country, till then dry and sterile, with a delightful verdure. Except where the rocky nature of the soil absolutely impedes vegetation, wood is found in great quantity; nor are the natives affiduous completely to clear the ground, even where it is designed for the cultivation of grain. As soon as the rains begin, the proprietor, and all the affluents that he can collect, go out to the field; and having made holes at about two feet distance from each other, with a kind of hoe, over all the ground he occupies, the dokn, a kind of millet, is thrown into them, and covered with the foot, for their husbandry requires not many instruments. The time for sowing the wheat is nearly the same. The dokn remains scarcely two months before it is ripe; the wheat about three.

The animals in Soudan, both wild and tame, are the same as in other parts of Africa in the same latitude. Though the Furians breed horses, and purchase very fine ones in Dongola, and from the Arabs to the east of the Nile, the ass is more used for riding; and an Egyptian ass (for the asses of Dar-Fur are diminutive and indolent like those of Britain) fetches from the value of one to that of three slaves. The villages of this country, like those of Abyssinia, are infested with hyenas; and in the unfrequented parts of the country are the elephant, the rhinoceros, the lion, the leopard, and all the other quadrupeds of Africa. The Arabs often eat the flesh of the lion and the leopard; and sometimes they completely tame those animals, as to carry them loose into the market place. Our author tamed two lions, of which one acquired most of the habits of a dog. He fattened himself twice a week with the offal of the butchers, and then commonly slept for several hours successively. When food was given them, they both grew ferocious towards each other, and towards any one who approached them. Except at that time, though both were males, he never saw them disagree, nor shew any sign of ferocity towards the human race. Even lambs palled them unmolested.

Among the birds, the vultur percnopterus, or white-headed vulture, is most worthy of notice. It is of surprising strength, and is said by the natives to be very long-lived, fed fides penes autore. "I have lodged (says Mr Browne) a complete charge of large shot, at about 50 yards distance, in the body of this bird: it seemed to have no effect on him, as he flew to a considerable distance, and continued walking afterwards. I then discharged the second barrel, which was loaded with ball: this broke his wing; but on my advancing to seize him, he fought with great fury with the other. There are many thousands of them in the inhabited district. They divide the field with the hyena: what carrion the latter leaves at night, the former come in crowds to feed on in the day. Near the extremity of each wing is a horny substance, not unlike the spur of an old cock. It is strong and sharp, and a formidable instrument of attack. Some fluid exudes from this bird that smells like musk; but from what part of him I am uncertain." The serpents found in Soudan are the same as in Egypt; but the natives have not the art of charming them, like the Egyptians. The locust of Arabia is very common, and is frequently roasted and eaten, particularly by the slaves.

In Dar-Fur there seems to be a scarcity of metals; but in its neighbourhood to the south and west all kinds are to be found. The copper brought by the merchants from the territories of certain idolatrous tribes bordering on Fur, is of the finest quality, in colour resembling that of China, and appears to contain a portion of zinc, being of the same pale hue. Iron is found in abundance; but they have not yet learned the art of converting it into steel. Silver, lead, and tin, our author never heard mentioned in Soudan, but as coming from Egypt; but of gold, in the countries to the east and west, the supply is abundant. Alabaster, and various kinds of marble, are found within the limits of Fur, as is fossil salt within a certain district; and there is a sufficient supply of nitre, of which, however, no use is made.

The restraint under which Mr. Browne was kept in this inhospitable country, prevented him from making a full catalogue of its vegetable productions. Of the trees which shade our forests or adorn our gardens in Europe, very few exist in Dar-Fur. The characteristic marks of those species which most abound there, are their sharp thorns, and the solid and unperishable quality of their substance. They seem to be much the same as those which Bruce found in Abyssinia. There is a small tree called *canae*, to the fruit of which they have given the name of grapes. It bears leaves of light green hue; and the fruit, which is of a purple colour, is attached, not in bunches, but singly to the smaller branches, and interspersed among the leaves. The internal structure of the fruit is not very unlike the grape, which it also resembles in size; but the pulp is of a red hue, and the taste is strongly astringent. The watermelon (*cucumis citrullus*) grows wild over almost all the cultivable lands, and ripens as the corn is removed. In this state it does not attain a large size. The inside is of a pale hue, and has little flavour. As it ripens, the canes, stalks, &c., are turned to feed on it, and it is said to fatten them. The seeds, as they grow blackish, are collected to make a kind of tea, *kiran*. Those plants of the melon which receive artificial culture grow to a large size, and are of exquisite flavour. Tobacco is produced in abundance; and our author speaks of cochineal as found in Dar-Fur, or some of the neighbouring countries.

