Englishman who was at Musfia, with the late Boo Khaloom, but as no person knew what they were, he would gladly sell them to me, ordering his servant at the same time to produce a bundle he held under his arm. The servant took from the bundle a shirt, two pair of trowsers, and two pieces of parchment, used for sketching by Major Denham. The only other articles, Ateeko said, were a trunk, a broken sextant, and a watch; but the watch had been destroyed, as he alleged, in their ignorant eagerness to examine its structure. He then invited me to visit him the following morning, when we might fix the price of what I wished to buy, to which I assented; and he bade me good night; but, on re-considering the matter, I thought it prudent first to consult the gadado, particularly as the sultan was absent. I began to fear lest a bad construction might be put upon my visit to this mean prince, who, on the death of his father, Bello the first, had aspired to the throne, and had even had himself proclaimed sultan in Sackatoo ; from the mere circumstance of his brother Bello, the present sultan, having expressed the intention, during his father’s lifetime, of resigning the splendour of sovereignty for the tranquillity of a learned and holy fife. Ateeko even had the audacity to enter his brother’s house, preceded by drums and trumpets; and when Bello inquired the cause of the tumult, he received the first intimation of his brother’s perfidy, in the answer “ The sultan Ateeko is come.” Bello, nowise disconcerted, immediately ordered the usurper into his presence, when Ateeko pleaded, in vindication of his conduct, his brother’s proposed disinclination to reign ; to which the sultan only deigned to reply, “ Go and take off these trappings, or I will take off your he adAte eko, with characteristic abjectness of spirit, began to wring his hands, as if washing them in water, and called God and the Prophet to witness that his motives were innocent and upright; since which time, he has remained in the utmost obscurity. March 29.—I visited the gadado very early, and informed him of what had taken place last night. He told me by no means to go while the sultan was absent, as my visit at this juncture might be regarded with a very jealous eye by the people ; who would not hesitate to charge me with a plot to place prince Ateeko on the throne, by the assistance of England. The gadado undisguisedly expressed his contempt of Ateeko’s conduct, and assured me that it was entirely without the sanction of the sultan.—In the afternoon I was again seized with bilious vomiting. March 30.—Cloudy and warm. El Wordee came to-day in the name of the gadado, to ask me to sell him a silk tobe and some other articles, although it was well known to him I had nothing of the kind in my possession; and had it been otherwise, he was also aware I would not sell them. I suspected that he was manoeuvring in some way for himself; and as soon as he was gone, I went to the gadado, and asked him if he had sent any message to me, when it turned out as I conjectured. The good old gadado said he felt quite ashamed that any thing should have been asked in his name; and shaking his head, he said he feared El Wordee was---------- then checking himself, he earnestly requested me to take no further notice of it. March 81.—I was confined to the house all day with ague. During the time I had been in Sackatoo, I had, at the recommendation of both the sultan and gadado, ridden out every morning for the benefit of my health ; but instead of choosing the high grounds, I had generally taken my rides by the banks of the river, where there were many stagnant pools of water, and the land was low and swampy. To this I attributed my ague. The Arabs are likewise much afflicted with it at this season of the year. With the gadado’s advice, I took my morning rides in future on the high grounds. April 1.—Morning cool and clear. I discovered that one of my bags of cowries had been cut open ; and having good reason to suspect my servant Absalom of the theft, as he was known to have o 2
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