Page:A voyage to Abyssinia (Salt).djvu/211

 for many years was in the habit of spending the season of Lent on this delightful spot; but unfortunately, in 1801, his house was burnt down, through the negligence of a servant, and it has never since been rebuilt. A comfortable shed, however, was provided for us among the ruins, and we received every possible attention from the chief Aristi, or bailiff, left in charge of the estate. Here, for the first time, I was gratified by the sight of the Galla oxen, or Sanga, celebrated throughout Abyssinia for the remarkable size of their horns: three of these animals were grazing among the other cattle, in perfect health, which circumstance, together with the testimony of the natives, "that the size of the horns is in no instance occasioned by disease," completely refutes the fanciful theory given by Mr. Bruce respecting this creature. It appears by the papers annexed to the last edition of Mr. Bruce's work, that he never met with the Sanga, but that he made many attempts to procure specimens of the horns, through Yanni, a Greek, residing at Adowa. This old man very correctly speaks of them, in his letters, as being brought only by the cafilas from Antálo, and I have now ascertained, that they are sent to this country as valuable presents, by the chiefs of the Galla, whose tribes are spread to the southward of Enderta. So far then, as to the description of the horns and the purposes to which they are applied by the Abyssinians, Mr. Bruce's statements may be considered as correct; but with respect to "the disease which occasions their size, probably derived from their pasture and climate;" "the care taken of them to encourage the progress of this disease;" "the emaciation of the animal," and the "extending of the disorder to the spine of the neck, which at last becomes callous, so that it is not any longer in the power of the animal to lift its head," they all prove to be merely ingenious conjectures, thrown out by the author solely for the exercise of his own ingenuity.

I should not venture to speak so positively upon this matter, had I not indisputably ascertained the facts; for