Musculo being the “ullica,” or superior of the wood-cutting slaves, I requested him to bring some of the people of all the country to the south of Shoa, that I might have the opportunity of examining them. Whilst he was away, however, my fever fit recurred, and I was under the agreeable influence of a warm water emetic when he returned with a large company of his charge. There were Shankalli negroes from the extreme south and west, and Gallas from the intermediate countries, red Gurague people, and the bilious-coloured, from Zingero and Enarea—all stood or sat around the door-way, and I could have wished to have transferred the whole lot to some ethnological museum, to relieve me just at that moment from taking notes. In fact it was impossible, and so ordering Walderheros to give them two ahmulahs to purchase some ale for their evening’s entertainment, I dismissed the chattering crowd until another day, when more favourable circumstances would admit of my making particular inquiries respecting their families, their nations, and their tongues, sharpened as my appetite for such information was by the clear idea of the character of the country I had already received from the dealer Ibrahim, and which I wished to confirm by actual conversations with the natives of the various countries, he had spoken of in his geography of Southern Abyssinia.
Warm water, as an emetic in the first stage of an ague, materially diminishes its violence, and although I do not recommend it altogether as a cure, I am bound to speak well of it as a palliative. At night I recommend also to a patient, situated as I was, to take doses of from twelve to fourteen grains of Dover’s powders. It is better, however, to compound this excellent febrifuge with sulphate of magnesia, rather than the usual salt, sulphate of potass, and that for reasons which are obvious.
One effect of the opium which is not sufficiently insisted upon by practisers of medicine is its specific effect upon the brain as a tonic. In small doses at bed-time I found it invaluable, as decreasing that congestion in the blood-vessels of the head which attends the paroxysms of ague, and which adds considerably to the severity of the attack. In a severe sun-stroke from which I also suffered, I found abstinence from food and small doses of opium at night relieved me of all bad symptoms in the course of three or four days. Experience has taught me these important facts, but as future travellers cannot be supposed to have my note books with them, I have recorded these hints for their benefit.
After the reaction following the hot stage of the fever, I felt quite certain a horn or two of “tedge” honey wine would not do me any injury, so sent Walderheros just before sunset to endeavour to procure me some. I also gave Musculo a salt piece to purchase fowls and ale, as my contribution towards the entertainment, Walderheros and myself were receiving in the house.
My servant soon breasted the high hill, and fortunately was just in time to find a person in authority, who, immediately he was shown my durgo order, procured a large bullock’s horn full of the sweet wine. The manufacture of tedge or honey wine is a royal monopoly, and is not publicly sold; of course there is a kind of conventional license, not exactly smuggling, by which, for double or treble its value, this beverage may be obtained. Even then the purchased article is probably the rations that have been preserved by some carefully disposed guest of the monarch, who, pouring his daily allowance of a bullock’s hornfull into a large jar, collects a stock for a day of rejoicing or for private sale. The process of brewing tedge is simple enough; cold water being poured over a few small drinking hornsfull of honey placed in a jar, is well stirred up; to this is then added a handful of sprouted barley, “biccalo,” scorched over the fire, and ground into a coarse meal, with the same quantity of the leaves of the “gaisho,” a species of Rhamneæ, not unlike the common tea plant, and an intense but transient bitter like gentian or hops. The mixture being allowed to stand for three or four days, ferments, and is generally drunk in that state, but is then rather a queer kind of muddy beverage, full of little flocculent pieces of wax. It is more agreeable, but not unlike, in appearance or character, very strong sweet-wort. To a superior kind, made for the King’s own table, besides the “biccalo” and “gaisho,” is also added a kind of berry called “kuloh,” which grows not unlike the fruit of our elderberry, and may possibly be the production of some tree belonging to that species. The jars containing this are sealed with a large cake of clay mixed with the lees of the decanted liquor. This kind of tedge is allowed to stand for several months before it is used, and is called “barilla,” from always being handed to guests in small Venetian bottles of green glass, the fracture of one of which is a grievous offence with his Shoan Majesty, and he always makes the careless party pay for it.
Two hours after sunset I was well enough to sit up and partake of my tedge, which was handed to me by Walderheros, to amuse myself with whilst he proceeded to lay out our supper. A large round table of wicker-work, the diameter of which was about three feet, and about one foot in height, was reached down from a peg, where it had been suspended against the wall, and laid upon the floor before me. In the centre of this, Eichess, the lady of the house, placed a round saucer-like dish of red earthenware, full of the cayenne pottage, which had been long preparing upon the fire, and in which were boiled to a hot fricassee the disjointed limbs of a fowl. A separate heap of three or four of the thin teff crumpets, folded four-fold, was then put for each person.
Walderheros, for a few beads, had purchased at the palace about a yard of yellow wax taper, which was merely a long rag dipped into the melted material. Having cut off and lighted a portion of this, he carried it flaring about in his left hand, as he assisted most busily in the arrangement of the supper things. Musculo, not to be idle, had seated himself upon one corner of the bed I occupied, and with the bullock’s horn upon his knee occasionally replenished my drinking horn, and as frequently assisted me in finishing its contents.
Everything at length being pronounced ready, I was requested to take my seat at the table, a boss of straw being placed for my accommodation. I, however, preferred remaining on the bed, watching their whole proceedings for want of other amusement. The company, who soon seated themselves, consisted of Eichess, Mahriam, Walderheros, Musculo, and a younger brother of the latter, named Abta Mahriam, one of the King’s gunmen, who had come in during the preparation of the meal. Musculo took the straw seat, the rest squatted around the table upon their heels, and formed altogether a good picture of an Abyssinian family.
Eichess commenced by dipping several folds of the thin bread into the cayenne pottage until well saturated with the condiment. With a quantity of this she supplied each individual, taking for that purpose the topmost layer of the heap of bread assigned to them, which, after sopping, was returned to its previous situation. The party now proceeded on their own account, tearing off portions of the under bread, and wiping it upon the moistened morsel above, by the contact giving to it the required hot relish, in a manner somewhat analogous to our putting mustard upon meat.
The “wort,” or cayenne pottage, may be termed the national dish of the Abyssinians, as that or its basis, “dillock,” is invariably eaten with their ordinary diet, the thin crumpet-like bread of teff or wheat flour. Equal parts of salt and of the red cayenne pods are well powdered and mixed together with a little pea or bean meal to make a paste. This is called “dillock,” and is made in quantities at a time, being preserved in a large gourd-shell, generally suspended from the roof. The “wort” is merely a little water added to this paste, which is then boiled over the fire, with the addition of a little fat meat and more meal, to make a kind of porridge, to which sometimes is also added several warm seeds, such as the common cress or black mustard, both of which are indigenous in Abyssinia. When unable to make the “wort,” a little of the “dillock” is placed en masse upon the bread, which the eater endeavours to make go as far as possible by slight touches of each portion of the food he puts into his mouth.