Page:A voyage to Abyssinia (Salt).djvu/252

 was Kudoo himself, who, in a very suspicious way, pretended to turn off the whole affair as a joke, declaring that "he only did it to try the courage of a white man."

At length, on the 7th of August, Mr. Pearce was released in a great measure from the dangerous and critical situation in which he had been placed, by the arival of Yunus's dow, which had brought over Mr. Benzoni from Mocha. On its coming to an anchor in the harbour, a note was sent off by one of the boatmen, who swam on shore, to Mr. Pearce, and he immediately embarked in the same primitive mode, attended by his servants, to the dow, as Mr. Benzoni expressed a wish to see him immediately, for the purpose of ascertaining what kind of reception he might be likely to meet with from the natives. On the following day the party returned on shore accompanied by Mr. Benzoni, on a catamaran fitted out for the occasion, and a meeting took place between him and the Dola, who had prepared a hut for his accommodation. A number of goods, brought over by Mr. Benzoni, for Mr. Pearce to carry into the country, were subsequently landed by the same curious conveyance, consisting of a quantity of cast-off musquets, several pieces of damaged velvet, a few pistols, some glass wall shades, and other articles; part of which were intended as a present to the Ras, and the rest were designed to make a trial of the commerce of the country. For some time, Mr. Pearce refused to take charge of these goods, as he thought that "it would be a mere act of insanity to attempt carrying them, or any other commodities through a country inhabited by such savages as the natives through whose hands they had necessarily to pass;" but, at length, from the earnest solicitations of Mr. Benzoni, who conceived that he had conciliated the chiefs by the presents he had made them, he was reluctantly induced to wave his objection.

In consequence, a number of hides were procured, and Mr. Pearce went on board the dow to make up some of the more valuable packages, that their contents might not be ascertained by the natives. While he was thus