THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. Sj 



trench, and the road winds fpirally up the hill till it ends 

 among the houfes. 



This town, with a large diftritf:, and a confiderable nurtt- 

 ber of villages, belonged formerly to the Baharnagafh, and 

 was one of the ftrong places under his command. After- 

 wards, when his power came to be weakened, and his office 

 in difr'epute by his treafonable behaviour in the war of the 

 Turks, and civil war that followed it, during the Portuguefe 

 fettlement in the reign of Socinios, the Turks poffeffing the 

 fea ports, and being often in intelligence with him, it 

 was thought proper to wink at the ufurpations of the gover- 

 nors of Tigre, who, little by little,, reduced this office to be 

 dependent en. their power.. 



Dixan, prefuming upon its ftrength, declared for inde- 

 pendence in the time the two parties were contending ; and, 

 as it was inhabited moftly by Mahometans, it was fecrctly 

 fupported by the Naybe. Michael Suhul, however, governor 

 of Tigre, in the reign of king Yafous II. inverted it with a 

 large army of horfe and foot; and, as it hadno water butwhat 

 was in the valley below, the general defect of thefe lofty 

 fituations, he furrounded the town, encamping upon the 

 edge of the valley, and inclofed all the water within his line 

 of circumvallation, making ftrong ports at every watering- 

 place, defended by fire-arms. 



He then fent to them a buffoon, or dwarf, defiring them to 

 furrender within two hours. The paffions of the inhabi- 

 tants were, however, raifed by expectations of fuccour from 

 the Naybc ; and they detefted Michael above every thing 

 that could be imagined. They, therefore, whipt the dwarf, 



and 



