J821.J 



Literary and Pkilosopkical Intelligence. 



tes 



ing the Balearic Isles and the Canaries. 

 Tlie population of Madrid 280,000, ex- 

 clusive of the clergy; of Barcelona, 

 115,000; of Cadiz, J.sOOO ; the king- 

 dom of Granada, 4.S.5,000 ; the Balearic 

 Isles, 278,(H)0 ; the Canaries, 520,000. 



EAST INDIES, 



We collect from the Asiatic Journal 

 that Sir Thomas Raffles has lately 

 established a British free jwrt at Sinca- 

 poor, which is the key to the gulf of 

 Siam and the sea of China. The pros- 

 pect which it affords of extending our 

 commerce is immense ; and i( bids fair 

 to become, and that at no very distant 

 period, oue of the first commercial sta- 

 tions eastward of the Cape. The po- 

 pulation of Sincapoor is already nearly 

 equal to that of Penang, and is rapidly 

 increasing. It is extremely healthy, 

 and has hitherto escaped the ravages of 

 the cholera which has afflicted the 

 neighbouring countries. 



According to the same well con- 

 ducted Joiunal, it appears, that there 

 has been established at Bencooleu au 

 agricultural society, of which the Lieut. 

 Governor is president. Every inhabi- 

 tant, European or native, is required 

 to plant corn enough for the subsistence 

 of himself and family. Thus Ben- 

 coolen will be no longer dependent 

 upon Bengal for this first of necessa- 

 ries. In the society just mentioned are 

 discussed all points connected with the 

 cultivation of the soil and the condition 

 of the people; and I can take upon 

 myself to affirm, that a very consider- 

 able stimulus has, in consequence, been 

 given to the industry of the country. 

 Enquiries have been set on foot into 

 the nature of landed (enure, the village 

 institutions, and modes of husbandry ; 

 and a person of high talent is now em- 

 ployed in taking an accurate account 

 of the population, and in framing ge- 

 neral statistical t.ibles. The cultiva- 

 tion of sugar and coffee has been com- 

 menced with considerable spirit. The 

 spice gardens already bid fair to rival 

 those of the neighbouring islands. 



Major Latter, commanding in the 

 Rajah of Sikkim's territories in the 

 hilly country e;ist of Nepaul, states, 

 that the unicorn, so long considered as 

 a fabulous animal, actually exists at 

 this moment in tlie interior of Thibet, 

 where it is mcII known to tlie inhabi- 

 tiints. " This," says the major, " is a 

 very curious fact, and it may be ne- 

 i'cusary to mention how the circum- 

 stances became known to me. In a 

 Thil)etian manuscri])t coutaininj^ the 



MoNTHLv Mag. No. 352. 



names of different animnls vvhicli I 

 procured the other day from the hills, 

 the unicorn is classed under the head 

 of those whose hoofs are divided : it is 

 called the one horned tso^po. Upon 

 inquiring what kind of animal it was, 

 to our astonishment, the person who 

 brought me the manuscript described 

 exactly the unicorn of the ancients : 

 saying, that it was a native of the inte- 

 rior of Tliibet, about the size of a tat- 

 too (a horse from twelve to thirteea 

 hands high,) fierce and extremely wild ; 

 seldom, if ever, caiight alive, but fre- 

 quently shot ; and that the flesh was 

 used for food. The person who gave 

 me the information has repeatedly seeil 

 these animals, and eaten the flesh of 

 them. They go together in herds like 

 our wild buffaloes, and aie very fre- 

 quently to be met with on the borders 

 of the great desert, about a month's 

 journey from Lassa, in that part of 

 the country inhabited by the wander- 

 ing Tartars." 



NEW SOUTH WALES. 



Letters and papers from Port Jack- 

 son to the 7th of Sept. state that Mr. 

 Throsby, who ascer(aine<l (he route to 

 the fine country beyond the Blue Moun- 

 tains, has made further discoveries. In 

 a letter of the 5th of Sept. he says: 



" You will see I am in a fair way of 

 verifymg my prediction, that ere long 

 a route would be continued as far to the 

 southward on our continent, as Two- 

 fold Bay. The lake now discovered is 

 full 160 miles S.S.W. of Sydney, to 

 which au open carriage road will be 

 clear in a mouth. The country is 

 beautiful, and fully equal to my most 

 sanguine expectations, for all the ne- 

 cessary purposes of colonization. Pic- 

 ture (o youiself large extensive downs, 

 not plains, some as large as from 50 to 

 60,000 acres, without a tree, eveiy 

 where covered with fine grass for sheep 

 or cattle, and well watered, partly by 

 i-ippling streams, partly by chains of 

 ponds, in all directions. There are 

 many such plains of different sizes, 

 and thehills and broken country around 

 are thickly clad with excellent timber. 

 It is, in fact, a most desirable country, 

 and before next Christmas, I confident- 

 Jy anticipate, we shall prove that the 

 snow and rain which falls on the moun- 

 tains and high country seen to the S.W. 

 have an outlet to the sea. The lake is 

 called by the natives Warre\^'aa, and is 

 stated by them to empty its waters in 

 a southerly direction, where we per- 

 ceive an opening in the high land, on 

 2K Us 



