Page:A voyage to Abyssinia (Salt).djvu/255

 quantity of tobacco. The danger of his situation became now so apparent, that he sent one of his servants back to Madir, to communicate, if possible, with Mr. Benzoni; but, to his great distress, he discovered that the dow had departed from the coast. No alternative now remaining, the party was compelled to proceed.

During the two following days they advanced without molestation, until they reached the northern boundary of the salt-plain, where Alli Manda having arrived among his friends, pretended to treat the party with extraordinary attention, and presented the people with two kids and a quantity of milk; which, unfortunately, proved only the prelude to a second exhibition of knavery. On Mr. Pearce proposing to recommence their journey, Alli Manda with seeming good-nature assented, and gave instant orders for the camels to be prepared; shortly after, the boy, to whom he had given the order, came running back in a hurry, and whispered something in his master's ear; on which the hypocrite rose up, apparently in the most violent passion, and turning to Mr. Pearce with well-affected sorrow, told him, "that all the camels had run away:" this intelligence at once opened Mr. Pearce's eyes to the farce Alli Manda had been acting, and he now in his turn manifested a burst of rage and indignation, which the other had only dissimulated, feeling greatly disposed to close the scene at once, by shooting the rascal, who, for the instant, stood abashed before him. The safety of his attendants again restrained his just resentment, and seeing no remedy, he coolly sat himself down, made a rude kind of tent to shelter himself from the sun, and determined patiently to abide the result of Alli Manda's nefarious practises.

At length, after remaining three days on the spot, during which he was incessantly pestered by the natives for presents, Alli Manda returned to him with the news, that eight of the stray-camels had been found, urging Mr. Pearce to hire four more, without which they would not be able to proceed. Mr. Pearce resisted this fresh imposition three days longer, in the vain hope of evading it by his perseverance, but finding at last, that his stock of rice became exhausted, he was under the necessity of once more acceding to the terms proposed, and