58 Information respecting Botanical Travellers* 



native princes, and, except as regards the important want of money, 

 he is in a most favourable situation for exploring the whole territory. 

 There is nothing to endanger his safety, and we confidently antici- 

 pate that the expectations of the subscribers will be amply realized, 

 as this naturalist possesses a happy union of the mental and bodily 

 properties requisite for his object, if he is furnished with the means 

 of prolonging his stay and making excursions in the country. 



We subjoin a short extract from Schimper's account of his pro- 

 gress. He took shipping in the middle of November, 1836, at Suez, 

 for Djedda, whence, on the 19th of the following month, he pursued 

 his course by water, and early in January reached Massava, which 

 is a small island in the Red Sea, close by the coast of Abyssinia. 

 There, unfortunately, a whole month's detention took place, owing 

 to a quarrel which had just arisen between two Frenchmen, who re- 

 sided in the neighbourhood, and some of the natives, which ended 

 in one of the Abyssinians being shot. The Frenchmen fled, but the 

 minds of the people were so much exasperated against all foreigners 

 that the attempt to penetrate into the country would have been 

 highly dangerous at that juncture. It was not till the 8th of Febru- 

 ary that Schimper could venture to enter the territory of Akiko, 

 which he effected by purchasing the permission at considerable cost 

 from the Naib there, a Bedouin prince, who appears to have shown 

 himself a great extortioner. Thence his route lay to Haley, 60 

 miles further, but this being the very place where the murder was 

 committed, our poor naturalist was exposed to such perils that he 

 quitted the town as soon as he could buy leave to do so, leaving be- 

 hind six camels' loads of his property : " these," he says, " were af- 

 terwards returned to me through the favour of King Ubie, governor 

 of Tigre and king of Abyssinia, who received me in his tent and 

 showed me much kindness, thanks to the very high recommendations 

 which I carried from the Austrian General Consulate at Cairo." 

 Schimper found it necessary to give presents to king Ubie, in order 

 to ensure his continued protection : he also dined twice with him in 

 Ins tent, accompanied by the Missionary Blumhardt, of Stuttgard, 

 who is likewise settled at Adowa, with his companion in religious la- 

 bour Isenberg. The latest accounts from our botanist state, that his 

 labours, after he had succeeded in obtaining some money on our credit 

 from Mr. Dumreicher, of Alexandria, have been attended with con- 

 siderable success. It was his intention to commence in autumn a 

 journey to the highest mountain of the Semen range, whose snowy 

 peaks were in sight from Adowa, and to explore the country in all 

 directions, as the season and climate permitted. Among the plants 



