ties, for he thereby broke his word with Fafil, who had done
nothing more than Socinios gave him authority to do., On
the other hand, Selaffe Barea was brother to Ayto Aylo, the
queen’s greateft counfellor and confident; equal to his brother
both in wifdom, integrity, and riches, and in the fa-
vour#o f the people, but much moFe a m b i t i o u s and defirous
o f governing, confequently more dangerous when difabln-
ged.
So c in io s , who did not believe that Sanuda was freachet»-
oufly urgin g him to his ruin, continued obftinate in rejcitin
g Fafil’s appointment, and all fe ll immediately into con-
fufion. Troops flocked in from every quarter, asmpon a,
fignal given. Ayto Engedare, in difcontent,. with a thoufand'
men fat down near Gondar on the river Mogetch; his brother
Aylo, at Emfras, about i& m iles further, with double:
that number • Ayto Gonfu, his eoufin-german, with about:
600 horfe, lay above Kofcam for the, protection o f Ozore>‘
Efther, his mother, and the Iteghe his grandmother— alii
were in arms, though upon the defenfive-
I n this fituation o f things I arrived at Gondar on the'
roth o f November, but could not- fee the queen, who had
retired into her apartment under pretence o f devotion, but rather
from d ifguft and melancholy, at feeing that every thing,,
however the contrary m igh t be intended, feemed to con-
fpire to bring about the return o f Ras Michael, the event
in the world ihe dreaded moil. I found with Ozoro Efther
the Acab Saat, Abba, Salama, who, as we have already observed,
had-excommunicated her uncle Kafmati Eihte, and
afterwards contrived his murder, and had alfo had a very
principal lhare in that o f Toas himfelf. It was he that Eafif
la id
ia id had fent to him to deiire that I might not be allowed
to proceed to the head o f the Nile, and that from" no other
reafon but a hatred to jn$e as a Frank. We bowed to each
other as two not very great friends, and he immediately
began a very dry, ill-natured, admonitory difcourfe, ad-
dreffed, for the greateft part, to Ozoro Efther, explainiifg to
her the mifchief o f fuffering Franks to remain at liberty in
the country and meddle in affairs. I interrupted- him by
a laugh, and by faying, I f it is m e ,fa th e r you mean by the
word Frahk, I have, without your advice* gone where I'in-
. tended, and returned in fafety; and asTor your country, I
will give y o u a very handfome prefent to put me fafe ly
out o f it,tin any direction you pleafe, to-morrow—-the foon-
er the better.
A t this inflant Ayto Gonfu came into his mother’s
apartment, caught the laft words w hich I had faid, and a iked
©f me, in a very angry tone o f voice, Who is he that wilh.es
you out o f the country “ I do, fincerely and heartily, faid
I, for one ; but what you laft heard was in confequence o f a
friendly piece o f advice that Abba, Salama here has been
giv ing me.”— “ Father, father, fays Coafu, turning to him
very fternly, do you not think the meafure o f your good
deeds is y e t near full? Do you not fee this place, Kafmati
Eftite’s houfe, furrounded by the troops o f my father Michael,.
and do you ftill think yourfelf in fafety, when y o u
have fo lately excommunicated both the Kang and Ras ?
Look you, fays he, turning to his mother, what dogs the
people o f this country a re ; that Pagan there, who calls
himfelf a Chriftian, did charitably recommend it to Fafil to
rob or murder Yagoube, a ftranger offending nobody, when
he got him among his Galla. in Damot:. this did not fucc
e e d .