THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. 313 



The fea afforded us plenty of fifli, and I had no doubt but 

 hunger would get the better of our fears of being poilbn- 

 ed : with water we were likewife pretty well fupplied, but 

 all this was rendered ufelefs by our being deprived of lire. 

 In Ihort, though we could have killed twenty turtles a-day, 

 all we could get to make lire of, were the rotten dry roots of 

 the rue that we pulled from the clefts of the rock, which, 

 with much ado, ierved to make fire for boiling our coffee. 



The 1 ft of Auguft we ate drammock, made with cold 

 water and raw flour, mixed with butter and honey, but we 

 foon found this would not do, though I never was hungry, 

 in my life, with To much good provifion about me ; for, 

 befides the articles already fpoken of, we had two fkins of 

 wine from Loheia, and a fmall jar of brandy, which I had 

 kept exprefsly for a feaft, to drink the King's health on ar- 

 riving in his dominions, the Indian Ocean. I therefore pro- 

 pofed, that, leaving the Rais on board, myfelf and two men 

 mould crofs over to the fouth fide, to try if we could get 

 any wood in the kingdom of Adel. This, however, did not 

 pleafe my companions. We were much nearer the Arabian 

 ihore, and the Rais had obferved fevcral people on land, 

 who feemed to be fifliers. 



If the AbyfTmian more was bad by its being defert, the 

 danger of the Arabian fide was, that we fhould fall into the 

 hands of thieves. But the fear of wanting, even coffee, 

 was fo prevalent, and the repetition of the drammock dofe 

 {o difgufling, that we refolved to take a boat in the even- 

 ing, with two men armed, and fpeak to the people we had 

 feen. Here again the Rais's heart failed him. He faid 

 the inhabitants on that coaft had fire-arms as well as we, 



Vol, I. R r and 



