'THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. 607 



bring my baggage from SafEeha. He gave a ftart at the 

 firft requeft, and would not by any means hear of that pro- 

 pofal ; he called it tempting God, and aflured me I fhould 

 be cut oiF by the very men that had murdered Mahomet 

 Aga ; that, having feen the cafes and things which I had 

 thrown away at Umarack, they would follow my tra6t on 

 to Saffieha, would have taken ever thing that I had left, and 

 would be now purfuing me up to the gates of AfFouan. All 

 this was extremely probable, but it was not to fuch reafon- 

 ing that I could be a convert. I had infmuated that the well- 

 fare of mankind was concerned in the recovery of thofe 

 papers ; that there was among them recipes, which, if they 

 did not totally prevent the plague, and the fmall-pox, would 

 at leall greatly lefTen their violence and duration. Tins, 

 and perhaps a more forcible infmuation, that he fhould not 

 be without a recompence for any trouble that he gave him- 

 felf on my account, brought him at lafl to confent to my 

 requeft, and we arranged our expedition accordingly. 



Our firft ftep was to fend for Idris and the Arab from 

 Daroo, for neither of them would enter the town with us, 

 for fear fome ftory fhould be trumped up againft them 

 regarding Mahomet Towafli's murder, which would not 

 have failed to have been the cafe had not we been with 

 them; but upon the Aga fending a man of ^confidence for 

 them, they both came without delay, and were lodged in 

 my houfe, under my protecftion. 



The night following, everything being ready, we fet out 

 after it was dark from the caftle, all upon dromedaries. 

 The gates of the town were open for us, and were imme- 

 diately fliut upon our paffing through them ; the Aga fear- 

 ing 



