■ real, and accurate knowledge of thefe wide regions began to be diffufed.
So that in f a d A merica may be laid to have, been - difcov.ered before
A lia : and of Africa our k n ow led g eco n tin u e s imperfect,, while the
neweft obfervations, inftead of diminifhing* rather increafe our . ideas
, But'.the grandeft divifion of the ancient continent is Alia, th e p a re n t
o f ififtiodivTand oF^^H^pSipn /o,ix.the iUMth, earf, and fouth* fur-
rounded by the. ocean; but on the weft divided by ah ^i^al/liri.&
amfarom ‘E u ro p e ' jto f roRgly imr
p re fled by the hand of nature. T h e Ruffian and the Turkiffi em pires^
e x tiS ifn g over large portionss<Hl£j6th c dhtiheiits mtimafify^ csm iayt
AfiaJ with Europe, ‘ M uO o f “^i.e fake -q| ije a rnefs antf 'j^EM o n ; the
chief m e r^ so f any ^ e ^ c ^ g& g ^ p n e L s r c t ^ n ^ t ^ f i a ^ i tT i c a i
o f the ancient c c ^ ^ ie n r fn to tlirec greatj partfi'f^ i flqt^g'a m o je minute
to , a m % e ^ im p om ^ l iif ttn a im ^ jw h iji,' U T ? ] i '«.dsl'ti ‘onaj," k
ethical/a&tEe^manners’o f the Aftatiq itb j ££ts [Jof; Rufl^ - m ^CYcn of
Turkey,' d ife r cdnfiderably from thofe i f ffle European jtniabijaqts* o f
thofeernpiresl "
_ As Europe is the-feat p f letters and grts^ apd<thp greateft e^grtipns 'of
human energy irfevery d epartm ent; and
the chief modern geographers, and 'th at^S% h ic li thej
intimately and deeply interefted, it is always the divifion -firft .treated^
though the orderhe- arbitrary, and Ptpjemy, who has .bpen ^ jftyled, the
father of geography, begins indeed',with E u ro p e h h t d^cr^ies Africa
before Afia *. Before'ptoceeding more minutelv tagohfider the feveral
kingdoms and ftates, cpmprifcd in this great dppfigp,ffjf< tl^ g jd b e ,
i t will he proper, in, compliance with a n ^ u ^ il* and unobjectionable
form,.to offer a brief .and general defeription of this diftinguifhe.d portion
<qf th e earth, .
T h e belt [edition o f his maps, Amft. 1730, places A f r ic a firlt.