A LEGEND 387 



natural stone archway, with a perfectly smooth stone 

 backing it, on which a cross has been roughly cut, and 

 which appears to bar an entrance into the hill, attests 

 the truth of the story to the native mind, which is not 

 prone to scepticism. The scoffer would probably remark 

 that here, as in so many other places, the physical phe- 

 nomenon was the cause, and the legend which accounts 

 for it the effect. 



After nearly an hour's delay the old guide returned 

 and said that all the men were away at work in the 

 fields, so we moved on a little to where a group of them 

 were hoeing, but they refused to find a guide and advised 

 us to turn back and camp. I proposed going on, but 

 the guide said: "If you do, you will be outside the 

 district, and we shall be powerless to get another guide." 

 So I gave orders to camp where we were, among the 

 fields. This, however, did not suit them at all, and two 

 or three ran off to find the Shum ; meanwhile some of 

 the mules strayed into the barley and thus precipitated 

 matters. The Shum arrived, and there was a terrible 

 row, the guides, with most emphatic oaths, handing me 

 over to his care, and he, in still more forcible language, 

 refusing to have anything to do with me. At last, 

 getting weary of this wrangling, we moved on for 

 another three-quarters of an hour, and pitched camp 

 between the Sadnampar and Sabandas hills, where the 

 guides left us, declaring that their duty was at an end. 



Next morning, we started in a drizzling rain, the 

 villagers, after lirst refusing all help, finally providing a 

 couple of guides, who led us in one and a half hours to 

 a well-worn path, which they said was the Negus's road 



