Angrab, till it joined the Kahha, and Kafmati Guiho s camp,
were Powuffen and the reft o f the confederate a rmy; fo
that b y ¿ine o’clock the town was completely invefted, as i f
a wall had been built round it. The water being all in
poflèflion o f the enemy, centinels were by them placed a-
lo n g 'the banks o f each river, with orders to fuffer every
townfman to fill fingle jars, fuçh as one man or woman
could carry, and to break any fupernumerary jars, that
might be brought by way o f fecuring à. larger provifion*.
A ll the people o f confequence who had property in and a-
bout Gondar, who had fled to iafil and to the provinces,
from fear o f Ras Michael when he returned from Tigré,
had gone back upon Guiho’s word, each man to his houfc;
Gondar was fu ll o f men in arms. In Guiho’s and Ayabdar’s
army, and depending on them, was thé property o f all
Gondar. Ras Woodage, Guiho’s father, and brother
to Ayabdarj had been Ras in Yafous’ time, till he died,
univerfally beloved and regretted; Ay to Engedan and Ay-
lo, fons o f Kafmati Eihté, (by a fifter o f k in g Yafous) had
the property o f near one h a lf o f the town. Though Engedan
was prifoner, and Aylo had married Ras Michael’s
daughter,'they were, by intereft and inclination, united to
Guiho, and had ferved Michael only through fear, from at-,
tachment to the king, fo that Guiho and Ayabdar were the
only citizens in whom the inhabitants o f Gondar confided.
. Powuffen, and the reft, were looked upon as free-booters in
their inclinations, at leaft by the townfmen ; very little bet-
;ter than Michael, or his troops o f Tigré.
From
* F o r estinguiihing fire.
From the moment the town was invefted, and indeed in
the field, before Gtiflio had taken the lead, and though
neither Ayabdar nor Powuffen were his friends, all Gon-
dar was at his command ; and in it an army infinitely fu-
perior in number and riches, now they had got fuch. a
chieftain, to all the Confederates put together, and Michael’s
army added to them. Guiho, a man o f great underftand-
ing, born and bred in Gondar, knew this perfeitly well,
and that he alone was looked up to as the father o f his country.
He knew, moreover, that he-could not ruin Michael
fo effeétually as to lodge him. fafely in Gondar,, amidft a
multitude o f enemies, and blockade him there before he
had time for refources. He therefore detached Ayto Tes-
foS, the very day he arrived before the town, after Darien,.
Baiha o f Beleflin, whom Ras Michael had fent before him
into Woggora to effect a paffage through that province into
Tigré by fair means, promifes, and prefents. Tesfos
came up with Darien before he had fime to enter upon his
commiflion, and, having beaten and taken him prifoner,'
raifed all Woggora in arms again ft Michael, fo that n o ta ,
man could longer pafs. hetween Tigre Rnd Gondar..
No perfon from the rebel army had'yet entered'Gondar.
The k in g ’s fecretary, Azage Kyrillos, a relation o f Guiho,,
had gone to his camp the day o f his arrival. The fame
day the kettle-d^ums were brought to the brink o f Kahha,
and a proclamation made, That all foldiers o f the province
o f Tigré, or who had bore arms under, Ras Michael
fhould, on the morrow before mid-day, bring ,their arms,
offenfive and defetiiive, and deliver them on afpot fixed upon
near the church q£ Ledeta, to commiffaries appointed
for the purpofe of, receiving them ;,with further intimation
to>