72 A SPORTING TRIP THROUGH ABYSSINIA chap. 



first time that one of their number had gone through the 

 reHgious ceremony with an Abyssinian. The lady, who 

 was the daughter of one of the Empress's household, was 

 said to be very light-coloured and with regular features. 

 When the bridegroom, an officer in the Imperial Russian 

 Guard, asked Menelik's permission to marry her and 

 take her to Russia, the reply was, " Certainly, if you 

 have your Emperor's leave to do so." Soon after this 

 couple had passed, M. Gattiker, the brother-in-law of 

 M. Ilg, rode up, and, after mutual salutations, gave us some 

 very interesting information about Count Leontieff's ex- 

 pedition on the Omo, in the direction of Lake Rudolf. 

 This Russian officer had, it appeared, found a great 

 drought, as the result of which the cattle were dying and 

 the crops burnt up. M. Gattiker added, that Leontieff 

 and his men boasted of having shot natives down at 

 sight for the sake of the ornaments they wore, that they 

 raided every village they came to for ivor}^ and that, if 

 the natives did not fly at their approach, they poured 

 volleys into them till they did. All this augured ill 

 for the success of our expedition. The water-supply 

 being always the great difficulty between Rudolf and 

 Fashoda, the prevalence of drought would make the 

 journey almost impossible. Game would naturally have 

 left the country, and with their cattle dead and no crops 

 to speak of, the remaining natives (even if we could find 

 them and assure them of our good intentions) would 

 have no food to sell. While we were thus talking, 

 M. Ilg and his wife rode up, with a large caravan, in- 

 cluding some fine horses covered with highly ornamented 

 trappings. He was on his way to Switzerland, having 



