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of Cush, having settled in Arabia , gradually migrated to the S. E.extremity of that country; whence, by an easy passage across thestraits of Babelmandel, they transported themselves to the African aide, and entered the country properly called Ethiopia : a migratiou which, accordhig to Eusebius , took place during the residenceof the Israelites in Egypt ; but, in the opinion of Syncelius, atterthey had taken possession of Canaan , and were governed by judges.Mr. Bruce meutionsa tradition among the Abyssinians, which, theysay, has existed among them from time immemorial, that very soonatter the flood, Cush the grandson of Noah, with his family, passedthrough Atbara, then without inhabitants, till they came to theridge of mountains, which separates that country from the highlands of Abyssinia. Here, still terrified with the thoughts of thedeluge, and apprehensive of a return of the same calamity', theychose to dwell m caves made in the sides ot these mountains ratherthan trust themseives in the plains of Atbara ; and our author is ofopinion, that the tropical rains, which they could notfaii to meetwith in their journey southward, and which would appear like thereturn of the deluge, might induce them to take up their habi-tations in these high places. Be this as it may, he says it is an un-doubted fact, “ that here the Cushites, with unparalleled industry,and with instruments utterly unknown to us, formed to themselvescommodious, yet wonderful, habitations in the heart of mountainsof granite and marble, which remain entire in great numbers tothis day, and promise to do so till the consummation of all things.”The Cushites having once established themselves among thesemountains, continued to form similar habitations in all the neigh-bouring ones: and thus loll owing the different chains, spread the artsand sciences, which they cultivated, across the African continentfrom the eastern to the western ocean. According to (lie traditionabovementioned, they built the city of Axurn, early in the days ofAbraham . This city was anciently noted for its superb structures,of which some remains are still visible. The Cushites extendedthemselves along the mountains which run parallel to the Red Sea on the African side ; which country, according to Mr. Bruce, has“ in all times been called Saba, or Azabo, bo:h of which signifySouthan epithet given it from its lying S. of the Arabian gulf ,and which in ancient times was one of the richest and most im-portant countries in the world. ” By that acquisition (says Mr.Bruce,) they enjoyed all the perfumes and aromatics in the east;myrrh, ami frankincense, and cassia; all which grow spontaneouslyin that stripe of ground from the Bay of Bilur \Y. of Azab to CapeGardcfan, and then southward up in the Indian ocean , to near thecoast of Melinda, where there is cinnamon, hut of an inferior kind.”As the Cushites advanced still farther S. they met not only withmountains, in which they might excavate proper habitations, hutlikewise with great quantities of gold and silver furnished by themines of Sofala , which, our author says, furnished “ large quan-tities ot both metals in their pure and unmixed state, lying in glo-bules without alloy or any necessity of preparation or separation.”In other parts of this work he proves Sofala to have been the Ophirof scripture. See Ophir, 'l'lius the Ethiopians , for some timeafter their settlement, according to Mr. Bruce, must have been anation of the tirst importance in the world. 'Ihe northern coloniesirom Meroe to Thebes built cities, and made improvements inarchitecture ; cultivated commerce, agriculture, and the arts; notforgetting the science of astronomy, for which they had an excel-lent opportunity by the clearness of the sky in the Tltebaid.According to some ancient authors, the Ethiopians were conquered.Moses ; of which transaction they give the following account.. *°re the time of that legislator, the Ethiopians possessed thecountry of TUolv.us in Egypt : but, not content with this, theymade an irruption into the Tower Egypt , and penetrated as far;asMemphis ; where, having defeated the Egyptians, they threatenedthe kingdom with total destruction. Thu Egyptians, by the ad-vice of their oracles, put Moses at the head of their forces; whoimmediately prepared for invading ti e enemy’s country. TheEthiopians imagined that he would march along the hanks of theNile ; hut Moses chose rather to pass through some of the interiorcountries, though greatly infested with serpents, and where conse-quently his march must have been attended with much danger. Topreserve his men, he constructed a number of panniers oi' theEgyptian reed papyrus, which he tilled with the birds named Ibis ,celebrated for their antipathy to serpents. As soon as he ap-proached the tract abounding with these reptiles, a sufficient ntnn-VOL. 11—NO. 76.

