Page:Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile - In the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772, and 1773 volume 4.djvu/176

 ber of troops glide below unseen, along the river in the valley, take possession of the round hill, at the north ford of Mariam, and cut off our retreat to our camp at Serbraxos; the Ras immediately dispatched some single horsemen to take a view of the enemy more nearly, and report what their numbers were, and where Gusho and Ayabdar were posted, for we could distinguish the colour of the horses, and all the movements of the Begemder troops, not being much above three miles distance, yet we did not know whether they were alone, or whether one or more of the other generals were with them: we saw indeed Powussen's standards, but they were so weather-beaten and faded, that we could not distinguish their real colours, which were blue and yellow.

The king's whole army was descending into the valley, and passing over the ford of the Mariam, to the plain above where Kefla Yasous was riding to and fro with great earnestness, encouraging his troops. In a very short time the left was formed; the Ras, having given all his orders, and taken to himself the charge of the camp and the reserve, sat down, as was usual, to play at drafts with the black servants. The army was now all in the plain, when the scouts arrived, and brought word that Gusho and Ayabdar had both taken their ground, not directly in a straight line from Powussen, square with the lake, but as it were diagonally declining more to the southward, so that the most advanced, or nearest to us, were the troops of Begemder; and this was probably done, in order that, our backs being more turned to the lake, we might be easier cut off from our camp, and surrounded in the plain, between their army and the Tzana, if Powussen was so fortunate as to beat the king and the left; but this disposition of these troops was out of our