DEL 



595 



DEL 



Degree 



II 



Delagoa 



Bay. 



upon a variety of publications, the most remarkable of 

 which are, The Life and Piracies of Captain Singleton, 

 1720; the History of Moll Flanders, 1721 ; the Me- 

 moirs' of a Cavalier, which appear to have been publish- 

 ed without a date ; and the Political History of the 

 Devil, 1726. To these may be added several works on 

 trade and commerce, which are now little read. After 

 a life so constantly and assiduously employed in literary 

 pursuits, Defoe died, at an advanced age, in the month 

 of April, 1731. Few authors have left behind them so 

 great a variety of publications; and although many of 

 the works of Defoe have long ceased to be perused with 

 interest, there are some of his productions which will 

 probably continue to be re-published and read so long 

 as the English language endures. 



The reader will find a long list of the numerous works 

 of Defoe, annexed to Mr Chalmers's Life of the Author, 

 published at the "end of Stockdale's edition of Robinson 

 Crusoe, London, 1790. (z) 



DEGREE. See Astronomy, Geography, and Sur- 

 veying Trigonometrical. 



DEGUELIA, a genus of plants of the class Diadel- 

 phia, and order Decandria. See Botany, p. 285. 



DELAGOA Bay, is a bay on the east coast of Afri- 

 ca, and is called by the Portuguese the bay of Lorenzo 

 Marques, after the name of its discoverer, and likewise 

 the bay of the Holy Ghost. It extends about 20 leagues 

 from north to south, and 7 from east to west ; but on 

 account of the numerous shoals, the channel is not more 

 than five miles broad. At the north point of the bay, or 

 Cape St Mary's, is formed an island of the same 

 name, separated by a rocky strait from the continent. 



The chief rivers that run into the bay, are the Mani- 

 ca, the Machavanna, and Delagoa, or English River. 

 The Manica, which is the most northern of the three, 

 was discovered in 1545 by the Portuguese. Being at 

 that time navigable for large vessels, they erected a fort, 

 which is now in ruins ; but from the accumulation of 

 sand at the mouth of the river, they were obliged to 

 abandon their settlement. 



The Machavanna, which is the most southern of the 

 rivers, is navigable to the place where the trade is 

 earned on, within 30 leagues from its mouth, by boats 

 that draw six feet of water. 



The Delagoa, or English River, which lies between 

 the other two, is distant about 8 leagues from the Ma- 

 chavanna river, and is navigable for nearly 200 miles 

 by large boats, and for more than 40 miles by vessels 

 that draw 12 feet of water. It has a bar, with about 

 15 feet on it at low water ; and about 2 miles up the 

 ,river there is a sufficient depth of water, where vessels 

 generally lie in safety from every wind. The Dutch 

 fort and factory were destroyed in 1727 by a squadron 

 of English pirates. The Austrian, or Ostend East In- 

 dia Company, erected warehouses, and a battery of 1 2 

 guns, on the south side of the river, in 1777; but in 

 consequence of a remonstrance from the court of Por- 

 tugal, the Austrian government disavowed the settle- 

 ment, and the ships and effects of the settlers were seized 

 and carried off by the Portuguese. It is now princi- 

 pally frequented by English South Sea whalers, from 

 the quantity of whales which are found in the bay. The 

 Portuguese carry on an inconsiderable trade with the 

 natives, and send annually a ship from Mozambique, 

 and sometimes return with slaves. The Persees on the 

 Malabar coast, occasionally send small vessels to Dela- 

 goa bay with piece goods, cutlery, wearing apparel, 

 iron, copper, brass wire, buttons, Arrangoe beads, pipes, 

 sugar, spirits, and tobacco, and receive in return de« 



phants' teeth, the teeth of the hippopotamus, a little 

 ambergris, and small quantities of gold dust. 



The chief who resides at the village where the ships 

 anchor, has about fourteen chiefs on the south side of 

 the river subject to him, and reigns over a territory ex- 

 tending about 200 miles inland, and about 100 along 

 the coast. The houses, which are circular, are about 

 15 feet in diameter, and are very neat. They have only 

 one entrance, and are encircled with pallisadoes about 

 four feet high. The soil is of a rich black mould, and 

 is sown with rice or maize in the months of December 

 or January. The dry season generally continues from 

 April till October. Vegetables and fruit, but particu- 

 larly the sugar cane, are raised in abundance ; but there 

 are no horses, asses, or buffaloes. The wild animals 

 which are found here, are the tiger, the rhinoceros, an- 

 telope, hare, rabbit, wild hog ; and there are also Gui- 

 nea hens, quails, partridges, wild geese, and ducks. 

 The natives are of a bright black colour. They are 

 harmless and good-natured, but are very cunning in 

 their dealings with strangers. Those on the north side 

 of the river are great beggars, and those who live up 

 the river, are more traitorous and cruel than those who 

 live near the bay. 



As soon as a vessel arrives, an officer, who is called 

 the king of the water, gives information of it to the 

 chief, who instantly comes down to the landing-place. 

 After presenting him with liquor and old clothes, he 

 gives a bullock in return ; and by the aid of the king 

 of the water, provisions and refreshments may be pro- 

 cured every day in great plenty, and at a reasonable 

 price. A bullock of 3 or 4 cwt. may be obtained for a 

 piece of coarse Surat piece goods. Fowls may be had 

 for two metal buttons or an iron hoop each, and empty 

 bottles, and old clothes, will readily procure vegetables 

 and fruits of all kinds. Excellent fish of various kinds 

 are to be had at a small rate, and sometimes turtle is ob- 

 tained. Water and firewood also abound. Mr White 

 supposes, that the inhabitants in the neighbourhood of 

 the bay may amount to from six to ten thousand. Cape 

 St Mary's, which is the north-east point of the island of 

 the same name, is situated in east longitude 33° 15', 

 and in north latitude 25° 58'. See White's Journal of 

 a Voyage from Madras 1800, and Milburn's valuable 

 work on Oriental Commerce, vol. i. p. 56, 57. (x) 



DELAWARE, the smallest of the united states of 

 America, is bounded on the east by the Atlantic Ocean 

 and by the river and bay of the same name, on the south 

 by the parallel of 38° 29' 30", on the west by Maryland, 

 and on the north by the territorial circle described, 

 with a radius of 12 miles round the town of Newcastle, 

 by which it is divided from Pennsylvania. This state, 

 which derives its name from Lord De la War, is about 

 92 miles in its greatest length, and from 13 to 30 miles 

 in breadth, and is divided into three counties, Newcas- 

 tle, Kent, and Sussex, the first of which pays 8 parts, 

 the second 7, and the third 6 parts of the taxes. 



The general aspect of this state is that of an extend- 

 ed plain, favourable for cultivation. Some of the up- 

 per parts of the county of Newcastle indeed, are bro- 

 ken and irregular. The heights of Christiana are lofty 

 and commanding, and the hills of Brandywine are 

 rough and stony ; but in the lower country there is 

 very little diversity of level. The highest ridge of the 

 peninsula runs through the state of Delaware, inclined 

 to the eastern side, and is marked out by a chain of 

 swamps, from which a number of waters descend on the 

 west to the Chesapeake, and on the east to the river 

 Delaware. AJong the Delaware river, and about 

 2 



Delagoa 



Bay, 



Delaware. 



