James Bruce

“ No sooner does the sun pass the zenith, going southward, than the rains instantly cease; and the thick canopy of clouds, which had obscured the sky during their continuance, being removed, the sun appears in a beautiful sky of pale blue, dappled with small thin clouds, which soon after disappear, and leave the heavens of a most beautiful azure. A very few days of the intense heat then dries the ground so perfecty, that it gapes in chasms; the grass, struck at the roots by the rays, supports itself no more, but droops and becomes parched. ”

“ I found myself so much moved, and my tears came so fast, that it was in vain to endeavour to carry on a farce under such tragical appearances, "Woman, said I, I am not a Turk, nor do I make slaves, or kill children. It is your Arabs that force me to this; it was you that attacked me last night, it was you that murdered Mahomet Towash, one of your own religion, and busied in his duty. I am a stranger, seeking my own safety, but you are all murderers and thieves."—"It is true, says she, they are all murderers and liars, and my husband, not knowing, may have lied too. ”

“ To these plain interrogatories, Oustas, then struggling with death, answered, however, as plainly, and without equivocation, "Tell my king David, that true it is I have made myself king, as much as one can be that is not of the royal family; for I am but a private man, son of a subject, Kasmati Delba Yasous: all I beg of the king is to give me a little time, and let me die with sickness, as I shortly shall, without putting me to torment or pain." ”

“ Ali Bey, my father-in-law, replied he, often observed there was never such a people as the English; no other nation on earth could be compared to them, and none had so many great men in all professions by sea and land: I never understood this till now, that I see it must be so, when your king cannot find other employment for such a man as you, but sending him to perish by hunger and thirst in the sands, or to have his throat cut by the lawless barbarians of the desert. ”

“ In laying the account of these Travels at Your Majesty's feet, I humbly hope I have shewn to the world of what value the efforts of every individual of Your Majesty's subjects may be; that numbers are not always necessary to the performance of great and brilliant actions, and that no difficulties or dangers are unsurmountable to a heart warm with affection and duty to his Sovereign, jealous of the honour of his master, and devoted to the glory of his country, now, under Your Majesty's wise, merciful, and just reign, deservedly looked up to as Queen of Nations. ”

“ At half past two o'clock in the afternoon we began to ascend the mountain, through a most rocky, uneven road, if it can deserve the name, not only from its incredible steepness, but from the large holes and gullies made by the torrents, and the huge monstrous fragments of rocks which, loosened by the water, had been tumbled down into our way. It was with great difficulty we could creep up, each man carrying his knapsack and arms; but it seemed beyond the possibility of human strength to carry our baggage and instruments. Our tent, indeed, suffered nothing by its falls ”

“ The shade of the tamarind-tree, and the coolness of the air, invited us to rest on this delightful spot, though otherwise, perhaps, it was not exactly conformable to the rules of prudence, as we saw several huts and families of the Hazorta along the side of the stream, with their flocks feeding on the branches of trees and bushes, entirely neglectful of the grass they were treading under foot.
The caper-tree here grows as high as the tallest English elm; its flower is white, and its fruit, though not ripe, was fully as large as an apricot. ”

“ During the last reign, the mountain of Wechné, and those forlorn princes that lived upon it, had been, as it were, totally forgotten. Hannes having sons of an age fit to govern, and his eldest son Yasous living below with his father, no room seemed to remain for attempting a revolution, by the young candidates escaping from the mountain. This oblivion to which they were consigned, melancholy as it was, proved the best state these unhappy prisoners could have wished; for to be much known for either good or bad qualities, did always at some period become fatal to the individuals. ”

“ If Ali Bey, Shekh Hamam, or any body want a boat for public service, I must yield mine. Let us hear."
Shekh Hamam and Ali Bey! says he; why it is a fool, an idiot, and an ass; a fellow that goes begging about, and says he is a saint; but he is a natural fool, full as much knave as fool however; he is a thief, I know him to be a thief."
If he is a saint, said I, Hagi Hassan, as you are another, known to be so all the world over, I don't see why I should interfere; saint against saint is a fair battle."—"It is the Cadi, replies he, and no one else." ”

