ESSAFPS ALARM ABOUT ABYSSINIANS. 167 



mystery ; but I observed that during the skinning perform- 

 ance he frequently got up, walked away a few paces, and 

 looked anxiously around him, and when it was finished 

 he hurriedly mounted and took me away from the place 

 without ever hinting at ' backsheesh,' so much was his 

 great mind occupied with other matters. On our return 

 to camp, Essafi asked Albert to find out if I had under- 

 stood what he said to me, and then gave the following 

 explanation. 



The shots were fired by Abyssinians, and, as he was 

 afraid they would attack us, he wanted to tell me that if 

 he saw them approach, and I heard him call out 

 c haraam,' I was to fire at them, as they would be 

 robbers, and would kill us ; but if either side called out 

 1 amaan,' I was to understand that they were friends. 

 Under these circumstances, it was fortunate that the 

 extent of my knowledge of Arabic was not put to the 

 test. 



In our necessarily silent rides or walks there is not 

 much opportunity given us to pick up the language of 

 our hunters ; but having learnt the names they give to 

 the various animals, and having established a fine code 

 of signals, we manage very well to make them under- 

 stand us. 



Emanuel and Albert both said that they found it 

 at first difficult to understand their Arabic, as it was 

 very different from what they had been accustomed to, 



