Page:Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile - In the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772, and 1773 volume 3.djvu/30

10 nimbly on horseback, he arrived at Arkeeko without being intercepted, though closely pursued almost to the town.

was the 19th of September 1769 when we arrived at Masuah, very much tired of the sea, and desirous to land. But, as it was evening, I thought it adviseable to sleep on board all night, that we might have a whole day (as the first is always a busy one) before us, and receive in the night any intelligence from friends, who might not choose to venture to come openly to see us in the day, at least before the determination of the Naybe had been heard concerning us.

, a man whom we had perfectly secured, and who was fully instructed in our suspicions as to the Naybe, and the manner we had resolved to behave to him, went ashore that evening; and, being himself an Abyssinian, having connections in Masuah, dispatched that same night to Adowa, capital of Tigrè, those letters which I knew were to be of the greatest importance; giving our friend Janni (a Greek, confidential servant of Michael, governor of Tigrè) advice that we were arrived, had letters of Metical Aga to the Naybe and Ras Michael; as also Greek letters to him from the Greek patriarch of Cairo, a duplicate of which I sent by the bearer. We wrote likewise to him in Greek, that we were afraid of the Naybe, and begged him to send to us instantly some man of confidence, who might protect us, or at least be a spectator of what should befal us. We, besides, instructed him to advise the court of Abyssinia, that we were friends of Metical Aga, had letters from him to the king and the Ras, and distrusted the Naybe of Masuah.

executed this commission in the instant, with all the punctuality of an honest man, who was