his breach, o f promife made before the mountain o f HaTa-
mat, that he was to levy no taxes upon that province for
feven years, (but which he was now doing with the great-
eft rigour before one had expired) diicontcnted them all.
T he return o f Weiletii Michael and Kefla Yafous from
Samen, w ith about 6ooe men, had confiderably ftrength-
ened his army ; added to this, 2000 more,, who came voluntarily,
from their love to Kefla Yafous, from Temben, where
he was governor; thefe were picked men, partly mufque-
teers.; there was nothing equal to them in the army. .
G u s h o was advanced to Minziro. Powufien had his
head-quarters at Korreva, not above iixteen miles from
Gondar. The who*le plain to the lake was covered with
troops. The w eather was unfeafonably cold, and confider-
able quantities o f rain had fallen from the 23d o f February
to the 29th o f March. The rebels had begun to lay waite
Dembea, and burnt all the villages in the plain from fouth
to weft, making it like .adefe rt between Michael and Falil,
as far as they dared venture to advance towards either.
This they did to exaiperate Michael, and draw him out
from G ond a r; for they had moft o f them great property
in the town, and d id not wifti to be obliged to fight him
there. He bore this, fight very impatiently, as well as the
conftant complaints o f people flying into the town from the
depredations o f the-enemy, and ftripped o f every thing.
T h e k in g often afcended to the top o f the tower o f his
palace, the only one to which there remains a flair, and
there contemplated, with the greateft difpleafure, the burnin
g o f his rich villages in Dembea. One day while he
j was
was hèré h e fliewed ah inftarice o f -thaf quick penetration
fo r which hè was remarkable, ahd which, as a p roof Of this,
I ihall here mention.
T h e r e is a large wafte fpacc on each fide o f the palace
where the market is kcpti It had rained, and it was in the
evening almoft dfeftitu-te o f people1; there were only two
men-at a confiderable diftance, who feemed to be in clofe
converfation together, one o f them apparently very much
the worfe o f liquor,1 the other had hold o f the end o f the
fafli, or girdle, which was round the body o f the drunk
man ; it -is- a narrow web o f cotton cloth, which they wind
eight or ten times about their waift. The k in g ia-id to me,
Do yo u know, Yagoube, what thefe two men are about? I
anfwered, 'NO. I faw the drunkard untwine one turn o f his
falli, which the other was feeling and looking curioufly
at, as i f examining and doubting its goodnefs. That man,
fays thè 'king, is robbing’ the drunkard o f his falh : go down
two or three o f you who run beft, and apprehend him, but
hide yourfelves till he has Committed the theft, and feize him
as he paffes. The orders were qu ick ly obeyed ; the drunkard
unwound his fafli, by turning himfe lf round and
round, while the other feemed to be meafuring it by the
length o f his arm, from his elbow to his forefinger, and
then gathering it up. This was done very deliberately till
rt was all unwound, and the far end loOfe ; upon which
the fellow, who was meafuring, gathering it in his arms,
ran off as fail as lie could, leaving the drunkard Handing
motionlefs, apparently in great furprife and amazement.
The thief was immediately feized and brought up<to the
king, who ordered him to be thrown over the tower. At
V o r . 1V. P m y