THE MAIN CAMP 65 



the telephone line beside the Harrar-Adis Ababa road, 

 and an hour after, to my surprise, found the main camp 

 pitched at Tadechamalca, a rather dusty place between 

 the high-road and the rocky bed of the river Kassam, 

 which at this season consisted of little more than a few 

 large pools. 



Clarke and Perks told me that, when they arrived 

 on the previous day, they had heard there was no 

 grass ahead, and that Mahomed had gone on to the 

 nearest telephone station to inform the Emperor of our 

 arrival. The others had started that morning with the 

 mules and ponies, and the hired camels carrying their 

 personal kit and the ivory intended as a present for 

 Menelik. A note from H. told me that they hoped to 

 reach the capital in two days, spend two more days 

 there, and be back inside the week, so that unless I 

 arrived in camp that day it would not be of much use 

 for me to follow them. I here found the man who 

 had been sent to recover my portmanteau, who ex- 

 cused himself for not having returned to me by saying, 

 "the old sahib," as they called H., had told him he need 

 not do so, as I should be coming in immediately. I 

 sent him back with a present for the friendly old villager. 

 After having some food, I started in pursuit of the 

 others and reached Choba at 5.30. Here I found them 

 bivouacked, the camel-men having refused to do more 

 than one long march in the day. 



Choba is perched on the top of a cliff, sloping 

 away down to the Kassam, which flows 3 miles away. 

 Here is a little collection of the usual type of circular 

 Abyssinian huts. These are some 20 feet in diameter, 



