o f his beàfts : that none o f them had been at Gondar before
the attempt, except the alfaffin, who had formerly lived
there fome years,-but whether with Hagos, or any other,
he did not know, nor did h e ever hear him pronounce the
name o f Hagos, nor fee any ftranger, whom he did not
know', eonverfe with him : that they all three had lain the
laft night at the church o f Serbraxos: but he further declared,
that the perfon apprehended fpoke the Amharic lang
u a g e as well as his own, contrary to what the villain had
all along pre tended.
T h i s declaration, which I heard f r o m the k in g ’s fecretary,
word for word as it was given, threw all the council into
great confufion, the more fo, that, b eing gently talked to, and
food given him after his examination,at n ight the affaffinhad
again repeated what he before faid about Guiho, and that
Eafil, too, was acceffory to the attempt. And what made
this labyrinth o f lies ftill more intricate was, that it was
certainly known that Hagos, his brother, had conftantly
lived with Coque Abon Barea, in Kuara, from the time RaS
Michael had put his brother to death at Gondar. It was
intended therefore to try the effeCt o f further torture in the
morning, to make him confefs the truth. His guard, however,
having fallen afleep, or gone out o f the tent, he was
found ftrangled by the running noofe that was left round
his n e ck ; nor was any further ligh t ever thrown upon this
affair at any time after ; but it was generally believed the
attempt had been made at thé inftigation o f fome connection
o f the Iteghe, and there were fome who went fo fax
as to name Welletalfrael.
ËARiX
th e jmorning fom e prieftscame from Powuf-
fen, Ayabdar, and Guiho, to take the moft folemn oaths before
the Abuna, that they n ever had the fmalleft knowledge
O f what the affaffin had laid to their c h a rg e ; and th fy
took upon themfelves fcntence o f excommunicauoa, which
the A buna then pronounced conditionally, i f they had di-
redUy, or mdireftly, been principal or acceffory, or known
or been confulted, in any manner whatever, as to the deig
n s o f that affaffin. Several principal officers o f the rebels
moreover, who had left Gondar and gone over to Fafil, and
who were there in Guiho’s camp, came over to congratulate
w ith Ras Michael upon his efcape, fo that,, for I mo-
Jilent, one w ould have thought the whole country interefted
Ui favmg him whom all were actually in arms at that infa
n t to dellroy. What furprifed me moft o f all, probable
as the th in g ^ ig h t feem to be, not one man in the camp
from the Ras and Kin g downward, feemed to think X *
th is attempt o f the Gurague had been in any ihape the
m f t t k ; 3nd yCt’ in ° ld dmes> mui'der by treafon
muft have been very frequent in his kingdom, as appears ■
by their cuftoms preferved to this day ; no perfon, be their
ftation, connexion, or fnendlhip what it will, can offer any
one meat or drink without tailing it before them.
P r o p o s a l s o f peace followed this friendly .intercourfe
ut the condition being always that Michael ihoukl depart
1 , gh t WaS but' in ot*ler terms a propofal
to deftfoy him, thefe friendly overtures,ended in defiance
and p ro te c tio n , That to him alone was owing the
effufion o f human blood, and the ruin o f his country which
was immediately, to follow.