elf at Massuah and Buro, on the west shore
of the Red Sea, commanding the inlets into Abyssinia. She is
endeavouring to fix her flag at Brava and the mouth of the Jub; and she
has just taken permanent possession of the important island of Johanna,
situated in the centre of the northern outlet of the Mozambique channel,
by which she acquires the command of that important channel. Her active
agents are placed in Southern Abyssinia, and are traversing the borders
of the Great Bahr-el-Abiad; while the northern shores of Africa will
speedily be her own.

Spain has planted herself in the island of Fernando Po, which commands
all the outlets of the Niger, and the rivers from Cameroons to the
equator; and from which she can readily obtain at any time any number of
people from the adjacent coasts for her West Indian possessions, either
as slaves or freemen.

About six years ago, the government of Portugal appointed a commission
to enquire into the state and condition of her once fine and still
important colonies in Tropical Africa, and to report upon the best
course to adopt to render them beneficial to the mother country. They
have reported and wisely recommended, that Portuguese knowledge and
capital should, as far as possible, be again sent to Africa, in order to
instruct, enlighten, and cultivate these valuable possessions; and
instead of allowing, as heretofore, labour in slaves to be abstracted
from Africa, that native labourers should be retained and employed in
Africa itself; and further, that it should to the utmost be aided and
directed by European skill, capital, and labour. Thus, fourteen degrees
of latitude on the east coast, and twenty degrees of latitude on the
west coast, will, at an early day, be set free from the slave trade.
From these points the Brazil markets were chiefly supplied with slaves;
but Brazils being now separated from Portugal, the latter has and can
have no interest in allowing the former to carry on the slave trade from
her African dominions, but quite the reverse.

The discovery of the route to India by the Cape of Good Hope changed the
course of eastern commerce. The exertions of Portugal in the manner
proposed, will now, and most certainly and severely, affect Tropical
productions and commerce in every market. In this case, England ought to
encourage and support Portugal, and, by following her footsteps in other
eligible parts of Africa, share in the advantages which such a state of
thing