her of the birds were let out, who presently cleared the way forthe army by destroying the serpents. Thus the Ethiopians weresurprised in their own country where they had dreaded no in-vasion ; their forces, being defeated in the field, were at last shutup in the capital Meroe , a city almost impregnable, by being sur-rounded with three rivers, the Nile, Astapus , and Astaboras. Thedaughter of theElhiopian monarch, however, having an opportuni-ty’ of seeing Moses from the wails, fell in love u itli lum, and offeredto deliver up the city , provided lie would swear to marry her.With this requisition the Jewish legislator complied ; hut treatedthe inhabitants with great severity ; plundering the city, and put-ting many of the people to death". Alter this h«ravaged the wholecountry, dismantling all the places ot strength; and having thusrendered the Ethiopians incapable of attempting any kind of of-fensive operations against other nations for a considerable time, hereturned m triumph to Egypt , alter an absence of 10 years. Emmthe time of Moses to that oi Solomon there is a chasm in the Ethi-opia history. After this, however, we are furnished w ith some kindoi regular accounts. The histnrv commences with the reign olthequeen of Sheba, who came to visit the Jewih monarch,' and whomthe Abyssinians suppose to have been sovereign ot Ethiopia l'roper:hut Mr. Bruce is of opinion that she was only sovereign if thatterritory on the E. coast of Africa named Saha, which he saysought to he her title, instead of Sheba. In favour of this opinionhe likewise urges, that it was cudomary for Ike Sabeans, who in-habited Saha, to be governed by women ; whereas those who in-habited the opposite side of the Arabian gulf , and who were namedSubcan Arabs, or liomerites, were not only governed by king6,hut would not allow their sovereigns to go abroad any where,under pain of being stoned to death. The Abyssinians, however,claim her for their sovereign ; and he informs us, that having re-ceived an account fromTamerin, an Ethiopian merchant, of the sur-prising wisdom and wealth of Solomon, she undertook the journey'mentioned in Scripture, to ascertain the truth of the report. Inthis she was attended by many of her nobility, carrying along withher also magnificent presents for the monarch she intended to visit.According to the Abyssinian historians, she was a pagan at thetime this journey was undertaken ; hut being struck with admira-tion at the sight of Solomon’s grandeur, and the wisdom lie dis-played, she became a convert to the true religion.

Ethiopia , Lower, according to the reverend Mr, Crutwell,in his New Universal Gazetteer, comprehends all the kingdomssouth of the equinoctial line ; as Congo , Lower Guinea, Catiravia,Monomotapa, &c.

Ethiopia, Modern, or the Upper, or Higher. Ethiopia ,or, as it is now called, Abyssinia, is divided, according to Mr.Bruce, into two parts, named Tigre and Ainhara; though this ra-ther denotes a difference in the language than the territory of thepeople. It is subdivided into tw elve provinces.

Ethiopia , Modern, Boundaries of. From the map whichMr. Bruce has given of Abyssinia, in his fifth volume, it appearsthat this empire is hounded on the south by a vast chain of moun-tains, extending with very little interruption from 34° to 44° Lon.E. and between 8° and 9° Eat. N. In more prosperous times itextended beyond these S. into the kingdom of Adel; but themountains are undouh'.edlv to be reckoned its natural boundarieson this side. On the E. and N.E. it has the Red Sea , and on theS.E. the kingdom of Adel. On the W. and N. its boundariesare less distinctly marked ; having on both these quarters the bar-barous kingdom of Sennaar, whose limits frequently vary accord-ing to the fortune of war betwixt the two monarchs. Ere ay Ar-kevko, situated near the foot of the Basaltes mountains, in aboutla” 30' Eat. N. it extends near 7° Eat. N. where the mountainsof Caffa, the most southerly province of Abyssinia terminate.Along the coast of the Red Sea lie'the territories inhabitedby the Hazorta Shiho, the district of Engana Shibo, and thekingdom of Uancali, including the territory of Azah and thesalt-pits. To the wed of these is the kingdom of Tigre, includ-ing the country of the Dobas, part of the kingdom of Bali,and that of Dawaro. Still farther west are those of Sire,Lasla, Aralr.mi, the greatest part of Bali, and part of Eatigar,which last reaches beyond the mountains. Proceeding still i.. thesame direction, we come to Tcherkin, Tchelga, Abargde, Sabo,Begcmder, Noa, and I fat; reckoning always from north to south ;Tcherkin, for instance, being north of Tchelga, &c. Xoa extend-,4 P a considerable