SPORT IN ABYSSINIA. 69 



the Coptic church, so we sent to the priests to say we 

 were coming to pay them a visit. They, replied in a 

 short time, saying they were ready to receive us, and 

 met us at the gate of the enclosure which surrounds each 

 of these churches ; we then walked up a narrow path 

 to the church door. The priest and his two attendants 

 all bowed down and touched the threshold of the 

 church with their heads before entering ; it was a 

 round edifice, with the usual " extinguisher " roof. A 

 narrow passage runs round the inside of it between 

 the outer wall and the " holy of holies," the entrance 

 to which was covered by a sort of ragged curtain. 

 The outside wall of the " holy of holies " was covered 

 with rude frescoes — St. George and the Dragon, the 

 Virgin Mary, etc. The Virgin was portrayed with 

 very large eyes like saucers ; St. George was a meek- 

 looking creature, sticking his spear into the dragon, 

 but looking in an exactly opposite direction. Rude 

 frescoes, very similar in style, may be seen at the 

 parish church of Chaldon, near Caterham, in Surrey. 

 As we were coming away I saw some long stones 

 hung up by grass ropes on a pole, supported by two 

 short sticks ; I asked what they were. They said these 

 were used instead of church bells. They were musical 

 stones, in fact, which, when struck, gave out a very 

 pretty sound ; they were chosen so as to make a 

 scale of three notes. We gave the priest a dollar for 



