THE HAUSSA STATES 241 a monarchical form of government, the sovereign power being placed in the hands of kings or princes. " Examples certainly are," he says, "to be met with where some of these cities and their monarchs obtained a decided preponderance, and assumed to themselves a degree of authority. This, however, was a kind of forced alliance which extended no further than the exaction of tribute and subsidies in times of war, without depriving the subjected cities of their government and rulers." Phoenicia, like Syria, was never one state, but from the earliest period down to the Persian monarchy, was always divided Into a number of separate cities, each with its little territory around It. Allied cities in Phoenicia were very numerous, and It is thought probable that there may have been periods when all the cities of Phoenicia formed one confederation, at the head of which at one time stood Sidon, and at a later period Tyre. Necessities of defence led more or less naturally to this system. These confederations, we are told, prevailed In all countries colonised by Phoenicians. Throughout the colonies of Phoenicia, as well as in the mother-country, a common religion formed likewise a bond of union for the cities, and strengthened and preserved the connection between them.

Each city had its own proper government, and in this respect they were perfectly Independent of each other. The chief authority was placed in the hands of kings, who in turn were to some extent controlled by high priests. The revenues of the cities depended In large measure on their trade, and the Phoenicians have lived in history as a commercial people.

The parallel between the political organisation of the Phoenician and the Haussa States seems to me to be worth Indicating, if only as another trace of the inspiration which Haussaland has unquestionably drawn from the East. There Is hardly anything which has been said of Phoenicia which would not be applicable In the present day to the cities of Haussaland. Their Independence, their cohesion, Q