62 MEMOIR OF BRUCE. 



king, who sat with his mouth covered according to 

 the Abyssinian custom, put many questions to him 

 about Jerusalem and the holy places, asked him 

 about his own country, and whether they had the 

 same moon and stars; and finally told him, that 

 instead of returning home with the Greek officers 

 who accompanied him, he was that night to enter 

 upon his new duties, by taking charge of the door 

 of the royal bed-chamber. 



Bruce and his brother Baalomaal then hurried to 

 supper ; during the repast the wine circulated so 

 freely, that one of them, nephew to Ras Michael, 

 called Guebra Mascal, who was incessantly Taunting 

 about his skill in fire-arms, got so cup-valiant that 

 he gave our traveller a kick with his foot, calling 

 him a Frank, and a liar for saying " that the end of 

 a tallow candle in his gun would do more execution 

 then an iron ball in Guebra MascaTs." This insult 

 was not to be endured ; Bruce, boiling with passion, 

 seized him by the throat, threw him violently on 

 the ground, and struck him on the face, having 

 received in the scuffle a slight wound on the crown 

 of the head as he wrested the drawn knife from 

 his assailant. By the laws of Abyssinia, the lifting 

 of a hand within the precincts of the palace is 

 punishable with death, and in a few hours the 

 offender was in irons ; but by the interposition of 

 Bruce, who related the whole occurrence, the Ras 

 was prevailed upon to pardon his kinsman and 

 overlook the whole affair. This untoward quarrel, 

 together with the death of Ins draughtsman Balu- 



