540 TRAVELS TO DISCOVER 



About ten o'clock I waited upon our commander in 

 chief the Jumper ; he feemed very much embarrafled at 

 the vifit, was quite naked, having only a towel about his 

 loins, and had been warning himfelf in the Kelti, to very little 

 purpofe as I thought, for he was then rubbing his arms and 

 body over with melted tallow ; his hair had been abun- 

 dantly anointed before, and a man was then finifhing his 

 head-drefs by plaiting it with fome of the long and fmall 

 guts of an ox, which I did not perceive had ever been clean- 

 ed ; and he had already put about his neck two rounds of 

 the fame, in the manner of a necklace, or rather a folitaire, 

 one end of them hanging down to the pit of his ftomach, 

 Our converfation was neither long nor interefling ; I was 

 overcome with the difagreeable fmell of blood and carrion : 

 he did not underfland one word of Amharic, Geez, or any 

 other language but Galla; he allied no queftions, and mew- 

 ed no fort of curiofity. Woldo, on the other hand, informed 

 himfelf from him of every thing he wanted to know. 



This Jumper was tall and lean, very fharp faced, with a 

 long nofe, fmall eyes and prodigious large ears ; he never 

 looked you in the face, but was rolling his eyes conftantly 

 round and round, and never fixing them upon any thing : 

 he refembled very much a lean keen greyhound ; there was 

 no fternnefs nor command in his countenance, but a cer- 

 tain look that feemed to exprefs a vacancy of mind, like 

 that of an idiot. With this he was allowed on all hands 

 to be the moll cruel, mercilefs murderer and fpoiler of all 

 the Galla. He was very active on horfeback, and very in- 

 different about food or fleep. I made him a fmall prefent, 

 which he took with great indifference ; only told Woldo, 

 that if I meant it to pay for the bull he had fent me, it 



was 



