C O N 
birds of mufic. They are fomewhat bigger than Canary 
birds, their bills red, their feathers of the fame colour; 
fome of them, however, are green, or mixed, and only 
their bills and feet black, others are grey, others dun, and 
fome all white, or all black ; which lalt fort 19 the moft 
admired for the lweetnefs of its note. The filh in this 
partis in great plenty and variety, both from the fea, and 
from the multitude of rivers, which interfeff the country. 
The pico marina, fo called from the refemblance of its 
inouth to the beak of a woodpecker, is a fea fifli of a 
1 trge fize, and prodigious ftrength. The corvo marino, 
or lea raven, is about fix feet'long, and big in proportion. 
They aredikewife infefted with’a vaft variety of ferponts, 
fome of a monltrous length and thicknefs; rattle-fnakes, 
vipers, and other venomous reptiles, whole bite is often 
inevitable death. Scorpions, and other venomous infeCts, 
both flying and reptile, are likewife in great variety. 
The molt pernicious and dangerous kind is the cimex, 
of which they have fix different fpecies, of different co¬ 
lours and fixes, and all-of them formidable, both on ac¬ 
count cf their prodigious number, and the mifchiefs they 
do, not only to the fruits of the earth, but even to men 
and beafts, whom they will furround in the night in fuch 
fwarms, that they will attack and eat them. Some in- 
fell: the houfes in fuch numbers as to undermine the 
foundations. A third fort, of a white and red colour, 
though very .final], will'gnaw their way through the 
hardell wood, penetrate into a ftrong wooden chelt, and, 
in a little while, devour the clothes, linen, and every 
thing that is in it, except metals and (tones. A fourth 
fort, fmall and black, leavea moft'intolerable ftench upon 
every thing they touch, whether clothes or houfehold 
fluff, which are not eafily fweetened again. A fifth fort 
harbours chiefly upon the leaves and branches of trees ; 
and if a man chance to climb up to five himfelf from a 
wild bead, he is fo tormented by them, that nothing but 
the dread of the jaws of the one could make him undergo 
the flings of the other. The fixth live w'holly under 
ground in a larvae ftate, till age furnifhes them with 
wings to fly ; and then they rife in fuch fwarms as darken 
the air, in the fame manner as locufts. Amidft a great 
variety of thefe pernicious infeCts, they have one fpecies of 
a more friendly and profitable kind, viz, the induftrious 
bee, which furnifhes the inhabitants wfith excellent honey 
and wax in fuch prodigious plenty that there is fcarcely 
a hollow tree, cliff of a rock, or cleft of the earth, in which 
they do not find great quantities of their combs. 
Congo was difeovered by the Portugueie in 14S4. The 
difeoverer was named Diego Cam, an expert and bold fai- 
lajr. He was well received by the natives, and feiit fome 
of his men wilh prefents to the king; but they being de¬ 
tained by unexpected accidents beyond the promifed time 
of their return, Cam was obliged to fail away without 
them, and took with him four young Congoeie, as hof- 
t::ges for the fafety of his countrymen. Thefe he taught 
the Portuguefe language, in which they made fuch pro- 
gre'ls that king John was highly pleafed, and fent them 
back next year to Congo with rich prefents; charging 
them to exhort their monarchs, in his name, to become 
converts to the Chriftian religion, and to permit it to be 
propagated through his dominions. An alliance was 
concluded between the two monarchs, which continues 
to this d.ay. 
Congo, being fituated within the torrid zone, is liable 
to excelfive heats: as it lies on the fouthern fide ot the 
equinoctial, the feafons are of co'urfe oppofite to ours. 
They reckon only two principal feafons, the lit miner and 
winter; the former begins in Oftober, and continues till 
February dr March ; during which time the fun’s rays 
dart with Inch intenfity, that the atmofphere appears to 
an European to be in a flame. The exceffive heat, how¬ 
ever, is mitigated by the equal length of the days and 
nights, as well as by the winds, breezes, rains, and dews. 
