THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. 447 



ordered the church to be plundered, and took the fuperio'r, 

 and two of the leading men of the monks, away with him 

 to Gondar; feveral of the others were killed and wounded, 

 without provocation, by the foldiers, and the reft difperfed. 

 through the country, 



Prince George had fent immediately in the morning to 

 put me in mind that I had promifed, in the king's tent at 

 Lamgue, under Emfras, to ride with him in his party when 

 in Maitfha. He commanded about two hundred and fifty 

 chofen horfe, and kept at about half a mile's diftance on the 

 right flank of the army. I told the king the prince's defira; 

 who only anfwered, dryly enough, " Not till we pais the 

 Nile ; we do not yet know the Hate of this country." Imme- 

 diately after this, he detached the horfe of Sire and Sc- 

 rawl, and commanded me with his own guards to take pof- 

 feflion of the ford where the Fit-Auraris had crofted, and to 

 fulFer no mule or horfe to pafs till their arrival. 



There were two fords propofed for our pafFage ; one op- 

 pofite to the church Bofkon Abbo, between the two rivers 

 Keiti and Aroofli, (on the weft of the Nile,) and the Koga 

 and Amlac Ohha from the eaft ; it was faid to be deep, but 

 paflable, though the bottom was of clay, and very foft ; the 

 other ford propofed was higher up, at the fecond cataract of 

 Kerr. It was thought of confequence to chufe this ford, as 

 the Kelti, (itfelf a large and deep river) joined by the Branti, 

 which comes from the weftward of Quaquera, brings, in the 

 rainy feafon, a prodigious acceihon of water to the Nile ; yet, 

 below this, the guides had advifed the Kas to pafs, and many 

 found it afterwards a found bottom, very little deeper, with 

 level ground on both fides. We arrived ibout four on the 



bank 



