TRAVELS
TO DISCOVER
THE SOURCE OF THE NILE.
BOOK VIII.
THE AUTHOR RETURNS BY SENNAAR THROUGH NUBIA AND THE GREAT DESERT—ARRIVES AT ALEXANDRIA, AND AFTER AT MARSEILLES.
CHAP. I.
Journey from Gondar to Tcherkin.
The palace of Koscam is situated upon the south side of Debra Tzai; the name signifies the Mountain of the Sun. The palace consists of a square tower of three storeys, with a flat parapet roof, or terrace, and battlements about it. The court of guard, or head-quarters of the garrison of Koscam, is kept here; immediately below this is the principal gate or entrance towards Gondar. It is surrounded by a high outer-wall, which may have above an English mile of circumference. This outer precinct is all occupied by soldiers, labourers, and out-door servants; within this is another large court inclosed by walls likewise, in this the apartments are but of one storey, appropriated to the principal officers, priests, and servants. In this also is the church, built by the present Iteghé herself, and reckoned the richest in Abyssinia. They have large crosses of gold for their processions, and kettle-drums of silver. The altar is all covered with gold plates, all the gift of their magnificent patroness. The priests, too, were all rich, till Ras Michael seized, and applied part of their revenue to his own use, and that of the state, and thereby reduced them to a condition much more agreeable to the vows of poverty, which from pride they had made, than was their former one.
The third, or inner court, is reserved for the queen's own apartments, and such of the noble women as are her attendants, are unmarried, and make up her court. Behind the palace, higher up the hill, are houses of people of quality, chiefly her own relations. Above these the mountain rises very regularly, in form of a cone, covered with herbage to the very top; on the east side is the road from Walkayt; on the west from Kuara, and Ras el Feel; that is all the low country, or north of Abyssinia, bordering upon the Shangalla, through which lies the road to Sennaar.
It was the 26th of December 1771, at one o'clock in the afternoon, that I left Gondar. I had purposed to set out early in the morning, but was detained by the importunity of my friends. The king had delayed my setting out, by several orders sent me in the evening each day; and I plainly saw there was some meaning in this, and that he was wishing to throw difficulties in the way, till some accident, or sudden emergency (never wanting in that country) should make it absolutely impossible for me to leave Abyssinia. When therefore the last message came to Koscam on the 27th, at night, I returned my respectful duty to his majesty, put him in mind of his promise, and, somewhat peevishly I believe, intreated him to leave me to my fortune; that my servants were already gone, and I was resolved to set out next morning.
In the morning early, I was surprised at the arrival of a young nobleman, lately made one of his bed-chamber, with fifty light horse. As I was satisfied that leaving Abyssinia, without parade, as privately as possible, was the only way to pass through Sennaar, and had therefore insisted upon none of my friends accompanying me, I begged to decline this escort; assigning for my reason, that, as the country between this and Ras el Feel belonged first to the Iteghé, and then to Ayto Confu, none of the inhabitants could possibly injure me in passing. It took a long time to settle this, and it was now, as I have said, one o'clock before we set out by the west side of Debra Tzai, having the mountain on our right hand. From the top of that ascent, we saw the plain and flat country below, black, and, in its appearance, one thick wood, which some authors have called lately, the Shumeta[16], or Nubian forest. But of the meaning of Shumeta I profess myself entirely ignorant; no such word occurring, as far as I know, in any language spoken in these countries.