cifco continued, “ I told him Fafil was in the camp; at
-which he laughed outright, fiiid I was drunk, and wondered
you had given me the parole with a curfe upon its father
• a great catch this word, to be fure, it w ill make me
rich.” “ I am afraid, faid I, friend, Laeca Mariam hath Hated
the tru th ; at leaft I never heard o f an army cut tot
pieces fo very quietly as ours is.” While I was fpeaking, the
flambeaux at the Ras’s tent were all fuddenly lighted, w h ich
was likewife done b y Kefla Yafous, all the general officers,,
and laftly from the k in g ’ s tent. This is a kind-of torch, or
flambeau, uied bv the janizary Aga, at Cairo and Conftan-
tinople, when he patroles the ftreets; in the night-time-
it is lighted, but the fire does not appear till you w h ir l
it three or four times round your head, and then it bur s..
out into a bright flame, Michael had fixteen always on «her
miard, ever fince the attempt upon his life by the Gurague.
h i a moment all the camp was lighted, and the people,-
awakened, whilft, as nobody knew the reafon, the tumult
increafed. Francifco, with great exultation, upon feeing
the Ras’s torches lighted, cried, “ See who is drunk now g
where are your jokes ? this w ill be a fine night, and no-,
body is armed.” “ Sir, faid I, you faw Laeca Mariam and;
his guard armed; f o i s e v e r y other guard m the camp as,
much as e v e r ; and you may thank God you have my fe r -
vant’s lance and ihield, fo you are armed. I may drink
coffee, though I very much fear there may be feme embroil
on fiS t , o f which you may be yourfelf part o f the occafion..
Go, however, to the Ras’s tent, and aik if he has any orders,
fo r me.”
In fhort, we foon after found that the caufe o f all tins,
difturbance was, that fome part o f Tesfos’s men had, come
to the back o f the camp and attempted to recover the mules,
\KhlCJl3
which liad been taken from th em ; and they had fucceeded
in part, when they were difcovered, purfued, and fome o f
the mules retaken. At the fight o f armed men running up
and down the hill, an alarm fpread that nobody knew the
occafion of, till the Ras caufed the mule-keeper to be bafi-
tinado d in the morning. That day, the 26th, we received
advice, that the Edjow Galla, and fome other horfe o f the
fame difirifl, had maflacred all the people they met on their
way to and from Gondar, and that a body o f troops had
marched into the townr which threatened to fet it on fire i f
any more provifions were fent to the camp.
W e were now without food or w a te r; a great council
w as therefore held, in which it was agreed to decamp the
a8th in the night, and return to Gondar on the 29th, in the
morning. A prefent o f frefli provifions had been fent to
Ras Michael, and, in one o f the bafkets, a number o f torches.
A mefiage was alfo delivered from Guiho, “ That as
he was informed the Ras intended travelling in the night,
that therefore he had fent him ftore o f torches, left he
ffiould miftake his way to Gondar by having burnt a ll he
had by him in the laft night’s alarm about Fafil.” He declared,
moreover, in name o f all the Confederates, that it
was their refolution not to moleft him in his m a rch ; that
the whole kingdom was in alliance with them to lave the
effufion o f blood, now abfolutely unnecefiary, and to meet
and treat with him at Gondar.
Upon receipt o f this meffage, with the torches, the Ras
flew into a moft furious paffion. He called fo r Kefla Yafous
and Guebra Mafcal, and Iharplv upbraided them with
having betrayed him to his enemies* He gave orders to
E e 2 the