The winter takes up the other part of the year; and is 
faid by the natives to be proportionally cold, though to an 
C ON 
European it would appear fenfibly hot. They divide theif 
year into twelve lunar months, and begin it in September 
They have alfo weeks confiding of four days only, the 
laft of which is their fabbath ; and on it they religioufly 
abftain from every kind of work. 
With refpedl to the populoufnefs of the kingdom of 
Congo, fome authors have reprefented it as thinly peo- 
pled. The accounts of the Portuguefe miffionaries, how¬ 
ever, are diredlly oppofite to thefe. They found the coun¬ 
try for the molt part covered with towns and villages, 
and fwarming with inhabitants; the cities well filled with 
people, particularly the metropolis, which was faid to 
contain above fifty thoufand fouls. We are told, that 
Bamba alone is able to raife two hundred thoufand fight¬ 
ing men, and was formerly in a condition to raife double 
that number; and that the army of the king cf Congo, 
in 1665, confided of nine hundred thoufand fighting men, 
who were attended by an infinite number of women, 
children, and flaves. The number of flaves fold annually 
by the king of Congo, if we can believe the miffionaries, 
feldom amounted, communibus annis, to lefs than fifteen or 
fixteen thoufand. But the miffionaries were too apt to 
deal in the marvellous. 
The complex-ron of the natives, both men and women, 
is quite black, though not in the fame degree. Their hair 
is black and finely curled ; their eyes a fine lively black j 
but they have neither flat nofes nor thick lips like the 
Nubians and other negroes. Their ftature is of the mid¬ 
dle fize; and, excepting their dark complexion, they much 
refemble the Portuguefe. In their temper they are mif- 
truftful, envious, jealous, and treacherous; and, where 
they once take an affront, they will fpare no pains to be 
avenged of their enemy. There is no fuch thing among 
them as natural affedtion. A hufband, if an heathen, 
may take as many wives as he pleafes; and if a Chriftian, 
may have any number of concubines, whom he may di¬ 
vorce at pleafure, or even fell them though with child. 
So little regard have they for their children, that there is 
fcarcely one among them who will not fell a fon or a 
daughter, or perhaps both, for a piece of cloth, a collar or 
girdle of coral or beads, and often for a bottle of wine 
or brandy. Their native religion is idolatry, accompa¬ 
nied with the moft deteftabie rites, invented by their 
gangas or priefts; and even in thole parts where Chrif- 
tianity is profeffed, it is fo darkened by fuperftitions and 
idolatrous practices, that we may juftly queltion whether 
the people are any gainers by the exchange. 
St. Salvador is the capital of the Portuguefe fettlements, 
in this country, and is faid to contain forty thoufand in¬ 
habitants, about four thoufand of which are whites, de- 
feended of the Portuguefe fettlers. The chief commodi¬ 
ties they bring thither are either the product of Brazil, 
or European manufactures. The former confift chiefly of 
grains, fruits, plants, &c. the latter of Turkey carpets, 
Englilh cloths, and other ftuffs ; copper, brais veifels, 
fome kinds of blue earthen ware, rings and ornaments 
of gold, filver, and other metals; coral, glafs-beads, bu¬ 
gles, and other trinkets; light ftuffs of cotton, woollen, 
and linen, for clothing; and a great variety of iron uren- 
fils. In return for thefe, they carry off a great number 
ot flaves, elephants-teeth, furs, and other commodities of 
the country. Congo is divided into feveral provinces.' 
The principal rivers are the Zaire, the Dar.do, the Cuan- 
za, the Vambra, and the Barbela. Lat. 3. to 8. 30. S. Ion. 
14. to ?. 1. E. Greenwich. 
CON’GO, a term applied to tea of the fecond quality. 
CON'GON, a town of Periia, in the province of Fariif- 
tan : ninety-feven miles fouth of Schiras. 
CON'GORLAN, a town of Perfia, in the province of 
Irak : feventy-five miles north-eaft of Amadan. 
CONGRA' PULANT, adj. Rejoicing in participationi 
exprclfing participation of another’s joy : 
Forth mill’d in hafte the great confulting peers. 
Rais’d from the dark divan, and with like joy 
Congratulant approach’d him. Milton. 
Te 
