THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. 66 9 



The clouds, drawn by the violent adtion of the fun, are 

 condenfed, then broken, and fall as rain on the top of this 

 high ridge, and fwell every river, while a wind from the 

 ocean on the eaft blows like a monfoon up each of thefe 

 ftreams in a direction contrary to their current, during the 

 whole time of the inundation, and this enables boats to af- 

 cend into the weftern parts of Sofala,and the interior coun- 

 try to the mountains, where lies the gold. The fame effect, 

 from the fame caufe, is produced on the weftern fide towards 

 the Atlantic ; the high ridge of mountains being placed 

 between the different countries weft and eaft, is at once 

 the fource of their riches, and of thofe rivers which con- 

 dud to the treafures which would be otherwife inacceflible 

 in the eaftern parts of the kingdoms of Benin, Congo, and 

 Angola. 



There are three remarkable appearances attending the 

 inundation of the Nile ; every morning in Abyffinia is clear, 

 and the fun mines. About nine, a fmall cloud, not above 

 four feet broad, appears in the eaft, whirling violently round 

 as if upon an axis, but, arrived near the zenith, it firft abates 

 its motion, then lofes its form, and extends itfelf greatly, and 

 feems to call up vapours from all oppolite quarters. Thefe 

 clouds having attained nearly the fame height, ruin againft 

 each other with great violence, and put me always in 

 mind of F.lifha foretelling rain on Mount Carmel*. The air, 

 impelled before the heavieft mafs, or fwifteft mover, makes 

 an impreffion of its own form in the collection of clouds 

 oppofite, and the moment it has taken poffeinon of the fpace 



made 



* 1 Kings, di^jj. XTiii. ver. 43. 



