Mr. Varlts Journey into Africa. 2C.3 



nfinfter, and flowing majeftically but (lowly from weft to 

 eaft, through the middle of a very extenfive town, which his 

 fellow-travellers told him was Sego, the capital of the great 

 kingdom of Bambara. His emotions at this fight were ex- 

 quifite, and it were unjuft not to give them in our traveller's 

 own words : " I haftened," fays he, " to the brink of the 

 river, and, having drank of the water, lifted up my fervent 

 thanks in prayer to the Great Ruler of all things, for having 

 thus far crowned my endeavours with fuccefs." — Unhappily, 

 he had yet to fuftain many fevere and bitter trials of his pa- 

 tience and fortitude. 



Information of a considerable river flowing through the 

 centre of Africa, between the latitudes of 15° and 20 north, 

 had been received at very early periods from different 

 quarters. At one time it was believed to be a part of the 

 Senegal. The Gambia had the fame honour aicrihed to it 

 at another. But fufficient proof was afterwards obtained that 

 neither of thefe rivers was the Niger, and further enquiries 

 confirmed the ancient accounts of a flream that was not only 

 of greater magnitude than either the Senegal or the Gambia, 

 but which flowed in a contrary direction; running not to the 

 wefhvard into the Atlantic, but from weft to eaft, to rernons 

 unknown. The Moors defcribed it by the name of Nil il 

 Abeed, or the River of Slaves : the negroes beftowed on it 

 the appellation of Jollba, or the Great Waters. 



Some doubt however ftill remained. It was unred that 

 the Moors might poflibly fpeak of one river, and the negroes 

 of another; and the account of its direction towards the 

 eaft was received by our ableft geographers with much dif- 

 ficulty and hefitation. On both thefe points Mr. Park's 

 teftimony is clear and decifive ; the Moors, in his hearing, 

 uniformly called it Nil il Abeed ; the inhabitants of Sego, 

 the Joliba; and that it flowed from weft to eaft, he had 

 ocular dcmonftration in a long and perilous ambulation of 

 fomc hundred miles, which he afterwards made on its banks. 

 Thus therefore is all further queftion obviated concerning 



the 