The harvest is conducted in a very simple manner. The women and slaves of the proprietor are employed to break off the ears with their hands, leaving the straw standing, which is afterwards applied to buildings and various other useful purposes. They then accumulate them in baskets, and carry them away on their heads. When threshed, which is awkwardly and incompletely performed, they expose the grain to the sun till it become quite dry; after this a hole in the earth is prepared, the bottom and sides of which are covered with chaff to exclude the vermin. This cavity or magazine is filled with grain, which is then covered with chaff, and afterwards with earth. In this way the maize is preserved tolerably well. In using it for food, they grind it, and boil it in the form of polenta, which is eaten either with flesh or four milk, or still more frequently with a sauce made of dried meat pounded in a mortar, and boiled with onions, &c. The Furians use little butter; with the Egyptians and Arabs it is an article in great request. There is also another sauce which the poorer people use and highly relish; it is composed of an herb called *canae* or *canae*, of a taste in part acetic and in part bitter, and generally disagreeable to strangers.

The magistracy of one, which seems tacitly, if it be not expressly, favoured by the dispensation of Mohammed, as in most other countries professing that religion, prevails in Dar-Fur. The monarch indeed can do nothing contrary to the Koran, but he may do more than the laws established thereon will authorize; and as there is no council to control or even to affix him, his power may well be termed despotic. He speaks in public of the soil and its productions as his personal property, and of the people as little else than his slaves.

His power in the provinces is delegated to officers, who possess an authority equally arbitrary. In those districts, which have always, or for a long time, formed an integral part of the empire, these officers are generally called *Meleks*. In such as have been lately conquered, or, perhaps more properly, have been annexed to the dominion of the Sultan under certain stipulations, the chief is suffered to retain the title of Sultan, yet is tributary to and receives his appointment from the Sultan of Fur.

Despotic and arbitrary as he is, the Sultan here does not seem wholly inattentive to that important object, agriculture. Nevertheless, it may be deemed rather a blind compliance with ancient custom, than individual public spirit, in which has originated a practice adopted by him, in itself sufficiently laudable, since other of his regulations by no means conduce to the same end.

At the beginning of the *Harfs*, or wet season, which is also the moment for sowing the corn, the king goes out with his Meleks and the rest of his train; and while the people are employed in turning up the ground and sowing the seed, he also makes several holes with his own hand. The same custom, it is said, obtains in Bornou and other countries in this part of Africa. It calls to the mind a practice of the Egyptian kings mentioned by Herodotus.

The population of Dar-Fur is not large. An army of 2000 men was spoken of, when Mr. Browne was in the country, as a great one; and he does not think that the number of souls within the empire can much exceed 200,000. The troops of this country are not famed for skill, courage, or perseverance. In their campaigns, much reliance is placed on the Arabs who accompany them, and who are properly tributaries rather than subjects of the Sultan. One energy of barbarism they indeed possess in common with other savages, that of being able to endure hunger and thirst; but in this particular they have no advantage over their neighbours. In their persons the Furians are not remarkable for cleanliness. Though observing as Mahommedans all the superstitious formalities of prayer, their hair is rarely combed, or their bodies completely washed. The hair of the pubes and axillae it is usual to exterminate; but they know not the use of soap; so that with them polishing the skin with unguents holds the place of perfect ablutions and real purity. A kind of farinaceous paste is however prepared, which being applied with butter to the skin, and rubbed continually till it become dry, not only improves its appearance, but removes from it accidental sores, and still more the effect of continued transpiration, which, as there are no baths in the country, is a consideration of some importance. The female slaves are dexterous in the application of it; and to undergo this operation is one of the refinements of African femininity.

Nothing resembling current coin is found in Soudan, unless it be certain small tin rings, the value of which is in some degree arbitrary. The Austrian dollars, and other silver coins brought from Egypt, are all sold as ornaments for the women.

The disposition of the Furians is cheerful; and that gravity and reserve which the precepts of Mahommedism inspire, and the practice of the greater number of its professors countenances, and even requires, seems by no means as yet to lie easy on them. A government perfectly despotic, and not ill administered, as far as relates to the manners of the people, yet forms no adequate restraint to their violent passions. Prone to intemperance, but unprovided with materials or ingenuity to prepare any other fermented liquor than buza, with this alone their convivial excesses are committed. But though the Sultan published an ordinance (March 1795), forbidding the use of that liquor under pain of death, the plurality, though less publicly than before, still indulge themselves in it. A company often sits from sunrise to sun set, drinking and conversing, till a single gallon sometimes carries off near two gallons of that liquor. The buza has, however, a diuretic and diaphoretic tendency, which precludes any danger from these excesses. In this country dancing is practised by the men as well as the women, and they often dance promiscuously.

