Page:Substance of the speech of His Royal Highness the Duke of Clarence, in the House of Lords.djvu/22

 tions, as the simple but elegant and forcible passage, quoted from the same author, by my valuable and learned friend, Mr. Law. The interior of Africa, my Lords, is at best but very little known to Europeans; nor indeed can it be a matter of astonishment, when, with one exception, or two, the only occasions on which that coast has been visited by Europeans, were for the purposes of traffic; and it is well known, that on such adventures, the whole time of the Merchants and Masters of Vessels is occupied by objects of commerce. But, my Lords, it is to me highly gratifying, that the plain, undigested, and simple account, presented at your Lordships Bar, both on the present investigation, and on the general inquiry made some years ago by the African Merchants, agrees with the statement of Mr. Mungo Park, relative to the intended prohibited district. It is therefore but fair to presume, that had Mr. Mungo Park, or any other unprejudiced and impartial traveller, visited