There are neither horses, dogs, sheep, cows, nor any sort of quadruped, but goats, asses, a few half-starved camels and antelopes at Dahalac, which last are very numerous. The inhabitants have no knowledge of fire-arms, and there are no dogs, nor beasts of prey in the island to kill them; they catch indeed some few of them in traps.

On our arrival at Dahalac, on the 14th, we saw swallows there, and, on the 16th, they were all gone. On our landing at Masuah, on the 19th, we saw a few; the 21st and 22d they were in great flocks; on the 2d of October they were all gone. It was the blue long-tailed swallow, with the flat head; but there was, likewise, the English martin, black, and darkish grey in the body, with a white breast.

The language at Dahalac is that of the Shepherds; Arabic too is spoken by most of them. From this island we see the high mountains of Habesh, running in an even ridge like a wall, parallel to the coast, and down to Suakem.

Before I leave Dahalac, I must observe, that, in a wretched chart, in the hands of some of the English gentlemen at Jidda, there were soundings marked all along the east-coast of Dahalac, from thirteen to thirty fathoms, within two leagues of the shore. Now, the islands I have mentioned occupy a much larger space than that; yet none of them are set down in the chart; and, where the soundings are marked thirty, forty, and even ninety fathom, all is full of shoals under water, with islands and sunken coral rocks, some of them near the surface, though the breakers do not appear upon them, partly owing to the waves being steadied by the violence of the current, and somewhat kept off by the island. This dangerous error is, probably, owing to the draughts being composed from different journals, where the pilot has had different ways of measuring his distance; some using forty-two feet to a thirty-second glass, and some twenty-eight, both of them being considered as one competent division of a degree; the distances are all too short, and the soundings, and every thing else, consequently out of their places.

Whoever has to navigate in the Abyssinian side of the channel, will do well to pass the island Dahalac on the east side, or, at least, not approach the outmost island, Wowcan, nearer than ten leagues; but, keeping about twelve leagues meridian distance west of Jibbel Teir, or near mid-channel between that and the island, they will then be out of danger; being between lat. 15° 20´ and 15° 40´, which last is the latitude, as I observed, of Saiel Noora, and which is the northern island, we saw, three leagues off Ras Antalou, the northmost cape of Dahalac.

Both at our entering into the port of Dobelew on the 14th, and our going out of it on the 17th, we found a tide running like a sluice, which we apprehended, in spite of our sails being full, would force us out of our course upon the rocks. I imagine it was then at its greatest strength, it now being near the equinoctial full moon. The channel between Terra Firma and the island being very narrow, and the influence of the sun and moon then nearly in the equator, had occasioned this unusual violence of the tide, by forcing a large column of water through so narrow a space.

On the 17th, after we had examined our vessel, and found she had received no damage, and provided water (bad as it was) for the remainder of our voyage, we sailed from Dobelew, but, the wind being contrary, we were obliged to come to an anchor, at three quarters past four o’clock, in ten fathom water, about three leagues from that port, which was to the south-west of us; the bearings and distances are as follow:—

Derghiman Kibeer,distan10miles,W. S. W.
Deleda,do.7do.W. by N.
Saiel Sezan,do.4do.S. E.
Zeteban,do.5do.N. E.
Dahalac,do.12do.S. S. W.
Dahalhalem,do.12do.N. W. by N.

On the 18th, we sailed, standing off and on, with a contrary wind at north-west, and a strong current in the same direction. At half past four in the morning we were forced to come to an anchor. There is here a very shallow and narrow passage, which I sounded myself in the boat, barely one and a half fathom, or nine feet of water, and we were obliged to wait the filling of the tide. This is called the Bogaz, which signifies, as I have before observed, the narrow and shallow passage. It is between the island Dahalac and the south point of the island of Noora, about forty fathom broad, and, on each side full of dangerous rocks. The islands then bore,

Derghiman Seguier,distant3miles,S. W.
Derghiman Kibeer,do.5do.S.
Dahalhalem,do.4do.E. N. E.
Noora,do.2do.N. E. by N.