THE SOURCE OF THENILE. 223 



degree of {iifety. The goods they carry are coarfe Surat 

 blue cloaths, called marowiy; alfo myrrh and fair. This laft is 

 x\\Q. principal and moll valuable article. 



The Galla fometimes marry the Abyflinian women, but 

 the iffue of thofe marriages are incapable of all employ- 

 ment. Their form of maiTiage is the following : The bride- 

 groom, {landing before the parents of the bride, holds grafs 

 in his right hand and the dung of a cow in his left. He 

 then fays^ "May this never eilter, nor this ever come out, 

 " if he does not do what he promifes ;" that is, may the 

 grafs never enter the cow's mouth to feed it, or may flie die 

 before it is difcharged. Matrimonial vows, moreover, are 

 very fimple ; he fwcars to his bride that he fhall give her^ 

 meat and drink, while living, and bury her when dead. 



Polygamy is allowed among them, but the men are 

 commonly content with one wife. Such, indeed, is their 

 moderation in this refpstfl, that it is the women that folicit 

 the men- to increafe the number of their wives. The love 

 of their children feems to get a fpccdy afcendcncy over paf- 

 fion and pleafure, and is a noble part of the charadler of 

 thefe favages that ought not to be forgot. A young wo- 

 man, having a child or two by her hulband, intreats and 

 folicits him that he would take another wife, when fhe 

 names to him all the beautiful /girls of her acquaintance, 

 efpecially thofe that Ihe thinks likcliefl to have large fami- 

 lies. After the hufband has made his choice, fhe goes to 

 the tent of the young woman, and fits behind" it in a fup- 

 plicant pollure, till flie has excited the attention of the fa- 

 mily within. She then, with an audible voice, declares who 

 flLic is ; that Ihe is daughter of fuch a one ; that her hulband 



has 



