Page:Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile - In the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772, and 1773 volume 4.djvu/573

 THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. ^45

wood about a mile from the river. This fide of the Nile, along which we travelled to-day, is quite bare, the other full of trees and corn, where are feveral large villages.

On the 2 2d, in the afternoon, we left this place, which is called Hor-Gibbaity, and paffed through feveral villages of the Macabrab, named Dow-Dowa, and three miles further came to Deniar, a town belonging to Fakir Wed Madge Doub, who is a faint of the firfl confequence among the Jaheleen. They believe that he works miracles, and can ftrike whom he pleafes with lamenefs, blindnefs, or mad- nefs ; for which reafon they ftand very much in awe of him, fo that he pafTes the caravans in fafety through this Reft of robbers, fuch as the Macabrab are, and always have been, though there are caravans who chufe rather to pnfs unfeen under the cloud of night, than truft to the venera- tion thefe Jaheleen may have of Wed Madge Doub's fan(5liry. After thefe are Eli^ib, their habitation four miles on our left at Howiah,

On the 25th, at three quarters pafl fix in the morning we left Demar, and at nine came to the Tacazze, five fliort miles diftant from Demar, and two fmall villages built with canes and plaiftered with clay, called Dubba-beah; thefe are allies of the Macabrab, as coming from Demar. They took it in their heads to believe that we were a caravan going to Mecca, in which they were confirmed by a fon of Wed Madge Doub, whom I brought with me, and it was neither my bufinefs nor mclination to undeceive them, but ,juft the contrary.

.Vol. IV. 3 Z The