110 PERSONAL NAliBATIVE. 



During all my experience in India — and in the course 

 of twelve years I have encamped in many places infested 

 by tigers and leopards— I have never taken such pre- 

 cautions as we had adopted even before this accident. 

 Throughout the progress of the expedition in Abyssinia, 

 no one ever dreamed of the necessity for especial pro- 

 tection against wild animals. 



In the morning, all attempts to track the leopard 

 failed ; we could not find a single distinct footprint. 

 The poor fellow who had been kiUed was buried, and 

 a pile of stones heaped over his grave. To have re- 

 mained at Ailat would simply have been to risk a 

 repetition of the disaster ; consequently, after expending 

 the morning in a vain attempt to discover the beast and 

 avenge the death of our poor follower, we packed up 

 -and started for Asus, a village about eight mUes to the 

 north, of very similar appearance to Ailat, and lying in 

 the same plain, which extends here for many miles along 

 the base of the lowest hills. 



The ranges in this neighbourhood rise far more gently 

 from the low country than they do near Annesley Bay. 

 The high plateau of Hamazen, equal in elevation to the 

 country around Senaf6 and Halai, is visible to the west ; 

 but the intermediate ground, instead of consisting of deep, 

 rugged ravines, is composed of rounded hUls, drained by 

 valleys of no great depth. 



We halted a day at Asus, and then went into the 

 hills again to Kusaret, on the road to Mensa, intend- 

 ing to go to a place called Tunfia, said to be much 

 oooler than Ailat, and situated at an elevation of about 