“ It is a man like you that goes far in safety, which is the end we all aim at. I feel the affront offered you more than you do, but will not have the punishment attributed to you; this affair shall turn to your honour and security, and in that light only I can pass over his insolence." "Welleta Selassé, says he, falling into a violent passion in an instant, What sort of behaviour is this my men have adopted with strangers? and my stranger, too, and in the king's palace, and the king's servant? ”

“ God forgive those who have taken upon them, very lately, to ingraft a number of new soundings upon that miserable bundle of errors, that Chart of the upper part of the Gulf from Jidda to Mocha, which has been tossed about the Red Sea these twenty years and upwards. One of these, since my return to Europe, has been sent to me new dressed like a bride, with all its original and mortal sins upon its head. I would beg leave to be understood, that there is not in the world a man more averse than I am to give offence even to a child. ”

“ You are the first ecclesiastical officer in my household, you are the third in the whole kingdom; but I have not yet learned you ever had power to curse your sovereign, or exhort his subjects to murder him. You are to be tried for this crime by the judges to-morrow, so prepare to shew in your defence, upon what precepts of Christ, or his apostles, or upon what part of the general councils, you found your title to do this.
Let my hands be unloosed, cries Salama violently; I am a priest, a servant of God; and they have power, says David, to put kings in chains, and nobles in irons. ”

“ Now the world is at an end if old women begin to die, fearing that her turn might be the next. In this manner all of you have seen Tecla Georgis die, and also several of his companions, and you have not said a word. But now it is come to the hanging of one woman, you are all alarmed, and the world is at an end. Do not then deceive yourselves, but be assured that the same cord which tied the feet of Abba Jacob, still remains sufficient to hang that sow Adera, and all those that shall be so wicked as to behave like her, to the disgrace of your sex, and their own rank and quality. ”

“ I was a physician in the city, a soldier in the field, a courtier every where, demeaning myself, as conscious that I was not unworthy of being a companion to the first of their nobility, and the king's stranger and guest, which is there a character, as it was with eastern nations of old, to which a certain sort of consideration is due. It was in vain to compare myself with them in any kind of learning, as they have none; music they have as little ”

“ Emana Christos, and those of the cavalry that had escaped the massacre, had repassed the ravine, and dispersed themselves in the front of the foot; while the victorious Marawa, like ignorant savages, pushed their victory to the very front of the king's line, Socinios, ordering all the drums of the army to beat and trumpets to found, to excite some spirit in his troops, advanced himself before any of his soldiers, and slew the first Galla within his reach with his own hands. The example and danger the king exposed himself to, raised the indignation of the troops. ”

“ What is the ground of fear that I should have, while under the king's protection, and when I conform in every shape to the laws, religion, and customs of Abyssinia? True, says Tensa Christos, I do not say you should be alarmed; whatever your faith is I would defend you myself; the Iteghé knows I always spoke well of you, but will you gratify an old man's curiosity, in telling me whether or not you really are a Frank, Catholic, or Jesuit? ”

“ First of all we gave you the Roman Catholic faith, as thinking it a good one; but many people have died fighting against it, as Julius, Gabriel, Tecla Georgis, Serca Christos, and, lastly, these rude peasants of Lasta. Now, therefore, we restore to you the faith of your ancestors; let your own priests fay their mass in their own churches; let the people have their own altars for the sacrament, and their own liturgy, and be happy. As for myself, I am now old and worn out with war and infirmities, and no longer capable of governing; I name my son Facilidas to reign in my place. ”

“ Where do you come from, Yagoube? this is not a night for white men like you to be alone; come with me, and I will carry you to your friend Engedan. My horse, replied I, found a new way for itself down the hill, and I confess I would rather be alone than with so much company: our colour by this light seems to be pretty much the same. Remember me to Engedan, I am seeking to join the king.
Immediately after, I got into the crowd: though they were now in the plain, they still kept in a line close to the foot of the mountain, as in fear of the enemy's horse. ”