The vices of thieving, lying, and cheating in bargains, with all others nearly or remotely allied to them, as often happen among a people under the same circumstances, are here almost universal. No property, whether considerable or trifling, is safe out of the sight of the owner, nor indeed scarcely in it, unless he be stronger than the thief. In buying and selling, the parent glories in deceiving the son, and the son the parent; and God and the Prophet are hourly invoked, to give colour to the most palpable frauds and falsehoods.

The privilege of polygamy, which, as is well known, belongs to their religion, the people of Soudan push to the extreme. By their law, they are allowed four free women, and as many slaves as they can maintain; but the Furians take both free women and slaves without limitation. The Sultan has more than a hundred free women, and many of the Meleks have from twenty to thirty. In their indulgence with women, they pay little regard to restraint or decency. The form of the houses secures no great secrecy to what is carried on within them; yet even the concealment which is thus offered is not always sought. The shade of a tree, or long grass, is the sole temple required for the sacrifices to the Cyprian goddess. In the course of licentious indulgence, father and daughter, son and mother, are sometimes mingled; and the relations of brother and sister are exchanged for closer intercourse.

Previously to the establishment of Islamism and kingship, the people of Fur seem to have formed wandering tribes; in which state many of the neighbouring nations to this day remain. In their persons they differ from the negroes of the coast of Guinea. Their hair is generally short and woolly, though some are seen with it of the length of eight or ten inches, which they esteem a beauty. Their complexion is for the most part perfectly black. The Arabs, who are numerous within the empire, retain their distinction of feature, colour, and language. They most commonly intermarry with each other. The slaves, which are brought from the country they call Fertit (land of idolaters), perfectly resemble those of Guinea, and their language is peculiar to themselves.

The revenues of the crown consist of a duty on all merchandise imported, which, in many instances, amounts to near a tenth; of a tax on all slaves exposed to Egypt; of all forfeitures for misdemeanors; of a tenth on all merchandise, especially slaves, brought from every quarter but Egypt, and when slaves are procured by force, this tenth is raised to a fifth; of a tribute paid by the Arabs, who breed oxen, horses, camels, sheep; of a certain quantity of corn paid annually by every village; besides many valuable presents, which must be paid by the principal people, both at stated times and on particular occasions. Add to all this, that the king is chief merchant in the country; and not only dispatches with every caravan to Egypt a great quantity of his own merchandise, but also employs his slaves and dependents to trade with the goods of Egypt on his own account, in the countries adjacent to Soudan.

The commodities brought by the caravans from Egypt are, 1. Amber beads. 2. Tin, in small bars. 3. Coral beads. 4. Cornelian beads. 5. Falfe cornelian beads. 6. Beads of Venice. 7. Agate. 8. Rings, silver and brass, for the ankles and wrists. 9. Carpets, small. 10. Blue cotton cloths of Egyptian fabric. 11. White cotton ditto. 12. Indian muslins and cottons. 13. Blue and white cloths of Egypt, called Melanes. 14. Sword-blades, strait (German), from Cairo. 15. Small looking-glasses. 16. Copper face-pieces, or defensive armour for the horse's head. 17. Fire-arms. 18. Kohbhel for the eyes. 19. Rhea, a kind of mols from European Turkey, for food, and a scent. 20. Sbe, a species of absinthium, for its odour, and as a remedy; both the last fell to advantage. 21. Coffee. 22. Mabbel, Krumphille, Symphile, Sandal, nutmegs. 23. Dufir, the shell of a kind of fish in the Red Sea, used for a perfume. 24. Silk unwrought. 25. Wire, bras and iron. 26. Coarse glass beads, made at Jerusalem, called berga and mugur. 27. Copper culinary utensils, for which the demand is insatiable. 28. Old copper for melting and reworking. 29. Small red caps of Barbary. 30. Thread linens of Egypt—small consumption. 31. Light French cloths, made into bonnets. 32. Silks of Scio, made up. 33. Silk and cotton pieces of Aleppo, Damascus, &c. 34. Shoes of red leather. 35. Black pepper. 36. Writing paper (papier des trois limes), a considerable article. 37. Soap of Syria.

The goods transported to Egypt are, 1. Slaves, male and female. 2. Camels. 3. Ivory. 4. Horns of the rhinoceros. 5. Teeth of the hippopotamus. 6. Ostrich feathers. 7. Whips of the hippopotamus's hide. 8. Gum. 9. Pimento. 10. Tamarinds, made into round cakes. 11. Leather sacks for water (roy) and dry articles (geraub). 12. Porcupines in abundance, and some monkeys and Guinea fowls. 13. Copper, white, in small quantity.