:iSo TRAVELS TO DISCOVER 



of his beads : that none of them had been at Gondar Ije- 

 ■forc the attempt, except the alTaflinjWho had formerly hved 

 tliere fome years, but whether with Hagos, or any other, 

 he did not know, nor did he ever hear him pronounce the 

 name of Hagos, nor fee any ftranger, whom he did not 

 know, converfe with him : that they all three had lain the 

 laft night at the church of Serbraxos : but he further de- 

 clared, that the perfon apprehended fpoke the Amharic lan- 

 guage as well as his own, x:ontrary to what the villain had 

 ^11 along pretended. 



This declaration, Vv^hich I heard from the king's fecretary, 

 word for word as it was given, threw all the council into 

 great confufion, the more fo, that, being gently talked to, and 

 food given him after his examination, at night theaflallinhad 

 again repeated what he before faid about Gufho, and that 

 Fafil, too, was accefTory to the attempt. And w hat made 

 this labyrinth of lies Hill more intricate was, that it was 

 certainly known that Hagos, his brother, had conftantly 

 lived v/ith Coque Abou Barea, in Kuara, from the time Ras 

 Michael had put his brother to death at Gondar. It was 

 intended therefore to try the effedl of further torture in the 

 morning, to make him confefs the trutla. His guard, how- 

 ever, having fallen aflecp, or gone out of the tent, he was 

 found ftrangied by the running noofe that was left roimd 

 his neck ; nor was any further light ever tlirown upon this 

 affair at any time after ; but it was generally believed the 

 attempt had been made at the inftigation of fome connec- 

 tion of the 1 tcghe, and there were iome who went fo far 

 as to name Wclictalfrael 



Early 