“ Sir, said I, I do not know if I am brave or not; but if to see men tortured or murdered, or to live among dead bodies without concern, be courage, I have it not, nor desire to have it: war is the profession of noble minds; it is a glorious one; it is the science and occupation of kings; and many wise and many humane men have dedicated their whole life to the study of it in every country; it softens men's manners, by obliging them to society, to assist, befriend, and even save one another, though at their own risk and danger. ”

“ They had all drank abundantly, and Guebra Mascal had uttered words that I thought were in contempt of me. I believe, replied I peevishly enough, Guebra Mascal, I should suspect, from your discourse, you neither knew men nor guns; every gun of mine in the hands of my servants shall kill twice as far as yours, for my own, it is not worth my while to put a ball in it: When I compare with you, the end of a tallow-candle in my gun shall do more execution than an iron ball in the best of yours, with all the skill and experience you pretend to. ”

“ I cried, "Hagi Ismael, for God's sake forbear." Every body spoke, no body heard. The Moullah had crossed the room and sat down beside the Aga, who said to him very sternly, "What Yagoube may do, and what he may not do, in Syene, has never been confided to you, though it has been to me, and I have not thought it necessary to take your advice upon it. This man is the servant of a king. Were you to insult him in Constantinople, his complaint would cost a much greater man than you his life, even this day before sun-set. ”

“ For why should heat of climate addict a people to magic more than cold? or, why should ignorance enlarge a man's powers, so that, overleaping the bounds of common intelligence, it should extend his faculty of conversing with a new set of beings in another world? The Ethiopians, who nearly surround Abyssinia, are blacker than those of Gingiro, their country hotter, and are, like them, an indigenous people that have been, from the beginning, in the same part where they now inhabit. ”

“ After which, the Ras, judges, and soldiers of the king's household, made this proclamation—"Bacuffa, king of kings, is dead! Yasous, king of kings, liveth! Mourn for those that are dead, and rejoice with those that are alive!" ”

“ Fasil, with the horse of Foggora and Damot, and a prodigious body of the Djawi and Pagan Galla, desirous to shew his consequence, and confirm himself in his ill got government by his personal behaviour, attacked the Begemder horse in the center so irresistibly, that he not only broke through them in several places, but threw the whole body into a shameful flight. Mariam Barea himself was wounded in endeavouring to stop them, and hurried away, in spite of his inclination, crying out in great agony, "Is there not one in my army that will stay and see me die like the son of Kasmati Ayo?" ”

“ Ozoro Esther had told him part. "Come in with me, said I, and you shall see I never will leave the Ras till he forgive him." "Let him punish him, says Welleta Selaffé, he is a bad man, but don't let the Ras either kill or maim him." "Come, said I, let us go to the Ras, and he shall neither kill, maim, nor punish him, if I can help it. It is my first request; if he refuses me I will return to Jidda; come and hear."
Aylo had urged the thing home to the Ras in the proper light—that of my safety. "You are a wise man, says Michael, now perfectly cool, as soon as he saw me and Welleta Selassé. ”

“ He had been very instrumental in the murder of Kasmati Eshté, of which he vaunted, even in the palace of the queen his sister. He was a man of a pleasing countenance, short, and of a very fair complexion; indifferent, or rather averse to wine, but a monstrous glutton, nice in what he had to eat, to a degree scarcely before known in Abyssinia; a mortal enemy to all white people, whom he classed under the name of Franks, for which the Greeks, uniting their interests at favourable times, had often very nearly overset him. ”

“ Upon this the Dey, holding several passavants in his hand, answered, with great emotion, in these memorable terms, "The British government know that we can neither read nor write, no not even our own language; we are ignorant soldiers and sailors, robbers if you will, though we do not wish to rob you; but war is our trade, and we live by that only. Tell me how my cruisers are to know that all these different writings and seals are Governor Mostyn's, or Governor Johnston's, and not the Duke of Medina Sidonia's, or Barcelot's, captain of the king of Spain's cruisers?" ”