BEN 



458 



BEN 



Bcngo 



I 



Bcuin. 



halfpenny per square yard, which attaches to the 

 former ; and, in coarse articles, forms a very heavy 

 tax, being often above 20per cent, advalorem. (j.d. ) 



BENGO, a town of Africa, in the kingdom of 

 Angola, and the capital of a province of the same 

 name, situated on the river Bengo, and stretching 

 along the west coast. This province was conquer* d 

 by the Portuguese, who have cultivated considerable 

 tracts of ground, which produce maize and manioc 

 root in great quantities. Banana and bacova trees also 

 abound in this province. See Dapper's DescrijUion 

 dc I'Afriqite. (J) 



BENGUELA, a province of Angola, in Afri- 

 ca, stretching along the coast, the limits of which 

 have not been accurately ascertained by geographers. 

 This province was formerly governed by its own 

 kings ; but the incursions of the barbarous Giagas 

 laid waste the country; and the protection of the 

 Portuguese, who have built several forts along the 

 coast, has not been able to restore it to its former 

 importance. Near the Bay of Cows a great quantity 

 of corn and beans are raised, and the inhabitants rear 

 cattle of the best kind in great numbers. In the same 

 part of the country, they gather a kind of odoriferous 

 wood, called kakongo, which is held in high estima- 

 tion. According to Marteniere, there are near the 

 same bay excellent mines of copper. Another travel- 

 ler maintains, that there are silver mines in the moun- 

 tains, which have not yet been wrought. 



The principal towns of Benguela are Old Ben- 

 guela, situated upon a mountain; St Philip, or New 

 Benguela; Mankikendo, and Kuschil. The chief 

 rivers are Nika, St Francisco, Moreno, Farsa, Ku- 

 neni, and Canton-Belle. According to Dapper, the 

 water of the last of these rivers is of a saline nature, 

 and is collected into pits by the natives for the pur- 

 pose of manufacturing salt. The mouth of this river, 

 which is sheltered from the winds, is about sixteen feet 

 deep. To the north of this river, the sea forms a gulf 

 which is called Good Bay by the Dutch, on account of 

 its being an excellent watering-place. The climate of 

 Benguela is very insalubrious. The mountainous 

 districts swarm with wild beasts of various kinds. 

 See Dapper's Description de I'Afriijuc. (h) 



BENIN, sometimes called Great Benin, the 

 most extensive kingdom in Guinea, is bounded on 

 the north by Gago, Nigritia, and a chain of moun- 

 tains ; on the south by the Gulf of Guinea ; on the 

 west by the kingdom of Ardra ; and on the east by 

 iMujak and Istanna. Its principal river, the Formosa, 

 divides itself into several branches, some of which 

 are large and navigable streams. The banks of these 

 streams are inhabited by various nations, governed 

 by their respective kings, all of whom, except the 

 sovereign of Awerri, are the slaves of the king of 

 Benin. 



Though this kingdom be extremely populous, its 

 towns, or rather villages, are very distant from each 

 other, not only in the interior, but also on the banks 

 of the river, and on the coast. Next to the capital, 

 its principal towns are Bododa, Arebo, Agatton, and 

 Meiberg, situated on the banks of the Formosa, and 

 inhabited chiefly by Dutch colonists, who carry on a 

 considerable traffic. 



The country of Benin is low and flat, much co- 



vered with wood, and intersected in many places with 

 rivers and small lakes. In some parts of it, however, 

 particularly on the road from Agatton to Formosa, 

 there is no water to be found. Yet even there trees 

 and plants grow to great perfection ; and the whole 

 country between Agatton and Formosa is adorned 

 with orange and lemon trees. Cotton is the most 

 abundant production of this country, and forms the 

 principal article of dress. Pepper, likewise, grows 

 here, though neither in such quantities nor in such 

 perfection as in India. Two sorts of wine are made 

 use of in Benin, called wine of Pali, and wine of Bor- 

 don ; the first of which is drunk in the morning or 

 at noon, and the latter in the evening. Jasper-stones 

 are almost the only mineral production of this coun- 

 try mentioned by travellers. Though one of the 

 richest kingdoms in Guinea, Benin contains scarcely 

 any gold-dust, which is found in almost every other 

 part of the western coast of Africa. Its shores, 

 however, abound in fish of almost every kind, and 

 are particularly celebrated for a species of blue coral, 

 which forms a lucrative branch of trade. The qua- 

 drupeds of this country are elephants, tygers, leo- 

 pards, wild boars, civet cats, mountain cats, horses, 

 hares, and sheep with fleeces of hair. Its principal 

 birds are parroquets, pigeons, partridges, storks, and 

 ostriches. Crocodiles, sea-horses, and a particular 

 species of torpedo, swarm in the rivers. 



The climate of Benin, though somewhat various, 

 is- in general unwholesome. The pleasantest, or ra- 

 ther the most tolerable, season is in the months of 

 August and September; for then the air is refreshed 

 by frequent rains. Tremendous thunders and light- 

 nings prevail during the months of June and July. 

 But the most noxious season is in the months of Oc- 

 tober, November, and December ; when the heat is 

 intolerable, and the country is perpetually enveloped 

 in thick pestilential fogs. 



One of the most prominent features in the charac- 

 ter of the inhabitants of Benin, is their friendly and 

 benevolent disposition. They are extremely cour- 

 teous and hospitable to strangers; and are so anxious 

 not to be outdone in generosity, that when an Euro- 

 pean gives any of them a present, they never fail to 

 repay it two fold. Nor are they less attentive to the 

 comfort of their indigent countrymen. They have 

 many institutions, which breathe the purest spirit of 

 humanity. The king, the viceroys, and the grandees, 

 give subsistence to the poor in the towns of their re- 

 spective residence.by employing in variousoffices those 

 whom their age and health enable to work, and main- 

 taining gratuitously the aged and infirm. Thus not an 

 individual in the kingdom of Benin is allowed to pine 

 in want, and beggary is altogether unknown. In- 

 dolence is another characteristic disposition of the 

 natives of Benin. Only those whom poverty com- 

 pels to work will submit to any kind of manual la- 

 bour. The rest devolve upon their women and 

 slaves, the toil of cultivating the ground, and the prac- 

 tice of the few arts with which they are acquainted. 

 The ladies of Benin, therefore, not only prepare the 

 cotton, and manufacture it into cloth, but are em- 

 ployed as blacksmiths, carpenters, and tanners. Their 

 workmanship is extremely rude; but this is an im- 

 peachment rather upon their means, perhaps, and 



Benin. 



Soil and 

 produc- 

 tion-. 



Climate, 



Manners 

 and cha- 

 racter of 



theinhabi- 



tl'ltf. 



