THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. 569 



■when the lafl confpirators were feized. Both thefe he fen- 

 tenccd immediately to lofe their eyes. 



These hunting-matches, fo pundually obferved, and fo 

 eagerly followed by a man already paft the flower of his 

 youth, had, in their firft appearance, nothing but found po- 

 licy. The king's title was avowedly a faulty one ; and the 

 many confpiracies that had been formed had fhewn him the 

 nobility were not all of them difpofed to bear his yoke ; 

 nothing then was more political than to keep a confiderable 

 number of them employed in field -exercifes, to be in- 

 formed of their inclinations, and to attach them to his per- 

 fon by favours. At the head of this little, but very adtive 

 army, he was ready in a moment to fall upon the difafFedl- 

 cd, before they could collect flrength fufficient for refin- 

 ance. Time, however, (hewed this was not entirely the rea- 

 fon of thefe continual intervals of abfence for fo long a time 

 in the Kolia. 



'Notwithstanding the misfortune that had befallen the 

 Trench ambafTador, M. du Roule, at Sennaar, in the reign of 

 Yafous I. and Tecla Haimanout his fon, under Baady el 

 Ahmer, there had fiill remained below, in Atbara, feme of 

 thofe mifiionarics who had courage and addrefs enough to 

 attempt the journey into Abyflinia, and they fucceeded in 

 it. Ouftas had probably been privy to their arrival in Ya- 

 ibus's time, and had, equally with him, a favourable opinion 

 of the Romifli religion. 



These miflionaries, though Yafous was now dead, were 



perfedlly well received by Oufi;as ; he had given them in 



charge to Ain Egzic, an old and loyal fcrvant of Yafous, 



Vol. II. 4C and 



